The Gold Coast line is an interurban commuter railway line in South East Queensland. Operated by Queensland Rail, the line runs for from Varsity Lakes to Roma Street, where services continue on the Airport line.
The line was opened in February 1996, running from Beenleigh to Helensvale. It was extended twice in the late 1990s before a further extension in 2009 to its current terminus of Varsity Lakes. Since December 2017, the G:link light rail system has been connected to the railway at Helensvale station.
History
Background
The Beenleigh railway line opened in 1885 and was extended to Southport in 1889 as the South Coast line. A branch line to Tweed Heads in New South Wales was opened on 10 August 1903, with the first regular passenger train making the journey from Brisbane one month later. Because of the increasing popularity of the motor car, the Tweed Heads branch closed in 1961 and the line from Beenleigh to Southport closed in 1964.
New line
The new Gold Coast line opened on 26 February 1996, running from Brisbane to Helensvale. It was built an extension of the Beenleigh line, running on a different alignment than the South Coast line. It was extended to Nerang in 1997, and Robina in 1998.
In 2009, the line was further extended to Varsity Lakes. Before an upgrade in 2010, many passengers had to stand for much of the journey during peak-hour services.
Duplication works commenced in stages throughout the 2000s and 2010s. The final section to be duplicated was between Coomera and Helensvale, with work completed in late 2017 and the new track operational in 2018.
As part of the Cross River Rail project, three new stations were added to the Gold Coast line: Pimpama (opened in October 2025), Hope Island (opened in May 2026) and Merrimac (scheduled to open in 2026).
Proposed extensions
A proposal to extend the line to the Gold Coast Airport terminal has existed in the airport's master plans since 2001. It was included in the South East Queensland Infrastructure Plan and Program of the Bligh Labor government, which was released in 2011. The airport's 2024 master plan stated that "the extension of heavy rail to Gold Coast Airport would provide further stimulus for promoting travel to and from the precinct via public transport".
Network and operations
Services
Typical service frequency on the Gold Coast line is two trains per hour, with additional services running in peak hours. The timetabled travel time between Varsity Lakes and Roma Street station in Brisbane is approximately 83 minutes.
Stations
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable"
|-
! scope="col"; width=120px | Station
! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Image
! scope="col" | Suburb
! scope="col" | Opened
! scope="col" | Terrain
! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Time
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Roma Street
|
| Brisbane
|
| Ground level
| align=center | 0
|-
! style="text-align:left" | South Brisbane
|
| South Brisbane
|
| Elevated
| align=center | 5
|-
! style="text-align:left" | South Bank
|
| South Brisbane
|
| Elevated
| align=center | 7
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Boggo Road
|
| Dutton Park
|
| Ground level
| align=center | 10
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Altandi
|
| Sunnybank
|
| Ground level
| align=center | 25
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Loganlea
|
| Loganlea
|
| Ground level
| align=center | 38
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Beenleigh
|
| Beenleigh
|
| Elevated
| align=center | 48
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Ormeau
|
| Pimpama
|
| Lowered
| align=center | 55
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Pimpama
|
| Pimpama
|
| Lowered
| align=center | 58
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Coomera
|
| Coomera
|
| Elevated
| align=center | 62
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Hope Island
|
| Helensvale
|
| Elevated
| align=center | 64
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Helensvale
|
| Helensvale
|
| Lowered
| align=center | 69
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Nerang
|
| Nerang
|
| Elevated
| align=center | 73
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Merrimac
|
| Merrimac
| 2026 (scheduled)
| Lowered
| align=center |
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Robina
|
| Robina
|
| Lowered
| align=center | 79
|-
! style="text-align:left" | Varsity Lakes
|
| Varsity Lakes
|
| Lowered
| align=center | 83
|}
See also
- Beenleigh railway line
- G:link
Notes
References
External links
- Queensland Rail
- Translink, includes train timetables.