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V/Line is a
statutory authority A statutory body or statutory authority is a body set up by law (statute) that is authorised to implement certain legislation on behalf of the relevant country or state, sometimes by being Primary and secondary legislation, empowered or deleg ...
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 railway station in Melbourne, as well as bus services across Victoria and into New South Wales, the Australian Capital Territory and South Australia. In addition, V/Line is responsible for the maintenance of much of the Victorian freight and passenger rail network outside of the areas managed by Metro Trains Melbourne and the Australian Rail Track Corporation. The V/Line brand was introduced after the split-up of VicRail in 1983, and has been used by all successive government and private operators of the state's regional public transport. Until 1999, when its freight operations were privatised, V/Line Freight was also a monopoly government provider of the state's rail freight services. Since 2004, V/Line Pty Ltd, the main operating rail company, has been owned by the V/Line Corporation, a Victorian state government
statutory corporation A statutory corporation is a government entity created as a statutory body by statute. Their precise nature varies by jurisdiction, thus, they are statutes owned by a government or controlled by national or sub-national government to the (in ...
. In 2016, V/Line Corporation became a subsidiary agency of
Public Transport Victoria Public Transport Victoria (PTV) is the brand name for public transport in the Australian state of Victoria, Australia, Victoria. It was the trading name of the Go Public Transport Development Authority (PTDA), a now-defunct statutory authorit ...
. In the 2018–19 financial year, V/Line carried 22.4 million passengers, mostly on its commuter rail lines, which have experienced considerable patronage growth since 2005 due to improved services and population increases. V/Line's operations, particularly those on long-distance routes, remain heavily subsidised by the Victorian Government. In July 2021, V/Line transitioned from a government-owned corporation to a statutory authority.


History


As a government authority

On 1 July 1983, the State Transport Authority and a range of other transport bodies were created, when the Transport Act 1983 came into effect. The new authority replaced VicRail, and established the V/Line operating brand for both country passenger and freight. The VicRail orange and silver "teacup' livery used on passenger rolling stock was replaced in August 1983 by an orange and grey livery. The white and green V/Line logo was launched on Sunday 21 August 1983 by the transport minister,
Steve Crabb Steven Marshall Crabb (born 15 January 1943) is a former Australian politician. He was born in Arbroath in Scotland, the son of Steven Crabb, an RAF warrant officer, and Gertrude. He attended local state schools and joined the Labour Party, o ...
, at
Spencer Street station Southern Cross railway station (until 2005 known as Spencer Street station) is a major railway station in Docklands, Victoria, Docklands, Melbourne. It is on Spencer Street, Melbourne, Spencer Street, between Collins Street, Melbourne, Collins ...
, with special trains running to
Essendon Essendon may refer to: Australia *Electoral district of Essendon *Electoral district of Essendon and Flemington *Essendon, Victoria **Essendon railway station **Essendon Airport *Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League United King ...
to mark the occasion. This was altered when on 1 July 1989 the Transport (Amendment) Act took effect, merging the State Transport Authority with the Metropolitan Transit Authority to form the Public Transport Corporation (PTC). The relationship between the country V/Line and suburban " The Met" brands was blurred, with the Sprinter trains delivered in the 1993-1995 period appearing in PTC colours but with both PTC and V/Line logos. On 30 April 1984, the first V/Line country coach service commenced with a daily Melbourne to Mildura service being introduced, replacing services formerly operated by
Ansett Pioneer Ansett Pioneer was an Australian long distance coach operator. Founded in 1905 as the AA Withers Bus Company, the company maintained continuous operation under a variety of corporate monikers until its 1993 merger into Greyhound Pioneer Australi ...
and Holidaymakers of Mildura. It was operated under contract by Holidaymakers and Mildura Bus Lines. On 2 December 1984, the ''Speedlink'' service was introduced. This involved a road coach operating from Adelaide via Albury where it connected with the State Rail Authority's '' Riverina XPT'' to
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
. Other new coach services introduced were Warrnambool to Mount Gambier on 19 November 1984, Lang Lang to Inverloch on 9 December 1984, Warrnambool to
Ballarat Ballarat ( ) is a city in the Central Highlands (Victoria), Central Highlands of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 Census, Ballarat had a population of 116,201, making it the third largest city in Victoria. Estimated resid ...
on 3 June 1985, Albury to Mildura and Dandenong to
Cowes Cowes () is an English seaport town and civil parish on the Isle of Wight. Cowes is located on the west bank of the estuary of the River Medina, facing the smaller town of East Cowes on the east bank. The two towns are linked by the Cowes Floa ...
both on 2 September 1985, and Cobram to
Shepparton Shepparton () ( Yortayorta: ''Kanny-goopna'') is a city located on the floodplain of the Goulburn River in northern Victoria, Australia, approximately north-northeast of Melbourne. As of the 2021 census, the estimated population of Shepparton, ...
and Melbourne to Shepparton both on 27 October 1985. On 27 April 1987, the Canberra Link service commenced. A Mylon Motorways coach for
Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
connected with a train service from Melbourne at Wodonga. On the same date a service commenced from Mildura to
Broken Hill Broken Hill is an inland mining city in the far west of outback New South Wales, Australia. It is near the border with South Australia on the crossing of the Barrier Highway (A32) and the Silver City Highway (B79), in the Barrier Range. It is ...
, connecting off ''The Sunraysia''. On 1 July 1994, the operation of some of V/Line's regional passenger services was contracted out to the private sector. Hoys Roadlines took over the Melbourne to Cobram service with trains operated under contract by V/Line to
Shepparton Shepparton () ( Yortayorta: ''Kanny-goopna'') is a city located on the floodplain of the Goulburn River in northern Victoria, Australia, approximately north-northeast of Melbourne. As of the 2021 census, the estimated population of Shepparton, ...
with Hoys operating a road coach service beyond. The service from Melbourne to Warrnambool was operated by West Coast Railway who operated their own trains throughout. Both of these returned to being operated by V/Line in 2004. Rail services to Leongatha ceased on 24 July 1993, Bairnsdale, Cobram and Dimboola on 21 August 1993,
Ararat Ararat or in Western Armenian Ararad may refer to: Personal names * Ararat ( hy, Արարատ), a common first name for Armenian males (pronounced Ararad in Western Armenian) * Ararat or Araratian, a common family name for Armenians (pronounced A ...
on 27 May 1994 and Mildura on 13 September 1994. In 1995, the freight and passenger rail divisions of V/Line were divided, with a new red, blue and white V/Line Passenger livery unveiled. This split was finalised on 1 July 1997 when separate management was brought in. On 1 July 1998, operation of the Stony Point line passed to Bayside Trains. V/Line continues to hire rolling stock to Metro Trains Melbourne to operate the service.


