Work underway on $48 million Toowoomba Range rail upgrade
20 February 2018
Queensland Government:
The Palaszczuk Government has commenced
work has on a major
rail upgrade along the Toowoomba Range, which will
support 100 construction
jobs locally.
Transport Minister Mark Bailey said the $48 million Palaszczuk
Government investment will involve increasing the height of 11 rail
tunnels on the
Toowoomba and Little Liverpool Ranges, enabling the
transport of containerised freight by rail from the Darling Downs and
South West Queensland Regions directly to the
Port of Brisbane.
This vital project will not only help to support the growth and
prosperity of
Queensland’s agricultural sector, it will also provide a
welcome boost to the local construction industry,” Mr Bailey said.
“Foundation and preparation works have commenced with further
preparation works to be undertaken during a scheduled track closure of
the western rail line at the end of February. The first tunnels will be
lowered during a major track closure in April.
“The lowering of 11 rail tunnel floors on the Toowoomba and Little
Liverpool Ranges will create the clearance necessary to transport 9’6”
high cube freight shipping containers via rail, increasingly being used
to export goods.
“This project is a huge vote of confidence in the future growth of
agriculture in the Darling Downs and South West Queensland Regions,
which currently produces around a third of Queensland’s agricultural
output and is a major area for cotton.
“The Palaszczuk Government is committed to ensuring rail is a more
attractive and viable option for those industries who wish to use larger
containers to get their goods to the Port of Brisbane for export, and to
helping improve the overall competitiveness of our agricultural sector
in this region.
“We are committed to supporting economic and jobs growth in regional
Queensland communities and this project will ensure farmers are
supported, with the freight options in place to transport their goods to
market now and into the future.
“This project has the potential to help reduce the quantity of heavy
vehicles required to transport freight on the highway from South West
Queensland to the Port, improving safety and reducing the impact on our
roads.”
Michelle Reynolds, CEO of
InterlinkSQ - a major intermodal freight hub
being constructed West of Toowoomba – said that today’s funding
announcement is the catalyst towards a reinvention of the rail freight
industry in our region.
“The tunnel upgrade forms an important building block in the future of
rail freight, and most importantly, demonstrates the State Government’s
commitment to the creation and protection of jobs for our state,” Ms
Reynolds said.
Mr Bailey said after working with
BMD Constructions on the detailed
design and investigation works for the project,
Queensland Rail would
continue to work with the locally based company to undertake the
construction phase of the project.
“BMD Constructions, which has local offices in Toowoomba, and design
partners
WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff, have completed the detailed design
for the project, and Queensland Rail will continue to work with BMD
Constructions during the construction phase,” Mr Bailey said.
“Now that construction has started, we anticipate the work will take
approximately 12 months to complete.
“This project will lower 11 heritage listed railway tunnel floors,
including two tunnels on the Little Liverpool range at Laidley and nine
tunnels on the Toowoomba Range.
“The tunnels are stone and brick lined and were constructed in the 1860s
on Australia’s first main rail line through the Great Dividing Range.
This project will strike a balance between maintaining the heritage
status of the tunnels, while providing the modern day upgrade
that is required.”
--ENDS--
Source: Queensland Government - www.statements.qld.gov.au
Contact: Media Enquiries – Chris Vernon – 0416 800 004
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