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Project

Gold Coast Light Rail

PROJECT STATUS

Operational

Gold Coast Light Rail is the largest public transport project undertaken on the Gold Coast to date and is Queensland's first light rail network. The Gold Coast Light Rail project consists of:

Stage One - Gold Coast University Hospital to Broadbeach, operational since July 2014
Stage Two - Helensvale to Gold Coast University Hospital, operational since December 2017, and
Stage Three - Broadbeach to Burleigh Heads, operational since August 2026.

Stage Four - Burleigh Heads to Coolangatta had begun planning, but in September 2025 was cancelled by the Queensland Government due to community opposition.

The Gold Coast City Council's City Transport Strategy 2031 planning document notes further expansion of the light rail network is possible. Potential future expansions include:

Nobby Beach to Robina
Broadbeach to Nerang
Surfers to Bundall, and
Gold Coast University Hospital to Biggera Waters.

The Council has also indicated that an extension to Tweed Heads could be possible, subject to agreement by the NSW Government. The NSW Government committed $1 million towards strategic planning of light rail between Tweed Heads and Gold Coast Airport at Coolangatta during the 2019 NSW State election.

Key Dates

May 2011	Contract Award for Stage One PPP
Jul 2014	Construction Completion - Stage One
Mar 2016	Contract Awarded for Stage Two D&C
Dec 2017	Construction Completion - Stage Two
Aug 2026	Construction Completion - Stage Three

Procurement

Procuring Agency:	GoldLinQ Private Limited on behalf of Queensland Government
Procurement note:	GoldLinQ Pty Ltd has been contracted by the Queensland Government for the design, construction, operations and maintenance of the Gold Coast light rail system. Upon award of the Public Private Partnership (PPP) for Stage One, GoldLinQ comprised KDR2, Bombardier Transportation, McConnell Dowell and Plenary Group. GoldLinQ consortium undertakes the procurement of the stages under development.

PROJECT HISTORY

May 2011	GoldLinQ consortium was awarded the PPP to design, build, finance, operate and maintain Stage One.
2012	Construction of Stage One commenced.
Jul 2014	Stage One of the project became operational.
Aug 2015	Expressions of Interest opened for construction of Stage Two.
Mar 2016	CPB Contractors was announced as the preferred contractor for Stage Two.
Jul 2016	Construction on Stage Two commenced.
Dec 2017	Stage Two of the project became operational.
2019	The NSW Government committed $1 million towards strategic planning of light rail between Tweed Heads and Gold Coast Airport at Coolangatta during the 2019 NSW State election.
Oct 2020	John Holland Group was named the preferred bidder for the design and construction of Stage Three.
Sep 2025	The Queensland Government announced that Stage Four of the Gold Coast Light Rail project would not be proceeding in response to community opposition.
Aug 2026	The Gold Coast Light Rail Stage Three commenced operations.

Sector

Rail

Procurement approach

Traditional Procurement | Unconfirmed |

Location

Queensland |

Resources

Project website

GoldLinQ

Media releases

2020/03/07
2019/09/10
2018/11/05
2016/03/18
2020/08/06
2025/09/01 - Stage Four cancelled

Project pages

Stage One (GoldLinQ)
Stage Two (GoldLinQ)
City of Gold Coast
Plenary Group

Major Contract

Gold Coast Light Rail Stage Three

PROJECT STATUS

Operational

Gold Coast Light Rail is the largest public transport project undertaken on the Gold Coast to date and is Queensland's first light rail network. Stage Three will extend the existing light rail network from Broadbeach to Burleigh Heads along the Gold Coast Highway.

It will comprise:

6.7 kilometres of dual light rail track
eight new stations
five additional light rail vehicles
upgrades and expansions of the existing depot and stabling facilities
a new light rail-bus interchange at Burleigh Heads and Miami
new signalised traffic intersection upgrades
new signalised pedestrian crossings, and
upgraded pedestrian and cycle facilities.

Key Dates

Dec 2019	EOIs Open
Oct 2020	Contract Award
Mar 2022	Financial Close
2022	Construction Commencement
2026	Construction Completion

Funding contributions

Federal Government
Queensland Government
Gold Coast City Council

Procurement

Procuring Agency:	GoldLinQ Private Limited on behalf of the Queensland Government
Shortlist:	Burleigh Link JV – a joint venture between Fulton Hogan and UGL Engineering, CPBSW JV – a joint venture between CPB Contractors and Seymour Whyte, and John Holland.
Successful Tenderer:	John Holland
Procurement note:	GoldlinQ, the operator franchisee for the GCLR network, conducted the Stage Three procurement process.

PROJECT HISTORY

Jul 2017	The Queensland Government allocated $5 million towards developing a business case for Stage Three.
Apr 2018	The Queensland Government announced it would partner with the Gold Coast City Council to allocate $5 million each towards a detailed business case for Stage Three.
Nov 2018	The Federal Government committed $112 million to the project.
Dec 2018	The business case for Stage Three (previously Stage 3A) was endorsed by Building Queensland.
Jun 2019	Gold Coast City Council committed $92 million to the project.
Aug 2019	Queensland Government committed $351 million to the project. Along with the announcement, the Queensland Government called on the Federal Government to increase its $112 million commitment to $269 million.
Sep 2019	Stage Three (previously Stage 3A) business case was endorsed by Infrastructure Australia.
Nov 2019	The Federal Government committed an additional $157 million to the project, bringing the total Federal commitment to $269 million and completing the funding profile.
Dec 2019	Registrations for the EOI process were invited. Qualified registrants will be invited to attend an industry briefing and to submit an EOI.
Feb 2020	The following three proponents were shortlisted for RFP process: Burleigh Link JV: a joint venture between Fulton Hogan and UGL Engineering, CPBSW JV: a joint venture between CPB Contractors and Seymour Whyte, and John Holland Group.
Aug 2020	The Queensland Government and Gold Coast City Council indicated that a contract award for the project was imminent, with works to commence before the end of 2020.
Oct 2020	John Holland Group was selected as the preferred bidder for the design and construction of Stage Three.
May 2021	The Federal Government announced an additional $126.6 million in funding for Stage Three, bringing its total commitment to $396 million.
Jun 2021	The 2021-22 Queensland Budget confirmed the total cost of Stage Three has increased by $334 million since last year’s Budget, to $1 billion. The Budget allocated $114 million in FY2021-22 for the project.
Jul 2021	Early works commenced for the project.
Mar 2022	Amber Infrastructure reached financial close on Gold Coast Light Rail Stage Three. John Holland also formally reached contract close on the design and construction contract.
Jul 2022	Major construction commenced on the project.
Jun 2025	The 2025-26 QLD Budget announced a total cost increase of $330 million to $1.5 billion. $360 million was allocated to the project in FY2025-26.
Nov 2025	The Queensland Government announced that tram testing had commenced.
Aug 2026	The project commenced operations.

Estimated Total Cost

(2025)

Sector

Rail

Procurement approach

Traditional Procurement |

Location

Queensland | National |

Resources

Project website

Stage Three

Media releases

2018/11/05
2021/05/07
2020/08/06
2020/02/03
2019/11/20
2019/09/10 (Queensland Government)
2019/09/10 (Infrastructure Australia)
2022/04/01 (Amber Infrastructure)
2022/04/01 - Contract Award
2025/11/13 - Tram Testing Commences
2026/08/10 - Operations commenced (Marubeni)
2026/08/09 - Operations commenced (John Holland)
2026/08/09 - Operations Commenced (Palisade Investment Partners)
2026/08/07 - Operations Commenced (QLD Government)

Project pages

GoldLinQ
Queensland Government