North Coast Railway Line, New South Wales
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The North Coast railway line is the primary rail route in the
Mid North Coast The Mid North Coast is a country region in the north-east of the state of New South Wales, Australia. The region, situated 416km north of Sydney, covers the mid northern coast of the state, beginning from Port Stephens at Hawks Nest to as far ...
and
Northern Rivers Northern Rivers is the most northeasterly Regions of New South Wales, region of the Australian state of New South Wales, located between north of the state capital, Sydney, and encompasses the catchments and fertile valleys of the Clarence Ri ...
regions of
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
, Australia, and forms a major part of the
Sydney–Brisbane rail corridor The Sydney–Brisbane railway corridor consists of the long standard-gauge main line between the Australia, Australian state capitals of Brisbane (Queensland) and Sydney (New South Wales), and the lines immediately connected to it. Descript ...
. The line begins at Maitland and ends at
Roma Street railway station Roma Street railway station is a commuter and long-distance passenger train station located in the Brisbane central business district, central business district of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is the junction station for the North Coast ...
in Brisbane, although freight services terminate at the yard at
Acacia Ridge Acacia Ridge is a southern suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the , Acacia Ridge had a population of 7,486 people. Geography Acacia Ridge is south of the central business district. It is within the local government are ...
on the outskirts of Brisbane. Along the way, the railway passes through the towns of
Dungog Dungog is a country town on the Williams River in the Hunter region and a small part of the Mid North Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. Located in the middle of dairy and timber country, it is the centre of the Dungog Shire Local Go ...
,
Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...
, Wingham,
Taree Taree () is a city on the Mid North Coast, New South Wales, Australia. It and nearby Cundletown were settled in 1831 by William Wynter. Since then it has grown to a population of 26,381, and commands a significant agricultural district. Situ ...
, Kendall, Wauchope, Kempsey, Macksville,
Nambucca Heads Nambucca Heads is a town on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia in the Nambucca Valley. It is located on a ridge, north of the estuary of the Nambucca River near the Pacific Highway. Its population at the was 6,668 (6,314 in t ...
, Urunga, Sawtell,
Coffs Harbour Coffs Harbour, locally nicknamed Coffs, is a coastal city on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, north of Sydney, and south of Brisbane. It is one of the largest urban centres on the North Coast, with a population of 78,759 a ...
, Grafton,
Casino A casino is a facility for gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shops, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos also host live entertainment, such as stand-up comedy, conce ...
and
Kyogle Kyogle () is a town in the Northern Rivers region of northern New South Wales, Australia. It falls within the Local government in Australia, local government area of Kyogle Council. At the 2016 Australian census, 2016 census, Kyogle had a popu ...
. After the
standard gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), international gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge in Europe, and SGR in East Africa. It is the ...
line ends at
Acacia Ridge Acacia Ridge is a southern suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the , Acacia Ridge had a population of 7,486 people. Geography Acacia Ridge is south of the central business district. It is within the local government are ...
, it forms a
dual gauge Dual gauge railroad track has three or four rails, allowing vehicles of two track gauges to run on it. Signalling and sidings are more expensive to install on dual gauge tracks than on two single gauge tracks. Dual gauge is used when there i ...
line into
Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
, running alongside parts of the
Beenleigh railway line The Beenleigh railway line is a suburban railway line extending 40.1 km from Boggo Road / Park Road to Beenleigh. It is part of the Queensland Rail Citytrain network. History Originally known as the Logan railway line, the line opened to ...
. Since the Main Northern Line was closed north of Armidale in 1988, the North Coast line is now the only route between Sydney and
Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
. With the closure of former branches to Dorrigo (1972) and
Murwillumbah Murwillumbah ( ) is a town in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia, in the Tweed Shire, on the Tweed River. Sitting on the south eastern foothills of the McPherson Range in the Tweed Volcano valley, Murwillumbah is 848&nbs ...
(2004) there are no operating branches off the line. The
Bonalbo Bonalbo, a rural village in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia, is located north of Sydney and it is the regional centre of Kyogle and it sits within the Kyogle Council local government area. The traditional owners of th ...
branch from Casino was stillborn, with partial construction left incomplete. At the NSW/Queensland border is a long tunnel called Border Tunnel, a single-track extending 1160 metres. Immediately south of it was Border Loop, a short crossing loop, which is now closed. About one kilometre south of that is the
Cougal Spiral The Cougal Spiral is a Heritage register, heritage-listed Single track (rail), single track railway tunnel and Spiral (railway), spiral in Australia. The feature is located on the North Coast railway line, New South Wales, North Coast railway l ...
. These two locations are often confused. The line is owned by the
Transport Asset Holding Entity The Transport Asset Manager of New South Wales (TAM) is an agency of the Government of New South Wales under the ''Transport Administration Act 1988''. It was previously a state-owned corporation known as the Transport Asset Holding Entity of ...
but leased to the
Australian Rail Track Corporation The Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) is an Australian Government-owned statutory corporation. It operates one of the largest rail networks in the nation, spanning across five states and 39 worksites. ARTC continues to expand the networ ...
until 2064.The Agreement in Summary
Australian Rail Track Corporation
Annual Report 30 June 2004
Australian Rail Track Corporation


