Overview | |
---|---|
Headquarters | Brisbane |
Locale | Kuranda |
Dates of operation | 1891–present |
Technical | |
Track gauge | 1,067 mm |
Length | 37 km (23 mi) |
Other | |
Website | www |
The Kuranda Scenic Railway is a tourist railway service that operates along the heritage-listed Cairns-to-Kuranda railway line. Constructed in 1891, the line runs from Cairns, Queensland, over the Great Dividing Range to the town of Kuranda on the Atherton Tableland. The route passes through the Macalister Range, as well as the suburbs of Stratford, Freshwater and Redlynch.[ citation needed ]
The railway line is 37 km (23 mi) in length. [1] While this service is the predominant use of the line, it is still used for some freight and other passenger services including The Savannahlander.[ citation needed ] It operates daily throughout the year, with the exception of Christmas Day. A one-way trip takes approximately one hour and 55 minutes. [2]
Kuranda rail station is located near tropical gardens and a short walk from Kuranda town which has a zoo, markets, art galleries and Aboriginal crafts available.
The journey itself traverses Barron Gorge National Park with views of Barron Falls, as well as other smaller waterfalls, including Stoney Creek Falls, along the way. As the train travels, a detailed and informative commentary of the railways' construction is provided.[ citation needed ].
At the bottom of the mountain, Freshwater railway station has an information centre, a gift shop, and a café that is housed inside an old train carriage.
Construction of the railway began in 1886 and was completed as far as Kuranda by 1891. [3] Passenger services began operations on 25 June 1891. [4]
Many people died during the construction of the numerous tunnels and bridges of the line. 15 hand-made tunnels and 37 bridges were built to climb from sea level to 328 metres (1,076 ft), up the Macalister Range. [3] Three million cubic metres of earth had to be excavated during construction. [1]
The first operation of a tourist train from Cairns to Kuranda was in 1936, using four longitudinal seating carriages. [5] In 1995, major repairs had to be carried out after a severe rock fall damaged the track. On 26 March 2010, the train was derailed by a landslide injuring 5 of the 250 passengers on board. [6] The service was closed until 7 May 2010 in which during its closing, a geotechnical review of the track and risk assessments were completed. [7]
In 2009 as part of the Q150 celebrations, the Kuranda Scenic Railway was announced as one of the Q150 Icons of Queensland for its role as a "structure and engineering feat". [8]
Barron Gorge National Park is a protected area in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. It lies predominantly within the locality of Barron Gorge.
Cairns is a city in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. In the 2021 census, Cairns had a population of 153,181 people.
Kuranda may refer to:
Kuranda is a rural town and locality on the Atherton Tableland in the Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. It is 25 kilometres (16 mi) from Cairns, via the Kuranda Range road. It is surrounded by tropical rainforest and adjacent to the Wet Tropics of Queensland World Heritage listed Barron Gorge National Park. In the 2021 census, the locality of Kuranda had a population of 3,273 people.
Skyrail Rainforest Cableway is a 7.5-kilometre (4.7 mi) scenic tourist cableway running above the Barron Gorge National Park, in the Wet Tropics of Queensland’s World Heritage Area in Australia. It operates from the Smithfield terminal in Cairns to the Kuranda terminal on the Atherton Tableland. It has won more than 25 awards.
The Savannahlander is an Australian passenger train service that operates in Far North Queensland. It travels on the Tablelands railway line and the Etheridge railway line from the coastal city of Cairns to Forsayth.
Barron Falls is a steep tiered cascade waterfall in Kuranda, Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. The falls are created by the Barron River descending from the Atherton Tablelands to the Cairns coastal plain.
Smithfield is a suburb of Cairns in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2021 census, Smithfield had a population of 6,664 people.
The Kuranda Range road is an informally named section of the Kennedy Highway in Queensland, Australia. The road traverses the Macalister Range near Cairns. The 11.5 kilometres (7.1 mi) section of road connects Smithfield, a suburb of Cairns in the Cairns Region with Kuranda, a town in the Shire of Mareeba on the Atherton Tableland, at an altitude of about 360 metres (1,180 ft). Traffic is primarily limited to one lane each way, with overtaking lanes at various points. The Kuranda Skyrail cableway crosses the road twice. Henry Ross Lookout is located near the road's highest point, at an altitude of 430 metres (1,410 ft), and is named after the foreman in charge of building the road to cross the range in 1939.
Freshwater is a suburb of Cairns, Queensland, Australia. In the 2021 census, Freshwater had a population of 2,142 people.
Cairns railway station is a railway station in the Cairns CBD in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia, serving the city of Cairns. The station is the terminus of the North Coast railway line from Brisbane and the terminus for the Tablelands railway line to the Atherton Tableland. Two tourist railway services operate from here: the Kuranda Scenic Railway and the Savannahlander. The station has two platforms. It is integrated with the Cairns Central Shopping Centre, with the platforms being built underneath parking areas.
The Tablelands railway line is a railway line in North Queensland, Australia. It was opened in a series of sections between 1887 and 1916. It commences at Cairns and at its maximum extent, reached Ravenshoe at the southern end of the Atherton Tableland. The rail system served by this line was unusual for Queensland in that the majority of lines that connected to it were built by private companies and later purchased by the Queensland Government.
The Cairns Western Arterial Road is a numbered state route in the Cairns Region of Queensland, Australia. The road provides a primary access route across the Brinsmead Gap for suburbs west of the Whitfield Range, and is one of two major crossings over the Barron River. In 2007, it was estimated that 24,000 vehicles per day used the road.
Redlynch is a semi-rural town and suburb of Cairns in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2021 census, the suburb of Redlynch had a population of 10,571 people.
The Cairns-to-Kuranda Railway is a heritage-listed railway line from the Cairns Region to the Shire of Mareeba, both in Queensland, Australia. It commences at Redlynch, a suburb of Cairns and travels up the Great Dividing Range to Kuranda within the Shire of Mareeba on the Atherton Tableland. It was built from 1913 to 1915 by Queensland Railways. Components of it include Stoney Creek Bridge, the Rail Bridge over Christmas Creek, Kuranda railway station, and Surprise Creek Rail Bridge. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 August 1992. The railway is used to operate a tourist rail service, the Kuranda Scenic Railway. It forms part of the Tablelands railway line.
Barron is a suburb of Cairns in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2021 census, Barron had a population of 68 people.
Barron Gorge is a rural locality in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2021 census, Barron Gorge had "no people or a very low population".
Macalister Range is a coastal locality in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2021 census, Macalister Range had "no people or a very low population".
Freshwater railway station is on the Cairns-to-Kuranda railway line in Queensland, Australia. It is located at Kamerunga Road, Barron in Cairns.
Kuranda Fig Tree Avenue is a heritage-listed avenue of trees at Coondoo Street, Kuranda, Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. It was built in 1931. It is also known as Avenue of Ficus Microcarpa and Ficus Obliqua trees. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 27 July 2018.