Rail service in Queensland, Australia
The Inlander
![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/ce/The-inlander.png) |
|
Service type
| Passenger train
|
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Status
| Operational
|
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First service
| 21 February 1953
|
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Current operator(s)
| Queensland Rail
|
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|
Termini
| Townsville
Mount Isa
|
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Distance travelled
| 977 kilometres
|
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Average journey time
| 21 hours
|
---|
Service frequency
| 2 x per week
|
---|
The Inlander
is a passenger train that operates between
Townsville
and
Mount Isa
on the
Great Northern railway line
in
Queensland
, Australia. It was introduced by
Queensland Rail
on 12 February 1953 using new steel air-conditioned carriages built by
Commonwealth Engineering
,
Rocklea
.
[1]
[2]
[3]
Background
[
edit
]
Victorian Railways
introduced air-conditioned trains in 1935, and
Queensland Rail
followed suit in the late 1940s.
Steel carriages
were designed to travel to all parts of the system, meaning a maximum axle load of 9 tons, which was a challenge for the dining cars. New features included showers in the sleeping cars, roomettes in first class and head end power cars, especially necessary where trains may be delayed by floods or other events, as was often the case.
History
[
edit
]
The Inlander was the first air-conditioned train in Queensland, replacing the mail train with its wooden carriages and providing a more comfortable and cleaner service to this dry and dusty region.
[4]
Today
[
edit
]
As of September 2020
[update]
, it operates twice-weekly on the
Great Northern line
from the coastal city of
Townsville
to the mining city of
Mount Isa
. The train is relatively slow, taking 21 hours (overnight) to complete a journey of 977 kilometres.
[5]
The westbound service (3M34) departs
Townsville railway station
at 12:40pm on Wednesdays and Saturdays and arrives at
Mount Isa railway station
at 9:35am on Thursdays and Sundays.
[4]
The eastbound service (3231) departs Mount Isa Railway station at 1:35pm on Thursdays and Sundays and arrives at Townsville railway station at 10:10am on Fridays and Mondays.
Until the end of 2014, the train consisted of sitting cars, sleeping cars with
roomettes
,
twinettes
and triple sleeping cabins and a club car where food could be purchased.
The sleeping cars were withdrawn from 1 January 2015.
Catering is provided by at seat snack packs and a dining car.
[6]
[7]
On 16 June 2021, a $1 million business case was announced by the
Queensland State Government
to investigate replacement of
The Westlander
,
Spirit of the Outback
and Inlander services'
rolling stock
.
[8]
Subsidy levels
[
edit
]
In 2016, the service was estimated to have carried 4,511 people in the previous financial year, with the effective subsidy paid by the Queensland State Government for each passenger amounting to an estimated $3,436 (total subsidy $15.5m).
[9]
In 2021, the service carried 2,833 people in the previous financial year, with the effective subsidy paid by the Queensland State Government for each passenger at $5,086.06.
[10]
References
[
edit
]
External links
[
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]
Public transport in Queensland
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Trains
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Buses
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Ferries
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Light Rail
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Ticketing
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Government
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