After a two month absence, Russell Island’s historic and popular push trolley was recently bought back to action, after being fitted with new wheels and a new axle system.
Eight kilometres long, Russell Island is the largest of the Southern Moreton Bay Islands and has a population of 3,000 people.
The trolley is the last of its kind in daily use in Moreton Bay, and is well used by residents and businesses to transport shopping and goods brought by barge or ferry onto the island.
Redland City Council went to great lengths to protect the historic value of the trolley, commissioning rail freight haulage company QR National to forge and fire authentic wheels and mouldings from scratch, and then adapt the axles and bearing cases.
Redland Mayor Melva Hobson said the trolley is an invaluable icon on the island and it was important for Council to find a solution that respected its heritage.
“We could have repaired the trolley with cheaper, inferior, parts, but we know how important it, and its history, is to locals,” she said.
“It made sense to take a bit more time and deliver a trolley that not only looks like it did originally all those years ago, but has been built to last many more years.”
The repair work was an exercise in precision as the manufacturing of the new wheels had to fit on the existing rails of the jetty. Council hired Redlands based Hydro Machinery to assemble it and make sure it was working properly.
Council staff on the island then used a backhoe to lift the trolley into position on the rail lines.
Councillor Barbara Townsend said the trolley is one of a series of trolleys that have serviced the community for many years.
“Russell Islanders have a great love for their trolley – it is one of the things that make Russell Island unique among the Southern Moreton Bay Islands,” she said.