History

The first North Coast railway was opened between
Murwillumbah Murwillumbah ( ) is a town in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia, in the Tweed Shire, on the Tweed River. Sitting on the south eastern foothills of the McPherson Range in the Tweed Volcano valley, Murwillumbah is 848&nbs ...
,
Byron Bay Byron Bay ( Minjungbal: ''Cavvanbah'') is a beachside town located in the far-northeastern corner of New South Wales, Australia (in Bundjalung Country). It is located north of Sydney and south of Brisbane. Cape Byron, a headland adjac ...
and Lismore in 1894 and extended to
Casino A casino is a facility for gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shops, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos also host live entertainment, such as stand-up comedy, conce ...
in 1903 and Grafton in 1905. A branch line was built to
Kyogle Kyogle () is a town in the Northern Rivers region of northern New South Wales, Australia. It falls within the Local government in Australia, local government area of Kyogle Council. At the 2016 Australian census, 2016 census, Kyogle had a popu ...
in 1910, it was extended to
South Brisbane South Brisbane is an inner southern suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the , South Brisbane had a population of 14,292 people. Geography South Brisbane is on the southern bank of the Brisbane River, bounded to the nor ...
in 1930. The line was built between 1905 and 1932, and when completed, bypassed the Main North line and provided a quicker route up the eastern seaboard. The development of the line was hampered by the many large rivers that flow through the North Coast. The line also features the
Cougal Spiral The Cougal Spiral is a Heritage register, heritage-listed Single track (rail), single track railway tunnel and Spiral (railway), spiral in Australia. The feature is located on the North Coast railway line, New South Wales, North Coast railway l ...
, which is one of only two
spirals In mathematics, a spiral is a curve which emanates from a point, moving further away as it revolves around the point. It is a subtype of whorled patterns, a broad group that also includes concentric objects. Two-dimensional A two-dimension ...
in New South Wales. A railway was built from Maitland to
Paterson Paterson may refer to: People *Paterson (surname) *Paterson (given name) Places Australia *Paterson, New South Wales * Paterson River, New South Wales *Division of Paterson, an electoral district in New South Wales * Paterson, Queensland, a loc ...
and
Dungog Dungog is a country town on the Williams River in the Hunter region and a small part of the Mid North Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. Located in the middle of dairy and timber country, it is the centre of the Dungog Shire Local Go ...
in 1911. It was extended to
Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...
and
Taree Taree () is a city on the Mid North Coast, New South Wales, Australia. It and nearby Cundletown were settled in 1831 by William Wynter. Since then it has grown to a population of 26,381, and commands a significant agricultural district. Situ ...
in 1913 and to Wauchope, Kempsey and
Coffs Harbour Coffs Harbour, locally nicknamed Coffs, is a coastal city on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, north of Sydney, and south of Brisbane. It is one of the largest urban centres on the North Coast, with a population of 78,759 a ...
and from
Glenreagh Glenreagh is a small town in the Clarence Valley, New South Wales, Clarence Valley in the Northern Rivers region of north-eastern New South Wales, Australia. At the 2021 Australian census, 2021 census, Glenreagh had a population of 562 people. ...
to South Grafton (now Grafton station) in 1915. The gap between Coffs Harbour and Glenreagh, which contains five tunnels, was completed in 1922. The Clarence River was the most difficult river to cross and it was not crossed until 1932. In the meantime, services were connected by
rail ferry A train ferry is a ship (ferry) designed to carry railway vehicles, as well as their cargoes and passengers. Typically, one level of the ship is fitted with railway tracks, and the vessel has a door at the front and/or rear to give access to t ...
that carried the carriages across the river. The opening of the
Grafton Bridge Grafton Bridge is a road bridge spanning Grafton Gully in Auckland, New Zealand. Built of reinforced concrete in 1910, it connects the Auckland CBD and Karangahape Road with Grafton, New Zealand, Grafton. It spans about , rises above the abut ...
in 1932 completed the Sydney – Brisbane line as the first standard gauge inter-capital link. The completion of the Sydney–Brisbane link saw the Casino–Murwillumbah line become a branch line. In 1930 a branch line had been added to Ballina but this closed in 1949. The Murwillumbah branch closed in 2004. A picturesque branch was opened from Glenreagh to Dorrigo in 1924, but was difficult to maintain due to the steep terrain and high rainfall and it was closed in 1972 after a washaway. The Glenreagh to Ulong section is proposed for reopening as a heritage tourist railway by the Glenreagh Mountain Railway. The Dorrigo Steam Railway & Museum is also being set up in Dorrigo as a museum and working exhibit.


