Services across all of the Queensland Rail network will be restored by tomorrow (Thursday), after a mammoth three-week recovery of damage and debris from the recent record rain and flooding.
Transport and Main Roads Minister Mark Bailey confirmed the West Moreton rail line re-opened to freight services this morning, and passenger services to Rosewood will resume on Thursday.
“Queensland Rail has undertaken a mammoth job to repair washouts, sink holes, landslips, debris and an extensive list of other damage across hundreds of kilometres of rail in the state’s south, caused by the recent flood event,” Mr Bailey said.
“Today, we see a critical supply chain reinstated with the reopening of the West Moreton rail line, where coal, grain and other freight services have now resumed.
“More than 90 workers in crews from Toowoomba, Laidley, Dalby, Chinchilla and Warwick joined the effort to restore our western rail lines, with final efforts focused on the Toowoomba Range in recent days.
“The Toowoomba Range was hit hard and had more than 30 slip sites, washouts and water coming through the rock face.
“This week professional rock climbers were brought onboard to assist in stabilising the slope, allowing for final repairs to be completed and services to resume today.”
Member for Ipswich West Jim Madden said the South East Queensland rail network was also resuming operations on all lines, including the Rosewood line.
“Today, we have all lines running to full timetable except for the Rosewood line, where SEQ passenger trains will resume tomorrow,” Mr Madden said.
“A major landslip in West Ipswich has been the thorn in the side of the SEQ recovery effort, and a creative solution has re-established connection through this area.
“Queensland Rail has constructed a temporary track deviation around the landslip, which is allowing Rosewood line trains, freight and regional western services to safely resume at restricted speeds, while work on the landslip continues to be safely repaired.
“With this interim arrangement in place, it means services on the Rosewood line will run at different times to what customers are used to, so customers should visit the TransLink Journey Planner to plan their travel.
“This is an important transport corridor for SEQ services to Rosewood, regional passenger services through to Charleville, and freight services connecting from the west to the Port of Brisbane.
“Already today, on the first day of re-opening, twelve freight trains are scheduled to pass through and we’ll see more as operations return to normal.
“Tomorrow, Rosewood SEQ passenger rail services will resume and on 24 March, the Westlander passenger service will also make its return, connecting communities between Brisbane and Charleville.”
Member for Ipswich Jennifer Howard credited Queensland Rail teams for their hard work, resilience and commitment to connecting communities.
“It’s hard to convey the full scale of the recovery effort completed in the last three weeks, especially here in Ipswich,” Ms Howard said.
“There have been more people and teams involved in this milestone than meets the eye.
“I’d like to thank Queensland Rail teams for their work in restoring the network, as well as commuters, rail freight partners and the broader community for their patience while we did so.”
