The ''AvonLink'' is a rural passenger train service in
Western Australia
Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...
operated by
Transwa between
Midland and
Northam.
History
The consideration of revitalising passenger services in 1993 saw the ''Avonlink Ministerial Committee'' formed by Minister for Transport
Eric Charlton
Eric James Charlton (born 17 March 1938) is an Australian former politician.
Educated at Aquinas College, Perth, Aquinas College, Charlton was elected to the Western Australian Legislative Council in 1984 as a Western Australian National Party ...
.
The first ''AvonLink'' service departed
Northam for
East Perth on 24 September 1995, and was significant, as it was the first new country passenger rail service in
Western Australia
Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...
for 47 years.
[AvonLink and MerredinLink]
Transwa From July 2001, the Perth terminus moved from East Perth to
Midland where a connection is made with
Transperth
Transperth is the public transport system for Perth and surrounding areas in Western Australia. It is managed by the Public Transport Authority (PTA), a state government organisation, and consists of train, bus and ferry services. Bus operat ...
Midland line services.
In June 2004, the ''AvonLink'' was extended to
Merredin on three days a week, operating as the ''
MerredinLink
The ''MerredinLink'' is a rural passenger train service in Western Australia operated by Transwa between East Perth railway station, East Perth and Merredin railway station, Merredin.
History
The ''MerredinLink'' was introduced in June 2004 w ...
''. In September 2006, Transwa trialed a day trip Sunday service to
Northam. The six-week trial proved popular with each service being fully booked out weeks in advance. However, due to overall lack of passengers at other times the service was discontinued.
In August 2013, Transwa announced the ''AvonLink'' would cease on 30 December 2013 due to poor patronage and be replaced by a road coach. However, this announcement generated significant criticism. On 19 November 2013, two
Wheatbelt region MLAs,
Mia Davies and
Shane Love, presented petitions to the
WA State Parliament calling for the retention of the AvonLink. The petitions bore a total of more than 3,000 signatures of Avon Valley residents.
On 3 December 2013, Minister for Transport
Troy Buswell announced the ''AvonLink'' service would be retained, initially for a period of six months, while Transwa and the
Wheatbelt Development Commission worked through the funding solution required to keep the service running beyond that initial period.
[
In May 2014, it was announced that an enhanced service would continue until at least June 2017.
In December 2014, an enhanced service was introduced with services increased from one to three trains on certain days. From July 2017, the ''AvonLink'' was reduced back to one service in each direction on weekdays only.
]
Services
As at June 2022, one ''Avonlink'' service operates on weekdays in each direction between Midland and Northam stopping at Toodyay.
Rolling stock
The service commenced with WCA/WCE railcars built in 1971 to operate '' The Prospector''.
In December 2000 Westrail awarded a contract to United Goninan, Broadmeadow
Broadmeadow is a locality in the Hunter region of the Australian state of New South Wales. It is the geographic centre of the Newcastle city and suburban area. Its main commercial hub is located at the "Nineways". for 9 WDA/WDB/WDC railcars to replace the 1971 built stock. 3 WDA/WDB and 1 WDC were for '' The Prospector'' and 2 WEA/WEB were for the ''AvonLink'' and ''MerredinLink
The ''MerredinLink'' is a rural passenger train service in Western Australia operated by Transwa between East Perth railway station, East Perth and Merredin railway station, Merredin.
History
The ''MerredinLink'' was introduced in June 2004 w ...
'' services. The new train entered service on 1 August 2005.[
]
Ridership
The ''AvonLink'' had 7,057 passengers in the year leading up to June 2022.
See also
* ''Australind'' (train service)
References
Notes
External links
{{Public Transport Authority of Western Australia railway stations, AvonLink=y
Named passenger trains of Western Australia
Railway services introduced in 1995
Wheatbelt (Western Australia)
1995 establishments in Australia