The Kulwin railway line is located in north-western
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
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
. It junctions from the
Robinvale line at
Korong Vale and only sees usage by freight trains.
History
![Melbourne-Kulwin rail ticket 1980](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a7/Melbourne-Kulwin_rail_ticket_1980.jpg)
The line was opened from
Korong Vale to
Wycheproof
Wycheproof is a small town in the centre of the Shire of Buloke, in north western Victoria, Australia. As of the , it had a population of 610.
History
The name "Wycheproof" originates from an Aboriginal word meaning 'grass on a hill', refer ...
in 1883, and extended to
Sea Lake in 1893, to
Nandaly in 1914,
Mittyack in 1919, and
Kulwin in 1920.
Access to the line was originally from the Bendigo line via
Bridgewater, until the opening of the Dunolly to Inglewood route to the
Mildura line in 1888.
The last regular passenger service on the line ran from Bendigo to Sea Lake on 7 May 1977 and was operated by a
DERM
The Diesel Electric Rail Motor (DERM) was a railmotor operated by the Victorian Railways of Australia.
History
Originally built as a petrol electric rail motor (PERM), they were the longest-lived rail motor on the Victorian Railways, wi ...
.
In April 2008 it was announced that the Korong Vale – Charlton section of the line would be upgraded as part of the Victorian core grain network, in a $23.7 million package with 6 other lines.
In February 2010, baulks were placed across the line just north of Sea Lake due to the deteriorating condition of the track. As majority of grain trains only go as far as Sea Lake, this made practical sense. Furthermore, the segment between Sea Lake and Kulwin was closed due to sand drifts and sand slides in 2006 and 2008 respectively.
Current operations are as-required grain trains operated by
Pacific National
Pacific National is one of Australia's largest rail freight businesses.
History
In February 2002, National Rail Corporation, National Rail's freight operations and rollingstock (owned by the Government of Australia, Federal, Government of New ...
and
Southern Shorthaul Railroad
Southern Shorthaul Railroad is an Australian rail freight services operator in New South Wales and Victoria. The company also provides workshop services, such as rolling stock manufacturing and wagon and locomotive maintenance.
History
Sout ...
.
References
Freight railway lines in Victoria (Australia)
Railway lines opened in 1883
5 ft 3 in gauge railways in Australia
{{Victoria-rail-transport-stub