Inland Rail

[Stillwater]

^Yep.  This stand that 'everything's on hold until we get CRR' is a nonsense.

[#Metro]

Having a diesel tilt train or similar would be perfect.

The key thing will be to make sure that the alignment is very good.

All for Toowoomba train services.

[verbatim9]

Having a diesel tilt train or similar would be perfect.

The key thing will be to make sure that the alignment is very good.

All for Toowoomba train services.

Not a fan of diesel commuter trains. Adds local and noise pollution to rail corridors within city precincts. Just look at Southern Cross station (Melbourne) in Melbourne it smells of diesel pollution. Plus diesel is sourced mostly from a non renewable source and imported. Electric far better in the long run. Diesel ok for Toowoomba South then southbound for freight etc...

[#Metro]

We already have diesel tilt trains in QLD. They are so infrequent that nobody really notices any kind of fume.

We also have the local support for it. http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/passenger/single-view/view/queensland-orders-next-generation-diesel-tilt-train.html

'Travelling the Brisbane to Cairns rail route is one of the world's top train journeys', said Bligh. 'This A$189m investment means passengers on this world class route will be able to travel in world class luxury.'

The Tilt Trains use Hitachi technology to run at up to 160 km/h on the 1 067 mm gauge tracks, and this will cut around 5 h from the current 30 h Brisbane - Cairns Sunlander timing on the 1 680 km route.

Queensland is currently undertaking an asset sale which includes privatisation of rail freight business QR National. 'It is because we have created a rail company that is completely dedicated to its passengers that we can deliver these focused improvements', said Bligh. '

[verbatim9]

^^They don't run every 90mins. Better electric for high frequency shorter runs like Toowoomba and existing electric rail stock can also be utilised. Like NGR

[#Metro]

Look, I really don't mind what the propulsion is so long as services run between Brisbane and Toowoomba.

I'm sure that any prospect of such a service would be debated and subjected to engineering review where they would determine what

propulsion to use.

An interesting question though is that if such a train service were to start up, would Queensland Rail run it (not a certainty) and would it be DOO??

[Old Northern Road]

I don't like the chances of there being passenger rail if it's only going to be single track. Coal will be the priority (as it is now)

[verbatim9]

Look, I really don't mind what the propulsion is so long as services run between Brisbane and Toowoomba.

I'm sure that any prospect of such a service would be debated and subjected to engineering review where they would determine what

propulsion to use.

An interesting question though is that if such a train service were to start up, would Queensland Rail run it (not a certainty) and would it be DOO??

Yes DOO compliant from Toowoomba to Brisbane for sure. I assume DOO for freight maybe even Driverless from 2030.

[verbatim9]

I don't like the chances of there being passenger rail if it's only going to be single track. Coal will be the priority (as it is now)

Be at least dual guage 2 tracks and passing loops if and when passengers commuter trains are considered I suspect. If catenary is a preferred option allowances for clearance in tunnels would need to be taken into account especially with double stacked freight going through. Councilor Schrinner is keen to see a Tunnel from Acacia Ridge running under his ward to connect to the Port of Brisbane. (Minimising Noise and Pollution in the Eastern Suburbs).

[ozbob]

Brisbanetimes --> Inland Rail a long-held dream for the Nationals

Nine regional councils on either side of the Victoria-NSW border are pushing for a costly re-route of the government's $10 billion Inland Rail line as questions emerge over the economic justification for the Nationals' pet infrastructure project.

The group of councils, calling itself the Food Bowl Inland Rail Alliance, is seeking meetings with Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce and Infrastructure Minister Darren Chester to argue for the freight rail line to pass through the food-growing regions from Shepparton in Victoria to Jerilderie and Narrandera in NSW.

The proposed Melbourne to Brisbane Inland Rail will carry the equivalent of 108 B-Double trucks worth of freight.

The Australian Rail Track Corporation's preferred route would run from Albury to Wagga Wagga and on to Parkes while the alliance is pushing for the line to head inland to Shepparton and on to Tocumwal and Narrandera before going to Parkes.

On Wednesday, Mr Chester told Fairfax Media there was no plan to alter ARTC's preferred route.

The 1700km inland rail from Melbourne to Brisbane needs government support to get built.

"Using and upgrading the existing interstate rail freight network reduces the impact on communities and lowers the cost of land acquisition and construction," he said.



Previous studies for the federal government found the "Shepparton option" would save 30 minutes of travel time between Brisbane and Melbourne and freight hauled by 2025 would be 1.75 million tonnes compared to 220,000 tonnes if the "Albury option" is retained for the 1700km project, to be built by 2024.

A 2015 report by Deloitte for the Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development found the Shepparton option would require 190 kilometres of new track, compared to just 37 kilometres on the Albury alignment, which would predominantly require upgrading existing track.

The Shepparton option would require a capital investment of $1.5 billion compared to $208 million for the current alignment.

Deloitte said the shorter, flatter Shepparton route "did not translate into significant benefits for Inland Rail users and would not improve the market share for Inland Rail intercapital freight".

Former Nationals leader John Anderson, who presided over the Inland Rail's implementation group report in 2015 found the freight benefits of the Shepparton option did not outweigh the costs.

The alliance, which includes the local government areas of Mitchell, Greater Shepparton and Moira in Victoria, and Berrigan, Jerilderie, Urana, Griffith, Leeton and Narrandera, met with Pauline Hanson and other One Nation senators last week during their listening tour of the Murray-Darling.

Alliance spokesman Wesley Hall, a Narrandera councillor, said Senator Hanson understood the benefits of the food-bowl route.

"We feel the decision on the route has been more political than nation-building," he said.

Inland Rail has been a long-held dream for the Nationals but even Mr Anderson's 2015 report found it would be a marginal, if worthwhile, public investment.

He said the line would deliver a net economic benefit but the expected operating revenue over 50 years would not cover the initial capital investment and the project would therefore not attract the private-sector investment required to build it.

Mr Anderson said the business case for the $10 billion project would be eroded if a future government allowed B-triple trucks or super B-doubles for inter-capital freight on the Hume, Pacific and Newell highways.

Freight expert Luke Fraser, an adviser to Infrastructure Australia's Infrastructure Financing Group and former Howard government staffer, has previously described Inland Rail as "lunacy" without more stringent road freight pricing to reflect impact on highways.

"Several hundred pages of government business case fail to present a plausible commercial prospect to investors at even the thinnest rates of return," he wrote.

"Spending taxpayer treasure to build this would be lunacy."

Mr Fraser said the flat truck pricing system in Australia was akin to electricity companies charging a flat connection fee for suburban homes and large factories.

