Australia's tilting diesel train | The Spirit of Queensland | Townsville to Cairns

hi my name's adam i'm in townsville in northern queensland and in today's video we'll be traveling to cairns in far north queensland by train in this video we'll look at all the amenities on board including the cafe car rail beds which are sleepers economy seats the food and drink options and enjoy the beautiful scenery along the way townsville is australia's largest urban centre north of the sunshine coast with a population of almost 200 000 people considered the unofficial capital of north queensland by locals townsville is a major gateway to the great barrier reef and 25 minute ferry ride from magnetic island once upon a time if you were traveling by train from townsville this is where you'd begin your journey this was the terminus of the great northern railroad but sadly no more in 2003 that railway station was relocated about two kilometers southwest of here so the station's no longer in the town centre the building is now used by queensland rail as admin officers here you can see the old platform [Music] and this is what the current station looks like this station opened in 2003 i arrived early for the train so it's pretty quiet the station features a ticket office if you need to make a reservation [Music] there's an air-conditioned passenger lounge with filtered water and charging points in today's journey we'll travel about 340 kilometers in just under 6 hours and 40 minutes the spirit of queensland departs brisbane the previous afternoon so some passengers will have been on the train for more than 17 hours by the time it arrives in townsville here's the timetable [Music] luggage check-in is available on the platform 60 minutes before a scheduled departure and closes 30 minutes before departure today's train is running about 20 minutes late there are two similar tilting train services in queensland one electric the other diesel both operated by queensland rail check out my review of the electric tilt train from brisbane to rockhampton if you haven't seen it the diesel tilt train is what's known as a push pull train the cars at the front and the back are the locos and push or pull respectively whereas the electric tilt train uses distributed power with 16 traction motors spread across the length of the train the diesel tilt trains were refurbished in 2014 the spirit of queensland has two carriages with rail beds which feature life flat seats it has a cafe car in the middle and three economy class carriages as well as a baggage car the train is scheduled to make a 15-minute stop here today i'll be traveling in economy which is fine for a daylight journey i'm in car f towards the rear of the train carriage f contains 51 economy seats there's space for luggage in the vestibule seating in economy is in a two by two arrangement the seat pitch or the distance between each seat is 42 inches so quite generous for comparison most domestic flights in australia offer a seat pitch of 30 inches so these have plenty of legroom there's overhead luggage lockers similar to those on the electric tilt train [Music] [Applause] good morning customers my name is tanya and i'll be your passenger service supervisor today through to cairns along with passenger attendant tracy and spirit of queensland cafe staff caitlin daniel melanie and sheree on behalf of queensland rail we would like to welcome you on board our spirit of queensland service traveling through to cairns and all intermediate stations at queensland rail safety is our highest priority so if i could please have your attention for a few minutes to run through some important safety information i'd like to ask you to take a few moments to read the safety card located in the seat pocket in front of you or alternatively watch the safety video on the entertainment screen to familiarize yourself with the safety features of this train in the event of an emergency on this service the onboard crew are responsible for all of your safety if you could please ensure you're aware of the location of your nearest exit remembering that it may be behind you customers are reminded that whilst moving throughout the train that is the condition of carriage that footwear is worn at all times children under the age of 12 must be accompanied by an adult also at all times fuel safety when moving throughout the train please utilise the grab rails and seat backs to assist you customers are advised that there's a federal offence to smoke on board or clean slam rail trains and platforms and fines may apply the spirit of queensland is a licensed service and the consumption of personal alcohol is not permitted on board consumption of your own alcohol may result in your immediate removal from the service and fines may apply for your convenience you will find the amenities located at the end of each carriage in the sync pocket in front of you you will find a set of complimentary headphones for your onboard entertainment system a headphone jack and usb port is located directly below your armrest and fuel convenience power points are located below each window many of our stops we make along the way are brief please remain on board unless we have reached your destination it is important that you listen to all announcements made throughout the trip as i will be advising customers of any comfort stops and any customers wishing to stretch their legs may do so but are reminded to listen listen for the whistle once the whistle has been blown this will indicate an immediate departure of this state of service queensland rail do not accept any responsibility to provide onward travel or alternative transport should you miss this service customer hygiene packs are available on requests so please speak to a team member if you would like one for further