page_title: Central Western railway line, Queensland
section_title: Branch lines
hierarchical_section_title: Central Western railway line, Queensland / Branch lines
caption_attribution_description: English: QR loco 1604 crossing the westbound Midlander, September 1989
context_page_description: The Central Western railway line is a railway line in Queensland, Australia. It was opened in a series of sections between 1867 and 1928. It commences at Rockhampton and extends west 863 kilometres to Winton.
context_section_description: A series of traditional branch lines were built to connect to the Central West line, and these are listed from east to west below. The more recent lines to serve coal mines are listed separately below.
  Kabra – Theodore and Lawgi (Dawson Valley line and Callide Valley line), opened in sections between 1898 and 1932, it included a 2.3 kilometres (1.4 mi) section of rack railway to Mt Morgan, which was replaced by a deviation in 1952. The last sections of this system closed on 26 June 2013.
  Nogoa – Springsure, 65 kilometres (40 mi). This line opened in 1887 to provide access to a fertile valley. Although built to pioneer standards such as 10 tonne axle load, it has remained in service, with the first 43 km to Wurba Junction being upgraded in conjunction with the opening of a coal loading balloon loop serving the Minerva mine in 2006. The section beyond Wurba Junction was closed on 26 June 2013.
  Emerald – Blair Athol, 118 kilometres (73 mi). This line was opened via Capella to Clermont (100 km) in 1884 to serve the developing Peak Downs copper mine. It was extended north to the Blair Athol coal mine in 1910, and a short extension was opened in 1912 to Birimgan to access a source of timber for sleepers in conjunction with the Great Western Railway proposal. The line was upgraded to 15 tonne axle load in 1979. A connection to the separate but proximate Blair Athol-Mackay line was opened in 1986, providing the Emerald district with rail access to the Mackay port, and closed on 26 June 2013.
  Blair Athol had the first Rail ambulance in Queensland. Blair Athol coal, considered the best steaming coal in Queensland, was railed to Mount Isa via Winton and Hughenden in the 1960s, a distance of 1,510 km.
  Jericho – Yaraka, 271 kilometres (168 mi). Opened to Blackall 114 kilometres (71 mi) in 1908, the line was extended as part of the Great Western Railway proposal between 1913 – 1917, with Yaraka becoming the terminus when construction halted due to difficulties in obtaining materials and labour due to the First World War. Intended to reach Windorah, construction never resumed. The line closed in 2005. Blackall had one of the last Rail ambulances in Queensland, withdrawn in 1990.
  Aramac Tramway, 66 kilometres (41 mi). Aramac was one of the few existing settlements in the region when the Central West line was being constructed, but that line maintained its due west path and was built well south of the town. After unsuccessfully lobbying for the State to build a line, the Aramac Shire Council funded what was technically a tramway (but built to QR standards), providing the line to Barcaldine which opened in July 1913. The line was invaluable during wet weather, as the heavy clay ‘black soil’ became impassable for days after rain. Once an all-weather road was provided, the line was seen as a burden on rate payers and closed in 1975.
  Winton – Springvale - Construction started on a line heading south west from Winton as part of the Great Western Railway proposal in 1912, and about 40 kilometres (25 mi) was built before work halted in 1917. Although construction resumed in 1920, it was again abandoned without ever being opened for traffic, and was dismantled as a work creation program in the 1930s depression.
caption: 1604 crossing the westbound Midlander, September 1989
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