Template:Infobox Australian City

Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the state of Queensland, Australia. As of 2005, the World Gazetteer estimated that Brisbane has a population of 1.8 million, making it the third most populous urban area in Australia, behind Sydney and Melbourne, and the largest municipality. The city's name is pronounced /ˈbɹɪz.bən/.

The area now called Brisbane was inhabited before European settlement by the Turrbul and Jagera people whose ancestors originally migrated to the region from across the Torres Strait. In 1823 an exploration party led by John Oxley explored Moreton Bay and sailed up the Brisbane River as far as Goodna, some 20 km upstream from what is now Brisbane's central business district. Brisbane was named in honour of Sir Thomas Brisbane, who was the Governor of New South Wales.

In 1824, the colonial administration of New South Wales decided to establish a penal settlement at what is now Redcliffe, on the shores of Moreton Bay. This settlement was soon closed and moved to the present-day site of Brisbane. Non-convict European settlement of the Brisbane region commenced in 1838.

Queensland was proclaimed a separate colony in June 1859 and Brisbane was chosen as its capital. However, Brisbane was not incorporated as a city until 1902. Over twenty small municipalities and shires were amalgamated to form the City of Greater Brisbane, now known simply as the City of Brisbane, in 1925.

Due to Brisbane's proximity to the South West Pacific Area theatre of the Second World War, the city played a prominent role in the defence of Australia. The city became a temporary home to thousands of Australian and American servicemen. In addition to this, the AMP Building (later called MacArthur Central) was used as the headquarters of General Douglas MacArthur, the chief of the Allied Pacific forces.

Brisbane was host city for the 1982 Commonwealth Games and the World's Fair, Expo '88. These events in the 1980s were accompanied by a scale of public expenditure, construction and diplomacy not previously seen in the state of Queensland. In the decades since, the metropolis has become Australia's fastest growing city through migration from all continents and the Australian states and territories.

Notable historical figures born in Brisbane

• Lord Atkin, judge of the English High Court

• Peter Doherty, medical researcher and Nobel Prize winner

• Bill Hayden, former Governor-General of Australia

• Sir Charles Kingsford Smith, pioneer aviator, who made the first flight across the Pacific in his aircraft, the "Southern Cross", from San Francisco, California, USA to Brisbane, Queensland, Australia in 1928. The aircraft is currently preserved and on display, in a special glass 'memorial hangar', near the International terminal at Brisbane Airport

• Emma Miller, pioneer labour activist and suffragist

• Sir William Webb, High Court of Australia Judge and President of the Military Tribunal in the Far East (which tried Japanese war criminals)

Brisbane history and timeline
Further information about Brisbane's history can be read in the article History of Brisbane, which focuses on both Brisbane's history and Brisbane's historical timeline.

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Brisbane city centre is situated in the southeast corner of Queensland, Australia, at a latitude and longitude of 27°28′S 153°02′E / 27.467°S 153.033°E / -27.467; 153.033. The city straddles the Brisbane River, and its eastern suburbs line the shores of Moreton Bay. The greater Brisbane region lies on the coastal plain east of the Great Dividing Range, although the urban area is dotted by large hills reaching up to 300 metres such as Mount Coot-tha, Mount Gravatt, Whites Hill and Stephens Mountain.

The CBD is situated in a curve of a river. Covering only 2.2 square kilometers, it is easily walkable. The central streets are named for members of the House of Hanover. Streets named after female members: — (Adelaide - Alice - Ann - Charlotte - Elizabeth - Margaret - Mary) run parallel to (Queen Street / Queen Street Mall - named in honour of Queen Victoria ) - and perpendicular to Streets named after male members (Albert - Edward - George - William). To locate streets within the city of Brisbane, see Brisbane City streets map.

Many historic sandstone buildings have been preserved, but the majority of the CBD consists of highrise buildings. As a result of the small area it covers, the density of buildings is quite high. There are several parks around the city (see Gardens and parkland in Brisbane).

Brisbane has a lower inner-city population density compared with Australia's two largest cities, Sydney and Melbourne. This is a result of most of Brisbane's housing stock consisting of detached houses, with few terrace houses in Brisbane and apartments dating before 1970 are relatively uncommon. Pre-1950 housing stock is often built in a distinctive architectural style known as a Queenslander, featuring large verandahs and built on stilts to maximise the circulation of cool air during summer months. Overall the city has a density of 379.4 people per square kilometer, which is comparable to that of Sydney. Recently the density of the city and inner city neighbourhoods has increased with the construction of apartments, with the result that the population of the central business district has doubled over the last 5 years.^[1]

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Terrain

Brisbane's terrain is dominated by the slicing of the city by the Brisbane River. Parts of the city consist of many small steep hills. Large flat areas in Brisbane are predominately river floodplain. The sheer amount of space that Brisbane has provides for larger, less dense suburbs than in most Australian urban cities.

