Travel Australia

Classic Railway Stations: Spring Bluff, Queensland

Spring Bluff Railway Station is a heritage listed site located on the historic Ipswich to Toowoomba railway line, completed in April 1867. Its significance stems from over 150 years of railway history and the attraction of its landscaped gardens. In 1914 Queensland Railways launched a garden competition to encourage railway staff to beautify the stations and grow vegetables. The gardens are now beautifully maintained and have won awards in the Carnival of Flowers competition over many years.



The station was decommissioned in August 1992, and the ganger and fettler crew withdrawn in September 1993. The importance of the station was recognised with the formation of the Spring Bluff Railway Station Trust to preserve and maintain the grounds and station. The National Trust of Queensland listed the Main Range Railway on its Register in March 1994.

The grounds are open for visitors all year round to enjoy a picnic or barbecue or perhaps a visit to the Spring Bluff Cafe for coffee and treats. Spring Bluff Railway Station has been the venue for many weddings over the years and the quaint country-feel to the Station lends itself to being one of the most romantic outdoor small wedding venues in the Region. It's a beautiful spot for wedding photos too


Gore Railway Station, Highfields Pioneer Village

Naerby is Highfields, first in a string of charming villages along the escarpment. Don't miss the Pioneer Village here, and the town's host of specialty stores. The Highfields Pioneer Historical Village has an unusual collection of vintage machinery. The Historical Village also has a fully operating blacksmith shop, a Heritage Chapel, an original Toowoomba 1928 Dennis Fire Engine, a two cell lock up short term prison from 1903, Model T Fords, and a collection of restored antique radios and appliances.

The Danish Flower Art Centre at Highfields hosts a number of displays including a flower barn, Dutch furniture store and operating blacksmith workshop. The Chocolate Cottage is located at the Village Green which sells antiques, art and other specialty items. Across the road from the Village Green is Jacaranda Manor. Within Jacaranda Manor is a coffee shop, fudge factory and bead store. Davidson Arboretum which includes Araucaria bidwillii (Bunya pine).

Ipswich to Toowoomba Railway

Spring Bluff Station is on the Main Line is a railway line in South East Queensland, which was opened in a series of sections between 1865 and 1867. It commences at Roma St Station in Brisbane and extends west 161 km to Toowoomba. It is the first narrow gauge main line constructed in the world.

The 31 km section from Ipswich (a city about 38 km or 24 mi from Brisbane) to Grandchester (originally Bigge’s Camp) was the first section of railway line opened in Queensland, on 31 July 1865. Queensland Railways (QR) was the first operator in the world to adopt narrow gauge (in this case 3 ft 6 in or 1,067 mm) for a main line, and this remains the system wide gauge within Queensland today.


Queensland Rail's heritage loco A10 no. 6 on the main line to Toowoomba, 1990

The colony of Queensland separated from New South Wales in 1859, and the new government was keen to facilitate development and immigration. Improved transport to the fertile Darling Downs region situated west of Toowoomba was seen as a priority. As adequate river transport was already established between the capital Brisbane and the then separate settlement of Ipswich, the railway commenced from the latter locality and the initial section, built over relatively flat, easy country opened to 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 was the bridge over the Bremer River to North Ipswich.


Spring Bluff Station

Built by the Queensland government to the unusual (for the time) gauge of 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm), the line largely followed the alignment surveyed by a private company, the Moreton Bay Tramway Company, which had proposed to build a 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge horse-drawn tramway but had been unable to raise funds to do so beyond an initial start on earthworks.

The adoption of narrow gauge was controversial at the time, and was largely predicated by the government’s desire for the fastest possible construction timeframe at least cost. This resulted in adoption of sharper curves and a lower axle load than was considered possible using standard gauge, and an assessment at the time put the cost of a narrow gauge line from Ipswich to Toowoomba as 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.


Six Chain tunnel

Beyond Grandchester, the line has an effective grade of 1 in 41. Two tunnels were required on the section through the Little Liverpool Range to Laidley, known as ‘Six Chain’ and ‘Victoria’ tunnels, the latter after the English Queen of the day. Victoria tunnel is 540 m long, and both remain in service, being the oldest single track railway tunnels still in use in Australia.

From Helidon the line climbs 369 metres in 26 km up the Main Range to the summit at Harlaxton (612 metres above sea level) at an average grade of 1 in 70. This section was opened on 30 April 1867. As built the section contained 157 cuttings, 128 embankments, 47 bridges, 175 culverts and 9 tunnels.