The Buninyong Line (also known as "Bunny Hop Line", or simply "The Bunny") was a

Victorian Railways The Victorian Railways (VR), trading from 1974 as VicRail, was the state-owned operator of most rail transport in the Australian state of Victoria from 1859 to 1983. The first railways in Victoria were private companies, but when these companie ...

(

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

) branch line, which ran south from

Ballarat Ballarat ( ) () is a city in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 census, Ballarat had a population of 111,973, making it the third-largest urban inland city in Australia and the third-largest city in Victoria. Within mo ...

to the nearby town of

Buninyong Buninyong is a town 11 km from Ballarat in Victoria, Australia. The town is on the Midland Highway, south of Ballarat on the road to Geelong. Buninyong was proclaimed a town on 27 June 1851 on the same day as Winchelsea, Portarlington, ...

. The line branched from the main Melbourne – Ballarat railway at Ballarat East station and was 11 km long. The line was opened on 11 September 1889, with traffic commencing the following day. Passenger services on the line ceased in November 1930, and the section from Eureka to Buninyong was closed on 2 February 1947, leaving only a short branch to Eureka, which closed on 1 December 1986.

Stations

1890

In the 1890s, the stations on the line were as follows: *

* Ballarat East * Eureka * Canadian * Mount Clear * Buninyong

1900

Additional stations were added in the early 1900s. *

* Ballarat East * Eureka * Spencer Crossing * Canadian (originally named Butts) * Mount Clear * Mount Helen * Buninyong

1910–1930

During this period, stations were added and/or renamed. On 24 November 1930, the Buninyong line was closed to passenger traffic and

mixed train A mixed train or mixed consist is a train that contains both passenger and freight cars or wagons. In some countries, the term refers to a freight train carrying various different types of freight rather a single commodity. Although common in the ...

s. Goods trains continued to run as required. *

* Ballarat East * Eureka * York Street * Levy * Canadian * Mount Clear * Reid * Mount Helen * Buninyong

1930–1947

During the 1940s, five stations were closed, and the line continued to be used for goods traffic until 1947. Tenders for the removal and disposal of station buildings at Mount Helen and Canadian were called for in January 1932. The last remaining building after that was the stationmaster's cottage at Buninyong. *

* Ballarat East * Eureka * Canadian * Buninyong During World War II, an army camp was established at Buninyong, which resulted in a temporary increase in good services to one per day

1947–1986

During this time, the station and sidings at Eureka were the only part of the line still open. That section was officially closed on 1 December 1986.

References

External links

br>Grades and curves diagram of the line
* Photos
Remains of the line in 2008
* Photo

* Railpage Australia

{{Victorian Railway Lines, branch Closed regional railway lines in Victoria (state) Railway lines opened in 1889