Passenger services


Current services

NSW TrainLink NSW TrainLink is a regional train and coach operator in Australia, providing services throughout New South Wales and into Australian Capital Territory, the Australian Capital Territory, Victoria (state), Victoria, Queensland and South Australia ...
operates three daily XPT services from Sydney terminating at Grafton, Casino and Brisbane and thirty-one weekly services from Newcastle terminating at Dungog.


Historical services

The premier trains on the North Coast line were the two daily services to Brisbane, the ''
Brisbane Limited The Brisbane Limited was an Australian passenger train operated by the New South Wales Government Railways between Sydney and Brisbane from 1888 until February 1990. The route is now served by an unnamed XPT service. History The Brisbane L ...
'' and the ''Brisbane Express''. The ''Limited'' was the fastest service, stopping only at major stations, while the ''Express'' operated as a sweeper service stopping at most stations north of Grafton and provided connections to services on the Murwillumbah branch. Air-conditioned Sleeping cars had operated on the ''Brisbane Limited'' from 1960. In April 1973 the ''Brisbane Express'' was withdrawn and replaced by the ''
Gold Coast Motorail The Gold Coast Motorail was an Australian passenger train operated by the Public Transport Commission from March 1973 until February 1990. It operated from Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, st ...
'', operating to Murwillumbah. The ''
North Coast Daylight Express The ''North Coast Daylight Express'' was an Australian passenger train operated by the New South Wales Government Railways from November 1951 until February 1990. It operated from Sydney via the North Coast line to Grafton. It commenced operat ...
'' and ''
North Coast Mail The North Coast Mail was an Australian passenger train that ran from Sydney via the North Coast line to Grafton until October 1985. It ran to Murwillumbah until April 1973 when replaced by the ''Gold Coast Motorail'' north of Grafton. It was ...
'' operated to Grafton until they were both replaced in 1985 by a single ''Holiday Coast XPT'' train. Following the
Booz Allen Hamilton Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corporation (informally Booz Allen) is the parent of Booz Allen Hamilton Inc., an American company specializing in intelligence, AI, and digital transformation. It is headquartered in McLean, Virginia, in the Washing ...
review of 1989 which recommended severe rationalisation of country rail services, the Brisbane and Murwillumbah services were converted to XPT operation in February 1990, and a locomotive hauled ''
Grafton Express The ''Grafton Express'' is an Australian passenger train operated by NSW TrainLink between Sydney and Grafton via the North Coast line. In February 1990, the long-standing '' Holiday Coast XPT'' was axed as part of a restructure of CountryLink ...
'' service to Grafton introduced in June 1990. In November 1993 the ''
Grafton Express The ''Grafton Express'' is an Australian passenger train operated by NSW TrainLink between Sydney and Grafton via the North Coast line. In February 1990, the long-standing '' Holiday Coast XPT'' was axed as part of a restructure of CountryLink ...
'' was also converted to XPT operation."Ten Years of the North Coast XPTs" ''Railway Digest'' February 2000


