Bridges and Ferries, Published 21 July 2026

The Historic Railway Bridge That Helped Connect Brisbane!

Thousands of commuters travel over it every week, but few realise they're crossing one of Brisbane's oldest surviving railway bridges.

Hidden beside Sandgate Road at Boondall, the Cabbage Tree Creek Railway Bridge has been carrying trains for well over 120 years. It is heritage-listed by Brisbane City Council for its historical, engineering and technical significance, and remains an important reminder of Brisbane's early railway history.

Its story began in 1881, when Brisbane's first suburban railway was being built to link the growing seaside community of Sandgate with the city. A bridge was needed to cross Cabbage Tree Creek, and its location determined the site of the first railway platform at Cabbage Tree Creek, around which today's Boondall later developed.

By the late 1890s, increasing rail traffic on the Sandgate line prompted plans to duplicate the railway. The original single-track timber bridge was no longer suitable for the upgraded line, and work began in 1899 to replace it with a stronger structure capable of carrying the additional track.

During 1901–1902, the bridge was rebuilt using distinctive cast iron screw-pile piers. These remarkable iron piles were literally screwed into the creek bed, creating a much stronger and more durable structure than the original timber piers. It was an impressive feat of engineering for its time.

Today, the bridge is exceptionally rare. Much of its original 1902 cast iron screw-pile substructure survives, and it is one of only two railway bridges in Brisbane's rail network to retain these distinctive piers, making it a remarkable survivor of Queensland's early railway engineering.

More than 120 years after its reconstruction, passenger trains continue to cross the bridge every day, a living piece of Brisbane's transport history that still performs the job it was built to do.

Next time you're travelling through Boondall, spare a glance at this remarkable bridge. You're not just looking at an old railway bridge, you're seeing a rare piece of engineering that has connected Brisbane's northern suburbs for more than a century and continues to do so today.

Have you ever noticed this hidden piece of Brisbane history?

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