SHAPING THE FUTURE
OF TRANSPORT
IN QUEEN’S ISLAND

In just over a decade Queen's Island has developed from a master plan on a page, to reality. However, development on the Queen’s Island hasn’t even reached the half-way point yet.

By 2035, we will deliver new places to live, work, visit and stay, while continuing to do so in a way that promotes sustainable travel and reduces reliance on cars. The Queen’s Island Transport Plan (QITP) will help:

  • Create a thriving destination, contributing £1.9 billion Gross Value Added to the economy and generate an estimated £502 million from social value accrued through planned development and the ongoing impacts of existing developments

  • Deliver further capital investment of £1.28bn over the 15-year period 2021 to 2035

  • Increase annual visitor numbers from 3.6m to 5.6m by 2035

To deliver this shared vision of an iconic waterfront destination, we must all do more to encourage sustainable travel. Belfast Harbour and Titanic Quarter Limited, in association with Belfast City Council and the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) have developed the draft Queen’s Island Transport Plan (QITP) to help enable sustainable development between now and 2035.

The QITP sets out new measures to change behaviours and promote smarter, healthier choices. The introduction of a series of significant interventions to encourage sustainable patterns of travel will help deliver on the shared vision of an iconic and forward-looking waterfront destination.

 
 

YOUR INPUT...

 

In December 2021 – March 2022 our early consultation sought to capture feedback from people who live, work, visit and stay in Queen’s Island on how we can develop a Transport Plan to benefit people in Belfast and beyond. This feedback, alongside assessments led by a multi-disciplinary team (RPS, Ulster University and Turley) has informed the green travel measures and transport infrastructure within our draft Queen’s Island Transport Plan (draft QITP).

In March 2023, we undertook a second round of consultation designed to ensure that the measures presented in the draft QITP would secure the buy-in of those who would be affected by them. Our consultation involved an online survey and a stakeholder workshop. Our project team is currently working through the feedback received during this consultation exercise and a full report will be produced in due course.

 

WHY DOES THIS TRANSPORT
MASTERPLAN MATTER...

 

...TO YOU

As Queen’s Island has regenerated into a thriving and vibrant new district of the city, Belfast Harbour and Titanic Quarter Limited have proven a strong track record of working in partnership to champion a culture of sustainability, delivering low carbon development. 

Building on this success we plan to go further by adopting new behaviours and measures, so that by 2035 we can deliver:

  • 2,675 new affordable and private homes, creating a new city neighbourhood for c.8,900 residents.

  • 750,000 sq ft of new employment space, and 200,000 sq ft (gross) of warehousing

  • 37,500 sq ft of new retail, 155,000 sq ft for new leisure uses and 876 new hotel bedrooms, that will enhance TQ reputation as a world-class destination

 

...TO BELFAST

As we look to the future of Queen’s Island, sustainability remains at the core of our vision, as we seek to ensure that this area around Titanic Quarter, Odyssey Pavilion and Catalyst Inc. plays its part helping to deliver the ambitious socio-economic goals of Belfast Agenda.

 

...TO QUEEN’S ISLAND’S COMMUNITY

By introducing new transport infrastructure and green travel measures we will offer commuter’s alternative transport options, Queen’s Island will continue to lead the way as an exemplar for sustainable transport innovation in the city.

Some of the physical infrastructure needed to underpin this change is already in place, such as the Glider, Belfast Bikes, the Titanic Rail Halt, the Hamilton Road (Eastern Access Road) and Airport Road upgrades. We have worked closely with Translink, Sustrans and others to incorporate the needs of public transport, cyclists and pedestrians into new and existing transport networks.

In order to unlock the development potential of Queen’s Island, and do so sustainably, we must ensure that existing public and active transport assets are maximised, and road junctions improved. The draft QITP simultaneously considers how we can ensure the local road network operates more efficiently, whilst reducing reliance on cars to complete journeys to and from other parts of the city, by utilising public transport, and active travel such as walking and cycling.

To achieve this aim and deliver on the social, environmental and economic ambitions of the area, we must all go further and exchange old thinking for new and more sustainable behaviours and transport proposals.

 

Click the buttons below to find out how we’re doing already and what will be possible if we deliver a strategic transport masterplan together.