Natural Disasters

Generally, the city is a low-lying floodplain and susceptible to severe flooding. Many suburban creeks also criss cross the city increasing the risk of localised flooding.

This was demonstrated most poignantly in the aftermath of the 1974 Brisbane flood, which occurred partly as a result of "Cyclone Wanda". Continual non-stop heavy rain had fallen during the three weeks leading up to the flood, which occurred during the Australia Day weekend (26-27 January, 1974). The flood damaged many parts of the city, especially in the suburbs of Oxley, Bulimba, Rocklea, Coorparoo and New Farm. The City Botanic gardens were also inundated, leading to a new colony of mangroves to form in the City Reach of the Brisbane River.

Like most of Queensland, Brisbane's especially humid, sub-tropical climate allows for the occasional threat of cyclones. Even so, flooding remains the predominant threat, and the focus of disaster preparations within the Brisbane City Council.

Brisbane has a subtropical climate with hot, moist summers and mild, dry winters. Brisbane is subject to high humidity, mainly from November through to April. Summer thunderstorms are common, and Brisbane frequently experiences hailstorms, cyclonic winds and more recently severe drought during the summer months. January is generally the hottest month, with an average maxium 29 °C (85 °F) and minimum of 21 °C (69 °F), while June is the coldest with temperatures between 20 °C (69°F) and 10 °C (49 °F). The highest recorded temperature in the city was 43.2 °C (109.8 °F) on the 26 January 1940, while the lowest was 2.3 °C (36.1 °F) on the 12 July 1894 and 2 July 1896. ^[2]

Brisbane has an average annual rainfall of 1146 mm (45.1 in), with January usually the wettest month with a mean rainfall of 160 mm (6.3 in). The wettest day occurred on 21 January with 465 mm (18.3 in) of rain, the highest of any of Australia's capital cities. August and September are the driest months, averaging less than 50 mm per year.

The population of the Brisbane City Council is estimated at 957,010 (as of June 2004). Brisbane has an estimated urban population of 1.8 million as of 2005. Brisbane City Council is the most populous Local Government Area in Australia. Brisbane boasts Australia's highest rate of capital city population growth. The urban population reportedly grew by 11.5% between 1999 and 2004.

The last Australian Census in 2001 showed that 1.7% of Brisbane's population are of indigenous origins, while 21.0% were born overseas. Approximately 13.5% of households speak a language other than English, with the most popular being Chinese, Vietnamese and Italian. The median age across the city is 32 years old.^[3]

Unlike most other Australian capital cities, the city of Brisbane is controlled by a single local government entity the Brisbane City Council. Brisbane City Council is the largest local government body (in terms of population and budget) in Australia.

The Council, formed by the merger of twenty smaller councils in 1925, (under the City of Brisbane Act 1924) has jurisdiction over an area of 1367 km². Its annual budget is approximatly $1.6 billion, and has an asset base of $13 billion.

The City of Brisbane is surrounded by several other local government areas including Redland Shire, Logan City, Ipswich, Pine Rivers Shire and Redcliffe.

The city of Brisbane is divided into 26 wards, each of which elects a council member as a representative. The Lord Mayor of Brisbane and Councillors are elected every four year by popular vote, in which all residents must participate. The current Lord Mayor of Brisbane is Campbell Newman, who was elected to the position in March 2004. For further information about the Brisbane City Council, see the Brisbane City Council article.

For information about the Brisbane-based Queensland State Government, and the Parliament House building, see articles Queensland State Government, the Queensland Legislative Assembly, and Parliament House in Queensland.

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Brisbane has a diverse and vibrant economy with many sectors and industries represented in the city's total production of goods and services. Both white-collar and blue-collar industries are present, with white-collar industries such as information technology, financial services, higher education and public sector administration generally concentrated in and around the central business district and recently established office parks in the inner suburbs. Brisbane has had the highest percentage growth in white-collar employment of Australia's 5 major cities since 2002. Blue-collar industries such as petroleum refining, stevedoring, paper milling, metalworking and QR railway workshops tend to be located on the lower reaches of the Brisbane River and in new industrial zones on the urban fringe. Tourism is an important part of the Brisbane economy, both in its own right and as a gateway to other areas of Queensland.

Developing the Smart State's Capital

To encourage diversification, during the late 1990s and early 2000s the Queensland state government has been developing technology and science industries in Queensland as a whole, and Brisbane in particular, as part of its "Smart State" campaign. The government has invested in several biotechnology and research facilities at several universities in Brisbane. The Institute for Molecular Bioscience at the University of Queensland (UQ) Saint Lucia Campus is a large CSIRO and Queensland state government initiative for research and innovation that is currently being emulated at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Campus at Kelvin Grove with the establishment of the Institute for Health and Biomedical Innovation (IHBI).