"The quantum of fees raised might be right, but home-owners rightly would be furious at having to cross-subsidise the business sector."

[ozbob]

https://inlandrail.artc.com.au/C2K

Calvert to Kagaru (Qld)

The Calvert to Kagaru (C2K) section is one of 13 projects that complete Inland Rail. This section of Inland Rail involves the design and construction of approximately 53km of new dual gauge track.

The connection will provide convenient access to major proposed industrial developments at Ebenezer in the Ipswich Local Government Area and at Bromelton near Beaudesert in the Scenic Rim Local Government Area.

The project includes:

    55.9km of new dual mainline track
    1.1km tunnel through the Teviot Range
    15 grade separations
    13 river bridges
    up to four passing or crossing loops

More >> https://inlandrail.artc.com.au/C2K

[Old Northern Road]

I don't like the chances of there being passenger rail if it's only going to be single track. Coal will be the priority (as it is now)

Be at least dual guage 2 tracks and passing loops if and when passengers commuter trains are considered I suspect. If catenary is a preferred option allowances for clearance in tunnels would need to be taken into account especially with double stacked freight going through. Councilor Schrinner is keen to see a Tunnel from Acacia Ridge running under his ward to connect to the Port of Brisbane. (Minimising Noise and Pollution in the Eastern Suburbs).

Single track with crossing loops as far as I can tell

[ozbob]

The project is many many years away.  Now that Toowoomba Mayor et al. are on it I think that the section Gowrie Junction to Kagaru ( certainly to at least to Calvert) will end up dual track dual gauge.

[ozbob]

Delivering Inland Rail. This project is the reason @MarkCoultonMP got into Parliament. Now @The_Nationals are making it happen #budget2017 pic.twitter.com/ghJmFjfnSl

— Barnaby Joyce (@Barnaby_Joyce) May 11, 2017

[aldonius]

Hopefully as much as possible of the 'hard parts' will be sized for dual track, even if only single track is installed initially.

[ozbob]

Hopefully as much as possible of the 'hard parts' will be sized for dual track, even if only single track is installed initially.

future proofing !

[ozbob]

Queensland Times 12th May 2017 page 2

A passenger railway line to Toowoomba a must, says Dow

[ozbob]

'A passenger railway line to Toowoomba a must, says Dow'
> https://t.co/UYGHs5Gs2j v @qld_times #qldpol #auspol@toowoombaregion pic.twitter.com/qBF4qFZsJ9

— Robert Dow (@Robert_Dow) May 11, 2017

.@qld_times @toowoombaregion @jackietrad @PaulPisasale @PaulTully @LockyerValleyRC @TMRQld @QLDLabor @LNPQLD @AndrewPowellMP @AnnastaciaMP Essential the railway line Calvert <> Gowrie Junction is dual track dual gauge.
Let&#39;s get this right!#futureproof#qldpol #auspol

— Robert Dow (@Robert_Dow) May 11, 2017

[ozbob]

Couriermail --> Inland rail link fails to make it to port

THE $8.4 billion Budget allocation for a long-awaited Inland Rail link does not include the cost of connecting it to the Port of Brisbane.

Under the plan, double-decker loads of containers travelling at up to 110km/h from Melbourne to Queensland or hauling produce from country towns, would stop at Acacia Ridge.

Freight destined for the port would then need to be unloaded on to trucks and transported by road through the suburbs of Brisbane.

Containers also could be transferred on to shuttle trains, clogging the congested Beenleigh and Cleveland commuter lines, which are already near peak demand and with no relief in sight through the Cross River Rail project.

Any extension to the port will be expensive to build and require additional funding on top of the $8.4 billion but a dedicated port rail connection is a "high priority initiative" on Infrastructure Australia's 2017 priority list.

Two plans exist for an Acacia Ridge-to-port connection: a link through the Karawatha Forest beside the Gateway Motorway, or a tunnel under Brisbane's southern and eastern suburbs.

Port of Brisbane chief executive Roy Cummins welcomed the $8.4 billion investment in freight rail and regional jobs, but said no port connection was "a major missed opportunity for Queensland exporters and businesses".

"The fact that Inland Rail stops at Acacia Ridge, and double-stacked trains will have to be unloaded there, means Brisbane residents could see millions more trucks driving through Brisbane suburbs," Mr Cummins said.

"We will continue to advocate to all levels of Government how important it is for farmers and exporters, as well as the livability of Brisbane suburbs, to have a dedicated freight rail connection linking freight rail to the Port of Brisbane."

Infrastructure Association of Queensland chief executive Steve Abson said it was a "glaring omission" that the Budget didn't include money for a corridor study.

Infrastructure and Transport Minister Darren Chester said the existing urban rail link from Acacia Ridge to the Port would meet demand in the medium-term.

"Longer-term investment will be considered as freight demand increases," Mr Chester said.

"We are working with the Queensland Government to examine the future requirements of a link to the port, especially in terms of Brisbane's broader freight rail needs."

[ozbob]

Remember this? August 2013 ...

Couriermail --> Rail tunnel to Port of Brisbane needed to ease increasing traffic congestion

The privately-owned Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd yesterday welcomed the Federal Coalition's commitment to building a tunnel from Acacia Ridge to the facility, as part of the Inland Rail project.

Deputy Coalition leader Warren Truss joined Queensland Transport Minister Scott Emerson to announce a Coalition Government in Canberra would spend $300 million over three years to get the decade-long project underway.

Port of Brisbane chief executive Russell Smith said they believed the delivery of a "sustainable, long-term rail freight transport solution was needed urgently to prevent worsening freight-induced traffic congestion".

He said without a dedicated freight rail solution, by 2025 more than seven million annual truck movements servicing the Port of Brisbane would be needed to sustain Queensland's population and economic growth.

"Key benefits stemming from the development of a dedicated rail freight line to service the Port of Brisbane include significant reduction in future truck related traffic congestion on southeast Queensland roads, improved road safety and community amenity, and reduced road infrastructure costs," said Mr Smith.

Australia's largest rail freight company Aurizon also backed the announcement, expressing particular interest in the proposed rail freight corridor from Rosewood west of Ipswich via Acacia Ridge to the Port of Brisbane.

Less pleased was Engineers Australia, which welcomed the investment in infrastructure but raised concerns about the timing of the announcement.

"Engineers Australia is concerned with the ongoing political approach to planning our nation's infrastructure," said Queensland president Simon Orton.

"As a mature first world country we need to move away from major infrastructure announcements that pick winners in the lead-up to an election."

