John Knowles comments that there was an aspect of Yeerongpilly signal cabin not mentioned in Frank Tybislawski’s interesting piece in the June 2004 ARH. That concerned the changing end to the block section to its north.

First, two observations can be made on the layout, which can be seen in a diagram prepared by C C Singleton from QR plans for my article on Brisbane Suburban Railways, which appeared on p 116 of ARHS Bulletin 320, June 1964. First, although Yeerongpilly was a staff station on the Uniform Gauge line, the only crossings which through trains could make there on that gauge were with locomotives and wagons running to and from the Locomotive Depot.

Second, it was an inconvenient place to attach to and detach from goods trains. The schedules for goods trains required a considerable amount of transfer of wagons from the down (inbound) South Coast to the Corinda direction, and vice versa. Attaching wagons from the up sidings to up South Coast trains was simple enough, and could be done at the cost of delaying following up (outbound) trains. That was not a great problem in the days when suburban trains ran hourly at best outside the peaks, and there were only two or three fast trains to the South Coast per day. But detaching traffic from down trains to place it in the up sidings froze the layout, unless the down train was short.

As Frank said, the signalling on the 3ft 6ins gauge to the north was automatic three aspect upper quadrant semaphore as far as Dutton Park (junction for the down South Coast with the Cleveland and Wooloongabba lines). Trains leaving Yeerongpilly for the north were nevertheless belled through to Dutton Park and vice versa. On the main line from Dutton Park into South Brisbane, it was then ordinary block to Park Road, then three aspect colour light to South Brisbane. The connecting or chord line from Dutton Park to Cleveland Junction on the Cleveland line was also ordinary block, while the Wooloongabba branch, which made junction at Dutton Park, was single track, operated by electric staff.

Park Road was the facing junction for trains from South Brisbane for the Cleveland line. That was double track, and ordinary block to Cleveland Junction and beyond. On the layout at this complicated location, see the diagram from p 113 of the same Bulletin. (Cleveland Junction was called Lota Junction when the Cleveland line was cut back to Lota in 1961, but regained its original name after the restoration of the line to (new) Cleveland in 1987.)

The junctions and signal cabins providing access to and from South Brisbane could be closed during the night hours when passenger trains did not run. Goods, livestock and coal trains however operated during those hours from the north side lines via Corinda, especially to Cannon Hill and Murarrie on the Cleveland line, and to a lesser extent to Clapham transhipment yard just to the south of Yeerongpilly. The Wooloongabba branch also closed when no light engines ran between Wooloongabba and South Brisbane and other places, and no goods trains were running to or from the goods yard there.

When the last Cleveland line passenger trains had run to and from South Brisbane, Park Road could be cut out. When that happened, first, the points and signals at Cleveland Junction were set for trains to run from Dutton Park to Coorparoo, the next block point on the Cleveland line, and Cleveland Junction was cut out; and second, Dutton Park to South Brisbane was operated as a block section.

Then when the last South Coast line passenger trains to and from South Brisbane, and the last light engines and goods trains to and from Wooloongabba had run, Dutton Park was cut out, and the points and signals there were set for Cleveland Junction. The block section then became Yeerongpilly to Coorparoo, passing two junctions where the signal cabins were cut out.

Furthermore, Coorparoo was a block point during the night only on account of busy level crossings there. When automatically operated half booms were provided at the Stanley Street East level crossing at the end of 1961 (WN 1/62), Coorparoo was no longer kept in circuit during the wee hours, and the section became Yeerongpilly to Cannon Hill, one of the major destinations for trains running during those hours (Cavendish Road crossing at Coorparoo had been similarly treated a couple of years earlier).

Yeerongpilly itself was in circuit for most hours of the week. In 1938, the WTT provided that it was to be in circuit from 4 am to midnight on weekdays and 8.15 am to 10 pm on Sundays. It was nevertheless possible for trains to work through Yeerongpilly to the Cleveland line when the cabin there was cut out, and the WTT provided for the block section then to be Corinda to Coorparoo. When that happened, the trains concerned passed through three junctions which were not in circuit.

That is why there was the provision which Frank mentioned that when the cabin was cut out, trains had to stop before crossing the Fairfield Road level crossing, at least until flashing lights and automatically operated half booms were installed on that level crossing in 1962.

In later years, the Yeerongpilly cabin was open during the wee hours to provide a junction facility for goods trains going south (mostly to Clapham) as well as to the Cleveland line, also to allow traffic to be attached or detached at Yeerongpilly itself. Nevertheless, it was cut out from midnight Saturday to early Sunday (1946), and in addition from late Sunday night to about 4 am Mondays (1953, 1962, 1965). Goods trains did not normally run at those hours at all, to avoid the payment of enhanced wages at weekends. It nevertheless remained possible for trains to work through Yeerongpilly to the Cleveland line when the Yeerongpilly cabin was cut out, and the WTT continued to provide for the block section to be Corinda to Coorparoo (or Cannon Hill after 1962) if necessary. I have no knowledge that such occurred, but it could well have done when shortages of cattle wagons, locomotives and train crews resulted in cattle trains running at every possible hour.

There was another peculiarity of the workings given above, although not related to Yeerongpilly itself. On Sundays, when passenger trains operated from South Brisbane to the Cleveland line and to the South Coast Line, but no goods trains were scheduled on to the Cleveland line, Cleveland Junction was cut out, and its points and signals set for Park Road to Coorparoo. If goods trains were to operate during the day on Sunday, a signalman was called on duty to man the Cleveland Junction cabin. But if none operated during the day, but they were expected after the last passenger trains had run, the signalman at Dutton Park, before going off duty, had to go to Cleveland Junction to set the points and signals there for Dutton Park instead of Park Road. (see 1946 WTT).

2 August 2006, amended 14 February 2007

[Add later diagrams from pages 113 (top and right) and 116 (left) of June 1964 Bulletin to illustrate this piece]