Privatisation


Freight Victoria

V/Line Freight was sold to a consortium of RailAmerica,
Fluor Daniel Fluor Corporation is an American multinational engineering and construction firm headquartered in Irving, Texas. It is a holding company that provides services through its subsidiaries in the following areas: oil and gas, industrial and infrastr ...
, Macquarie Bank and A Goninan & Co and rebranded as
Freight Victoria Freight Australia was an Australian railway company that purchased the V/Line Freight business from the Government of Victoria in 1999. Initially known as Freight Victoria, it operated rail freight services and controlled non-urban rail track in ...
effective from 1 May 1999. The sale included a 45-year lease of most regional track (passenger and freight), with responsibilities for track, signalling and level crossings, with access to passenger sections of track granted to V/Line Passenger. The state government had not wanted to sell rights to the track infrastructure, but was persuaded by bids by three primarily American consortia which argued greater efficiencies could be accomplished by vertical integration. After being renamed Freight Australia in March 2000, it was sold to Pacific National in August 2004. In May 2007 Pacific National sold the rail lease of the network back to
VicTrack VicTrack, the trading name of Victorian Rail Track Corporation, is a Government of Victoria, Victorian Government state-owned enterprise which owns all railway and tram lines, associated rail lands and other rail-related infrastructure in the ...
.


National Express

On 29 August 1999, National Express took control of V/Line Passenger, having won a 10-year concession in competition with FirstGroup, Freight Victoria, GB Railways, Prism Rail and
Stagecoach A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...
. National Express also operated the M>Tram and M>Train franchises in Melbourne. It included all country rail operations in Victoria, with the exception of the
Shepparton Shepparton () ( Yortayorta: ''Kanny-goopna'') is a city located on the floodplain of the Goulburn River in northern Victoria, Australia, approximately north-northeast of Melbourne. As of the 2021 census, the estimated population of Shepparton, ...
and Warrnambool services previously franchised in 1993. National Express inherited a fleet of A, N, P and Y class locomotives, H, N, S and Z type carriages and Sprinter diesel multiple units. As a franchise commitment, 29 two-car VLocitys were ordered from Bombardier. In December 2002, National Express handed in its Victorian rail and tram franchises having been unable to renegotiate financial terms with the State Government.
KPMG KPMG International Limited (or simply KPMG) is a multinational professional services network, and one of the Big Four accounting organizations. Headquartered in Amstelveen, Netherlands, although incorporated in London, England, KPMG is a net ...
were appointed to operate the business on behalf of the State Government.