Federal Labor has also pledged $300 million for Inland Rail but has not provided any detailed plans for the freight line, linking Brisbane to Melbourne.

Bryan Nye from the Australasian Railway Association said the commitment from both sides of politics to the project was a welcome step.

"The ARA has long been campaigning for this vital project so to see further progress is certainly encouraging," Mr Nye said.

"This project will take seven hours off transit times from Melbourne to Brisbane, remove trucks from the Pacific, Newell and Hume Highways and boost regional development along the entire 1700km route."

Mr Emerson highlighted the benefits the new tunnel would bring to suburbs along the route, where concerns have been raised about coal dust pollution.

But Stop Brisbane Coal Trains spokesman John Gordon said the tunnel was still a long way off, with the project not expected to be completed until 2026.

"This should not stop action being taken to cover coal trains as recommended by the Senate Inquiry into impacts of air quality on health," Mr Gordon said.

"We will not have these silly season rail promises from politicians used as leverage by government and the coal industry to do nothing about this problem."

[Stillwater]

This quote in the story resonates: "Engineers Australia is concerned with the ongoing political approach to planning our nation's infrastructure."  Ain't that the truth!

[ozbob]

The Australian --> Bid to link airport, inland rail slammed by transport players

A last-minute attempt to change the route of the $10 billion inland rail project to pass next to the new $200 million Brisbane West Wellcamp airport at Toowoomba has been attacked by two of Australia's key transport industry ­players.

The Australian Logistics Council yesterday warned the federal government, which has just injected $8.4bn of budget funding to get the ambitious freight rail project started this year, that even slight route changes to the ­planned Brisbane-to-Melbourne corridor risked undermining the project's economic viability and delaying its completion.

Executives from the rival InterLinkSQ road and rail hub, 7km west of Wellcamp airport on the original 2010 inland rail corridor, simultaneously accused Toowoomba construction magnate John Wagner, who built and owns Wellcamp airport, of being motivated by greed.

Mr Wagner told The Australian last week he would invest $60m of his own cash in creating a road-rail-air freight transport hub adjacent to Wellcamp airport geared towards food and agricultural produce, as long as the inland rail track is shifted 15km east of its current route.

But no private funds will flow from the Wagner coffers if the freight rail project stays well west of Toowoomba, as intended — an alignment from 2010, when the international passenger and freight airport did not yet exist, and which Mr Wagner believes is now misguided.

Michelle Reynolds, chief executive of the InterLinkSQ road and rail hub, was deeply critical of Mr Wagner's political push.

Ms Reynolds said incorporating Wellcamp airport with the inland rail project — and planning to include high-speed passenger trains, as Mr Wagner envisages — would be both dangerous and counterproductive for the burgeoning economy of the Toowoomba region.

She also questioned Mr Wagner's motives and self-interest.

"Each freight train running to the Port of Brisbane would require hundreds of road trains and other heavy vehicles to service a single freight train; you simply can't mix road trains with cars and passengers heading off to the airport for their holidays," Ms Reynolds said.

"It is simply ridiculous and quite frankly, risking the lives of innocent people for the profit of one family."

Ms Reynolds said the Wellcamp Airport is only 8km from the InterLinkSQ intermodal development and questioned why there was a need for Mr Wagner's own freight and transport "hub" at all.

Mr Wagner believes that if Australia's agricultural production is to ramp up to $100bn by 2025, as targeted, the export push will rely on good transport infrastructure and centres such as Toowoomba and Wellcamp becoming airfreight and food-processing hubs linked to Asia.

"We are not talking about changing the whole (inland rail) route, but just bringing this section (near Toowoomba) past the airport," Mr Wagner said.

"We have to get out of the mentality of thinking short term; this inland rail is a 50 to 100-year national project and we say the game has changed with the airport now here." The Australian Logistics Council's managing director, Michael Kilgariff, is adamant the planned alignment of the Inland Rail project must be maintained to give certainty to industry, and ensure the 24-hour Brisbane-Melbourne travel times forecast in the business case are realised.

He condemned the 11th hour "speculation" and political campaign to incorporate Wellcamp airport being pushed by Mr Wagner and federal Nationals MP John McVeigh.

"The Inland Rail route was surveyed and planned seven years ago in 2010; (already) other organisations have made investment decisions about locating new freight infrastructure based upon that route, including InterLinkSQ's intermodal facility, which is already under construction near Toowoomba," Mr Kilgariff said. "To deviate from (the route) now would violate every principle of good planning."

[ozbob]

The Saturday Paper --> Inland rail a hollow promise

By Tony Windsor
is the former independent member for the federal seat of New England. He has held balance of power positions in both the NSW and federal parliaments.

Following John Howard's 1996 federal election victory a man named Everald Compton entered the prime minister's office to raise what he believed to be a visionary concept regarding an energy and rail corridor from Melbourne to Brisbane. The idea had certain appeal as an infrastructure project and, as Howard and others would soon recognise, political benefits that could be milked for years to come.

The original concept was to provide a way for freight between Melbourne and Brisbane to avoid the slow New South Wales coastal rail route that made it impossible for rail to compete on price and time with road freight, and to bypass a congested Sydney. An important and often forgotten part of the proposal was that it would also provide an adjacent energy corridor that would act as a catalyst for growth in inland communities.

Compton, founding chairman of Australian Transport and Energy Corridor, was not someone Howard could ignore, as he had been a major fundraiser for the successful Liberal campaign and was well connected on both sides of politics. He was considered a genuine bloke and a great contributor to Australian society, as a businessman, lobbyist and fundraiser. His proposal was put on the government's agenda.

Twenty-one years later we now see a commitment in the recent federal budget of off-budget debt funding for the Australian Rail Track Corporation, a corporatised government agency, and vague assurances of a search for private investment partners to build a major inland rail line. Some are assuming this means the railway line will now be built I'm not that sure. History may give us reason to doubt it.
A train run to beat a truck up the Newell Highway won't be stopping to pick up a bag of potatoes in a small town on the way through.

After the Howard meeting strong support was gained from then deputy PM Tim Fischer, a train fanatic who could also see the political benefits, particularly as the "Joh for Canberra" push was still a recent bad memory and the election saw Pauline Hanson entering federal parliament. The Nationals needed a nation-building dream that voters in NSW and Queensland would find appealing.

Again, during the 1998 election, lip service was paid to the rail project as something the Nationals in particular promised to pursue. Talk of private-sector funding and the government acting as a facilitator of the route and approvals was the political spin of the day.

