Brisbane, why don’t you cross the river? (www.brisbanetimes.com.au)

submitted 6 days ago by Zagorath@aussie.zone to c/brisbane@aussie.zone

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[-] trk@aussie.zone 1 points 5 days ago

I honestly find it hard to believe the sort of losers old mate is mentioning in the article actually exist.

You get a laugh out of Americans who refuse to travel because their country is "so diverse". Can only imagine the wilful ignorance of someone who's life is condensed to a few blocks radius. Brisbane isn't big enough to stick to one side of it.

[-] Zagorath@aussie.zone 3 points 4 days ago

Eh, I've lived in 3 countries and travelled in over 20. I've not explored very much of Australia, but I've been down the coast as far as Canberra, plus Melbourne, and a handful of spots further west and north than the Sunshine Coast.

I still have spent precious little time within the greater Brisbane region, on the southside. There's just not a lot that one side has to offer that the other does not, and the vast majority of what is unique on one side is within 2 km of the river. Rectangular sports stadium in Milton, round one in Woolloongabba. CBD northside, Southbank southside. There's a big shopping centre in the north at Chermside, and south at Garden City; as well as west at Indro and east at Carindale. An Ikea an North Lakes and Logan. I've probably driven or trained through the southside, to the Gold Coast or beyond, more often than I've gone to a destination within it.

Brisbane is definitely big enough to stick to one side of it, as far as one city is ever big enough to stay within.

[-] Tau@aussie.zone 1 points 5 days ago

An obvious geographical divider does seem to increase the natural inclination of many people to stay within their known area unless given a specific reason to venture out. Canberra has a similar effect with lake Burley Griffin and people being less inclined to venture southside from northside (and vice versa).

[-] whybird@aus.social 1 points 5 days ago

@Zagorath Historically, it’s racism. I literally heard a Northsider say that “ewww”, the Southside is “where all the Aboriginals live”*. That person was elderly already then, and it was decades ago, but I do think that’s where the inertia comes from.

* (Conversely, Northside might have been perceived as where all the racist, or at least snooty, people live.)

[-] Zagorath@aussie.zone 2 points 5 days ago

I'm not convinced that's true. I'm not doubting that someone somewhere might have believed it, but I don't think their beliefs were based in fact. As just a couple of inner city examples, both Kurilpa and Barambin are noteworthy Aboriginal meeting spaces.

[-] whybird@aus.social 2 points 5 days ago

@Zagorath p.s. if you are interested in another remnant of Brisbane’s racist past, the reason that there are so many “Boundary Roads” in Brisbane (esp. south side) is that those were the boundaries that the Aboriginals were not allowed to cross without a permit. I kid you not.

[-] whybird@aus.social 1 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

@Zagorath Your comment on the other post made me look in further depth… I haven’t really found much on the north/south divide yet, which supports your thoughts there, but I did find this report on the boundary streets so thought I’d add it here: https://nit.com.au/01-01-2025/15602/the-boundary-streets-of-brisbane-a-history-of-division
(Though the report does seem to mention several Southside places and I think only Spring Hill on the Northside?)

[-] Zagorath@aussie.zone 1 points 6 days ago

I think the article is wrong about 7 car bridges. I only count 5. Plus the Victoria and Eleanor Schonell bridges, which are bus only.

But it is remarkably true. Even having lived a one-minute walk from the river (and a less than ten minutes light jog to the Eleanor Schonell Bridge, and a out a 10 minute walk to a ferry stop that's only one stop away from being on the other side) for 12 years, I personally have spent very little time south of the river. And that vanishes to near zero—I could probably count the number of occasions as an adult on my hands—if we exclude the first 2 km bordering the river, such as South Bank, West End, and the parts of the River Loop on the southern end.

[-] spiffmeister@aussie.zone 3 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

Tbh it feels to me like there's not much reason to go much further across the river, it's mostly urban sprawl anyway isn't it?

Edit: to be clear I mean urban sprawl in both directions

[-] Zagorath@aussie.zone 2 points 5 days ago

Yeah true. There are a few possible draws, but not many. Back a decade ago, southside had the Ikea, but there's one of those north now too. If you do a suburban sport you might need to play an away game on the wrong side of the river every now and then. Everything else, outside of the inner city (with the CBD, the two major sports stadiums, the two biggest unis + one campus of the third, Southbank) has an equivalent on either side.

this post was submitted on 16 Jul 2025

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