As a statutory corporation

Full control of V/Line was taken on 1 October 2003 by changing the shareholding of V/Line, making the government the sole shareholder via a recently created statutory corporation, V/Line Passenger Corporation.Annual Report for year ended 30 June 2004
V/Line
V/Line operates under a franchise agreement entered into with the Director of Public Transport. The Director also sub leases tracks and other infrastructure which the Director holds under lease from
VicTrack VicTrack, the trading name of Victorian Rail Track Corporation, is a Government of Victoria, Victorian Government state-owned enterprise which owns all railway and tram lines, associated rail lands and other rail-related infrastructure in the ...
, the agency which owns Victoria's rail-related land and infrastructure. In 2000, the
Regional Fast Rail project The Regional Fast Rail project (or RFR project) was a rail transport project undertaken by the State Government of Victoria, Australia, between 2000 and 2006 aimed at improving rail services on the Victorian regional railway network (operated by ...
was launched to upgrade the tracks linking
Ballarat Ballarat ( ) is a city in the Central Highlands (Victoria), Central Highlands of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 Census, Ballarat had a population of 116,201, making it the third largest city in Victoria. Estimated resid ...
,
Bendigo Bendigo ( ) is a city in Victoria, Australia, located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2019, Bendigo had an urban population of 100,991, makin ...
,
Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River, ...
and the Latrobe Valley to Melbourne. The project, which also included an extra 10 Vlocitys and an expanded timetable of rail services, commenced full operations from December 2005. The services to Bairnsdale and
Ararat Ararat or in Western Armenian Ararad may refer to: Personal names * Ararat ( hy, Արարատ), a common first name for Armenian males (pronounced Ararad in Western Armenian) * Ararat or Araratian, a common family name for Armenians (pronounced A ...
were restored in May and July 2004 respectively. In December 2008, as part of the Victorian Transport Plan, the state government announced that V/Line rail passenger services would be extended from
Ballarat Ballarat ( ) is a city in the Central Highlands (Victoria), Central Highlands of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 Census, Ballarat had a population of 116,201, making it the third largest city in Victoria. Estimated resid ...
to Maryborough at a cost of $50 million, commencing in July 2010. The first passenger train in 15 years arrived at Maryborough on 24 July 2010. V/Line also resumed operating the Shepparton and Warrnambool services in 2004 when contacts with Hoys Roadliners and West Coast Railway expired. In November 2006 Pacific National, which had purchased Freight Australia, entered into an agreement to sell the remainder of its Victorian rail lease of the network back to
VicTrack VicTrack, the trading name of Victorian Rail Track Corporation, is a Government of Victoria, Victorian Government state-owned enterprise which owns all railway and tram lines, associated rail lands and other rail-related infrastructure in the ...
. The sale was completed on 7 May 2007, with V/Line becoming the track manager of the Victorian intrastate network. In May 2008 it was announced that part of the V/Line fleet would be converted to standard gauge to operate an upgraded Albury line service. In December 2008 V/Line ended the sale of alcoholic beverages aboard long-distance trains, after almost a century of the practice. In 2015/16, the subsidy per passenger trip was $22.12. The Transport Integration Act 2010 renamed the V/Line Passenger Corporation as V/Line Corporation. The Act also gave V/Line a new statutory charter. As part of these changes, the corporation's responsibilities were explicitly expanded to cover both rail passenger and rail freight services. The Act received the Royal assent on 2 March 2010 and came into effect on 1 July 2010. In January 2016, V/Line's VLocity rolling stock was identified as suffering from abnormal wheel wear. The fleet was also banned from the metropolitan track lease by the suburban rail operator, Metro Trains Melbourne, after a V/Line train failed to activate a level crossing in Dandenong. The two problems caused as many as 70 services a day to be cancelled. They also led to the resignation of then CEO Theo Taifalos, 16 days free travel being provided to passengers, and an independent inquiry being ordered by the public transport minister, Jacinta Allan, into the operational capacity of V/Line. It was later identified that the wheel wear was caused by harsh curves in track segments, particularly along the Regional Rail Link route, which was opened 7 months prior in June 2015 as a means of separating V/Line and Metro trains en route to the CBD. In particular, the worst of these track curves was identified as being along the Dynon-North Melbourne flyover, which passes just above
North Melbourne station North Melbourne railway station is the junction for the Craigieburn, Flemington Racecourse, Sunbury, Upfield, Werribee and Williamstown lines in Victoria, Australia. It serves the inner-city Melbourne suburb of West Melbourne, and opene ...
and was rebuilt as part of the project as a means of separating the V/Line and Metro train paths into
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 ...
. As a result, the flyover track segment was replaced, and permanent 30 km/h speed restrictions were introduced from the flyover to South Kensington. On 1 July 2021, V/Line transitioned from a state-owned corporation to a statutory authority.


