On Est arrivé!

Alliance Française de Brisbane has moved to bigger and better premises.

The team at Alliance Française is excited to announce that, starting in February 1st, we will be operating from our bigger and better equipped premises in 262 Montague Road, West End.

Why have we moved?

Better teaching facilities

The old George Street location has served the Alliance well for three decades and holds a lot of memories for many people. However, as the centre for French language learning in Brisbane, we needed higher quality teaching facilities and a more open cultural space.

In our student evaluations, we have consistently received a lot of positive feedback about the quality of our teaching but have received less positive appraisals of the classrooms. This has become a significant issue with the increasing number of students stretching our current capacity.

Starting in Term 1, 2010, and with more classrooms, all of them large, well-lit, and sound proofed, we will be offering more classes and workshops. This will mean a greater range courses, even during the most popular times.

Better cultural space

As Brisbane's French cultural centre, we now have a larger and better equipped cultural events space. This will allow us to offer more social and cultural events

Easier access

For many people, the best news will be the greatly improved access. The narrow stairs up to our current location was, for many people, a difficult or even insurmountable barrier. In our new location, we now offer ease of access since the Alliance is housed entirely on the ground floor and does not have a single step!

For people driving in for classes and events, the new location will be easier to access without the congestion of the centre of the city.

This ease of access is important to our mission. The Alliance Française is available to everyone with an interest in French language and culture.

Why Montague Road?

Desirable location

At the beginning of the two year search for a new location, we surveyed members to find the most favoured locations, and West End was considered highly desirable. This location will offer a relatively central position without some of the disadvantages of our current city location. There will be less noise and parking will be less expensive with free onstreet parking available after 5:30pm. For more information about parking, see below.

Cultural space

The new premises will offer a welcoming cultural space that will not only be used at special events, performances, exhibitions and screenings but will also be open throughout the day for members to be able to sit and read a book or magazine from the médiathèque, view the exhibits or watch French television while enjoying a coffee from a nearby café. The availability of this cultural and community space to members will be a great opportunity for everyone to fully enjoy the benefits of being a part of the Alliance Française.

An exciting future

With significant developments in local infrastructure, including bridges and public transport innovations, the future of this precinct is very exciting. In mid 2010, the new Go Between Bridge will open, providing improved vehicular and pedestrian access to the area. Also in mid 2010, the Brisbane City Council will be introducing the new, high frequency bus, the CityGlider, proposed for Montague Road (see below) and the new (French designed) CityCyle Bike Hire Scheme, which will have a station opposite the new location (see below).

We need your involvement in this important time in the life of Alliance Française!
So please give us y our opinion and your feedback by emailing 262montague@afbrisbane.com
Merci!

Transport : how to go there?

• Walking  
• By Car
• By Bus
• By Bike
• By Ferry

For brief details, check out our quick guide!

Our new Alliance Française de Brisbane will be located at 262 Montague Road, West End.

 

Walking
(1.9km from Victoria Bridge - 23mins)

The new Alliance is at a reasonable walking distance from the city. Indeed it takes just over 20mins to walk from Victoria Bridge to the 262 Montague Road (1.9km). The shortest way is to walk on Melbourne Street, then cross Boundary Street to take Mollison Street, then turn left to Bank Street and right to Jane street, and straight to Montague Road. The Alliance will be on the left side of the road, at the corner of Jane Street and Montague Road.

Great news! A new bridge for pedestrians and bikes has been opened on Saturday 3rd of October 2009. The Kurilpa Bridge now links Kurilpa Point in South Brisbane, to Tank Street in Brisbane CBD. From mid 2010 you'll also be able to use the Go- Between Bridge. See By Car.

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By Car

How to drive there from our current location
(1.9km from Victoria Bridge - 7mins)

Once you're in George Street, turn left on Adelaide Street and left again on North Quay, then turn right to cross Victoria Bridge and keep straight to Melbourne Street. Then turn right on Hope Street and left on Montague Road. Our new Alliance will be at the corner of Montague Road and Jane Street, on the left side of the road.
This drive will take aproximatively 7minutes.

How to drive there from South Brisbane, Kangaroo Point or Woollongabba ?
(2.6km from Woolloogabba - 6mins)

Take Vulture Streert and turn right on Montague Road. The new Alliance will be on the right side of the road, at the corner of Jane Street and Montague Road.

How to drive there from Milton or Paddington?
(3.5km from Milton - 10mins)

Take Coronation Drive and cross William Jolley bridge. Then turn left on Peel Street and left again on Stanley Street. At the roundabout turn left to Montague Road and keep straight. The Alliance will be on the left side of the road, at the corner of Jane Street and Montague Road.

