Inland Railway

Melbourne to Moree

Between Melbourne and Moree, a number of existing railway lines of varying condition and load capacity could provide a connection. In May 2008, the federal government announced a detailed study into the line between Melbourne and Brisbane.^[5] That study was expected to select the most viable route. In particular, a decision had to be made between taking the inland railway line via Albury or via Shepparton.^[6] Some completely new sections of line were expected to be developed, while other existing lines would be upgraded or completely rebuilt.

Moree to Toowoomba

Moree is the current terminus of passenger rail services on the Mungindi railway line. Beyond Moree, only wheat trains operate on a branch line to North Star, near the Queensland border. That line previously extended to Boggabilla, which is only a few kilometres from Goondiwindi in Queensland. While Goondiwindi is on a narrow gauge line that connects to Toowoomba via Warwick, these New South Wales and Queensland lines never met.

In April 2008, ATEC announced that it was seeking an unconditional exclusive mandate from the Queensland and New South Wales governments to build a new 350 km standard gauge rail line between Moree and Toowoomba.^[7] The proposed route of that line would pass through North Star, turn east on a completely new alignment to Yetman in New South Wales, then north to Yelarbon in Queensland. From there, it would go to Inglewood, then turn north to Millmerran, then through Pittsworth to Toowoomba. While there are existing narrow gauge lines between Yelarbon and Inglewood and between Millmerran and Toowoomba, it is unclear whether it is proposed to use these lines.

Under the proposal, this line was to be completed in 2014. It was estimated that its completion had the potential to reduce the number of trucks travelling along the Newell Highway by 1,000 per day. In 2015, construction was proposed.

Toowoomba to Brisbane

Toowoomba lies at an elevation of 700 metres, which is not particularly high in world terms, but the difficulty of climbing the range from Brisbane at an affordable cost was the reason for the choice of narrow gauge for railways in Queensland, leading to the subsequent break of gauge problems that this caused at the New South Wales border. Route planning for this section is part of the study funded by the federal government.^[5] The 2018 plan (to be reviewed) has the rail line halting at Acacia Ridge, 38km from the Port of Brisbane, due to the inability to double-stack containers on the rail line to the port so, initially, some cargo would have to be taken on the final leg to the port by road.

Toowoomba to Gladstone

Originally called the Dawson Valley railway line, the first sector will be the 210 km Surat Basin railway line between Wandoan and Banana, which is planned to have its detailed route planning and financing completed by the end of 2009 and to be operational in 2012.^[8] This line, in conjunction with upgrading of existing lines, will provide a direct link between Toowoomba and Gladstone. The company involved in building that line, Surat Basin Rail Joint Venture, is a joint venture involving ATEC, Industry Funds Management, Anglo Coal, Xstrata Coal and Queensland Rail. It has been granted an unconditional exclusive mandate to construct and operate that line as an open access private railway. This line will initially be built in narrow gauge and without overhead electrification but will be designed to provide for future conversion to dual gauge and electrification.^[9]

Banana to Bowen via Emerald

A line has been proposed to connect the Bowen Basin and Surat Basin coal mining regions, providing mines in those areas with access to four ports. The line would connect to the Surat Basin railway line at Banana, extend north-west to Emerald, then north to Bowen.^[2]

Mount Isa to Bowen

A line has been proposed to connect the North West Minerals Province around Mount Isa to Bowen.^[2]

Mount Isa to Darwin

This sector is proposed to be built between Mount Isa and Tennant Creek, where it would join the Adelaide-Darwin railway to Darwin.^[2]

In 2005, a study found that this line was not viable at that time. In July 2008, it was announced that ATEC is again carrying out a study to investigate the viability of constructing this line because two new iron ore mines are being developed north west of Mount Isa and the recently elected Mount Isa council have shown renewed interest in the project.^[10]

The Wonarah phosphate deposit, located 250 km east of Tennant Creek, was discovered in 1967 and has been the subject of numerous studies. Up to 2007, the project remained uneconomic due to the world price of phosphate. With rising prices during 2007, the mining lease holder, Minemakers Limited, believed that the project might have become economically viable. The proposed site of the mine is on the Barkly Highway and the route of the proposed Mount Isa to Tennant Creek railway line. The initial plan was to use trucks to transport phosphate to Tennant Creek, where it would be transferred to trains for transport to Darwin.^[11] In January 2009, a memorandum of understanding was announced between Minemakers and ATEC for a financial study into the construction of the railway line from the project site to Tennant Creek as an open access private railway.^[12][13]