Narrow gauge railways in Australia
Encyclopedia
Rail transport in Australia
involves a number of narrow gauge railways. In some states they formed the core state wide network, but in the others they were either a few government branch lines, or privately owned and operated branch lines, often for mining, logging or industrial use.
Prior to becoming an independent unified country in 1901, each of the six British colonies in Australia were responsible for rail transport infrastructure. Of the six colonies, only three (Queensland
, Western Australia
, and Tasmania
) opted for narrow gauge railways. The other colonies (later states) opted for either standard gauge
or broad gauge
railways, maintaining only limited narrow gauge rail lines, except for South Australia
, which wavered between narrow and broad.
As a result of this legacy, Australian railways are a confusing mix of all three gauges. Over time most of the mainland lines of whatever gauge linked up with inconvenient break-of-gauge
stations where they met, including the infamous Albury railway station on the Albury
-Wodonga
line from Melbourne
to Sydney
where the old cry of "Albury, all change!" has sunk into the national psyche. Some lines remained isolated because they were cut off by long stretches of desert.
In 1865, the brief given to Queensland Rail
ways was to build a semi-mountainous line in very sparsely populated territory, and it chose light rails, sharp curves, a small loading-gauge, light engines and rolling stock, 32 km/h speeds to make a limited budget go a long way. A clever salesman convinced the Queensland government that a narrow gauge would save money, and do the job for a hundred years. Queensland Railways was the first mainline narrow gauge railway in the world. Its tracks would eventually extend to around 9000 km.
In the intervening century, the rails have been replaced with heavier rails, there are now concrete sleepers and colour light signals, sharp curves have been straightened, tunnels have been opened out. The one thing that hasn't changed is the narrow gauge, even though the rest of the country is converting its main lines to the standard gauge .
Queensland Rail also operates the iconic QR Tilt Train, with a recommended maximum speed of 165 km/h, however this train currently holds the Australian Railway Speed Record of 210.7km/h.
Dual gauge has been added to give access from the interstate standard gauge line to the Port of Brisbane. Dual gauge is also proposed to convert the standard gauge interstate line for use by narrow gauge commuter trains.
Queensland also has extensive sugar cane tramways of gauge. These cane tramways sometimes use second hand standard-gauge shunting locomotives suitably regauged. The cane trams regularly haul over 500 tonnes of raw cane at a time, and because there are no continuous brakes, they may have a radio-controlled brake van coupled to the rear.
To avoid speed restriction where some cane trams cross the main line, several of these crossings have been converted to drawbridge
s.
, but following the success of the narrow gauge in Queensland, a third rail was fitted, to allow conversion to narrow gauge. The state's rail network is now entirely narrow gauge.
The privately owned iron ore mines at Iron Knob and Iron Baron are connected to the steel works at Whyalla by an isolated narrow gauge line through desert country.
, there was the only narrow gauge tramway network (of any considerable extent) on mainland Australia. The final portion was closed in 1958.
The Northern Territory adopted narrow gauge when it was still part of South Australia, and a North-South transcontinental line was planned from Adelaide to Darwin in the 1870s. The Central Australia Railway was built northwards from 1878, reaching Alice Springs
in 1929, and closed in 1980 when a parallel standard gauge railway was built.
The North Australia Railway was constructed southwards from Darwin
to Birdum
, opening in 1889 and closing in 1976. A 3000 km standard-gauge line from Adelaide to Darwin, referred to as the Adelaide-Darwin railway
, opened in 2004.
Because there are no tunnels or narrow bridges on the old-narrow gauge line, the line received a lot of second-hand standard-gauge rolling stock, this rolling stock being noticeably larger than the original narrow gauge wagons and carriages.
used standard gauge from the beginning. An exception was at Broken Hill
where the large silver-lead mine is only 30 km from the South Australian border, but separated by hundreds of kilometres of desert from the main NSW standard-gauge railway system. As a result in 1888 the Silverton Tramway
was opened between the mines and the South Australian Railways
system, the line lasting until gauge standardisation bypassed the line in 1970.
Most railway lines in Victoria
were built to the broad gauge. However four common carrier
lines
were built to the narrow gauge standard, to serve local farming
and forestry
communities. There was also widespread usage of narrow gauge forestry railways and tramways. Sections of two lines (Belgrave to Gembrook and Thomson to Walhalla) have been restored as tourist railways.