Heads up! A new bridge for cars and pedestrians will soon open! The Go-Between Bridge will be inaugurated mid 2010, and will cross the river between Hale Street and Merivale Street. So you'll just have to take Coronation Drive then cross the new bridge and turn right on Montague Road. To know more about this bridge go to www.halestreetlink.com.au

Where are the nearest parking places?

Because the close proximity to the city, new Alliance Française will still be within the Brisbane Central Traffic Area and so on-street parking restriction must be observed. However, because we will no longer be in the heart of the city, there are great possibilities for finding cheaper and even free parking.

The pink zone is the Brisbane Central Traffic Area where you can park for a maximum of two hours on unsigned streets unless there are parking meters or signs showing otherwise. The two hour limit applies at these times: Monday to Friday 7am to 6pm Saturday 7am to 12 midday There is only a 5 minute walk to the area shown in white which indicates the unrestricted area where you can park for free unless there are meters or signs showing otherwise.

What does this mean for me?

If you are attending daytime classes, you can park for free for two hours in unsigned spaces in the pink zone. There are also many metered spaces are available at $1 for 2¾ hours or $2 for 5½ hours. There are, of course, many more free spaces in the white zone.

If you are attending the evening classes, parking in the pink zone is free from 6pm. In the unsigned spaces, this effectively means free parking from 4pm. At worst, this means that you will be able to park in the many metered spaces from 3:15pm for only $1.

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By Bus
(15mins from Adelaide Street)

Routes 191 - 192
Main Stops: Brisbane City, Cultural Centre, Highgate Hill, South Brisbane, West End.
The buses stop at Davies Park, opposite the Alliance.
Download the timetable

Tips :
-The bus 191 is running on Saturday morning only, so during the week you should take the 192.
-The bus 192 is the better option during the day because it stops directly in Montague Road. But the last one is at 6:00pm so to go back home after the evening classes you should take the 199.
-The bus 192 runs every 20 minutes during peak hours and every 30 minutes during the rest of the day

Route 199
Main Stops: Brisbane City, Cultural Centre, Fortitude Valley, New Farm, South Brisbane, Teneriffe Ferry, West End

Tips:
-The bus 199 (West End Buz) stops at 44 Vulture Street, stop 9. You then have 395m to walk to the Alliance (walk straight on Vulture Street and then turn right on Montague Road).
-To return you can either take the bus from Vulture Street, Hardgrave Road (turn right on Jane Street) or Boundary Street (walk straight on Jane Street).
-This bus runs day and night, every 10 minutes during daytime. We recomand you to take this bus to go back home after evening classes.

Route 198
Main Stops: Buranda, Dutton Park, Highgate Hill, Mater Hospital, Princess Alexandra Hospital, South Brisbane, West End, Woolloongabba
Download the timetable

Tips:
This bus does a loop so you can only use it in one way.

Routes 196, 197
Main Stops: Brisbane City, Cultural Centre, Dutton Park, Fairfield Gardens, Fortitude Valley, Highgate Hill, New Farm, South Brisbane, Teneriffe Ferry, West End
Download the timetable

Tips:
The bus 196 (Fairfield Gardens) stops at Browning Street, stop 5. You then have 820m to walk (turn left on Boundary street then right on Jane Street and straight until you meet Montague Road).

For more information you can consult Brisbane public transport's website www.translink.com.au

Heads up! Brisbane City Council is working on a new project, the CityGlider Rapid Bus Service, a rapid transit bus service to improve the transport across the inner city, that will bedelivered by mid 2010. This bus will circulate on the key roads between Newstead and West End, and benefits of priority measures to be more efficient. Departing every 5 minutes during peak hours and every 10-15 minutes during off-peak hours, it will stop directly in Montague Road... [more information]

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By Bike

Going to the Alliance by bike is very easy, as Brisbane's cycling network is extensive in this region. Montague Road has an  on-road bikeway, as well as Melbourne Street, Boundary Street and Vulture Street, so you can come all the way from the city using only bikeways. You can also enjoy the view while cycling along the river, on off-road bikeways at Southbank and on road bikeways on Riverside Road... [ more information]

Heads up! Brisbane City Council is working on a new project, the Citycycle, a new public bike hire scheme. This healthy and cost effective transport option aim to reduce traffic congestion, ease the demand for inner city parking and create a cleaner, greener Brisbane. This project is due for mid 2010, and a Citycycle station will be located in Montague Road, just in front of the Alliance! [ more information]

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By Ferry

The CityCat can bring you to Orleigh Street, West End.  Then you just have to walk on Orleigh Street and turn right to Montague Road. This will take about 19mins.  Or you can take the buses 199 and 192. Download the map and fares.     Go to Top