Transportation in Australia

Railways

Total:
33,819 km (2,540 km electrified)
Broad gauge: (1600mm) 3,719 km
Standard gauge: (1435mm) 15,422 km
Narrow gauge: (1067mm) 14,506 km
Dual gauge: 172 km (1999)

Railway maps (http://www.railpage.org.au/railmaps/)

National rail services

The Great Southern Railway, owned by Serco Asia Pacific, operates three trains: the Indian Pacific (Sydney-Adelaide-Perth), The Ghan (Adelaide-Alice Springs-Darwin), and the Overland (Melbourne-Adelaide) [1] (http://www.gsr.com.au/trains.htm). Since the extension of the Ghan from Alice Springs to Darwin was completed in 2004, all mainland Australian capital cities are linked by standard gauge rail, for the first time.

State and city rail services

• V/Line operates regional trains and buses in Victoria (See List of regional railway stations in Victoria)
• Connex operates the Melbourne suburban railway network
• Yarra Trams operates the Melbourne tram network

• StateRail is the government body responsible for all passenger rail services in New South Wales. It oversees two independent services:
  • CityRail operates the Sydney suburban railway network
  • CountryLink operates passenger trains in the remainder of New South Wales
  • See also Skitube Alpine Railway, a private railway in New South Wales

• Queensland Rail (QR) operates the Citytrain network, Brisbane's suburban railway network

• Transperth is the operating name for the Perth public transport system, including its suburban railway network, which is operated by TransWA (formerly known as "Westrail")

• Adelaide Metro operates the Adelaide suburban railway network

All rail freight operators in New South Wales have been privately owned since 2002. The Rail Infrastructure Corporation is responsible for the development and maintenance of tracks, overhead wiring, etc.

Highways

Total: 913,000 km
Paved: 353,331 km (including 13,630 km of expressways)
Unpaved: 559,669 km (1996 estimate)

See also: List of Australian highways.

Waterways

8,368 km, mainly for small, shallow-draft craft

Pipelines

Crude oil: 2,500 km
Petroleum products: 500 km
Natural gas: 5,600 km

Ports and harbours

Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Darwin, Devonport, Fremantle, Geelong, Gladstone, Hobart, Launceston, Mackay, Melbourne, Sydney, Townsville

See also: List of Australian ports.

Merchant marine vessels

Total:
57 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,657,194 GRT/2,206,574 DWT
Ships by type:
bulk 28, cargo 4, chemical tanker 4, container 1, liquified gas 4, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 8, roll-on/roll-off 6 (1999 estimate)

Airports

408 (1999 estimate)

See also: List of Australian airports.

Airports with paved runways

Total: 265
Over 3,047 m: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 11
1,524 to 2,437 m: 115
914 to 1,523 m: 120
Under 914 m: 8 (1999 estimate)

Airports with unpaved runways

Total: 143
1,524 to 2,437 m: 18
914 to 1,523 m: 113
Under 914 m: 12 (1999 estimate)

See also

• Public Transport Users Association - public transport lobby group for Victoria (Australia)

Reference

Much of the material in this article comes from the CIA World Factbook 2000.

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