Announcements

Happy Birthday to one of the stalwarts of CMR, our beautiful heritage rail motor, CPH No. 6, who turns 100 years old today. CPH rail motors were a regular site across the NSW rail network, including Cooma and it's great to see these units still operating today, 100 years after they were built! No. 6 is currently resting in the loco shed at Cooma Railway Station with the rest of our rail motor fleet, eagerly awaiting it's return to the rails, while our volunteers complete necessary repairs to our track.

This weekend was a very exciting weekend for the future of railway tourism in the Monaro with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Cooma Monaro Railway and the Friends of Bombala Railway, establishing a join venture partnership to develop the Railway Pedal Cart experience in Bombala and facilitate the return of tourist trains to the region. The MoU provides a framework for our groups to formally collaborate on the establishment of both the Pedal Cart experience and tourist trains through the sharing of knowledge, expertise and resources. It also establishes a mechanism for our groups to [...]

On Thursday this week, Snowy Monaro Regional Council voted on a resolution to accept an invitation from Kristy McBain, Federal Member for Eden-Monaro, to apply for a $1M grant to commence the construction of a Rail Trail for a length of 3.5km from Bombala. Representatives from both Cooma Monaro Railway and the Friends of Bombala Railway travelled to Bombala to speak to Councillors during the Public Forum and express our support for the shared use of the railway corridor and express the benefits that could be achieved for the town by supporting all three projects. After amendments were made [...]

Cooma Monaro Railway are very proud to announce the establishment of our CMR Cadets youth program. The CMR Cadet program aims to inspire the next generation of heritage enthusiasts by connecting the youth of the Monaro region with like minded peers, and provide opportunities for them to learn and develop real-world skills through mentoring with industry experts and participation in hands-on projects. Cadets are mentored by industry experts across a wide variety of skills from project management through to a variety of trade skills. Our cadets also have the opportunity to work on their very own restoration projects, where [...]

After almost a decade, Cooma Monaro Railway is excited to announce that tourist trains will be returning to the rails of the Monaro. Last week, the Office of the National Rail Safety Regulator (ONRSR) notified us that our application to be accredited as a Rail Infrastructure Manager (RIM) and a Rolling Stock Operator (RSO) has been approved. This is a huge milestone for CMR and signals the commencement of an exciting chapter for heritage railway in the Monaro. While our first priority is being able to move our rolling stock within the yard at Cooma Railway Station, the issuing [...]

We are delighted to announce that the former Member for Monaro, Nichole Overall for Monaro has accepted our invitation to become the Patron of Cooma Monaro Railway. Nichole has been a great supporter of our organisation and we are all very excited to have her on board. With her background as an historian and her passion for the rich heritage of our region, Nichole was the perfect fit for our organisation, and we're honoured that she accepted our invitation. Her experience and guidance will be a huge asset for Cooma Monaro Railway as we continue to deliver on our [...]

What a huge honour tonight to win the "Outstanding Visitor Experience" award at the 2023 Snowy Monaro Business Awards. This is such a privilege for our organisation and a massive reward for all the volunteers and supporters that have helped us get to where we are today. It's difficult to explain how many hours and private resources are invested into developing and maintaining an attraction like this but it is absolutely worth it when we receive recognition like this. Thank you to Transport for NSW and Transport Heritage NSW for their continued support of heritage railway in NSW. And [...]

We are excited to announce that Cooma Monaro Railway has been awarded a grant of $37,800 from the NSW Government through Transport Heritage NSW for the restoration of NSW Railways MBC22959, a timber bodied refrigerated bogie box van, and L759, a four-wheel riveted oil tanker. Both of these items will be restored back to display condition by our team of volunteers and will be put on display for visitors at the Cooma Monaro Railway Museum alongside recently restored Powder Van PV 22318. Restoration projects such as these play a critical role in the future development of our railway as they [...]

It's with great pleasure that we announce the public launch of Cooma Monaro Railway Museum at Cooma Railway Station on Sunday, 11 December in conjunction with our December Fresh Produce Markets. To celebrate the launch, the museum will be open from 9.00am to 4.00pm with FREE entry for the whole day. Housed in the beautifully restored Cooma Railway Station building, the museum is the culmination of over five years of hard work from our amazing volunteers and is the first major milestone in the development of the Cooma Monaro Railway Museum. We would like to take this opportunity to thank [...]

This week, we were privileged to host Nichole Overall MP at Cooma Railway Station to help us announce $310,000 in funding for the restoration of the Railway Institute Building and Tennis Courts. We also had the opportunity to show Nichole some of the amazing work that has already been completed. Built in 1928, the Tennis Courts are an example of the “Ant Hill” surface, built using crushed termite mounds, that was commonly used in regional NSW. These courts will be restored to original condition and will be made available to hire for the community. The Railway Institute Building, built in [...]