Loxton railway line
| Loxton railway line | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Tookayerta grain terminal at the end of the line | |||
| Overview | |||
| Status | No trains operating | ||
| Locale | Murray Mallee | ||
| Coordinates | 34°58′15″S 140°5′30″E / 34.97083°S 140.09167°E | ||
| Termini | |||
| History | |||
| Opened | 2 February 1914 | ||
| Converted to standard gauge | 1996 | ||
| Closed | 20 July 2015 | ||
| Technical | |||
| Line length | 271 km (168 mi)(Tailem Bend–Tookayerta) | ||
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) 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 line initially opened from Tailem Bend to Karoonda on 26 June 1896, being extended to Alawoona on 9 September 1896 and Loxton on 2 February 1914. It 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.[2][3][4] 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.[5] The line closed on 20 July 2015, with all grain traffic now taken by road.[6]
References
- ^ Mid North & Murray Mallee Lines SA Track & Signal
- ^ Newland, Andrew; Quinlan, Howard (2000). Australian Railway Routes 1854 - 2000. Redfern: Australian Railway Historical Society. pp. 54, 56. ISBN 0-909650-49-7.
- ^ "SA Branches to be Standardised" Railway Digest June 1995 page 15
- ^ "South Australia" Railway Digest July 1996 page 37
- ^ Freight Study & Rail Operations Investigation Flywheel Advisory 17 November 2014
- ^ Strathearn, Peri (21 May 2015). "End of line for Murraylands, Mallee grain trains". The Murray Valley Standard. Fairfax Regional Media. Retrieved 4 August 2015.