Brisbane based companies

Major companies based in Brisbane include Suncorp Metway, Flight Centre, Orrcon, Virgin Blue, Mincom, Austar and the Asia-Pacific operations of Red Hat. Some internet companies such as Wotif.com, Realestate.com.au, Pipe Networks and WebCentral also base their operations in the city.

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Brisbane, like many other Australian capitals, is home to many large, multi-campus universities and colleges. The universities in Brisbane include one of the prestigious Group of Eight (Australian Universities) universities as well as a range of independant teritary centres. Brisbane is covered under the jurisdiction of Queensland Education regarding public primary and high schools.

• University of Queensland

St Lucia — Ipswich — Gatton —

Herston (UQ medical school) — Brisbane CBD (UQ dental school)

• Queensland University of Technology

Gardens Point, Brisbane — Kelvin Grove — Carseldine — Caboolture

• Griffith University

Nathan — Mount Gravatt — Logan Shire — Gold Coast

Southbank (Queensland Conservatorium of Music and Queensland College of Art)

• Australian Catholic University
• Central Queensland University
• University of Canberra
• University of New South Wales
• University of Southern Queensland

Brisbane has a number of both state-subsidised TAFE colleges that provide nationally accredited Diplomas and Certificates in a number of trades, as well as specific job based skill sets and arts.

• Bremer Institute of TAFE - Campuses in Inala and Springfield.
• Brisbane North Institute of TAFE - Campuses in Brisbane city, Eagle Farm and Red Hill.
• Moreton Institute of TAFE - Campus in Brisbane city
• Southbank Institute of TAFE - Campuses in Kangaroo Point, Morningside and South Brisbane.
• Yeronga Institute - Campuses in Yeronga and Chelmer.

Independent, specific curriculum focused colleges in Brisbane.

• Australian College of Natural Medicine - Located in Fortitude Valley.
• Brisbane College of Theology - Provides university level accreditation through links with Griffith University as well as other religious based schools in Brisbane.
• Jschool: Journalism Education & Training - a journalism school or j-school offering a professionally-focused one-year Diploma of Journalism. Located in the Brisbane CBD.
• QANTM - Technology based college providing accreditations in areas including Games Design, E-commerce and Desktop Publishing. Located in the CBD.

Brisbane is home to many traditional and modern landmarks. Here are some of the most notable:

Bridges

• Story Bridge — A cantilever bridge connecting Fortitude Valley to Kangaroo Point. Constructed, like the Sydney Harbour Bridge, as a public works program during the Great Depression, the Story Bridge is the home of the River Festival and is lit up at night. Bridge climbs are becoming a major tourist attraction.

• Goodwill Bridge — A pedestrian bridge connecting the Gardens Point Campus of the Queensland University of Technology to South Bank Parklands. The bridge was named for the Goodwill Games, which were held in Brisbane in 2001.

Buildings and Museums

• AMP Place — Brisbane's first 'true' skyscraper at 130 m was built in 1978.

• Brisbane City Hall — The Brisbane City Hall, with its imposing clock tower, was the most expensive building in Australia until the completion of the Sydney Opera House in 1971. The City Hall houses the office of the Lord Mayor of Brisbane, the Council's chambers and a Museum of Brisbane history and opens its main towers to tourists during the day.

• Brisbane Stock Exchange — Designed by Harry Seidler in 1986.

• Customs House — in Queen Street, was originally used for the collection of Customs duty. The building, which dates back to colonial times, is now owned by the University of Queensland. Customs House is within easy reach of the CityCat catamaran ferry service. There is a restaurant within the building, and concerts are also held there.

• General Post Office Building — was also built during the 1800s.

• Government House, Queensland (old building) — the first Government House was built during the late 1820s and early 1830s. It was home for the first Governor of Queensland, Sir George Ferguson, and is located in the grounds of Queensland University of Technology.

• Law Courts Complex — Close to the State Law Building, the Law Courts Complex is home to the Queensland Supreme Court and the Queensland District Court.

• The Mansions — built during colonial times in 1889, it was the home of Queensland's first woman doctor. The building is of the same vintage as the Queensland Parliament House building, and is located in the same vicinity.

• Queensland Museum — part of the Queensland Cultural Centre at South Bank.

• Queensland Parliament House, in George Street, Brisbane, is the site of Queensland State Parliament. It was built in the 1880s during colonial times.

• State Law Building — With its post-modern design, the State Law Building is known locally as "Gotham Tower" (see Gotham City) or the "Batman Building" because of its distinctive top. The refurbishment was designed by a local architect from Conrad & Gargett.