In 2001 – the year I was elected MP for New England – another National Party leader and the minister for transport, John Anderson, grasped the project with enthusiasm during the election campaign and in the company of Compton hammered a golden stake into the banks of the McIntyre River on the border between NSW and Queensland – a symbol of the start of the Inland Rail Corridor.

However, the symbolic ceremony didn't herald the start of the project. It had provided a useful tool for the Nationals in particular to articulate their support for nation-building, which was a tradeable theme during the campaign. But nothing tangible was started after the election. Still, to avoid offending Compton's followers, some of whom were National heartland heavyweights in Queensland, a number of feasibility studies followed during the next decade, considering the "viability" of such a project and "looking into the possible route options".

The largest study, by Ernst and Young in 2006, concluded that the three route options on the table were not viable under three different economic models. Another, completed by ACIL Tasman in 2010, concluded that the project was not viable in the short term and marginal in terms of benefit–cost analysis in the medium to long term. It was predicated on freight growth assumptions that were debatable. Suggestions that much more coal could be exported via the Brisbane port were queried. Corridor realignment and access issues from the Brisbane suburb of Acacia Ridge into Brisbane's port were glossed over – significant issues that remain today. But the politics was endlessly played while delaying any concrete action. Labor played along, wary of being seen to be opposed to some bold infrastructure. They participated in the delaying tactics of funding further studies, neither denouncing nor progressing the idea.

The theory was that if a freight train could travel between Melbourne and Brisbane in less than 24 hours, it would be more competitive than road transport and hence attract business back to rail, thereby removing "dangerous heavy trucks" from our roads. This is not as simple as it sounds.

A whitegoods manufacturer, for example, currently has one freight movement, on road from its Melbourne warehouse to its warehouse in Brisbane. Whereas using rail would require three freight movements – from warehouse to rail yard to the destination warehouse – so speed, reliability of service and cost are critical to the issue.

Even though it is a complicated issue, one needs to look at where the freight is going to come from to see whether the political toy that keeps on giving will ever be more than a plaything. The current Melbourne to Brisbane rail connection travels via Sydney and up the east coast to its destination in Queensland. If the Melbourne to Brisbane component of that freight could be rerouted via inland NSW, it would alleviate congestion on the Melbourne to Sydney and Brisbane to Sydney freight corridors.

Studies indicate that the contestable freight that originates in either Melbourne or Brisbane is only 4.5 million tonnes per annum (mtpa), which is equivalent to one medium train a day each way. Even if in fact all that freight business could be captured by this new service, a $10 billion investment can't be made on that basis alone.

There are tonnages from west of Toowoomba to Brisbane that might use the proposed upgraded route as well as potentially small tonnages of cotton and some grain from northern NSW. Perth to Brisbane freight might also choose to use the route.

Studies show that most of the freight does not and will not go north to south but will continue to move west to east, to the ports of Newcastle and Port Kembla. The rail line from Moree in NSW to the port of Newcastle currently carries 120mtpa, and when combined with inland freight to Port Kembla of 20mtpa, these together account for 60 per cent of total east coast freight availability going anywhere by ship, rail or road. The demand to move things up and down the east coast, excepting Sydney, doesn't look sufficient to make the plan viable.

So, with the concept now receiving more federal funding, is it a real goer or is it just doing the political rounds as once again the Nationals are threatened by One Nation? Will anything actually be done before the next federal election? Going by Australian Rail Track Corporation documents prepared for the government in 2015, there is still much to talk about, including the all-important route determinations – after 21 years of deliberation.

One way the Turnbull government could demonstrate that its renewed interest is about more than just further fact-finding would be to go back to where they came from. That is, go back to the McIntyre River on the border, where Anderson and Compton drove the stake into the bank 16 years ago and establish the missing rail link over a relatively short distance from a village called North Star, north-east of Moree, to Yelarbon in Queensland, which would physically establish rail track continuity between Melbourne and Brisbane via the inland.

This would also mean that with appropriate gauge changes in Queensland any growth of freight on the Sydney to Brisbane market could proceed up the Hunter Valley, via Werris Creek near Tamworth, and on to Queensland rather than up the coast, at least until the potential new routes were established.

The second part of the vision was an energy corridor, with land alongside the rail line acquired for gas, electricity and other cross-land energy transmission.

Some are suggesting that the proposed new route being pushed by Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce from Narromine near Dubbo to Narrabri through the Pilliga Scrub has more to do with providing a corridor for a gas pipeline than a more efficient freight service.

Landholders in the Namoi Basin and the adjacent Liverpool Plains are fighting to stop coal seam gas developments due to the risk of polluting water resources. Is the interest in taking a shortcut through the scrub rather than using the existing line via Werris Creek to Narrabri a means to use a populist issue to solve the hard problem of gas permits, access across private lands and NSW energy demands? If it is, maybe it's time for some honesty.

The third and possibly most important aspect of the original vision was to provide an infrastructure base to encourage the growth of inland communities. This is where all governments have let down country people.

A train run mainly to beat a truck up the Newell Highway won't be stopping to pick up a bag of potatoes in a small town on the way through, especially when most of the freight is going west to east.

The argument that our roads will be safer if we use rail doesn't stack up as a motivating concern either, when you consider the same political parties have been closing rail lines down for years.

A railway line that will alleviate congestion in Sydney will not be the growth trigger once thought. Growing country towns will not become a reality this century without appropriate digital technology, notably the national broadband network. The NBN should be the infrastructure priority. A second-class internet and communication system will do more damage to the future in the regions than any benefits flowing from upgraded north–south rail.

The political reality is that in all likelihood the Labor Party will win the next election and, on the basis of a Productivity Commission report or some such economic document, Labor will either not proceed with this project at all or will only establish the missing rail link inland on the Queensland border.

The National Party wins either way, first by having a regional infrastructure issue to spruik into the next election and second as a sledgehammer to later beat up Labor regarding its regional credentials.

Regional Australians will have missed the train again, and in all likelihood naively voted to do so.

[#Metro]

The theory was that if a freight train could travel between Melbourne and Brisbane in less than 24 hours, it would be more competitive than road transport and hence attract business back to rail, thereby removing "dangerous heavy trucks" from our roads. This is not as simple as it sounds.

I think a key issue here is that it isn't just road vs rail. Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane have ports.

Moving things by sea is doesn't require long lines of infrastructure and could be cheap.

[ozbob]

16th June 2017

Media Release
Minister for State Development and Minister for Natural Resources and Mines
The Honourable Dr Anthony Lynham

Inland rail on-track to bring jobs to South East Qld

The third Queensland stage of the $10.9 billion Melbourne to Brisbane Inland Rail Project has been declared a coordinated project by the state's independent Coordinator-General.

