Buses pull into $56m new home

BRISBANE now has the first of four new state-of-the-art bus depots that are planned for the city, with a $56 million facility in the south-west suburb of Willawong that has the capacity for 200 buses and 400 employees.
The depot was designed and engineered by Arup, working closely with architect City Design to provide a sustainable, structurally sound, attractive and functional depot.

Arup senior structural engineer Stephen Davies says an 8000sqm rigid concrete movement is included to facilitate at least 200 bus movements a day.

“The structural solution for the poor ground conditions will ensure that the site will be fully operational with minimal maintenance for the full design life of the facility,” says Davies.

The structure also includes an integrated water system that will save 22 million litres a year, stormwater from the nearby wetlands will be used for underground irrigation and treated roof water will be used for washing buses.

The depot opening comes as the Brisbane City Council unveiled its 1000th active bus. Brisbane continues to hold the second largest fleet in the country behind Sydney’s State Transit Authority.