Pinnaroo railway line, Victoria

Pinnaroo railway line (Victoria)
Overview
StatusOpen from Ouyen to Murrayville
Termini
History
Opened25 June 1912 (1912-06-25)
Closed4 October 2007 (2007-10-04)
Technical
Track gauge1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in)
Route map

Victoria
km from Melbourne
606.774
Pinnaroo
599.079
Panitya
589.171
Carina
580.861
Murrayville
562.311
Cowangie
552.573
Tutye
Boinka
532.054
Linga
522.614
Underbool
510.544
Torrita
501.640
Walpeup
486.341
Galah
471.758

to Ballarat
& Melbourne

to Mildura
& Yelta
Source: [1]

The Pinnaroo Line served the agricultural districts of the Mallee in the Australian states of South Australia and Victoria, principally for the transport of grain. Passenger services on the line ceased in November 1968.[2]

History

The railway was constructed to facilitate the opening up of agricultural land in the area in the 1910s. It was completed from Ouyen to Murrayville in 1912 and extended to Pinnaroo, just over the South Australian border, in 1915.

After the connecting South Australian line was closed in 1996 for conversion to standard gauge, Panitya, just west of the state border, became the terminus.[3]

While the main Adelaide to Wolseley line was closed east of Tailem Bend for gauge conversion, the Pinnaroo line became part of the main line between Adelaide and Melbourne for two weeks during April 1995. Journey times increased by 10 to 12 hours.[4][5]

The line was booked out of service on 4 October 2007, with the last train having run in September.[2]

As part of the Murray Basin Rail Project, the section of the line from Ouyen to Murrayville was converted to standard gauge in 2018 and upgraded to support 19-tonne axle loading.[6]

References

  1. ^ vicsig.net: Home » Rail » Infrastructure » Panitya Line
  2. ^ a b "Panitya Line". Vicsig. Archived from the original on 29 August 2016. Retrieved 3 March 2026.
  3. ^ "Ouyen-Pinnaroo Railway Line" (PDF). VRHistory. Archived (PDF) from the original on 1 September 2011. Retrieved 15 March 2012.
  4. ^ "National Rail's Melbourne - Adelaide Diversion Services", Railway Digest, April 1995, p.31
  5. ^ "Pinnaroo Diversions a Success", Railway Digest, June 1995, p.15
  6. ^ Murray Basin Rail Project (PDF). Public Transport Victoria. 2014. p. 5. Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 January 2018. Retrieved 20 July 2018.