Caboolture railway line
| Caboolture line | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Overview | |
| Website | queenslandrail.com.au |
| Operation | |
| Opened | 11 June 1888[1] |
| Technical | |
| Line length | 49.570 km (30.801 mi) |
| Track gauge | 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) |
| Operating speed | 100 km/h (62 mph) |
The Caboolture railway line refers to the section of Queensland's North Coast Line that has a regular suburban railway service, extending north of Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia. The line commences at Roma St station, travelling through the city to Bowen Hills, including the 770m Central-Brunswick St tunnel, the longest on the QR system. It passes through Brisbane's northern suburbs to Caboolture, which the line continues north to Sunshine Coast and connects with the Ipswich line south-west of Brisbane. The line distance from Brisbane Central is 49.6 km.
Lines that branch from it are the Ferny Grove line at Bowen Hills, the Doomben and Airport lines at Eagle Junction and the Shorncliffe line at Northgate.
History
The first section of the line, to Northgate (and onto Sandgate) opened in 1882. In 1883 the Queensland government decided to link Gladstone to Brisbane by railway, and eventually decided upon Northgate as the junction for the new line.[2]
The alignment from Roma St to Bowen Hills was via Normandy (today known as the Exhibition line), and this remained the case until the dual track line via Central opened in 1890.
The Queensland Government called tenders for construction of the new line in 1886, with the contactor undertaking works "energetically",[3] and despite delays due to the late arrival of bridge beams, the line was unofficially opened on 11 June 1888, with the official opening on 16 June 1888.[1][4][5] The next section of the North Coast line to Landsborough opened in 1890.
The section from Bowen Hills to Eagle Junction was duplicated in 1886, with the section to Northgate duplicated in 1890, and on to Caboolture by 1917.
The section from Roma St to Bowen Hills was electrified in 1979, to Northgate in 1982, to Petrie in 1983 and to Caboolture in 1986.
The growth in patronage as a result of electrification resulted in the quadruplication of the Roma St-Northgate section in 1996, including 2 pairs of single track tunnels and the realisation of the use of the Bowen Hills tunnel widened 20 years earlier. Some of the roadbed and bridge abutments had been built in the 1950s before the original quadruplication scheme was abandoned. A third line has been added as far as Lawnton, with a proposal to extend it to Petrie as part of the new Kipparing line, known as the Moreton Bay Rail Link, due to open in 2017.
Line guide and services
Most services stop at all stations to Roma Street railway station. The typical travel time between Caboolture and Brisbane City is approximately 64 minutes (to Central).[6] During weekday peak times, a few services may skip stations between Petrie and Northgate for faster travel times for commuters working in the Brisbane central business district(51 minutes).
During the off-peak, services generally continue to Ipswich railway station on the Ipswich line.
Passengers for/from the Nambour and Gympie North line change at either Caboolture, Petrie or Northgate, Shorncliffe line at Northgate, Airport and Doomben lines at Eagle Junction, Ferny Grove line change at Bowen Hills, and all other lines at Central.
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See also
References
- 1 2 "North Coast Railway. The Opening Of The Caboolture Extension. Official Visit Of Ministers.". The Brisbane Courier (QLD). 18 June 1888. p. 6. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
- ↑ Kerr, J. 'Triumph of Narrow Gauge' Boolarong publications 1990
- ↑ Kerr, J. 'Brunswick St, Bowen Hills & Beyond' ARHS 1988
- ↑ The coming of the Queensland Railways, J. R. Henley. Retrieved 05/06/2011
- ↑ Narangba - LJ Hooker Retrieved 05/06/2011
- ↑ Caboolture timetable Queensland Rail retrieved 5 June 2011
External links
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