Merredin to Narrogin railway line | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Overview | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Status | Closed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Locale | Wheatbelt, Western Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Termini | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Service | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Operator(s) | Western Australian Government Railways | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
History | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Commenced | 1908 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Opened | 14 September 1914 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Technical | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Line length | 216 km (134 mi) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Track gauge | 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Merredin to Narrogin railway line was a railway line in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, between Merredin and Narrogin. The line was also known as the West Merredin to Narrogin via Corrigin railway. [1]
The Narrogin-Wickepin Railway Act 1907, an act by the Parliament of Western Australia assented to on 20 December 1907, authorised the construction of the railway line from Narrogin to Wickepin. [2] A second act, the Wickepin-Merredin Railway Act 1911, assented to in 16 February 1911, authorised the construction of the railway line extension from Wickepin to Merredin. [3]
The line was built in separate sections over five years: [4]
It was constructed by the Western Australian Public Works Department.
It connected the Great Southern Railway route with the Eastern Railway.
The link via Corrigin was 216 kilometres (134 mi) long. [6] [7]
Arc Infrastructure deems the railway line to be part of its Grain Freight Rail Network, which, in 2017, accounted for 50 percent of its network but only ten percent of its freight. The entire Merredin to Narrogin line was classified as tier 3. [8]
In 2021, it was estimated that it would cost A$317.3 million to upgrade the Narrogin to Merredin railway line to reopen it. [9]
A second railway route between Merredin and Narrogin existed further east, via Kondinin. The official name of this line was the West Merredin to Yilliminning via Kondinin railway. It joined the West Merredin to Narrogin via Corrigin railway at Yilliminning, 23 kilometres (14 mi) east of Narrogin. [6] [7]
The two railway lines running in parallel between Merredin to Narrogin still exist, but are designated as "Not in use" on the Arc Infrastructure map in 2024. [10] The status as Tier 3 lines has been discussed irregularly in the 2000s. [11] At the southern terminus of the line, the Narrogin Railway Station, built in 1907, is on the Western Australian State Register of Heritage Places. The heritage listed installations at Narrogin also include a goods shed, a signal cabin, a foot bridge and a number of associated houses. [12]
The heritage listed Wickepin Railway Precinct dates back to 1909, when the railway from Narrogin to Wickepin was completed. Apart from the railway station it also includes a goods sheet, a water tank and loading yards and a ramp. [13] Also heritage listed within the Shire of Wickepin are the Yealering Railway siding and the site of the former Toolibin Railway siding. [14] [15]
The Railway Water Tank at Corrigin is listed on the State Register of Heritage Places [16] and part of the larger and also heritage listed Corrigin Railway Precinct. [17] Also within the Shire of Corrigin are the heritage listed Bilbarin Railway Reserve group, which consist of sheep yards, a bagged wheat depot and a goods sheet. [18]
In the Shire of Bruce Rock, a number of sites of the former railway line are on the shire's heritage list: the Bruce Rock Railway Station precinct, the Ardath Railway precinct, Babakin and Kwolyin railway sidings, and the site of the Belka Railway Reserve. [19] Bruce Rock itself was an important railway junction as the Narrogin to Merredin line intersected the York–Bruce Rock railway line there. [20]
At the northern terminus, at Merredin, four entries related to the railways are on the State Register of Heritage Places: the Merredin Railway Station, the Railway Water Tank, the Railway Dam and the Railway Housing Precinct. [21]
The Wheatbelt is one of nine regions of Western Australia defined as administrative areas for the state's regional development, and a vernacular term for the area converted to agriculture during colonisation. It partially surrounds the Perth metropolitan area, extending north from Perth to the Mid West region, and east to the Goldfields–Esperance region. It is bordered to the south by the South West and Great Southern regions, and to the west by the Indian Ocean, the Perth metropolitan area, and the Peel region. Altogether, it has an area of 154,862 square kilometres (59,793 sq mi).
Yealering is a town in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, approximately 220km south-east of Perth between the towns of Wickepin and Corrigin. It is located beside the lake of the same name. While the town's population is small, it services a large agricultural district in the northern Wickepin Shire. At the 2016 census, Yealering had a population of 104.
The Shire of Wickepin is a local government area in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, east of Narrogin and about 220 kilometres (137 mi) southeast of the state capital, Perth. The Shire covers an area of 2,042 square kilometres (788 sq mi), and its seat of government is the town of Wickepin.
