Public Transport – Going to Toowoomba

I’m going to ignore the obvious question of ‘Why the hell would you want to go to Toowoomba?’ Apparently some people like it there. Frankly, I think they’re lying. But it’s worth a visit, even just for the opportunity to be grateful you didn’t grow up there.

What I am going to cover is how to get there, and back.

Car

Just drive there, you goit. It takes around an hour (sometimes two, depending on traffic) to get there.

Train

Wait until a Tuesday or a Thursday, and catch the Westlander from Roma Street, Corinda or Ipswich rail stations. You’ll need to book in advance. The journey takes 4 hours from Brisbane to Toowoomba. Rumour has it that horses can do it faster, fed enough oats.

If this option does actually interest you, check out the Traveltrain website for more information.

Bus

If you don’t have a car (owned or hired), then this is the most sensible method of transport. It will take 1.5-2.5 hours to travel by bus, depending on how many towns it stops in. As far as companies go, you have a few different options (be aware that these will tend to change every 6-12 months, so make sure you have updated information):

Toowoomba Transit Coaches
They don’t run very frequently, but they’re cheap and fairly reliable. Usually uncrowded, so on an average day you’ve a good chance of being able to walk up, pay for a ticket and jump on. They don’t run on some public holidays, so check before blithely making assumptions.

Greyhound
Run far more often, and have gotten up my nose by running most of their competition into the ground then raising ticket prices as soon as they have a monopoly. Fairly standard business tactic, I know – but it still sucks. Ticket prices can vary wildly month to month due to aforementioned tactic. Often expensive, sometimes ridiculously cheap. They usually run a reduced number of services on public holidays.

Toowoomba Airport Flyer
By far the most expensive option of the lot, but also the most convenient IF you’re coming from Brisbane airport. It’s a fairly standard airport shuttle service – door-to-door service etc.