Travel in Australia

Each state capital has a public transport system. All major towns have a tram system, mostly electric though a few cable trams exist. All have taxis. Ferries are in use, especially in Sydney, where they link the sides of the harbor. Horses are a common sight pulling baker’s vans, beer wagons, milk carts, ice carts etc.

Train

The railways are the common form of interstate travel in the 1920s. Rail lines creep around the country’s fringes, mainly serving the populated southeast. The last major rail route opened in 1917, linking Perth with the eastern states. Not all the lesser lines were completed, however. It was not possible to take a through trip from Brisbane to Cairns till 1924, and the Northern Territory was not reachable by track from South Australia until 1929. Melbourne to Sydney takes 17 1/2 hours, and Brisbane to Sydney 23 hours.

The big problem with the railways are the breaks in the gauges. The tracks, originally constructed independently by different state governments, were built to different widths, and so were the carriages and engines that ran on them. Hence, the traveller must transfer to a new train at the border of each new state.

Steamship

The alternative to rail travel is steamship. Protectionist laws prohibit non-Australian steamers from carrying passengers between the state capitals, so a variety of native companies flourish. Journeys rarely take more than a few days. At smaller coastal towns, the steamer anchors, and light craft take passengers on and off board. Darwin and Port Hedland rely on the sea to reach the rest of Australia.

Automobile

Australians love automobiles. By the end of the 1920s, half a million cars are registered. Petrol is two shillings a gallon. A new car costs at least £200, and averages about £300. Motor coaches operate beyond the reach of the rail network. These powerful touring vehicles can cover 150 miles a day, pulling a twowheeled trailer loaded with mail-bags and luggage.

Roads are generally bad. Roads suitable for automobiles are few outside of urban areas, and those that exist are rough, potholed, and unpaved. Punctures and breakdowns are common, and service stations almost non-existent. Choosing to travel long distances by automobile, investigators need to take plenty of water, food, camping gear, spare parts, winches, cable, rope, jacks, saws, axes, spare tyres and many spare tubes, poles (for levering out autos stuck in sand or mud), tyre patches and adhesive, and lots of petrol in small drums.

Animal

In the wilderness, horses are useful, but they require steady supplies of grass and water. Camels (and Afghan handlers) were imported as an alternative (a camel covers a little less than three miles an hour).

Aeroplane

Australia is air-minded in the 1920s, enthusiastically following the record-setters. In 1922, thirty companies have charter aircraft available. Regular air services exist in central Queensland and in the thinly-populated northwest. Regular flights between Adelaide and Sydney start in 1925.