State Development Minister Dr Anthony Lynham said the $1.2 billion section covering 53km from Calvert to Kagaru would now require an environmental impact statement to be prepared.

"This section could create up to 1600 jobs during its four-year construction phase starting in 2020 and 700 jobs during operation for the entire program," Dr Lynham said.

"This section of the project consists of a new single-track dual-gauge line, including approximately 1.1 kilometres of tunnels through the Teviot Range at Woolooman."

Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) is delivering the 10-year freight program, which will carry 50 intermodal round trips between Melbourne and Brisbane each week by 2050.

Dr Lynham said the Inland Rail Project has 13 separate projects, five in Queensland, each of which can be independently connected to the rail network.

"The proposed route will run through regional Victoria and central-west New South Wales, crossing the border into Queensland near Yelarbon, where another five sections take it to Acacia Ridge," Dr Lynham said.

"The proponent has advised that the whole program is predicted to reduce rail freight times from Melbourne to Brisbane via Sydney by six hours, as well as reducing the freight task's carbon footprint by 750,000 tonnes per year.

"This project could be a real boon to Queensland industry, for both growers and manufacturers.

"However this section will require rigorous planning and engineering to address the potential impacts on the rural community and small farms including minimising flooding impacts on properties along the alignment."

Dr Lynham said the next step would be for the Coordinator-General to release the draft terms of reference for the environmental impact statement and seek public comment.

For further information visit www.statedevelopment.qld.gov.au/inlandrail-c2k

ENDS

[ozbob]

Rail Express --> Inland Rail: Calvert to Kagaru section progressed

Queensland state development minister Anthony Lynham has said the Calvert to Kagaru section of the Inland Rail project could create as many as 1600 jobs during construction, after the section was declared a coordinated project by the state's coordinator-general.

The third Queensland stage of the Melbourne to Brisbane project was declared by the coordinator general on June 16. Lynham said the $1.2 billion section covering 53 kilometres from Calvert to Kagaru would now require an environmental impact statement to be prepared.

"This section could create up to 1600 jobs during its four-year construction phase starting in 2020 and 700 jobs during operation for the entire program," Lynham said.

The Calvert to Kagaru section consists of a new single-track dual-gauge line, including approximately 1.1 kilometres of tunnels through the Teviot Range at Woolooman.

Lynham noted the stage was one of five Inland Rail stages in Queensland, and one of 13 across the whole route.

"This project could be a real boon to Queensland industry, for both growers and manufacturers," he said. "However, this section will require rigorous planning and engineering to address the potential impacts on the rural community and small farms including minimising flooding impacts on properties along the alignment."

Federal infrastructure minister Darren Chester said the announcement was an important step in seeing the Inland Rail built.

"Over the next few weeks there will be information on the environmental impact assessment process and opportunities for the community to have their say on the Calvert to Kagaru project," the minister outlined.

"Calvert to Kagaru is the third section of Inland Rail in Queensland to be declared a coordinated project, following earlier declarations for the Gowrie to Helidon and Helidon to Calvert sections.

"Around 60 per cent of [Inland Rail] construction expenditure is expected in Queensland, while economic modelling forecasts that Inland Rail will boost Queensland's Gross State Product by $7.3 billion."

[ozbob]

Rail Express --> All systems go at ARTC for Inland Rail

Work is well underway at the ARTC progressing all 13 stages of the Inland Rail project, for construction to begin as early as the second quarter of 2018, the project's manager has told Rail Express.

ARTC executive general manager for interstate, and current head of Inland Rail, Peter Winder, gave Rail Express a project update ahead of his presentation on day one of the Australasian Railway Association's Rail Freight Conference, which will take place in Sydney on August 17 and 18.

While the ARTC has been developing Inland Rail for some time, he said the 2017 Budget's injection of $8.4 billion in equity funding had put the project team into "full-on delivery mode".

"We're establishing a team that's focused on getting planning approvals, getting the final design locked in, finalising the alignment, and moving to commence construction in, roughly, the second quarter of next year," Winder said.

"It's really good news for the industry.

"We're recruiting a range of people to start the program off; I think we've got a headcount of just under 100 full time on the project.

"That's a combination of project managers, engineering design, contract administrators, and so on. We're engaging with local businesses for a lot of the preliminary engineering work, that will lead us into formal design, lodging the planning approvals, and getting on with the formal construction."

The 1,700 kilometre Inland Rail route, linking Melbourne and Brisbane via regional Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria, is divided into 13 sections.

"Obviously the issues in each [of the 13 sections] are different," Winder explained.

"For example in the sections where it's an upgrade of an existing railway line, that's a simpler task than a new greenfield project, where you've got land acquisition and so on.

"So the level of resourcing and the timeline for each of the sections is different, but we're progressing them all at once. Each has a separate project manager, with the resources to manage their project; to get us to the next stage."

Winder will on August 17 be providing the ARA Rail Freight Conference with a full update on Inland Rail, and says he's also looking forward to touching base with others in the industry.

"The positive thing is, there's a lot going on in our business, and our broader industry. It's a good opportunity to see how and where it's going," he said.

"Sometimes rail freight, in the public debate, gets lost a bit, because passenger rail dominates the conversation. But without freight, you're not going to be able to feed the population.

"I think just that this conference is on, will help that profile – raising the importance of freight to the economy. In a lot of the public comment, you see that get lost in translation sometimes."

[ozbob]

Couriermail --> National Trunk Rail's Martin Albrecht's tunnel vision hits pay dirt

MARTIN Albrecht is not a man easily deterred. You might recall the former Thiess boss' National Trunk Rail proposed building the $12 billion inland rail between Melbourne and Brisbane before the Federal Government earlier this year gave the nod to the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC).


Illustration of Martin Albrecht by Brett Lethbridge.

Since then Albrecht (illustrated) has been beavering away in the background to ensure at least part of his dream comes to fruition, a tunnel linking Acacia Ridge to the Port of Brisbane. He now appears to have hit pay dirt. NTR and the owner of the Pine Mountain Quarry, near Mt Gravatt, have entered into an agreement to use the site for the tunnel project, dubbed the PortConnex tunnel solution.

It's a neat solution, which will involve using two tunnel boring machines placed at the bottom of the quarry. One will go towards the port and the other west towards Acacia Ridge. The spoil from the tunnels will then be deposited in the quarry, negating the need to use trucks to transport it elsewhere. Albrecht tells your diarist that because the quarry site is privately owned, work could start within months, not years.

