Bell Bay Line

Bell Bay Line
Overview
Type	Heavy rail
Status	In use
Locale	Launceston, Tasmania
Termini	Western Junction, Tasmania Bell Bay, Tasmania
Operation
Opening	1973
Owner	Government of Tasmania
Operator(s)	TasRail
Technical
Line length	57.3 km (35.6 mi)
Track gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Route map Legend Bell Bay Old Bell Bay Road George Town Old Bell Bay Road East Tamar Highway Bridport Road East Tamar Highway Pulp Mill Longreach East Tamar Highway Fourteen Mile Creek East Arm Road Dalrymple Road Faheys Creek Swan Bay Creek Jollys Road Magazine Road Coulsons Creek Lady Nelson Creek North East Line Coldwater Creek Lilydale Road Tip Road Newnham Creek Remount Road Launceston Vermont Road Henry Street Inveresk Railyards North Esk River East Tamar Junction Newstead St Leonards West Junction •South Line   Western Line

The Bell Bay Line is a freight rail corridor connecting the port of Bell Bay to the main rail network of Tasmania.^[1][2] The Railway Line was built in 1973 to connect the Longreach sawmill to the rail network, and was extended to Bell bay in 1974.^[2]

Traffic on the line was initially limited to woodchip logs to Longreach, with the occasional train to George Town and Bell Bay. By the 1990s, log traffic to Longreach by rail was decreasing, and container traffic to the port of Bell Bay was increasing. Today the only traffic on the line is containers to and from Bell Bay.^[2] At present, the railway line is included in the Federal Government's AusLink initiative^[3]

See also

• Rail transport in Tasmania

References