The Alvie railway line was a branch line in
Victoria, Australia
Victoria is a state in southeastern Australia. It is the second-smallest state with a land area of , the second most populated state (after New South Wales) with a population of over 6.5 million, and the most densely populated state in ...
, that left the
Warrnambool line just west of
Colac and proceeded in a generally north-westerly direction to
Alvie. It was 16 kilometres long, and operated from 1923 to 1954.
History
The line was built to allow farmers in the area, particularly onion and potato growers, to transport their produce to Colac and around Victoria. It was constructed between October 1922 and June 1923 and officially opened at Alvie on 21 June 1923.
There were stations and loading facilities at Alvie, Cororooke and Coragulac. For the first few years, the train operated three times a week, with a passenger carriage attached to the
goods wagon
Goods wagons or freight wagons (North America: freight cars), also known as goods carriages, goods trucks, freight carriages or freight trucks, are unpowered railway vehicles that are used for the transportation of cargo. A variety of wagon type ...
s. However, the passenger carriage was discontinued in December 1930 owing to lack of demand, and passengers from then on had to travel in the
guards van
Brake van and guard's van are terms used mainly in the UK, Ireland, Australia and India for a railway vehicle equipped with a hand brake which can be applied by the guard. The equivalent North American term is caboose, but a British brake va ...
.
The
Royal train
A royal train is a set of railway carriages dedicated for the use of the monarch or other members of a royal family. Most monarchies with a railway system employ a set of royal carriages.
Australia
The various government railway operators of ...
conveying the
Duke of Gloucester around Victoria stopped at Alvie and spent the night there on 1 November 1934. To the disappointment of locals, the Duke was ill with
catarrh
Catarrh is an exudate of inflamed mucous membranes in one of the airways or cavities of the body, usually with reference to the throat and paranasal sinuses. It can result in a thick exudate of mucus and white blood cells caused by the swelling o ...
and remained in the train.
The increasing availability of road transport led to a decline in the use of the line after
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, and it was closed on 17 December 1954. The track was removed in 1957, and the land it occupied has now reverted to private ownership.
[Houghton, pp. 19–20.]
References
External links
Photographs of the location of the Alvie railway line
{{Victorian Railway Lines, branch
Closed regional railway lines in Victoria (state)
Transport in Barwon South West (region)