• State Library Building (old building), in William Street, Brisbane — former home of the State Library of Queensland

• Treasury Building (old building) — For 70 years the seat of power for the Queensland Government Treasury, this Edwardian sandstone building at the top of the George Street government precinct is now the Conrad Treasury Casino.

• The Windmill — was built by convicts for grinding wheat during the 1820s. It is Brisbane's oldest building.

• Riverside Centre — A modern, heritage-listed building which hosts weekend markets and is also the location of several well-known restaurants, as well as the

• The Skyneedle — Originally built for World Expo 88, the Skyneedle stands 88m from the ground and during special events beams light skywards with a visibility of more than 60 km.

• Brisbane Exhibition Ground — Operated by the RNA (Royal National Agricultural and Industrial Association of Queensland), the showgrounds are home to the annual Royal Queensland Show, better known as the Ekka, which attracts more than 600,000 visitors every year.

• Brisbane Tramway Museum, which displays examples of Brisbane's former public transport vehicles and associated remnants of the tram system.

• Government House, Queensland — located in the Brisbane suburb of Bardon.

• Old Museum, in the Brisbane suburb of Bowen Hills — former home of the Queensland Museum and the Queensland Youth Orchestras.

• Newstead House — Built for Queensland's first Governor on the Breakfast Creek bank of the Brisbane River, Newstead House has been the elegant private home of an army captain, a slave trader, an opera singer and a newspaper baron, and is now open to the public.

Popular tourist destinations within Brisbane

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Popular with tourists are the South Bank Parklands, which are located on the site of World Expo '88. The South Bank Parklands is famous for firework displays that attract thousands of spectators. Tourists and locals alike frequent the beautiful bougainvillea lined Riverside Walkway at all times of the year and flock to the area during music and arts festivals.

Other popular areas for tourism and recreation include the Roma Street Parkland, the Brisbane City Botanic Gardens (a colonial era botanic gardens founded in 1855 in the Brisbane CBD), and the Mount Coot-tha state forest, which includes a lookout over the city, as well as Brisbane Botanic Gardens (contemporary botanical gardens), the Sir Thomas Brisbane Planetarium in Toowong, and the rockclimbing cliffs at Kangaroo Point, at the southern approach to the Story Bridge.

More than 27km of award winning bicycle pathways line both sides of the river east and west of the city centre.

Other popular Brisbane tourist destinations include Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary at Fig Tree Pocket (which was founded in 1927 and is the oldest and largest Koala sanctuary in the world), and Brisbane Forest Park at The Gap.

See also Gardens and parkland in Brisbane.

Annual events

• Ekka (the Royal Queensland Show) is held in August, at the Brisbane Exhibition Ground (also known as the RNA Showgrounds)

• River Festival is held in September at South Bank Parklands and surrounding areas, and also Victoria Bridge. "River Festival" includes "Riverfire", a fireworks display which is nationally famous, and which often includes a "dump and burn" by an F-111 Jet Fighter Aircraft.

Brisbane has a strong cultural identity in both theatre and music.

Performing arts venues

• Brisbane Arts Theatre — Petrie Terrace, Brisbane
• Cement Box Theatre — the University of Queensland
• Metro Arts Theatre — Edward Street, Brisbane
• Queensland Performing Arts Centre — Lyric Theatre, Concert Hall, Cremorne Theatre, Playhouse — South Bank
• Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University — South Bank
• QUT Gardens Theatre — Queensland University of Technology Gardens Point Campus, George Street, Brisbane
• Amphitheatre — Roma Street Parkland
• Roundhouse Theatre — the QUT Creative Industries Precinct, Kelvin Grove
• Schonell Theatre — the University of Queensland

Performing arts companies

• Grin and Tonic Theatre Company — Ignatius Musical Society (Toowong) — LaBoite Theatre Company, — CIP (Kelvin Grove) —
  Opera Musicale — Opera Queensland — Operatif — Queensland Ballet — Queensland Conservatorium of Music (Griffith University) — Queensland Musical Society — The Queensland Orchestra — Queensland Theatre Company — Queensland University Musical Society — Queensland Youth Orchestras

Notable Brisbane people in theatre and performing arts

• B — Ray Barrett (actor) — Jeffrey Black (opera singer)
• C — Diane Cilento (actress) — Jamie Clark (musician) — Leah Cotterell (jazz singer) — Barry Creyton (actor)
• D — Diana Doherty (musician)
• E — Clarence Evans (playwright/producer)
• F — Janet Fielding (actress)
• G — Lisa Gasteen (opera singer) — Elise Goodrich (performance artist)
• K — Nigel Kimber (musician)
• L — Carol LLoyd (singer)
• N — Tyronne Noonan (cabaret performer)
• O — Barry Otto (actor) — Miranda Otto (actress)
• R — Bruce Redman (film producer) — Margaret Roadknight (singer) — Geoffrey Rush (actor);
• S — John Stanton (actor)
• T — Leonard Teale (actor) — Geraldine Turner (actress)
• Y — Rebecca Yates (ballerina)

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Brisbane also has a strong cultural identity in art, sculpture, literature and poetry.