information we recommend visiting our website queenslandrailtravel.com.a you customers are advised that tracy and i'll be soon maybe checking all tickets for those customers who joined us at townsville please ensure you have your ticket along with any concession card used when purchasing your ticket on hand for inspection on behalf of the onboard crew and drivers please sit back relax enjoy the journey and hospitality on board the spirit of queensland thank you good morning so now that all those announcements are out the way let's look at the route stops include ingham tully and innisfail as they were a year ago [Music] there's no wi-fi on board so you'll have to rely on your mobile phone data there are individual reading lights the cairns tilt train is the fastest narrow gauge diesel-powered tilt train in the world able to travel up to 160 kilometers per hour but we won't reach anything like that today the track between townsville and cairns has an 80 kilometer per hour limit for most trains but the tilt train is permitted to travel up to 100 kilometers per hour however once you factor in the stops and the slower sections of track will average closer to 50 kilometers per hour each seat has a fold down tray table and a curtain let's check out the toilets as the trip to cairns takes 25 hours for passengers travelling from brisbane each carriage features a shower [Music] there are also two unisex toilets both with a baby change table i found the toilets clean throughout today's journey [Music] more than 90 of australia's sugarcane is grown in queensland this is a sugar cane railway the narrow gauge track is 610 millimeters wide or two feet there's about four thousand kilometers of cainfield's railway in australia it's used to transport the chopped cane during the crushing season which typically runs from june to november the economy seats are comfortable and feature at-seat entertainment systems and charging points [Music] let's head to the cafe car which is in the middle of the train there's a drinking fountain in each carriage there are three wheelchair spaces in car e here's the cafe which they also call the galley there's a seating area here's a quick look at the menu there is a coffee machine but unfortunately it's broken today you can come here and have a chat to other passengers although the galley car is open overnight alcohol is not available between midnight and 10 am let's head back to my seat and while we're up we might as well look at the rear carriage car g economy seating on the spirit of queensland was originally sold as premium economy given the generous legroom and recline and this is as far as we can go [Music] good morning customers the spirit of queensland is now approaching ingham station customers leaving us here at ingham please prepare to do so ensuring that you have all of your personal belongings with you platform for ingham is located on the left-hand side in the direction of travels once the whistle has been blown this will indicate an immediate departure of our service queensland rail travel trust customers leaving us here at ingham have had an enjoyable journey and we look forward to seeing you the next time you travel on one of our many queensland rail travel services thank you and good morning [Music] [Music] [Music] we cross a sugar cane railway as we pull into ingham [Music] time for some fresh air this semaphore signal protects the crossing with the kane railway that we passed over on our arrival in the distance is the victoria sugar mill during the crushing season these mills operate 24 7. one of the reasons for the trains slow average speed is that we have to slow down to cross the cane railways there's a 40 kilometer per hour limit on this crossing [Music] [Music] i head back to the cafe for lunch we're arriving in cardwell the friendly cafe staff tell me this is the only spot on the entire journey where you can see the ocean the hot meal options are the same as on the electric tilt train i go for the roast pork with vegetables which takes a few minutes to heat and costs 9.50 [Music] [Music] that's the coral sea and in the distance you can just see hinchenbrook island [Music] the train has to make two stops here because of the short platform [Music] [Applause] [Music] lunch is served it's something of a challenge to cut the roast pork with the plastic cutlery the tray table even when extended is somewhat far from the seat the red wine is 7.50 the food tastes fine a typical microwave ready meal the seat back screens in economy are 8.9 inches the ride quality of this train is very smooth tilt trains have a special suspension system enabling the carriages to lean into a curve by a few degrees this allows higher speeds than conventional trains and increases passenger comfort it starts raining on our approach into the town of tully fitting given it's known as one of the wettest towns in australia the town has an average annual rainfall exceeding 4 000 millimeters or 160 inches and in 1950 recorded the highest ever annual rainfall in a populated area of [Music] good australia customers the spirit of queensland is now approaching tully station [Music] the platform fatally is located on the right hand side in the direction of travel customers are welcome to disembark for a comfort stop here at tully but a reminder that it is an offence to smoke on all queensland rail platforms in station amenities and on this train those customers wanting to do so please move to five minutes in front of the and listen to the whistle as once a whistle has been closed this will indicate an immediate departure of this service [Music] [Music] we have a 10 minute stop here so we can get out and stretch our legs it seems like a good time to have a look at one of the two carriages that has airline style life flat seating