Spirit of Queensland
The Spirit of Queensland is a Queensland Rail long distance passenger rail service. It is operated by a diesel powered[1] Tilt Train that runs five times a week on the North Coast line between Brisbane and Cairns, a distance of 1,681 kilometres. At the start of 2015, it replaced the diesel-hauled train The Sunlander.
 Tilt Train in April 2008 | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Service type | Passenger Train |
| Status | Operating |
| Locale | Queensland |
| First service | 28 October 2013 |
| Current operator(s) | Queensland Rail |
| Route | |
| Start | Brisbane |
| End | Cairns |
| Distance travelled | 1,681 kilometres (1,045 mi) |
| Average journey time | 24hrs, 55mins |
| Service frequency | 5 each way per week |
| On-board services | |
| Seating arrangements | yes |
| Sleeping arrangements | yes |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) |
History
In October 2010, the Queensland Government awarded a contract to Downer Rail for the construction of a new Tilt Train. The two existing diesel tilt trains used on the Cairns service were also refurbished and extended in size, with the inclusion of first-class sleeping carriages.[2] Known as the 'Sunlander 14' project, a total of 25 carriages would have been acquired:
- two new power cars and 12 new carriages to create a third train set.
- one spare power car (later two),
- 10 new carriages to expand the two existing train sets to a 14-car consist,
- refurbishment of 14 existing carriages from the existing train sets
By expanding the train length from nine to 14 carriages, three 'luxury' sleeping carriages, one 'first-class' lounge and one restaurant car could be included in the consist, replicating the services provided on The Sunlander.[3] The construction of four new power cars allowed for the inclusion of the most up-to-date safety features in the driving car of each train, as well as minimising the risk of disruptions in the event that an incident occurred while a second power car was undergoing heavy maintenance.[3]
The resulting project was costed at $195 million and allowed for the operation of five services a week, with a total capacity of 1320 seats. However, costs had risen by 2012, and the Queensland Auditor-General reported that the eventual cost would be from $358 to $404 million, because Queensland Rail had failed to take into account the requirement for upgraded maintenance facilities, as well as en route provisioning.[3] The Auditor-General also believed Queensland Rail had overestimated how popular the new service would be, and had a mistaken belief that the 'luxury' component of the train would attract more high-paying customers.[4]
In 2013, the project was scaled back,[5] with the train length being reduced to nine cars by removing the luxury sleepers and restaurant cars. That resulted in a revised project cost of $204 million.[4]
In October 2013, the first refurbished Tilt Train entered service on the existing Brisbane to Cairns service.[6] With the introduction of the Tilt Train, which has a maximum speed of 160 km/h, the journey time was reduced to 24 hours 55 minutes.[7]
Rolling stock
Each Spirit of Queensland train consists of:[3]
- two power cars to drive the train and supply power to the carriages,
- two 'railbed' sleeper cars with airline style lie-flat seating,
- three premium economy sitting cars,
- one luggage / staff carriage,
- one lounge / galley / club car.
See also
References
- "Spirit of Queensland". www.queenslandrailtravel.com.au. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
- World class trains for Queensland supporting 800 Maryborough jobs Minister for Transport 27 October 2010
- Queensland Audit Office. "Traveltrain renewal: Sunlander 14. Report 8: 2014-15" (PDF). Retrieved 28 December 2014.
- Chris O'Brien and Kym Agius (9 December 2014). "Auditor-General delivers scathing report on project to replace the Sunlander train". ABC News. Retrieved 28 December 2014.
- "Media statement: Seats added in Sunlander changes". Queensland Government. 24 February 2013. Retrieved 28 December 2014.
- "Spirit of Queensland tilt train service commences" Railway Digest December 2013 page 16
- Spirit of Queensland factsheet Archived 2013-12-04 at the Wayback Machine Queensland Rail
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Spirit of Queensland. |