Special sculptures were commissioned for World Expo '88.

Many of the Expo sculptures still remain around Brisbane city, including at King George Square.

Art galleries, colleges, art museums and sculptures

• Gallery of Modern Art — South Bank
• Queensland Art Gallery — South Bank
• Queensland College of Art — Griffith University
• QUT Art Museum — (Gardens Point campus)
• Brisbane City Roos — Kangaroo sculptures in George Street

Notable Brisbane people in the creative arts

• A — Thea Astley (novelist)
• E — Nick Earls (novelist)
• L — Hugh Lunn (author)
• M — David Malouf (novelist and poet) — Daphne Mayo (sculptor)
• T — Christopher Trotter (sculptor)
• W — Kath Walker (poet) — Judith Wright (poet)
• Y — Mina Young (painter and photographer)

Brisbane is the birthplace of some of Australia's best-known bands and contemporary musicians.

In 1976 Brisbane's first FM radio station began broadcasting from a studio at the University of Queensland Student Union. 4ZZ (later 4ZZZ) became a catalyst for the development of original music in the city. Bands such as The Saints, The Go-Betweens, The Riptides and The Laughing Clowns established an ecosystem for alternative music that continues to flourish.

Brisbane's nightlife today is a thriving and varied mix of pubs, clubs, themed bars, and various other venues. There are two main areas of interest: The "city" (CBD) and the "valley" (Fortitude Valley). While the city typically consists of venues catering to those with a more traditional taste in music or atmosphere, the Valley typically offers a drastically different, more cosmopolitan selection of places.

The Queen Street Mall in the CBD offers nightclubs and bars, as well as the Conrad Treasury casino. Nightclubs in the city include Strike Bowling, a nightclub with bowling lanes, and Jade Buddha, a lounge bar with delicate tunes and a surprising range of merging age groups. More conventional bars include The Victory, and the Adrenaline Sports Bar.

Fortitude Valley (popularly known as 'the Valley'), was zoned as an entertainment precinct in 2004, and is home to pubs, bars and nightclubs. Notable clubs include the Family nightclub, the biggest dance club in Southeast Queensland, The Beat and The Depot. The Elephant and Wheelbarrow and Dooleys are Irish/British pubs while the Royal George and Belushi's are modern Australian pubs.

RSL clubs and local pubs around the suburbs occasionally have live acts.

Live Music

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All kinds of music can be found in Brisbane's thriving live scene, from Dance to Rock, Pop and Hip hop. Most venues are found in the Valley and surrounding areas since the the popular Mary St and Festival Hall city venues were closed. Notable venues in the Valley include The Troubador, The Arena, The Tivoli, The Empire Hotel and The Press Club.

Most major concerts are held in the Brisbane Entertainment Centre in Boondall. Other major events (including raves) are hosted at the RNA Showgrounds due to its massive size and under-utilization when not hosting the Ekka.

Brisbane's live music scene has long been supported by independent record stores such as Rocking Horse Records and Skinny's Music.

Notable Brisbane bands and Brisbane-born musicians

• B — The Bee Gees — Boxcar — Butterfingers
• C — Custard
• G — GANGgajang — Gina G — George — The Go-Betweens — The Grates
• H — Darren Hayes — The Hipshooters
• M — Sophie Monk — Pete Murray
• P — Tex Perkins — Powderfinger
• R — Regurgitator — The Riptides
• S — The Saints — Savage Garden — The Sunnyboys
• T — Joel Turner
• U — Keith Urban
• V — The Veronicas
• X — Xero

• Event website
• Wissie.org - Brisbane & Gold Coast Entertainment Info Wiki
• ourbrisbane.com - Brisbane events and entertainment info

Major shopping areas in Brisbane and Brisbane suburbs consist of shopping centres and malls — large multi-leveled buildings containing hundreds if not thousands of individual stores.

Brisbane and Fortitude Valley shops and restaurants

Major shopping precincts exist throughout the CBD, in the Queen Street Mall and in Fortitude Valley. Most of these stores are usually the central or headquarter stores of their other franchises in the city.

The Queen Street Mall offers a range of restaurants, souvenirs and award winning shopping centres, including: Wintergarden, Broadway on the Mall, Queens Plaza and the Myer Centre.

In Fortitude Valley (which is popularly known as 'the Valley'), the Brunswick Street mall hosts bustling pedestrian markets on Saturday and Sunday mornings, and is home to restaurants and cafés, and to Brisbane's Chinatown precinct.

