Gulflander
 RM93 at Golden Gate near Croydon in August 2008 | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Service type | Passenger train |
| Current operator(s) | Queensland Rail |
| Route | |
| Start | Normanton |
| End | Croydon |
| Distance travelled | 151 kilometres |
| Average journey time | 5 hours |
| Service frequency | Weekly |
| Line used | Normanton |
| On-board services | |
| Seating arrangements | 59[1] |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) |
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The Gulflander is an Australian passenger train operated by Queensland Rail on the isolated Normanton to Croydon line in the Gulf Country of northern Queensland.[1][2][3][4]
History
Steam locomotives were used until 1922 when diesel railmotors were introduced..[5] By 1974 the line was under the threat of closure, earning just $3,000 in revenue but costing $64,000 to maintain.[6]
Today the line exists as a tourist attraction and is said to be more an adventure than a train ride. The crews are qualified guides and will stop the train and talk about points of interest. The present three-car railmotor set of RM93 Gardner diesel railmotor and carriages TP1809 and TP1811 is known as "the old Tin Hare".[7]
Service
The service runs once per week to Croydon on Wednesdays, returning to Normanton on Thursdays. Shorter charter services on most other days are also available.[8]
Rollingstock
Thirteen power units have been used on the line. It is unusual that of the 13 units, 12 survive in one form or another and most are still in the region due mainly to its remoteness.[2] They are as follows:[9]
- A10 class steam locomotive 202, undergoing restoration to operational condition by Croydon Shire Council[10][11]
- A10 class steam locomotive 203, used as parts for the restoration of 202[12]
- A10 class steam locomotive 204, on display at Croydon station[13]
- B12 class steam locomotive 28, on display at Normanton station
- B13 class steam locomotive 161, on display at Normanton station
- B13 class steam locomotive 234, on display at Normanton station
- RM14 Panhard-Levassor petrol railmotor, operated Gulflander 1923-1929, returned to Normanton for 120th anniversary in 2011, on display at Workshops Rail Museum[14]
- RM31 AEC petrol railmotor, operated Gulflander 1929-1945, eventual fate unknown
- RM32 AEC petrol railmotor, operated Gulflander 1945-1960, on display at Normanton
- RM60 AEC petrol railmotor, operated Gulflander 1960-1964, operational at Normanton
- RM74 Gardner (formerly AEC) diesel railmotor, operated Gulflander 1964-1982, on display at Redland Museum, Cleveland[15]
- RM93 Gardner diesel railmotor, operational at Normanton station, arrived 1982, hauls present Gulflander
- DL4 diesel-mechanical locomotive, arrived November 1988, operational at Normanton
- TP1809 carriage, former PL1809 passenger/luggage trailer transferred to Normanton in 1980, forms present Gulflander[16][17][18]
- TP1811 carriage de-motored and reclassified RM1811, was the QR Commissioners Car throughout the 1980s before conversion and transfer to Normanton in 1991, forms present Gulflander[16][18]
References
- 1 2 "Meandering through the Gulf on rails". The Canberra Times. 67, (21,236). Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 6 June 1993. p. 25. Retrieved 30 March 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
- 1 2 Knowles, J. W. (John W.); Australian Narrow Gauge Railway Museum Society (1983), Lonely rails in the Gulf Country : the story of the Normanton-Croydon Railway, Queensland, J.W. Knowles : Australian Narrow Gauge Railway Museum Society [distributor], ISBN 978-0-9593651-1-5
- ↑ Friends of the Normanton-Croydon Railway (issuing body.) (1900), The Gulflander gazette : the voice of the tin hare, [Canberra] Friends of the Normanton-Croydon Railway, ISSN 2207-4643
- ↑ Manara, Gian Carlo; SBS-TV (1992), Stations : the journey of the "Gulflander", SBS, retrieved 30 March 2017
- ↑ "THE DECLINE AND FALL OF CROYDON". The Courier-mail. Queensland, Australia. 22 July 1954. p. 7. Retrieved 30 March 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
- ↑ Bromby, Robin (2004). The Railway Age in Australia. Lothian Press. p. 96. ISBN 0-7344-0715-7.
- ↑ Gulflander Train Croydon Shire Council
- ↑ Timetable & Fares The Gulflander
- ↑ Locomotives The Gulflander
- ↑ Croydon Heritage Preservation Association Croydon Shire Council
- ↑ A10 202 Australian Steam
- ↑ A10 203 Australian Steam
- ↑ A10 204 Australian Steam
- ↑ Railmotor on 2200km journey Queensland Times 15 July 2011
- ↑ RM74 Redland Museum
- 1 2 The 1800 Class "Blue Lagoons" Queensland's Great Trains
- ↑ "Savannahlander & Gulflander Tours - The Savannahlander". Retrieved 1 July 2016.
- 1 2 Dunn, John (2006). Comeng: A History of Commonwealth Engineering Volume 1: 1921-1955. Kenthurst: Rosenberg Publishing. p. 206. ISBN 1877058424.
External links
- Official website
Media related to Normanton to Croydon railway line at Wikimedia Commons