Great Southern Rail

The Ghan

Originally the Afghan Express, the name The Ghan was inspired by the pioneering Afghan cameleers who blazed a permanent trail into the Red Centre of Australia over 150 years ago. 

The Ghan’s emblem is an Afghan on a camel in recognition of their efforts in opening up the inhospitable interior to the rest of Australia.

The original Ghan line followed the route of explorer John MacDouall Stuart. On Sunday 4 August, 1929, an excited crowd gathered at the Adelaide Railway Station to farewell the first Ghan train. This train carried supplies and over 100 passengers bound for the remote town of Stuart, later to be called Alice Springs. The train’s whistle pierced the silence of the MacDonnell Ranges surrounding Alice Springs two days later, on 6 August.

The train was steam hauled, and the service had to contend with extreme conditions including flash flooding and intense heat. As such, it was often an irregular service.

The Old Ghan ran on light, narrow gauge track well to the east of the track it travels today.

As well as termite damage, it was savaged by fire and flood. Flash flooding, when the normally parched river beds spilled out onto the low lying desert plains, frequently washed away the track completely. Legend has it The Old Ghan was once stranded for two weeks in one spot and the engine driver shot wild goats to feed his passengers.

In 1980, The Old Ghan rail track was abandoned in favour of a new standard gauge rail line built with termite proof concrete sleepers further to the west in order to avoid the potential flooding and other problems encountered along the old route. 

When The Ghan first departed Adelaide for Alice Springs, it was always intended that it would one day travel through to Darwin. With the completion of the Alice Springs to Darwin rail-link this dream became a reality; with The Ghan making its inaugural journey to Darwin on 1 – 3 February 2004. This north-south transcontinental journey covers 2,979 kilometres and encounters spectacular and diverse landscapes; from the rusty reds of the MacDonnell Ranges surrounding a town called Alice, gateway to Ayers Rock and the Red Centre, then north to Tenant Creek, Katherine and the tropical splendour of Darwin.
 

Indian Pacific

Although the original Indian Pacific can be traced back to the early 1900s, it was not until 1970 that the train completed its first unbroken journey from Sydney to Perth.

As the colonies of Australia were headed towards federation at the end of the 19^th Century, the colony of Western Australia was lured to join this new nation by promise of a transcontinental railway, linking this isolated western region with the rest of the eastern colonies.

A skeleton rail link extended from the east to the west coasts of Australia except for a 1,996 kilometre gap in the system between Kalgoorlie in Western Australia and Port Augusta in South Australia. On 17 October, 1917, in a remarkable surveying and engineering feat, two construction teams, one starting from Port Augusta and the other from Kalgoorlie, made a historic achievement, meeting to join the lines at what is now the tiny South Australian siding of Ooldea on the Nullarbor Plain. This was the longest railway ever built as a single project in Australia, taking five years to complete. It was constructed using the most basic tools – pick and shovel, carthorse and camel.

At 10.15 am on 25 October, 1917, the first eastbound passenger train, the Transcontinental Express, departed Kalgoorlie for Port Augusta. The different rail gauges required guests required guests to change trains several times along the journey.

A standard trip from Sydney to Perth comprised of: Sydney to Albury on a standard gauge track, change trains at Albury to travel to Melbourne on broad gauge through to Port Pirie, change trains in Port Pirie for the short journey into Port Augusta and then on to Kalgoorlie on standard gauge, then change trains in Kalgoorlie for the narrow gauge journey in Perth.

It was not until 1969 that an uninterrupted rail link from the Pacific Ocean in the east to the Indian Ocean in the west existed. The first unbroken journey of the new Indian Pacific commenced from Sydney Central Station on Monday 23 February, 1970, arriving in Perth to a crowd of over 10,000 on 27 February.

It is this rich history that has made the Indian Pacific one of Australia’s most treasured icons. 

The diversity of the Australian landscape that can be viewed on this remarkable 4,352 kilometre transcontinental journey and the wonderful hospitality afforded to guests aboard the train, makes the Indian Pacific one of the world’s greatest train journeys. 

 

The Overland

Travelling between Melbourne and Adelaide, The Overland began as the Intercolonial Express over 100 years ago.

The intercapital rail link came to prominence on 28 September, 1875, when the South Australian Premier, Sir James Penn Boucaut, rose in Parliament to expound his policy of economic expansion through public works. His plan was to build 550 miles of railway to carry the wealth of the land from South Australia to the Port of Melbourne, Victoria.

The first meeting to discuss such a plan was held at Melbourne’s Spencer Street Station. It was decided the service would be operated with rolling stock jointly owned by South Australia and Victoria. The service was to be called the Intercolonial Express and passenger traffic was to be primarily first class. The journey time was expected to be 18 hours.

About 300 people witnessed the train’s first departure from Adelaide at 3.30 pm on 19 January, 1887, among them the Postmaster General. The railway pioneered inter-capital rail travel in Australia. However it suffered from long journey times and operational difficulties.

In 1922, a rehabilitation plan was produced to make the railway more efficient and reduce the drain on state finances. Trackwork and bridgework were required to enable bigger freight loads to be carried. Signaling work and train control were also improved and more powerful locomotives purchased. South Australia was rewarded with an operationally and mechanically sound railway that came to be known as the Melbourne Express.

The first diesel powered journey to Melbourne pulled out of Adelaide on November 29, 1951.

The century-old name The Overland came from the affectionate term ‘Overlander’, an adventurer who had travelled across the country. More than a century later and following the train’s complete refurbishment in May 2007, The Overland still provides an enjoyable and convenient rail service along with new levels of comfort and service.

The original service ran overnight during the week, taking forteen hours to compete the journey. Today The Overland operates a then and a half hour daylight service between Adelaide and Melbourne, six times a week.