For information about shops and restaurants in the Brisbane suburbs, see the Brisbane section of the List of shopping centres in Australia.

Sports grounds, stadiums and teams

• Suncorp Stadium (Originally Lang Park) — Suncorp Stadium in Milton is the spiritual home of Rugby League in Australia, and is the home of Queensland Rugby League, the Brisbane Broncos, the Queensland Roar FC, the Queensland Reds and the annual State of Origin rugby league clash between Queensland (the Maroons) and New South Wales (the Blues). Lang Park became Suncorp Stadium in 1994 after Suncorp became naming rights sponsor. Teams based there include: Queensland Roar FC (Football (soccer)), Brisbane Broncos (Rugby League), Queensland Reds (Rugby Union). Individual players and officials face stiff fines if they accidentally publicly refer to the venue by its former name.

• The Gabba — (officially called the Brisbane Cricket Ground) hosts domestic and international cricket matches, as well as Australian rules football. Home of the Queensland Bulls (Cricket) and the Brisbane Lions (Australian rules football), The Gabba hosted football matches for the Sydney 2000 Olympics and was the site of the famous tied test of 1960 between the West Indies and Australia. Teams based there include: Queensland Bulls (Cricket) and Brisbane Lions (Australian rules football).

• Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre (QSAC) — Formerly known as QE2 Stadium and later ANZ Stadium, at Nathan the third largest sporting arena in Queensland. The stadium was built as a temporary venue for the 1982 Commonwealth Games but endured as home for the Brisbane Broncos rugby league team during the 1990s and hosted the 2001 Goodwill Games.

• Brisbane Exhibition Ground — (also known as the RNA Showgrounds) is the home of the Brisbane Ekka that takes place every August. It has also been the home to Cricket, Rugby League, and Australian Rules Football.

• Ballymore — is the home of Rugby in Brisbane, and is the former home of the Queensland Reds, who play in the Tooheys New Super 14 Rugby Union series. It also plays host to Brisbane Premier Rugby games, and was once home to the Brisbane Strikers soccer club.

• Perry Park — is the spiritual home of Soccer in Brisbane, and is home to the Brisbane Strikers, who play in the local Brisbane competition after being unsuccessful in their A-League bid.

• Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre — team based there: Brisbane Bullets (Basketball)

• Sleeman Sports Centre — team based there: Queensland Firebirds (Netball)

Other sports grounds

• Brisbane sports and recreational parks and reserves

Brisbane sports events

• 1982 Commonwealth Games are held in Brisbane
• 1992, 1993 Brisbane Broncos won consecutive New South Wales Rugby League premierships
• 1997,1998 Brisbane Broncos won consecutive Super League (Australia) and NRL premierships
• 2000 Brisbane Broncos win the NRL premiership
• 2000 Olympic soccer matches during Sydney Olympics
• 2001 Goodwill Games are held in Brisbane
• 2001-2003 Brisbane Lions won consecutive Australian Football League premierships
• 2003 Hosted matches during Rugby Union World Cup, including semi-final
• Annual Brisbane Cricket Ground (Gabba) Test Cricket match
• Annual State of Origin Rugby League football series at Suncorp Stadium

• Besides spectator sport and sports teams, Brisbane hosts several mass participation events each year, including the Bridge to Brisbane fun run each year in August and the Brisbane Marathon in April each year.

Brisbane sports highlights

• 1960 - the Brisbane Cricket Ground the Test Match between Australia and the West Indies ended with a tie on 14 December, 1960.
  It was the first Tied Test in the history of cricket.
• 1980 - The first ever State of Origin game, which was held at Lang Park, with the Maroons winning 20-10.
• 1982 - the 1982 Commonwealth Games, which were held in Brisbane, were very successful. The Duke of Edinburgh opened the Commonwealth Games, and Queen Elizabeth II closed them. The mascot for the Commonwealth Games was Matilda, a giant-sized kangaroo who winked at the spectators.
• 1997 - the Brisbane Broncos won the Super League premiership at ANZ Stadium in front of more than 58,000 people. It was the first
  (and to this day, only) Australia-wide Rugby League Grand Final held outside of Sydney.

Notable Brisbane-born sportspeople

• H — Matthew Hayden (cricketer) — Ian Healy (cricketer) — Jodie Henry (swimmer)
• K — Michael Kasprowicz (cricketer)
• L — Wally Lewis (rugby league player)
• M — Robbie McEwen (professional bicycle racer) — Alice Mills (swimmer)
• 0 — Susie O'Neill (swimmer)
• P — Kieren Perkins (swimmer)
• R — Giaan Rooney (swimmer)
• S — Jessicah Schipper (swimmer)

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Public transport

Brisbane has one of the most comprehensive and reliable public transport systems in Australia, with high frequency routes in the inner city coupled with improving service levels in outer suburb destinations. The services have become increasingly popular due to rising fuel costs. The system consists of a suburban rail network, bus services and ferries. The rail services are operated by CityTrain, a division of Queensland Rail, while the bus system, the high speed CityCat and City-Ferry are both operated by Brisbane Transport, a business arm of the Brisbane City Council. Buses that serve the regional areas outside the City of Brisbane boundaries are operated by private sector companies contracted by the State Government.

