Inland Rail activists push Toowoomba as new coal line route

Logan activists are pushing Toowoomba as an alternative route for the Inland Rail coal line, instead of the current proposition planned to pass behind their homes.

Stan Corbett says Toowoomba is a viable alternative for a coal line.

A LOGAN action group has taken its campaign to stop an inland coal train line from ploughing across their back doors to the next level.

Husband and wife team Stan and Suz Corbett’s Inland Rail Action Group is now campaigning to make Logan and Brisbane cities coal free by pushing for the coal train line to terminate at Gowrie, Toowoomba.

Activists Suz and Stan Corbett say a viable alternative to the current Inland Rail route through Brisbane is via Toowoomba. Picture: Peter Cronin

Mrs Corbett said the idea was to send all coal currently railed to Brisbane’s port to Gladstone.

Then, she said, trucks and trains could be used to transport domestic goods into Brisbane via two Range crossings and the existing upgraded Ipswich line, now suitable for container goods.

“Billions of taxpayer dollars will be saved by accepting this alternative,” Mrs Corbett said.

“It will also remove the current coal dust hazards from the densely populated inner Brisbane suburbs and Logan. The NSW/Qld East Coast freight and passenger rail line to Bromelton and Acacia Ridge will remain available to goods and passengers after completion of the Inland Rail Toowoomba terminal proposal,” she said.