The South Western railway line is a railway line in the south-west of the state of Queensland

Queensland

Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. It branches from the Southern line

Southern railway line, Queensland

The Southern railway line is a railway in the Darling Downs region of Queensland, Australia.The 197km-long line branches from the Western line at the major regional city of Toowoomba, 161km west of Brisbane, and proceeds south through the towns of Warwick and Stanthorpe to the New South...

 immediately south of Warwick

Warwick, Queensland

Warwick is a town in Queensland, Australia, lying south-west of Brisbane. It is the administrative centre of the Southern Downs Local Government Area. In 2006 the town of Warwick had a population of 12,562....

 railway station and proceeds westwards for a distance of 413 km to the town of Dirranbandi

Dirranbandi, Queensland

Dirranbandi is a town in south-western Queensland, Australia, located in the Shire of Balonne. It sits on the Castlereagh Highway and the Balonne River. It is notable for the population increase each year as seasonal workers come to work on the extensive cotton fields. Due to the low annual...

.

It services the small towns of Inglewood

Inglewood, Queensland

Inglewood is a town situated on the southern Darling Downs in Queensland, Australia, south-west of Toowoomba. Inglewood is the second largest town in the Goondiwindi Region as well as being part of the Border Rivers region of waterways.-History:...

 and Goondiwindi

Goondiwindi, Queensland

Goondiwindi is an Australian town of approximately 5,629 people. The town has an annual population growth of 1.4 percent. The name Goondiwindi derives from an Aboriginal word meaning "the resting place of the birds".-History:...

 as well as the villages of Yelarbon

Yelarbon, Queensland

Yelarbon is a small town in south-central Queensland on the Dumaresq River. It sits on the Cunningham Highway midway between Goondiwindi and Inglewood. At the 2006 census, Yelarbon had a population of 448....

 and Thallon

Thallon, Queensland

Thallon is a town in south western Queensland, Australia. The town is located in the Balonne Shire Local Government Area, 571 kilometres west of the state capital, Brisbane. Thallon is situated between St George and the border with New South Wales at Mungindi. The town is named after a...

 among others.

The South Western line opened as far as Thane in 1 July, 1904 and was completed to Dirranbandi on 21 May, 1913.

Passenger services no longer service the South Western line though it is still used for freight. Long-distance bus operators such as Crisps Coaches and Greyhound Australia

Greyhound Australia

Greyhound Australia is the largest long distance bus operator in Australia, operating in all mainland states and territories. It is owned by the Chapman Group and ANZ....

 now serve towns along the route. The South Western line was the last railway in Australia to be serviced by mail trains. The last Dirranbandi Mail ran on 11 February, 1993.