The CBD, like most cities, serves as the central hub for all public transport services; with Queen Street Bus Station for Buses, Roma Street and Central stations for trains, and North Quay for Ferries. Various smaller transfer hubs, such as the Cultural Centre Busway Station are located at various strategically placed points of public importance and public interest in the city, including the Queensland Cultural Centre, South Bank Parklands and shopping malls which are usually within dense population centres.

The large CityTrain urban rail network, consists of 7 suburban lines and covers mostly the west, north and east sides of the city. It also provides an AirTrain service from most northern suburbs directly to the airport terminal. While stretching as far as both coasts, the southern part of the network does not enter through any major suburbs or districts. This is mainly due to the placing of major freeways such as the South-East Freeway, Queensland and the M1 motorway, Queensland, as well as lack of early planning on southern Brisbane growth. To this day, the easiest way to reach most of the Southern area via public transport is via bus.

To deliver workable public transport to areas outside of the metropolitan train lines, the Busways were established to deliver unrestricted bus travel throughout the southern (and to a lesser note the northern) corridors of the city by providing roads where only buses are permitted. Two busways have opened in recent years in Brisbane — the South-East Busway and the Inner-Northern Busway, with two more busways and new rail lines planned. Public transport has been the only infrastructure that Brisbane has typically always improved and maintained, especially as it struggles to keep up with rapid population growth.

An integrated ticketing system for public transport services has recently been established under the name TransLink. TransLink is a State Government agency responsible for ticketing and the co-ordination of public transport services in the South-East Queensland region. Under the TransLink system, passengers pay common fares on all modes of public transport. TransLink tickets are accepted on both government- and privately-owned buses, trains and ferries. In 2006, Translink will also be introducing a smartcard-based ticketing system, which is currently being trialled in Redcliffe, a city located 30 minutes to the north of Brisbane.

In October, 2005, a 6 month probational period began on 24-hour public transport services, under the name of NightLink.

Brisbane Bus, CityCat, City-Ferry and CityTrain information

• TransInfo and Brisbane Transport Bus Services website and Bus services
• CityCat and City-Ferry services and CityTrain

Taxis

Two major cab companies operate in Brisbane; Yellow Cabs, and Black and White Cabs. Both companies offer same rate service, as well as pickup from anywhere in the metropolitan and regional areas of Brisbane via bookings or permanent cab ranks. As well as standard taxis, both provide Maxi-Taxis, designed to fit up to 10 people as well disability access. Most cabs now are also fitted with Satellite Navigation and EFTPOS debit/credit card facilities.

Challenges to the transport system

Brisbane's massive population growth has seen great strains placed upon South East Queensland's transport system. The State Government and Brisbane City Council have responded with infrastructure plans and increased funding for transportation projects, such as the South-East Queensland Infrastructure Plan and Program. Most of the focus has been placed on expanding current road infrastructure, particularly tunnels and bypasses, as well as continually improving the public transport system.

Transport history

Further information can be read in Brisbane Transport, which includes the history of Brisbane's public transport from colonial times, as well as information about Brisbane's bus and ferry services.

Since Brisbane was never designed to accommodate a large urban population, its road system was planned specifically around large and spacious suburban areas. Densely packed suburbs now rely on several main road corridors that split through and between these areas and provide the only link to the CBD and other areas of Brisbane. Logan Road, Moggill Road, Old Cleveland Road and [[Gympie Road, Queensland|]] are but a few of these multi-lane corridors that come out of the CBD and snake through the suburbs. As a result, traffic congestion has become a major problem and it was out of the promise of a new road system, nicknamed TransApex that current Lord Mayor Campbell Newman won his election.

Bypasses such as the very successful Inner City Bypass and the future Airport Link help to circulate traffic away from the city areas and main roads via limited-access roads above the ground that have higher speed limits and exits to particular suburbs. Existing high speed cross-suburban motorways such as the Western Freeway/Centenary Highway and Beaudesert Motorway provide alternative routes to main roads and connect up to main highways and other arterial roads.