At the moment only 2.5 per cent of freight movement to the port is by rail, a dismal figure. Melbourne is already moving to reduce congestion at its port by improving existing rail links. It's about time the pollies got behind Albrecht, a man who has been involved in building infrastructure since his days working on the Snowy Mountain Scheme as a young engineer.

[ozbob]

https://twitter.com/river949/status/907368289742888960

Controversy continues over the proposed routes of the Inland Rail.

According to former Groom M.P., Ian McFarlane...the route for the Inland Rail might have already been decided. Transport Minister Darren Chester has to choose between four different and controversial routes, running from Gowrie to Yelarbon in the Southern Downs...but Mr. McFarlane believes the most popular routes are the original corridor through Millmerran and a run through Felton. The news comes after 250 angry landholders crammed into Southbrook Hall last Friday, who demanded answers from Mr.McFarlane's political successor, John McVeigh, over the lack of consultation around the four choices.

[ozbob]

Rail Express --> Inland Rail field studies begin in Queensland


A portion of the ARTC's Inland Rail diagram.

A number of field studies towards the Environmental Impact Statements for the Gowrie to Kagaru sections of Inland Rail are now underway in Queensland, federal transport and infrastructure minister Darren Chester has confirmed.

"With Inland Rail progressing, it is important to get these ecology surveys underway to inform the design and broader environmental assessment of this Inland Rail section," the minister said.

"The field studies and investigations will help identify and understand animal and plant species in the area including their habitat.

Ecology surveys will include the collection of spring and summer seasonal data concerning the flora and fauna of the area.

The data collected will help develop each of the three Environmental Impact Statements and feasibility designs for the projects that make up the Gowrie to Kagaru section of the project.

Gowrie to Helidon, Helidon to Calvert, and Calvert to Kagaru are the three sections identified to make up the Gowrie to Kagaru section, by the ARTC's Inland Rail team.

Gowrie to Helidon includes 26 kilometres of new dual gauge track, a 6.4 kilometre tunnel, seven viaducts totalling 4.2 kilometres, six bridges totalling 520 metres, and three passing loops.

It will use the existing rail corridor and the Department of Transport and Main Roads' Gowrie to Grandchester protected rail corridor.

Helidon to Calvert will be 47.7 kilometres of new dual gauge track, including a 1.1 kilometre tunnel, four viaducts totalling 1.5 kilometres, 20 bridges totalling 1 kilometre, six grade separations and four passing loops.

And the Calvert to Kagaru section includes roughly 54 kilometres of new dual gauge track, a 1.1 kilometre tunnel through the Teviot Range, 15 grade separations, 13 river-crossing bridges, and up to four passing loops.

It is to follow the protected Southern Freight Rail Corridor (SFRC), which links he West Moreton line near Calvert to the interstate rail line near Kagaru, north of Beaudesert.

Together the three sections are considered the most technically complex along the Inland Rail project, but they also contribute a large portion of the construction expenditure, a boon for Queensland, which will overall see 50% of all Inland Rail spending.

"Each EIS will include extensive consultation with the local community, landowners and other key stakeholders," federal member for Wright, Scott Buchholz added.

[ozbob]

https://twitter.com/ABCNewsBrisbane/status/910613456331481088

[ozbob]

Queensland Country Life --> Inland rail set to cross Condamine floodplain

SHOWN IN PINK: The federal government is expected to announce the contentious Queensland section of the inland rail appears will cross the Condamine floodplain.

THE contentious Queensland section of the inland rail appears locked in to cross the agriculturally important Condamine floodplain.

Infrastructure Minister Darren Chester is expected to make the controversial announcement in Toowoomba today despite an engineering solution not being in place and two independent reports showing there is a more appropriate route through the Felton Valley.

While Felton Valley landholders will be breathing a sigh of relief, the announcement is set to enrage affected landholders on the Condamine floodplain.

They claim the government has failed to deliver on promised consultation and continues to ignore the potentially devastating impact of the 16km long, levy-bank based infrastructure on some of Australia's most agriculturally productive land.

"Without a proper engineering solution the government is just flying by the seat of its pants." - Stuart Armitage

The corridor will head from Yelarbon to Millmerran and incorporate both the competing Wellcamp Airport and the Interlink SQ at Gowrie Junction, near Toowoomba.

There is also speculation that the disputed route may also incorporate Brookstead, Pittsworth and Southbrook, further adding to community concern.

The decision appears to be premised on the calculation that the Condamine floodplain route would cost $180 million less than the construction of a line through the Felton Valley. That calculation assumes the construction costs of the different routes can be adequately compared without knowing the detailed engineering requirements of each project.

Queensland Farmers Federation president Stuart Armitage said there was ongoing support for a high speed rail linking Melbourne and Brisbane.

However, the government had failed to engage in promised consultation or demonstrated it had an appropriate engineering solution to construct the infrastructure across the deep, black soil Condamine floodplain, he said.

"Without a proper engineering solution the government is just flying by the seat of its pants," Mr Armitage said. "We want to understand how a 16km levy bank can be constructed across the floodplain and the impact on people and their businesses."

The $10 billion inland rail project is designed to link Melbourne and Brisbane, providing a high speed freight service that is at least as competitive as road transport.

The inland rail will terminate at Acacia Ridge, about 35km short of the Port of Brisbane, adding to concerns about how the system would provide the proposed less than 24 hours service.

Mr Chester will also be speaking the Rural Press Club in Brisbane.

Additional comment was sought from Mr Chester's office.

[ozbob]

Couriermail --> Toowoomba's Wellcamp Airport could experience freight boom courtesy of ATC's Inland Rail project

THOUSANDS of tonnes of fresh produce and other freight from interstate would be sent north and flown out of a Toowoomba airport every week, under a plan to connect to the Melbourne-to-Brisbane inland rail line.

The Turnbull Government has revealed the preferred route for the $8.4 billion inland rail will run across the Condamine floodplain in Queensland.

It will go through Millmerran, Brookstead, Southbrook, Wellcamp, Charlton and stop at Acacia Ridge – and then rely on an existing urban rail link for the remaining 38km to the Port of Brisbane.

Some floodplain landowners have criticised the decision, saying their farms could be devastated by floods.

The rail line will pass the Brisbane West Wellcamp Airport, owned by the Wagner family, which will now invest a further $60 million in a multinodal air, rail and road freight interchange.

Chairman John Wagner said it was expected the new facility, combined with the rail line allignment, would allow for "thousands of tonnes" of freight to be flown out of the airport on a weekly basis.

