General News
25 June, 2025
Move to beautify railway station gains momentum
A DESIRE to beautify the Mareeba Railway Station is gaining momentum, with Savannahlander leading the charge by offering to pay for someone to maintain the area, and Member for Cook David Kempton jumping on board to give his full support to find a way to beautify the facility.
Mr Kempton met with Savannahlander’s operations manager Mike Lee and assistant operations manager Sandra Ford last week to identify what needed to be done and what support the state could give them.
Mr Lee said the first priority was to find someone who would keep the station clean and maintained on a weekly basis but they also wanted to beautify the facility, with a fresh coat of paint, seating, and plants to make it a welcoming stop for passengers catching the train from Mareeba to Einasleigh.
During his discussion with Mr Kempton, Mr Lee made it clear that the biggest challenge facing the Savannahlander was getting Queensland Rail to repair the old timber rail bridges between Kuranda and Mareeba, and another two bridges near Forsayth and Einasleigh to enable the train to do its full journey from Cairns to Forsayth.
In April, The Express revealed the train had to change its departure and arrival to Mareeba after Queensland Rail advised that the section from Kuranda to Koah would be closed due to the deterioration of timber rail bridges.
QR advised The Express that work on that section was expected to take about six months, but a start date had not been confirmed.
It was understood a funding request was with the state government. The Express also understands that the cost of upgrading that section including the bridges and track, has been estimated at more than $160 million.
Mr Lee said QR advised the train service in February that the section would be closed for six months, but he told Mr Kempton last week that “three months down the track”, they were no closer to getting the track reopened.
“Nothing has even started there yet, but it was conditional on getting the resources and funding,” he told Mr Kempton.
“We need the bridges to be fixed – while we are still viable at the moment, I wouldn’t want to do it (bus passengers up from Cairns and not go all the way to Forsayth) for longer than another year.
“Those small communities out there really rely on the train and it’s hurting them at the moment,” Mr Lee said.
He said bringing passengers up from Cairns on a bus may affect numbers, but “if we were to push hard on the other end of the line to fix the Copperfield bridge, then we’ve got something to sell”.
Mr Kempton said he was keen to take the first step of beautifying the Mareeba railway station, saying he would be more than happy to facilitate an agreement with a community group or service club to ensure the station was as welcoming as possible.
“We can then use that as leverage to advocate for the funds we need to get the bridges fixed,” he said.
“The government needs to see benefit – whether that be economical, social or cultural – so the real key now is leverage and foundation. If we can get someone investing in the station, that would be a foundation for the next step.
“It’s really important (the station upgrade), not only because of the aspect of having people boarding in a nice location but it’s leverage then for the funding for the bridges, particularly the Copperfield bridge.
“If we can get that done, we can leverage that to fix the other bridges (from Kuranda to Koah).”
If anyone is interested in being a caretaker for the railway station, they should email mareeba@savannahlander.com.au