In total, the twisting Brisbane River is crossed by seven road bridges, two railway bridges and two pedestrian bridges. Route signage is achieved by means of a system of Metroads, consisting of the most important arterial roads in metropolitan Brisbane including most motorways, and less important State Routes. Multiple freeways connect Brisbane to other cities, including the Pacific Motorway and M1, the Bruce Highway and the Ipswich Motorway, all of which are part of the National Highway System. Brisbane is approximately 1000kms away from Sydney, the closest major capital city.

Brisbane Airport, owned by the Brisbane Airport Corporation, and located north-east of the city is the biggest airport in the state and third busiest in the country. Separated into Domestic and International terminals, it has frequent passenger and freight flights, providing direct flights to every capital city in Australia as well as most destinations in Asia, Oceania, and the Middle East. The second largest airline in Australia, Virgin Blue Airlines, is headquartered in Brisbane, while other major airlines Qantas and Jetstar both fly from Brisbane Airport.

Considered world class, the Airport won Best Privatised Airport of 2005 by the International Air Transport Association IATA. A $280 million dollar upgrade is in the planning stages at the International Terminal while federal government approval has been sought for a second runway to enable the airport to keep up with the rise in passenger numbers.

The AirTrain provides a link between the Domestic and International Terminals at Brisbane Airport and the city, taking approximately 20 minutes to travel from Central Railway Station to the Brisbane Airport stations.

A $58 million dollar Direct Factory Outlet (DFO) shopping mall has opened at Brisbane Airport providing discount shopping within a kilometre of the terminals. The location of the shopping mall, on the only road leading to Brisbane Airport, has been a source of irritation to both airline passengers and discount shoppers alike, with complaints that the resultant heavy traffic, being shared between the two, is causing major traffic delays. This has been especially detrimental for airline passengers, because the traffic delays have caused some passengers to be late checking in and consequently causing them to miss their flights.

Archerfield Airport is located in Brisbane's southern suburbs and used only by light aircraft and general aviation. Other local airports can be found at Caboolture and Redcliffe.

The Port of Brisbane is located on the lower reaches of the Brisbane River and on Fisherman's Island at the rivers mouth, and is the 3rd most important port in Australia for value of goods ^[4]. Container freight, sugar, grain, coal and bulk liquids are the major exports. Most of the port facilities are less than three decades old and some are built on reclaimed mangroves and wetlands. Historically, Brisbane's port facilities were located as far upstream as the central business district.

The economic region near the river mouth including the port, airport and refineries is known as the Australia TradeCoast. It is anticipated that 8% or more of Brisbane's jobs will be located here in coming years.

File:Mount-Coot-tha-and-TV-Towers.jpg

Brisbane is served by eight broadcast television stations:

• ABC
• ABC2(digital)
• Seven
• Nine
• Ten
• SBS
• An SBS worldwide newsreports digital channel
• Briz 31 (a community television station)

The television channels broadcast from the top of Mount Coot-tha.

In addition to the government and commercial stations above, Brisbane has the following community stations: 4ZZZ, BayFM 100.3, multicultural 4EB and the radio station for the print handicapped 4RPH, 98.9 FM for the Best Country (it was the first indigenous radio station in a capital city), 101FM (Logan), 4OUR (Caboolture), 997FM (Redcliffe), Switch 1197 AM, 96.5 FM Family, 4MBS Classic FM 103.7 and 4TAB (betting).

SBS also broadcasts its national radio network to Brisbane. WorldAudio National Radio 2 transmits on 1620AM (City) and 1629AM (North). Radio Brisvaani provides a voice to the Indian community with Hindi language service on 1701AM.

Brisbane has only one daily newspaper, The Courier-Mail, and one Sunday paper, The Sunday Mail, both owned by News Corporation. Brisbane also receives the national daily, The Australian, and the Weekend Australian, in addition to Fairfax papers Australian Financial Review, the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

There are also numerous community and suburban newspapers throughout the metropolitan and regional areas, many of which are produced by Quest Newspapers (which is also owned by News Corporation.)

Tongue-in-cheek nicknames for the city include Brissie, Brizzy, Bris Vegas and Brisneyland.

In the Doctor Who story "Castrovalva", the regenerated Doctor requires total sensory deprivation to stabilise his regeneration. His companion Tegan (played by Janet Fielding, who was born and raised in the city) suggests that they go to Brisbane. Another Doctor Who story, "The Talons of Weng-Chiang", features a mass-murderer called Magnus Greel - also known as the Butcher of Brisbane.

The 1999 blockbuster movie, The Matrix was allegedly to have been filmed in Brisbane but the Wachowski brothers decided it was too clean, even though they loved it.

1. ^ Population Growth Australian Bureau of Statistics Accessed October 14, 2005.
2. ^ ABM Australian Bureau of Meteorology. Accessed October 14, 2005.
3. ^ Demographic Statistics Australian Bureau of Statistics
4. ^[5][6] Australian Department of Transport and Regional Services