More travellers and rising pressure on Brisbane's domestic and international airports has prompted the Queensland government to prioritise public transport amid a beleaguered contract preventing buses accessing the terminals.
Federal Transport Minister Catherine King has written to Brisbane Airport Corporation, Brisbane City Council and the state government outlining her concerns about meeting demand in the lead up to the 2032 Brisbane Olympics.
A monopoly on public transport options to and from the terminals exists with the Brisbane Airtrain, following a deal signed in 1998.
The 8.5-kilometre line was completed in 2001 for about $200 million.
The service is now owned by Liverpool-based Universities Superannuation Scheme that purchased the entity in 2013.
Queensland Rail will take over the contract in 2036 but it potentially leaves travellers with either rideshare and taxi options or driving as the only forms of travel outside the Airtrain, including between now and the Games.
Ms King says car parking alone will not be sufficient to cope with increasing demand at the airport and it is essential public transport, particularly the rail line, operates effectively to meet demand.
"I encourage you and all interested parties to continue to work to ensure appropriate public transport access to Brisbane Airport," she told the Courier Mail.
Queensland Deputy Premier Cameron Dick said the state would welcome investment from their federal counterparts to improve public transport to the terminals.
He said the government needed to re-visit the current deal and subsequent contractual issues that fall from it.
"We have to look at all aspects of that contract to see what we can do to give value to taxpayers for their investment," he said on Sunday.
"We welcome this intervention by the federal transport minister.
"We know the federal government's putting in about two and a half billion dollars to build a rail line to Melbourne Airport, we're not talking anything like that in Queensland but that's a significant move by the federal government to signal they want to support improved public transport outcomes."
Mr Dick said the director-general of the state's transport portfolio had given high priority to improving public transport to the terminals.
Brisbane Airport had welcomed nearly 20 million passengers across it's two terminals in the year to November 2023.
That number will increase to 30 million when Brisbane hosts the Olympics and Paralympics Games in 2032.
