The Beaudesert Shire Tramway was a narrow gaugetramway which operated from Beaudesert to Lamington and Rathdowney in the Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia, It was one of 15 light railways built and operated by Divisional Boards and Shire Councils in Queensland. The line carried passengers and cargo. It operated from 1903 to 1944. It was initially profitable and seen as a great success for the local shire council. The tramway is credited with opening up the agricultural lands of the upper Logan River.
History
The Tabragalba Divisional Board, predecessor of the Beaudesert Shire, proposed the construction of the Tramway in 1899. Approval was granted on 23 October 1901 and the Beaudesert Tramway Committee was formed on 3 March 1902. The Tramway opened from Beaudesert to Innisplain and Lilybank on 10 October 1903 with Sir Herbert Chermside, Governor of Queensland, officiating at the opening ceremony at Tabooba Junction. In August 1907, it was decided to extend the line to Rathdowney from Innisplain. At the same shire meeting an extension from Christmas Creek was also agreed upon. In 1910, a loan for the extensions was granted. The line was extended to Lamington in October 1910. A branch line from Tabooba to Rathdowney was opened in March 1911. The total cost of construction was £92,770. In 1918, residents of Urbenville in northern New South Wales unsuccessfully agitated for an extension from Rathdowney to the west of Mount Lindesay. Services ran between Beaudesert and Rathdowney three times per week. The main traffic was timber, dairy produce and livestock which were trans-shipped to the Queensland RailwaysBeaudesert line. Early traffic was promising. For example, in the 1905-1906 financial year the Tramway carried 6,712 passengers, of cream, 2,854 pigs, of general merchandise, of other agricultural produce and of timber. During the 1920s the movement of timber was gradually decreasing. The tramway was used to transport postal mail to Rathdowney. As the New South Wales North Coast railway line reached Kyogle in 1926, it generated traffic on the tramway carrying contruction materials. This led to considerable delays with services unable to run to the timetable. Rathdowney and nearby towns were served by the interstate line from 1930. Traffic volumeon the line experienced significant decreases starting from this time. Following the "encroachment" of the standard gauge line and increasing competition from road transport, the Shire approached the Government of Queensland to take over the Tramway but the Minister for Railways declined. With declining traffic, the Tramway ceased operations on 30 Sep 1944. The rails and rolling stock were sold, and the Beaudesert Tramway Committee was abolished on 31 December 1945.
The Tramway owned locomotives, passenger carriages capable of carrying 70 people and goods vans, with timber wagons and other rolling stock hired from Queensland Railways.
Remains
Much of the Tramway reservation is now on private property, although substantial portions are visible from public roads such as the Mount Lindesay Highway. The Tramway station at Rathdowney still exists. Tramway Road at Christmas Creek is built on the former tramway reservation.