Services

V/Line operates rail services to the regional cities of
Ballarat Ballarat ( ) is a city in the Central Highlands (Victoria), Central Highlands of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 Census, Ballarat had a population of 116,201, making it the third largest city in Victoria. Estimated resid ...
,
Bendigo Bendigo ( ) is a city in Victoria, Australia, located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2019, Bendigo had an urban population of 100,991, makin ...
,
Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River, ...
,
Seymour Seymour may refer to: Places Australia *Seymour, Victoria, a township *Electoral district of Seymour, a former electoral district in Victoria *Rural City of Seymour, a former local government area in Victoria *Seymour, Tasmania, a locality ...
and Traralgon as well as
Ararat Ararat or in Western Armenian Ararad may refer to: Personal names * Ararat ( hy, Արարատ), a common first name for Armenian males (pronounced Ararad in Western Armenian) * Ararat or Araratian, a common family name for Armenians (pronounced A ...
, Maryborough,
Echuca Echuca ( ) is a town on the banks of the Murray River and Campaspe River in Victoria, Australia. The border town of Moama is adjacent on the northern side of the Murray River in New South Wales. Echuca is the administrative centre and largest s ...
, Swan Hill, Albury, Bairnsdale, Warrnambool and
Shepparton Shepparton () ( Yortayorta: ''Kanny-goopna'') is a city located on the floodplain of the Goulburn River in northern Victoria, Australia, approximately north-northeast of Melbourne. As of the 2021 census, the estimated population of Shepparton, ...
. In addition, V/Line road coaches connect with many rail services at major stations to serve towns away from the main rail network operating as far as Adelaide and
Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
. Rail services are grouped into two types. As part of the introduction of the Myki smartcard in 2013, and to provide consistent communication to both staff and customers, what were formerly called "interurban" services became "commuter" services, and what were formerly called "intercity" services became "long distance" services. Commuter services operate over shorter distances and more frequently than long-distance services, and the latter usually provide some first-class seating, as well as snack bar facilities. Long-distance services do not use the Myki ticketing system, as they use reserved paper tickets instead. Commuter services include the
Ballarat Ballarat ( ) is a city in the Central Highlands (Victoria), Central Highlands of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 Census, Ballarat had a population of 116,201, making it the third largest city in Victoria. Estimated resid ...
,
Bendigo Bendigo ( ) is a city in Victoria, Australia, located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2019, Bendigo had an urban population of 100,991, makin ...
,
Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River, ...
, Gippsland and
Seymour Seymour may refer to: Places Australia *Seymour, Victoria, a township *Electoral district of Seymour, a former electoral district in Victoria *Rural City of Seymour, a former local government area in Victoria *Seymour, Tasmania, a locality ...
Lines. Long-distance services extend beyond to Albury,
Ararat Ararat or in Western Armenian Ararad may refer to: Personal names * Ararat ( hy, Արարատ), a common first name for Armenian males (pronounced Ararad in Western Armenian) * Ararat or Araratian, a common family name for Armenians (pronounced A ...
, Bairnsdale,
Echuca Echuca ( ) is a town on the banks of the Murray River and Campaspe River in Victoria, Australia. The border town of Moama is adjacent on the northern side of the Murray River in New South Wales. Echuca is the administrative centre and largest s ...
, Maryborough,
Shepparton Shepparton () ( Yortayorta: ''Kanny-goopna'') is a city located on the floodplain of the Goulburn River in northern Victoria, Australia, approximately north-northeast of Melbourne. As of the 2021 census, the estimated population of Shepparton, ...
, Swan Hill and Warrnambool. All rail services depart 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 ...
in Melbourne on the following lines with the exception of one Traralgon service which departs/ terminates at Flinders Street. *South West Region or Geelong Line which continues as the Warrnambool Line *Western Region or Ballarat Line which continues as the Ararat Line and the Maryborough Line *Northern Region or Bendigo Line which extends as the Swan Hill Line and the Echuca Line *North East Region or Seymour Line which extends as the Shepparton Line and the Albury Line *Eastern Region or Bairnsdale Line V/Line also runs numerous intrastate and interstate road coach services that may run wholly as a coach service or operate as a coach connecting with a rail service. Interstate road coach service operated by V/Line are: *Canberra Link - Melbourne ( Southern Cross) -
Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
via Wodonga, runs as a train to Albury and then a coach to Canberra *Capital Link - Melbourne ( Southern Cross) -
Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
via Bairnsdale, runs as a train to Bairnsdale and then a coach to Canberra *Daylink - Melbourne ( Southern Cross) - Adelaide via
Bendigo Bendigo ( ) is a city in Victoria, Australia, located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2019, Bendigo had an urban population of 100,991, makin ...
, runs as a train to Bendigo and then a coach to Adelaide 6 days a week and as a coach the whole way on Sunday. * Sapphire Coast Link - Melbourne ( Southern Cross) - Batemans Bay via Bairnsdale, runs as a train to Bairnsdale and then a coach to Batemans Bay *Speedlink -
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
- Adelaide via Albury. This operates as 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 ...
XPT train from Sydney to Albury with a V/Line coach operating from Albury to Adelaide. *Murraylink - Mildura - Albury, does not travel to Melbourne and operates entirely as a coach.


