The T5 Varsity Lakes 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 Brisbane 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.
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 railway line opened on 26 February 1996, running from Brisbane to Helensvale. It was built as an extension of the Beenleigh line, running on a different alignment than the South Coast line. It was extended to Nerang in 1997 and to 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 line: Pimpama (opened in October 2025), Hope Island (opened in May 2026) and Merrimac (scheduled to open in 2026).
On 10 August 2026, the Gold Coast line was numbered T5 (along with the Brisbane Airport line) and renamed the Varsity Lakes line.
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".
In addition to Gold Coast Airport, three additional stations are planned at Tallebudgera, Elanora and Tugun, as part of a proposal to extend the line from Varsity Lakes.
Network and operations Services Typical service frequency on the Varsity Lakes 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.
Route Trains travel express between Boggo Road and Beenleigh, with stops at Altandi and Loganlea on the Beenleigh line. Most trains from the Gold Coast run through to Brisbane Airport as the Airtrain service, stopping at the International and Domestic terminals.
Prior to 20 January 2014, services on the line travelled express between South Bank and Beenleigh, stopping only at Boggo Road, Coopers Plains and Loganlea during off-peak hours.
The line will use Cross River Rail once the project is completed, stopping at three new stations in Brisbane's inner city.
Stations + T5 Varsity Lakes line Station Image Suburb Opened Terrain Connections TimeContinues from T5 Brisbane Airport line Roma Street Brisbane CBD Ground 0 South Brisbane South Brisbane Elevated 5 South Bank South Brisbane Elevated 7 Boggo Road Dutton Park Ground 10 Altandi Sunnybank Ground 25 Loganlea Loganlea Ground 38 Beenleigh Beenleigh Elevated 48 Ormeau Pimpama Sunken 55 Pimpama Pimpama Ground 58 Coomera Coomera Elevated 62 Hope Island Helensvale Elevated 64 Helensvale Helensvale Sunken 69 Nerang Nerang Elevated 73 Merrimac Merrimac 2026 (scheduled) Ground Robina Robina Sunken 79 Varsity Lakes Varsity Lakes Sunken 83
See also
Beenleigh railway line G:link
Notes
References
External links
Queensland Rail Translink, includes train timetables.