Loxton railway line
Tookayerta grain terminal at the end of the line
Overview
StatusNo trains operating
LocaleMurray Mallee
Coordinates34°58′15″S 140°5′30″E / 34.97083°S 140.09167°E / -34.97083; 140.09167
Termini
History
Opened2 February 1914 (1914-02-02)
Converted to standard gauge1996
Closed20 July 2015 (2015-07-20)
Technical
Line length271 km (168 mi)(Tailem Bend–Tookayerta)
Number of tracks1
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Old gauge1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in) Victorian broad gauge
Route map
km
Adelaide-Wolseley line
to Adelaide
Aurizon Tailem Bend Yard
120.3
 Tailem Bend
Adelaide-Wolseley line
Pinnaroo line
169.0
 Karoonda loop
Peebinga and Waikerie lines
215.2
 Mindarie Mine
222.2
 Wanbi loop
Moorook line
243.6
 Alawoona loop
Barmera line
271.0
 Tookayerta Grain Terminal
 Loxton
broad gauge
standard gauge

The Loxton railway line is a closed railway line in the northern Murray Mallee region of South Australia. It ran north-east from Tailem Bend to grain silos near Loxton.[1]

History

The first stage of the Brown's Well railway line opened from Tailem Bend to Wanbi on 6 January 1913,[2] and extended to Paruna by the end of April the same year.[3] A branch from Alawoona to Loxton opened on 13 February 1914.[4] The main line to Alawoona and only remaining branch to Loxton closed on 6 January 1996 to be gauge converted from broad gauge to standard gauge to retain connection to the main line from Adelaide to Melbourne after that line was converted.[5][6][7] The last grain train left the silos on 20 June 2015, marking the closure of the line.

Route

The railway branched off the main line just south of Tailem Bend, and tracked roughly north-east. The Karoonda Highway from Murray Bridge East paralleled it after about 24 kilometres at Kulde. The railway and highway continued together 100 kilometres north-east through Karoonda to Alawoona, then both turned north for the final 35 kilometres to Loxton.

The line no longer continues to Loxton station, having been curtailed at a bulk grain facility a few kilometres short of the town. The end of the main line became the grain terminal at what was originally the Tookayerta siding.[8] The line closed on 20 July 2015, with all grain traffic now taken by road.[9]

References

  1. ↑ Mid North & Murray Mallee Lines Archived 2 February 2015 at the Wayback Machine SA Track & Signal
  2. ↑ "BROWNS WELL RAILWAY". The Advertiser. Vol. LV, no. 16, 919. South Australia. 7 January 1913. p. 8. Retrieved 28 May 2018 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. ↑ "TAILEM BEND AND PARUNA (BROWN'S WELL LINE)". The Advertiser. Vol. LV, no. 17, 016. South Australia. 30 April 1913. p. 2. Retrieved 28 May 2018 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. ↑ "LOXTON'S GALA DAY". Observer. Vol. LXXI, no. 5, 477. South Australia. 21 February 1914. p. 48. Retrieved 28 May 2018 – via National Library of Australia.
  5. ↑ Newland, Andrew; Quinlan, Howard (2000). Australian Railway Routes 1854 - 2000. Redfern: Australian Railway Historical Society. pp. 54, 56. ISBN 0-909650-49-7.
  6. ↑ "SA Branches to be Standardised" Railway Digest June 1995 page 15
  7. ↑ "South Australia" Railway Digest July 1996 page 37
  8. ↑ Freight Study & Rail Operations Investigation Archived 16 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine Flywheel Advisory 17 November 2014
  9. ↑ Strathearn, Peri (21 May 2015). "End of line for Murraylands, Mallee grain trains". The Murray Valley Standard. Fairfax Regional Media. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
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