Loxton railway line

Loxton railway line

Tookayerta grain terminal at the end of the line
Overview
Status No trains operating
Locale Murray Mallee
Coordinates 34°58′15″S 140°5′30″E / 34.97083°S 140.09167°E / -34.97083; 140.09167Coordinates: 34°58′15″S 140°5′30″E / 34.97083°S 140.09167°E / -34.97083; 140.09167
Termini Tailem Bend
Loxton
Operation
Opened 2 February 1914 (1914-02-02)
Closed 20 July 2015 (2015-07-20)
Events
Converted to standard gauge 1996
Technical
Line length 271 km (168 mi)(Tailem Bend–Tookayerta)
Number of tracks 1
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Old gauge 5 ft 3 in (1,600 mm)
Route map
Adelaide-Wolseley railway line
to Adelaide
120.3 km Tailem Bend Loop (Station closed)
Adelaide-Wolseley railway line
to Melbourne
Pinnaroo railway line
to Ouyen
169.0 km Karoonda Loop & silos
Peebinga & Waikerie lines
215.2 km Mindarie Mine
224.4 km Wanbi Loop & silos
Moorook railway line
to Yinkanie
243.6 km Alawoona Loop & silos
Barmera railway line
271.0 km Tookayerta Grain Terminal
Loxton (Closed)

Route distances from Adelaide
Blue is Standard Gauge, red was broad gauge

The Loxton railway line is a closed railway line in the northern Murray Mallee region of South Australia. It ran north-east from Tailem Bend to grain silos near Loxton.[1]

History

The line initially opened from Tailem Bend to Karoonda on 26 June 1896, being extended to Alawoona on 9 September 1896 and Loxton on 2 February 1914. It closed on 6 January 1996 to be gauge converted from broad gauge to standard gauge to retain connection to the main line from Adelaide to Melbourne after that line was converted.[2][3][4] The last grain train left the silos on 20 June 2015, marking the closure of the line.

Route

The railway branched off the main line just south of Tailem Bend, and tracked roughly north-east. The Karoonda Highway from Murray Bridge East paralleled it after about 24 kilometres at Kulde. The railway and highway continued together 100 kilometres north-east through Karoonda to Alawoona, then both turned north for the final 35 kilometres to Loxton.

The line no longer continues to Loxton station, having been curtailed at a bulk grain facility a few kilometres short of the town. The end of the main line became the grain terminal at what was originally the Tookayerta siding.[5] The line closed on 20 July 2015, with all grain traffic now taken by road.[6]

References

  1. ↑ Mid North & Murray Mallee Lines SA Track & Signal
  2. ↑ Newland, Andrew; Quinlan, Howard (2000). Australian Railway Routes 1854 - 2000. Redfern: Australian Railway Historical Society. pp. 54, 56. ISBN 0-909650-49-7.
  3. ↑ "SA Branches to be Standardised" Railway Digest June 1995 page 15
  4. ↑ "South Australia" Railway Digest July 1996 page 37
  5. ↑ Freight Study & Rail Operations Investigation Flywheel Advisory 17 November 2014
  6. ↑ Strathearn, Peri (21 May 2015). "End of line for Murraylands, Mallee grain trains". The Murray Valley Standard. Fairfax Regional Media. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
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