Transport in Australia
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Transport in Australia is a highly significant part of the infrastructure of the Australian economy, since the distances are large and the country has a relatively low population density.
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Railways
Main article: Rail transport in Australia
The railway network is large comprising a total of 33,819 km (2,540 km electrified) of track broken down into a combination of gauges 3,719 km (broad), 15,422 km (standard), 14,506 km (narrow) and 172 km (dual). Rail transport started in the various colonies at different dates. Privately owned railways started the first lines, and struggled to succeed on a remote, huge, and sparsely populated continent and government railways dominated. Although the various colonies had been advised by London to choose a common gauge, the colonies ended up with different gauges.
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). NSW owned CountryLink services link Brisbane, Canberra and Melbourne via Sydney. 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
There are various state and city rail services operated by a combination of government and private entities, the most prominent of these include V/Line (regional trains and buses in Victoria); Connex Melbourne which operates the Melbourne suburban railway network; RailCorp operating all passenger rail services in New South Wales including (CityRail and CountryLink); and Queensland Rail (QR) operating TravelTrain and the CityTrain network, Brisbane's suburban railway network under the TransLink scheme. A full list can be found the main rail transport in Australia article.
Mining railways
Four heavy duty mining railways carry iron ore to ports in the northwest of Western Australia. These railways carry no other traffic, and are isolated from all other common carrier railways.
Cane railways
In Queensland about 15 sugar mills have narrow gauge cane tramways that deliver sugar cane to the mills.
Highways
Main article: List of Australian highways
The road network is again extensive comprising a total of 913,000 km broken down into:
- Paved: 353,331 km (including 13,630 km of expressways)
- Unpaved: 559,669 km (1996 estimate)
Waterways
8,368 km, mainly for small, shallow-draft craft.
Pipelines
The are several pipline systems including:
- Crude oil: 2,500 km
- Petroleum products: 500 km
- Natural gas: 5,600 km
Ports and harbours
Mainland
General
- Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Darwin, Fremantle,
- Geelong, Gladstone, Mackay, Melbourne, Newcastle, Sydney, Townsville, Wollongong
- Port Lincoln
Iron Ore
Tasmania
See also: List of Australian ports.
Merchant marine vessels
The number of merchant marine vessels totals 57 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,657,194 GRT/2,206,574 DWT. With bulk ships (28), cargo (4), chemical tankers (4), container (1), liquified gas (4), passenger (2), petroleum tankers (8), roll-on/roll-off (6) (these are 1999 estimates).
Airports
Main article: List of Australian airports.
A 1999 estimate put the number of airports at 408.
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
Sources
External links
- Railway maps (http://www.railpage.org.au/railmaps/)