The Goomburra railway line was a

branch railway A branch line is a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a Main line (railway), main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line. Branch lines may serve one or more industries, or a city ...

in the

Southern Downs The Darling Downs is a farming region on the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range in southern Queensland, Australia. The Downs are to the west of South East Queensland and are one of the major regions of Queensland. The name was generally ...

region of

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 ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

History

Construction of the Southern railway line from

Toowoomba Toowoomba ( ), nicknamed 'The Garden City' and 'T-Bar', is a city on the border of South East Queensland and Darling Downs regions of Queensland, Australia. It is located west of Queensland's capital, Brisbane. The urban population of Toowoom ...

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon, Warwickshire, River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined wit ...

brought it as far as Dalrymple Creek near

Allora Allora is a rural town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Allora had a population of 1,205. Geography Allora is on the Darling Downs in south-easter ...

in 1869. At that time, Allora was the largest settlement in the region but the line ran about five kilometres to its west and the then terminus was renamed

Hendon Hendon is an urban area in the London Borough of Barnet, northwest London northwest of Charing Cross. Hendon was an ancient Manorialism, manor and parish in the county of Middlesex and a former borough, the Municipal Borough of Hendon; it has ...

in the 1870s. A line from Hendon to Allora was surveyed in 1884 but the local residents pushed for connection to a proposed direct link between

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 ...

and Warwick. The latter link did not materialise but a line running the short distance from Hendon to Allora was constructed and opened on 21 April 1897. Up to four trains daily connected via Kates with the main line services at Hendon. After development of land to the east of Allora, moves were afoot to extend the line about 20 kilometres to Goomburra. Approved in 1910, construction of the extension commenced in 1911 and opened on 8 July 1912. Stops were located at Kital,

Berat Berat (; sq-definite, Berati) is the List of cities and towns in Albania, ninth most populous city of Albania and the seat of Berat County and Berat Municipality. By air, it is north of Gjirokastër, west of Korçë, south of Tirana, and ea ...

and Kunda. The Goomburra extension was constructed from a point a short distance down from Allora station, turning Allora station and yard into a short spur. Traffic from Allora to Goomburra or vice versa was required to perform a back shunt. In addition to passenger traffic, freight carried on the Goomburra line included dairy products, timber and seasonal grain but its justification did not last. The section of the line beyond Allora was closed on 30 June 1961 due to increasing competition from road transport. Service on the Hendon to Allora section was suspended in 1995. The Hendon to Allora section is now owned by the

Southern Downs Steam Railway Downs Explorer (originally known as Southern Downs Steam Railway) was founded in 1996, initially to restore the former Queensland Railways locomotive depot in Warwick.Rail transport in Queensland The rail network in Queensland, Australia, was the first in the world to adopt narrow gauge for a main line. In 2013, it claimed to be the second largest narrow gauge network in the world. The network consists of the following lines: *the N ...

References

External links

1925 map of the Queensland railway system
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goomburra Railway Line Railway lines opened in 1897 Closed railway lines in Queensland Railway lines closed in 1995 1995 disestablishments in Australia 1897 establishments in Australia Darling Downs