Southern Moreton Bay Islands (Redland City)

The Southern Moreton Bay Islands, abbreviated as SMBI, also known as the Bay Islands, are the four inhabited southern Moreton Bay islands located in South East Queensland, Australia. The group is part of the Redland City with a permanent population of 7,635 as of the . However, nearly one-third of all dwellings on the islands were unoccupied, suggesting a high proportion of "second homes" that are owned by people who were elsewhere on the night of the census.

Geography

Tiny Perulpa Island is joined by a causeway to Macleay and is generally regarded as part of Macleay.
The inhabited Southern Moreton Bay Islands are mostly surrounded by the Southern Moreton Bay Islands National Park, which is also located within Redland City.

History

The population of the four inhabited Bay Islands in 2006:

Karragarra, 125
Lamb, 373
Russell, 1,776
Macleay, population 1,957

The population of the four inhabited Bay Islands in 2016:

Karragarra, 204
Lamb, 432
Russell, 2,836
Macleay, population 2,681

The population of the four inhabited Bay Islands in 2021:

Karragarra, 240
Lamb, 504
Russell, 3,698
Macleay, population 3,193

The Islands were very substantially subdivided into residential allotments in the early 1970s.
In the 1980s, there were various plans announced and withdrawn to construct a bridge between the mainland and North Stradbroke Island via Russell Island; these proposals were both expensive and controversial and no bridge was built. Residents are now feeling the pressure of transport to the mainland for some shopping trips, as mainland parking has become very scarce at the ferrry and barge terminals.

Heritage listings

Lamb Island has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

Lamb Island Pioneer Hall, Lucas Drive
Mango Trees planted over 100 years ago, Tina Avenue
Jetty Shed which has been restored by the local island community group and was used for loading local produce onto the merchant boats

Macleay Island has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

Industrial Ruins, Macleay Island, Cliff Terrace

Transportation

The islands have a frequent scheduled vehicle barge provided by Stradbroke Ferries and fast passenger ferries services provided by Bay Islands Transit, leaving from Redland Bay. Passenger services from Redland Bay to the islands were added to the Translink network in 2013, allowing passengers to use go cards to ride the ferries.

Telecommunications

The National Broadband Network became available on the islands in June 2020, in both fibre to the curb and fibre to the node, depending on the street.