Victorian Goldfields Railway
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| Victoria's tourist railways | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Bellarine Peninsula Railway | |||
| Daylesford Spa Country Railway | |||
| Mornington Railway | |||
| Puffing Billy Railway | |||
| South Gippsland Railway | |||
| Victorian Goldfields Railway | |||
| Walhalla Goldfields Railway | |||
| Yarra Valley Tourist Railway | |||
| Melbourne's public transport | |||
| Metlink | Metcard | myki | |
| Modes of Transport | |||
| Trains | Trams | Buses | |
| Transport Routes | |||
| Railway stations | Tram routes | Bus routes | |
| Operating Companies | |||
| V/Line | Connex Melbourne | Yarra Trams | |
The Victorian Goldfields Railway is a broad gauge tourist railway in Victoria, Australia. It operates along a formerly disused branch line between the towns of Maldon and Castlemaine.
Contents |
[edit] History
The original line was opened on June 16, 1884,[1] opening up rail access from the established station at Castlemaine to the towns of Muckleford and Maldon. The area was prosperous, as Castlemaine and Maldon had both experienced gold rushes in the preceding years, and local residents had been petitioning the state government for a railway since 1874. On August 2, 1884, a contract was let for an extension to Laanecoorie, however further construction was suspended after the line reached the small town of Shelbourne in 1891.[2]
The line was served by twice-daily trains for the first forty years of its life, which was increased to four-times-daily trains in 1924.[3] However, these were cut back at the end of the 1920s due to a decrease in the local population, and passenger services were eliminated altogether during World War II.[4] This meant that the line was only used by a weekly goods train which went through to Shelbourne. When bushfire damage caused the closure of the Shelbourne extension in 1970, the remainder of the line was rendered largely useless, and it was officially closed in December 1976.[5]
The response to the closure from the local community was swift, and the Castlemaine and Maldon Railway Preservation Society was founded in the same month, with the intention of reopening the line as a tourist railway. While Maldon station was intact, and was able to used as a base for their operations, they were faced with numerous problems: a line that needed substantial repairs, a lack of rolling stock, and rebuilding the demolished station at Muckleford.
[edit] Reconstruction
Over the next decade, volunteers obtained and renovated rolling stock and by 1986, trains were able to operate on a one kilometre section of track out of Maldon.[5] By 1996, the line from Muckleford to Maldon had been restored, with the platforms being reinstated and a small replacement building being constructed.[5] Services were able to operate along a regular timetable, and the society set about reopening the Muckleford-Castlemaine section of the line.
The necessary physical work had largely been completed by 2003, but it took another year to secure the necessary approvals and sign an agreement with freight operator Pacific National over the use of its line into Castlemaine station, which is still in regular passenger use today.[6] The section of line finally opened on December 19, 2004, approximately a year behind schedule.[7] As of April 2006, the Society has shown no plans to restore the dismantled Shelbourne extension in the foreseeable future.
[edit] Current operations
The railway now operates on an average of two days per week (more in holiday periods). This usually involves three return services from Maldon to Castlemaine each operating day.[8] Steam trains operate most services on the line, though the Society also possesses diesel trains, which allow it to operate when total fire bans are in effect.
Rolling stock includes four-wheeled goods trucks along with goods and passenger brake vans and a selection of wooden bodied passenger carriages. Steam locomotives include J-class J 549 and K-class K 160, diesel locomotives T 333 and F 212 and Diesel Electric Rail Motor (DERM) 61RM, all of which are regularly engaged on passenger train or VGR work train duties.
As of January 2007, both K 160 and J 549 are temporarily out of service, awaiting repairs. Seymour Railway Heritage Centre has provided steam locomotive J 515 and diesel locomotive Y 133 to allow the railway to continue operating until its own locomotives are returned to service.[9]
[edit] List of stations
[edit] References
- ^ VR History. www.victorianrailways.net (2007-02-02). Retrieved on 2007-01-20.
- ^ VGR Timechart 1881-1890. www.vgr.com.au (2005-02-27). Retrieved on 2007-01-17.
- ^ VGR Timechart 1921-1940. www.vgr.com.au (2005-02-27). Retrieved on 2007-01-17.
- ^ VGR Timechart 1941-1960. www.vgr.com.au (2005-02-27). Retrieved on 2007-01-17.
- ^ a b c History & Preservation. www.vgr.com.au (2006-09-16). Retrieved on 2007-01-17.
- ^ Catharine Munro. "Goldfields railway trundles into history", The Age, 2004-12-20. Retrieved on 2007-01-17.
- ^ MUCKLEFORD - CASTLEMAINE RESTORATION. www.vgr.com.au (2004-10-20). Archived from [www.vgr.com.au/muckleford-castlemaine.html the original] on 2004-11-28. Retrieved on 2007-01-20.
- ^ AUSTRALIAN BUS AND TRAIN JOURNEY PLANNER - ROUTE DETAILS. railmaps.com.au. Retrieved on 2007-01-17.
- ^ Gallery Index J515. www.vgr.com.au (2006-10-12). Retrieved on 2007-01-20.
