Passenger Rail

$16m for Tas railway in Budget

Tasmania’s 2019/20 Budget will include $16 million to upgrade the West Coast Wilderness Railway.

The state’s infrastructure minister Jeremy Rockliff on May 22 said the Budget, which will be formally handed down on Thursday afternoon, will include the $16 million investment over a four-year period to boost the tourist railway.

He said the money would cover substantial upgrades to the railway’s infrastructure and expand capacity with new rollingstock.

“The popularity of the railway has seen visitor numbers spike from 20,270 four years ago to 32,551 last year, and it is currently experiencing around 7.21per cent visitor growth year-on-year,” Rockliff said.

“This crucial investment will ensure the ongoing viability of the West Coast Wilderness Railway as a safe, unique, authentic, enjoyable and interactive heritage tourism icon.”

The investment follows prior state funding for the railway of $18.5 million since 2014.

The West Coast Wilderness Railway is a reconstruction of the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company’s railway, a 34-kilometre route between Queenstown and Regatta Point on Tasmania’s West Coast.

Leave a Reply