Plans for a new pedestrian and cycle bridge between Toowong and West End are moving forward, with Brisbane City Council and the Federal Government each committing $1 million to update the project’s business case. The Toowong to West End Bridge would link West End and the Kurilpa peninsula with Toowong railway station, the Regatta ferry terminal and the Bicentennial Bikeway.
The bridge was first named in 2019 as one of the crossings in what is now the Bridges for Brisbane program, and Council unveiled concept designs in 2021 alongside a proposed St Lucia crossing. It is now the third and final bridge in the program, following the Kangaroo Point and Breakfast Creek bridges.
Kurilpa and Toowong are both growing fast and a bridge between them will provide a much-needed connection and help to ease congestion.
Adrian Schrinner, Lord Mayor of Brisbane
The case for the bridge has changed considerably since the original business case in 2021. More than 6,000 new homes are now in the pipeline across Kurilpa alone, and by 2046 almost 100,000 people are expected to live in the suburbs around the crossing, more than double the population assumed five years ago. Toowong’s population has grown by 20 per cent over the past decade.
Council is also pointing to how the newest bridges have performed. The Kangaroo Point Bridge now records almost 10,000 trips a day and more than five million trips to date, against an original forecast of 6,400 daily crossings by 2036. The 2021 modelling for Toowong to West End forecast 3,900 trips a day by 2031 and 5,300 by 2041, numbers Council expects to be well exceeded.
The updated business case will use new population and employment forecasts, travel demand and lessons from the city’s newest river crossings. It will also look at construction methods, materials, design options and delivery phases to work out what funding the bridge would need. Delivery would still require support from other levels of government.
For the first time, West End residents would be able to directly access the Bicentennial Bikeway, as well as destinations like the University of Queensland and Regatta Hotel.
Ryan Murphy, Infrastructure Chair, Brisbane City Council
Alongside the bridge, Council is investigating better public transport on Montague Road, including bus priority at key intersections that would connect with the new crossing. Preliminary modelling suggests measures such as bus jump intersection priority could improve travel times and reliability with minimal effect on general traffic. The blue CityGlider, which runs through West End, carried more than 4.5 million passengers last year.
Suburban Futures managing director Ross Elliot argues the business case should also look at the bridge as a place in its own right, with somewhere to stop, sit in the shade and take in the view up the river.
Why not leverage the enormous place-making opportunity and create something very special and unique on the bridge itself, be it a café, restaurant, or public open space that encourages people to sit in comfort and in shade and enjoy our wonderful Brisbane climate and beautiful Brisbane River views.
Ross Elliot, Managing Director, Suburban Futures
Bicycle Queensland says the link has been a priority for the city’s riders for decades, noting earlier research that found one in every twelve West End workers with a central place of employment already commutes by bike. The design community has also offered ideas, including Mode’s Bougainvillea Bridge concept, published last year.
A bridge from West End across to Toowong has been a priority for Brisbane’s bicycle community for many decades now. We’re thrilled to be closer to realising that vision.
Dr Matthew Burke, CEO, Bicycle Queensland
Project Rundown
| Development Parameter | Proposed Development |
|---|---|
| Project | Toowong to West End Bridge (pedestrian and cycle bridge) |
| Location | Brisbane River, between Toowong and West End (Kurilpa peninsula) |
| Program | Bridges for Brisbane (third and final bridge) |
| Status | Updated business case under way |
| Business Case Funding | $2 million: $1 million from Brisbane City Council and $1 million from the Australian Government |
| Connections | Toowong railway station, Regatta ferry terminal, Bicentennial Bikeway, West End and the Kurilpa peninsula |
| Original Business Case | 2021; forecast 3,900 trips a day by 2031 and 5,300 by 2041 |
| Catchment Population | Almost 100,000 residents in surrounding suburbs by 2046 |
| Related Works | Bus priority investigations on Montague Road, including bus jump intersection priority |
| Delivery | Construction would need support from other levels of government |
| Proponent | Brisbane City Council |
Concept images supplied by Brisbane City Council; designs are indicative only and subject to the updated business case.
now have a ferry terminal built at the West End area around Rogers Street…take the pressure off Montague Road
A ferry at West End (which has been promised for years)- well before 2009) would have been a much cheaper option and less disruption to residents at the proposed West End landing. Montague Rd is already a nightmare as is Ferry Rd and Forbes St. Cannot handle the traffic at the moment. Loss of the beautiful parkland in West End is an absolute disgrace. Residents who are directly impacted have not had consultation with Council. Our concerns have been totally ignored. If this is to go ahead consultation with those directly affected to lessen the impact on our homes would have been appreciated.
I was a big fan of the previous concept bridge (by Mode.) It got two things right: it separated cyclists from pedestrians AND it attempted to add greenery on the bridge itself.
No matter what final shape this bridge becomes, it’s got to have greenery. Deep planters to support mature trees, with heights tall enough to provide natural shading. There’s been numerous articles proposing retrofitting Victoria Bridge with trees/ arbour extension, so why not leapfrog these ideas and incorporate them into this bridge.
A green bridge will help make the bridge more of a ‘destination’ than a simple river crossing; a nice bookend to the western edge of the inner-city. Something for the tourists to scooter/ cycle out to as part of a city sightseeing loop.