Freight services

When the Main North Line was closed north of
Armidale Armidale is a city in the Northern Tablelands, New South Wales, Australia. Armidale had a population of 23,967 as of the 2021 census. Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. It is the administrative centre for the Northern Tablelands reg ...
in 1988, super-freighters to Brisbane began using the North Coast Line, operated by the
State Rail Authority The State Rail Authority, a former statutory authority of the Government of New South Wales, operated and maintained railways in the Australian state of New South Wales from July 1980 until December 2003. History The ''Transport Authorities A ...
, then
National Rail National Rail (NR) is the trading name licensed for use by the Rail Delivery Group, a group representing passenger train operating companies (TOCs) of England, Scotland, and Wales. The TOCs run the passenger services previously provided by ...
. Today, freight services on the North Coast Line are operated by
Pacific National Pacific National is one of Australia's largest rail freight businesses. History In February 2002, National Rail Corporation, National Rail's freight operations and rollingstock, jointly owned by the Government of Australia, Federal, Governm ...
and
SCT Logistics SCT Logistics is an Australian interstate transport company operating rail and road haulage, with facilities in Brisbane, Sydney, Parkes, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth. History SCT Logistics was founded in 1974 as Specialised Container T ...
. These superfreighters do not serve any of the towns they pass through - in the government railways era, there would be regular freight services to towns such as Kempsey, Grafton and Casino. The only freight train that regularly services the North Coast Line is a cement and sugar train for Grafton, and is operated by Pacific National.


Improvement works

The North Coast Line has significant curvature, equivalent to turning through 150 circles – 75.5 to the right and 74.5 to the left heading north, the difference of one circle due to the
Cougal Spiral The Cougal Spiral is a Heritage register, heritage-listed Single track (rail), single track railway tunnel and Spiral (railway), spiral in Australia. The feature is located on the North Coast railway line, New South Wales, North Coast railway l ...
in the Border Ranges. Of course the curves are unevenly distributed meaning that maximum speeds change hundreds of times usually within the range of and for freight trains. The
Australian Rail Track Corporation The Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) is an Australian Government-owned statutory corporation. It operates one of the largest rail networks in the nation, spanning across five states and 39 worksites. ARTC continues to expand the networ ...
has recently resleepered the track with concrete sleepers, upgraded the signals and installed new loops to increase efficiency. In mid-2011 they eased about 58 sections of curves on the line, increasing line speed for the XPT and freight trains. The curve easing was done without land purchases, so the track changes would be minor, staying within the existing corridor.


Location list

This is a list of all the locations and crossing loops on the North Coast line.


See also

*
Rail transport in New South Wales The Australian States of Australia, state of New South Wales has an extensive network of railways, which were integral to the growth and development of the state. The vast majority of railway lines were government built and operated, but there ...


References


Bibliography

* * {{Railway lines in New South Wales Mid North Coast Railway lines opened in 1930 Standard-gauge railways in Australia Kyogle Council