Tablelands railway line, Queensland

The Tablelands 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.

Following the discovery of tin at Herberton in 1879, the ports of Cairns and Port Douglas were established, competing for the role of dominant settlement in the area. The summer tropical rainfall in the region made roads virtually impassable in the wet season, leading to calls for improved land transportation in the region. The region to the west of this section of the Queensland coast was relatively rugged, being mountainous rainforest.

Three potential routes were investigated to reach Herberton, via Port Douglas, Cairns and Geraldton (now Innisfail). The shortest route was from Innisfail, but it was the steepest and through very rugged country. The Port Douglas route was the easiest but longest. Cairns had the best port, and the unstable geology of the Barron Gorge wasn’t known at the time.

After extensive debate, the Queensland Government selected Cairns as the starting point of the line, and the first section opened to Redlynch, at the base of the range, 11.6 km from Cairns in 1887.

The next section climbed the Barron River Gorge reaching 317m asl using 1 in 50 grades and 4 chain (~88m) radius curves (the tightest used on the system) involving 15 tunnels and several major bridges. The Redlynch section was built with 21 kg/m (42 lb/yd) rails, but in recognition of the high wear the sharp curves would cause, the Gorge section was laid with 30 kg/m (60 lb/yd) rails. This section opened to Myola in 1891, and the line reached Mareeba in 1893. The Barron Gorge section had cost nearly 3 times the original estimate, and the government, reluctant to commit to any further public expenditure on extending the Tablelands rail network, sought alternative options.

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