The Shire of Narrogin is a local government area in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, about 190 kilometres (118 mi) south-east of the state capital, Perth. The seat of government is in the town of Narrogin. Until 2016, when the two entities merged, the Narrogin townsite was governed by a separate local government area, the Town of Narrogin.
Bilbarin is a small town in the Shire of Corrigin in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia.
The Ongerup Branch railway, also known as the Tambellup, Gnowangerup to Ongerup railway is a former railway line in the Great Southern region of Western Australia.
The Pinjarra to Narrogin railway was a 153 kilometre cross-country railway line built between the towns of Pinjarra and Narrogin in Western Australia.
Brookton to Corrigin railway was a railway line in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, between Brookton and Corrigin.
The Donnybrook–Katanning railway was a railway line in the South West and Great Southern regions of Western Australia, between Donnybrook and Katanning.
Muja is a rural town and locality of the Shire of Collie in the South West region of Western Australia. The western part of the locality is dominated by coal mining and the coal-fired Muja Power Station while the eastern part is rural and forested.
Beelerup is a rural locality of the Shire of Donnybrook–Balingup in the South West region of Western Australia, along the Preston River.
Lowden is a rural locality of the Shire of Donnybrook–Balingup in the South West region of Western Australia. The Preston River and the Donnybrook–Boyup Brook Road run through the centre of the locality from east to west.
The Merredin to Yilliminning railway line was a railway line connecting Merredin to Yilliminning via Kondinin. Also known as the West Merredin to Yilliminning via Kondinin railway, it was 260 kilometres (160 mi) long. At its northern end, at Merredin, it connected to the Eastern Goldfields Railway while, at the southern terminus at Yilliminning, it connected to the Merredin to Narrogin railway line. From Yilliminning, this line continued to Narrogin, 23 kilometres (14 mi) further west, where the line intersected the Great Southern Railway.
The Wagin to Newdegate railway line is a railway line in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, connecting Wagin via Lake Grace to Newdegate, where the line terminates. The line is 180 kilometres (110 mi) long. At Lake Grace, a 94-kilometre (58 mi) branch line to Hyden exists, while, at Wagin, the railway line connects to the Great Southern Railway and the Wagin to Bowelling railway line. Formerly, at Wagin, it also connected to the now inactive railway line to Bowelling.
The Katanning to Pingrup railway line was a state government-owned and WAGR-operated railway line connecting Katanning to Pingrup via Nyabing in the Great Southern region of Western Australia. The railway line was 95 kilometres (59 mi) long. At its western end, at Katanning, it connected to the Great Southern Railway. At Katanning, it also connected to the Donnybrook–Katanning railway, which closed in 1982.
The Wagin to Bowelling railway line was a state government-owned and WAGR-operated railway line in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, connecting Wagin via Bokal to Bowelling. The line was 102 kilometres (63 mi) long. At Wagin, the railway line connected to the Great Southern Railway and the Wagin to Newdegate railway line while, at Bowelling, it connected to the Brunswick Junction to Narrogin railway line.
The Brunswick Junction to Narrogin railway line is a partially operational railway line in the South West and Wheatbelt regions of Western Australia, connecting Brunswick Junction via Collie and Bowelling to Narrogin.
The Avon Yard to Mullewa railway line is a 429-kilometre (267 mi) long railway line operated by Arc Infrastructure in the Mid West and Wheatbelt regions of Western Australia, connecting the Avon Yard at Northam with Mullewa. The 104-kilometre (65 mi) section of the railway line from Perenjori to Dalwallinu is, as of 2024, not in operation, having closed in the late 1990s, while the sections north, Perenjori to Mullewa, and south, Dalwallinu to Northam, are.
The Goomalling to West Merredin railway line is a 183-kilometre (114 mi) long railway line operated by Arc Infrastructure in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, connecting Goomalling with West Merredin. Only the western part of the railway line, the 66-kilometre (41 mi) section from Goomalling to Wyalkatchem, is operational, while the 117-kilometre (73 mi) section from Wyalkatchem to West Merredin is not in use.
The Amery to Kalannie railway line is a 98-kilometre (61 mi) long railway line operated by Arc Infrastructure in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, connecting Amery with Kalannie.