Description: Queensland is an extensive area with a population unevenly distributed within its borders and numerous island communities in the far north. It has the highest percentage of population outside a capital city of any mainland state within Australia, and land transport is disrupted by the annual wet season in northern and western regions. The Department of Transport and Main Roads regulates and in some cases subsidises a number of regular passenger transport air services to ensure that identified transport-disadvantaged communities have year-round access to a range of essential business, educational, medical, and cultural services in larger centres, reducing the social and economic isolation of rural and remote Queenslanders.