$17m boost for rail tunnels

WORK will soon be under way to expand the size of rail runnels through the Toowoomba Range and Lockyer Valley.

Member for Toowoomba South John McVeigh announced $17 million in funding for the project, which would allow larger containers to travel by rail.

Mr McVeigh said the expansion would provide a “significant” boost for the future of the Darling Downs agricultural industry.

“I want to see a growth in efficient and affordable modes of transport to support agriculture on the Darling Downs,” Mr McVeigh said.

“By lowering the floor on 11 tunnels, it will allow rail transport to compete with trucks which have been carrying the larger hi-cube for several years. We are putting steps in place to meet future growth between the Darling Downs and Port of Brisbane.”

John McVeigh:

By lowering the floor on 11 tunnels it will allow rail transport to compete with trucks

Preparations are already under way to build two additional passing loops on the range to allow more services for cotton and grain.

Member for Lockyer Ian Rickuss said the use of the larger nine foot six inch hi-cube containers had grown significantly in recent years, replacing the standard eight foot six inch containers.

“This will be a challenging engineering task because nine of the 11 tunnels along the western and south western rail corridors have historic characteristics which need to be maintained,” he said.