"We have already done a masterplan and are pleased the government has now made the decision to make this the preferred location, and look forward to working with them to create more jobs in Queensland," Mr Wagner said.

Federal Transport Minister Darren Chester said there would be further consultation with the communities and landholders affected.

"I recognise that this will be a decision that causes some consternation in some parts of the community; in other parts of the community it will be greeted with a great deal of relief and celebration," Mr Chester said.

Opposition spokesman for Transport Anthony Albanese said the government had not budgeted for the project properly, using an equity injection to the Australian Rail Track Corporation rather than a cash contribution.

"The Government needs expert advice to ensure it gets the alignment right," Mr Albanese said.

Michelle Reynolds, chief executive of InterlinkSQ, which is building a transport and logistics hub in the area, said the proposed route "flies in the face of long term land-use planning for the Charlton Wellcamp Enterprise Area".

Work will now begin on an Environmental Impact Statement, which is required by the Queensland Government, and other detailed designed work.

[ozbob]

Queensland Country Life --> Inland Rail and prime agricultural land solution essential

The ambitious 'once in a 100-year' inland freight rail project connecting Melbourne and Brisbane was always going to face some hurdles. For projects on this scale it can be hard to ensure the interests of all affected groups have been heard. In the case of Inland Rail, the project's initial consultation process has resulted in confusion and frustration from the very people who need to be brought along for the ride.

Last week, Federal Infrastructure Minister Darren Chester announced the Queensland section of the Inland Rail line route between Yelarbon and Gowrie will run via Brookstead, Pittsworth and the Wellcamp-Charlton Industrial Precinct. This designated corridor potentially has significant implications for farmers and landholders on the Condamine floodplain, and QFF and industry members remain concerned with how the line will cross up to 16km of the floodplain between Brookstead and Millmerran.

While QFF and members do not consider the right decision has been made, after you factor in the considerations and provisions needed to accommodate the floodplain concerns and impacts raised, it is unlikely to change. QFF is now committed to holding the government to account on its promise to consult and work with the community to get the engineering right and ensure it is communicated in way landholders can understand and trust.

This will require resetting how community consultation has been conducted to date. Key to this will be heeding the lessons from the failed Yelarbon to Gowrie Project Reference Group (Y2GPRG), which lost all community confidence. The soon-to-be formed Border to Gowrie Community Consultative Committee (B2GCCC) leadership and processes will need to be much more transparent and competent than those under the Y2GPRG if it is to gain community acceptance. It was heartening to have Mr Chester extend the offer of a community-based chair for the B2GCCC in a conversation he and I had after his Rural Press Club address.

Principally, QFF and its industry members support the Inland Rail project. We have been and will continue to constructively work alongside the government to ensure it becomes a reality. But at the same time, QFF does not want to see a situation where the railway unnecessarily comes at a cost to one industry over another, especially in a highly productive region like the Condamine floodplain.

With only a very small percentage of Australia considered prime agricultural land, it is essential that as a community, state and nation we are not compromising or unnecessarily taking some of the best land out of production. Any decisions made impacting on prime agricultural land must be considered against existing rural planning legislation and the goal of doubling the state's agricultural production by 2040.

Every large project will have its share of challenges to overcome. For nation building projects such as Inland Rail that will have ramifications for generations to follow, it is essential that we address the issues properly. Governments should be looking to demonstrate a renewed commitment to landholders and the broader community through the forthcoming Border to Gowrie preferred corridor study. One way to do this would be to conduct an independent review of the contentious Condamine floodplain elements of the Environmental Impact Statement to ensure greater transparency and accountability, which would help get the project's consultative requirements back on track.

[ozbob]

Toowoomba Chronicle --> Katter calls for Inland Rail route to change

FEDERAL Member for Kennedy Bob Katter and leader of the Katter Australian Party will front a community meeting in Southbrook tonight.
ADVERTISING

The meeting was organised by the Inner Downs Inland Rail Action Group, and according to president Larry Pappin, is designed to bring awareness for the community and nationally about "the whole process of the Inland Rail project".

Mr Pappin confirmed Mr Katter would be present at the meeting.

"The main thing is having another political person who's not mainstream Liberal National Party who actually listens to the community," Mr Pappin said.

"He'll take our petitions back to the Federal Government, and he's going to propose the route be changed."

Mr Katter said the Katter Australia Party would be moving in the Federal Parliament for the realignment of the Inland Rail route along the "original alignment proposed by the engineers".

He is referring to the base case for the Inland Rail route, put forward in 2010 and which is marked on the below map in red. 



The ARTC commissioned map of the four proposed alignments for the Inland Rail. The purple line was chosen last month. The red line is the one Bob Katter referred to.
Contributed

The purple route was confirmed as the chosen Inland Rail route by Federal Infrastructure Minister Darren Chester last month.

Mr Pappin said the meeting would start with a prominent local lawyer acting as guest speaker, who would discuss landholder's legal rights with regard to the project.

Mr Katter will speak afterwards.

The meeting will take place at 6pm at Southbrook Hall, 1 Queen Street, Southbrook.

[ozbob]

Rail Express --> Inland Rail consultations underway in the Darling Downs

Consultations for the Inland Rail alignment from Yelarbon to Gowrie are underway in the Darling Downs, as meetings kick off between Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) representatives and the region's key stakeholders.

ARTC CEO, John Fullerton, and executive general manager of the interstate network, Peter Winder, started talks last week, as part of ARTC's commitment to extensive landholder and community consultation for the Inland Rail project.

"I have heard from some land owners, local councils, industry, the Queensland Farmer's Federation and MPs, Dr John McVeigh and Pat Weir," Fullerton said.

While this is very early in the process these meetings have been a high priority and in the coming weeks locals will have the opportunity to attend community meetings throughout the Darling Downs."

Fullerton said that there would be many opportunities for landowners and local communities to comment and make submissions as more detailed design and assessment work for the alignment progressed over the coming months.

"We'll also be holding one on one meetings with landholders in the preferred study corridor," he said.

"This is an extensive and detailed process, so I also encourage people to register through the Inland Rail website to receive updates or contact ARTC's team to talk through any questions, concerns or queries.

"Our door is always open and we welcome local knowledge which will result in the best possible project outcome for communities, the region and the country."

The first ARTC information sessions are to commence in the week of 20 October and run for three to four weeks. Session details, such as meeting times and venues, will be finalised and advertised over the coming days.

The Yelarbon to Gowrie section of the Inland Rail will comprise approximately 146km of new dual gauge track and 78km of upgraded track from the NSW-Queensland border near Yelarbon to Gowrie Junction, north west of Toowoomba in Queensland.

