Council history

The early years of Brisbane City Council around the 1930s saw the construction of our city’s iconic structures. This includes City Hall, New Farm Powerhouse and Walter Taylor Bridge.  

Council’s extensive tramway network reached peak patronage during the war years. Cross river bus services commenced in 1940, with the opening of the Story Bridge. 

After World War Two, Council was building new roads and infrastructure as demand for housing skyrocketed and new subdivisions were established. By June 1954, the number of residencies in Greater Brisbane had almost doubled from pre-World War Two numbers.

At this time, Council had 10 libraries, 5 of which included dedicated children’s libraries. In 1954 there were nearly 400,000 visits and more than one million borrowings, including 213,000 children’s items. Membership for adults was by subscription.

The late 1950s and 1960s saw an increasing spread into the suburbs and car ownership. In 1959, Council held its first kerbside collection to help clean up the city. The first suburban shopping centre, Chermside’s Drive In Shopping Centre, opened in 1957. Central city shopping continued with the rise of Queen Street.

Over the next 2 decades, cranes dotted the skyline as large-scale building and roadworks began around the inner-city.

April 1969 saw the final tram service, replaced by Council’s fleet of 700 buses. 

In 1970, planning began for a new botanic garden at Mt Coot-tha. In 1975, the gardens and Riverside Expressway opened. Council’s libraries also expanded from 18 to 23 and the mobile library service commenced. 

From the mid-1970s, there were many ‘female’ firsts, including Council’s first female bus driver, bus mechanic and grave digger.

Council prepared the city for a busy decade and transformed key destination locations, such as South Bank Parklands. In 1982, Brisbane was recognised on the world stage with the Commonwealth Games, where the city was given a “new world city” status. The euphoria continued into World Expo '88 and Olympic Games bids. 

In 1985, Council celebrated the diamond jubilee – 60 years of greater Brisbane. A key feature of the celebrations was a giant birthday cake in King George Square, complete with a junior gymnastics display.

In 1991, work commenced on the widening of Hale Street and the construction of the flyover off Coronation Drive. This was part of planning for what would become the Inner City Bypass.

1992 had several milestones, including a kerbside recycling trial. Council’s first electric bus and a new computer-controlled traffic lights control system were also launched together with special traffic monitoring cameras. 

In 1994, Council’s library system was automated. The following year, the well-known Brunswick Street Mall opened. 

In November 1996, the first fleet of 4 high-speed catamarans or CityCats were launched.

Over the next decade, master plans were developed for Teneriffe, New Farm and Fortitude Valley through community consultation. Council led development such as the Valley Malls, street and park improvements.

In 2006, the Eleanor Schonell Bridge opened, linking the University of Queensland’s St Lucia campus to Dutton Park. It was Australia’s first dedicated bus, cycle and pedestrian bridge at the time.

Brisbane has continued to grow and develop. In 2014, the updated Brisbane City Plan 2014 was rolled out. The Legacy Way tunnel was completed the following year.

In 2016, the Brisbane Metro project was first announced to keep Brisbane moving. The Brisbane Metro M2 route was trialled in October 2024, with the M2 service officially launched in January 2025. The M1 service launched in June 2025.

In December 2024, the landmark Kangaroo Point Bridge opened.

In July 2021, Brisbane was officially announced as the Host City for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games. 

Brisbane is Australia’s lifestyle capital and continues to capture global attention as one of the best places in the world to visit.

Brisbane now stands on the cusp of a transformative decade ahead – and an exciting future for the next 100 years.