How council plans to avoid a repeat of Riverfire crowd crush

The number of buses and trains needed to get thousands of spectators home after last year’s Riverfire spectacular was vastly underestimated, creating frightening crowd crushes, authorities have conceded.

Last year, Brisbane City Council allowed for 7800 extra passenger trips for the annual air force and fireworks show that kicks off the Brisbane Festival.

This year, it’s catering for an extra 36,500 bus trips in the 90 minutes after the display.

“That’s almost five times the additional capacity provided last year,” council transport chair Andrew Wines said.

“Record crowds embraced public transport last year and we’ve used that experience to deliver an even bigger and stronger transport plan for 2026.”

Riverfire spectators described dangerous crowd crushes and hours-long delays as they tried to travel home on public transport after last year’s show , particularly at the Cultural Centre busway station.

Others abandoned their efforts to get into the city for the event due to a stream of already-full buses and trains.

More than 500,000 people are expected to converge on vantage points in the CBD, South Bank, Kangaroo Point, Howard Smith Wharves and Wilson Outlook to watch Riverfire on September 5.

But managing the huge South Bank crowd poses a unique challenge. Unlike other major events, Riverfire-goers tend to head home immediately after the fireworks, leading to a massive rush to nearby bus and train stations.

New Year’s Eve fireworks also attract large crowds, but a significant proportion leave after the 9pm display, while others stay for the midnight show then head to bars and nightclubs.

The council said it would have dedicated shuttle buses from major shopping centres and transport hubs – similar to the arrangements around NRL games at Suncorp Stadium – as well as better signage, and 60 additional customer service staff, security guards and bus marshals.

Queensland Rail also said it would schedule 80 more train services than last year – 38 before the fireworks and 42 afterwards.

“Moving an estimated 90,000 revellers through a small number of stations will create queues during a short-lived peak, but we are well-versed in managing large crowds,” Queensland Rail’s Neil Backer said.

“Our specialist mobile customer support team will deploy to South Bank, South Brisbane and Roma Street stations to support more than 75 station employees managing safe customer boarding, while 24 authorised officers will also be on hand to assist crowds at key locations.”