The Puffing Billy Railway is maintained and operated by volunteers as a steam-hauled preserved railway and tourist attraction. The last of the four narrow gauge railways to open, the Moe to Walhalla line in Gippsland
which was opened in 1910 and then closed in 1954, has been partially reopened from Thomson Station into Walhalla in recent years as the Walhalla Goldfields Railway
. Because the Puffing Billy Railway has nearly all of the remaining locomotives and rolling stock known to exist from the four NG lines, this line has had to modify rolling stock from elsewhere or build new, but non-original style, rolling stock.
In addition to the main rail network of the Victorian Railways and successors, a number of narrow gauge private railways and tramways have also existed for logging and mining purposes. These included the Yallourn 900mm Railway
in the Latrobe Valley
open cut coal mines, the Fyansford Cement Works Railway near Geelong
, the Tyers Valley Tramway
at Mount Baw Baw
, and the Powelltown Tramway
from Yarra Junction
.
Most logging tramways operated in the Otway Ranges, Gippsland
, and the inner east of the Great Dividing Range; primarily between the 1850s and the 1950s, with only one surviving into the 1960s. They were primarily of or gauge, with , , , and variants also used.
Rail transport in Australia
Rail transport in Australia is a crucial aspect of the Australian transport network, and an enabler of the wider Australian economy. Rail in Australia is to a large extent state-based. The Australian rail network consists of a total of 41,461 km of track of three major gauges, of which...
involves a number of narrow gauge railways. In some states they formed the core state wide network, but in the others they were either a few government branch lines, or privately owned and operated branch lines, often for mining, logging or industrial use.
Prior to becoming an independent unified country in 1901, each of the six British colonies in Australia were responsible for rail transport infrastructure. Of the six colonies, only three (Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
, and Tasmania
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
) opted for narrow gauge railways. The other colonies (later states) opted for either standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
or broad gauge
Broad gauge
Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...
railways, maintaining only limited narrow gauge rail lines, except for South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
, which wavered between narrow and broad.
As a result of this legacy, Australian railways are a confusing mix of all three gauges. Over time most of the mainland lines of whatever gauge linked up with inconvenient break-of-gauge
Break-of-gauge
With railways, a break-of-gauge occurs where a line of one gauge meets a line of a different gauge. Trains and rolling stock cannot run through without some form of conversion between gauges, and freight and passengers must otherwise be transloaded...
stations where they met, including the infamous Albury railway station on the Albury
Albury, New South Wales
Albury is a major regional city in New South Wales, Australia, located on the Hume Highway on the northern side of the Murray River. It is located wholly within the boundaries of the City of Albury Local Government Area...
-Wodonga
Wodonga, Victoria
Wodonga is a small city on the Victorian side of the border with New South Wales, north-east of Melbourne, Australia. Adjacent to Wodonga across the border is the New South Wales city of Albury. Wodonga is located wholly within the boundaries of the City of Wodonga LGA...
line from Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
to Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
where the old cry of "Albury, all change!" has sunk into the national psyche. Some lines remained isolated because they were cut off by long stretches of desert.
Queensland
The massive narrow gauge coal trains of the Queensland Railway with 100 wagons and 2 midtrain electric locomotives show what is possible with narrow gauge with modern equipment and tracklaying techniques.In 1865, the brief given to Queensland Rail
Queensland Rail
Queensland Rail, also known as QR, is a government-owned railway operator in the state of Queensland. Under the control of the Queensland Government, Queensland Rail operates the inner-city and long-distance passenger services, as well as some freight operations and gives railway access to other...
ways was to build a semi-mountainous line in very sparsely populated territory, and it chose light rails, sharp curves, a small loading-gauge, light engines and rolling stock, 32 km/h speeds to make a limited budget go a long way. A clever salesman convinced the Queensland government that a narrow gauge would save money, and do the job for a hundred years. Queensland Railways was the first mainline narrow gauge railway in the world. Its tracks would eventually extend to around 9000 km.
In the intervening century, the rails have been replaced with heavier rails, there are now concrete sleepers and colour light signals, sharp curves have been straightened, tunnels have been opened out. The one thing that hasn't changed is the narrow gauge, even though the rest of the country is converting its main lines to the standard gauge .
