Overview | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Service type | Passenger train | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Predecessor | Forsayth Mixed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
First service | 3 April 1995 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Current operator(s) | Cairns Kuranda Steam Pty Ltd. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Former operator(s) | Queensland Rail | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Route | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Termini | Cairns Forsayth | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Distance travelled | 424 km | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average journey time | 4 Days | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Service frequency | Weekly | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Line(s) used | Tablelands railway, Etheridge Railway | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Technical | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rolling stock | 2000 Class Railmotors | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Track owner(s) | Queensland Rail | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Savannahlander is an Australian passenger train service (primarily serving tourists) 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. [1]
The service was introduced on 3 April 1995 by Queensland Rail to replace the Forsayth Mixed (marketed as the 'Last Great Train Ride'). The line was closed from Mareeba to Mount Surprise at the same time. It was initially run with a 2000 class railmotor set that was refurbished at Townsville Workshops. This was only on the Mount Surprise to Forsayth section of the Etheridge line. However, after an upgrade of the line for sugar syrup trains from Cairns to Arriga, and a limited restoration of the rest of the line, the railmotor started travelling from Cairns to Forsayth in September 1998. In 2004 it was decided to run it under contract by a private operator, Cairns Kuranda Steam Pty Ltd. [2] [3] While primarily a passenger service between Cairns and Forsayth, the train can be chartered for large groups. [4]
On 27 March 2019, a car collided with the Savannahlander at a level crossing in the city of Cairns. The driver of the car failed to give way at the crossing and was subsequently injured in the crash. [5]
Running for 39 weeks in the year, The Savannahlander departs Cairns railway station ( 16°55′33″S145°46′16″E / 16.9257°S 145.7712°E ) at 06:30 Wednesday mornings [4] and travels up the scenic Kuranda Range past the Barron Falls ( 16°50′11″S145°38′34″E / 16.8364°S 145.6429°E ) to Kuranda ( 16°49′09″S145°38′21″E / 16.8191°S 145.6391°E ). It then travels to the south-west on the Chillagoe-Mungana branch line. The train travels through the towns of Mareeba ( 16°59′38″S145°25′17″E / 16.9938°S 145.4213°E ) and Dimbulah ( 17°09′00″S145°06′38″E / 17.1500°S 145.1106°E ) before passing through Lappa Junction ( 17°21′33″S144°53′10″E / 17.3591°S 144.8861°E ) and arriving in Almaden ( 17°20′18″S144°40′41″E / 17.3384°S 144.6780°E ) where it stays for the night. On Thursday morning The Savannahlander continues south-west on the Etheridge Railway. The rail motor passes through Mount Surprise ( 18°08′48″S144°19′04″E / 18.1468°S 144.3179°E ) and Einasleigh ( 18°30′50″S144°05′30″E / 18.5140°S 144.0917°E ) before terminating at Forsayth railway station ( 18°35′13″S143°36′10″E / 18.5869°S 143.6028°E ). On Friday the train departs Forsayth for Mount Surprise. The train then departs for Cairns on Saturday morning. [6]
The Savannahlander rollingstock comprises three former two-car Queensland Railways 2000 class rail motors.
Two (2026 and 2028) are "PD" (Passenger / Driving) cars. They were built for Queensland Rail in 1963, and have the classic 1960s-era streamlined front ends. Originally, they were fitted with 160 hp (119 kW) Rolls-Royce diesel engines.
The third (2053) is a 2051-class rail motor, built in 1971, known as a "PLDT" (Passenger & Luggage / Driving / Trailing) car. It has access doors at each end, rather than a streamlined front, which allowed it to be placed in the middle of other sets, so that sets of three or four cars could be formed. Only four of that style of car were built, and they were originally fitted with an AEC engine. It was re-engined in 2005, along with the other Savannahlander units. [7]
All units were re-engined with a 250 hp (186 kW) Cummins Diesel engines. As well as the new engines, the units were fitted with new Allison gearboxes. [8]
Dimbulah is a rural town and locality in Far North Queensland, Australia, 114 kilometres (71 mi) from Cairns by road, on the Atherton Tableland. It is within the local government area of Shire of Mareeba. In the 2016 census, the locality of Dimbulah had a population of 1,050 people.
Queensland Rail (QR) is a railway operator in Queensland, Australia. Owned by the Queensland Government, it operates local and long-distance passenger services, as well as owning and maintaining rolling stock and approximately 6,600 kilometres (4,101 mi) of track and related infrastructure.
Kuranda is a rural town and locality on the Atherton Tableland in the Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, Kuranda had a population of 3,008 people. 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.
Mareeba is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Mareeba in Far North Queensland, Australia. Between 2008 and 2013, it was within the Tablelands Region. The town's name is derived from an Aboriginal word meaning meeting of the waters.
The Stoney Creek Falls is a cascade waterfall on the Stoney Creek located where the river descends from the Atherton Tablelands to the Cairns coastal plain, in Queensland, Australia.
Forsayth is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Etheridge, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, Forsayth had a population of 129 people.
The Shire of Mareeba is a local government area at the base of Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland, inland from Cairns. The shire, administered from the town of Mareeba, covered an area of 53,491 square kilometres (20,653.0 sq mi), and existed as a local government entity from 1879 until 2008, when it amalgamated with several councils in the Atherton Tableland area to become the Tablelands Region.
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. Along the way, the route passes through the Macalister Range, as well as the suburbs of Stratford, Freshwater and Redlynch. Along the way, the train also stops at a lookout, which provides views of Barron Falls.
Mount Surprise is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Etheridge, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, the locality of Mount Surprise had a population of 169 people.
Cairns railway station is a railway station in Cairns City, Queensland, Australia, serving the city of Cairns. The stations is the terminus of the North Coast 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 DL class is a class of diesel locomotives built by Queensland Railways, Robert Stephenson and Hawthorns and Walkers Limited for Queensland Railways between 1939 and 1961.
The Chillagoe Railway and Mining Company was an Australian business established in 1897 initially under the name Chillagoe Proprietary. Its initial purpose was to build a railway to the town of Chillagoe, Queensland to support the development of mining. In 1898, the company was recapitalised as the Chillagoe Railway and Mining Company.
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-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.
Einasleigh Hotel is a heritage-listed hotel at Daintree Street, Einasleigh, Shire of Etheridge, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1908 to 1909. It is also known as Central Hotel. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 6 February 2006.
Station Master's Residence is a heritage-listed detached house at Railway Reserve, Einasleigh, Shire of Etheridge, Queensland, Australia. It was built c. 1909. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.
The Etheridge railway line is a heritage-listed railway line between Mount Surprise and Forsayth, both in the Shire of Etheridge, Queensland, Australia. It includes Mount Surprise railway station, Einasleigh railway station, Wirra Wirra railway station and Forsayth railway station. Etheridge railway line was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 16 February 2009.
Almaden is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, the locality of Almaden had a population of 71 people.
Station Master's Residence is a heritage-listed detached house at Fourth Street, Forsayth, Shire of Etheridge, Queensland, Australia. It was built c. 1910. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.
Petford is a rural locality in the Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. In the 2021 census, Petford had a population of 22 people.