The Albury line is a regional passenger rail service operated by

V/Line V/Line is a statutory authority that operates regional passenger train and coach services in Victoria, Australia. It provides passenger train services on five commuter lines and eight long-distance routes from its major hub at Southern Cross ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

, Australia. It serves passengers between state capital

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

and the regional cities of

Benalla Benalla is a small city located on the Broken River gateway to the High Country north-eastern region of Victoria, Australia, about north east of the state capital Melbourne. At the the population was 10,822. It is the administrative centr ...

Wangaratta Wangaratta ( ) is a city in the northeast of Victoria, Australia, from Melbourne along the Hume Highway. The city had an estimated urban population of 19,318 at June 2018. Wangaratta has recorded a population growth rate of almost 1% annually ...

Wodonga Wodonga (Pallanganmiddang language, Waywurru: ''Wordonga'') is a city on the Victoria (Australia), Victorian side of the border with New South Wales, north-east of Melbourne, Australia. It is located wholly within the boundaries of the City of ...

, and the NSW border city of

Albury Albury () is a major regional city in New South Wales, Australia. It is located on the Hume Highway and the northern side of the Murray River. Albury is the seat of local government for the council area which also bears the city's name – the ...

History

After February 2008, train services on the line terminated at Wangaratta station, with road coaches operating from Wangaratta to Albury. This was due to the deteriorating track conditions between Seymour and Albury which were resulting in train speeds being reduced from , and trains not being able to make the return journey in the timetabled period. On 30 May 2008, the then Premier of Victoria

John Brumby John Mansfield Brumby (born 21 April 1953) is the current Chancellor of La Trobe University and former Victorian Labor Party politician who was Premier of Victoria from 2007 to 2010. He became leader of the Victorian Labor Party and premier ...

announced the

broad gauge A broad-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge (the distance between the rails) broader than the used by standard-gauge railways. Broad gauge of , commonly known as Russian gauge, is the dominant track gauge in former Soviet Union (CIS ...

track between Seymour and Albury would be converted to

standard gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), International gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge and European gauge in Europe, and SGR in Ea ...

, with the project to be combined with the

Wodonga Rail Bypass The Wodonga Rail Bypass, was a Victorian state government project in regional Victoria Australia, to provide a new double-track railway bypass around the northern city of Wodonga. The 5.5-kilometre bypass eliminated 11 level crossings.

away from the Wodonga CBD. Three V/Line passenger locomotives and 15 passenger carriages were also to be converted to standard gauge to operate the service. Although the project was planned for completion by 2010, it was not finished until the end of June 2011. While the gauge conversion program was being carried out between 2008 and 2011, all Albury services operated as road coaches north of Seymour, connecting with trains operating between Seymour and Melbourne. 68 seats on the

NSW TrainLink NSW TrainLink is a train and coach operator in Australia, providing services throughout New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, along with limited interstate services into Victoria, Queensland and South Australia. Its primary interc ...

Melbourne-Sydney XPT service were also made available at

ticket prices. Rail services on standard gauge commenced on 26 June 2011 with one service each way each day between Albury and Melbourne. A second daily train service was added from 31 October, with a third daily service commencing operations 22 April 2012, marking the end of road coach replacements on the line. However, serious problems soon emerged with the condition of the standard gauge track north of Seymour, meaning that the new service became very unreliable due to speed restrictions, and trains were regularly replaced by buses. VLocity

DMUs A diesel multiple unit or DMU is a multiple-unit train powered by on-board diesel engines. A DMU requires no separate locomotive, as the engines are incorporated into one or more of the carriages. Diesel-powered single-unit railcars are also ...

began running on the line on 30 December 2021. The final scheduled locomotive-hauled service on the Albury line ran on 30 July 2022, and was led by N class locomotive N464.

Services

operates daily passenger trains on the Albury line from

Southern Cross station Southern Cross railway station (until 2005 known as Spencer Street station) is a major railway station in Docklands, Melbourne. It is on Spencer Street, between Collins and La Trobe Streets, at the western edge of the Melbourne central busi ...

. Services as far as Seymour station are operated as the Seymour line. Services run by

Metro Trains Melbourne Metro Trains Melbourne, often known simply as Metro, is the franchise operator of the electrified suburban passenger service on the Melbourne rail network. Metro Trains Melbourne is a joint venture between Hong Kong-based MTR Corporation (60% ...

also operate as far as Craigieburn station as the Craigieburn line. Classified by V/Line as a long-distance service, a snack bar is provided on board VLocity sets. VLocity DMU sets are exclusively used on the line, with locomotive hauled

N type carriage The N type carriages are an intercity passenger carriage used on the railways of Victoria, Australia. They were introduced between 1981 and 1984 as part of the 'New Deal' reforms of country passenger rail services. Today they are seen on both ...

s used on the line until 2022, Services run express between Seymour and Melbourne, stopping only at Broadmeadows.

References

External links

http://www.vline.com.auOfficial map
{{AustralianInterstateRail V/Line rail services Public transport routes in the City of Melbourne (LGA) Transport in the City of Hume