Queensland Rail also operates the iconic QR Tilt Train, with a recommended maximum speed of 165 km/h, however this train currently holds the Australian Railway Speed Record of 210.7km/h.
Dual gauge has been added to give access from the interstate standard gauge line to the Port of Brisbane. Dual gauge is also proposed to convert the standard gauge interstate line for use by narrow gauge commuter trains.
To avoid speed restriction where some cane trams cross the main line, several of these crossings have been converted to drawbridge
Drawbridge
A drawbridge is a type of movable bridge typically associated with the entrance of a castle surrounded by a moat. The term is often used to describe all different types of movable bridges, like bascule bridges and lift bridges.-Castle drawbridges:...
s.
Tasmania
The first railway in the island state of Tasmania was broad gaugeBroad gauge
Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...
, but following the success of the narrow gauge in Queensland, a third rail was fitted, to allow conversion to narrow gauge. The state's rail network is now entirely narrow gauge.
South Australia
The first railways in this state were broad gauge including some light-weight horse-drawn lines. But following the success of the narrow gauge in Queensland, several narrow gauge lines were started. Because of the geography of the state with deep gulfs of the ocean, the various narrow gauge lines where isolated from each other to begin with. In the 1920s several narrow gauge lines were converted to broad gauge. The South Eastern narrow gauge lines were converted to broad gauge in the 1950s, with steel sleepers able to be converted to standard gauge at a later date if required.The privately owned iron ore mines at Iron Knob and Iron Baron are connected to the steel works at Whyalla by an isolated narrow gauge line through desert country.
Western Australia
Inspired by the success of the narrow gauge in Queensland, Western Australia adopted the same gauge. In the capital of PerthPerth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
, there was the only narrow gauge tramway network (of any considerable extent) on mainland Australia. The final portion was closed in 1958.
Northern Territory
Alice Springs, Northern Territory
Alice Springs is the second largest town in the Northern Territory of Australia. Popularly known as "the Alice" or simply "Alice", Alice Springs is situated in the geographic centre of Australia near the southern border of the Northern Territory...
in 1929, and closed in 1980 when a parallel standard gauge railway was built.
The North Australia Railway was constructed southwards from Darwin
Darwin, Northern Territory
Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...
to Birdum
Birdum, Northern Territory
Birdum was a railway settlement in the Northern Territory and the terminus of the North Australia Railway from 1929 until the outbreak of World War II....
, opening in 1889 and closing in 1976. A 3000 km standard-gauge line from Adelaide to Darwin, referred to as the Adelaide-Darwin railway
Adelaide-Darwin railway
The Adelaide–Darwin railway is a north-south transcontinental railway in Australia, between the cities of Adelaide, South Australia and Darwin, Northern Territory...
, opened in 2004.
Because there are no tunnels or narrow bridges on the old-narrow gauge line, the line received a lot of second-hand standard-gauge rolling stock, this rolling stock being noticeably larger than the original narrow gauge wagons and carriages.
New South Wales
The railways of New South WalesNew South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
used standard gauge from the beginning. An exception was at Broken Hill
Broken Hill, New South Wales
-Geology:Broken Hill's massive orebody, which formed about 1,800 million years ago, has proved to be among the world's largest silver-lead-zinc mineral deposits. The orebody is shaped like a boomerang plunging into the earth at its ends and outcropping in the centre. The protruding tip of the...
where the large silver-lead mine is only 30 km from the South Australian border, but separated by hundreds of kilometres of desert from the main NSW standard-gauge railway system. As a result in 1888 the Silverton Tramway
Silverton Tramway
The Silverton Tramway was an Australian long narrow gauge railway running from Cockburn on the South Australian state border to Broken Hill in New South Wales. Operating between 1888 and 1970 it served the mines of Broken Hill, and formed the link between the standard gauge New South Wales...
was opened between the mines and the South Australian Railways
South Australian Railways
South Australian Railways built and operated railways in South Australia from 1854 to the incorporation of its non-urban railways into the Australian National Railways Commission in 1975, together with the former Commonwealth Railways and the former Tasmanian Government Railways...
system, the line lasting until gauge standardisation bypassed the line in 1970.
Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
were built to the broad gauge. However four common carrier
Common carrier
A common carrier in common-law countries is a person or company that transports goods or people for any person or company and that is responsible for any possible loss of the goods during transport...
lines
Narrow gauge lines of the Victorian Railways
The former Victorian Railways, the state railway authority in Victoria, Australia built a number of experimental narrow gauge railway lines around the beginning of the 20th century. Although all were closed by the early 1960s, parts of two have been reopened as heritage railways.- Background :A...
were built to the narrow gauge standard, to serve local farming
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
and forestry
Forestry
Forestry is the interdisciplinary profession embracing the science, art, and craft of creating, managing, using, and conserving forests and associated resources in a sustainable manner to meet desired goals, needs, and values for human benefit. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands...
communities. There was also widespread usage of narrow gauge forestry railways and tramways. Sections of two lines (Belgrave to Gembrook and Thomson to Walhalla) have been restored as tourist railways.
The Puffing Billy Railway is maintained and operated by volunteers as a steam-hauled preserved railway and tourist attraction. The last of the four narrow gauge railways to open, the Moe to Walhalla line in Gippsland
Gippsland
Gippsland is a large rural region in Victoria, Australia. It begins immediately east of the suburbs of Melbourne and stretches to the New South Wales border, lying between the Great Dividing Range to the north and Bass Strait to the south...
which was opened in 1910 and then closed in 1954, has been partially reopened from Thomson Station into Walhalla in recent years as the Walhalla Goldfields Railway
Walhalla Goldfields Railway
The Walhalla Goldfields Railway is a gauge tourist railway located in the Thomson River and Stringers Creek valleys in Gippsland, Victoria, Australia, near the former gold-mining town and tourist destination of Walhalla.- History :...
. Because the Puffing Billy Railway has nearly all of the remaining locomotives and rolling stock known to exist from the four NG lines, this line has had to modify rolling stock from elsewhere or build new, but non-original style, rolling stock.
In addition to the main rail network of the Victorian Railways and successors, a number of narrow gauge private railways and tramways have also existed for logging and mining purposes. These included the Yallourn 900mm Railway
Yallourn 900mm Railway
The Yallourn 900mm Railway was a 900 mm narrow gauge railway operated by the State Electricity Commission of Victoria in the Latrobe Valley of Victoria, Australia. The railway was built for the haulage of brown coal and overburden between the Yallourn open cut mine, briquette works, and power station...
in the Latrobe Valley
Latrobe Valley
The Latrobe Valley is an inland geographical region and urban area of Gippsland in the state of Victoria, Australia. It is east of the City Of Melbourne and nestled between the Strzelecki Ranges to the south and the Great Dividing Range to the north – with the highest peak to the north of the...
open cut coal mines, the Fyansford Cement Works Railway near Geelong
Geelong, Victoria
Geelong is a port city located on Corio Bay and the Barwon River, in the state of Victoria, Australia, south-west of the state capital; Melbourne. It is the second most populated city in Victoria and the fifth most populated non-capital city in Australia...
, the Tyers Valley Tramway
Tyers Valley Tramway
The Tyers Valley Tramway was a narrow gauge timber tramway built by the Forestry Commission of Victoria to exploit timber resources on the slopes of Mount Baw Baw, Victoria...
at Mount Baw Baw
Mount Baw Baw
Mount Baw Baw is a mountain in Victoria, Australia. Mount Baw Baw Alpine Resort is an Unincorporated area of Victoria surrounded by the Shire of Baw Baw.-Location:...
, and the Powelltown Tramway
Powelltown Tramway
The Powelltown Tramway was a 3' gauge railway that operated between Powelltown and Yarra Junction, Victoria, Australia. The railway connected to the broad gauge Victorian Railways at Yarra Junction...
from Yarra Junction
Yarra Junction, Victoria
Yarra Junction is a town in Victoria, Australia, east from Melbourne's central business district. It sits at the junction of the Yarra and Little Yarra Rivers. Its Local Government Area is the Shire of Yarra Ranges...
.
Most logging tramways operated in the Otway Ranges, Gippsland
Gippsland
Gippsland is a large rural region in Victoria, Australia. It begins immediately east of the suburbs of Melbourne and stretches to the New South Wales border, lying between the Great Dividing Range to the north and Bass Strait to the south...
, and the inner east of the Great Dividing Range; primarily between the 1850s and the 1950s, with only one surviving into the 1960s. They were primarily of or gauge, with , , , and variants also used.