In September, federal infrastructure and transport minister Darren Chester announced that the preferred study corridor for the section would be via Brookstead, Pittsworth and the Wellcamp-Charlton Industrial Precinct.

Field studies within the study corridor are to commence over the coming months, and will investigate local cultural heritage, environmental, social, geotechnical and flood related factors through ground and aerial surveys.

[ozbob]

Couriermail --> Queensland Nationals MPs demand inland rail route change, claiming it will cause farms to flood

ANGRY Queensland Nationals have sensationally accused one of their own Cabinet ministers of stuffing up the multibillion-dollar Melbourne to Brisbane inland rail project and have demanded a "more transparent process".

In a growing show of defiance by Queensland MPs, eight Nationals backbenchers yesterday signed a letter demanding Infrastructure Minister Darren Chester make a public statement that backs down on the route he announced just weeks ago.

Mr Chester, who is a Nationals MP, was in his office when he faced an expletive-laden assessment of his decision to choose a questionable route through Queensland that could flood properties.

The correspondence was sparked after the Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Senate Estimates Committee was told yesterday that proper assessments had not been done.

In September, Mr Chester said the Government would pursue a Melbourne to Brisbane inland rail route through Millmerran, Brookstead and Southbrook on to Wellcamp and through to Charlton.

But independent modelling sourced by Maranoa MP David Littleproud found the route could be seriously problematic for farmers and taxpayers.

There are fears the corridor could cause an inland lake, creating significant problems for farmers and landholders. There are also questions as to how much it will cost to build an elevated rail track 12.5km across the Condamine floodplain.

It comes as Inland Rail Unit acting executive director Richard Wood and Australian Rail Track Corporation John Fullerton told Estimates hearings yesterday that some of the decisions for the rail corridor were made on high-level assumptions and not on detailed costings.

The letter to Mr Chester from Nationals MPs, and obtained by The Courier-Mail, strongly urges the Minster to backdown on the chosen route.

"As a consequence of the evidence provided this morning, we are now requesting you to make a public statement, which confirms that the Wellcamp/Charlton alignment may not be the final corridor,'' it said.

"In addition, we request that a more transparent process in determining this corridor be created whereby the community has access to all assessment reports, together with a mechanism for the community to raise questions about those reports."

The latest backlash reveals a growing intolerance between the LNP, particularly the Nationals, and their Government, which they view as too southern-centric.

Mr Chester said the Nationals were proud to be part of a Coalition Government and that most people along the route were excited about the project.

"They are looking forward to the social and economic benefits for their community and our nation," Mr Chester said.

He said the Yelarbon to Gowrie section of the project would be subject to an environmental impact statement that would take up to two years and provide "many opportunities for consultation and engagement with affected landowners".

[ozbob]

A couple of advertisements from today's Queensland Times.  Imagine the kerfuffle if they ever did try to build HSR down the east coast ...

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[ozbob]

Toowoomba Chronicle --> MP: 'Time to go back to the drawing board' on Inland Rail

THE Gowrie to Yelarbon route of the Inland Rail is "so fatally flawed" that Australian Rail Track Corporation needs to go back to the drawing board, according to Southern Downs MP Lawrence Springborg.

Mr Springborg's calls come off the back of well-attended Inland Rail community meetings in Southbrook and Millmerran at the weekend, and a Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Senate estimates hearing on Monday which revealed there have been no up-to-date costings of the Government's preferred route, and no detail on how the line was going to cross the Condamine flood plain.

Mr Springborg said he was unimpressed with the little amount of detail provided at the weekend's meetings, as well as "how many gaps there are in what is being proposed".

"You would think that if you'd convinced the Federal Government this is the preferred alignment... they would have done a lot more work than this and be able to answer basic questions," he said.

"It is completely unfathomable as to how this could have happened."

An Australian Rail Track Corporation spokesperson said the Federal Government selected a preferred corridor precisely so that engineering solutions can be progressed and further studies undertaken as part of the EIS process.

Mr Springborg said he accepted that as a landholder, he would be marginally impacted by the preferred route and was okay with that.

"My concern is when it goes from there through Millmerran up to Toowoomba," he said.

"What they should do is get on with further engineering and construction work around other sections of the route and take their time to get the Yelarbon to Toowoomba section right.

"I will continue to support the principal of this line, I've always said... I could be convinced by good science or proper transparent process, but we haven't had full disclosure of facts and frankly I cannot support what they've put before us because it's got so many holes in it."

Federal Infrastructure Minister Darren Chester announced the government's preferred Inland Rail route in September.

"The Government has chosen this route because: as much as possible it uses existing rail corridors; it goes past Wellcamp Airport, which didn't exist in 2010 when the original route was considered; and it is significantly more economically viable option than the alternative routes," he said at the time.

"The final design will be subject to an extensive State government planning and approvals process, which will work through questions about technical and environmental aspects."

[ozbob]

ABC News --> National Party busy brawling over Inland Rail days before High Court decides fate of Joyce, Canavan, Nash

An internal brawl in the Nationals over the Federal Government's Inland Rail project is threatening to fracture the party, two days before its leaders could lose their jobs.

All Queensland Nationals backbench MPs and senators have put their names to a letter to Infrastructure Minister Darren Chester, demanding a rethink on how the project is being run.

The letter is a contentious move at a tense time and it has left some senior Liberals fuming.

Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce, his deputy Fiona Nash, and senator Matt Canavan may be unemployed on Friday if the High Court rules they were ineligible to stand for Parliament because of dual citizenship.

The letter, which has been received by Mr Chester, has Senator Canavan's name to it.

Mr Chester, one of the most senior National Party figures in Parliament, is not caught up in the citizenship saga.

Some in senior Liberal ranks are concerned his colleagues are making the Nationals look more unstable at a difficult time.

But Mr Chester said the party was united.

"While some may be focused on internal machinations, out there in the real world they want to know how you're going to build this rail line, how you're going to maximise the benefit, and will it impact on me and the community," he said.

"So what happens inside this building doesn't matter so much to me as what happens on the ground."

Queensland Nationals are fuming over the direction the Inland Rail route will take, and farmers have labelled the consultation process a farce.

There are concerns the company tasked with building it, the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC), is not up to the job, and that the cost of the $9 billion project could blow out significantly.

The letter from Nationals MPs and senators to Mr Chester read:

"We are now requesting you to make a public statement, which confirms that the Wellcamp/Charlton alignment may not be the final corridor."

They also called for a more "transparent process" from the ARTC.