Ticketing

V/Line currently uses the myki ticketing system on its commuter train services, in addition to machine printed paper tickets, issued from staffed V/Line stations, selected
Metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: Geography * Metro (city), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urba ...
suburban premium stations, V/Line ticket agents, online or by phone. Passengers boarding services at unmanned stations or roadside coach stops can purchase tickets from the train conductor or coach driver. Tickets have the origin and destination printed upon them, making them point to point, but the fare itself is based on charging zones. Changes were made to the fare system, to integrate it with the suburban
Metcard Metcard was the brand name of an integrated ticketing system used to access public transport in Melbourne, Australia. It was a universal ticket which allowed users to ride on the city's Metlink and Metropolitan Transit Authority network, consis ...
system in preparation for the introduction of the Myki smartcard system to cover the entire state. Ticket types available include single, return and a range of periodical tickets. Services are classified as peak and off-peak, with discounts available for tickets valid in off-peak times only. V/Line operates a limited number of trains with first class seating which requires the payment of an upgrade fee on top of the standard economy fare. From June 2013 the Myki smartcard system began to be rolled out on the V/Line network. Most V/Line services operate on a non-allocated seating basis, but all intercity (long-distance) rail services, and some coach services, require seat reservations.


Rolling stock


Railcars


Locomotives


Carriage stock and vans


Former stock


Road coaches

Road coaches are provided by 23 private companies including
BusBiz BusBiz is an Australian bus company operating in New South Wales, South Australia and Victoria. History The origins of BusBiz can be traced back to 1954 when Lake Boga Transport was formed to transport fruit from the Lake Boga area to Melbourne. ...
, Dineen Group,
Donric Group The Donric Group is an Australian owner of bus and coach companies in Victoria and Queensland. The group comprises 5 companies with over 250 vehicles and 300 staff. History The Donric Group was formed in March 1980 when Don McKenzie and Richar ...
, Dysons, Firefly Express,
Mee's Bus Lines Mee's Bus Lines is a bus and coach operator in Melbourne, Australia. History Russell Mee commenced a body builder business in 1941. Initially trading as Mee's Bodyworks banner and later Melba Busworks, it built bodies for many operators as well ...
,
Panorama Coaches Panorama Coaches is a bus and coach operator in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It operates four routes under contract to Public Transport Victoria. It is a subsidiary of the Dineen Group. History In September 1949, Don Nugent and W McKenzie pu ...
and Ventura Bus Lines, which are contracted by
Public Transport Victoria Public Transport Victoria (PTV) is the brand name for public transport in the Australian state of Victoria, Australia, Victoria. It was the trading name of the Go Public Transport Development Authority (PTDA), a now-defunct statutory authorit ...
to operate services for V/Line. These coaches are painted in V/Line livery.


