General News
17 February, 2026
Mareeba station funding may hit the rails
FUNDING efforts to upgrade the Mareeba Railway Station may be re-purposed to get the Copperfield Bridge line back up and running, if that is what’s needed to keep the popular Savannahlander train ride flourishing.
Speaking to The Express earlier this month, Member for Cook David Kempton said reports and images on social media clearly showed the impacts of recent severe flooding on the new bridge line, but he would wait for an on-ground report from Queensland Rail on damage and repair costs before rethinking the funding arrangements.
“The Savannahlander hasn’t even been across the bridge,” he said.
“Now they’ve had record flooding, which has put the line out of action, and we need to know the costs in reinstating the bridge.”
In August last year, Mr Kempton successfully lobbied for $500,000 to repair the Copperfield Bridge at Einasleigh after it was destroyed by cyclone Jasper flooding.
By December, the bridge was back in action, which meant the Savannahlander could resume taking passengers through to Wirra Wirra and then on to Forsayth by road, when the season began.
Now the journey plans are up in the air.
Assistant operations manager Sandra Ford said last week the rail journey was expected to begin on March 4, and she had contacted QR for an update on the state of the track.
“Not to push them too much, because I know they’re busy,” she said. “But we need to advise passengers.”
However, she was confident that any repairs to be carried out by QR would be dealt with quickly.
“They have wet season issues every year. QR can get it back into shape in no time.”
If the area was not fit for the rail trip, Savannahlander would “cross that bridge when we come to it”.
The Copperfield Bridge is one of several crucial crossings the Savannahlander relies on to complete its historic rail journey from Cairns to Forsayth.
The Jasper flooding caused damage to several sections on the rail, including on the line between Kuranda and Mareeba.
Passengers were now taken by bus from Cairns to the Mareeba railway station for departures. This will continue again this year.
Mr Kempton had seen the Mareeba departure point as an opportunity to rejuvenate the old station platform and open up a tourism opportunity.
Last year he formed an advisory committee with representatives from the Mareeba Shire Council, Lions Club, Rotary, and the Savannahlander, to examine ways to make the station area a welcoming visitors hub for passengers.
“We’ve now got the bank account set up, which we were going to launch with the first train ride out for this year,” Mr Kempton said.
“But the rider to that is, I’m just not sure whether it might not be better to be redirected towards the bridge. So, I want to have discussions with Savannahlander and the locals about just what the best efforts are going to be.”
In another hurdle for the station rejuvenation, Mr Kempton’s push to upgrade the historic CWA toilets for train passenger use was shut down by the sudden closure of the facility by the MSC two weeks ago.
Council said it would not demolish the building, but “reimagine” it.
While unaware of the closure, Mr Kempton remained positive the building could still be part of the beautification of the station area.
“If it is being re-purposed, I’d like to explore funding avenues to support it, especially if it has a public interest and community benefit component.”
