Australian Railways

Of all the torments suffered by the railway traveller in Australia none was so great as the break of gauge. At state borders, and within states, it was often impossible to complete a rail journey without changing trains when the track width changed. Western Australia and Queensland had gone for the narrow gauge, New South Wales opted for standard gauge, while Victoria went for the broad gauge. South Australia went one better: it opted for two gauges, narrow and broad. The nightmare of three different gauges, the daunting challenge of building railways across vast open spaces often with no water supplies, the follies of railway lines that were rarely used—all this is the saga of Australian railways, the sheer hard work and suffering of those who gave their life in service to the railways. Brimming with anecdotes and colorful stories, Australian Railways: Their Life and Times documents the old, the odd and the now forgotten. Complete with rare historic photographs.