Queensland Rail

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Queensland Rail
Websitequeenslandrail.com.au

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.

History

Queensland Rail network (interactive map)
2470 class at Corinda in the original diesel livery in February 1998

Beginnings

Queensland Railways was the first operator in the world to adopt a

narrow gauge (in this case 1,067 mm or 3 ft 6 in) for a main line,[1]
and this remains the systemwide gauge within Queensland today.

The

Bigge's Camp, at the eastern base of the Little Liverpool Range, on 31 July 1865. Called the Main Line, the only significant engineering work on that section was the bridge over the Bremer River
to North Ipswich.

Tunneling excavation through the Little Liverpool Range delayed the opening of the next section to Gatton by 10 months, but the line was opened to Toowoomba in 1867, the ascent of the Main Range being the reason for the adoption of narrow gauge.

Built by the Queensland Government to the unusual (for the time) gauge of

standard gauge
horse-drawn tramway but had been unable to raise funds to do so beyond an initial start on earthworks.

The adoption of a narrow gauge was controversial at the time and was largely predicated by the government's desire for the fastest possible construction timeframe at the least cost.[2] This resulted in the adoption of sharper curves and a lower axle load than was considered possible using the standard gauge, and an assessment at the time put the cost of a narrow gauge line from Ipswich to Toowoomba at 25% of the cost of a standard gauge line. In a colony with a non-indigenous population of 30,000 when the decision was made, it is understandable.

The network evolved as a series of isolated networks. It wasn't until the completion of the North Coast line in December 1924 that all were joined.[3] The exception was the Normanton to Croydon line which always remained isolated. At its peak in 1932, the network totaled 10,500 kilometres (6,524 mi).

Changing transport patterns resulted in the closure of many development branch lines from 1948 onwards, but at the same time the main lines were upgraded to provide contemporary services, and from the 1970s an extensive network of new lines was developed, particularly to service export coal mines.

Electrification

EMU01 at Ferny Grove station on the first electric service in Brisbane
in November 1979
in October 2016

Commencing in November 1979, the Brisbane suburban network was electrified.

In 1978, discussions were commenced on the possible electrification of the

diesel-electric locomotive fleet and the increase in diesel fuel costs. By early 1983, a decision had been made to electrify the networks and by early 1984, contracts were already starting to be let for the new locomotives and other works for the project. The decision was made to electrify with the 25 kV AC railway electrification system as used on the Brisbane suburban network. This would allow future connection of the Brisbane network with the coal networks via the North Coast line
.

The project was to be carried out in four stages:[4]

Interstate expansion

Interail 42107 in Somerton, Victoria in November 2007

In September 1999, Queensland Rail was rebranded as QR.[7] In March 2002, Queensland Rail purchased Northern Rivers Railroad and rebranded it Interail, fulfilling a long-held ambition of expanding beyond its state borders.[8][9]

In March 2003, Queensland Rail entered the

Duralie Colliery to Stratford Mine. Another coal contract was won in late 2003 for the haulage of coal from Newstan Colliery, Fassifern to Vales Point Power Station. In 2004, Interail began running Brisbane to Melbourne and Sydney to Melbourne intermodal services. In June 2005, Queensland Rail acquired the CRT Group.[10]

In June 2006, the Western Australian business of the Australian Railroad Group was purchased.[11][12][13]

Privatisation and the current era

QR was responsible for all Queensland freight services, and from 2002 operated interstate services under the Australian Railroad Group, Interail and QR National brands. These were all spun out into a separate entity in July 2010, and later privatised as Aurizon.

In June 2009, the Queensland Government announced the privatisation of Queensland Rail's freight business.[14][15] This resulted in Queensland Rail's freight assets being transferred to QR National (now Aurizon) from 1 July 2010.

In April 2013, the

Queensland Parliament passed the Queensland Rail Transit Authority Bill 2013 that restructured Queensland Rail.[16] The explanatory notes published for the bill outlined that the existing Queensland Rail Limited entity would remain although no longer be a government-owned corporation and that entity would become a subsidiary of a new Queensland Rail Transit Authority (QRTA), in effect creating a Queensland Rail group. Under the revised arrangements Queensland Rail Limited retained assets and liabilities and staff were transferred to the QRTA.[17] As a result of transferring the staff to the QRTA, the government moved those employees from the federal industrial relations system to the state-based industrial relations system, giving the state more control over industrial arrangements.[17][18] In November 2013, five labour unions commenced legal proceedings in the High Court of Australia alleging that the QRTA was subject to the federal industrial jurisdiction rather than the state system.[18] In April 2015, the court ruled the QRTA was subject to the Fair Work Act 2009 and the federal industrial relations jurisdiction.[19]

Company officers

Commissioners

Abram Fitzgibbon, circa 1863
James Walker Davidson, 1918

The Commissioners of the Queensland Railways were:

Note: from 29 April 1869 to 15 July 1870, the Secretary for Public Works was appointed Commissioner for Railways.[23][24]

Note: from 29 July 1889 a Board of three Commissioners was appointed to reduce political influence.[25] This was reduced back to a single Commissioner in September 1895.[26]

Note: from 1 July 1991 the position of Commissioner for Railways ceased to exist, replaced by a Chief Executive Officer, reporting to a board of Directors.[42]

Chief Executive Officers

Name Tenure Notes
Vincent John O'Rourke July 1991 – December 2000
Bob Scheuber December 2000 – April 2007
Stephen Cantwell April 2007 – November 2007
Lance Hockridge[43] November 2007 – 30 June 2010
Paul Scurrah 1 July 2010 – 2 December 2011[44] From formation of revised Queensland Rail entity following Public float of QR National. Previously Executive General Manager of QR Passenger subsidiary.[43]
James Benstead December 2011 – August 2013
Glen Dawe August 2013[45]– January 2014[46]
Helen Gluer 3 April 2014 – 27 October 2016[47]
Neil Scales October 2016 – March 2017
Nick Easy March 2017 [48]– December 2021[49]
Katarzyna (Kat) Stapleton April 2022 – present [50]

Services

South East Queensland rail