known as rail beds these seats feature 35 degrees of recline and an 18.5 inch entertainment screen at night staff provide a mattress topper and linen rail bed customers also get all-inclusive meals served at their seat there are 35 rail beds on this train compared to 134 seats in economy seating isn't a two by one arrangement except at the front and back there are single seats on either side i love how the station has been decorated with pot plants there's the whistle letting us know it's time to go [Music] the staff come through periodically to collect rubbish [Music] [Music] here's a quick look at the entertainment system there's a few different movies and tv shows to choose from [Music] and here's a sugarcane train [Music] this is a pacific national freight depot [Music] good afternoon customers and welcome to inner spa for those customers leaving us here the platform is located on the right hand side in the direction of travel those customers who have checked in luggage this will be made available to you on the platform thank you and good afternoon [Music] innisfail has a tropical rainforest climate and has no month with an average temperature below 18 degrees celsius or with less than 60 millimeters of rain [Music] [Music] oh [Music] why are you keeping me the other crop found commonly in this part of the world is bananas you might be able to make out the plastic bags these help ripen the fruit as well as protecting them from pests [Music] we cross a freight train [Music] [Music] here we get a glimpse of the front of the train on the approach to the town of babinda [Music] [Music] queensland cafe and the seating area in the cafe will be closing approximately 10 minutes time in preparation for our arrival at ken station if you'd like to purchase any last minute refreshments before we do arrive at cairns this afternoon just ask if you please make your way to the cafe now [Music] driving between townsville and cairns takes about four and a half hours so is a couple of hours quicker than the train the bus takes five and a half hours but i find trains a far more relaxing way to travel than either bus or car [Music] [Music] this is the malgrive sugar mill located in gordonvale the mill began operating in 1896 [Music] [Music] because no passengers are booked to leave or join the train in gordonvale we don't stop gordonvale is now part of the urban sprawl of cairns they're building an improved alignment for the railway here as part of a project to widen the nearby bruce highway so how much is the fare for this train you can only travel between townsville and cairns in economy the rail beds are reserved for overnight journeys queensland rail currently has a promotion called the northern explorer fair for 50 between townsville and cairns b quick fares are discount advance fares costing 65 on this route while the full standard fare is 109 i think either of the discount fares are good value the system will show you your allocated seat but i don't believe you can change it we're now on the final stretch into cans service will be terminating at cairns station so please prepare yourself ensuring that you take all of your personal belongings with you please remember to check all seat pockets and overhead lockets lockers and take care if opening the overhead luggage compartment as luggage may have moved during the journey the platform for cairns is located on the right hand side in the direction of travel for those customers who have checked in luggage please collect your luggage from the front of this service from the northern end of the platform area opposite carriage a there's a public telephone adjacent to the foyer with the taxi rank at the front of the station to the left-hand side of the foyer entrance cairns taxis have been notified in advance of our arrival to all customers leaving us here at cairns on behalf of myself the onboard team and drivers i hope you have had an enjoyable journey and we look forward to seeing you the next time you travel we arrive in decans via an industrial part of the city so what do i think of the spirit of queensland yes the train is a slow way to travel between townsville and cairns but the varied scenes from cane fields and rivers to rainforests and misty mountains are entrancing the seat is really comfortable so i'd do it again in heartbeat and for fifty dollars you can't go wrong cairns is a popular tourist destination because of its tropical climate and access to rainforests and the great barrier reef it's lucky i traveled today heavy rain and flooding damaged the tracks north of rockhampton forcing the next day's northbound spirit of queensland to terminate in rockhampton the station is located in one of kansas main shopping centres we arrive almost on time at 4 31 pm [Music] [Applause] [Music] so [Music] here's a final look at our seat checked luggage is available on the platform a few minutes after arrival the train heads back the way we came to the queensland rail train depot where it will be stabled overnight before leading tomorrow's brisbane-bound service departing cairns at 8 35 a.m but tomorrow's service terminates at makai because of the flooding i mentioned earlier if you come to cairns i highly recommend a trip on the karanda scenic railway don't miss a trip to the atherton tableland so you can visit some of the beautiful waterfalls i hope you enjoyed this video please like and subscribe so you don't miss the next one see you soon

Channel: From the Window Seat

Views: 24,932

Keywords: spirit of queensland, tilt train, diesel tilt train, townsville train, cairns train, cairns tilt train, great railway journeys, travel by train, scenic railway, queensland rail, trip report, train review, north coast railway

Id: 6wubiZ55nHI

Length: 31min 44sec (1904 seconds)

Published: Tue Apr 05 2022