Question by Councillor Seal Chong Wah

Question by Councillor Seal Chong Wah, to the Lord Mayor as part of Brisbane City Council Council Meeting, Tues 9th September 2025

I rise to speak on Brisbane’s Ferry Network Presentation.

On the 9th of December, 2025, this LNP administration cut 51 daily services to the Milton Ferry terminal with no consultation and no notice given to the community nor my office - as is standard with this LNP administration.

This 40% cut in ferry services to Milton, came just 4 months after the introduction of 50 cent fares in August last year. 

We know from TMR data, repeated in this Transport Committee presentation, that ferries experienced a dramatic increase in patronage with the 50 cent fare introduction, with figures up 42.8%.

Yet, just 4 months later, the LNP administration decided to slash 51 ferry services from Milton. 

This isn’t just a story of the LNP’s failure of forward-planning, but it reflects their prioritisation of wealthy corporations over everyday residents.

The LNP say that this reduction at the Milton terminal was due to accessibility improvements at Mowbray Park terminal and that terminal coming back on line. 

But this isn’t the real story. 

The real reason this LNP administration cut services was because the Council opened the Howard Smith Wharves ferry terminal in May 2024, after announcing plans for a new terminal 5 years ago.

Howard Smith Wharves is Council’s public-private partnership which saw some of our most valuable heritage-listed public open space handed over to private enterprise for overpriced beers, luxury hotels and massive corporate profits.

Council had at least 5 years to prepare the ferry network for the Howard Smith Wharves terminal to open. 

Did they purchase the additional ferries required? 

No! 

They made a political choice to prioritise the profits of Howard Smith Wharves investors by instead cutting services for Milton residents trying to get to work. 

In justifying the massive cut in Milton services, the Administration claimed that Milton and Apollo Bay ferry terminals had the lowest patronage data.  

We now know that wasn’t correct.  

It was as usual LNP propaganda. 

This Transport Committee presentation makes clear that demand for CityCat ferries remains strong in Brisbane.

Concerningly, the raw data shows that in the 6 months after the LNP cut Milton’s ferry services by 40%, there was a 53% reduction in patronage from the terminal.  

So the administration's claim that these reductions in ferry services wouldn’t have an impact is clearly propaganda. 

A 53% drop in patronage means that people were using the previous services. 

It means those ferry services that were cut must have previously had high patronage, unlike the LNP administration's propaganda.

The Mayor said today, if the numbers climb, the LNP will resume services there. 

Lord Mayor, through the Chair, this is an Oxymoron. How can patronage increase when you cut services by 40%. 

Does the Lord Mayor think the residents of Milton are stupid?

Our Lord Mayor has set what he knows is an impossible task, while the LNP manipulates and discriminates - in order to support their corporate friends.

Milton’s population is growing rapidly as the LNP drives a surge in density. 

We need to be increasing public transport services to the area, and also investing in active transport - not cutting ferry services.

By making ferries less accessible, Council is committing inner-city residents to an overreliance on private motor vehicles into the future.

At the same time this council introduces expensive parking meters to 10 streets in riverside Milton, because of increasing traffic and parking demand.

As I said in my question to the Lord Mayor, how can this LNP council both introduce more metered parking in the riverside high density Milton area - to manage the surge in vehicles and parking demand, while at the same time cut critical public transport ferry services -  to the exact same area?

Well - my residents in Milton know this is plain stupid and irrational and I will be speaking to many of my residents at a street meeting this week.

I have also started an online council e.petition highlighting this LNP administration's inability to manage our cities transport network.

See also: https://www.sealchongwah.com/milton_ferry_services