Queensland is preparing to buy up to 630 new diesel buses, replacing the former zero-emission procurement policy and prompting questions about long-term costs, pollution and whether electric suppliers should’ve been allowed to compete.

In this Greater Brisbane update, we also cover the Riverfire ferry strike, new e-bike and e-scooter rules, the push for 50-cent Airtrain fares and three Brisbane 2032 controversies, including the decision to withhold rejected stadium designs.

We unpack falling Brisbane home values, conflicting Social Housing Register figures and four developments proposed within a small part of South Brisbane and West End. Later, we examine two very different youth-justice bills, concerns about Queensland’s new child-protection watchdog, children living outside approved care placements and allegations that community organisations fear losing funding if they criticise government policy.

We finish with the Logan West Upgrade, the Gardner Road extension, a new memorial garden in the Redlands and Akers Road Park in Lawnton.

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Greater Brisbane is being rebuilt around us, but are the developments, public spaces and homes emerging across the region taking the shape we want?

Waterfront Brisbane’s expected completion has slipped to late 2029, adding another year to a project that began with a 2027 target. Meanwhile, part of Albert Street has re-emerged as a leafy pedestrian boulevard after nearly 7 years behind construction fences, and Brisbane’s median 1-bedroom apartment price has climbed to $670,000 - just $15,000 below Sydney’s.

We also examine plans to reshape Mowbray Park and change how King George Square is operated, along with new filming rules prompted by camera-equipped smart glasses at Brisbane’s public pools. There are updates on the CityCat industrial dispute and scrutiny surrounding BMD’s early-works contract for Brisbane’s new Olympic stadium.

In the Redlands, new renders reveal what Redland City Council promises for the Birkdale Community Precinct, but an unpublished audit, undisclosed operating projections and an environmental reconsideration leave significant questions unanswered. We also look at why Logan City Council is re-examining its controversial flood maps.

Brisbane’s housing market has recorded its second consecutive monthly fall—just as Brisbane City Council approves major planning changes allowing some lots as small as 120 square metres.

A separate draft plan could bring towers of up to 30 storeys to Upper Mount Gravatt. But creating development capacity doesn’t guarantee that new homes will actually be built, or that supporting infrastructure will keep pace.

This Greater Brisbane update also examines Ballymore’s next redevelopment and its still-undisclosed cost, the federal reconsideration process affecting the Birkdale whitewater centre, rapid growth in Brisbane Metro patronage, continuing train and ferry disruption, e-scooters dumped in the Brisbane River and improving hospital figures.

There are also updates on the Cowboys’ proposed 100-pokie venue in Logan, unanswered questions about Meadowbrook housing, the Wyllie Park camping trial, The Bluey Movie and two developing stories on youth justice and mental-health care.

Moreton Bay Council says its proposed 60-site campground at Wyllie Park will provide a safer and more dignified place for people sleeping rough. But the Queensland Government says it was blindsided and has serious concerns about the plan.

In this Greater Brisbane update, we examine what the campground would provide, what it wouldn’t, and the questions still surrounding security, support services and long-term housing.

We also look at an analysis finding public transport beats driving into Brisbane from 72 suburbs - depending heavily on how long drivers need to park and walk. Plus, Brisbane and Logan’s use of AI to detect swimmers in trouble, Ipswich’s conditional $2.5 million commitment to a synthetic athletics track, an $85 million vision for Kedron Brook, Southern Thornlands’ planned 8,000 homes and a proposed five-day food market at Hamilton.

UPDATE: Economic Development Queensland’s consultation page now states that the Queensland and Australian governments have committed $544 million in catalyst infrastructure funding for Southern Thornlands. This new information differs from the funding position described in the video.

Brisbane’s Olympic precinct finally has a masterplan—but we still don’t know what the wider transformation will cost, which connections will be ready for 2032 or exactly how vehicles will reach the proposed stadium.

We also examine what happens after households are evicted from public housing, new data identifying almost 1,000 Brisbane families experiencing homelessness, another ferry stoppage and Airtrain’s multimillion-dollar court action over 50-cent fares.

At council level, Brisbane is targeting another 50,000 homes while some unit owners face rates increases far above the promoted household average. In Redland City, a confidential internal review has raised questions about investment in ageing water and wastewater infrastructure.

Plus: the Guyatt Park tree investigation, Brighton’s proposed eight-storey retirement village, developments across Greater Brisbane and five double passes to Ice Cream Man.

Brisbane has long carried a reputation as a city that goes to bed early. Queensland now has its first Nightlife Economy Action Plan—but which changes will actually happen, which have been rejected, and why could some of the most important reforms take years?

This Greater Brisbane update also examines why Queensland Rail still cannot provide a date for restoring its normal timetable, the High Court challenge to Queensland’s restrictions on two protest phrases, and the unresolved question of who should pay when Council-managed trees damage historic graves.

Plus: major road and bridge projects take shape, Brisbane increases the recycled content of its asphalt, Queensland records its first confirmed detection of the globally circulating H5 bird flu, the fire-ant eradication program expands, and new technology helps researchers protect local koalas.

Six years out from Brisbane 2032, the countdown clock is running—but key venue costs, capacities and the Games’ operating budget remain unresolved.

This Greater Brisbane update examines what is actually moving forward, before following the money through Airtrain’s accounts as calls grow for a government buyback and 50-cent airport fares. We also look at the first signs of a Brisbane property slowdown, the extraordinary decline of Karalee’s Bubble House and the historical discoveries made beneath Shorncliffe Station.

A headline figure can sound decisive—but once you look underneath it, the picture is often much more complicated.

Brisbane Airport says its latest flight-path package will reduce direct overflight for almost 140,000 residents. But that figure is not a net measure of who will experience less aircraft noise, most of the changes are not operating yet, and some will also help unlock simultaneous arrivals on both runways.

This update also examines the unresolved questions surrounding Brisbane 2032’s proposed rowing and aquatic venues, why South East Queensland’s reduced rail timetable could continue until late September, signs Brisbane’s long petrol-price cycle is returning, and whether the property market is finally beginning to lose momentum.

Further across Greater Brisbane, we look at the latest attempt to revive Wintergarden, the infrastructure challenge accompanying Flagstone and Narangba’s growth, several quieter decisions in Redland City, a small transport experiment at the Gabba, locally built electric trucks at Wacol, and why Brisbane can have a $13.1 billion night-time economy while conventional nightlife operators remain worried about the city’s future after dark.

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Every week, I bring together the stories shaping life across Greater Brisbane—from major infrastructure and housing to transport, local initiatives and the smaller changes that often fly under the radar.

This week we look at AI-powered traffic signals in Moreton Bay, new technology aimed at reducing rail delays, major revisions to the Toowong Central redevelopment, rising rents, historic buildings being incorporated into new developments, a Brisbane company helping reduce grocery bills, Sustainable aviation fuel at Brisbane Airport, and much more.

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After years of rapid growth, Brisbane's housing market is showing signs of cooling. But what does that actually mean for buyers, homeowners and the future of housing across Greater Brisbane?

This week we also look at the key themes emerging from all five council budgets, Queensland's new e-bike crackdown, progress on Queensland Rail negotiations, Moreton Bay's push for better public transport, Brisbane City Council's governance changes, the latest developments at Kurilpa Commons, water prices, and what's on my radar over the coming months.