Network access

V/Line also manages and maintains all non-interstate rural rail track in Victoria, including lines that do not see passenger services. The lease was previously held by Pacific National, which agreed to sell it back to the Victorian Government in November 2006. The sale was completed in May 2007, and V/Line was appointed to manage it.


Branding

The initial V/Line visual identity was unveiled in August 1983, with an orange and grey livery for locomotives and passenger rolling stock, along with a white and green V/Line logo with a "stylised capital lettered logo with the V and the L split by a deep slashing stroke". Work on the initial V/Line identity started in May 1983, with freight wagons being released without logos pending the launch. Before that time, a stylised VR logo was carried by rolling stock that had been received the orange and silver VicRail "teacup" livery since 1981. Carriages in the 'teacup' livery later had the logos removed and replaced by V/Line ones. This remained until 1993 when the Sprinter trains were delivered in the teal and yellow suburban ' The Met' brand colours, but with both The Met and V/Line logos. In 1995, the freight and passenger rail divisions of V/Line were divided, with locomotives in the freight fleet retaining the orange and grey livery with 'V/Line Freight' logos, while passenger carriages and locomotive received the red blue and white 'V/Line Passenger' livery which remains on some of the fleet today. It was also at that time that the V/Line logo was altered, with serifs added to the lettering, and the "deep slashing stroke" was altered to a curved blue line. After National Express took over V/Line, the logo was again altered in 2000, with mixed-case lettering and a curving blue line underneath. In 2006, it was again altered, with the removal of the blue line underneath and addition of a purple line. The VLocity railcars were delivered from 2005 in a new livery of stainless steel with purple and green highlights. In 2007, a new livery was unveiled, consisting of a grey carbody with red, white and purple stripes. Rolling stock in different variants of the livery was released throughout that year, with a consistent version not appearing until 2008, along with a number of repainted locomotives. In 2013, a
Public Transport Victoria Public Transport Victoria (PTV) is the brand name for public transport in the Australian state of Victoria, Australia, Victoria. It was the trading name of the Go Public Transport Development Authority (PTDA), a now-defunct statutory authorit ...
(PTV) livery of purple and white diamonds was adopted, and was progressively applied to V/Locitys and road coaches. This livery matches the geometric designs seen on other PTV services, and uses purple in keeping with the designation of regional services with purple branding. In early 2017, locomotive N457 was re-painted with a version of the PTV livery, and Set SN 8 was re-painted to match the new livery of the V/Locity fleet. Most of the Fleet have now received this Purple Livery, Except for a few N Class Locomotives, Which still have the Mk3 'Cheeseburger' Livery.


Sponsorships

Since 2004, V/Line has been the naming rights sponsor of the
Australian Football League The Australian Football League (AFL) is the only fully professional competition of Australian rules football. Through the AFL Commission, the AFL also serves as the sport's governing body and is responsible for controlling the laws of the gam ...
's Victorian country competition for junior players. The V/Line Cup is played over several days in September and includes two boys' divisions and one girls' division.


Publication

V/Line published an
in-house magazine A house organ (also variously known an in-house magazine, in-house publication, house journal, shop paper, plant paper, or employee magazine) is a magazine or periodical A periodical literature (also called a periodical publication or simpl ...
. It replaced ''VicRail News'', initially being published as ''STA News'' then ''V/Line News'' from December 1983 until February 1991.V/Line News catalogue entry
National Library of Australia


References


External links

*
PTV WebsiteDepartment of Transport VictoriaMetro Trains MelbourneV/LineV/LineCars.com
- Comprehensive V/Line Carriages Information & Enthusiast website
VikTrack websiteVicsig.net
- Victorian passenger rolling stock

- Link Logistics International Pvt Ltd * – Agency record at Public Records Office Victoria {{DEFAULTSORT:V Line Government-owned companies of Victoria (Australia) National Express companies Passenger railway companies of Australia Rail transport in Victoria (Australia) Railway companies established in 1983 1983 establishments in Australia