Southern Highlands Line

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Southern Highlands Line
TfNSW SHL.svg
Mittagong railway station, 2018-09-13.jpg
An Endeavour railcar at Mittagong
Overview
Service type Intercity rail
Locale Macarthur, Southern Highlands and Southern Tablelands, New South Wales
First service19 May 1869 (1869-05-19)
Current operator(s) NSW TrainLink
Route
Termini Campbelltown, Central
Moss Vale, Goulburn
Stops22
Distance travelled224 km (139 mi)
Line(s) used Main South
Technical
Rolling stock Endeavour railcar
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Track owner(s) Sydney Trains, ARTC

The Southern Highlands Line is an Intercity rail service operated by NSW TrainLink that services the Macarthur, Southern Highlands and Southern Tablelands regions of New South Wales. First operating in 1869, the service runs from Campbelltown across the Main Southern railway line through to Goulburn, with peak hour services extending the route to Central. The railway service operates alongside a bus route from Picton to Bowral, operating on the route of the Picton – Mittagong loop railway line, and a regional coach service from Bundanoon to Wollongong on the South Coast Line, operating on the corridor of the Unanderra–Moss Vale railway line.

Contents

One of only two routes on the NSW TrainLink intercity network to run entirely on non-electrified railway lines, the Southern Highlands Line is operated with a rolling stock solely consisting of Endeavour railcars, with most services only using two cars. The service spans 169 kilometres (105 mi) of railway, making it the most extensive route on the NSW TrainLink network apart from the Blue Mountains Line's Bathurst Bullet service. Despite that, the route spans only 22 stations, making it also the route with the lowest number of stops. An additional 2 stations and 55 kilometres (34 mi) of railway are traversed by Southern Highlands trains at peak hours.

History

The Main South line opened in stages to Picton in 1863, Moss Vale in 1867 and Goulburn in 1869. [1]

In 1919, a new section of line opened between Picton and Mittagong, with the original section becoming the Picton-Mittagong loop line. [2] Originally a single track line, it was later doubled with the exception of the Picton-Mittagong loop line.

Services

Most services operate between Campbelltown and Moss Vale with a limited number extending to Sydney Central and Goulburn. [3] All services are operated by NSW TrainLink using Endeavour railcars.

Rail replacement bus services operate between Picton and Bowral paralleling the Picton-Mittagong loop line and Bundanoon and Wollongong paralleling the Moss Vale-Unanderra line. A daytime bus service also operates between Moss Vale and Goulburn. [3] Some stations are also served by NSW TrainLink XPT and Xplorer services from Sydney to Canberra, Griffith and Melbourne. [4]

Up until the mid-1990s, most services on the line operated through to Sydney Central. Named trains that operated on the line included the Goulburn Day Train and Southern Highlands Express . In the late 1980s, air-conditioned HUB/RUB carriages were introduced. These would later be joined by Budd and Tulloch carriages and DEB railcars. [5]

In 1994, all were replaced by Endeavour railcars. [6] Most services were altered to operate only as far north as Campbelltown connecting with Sydney Trains electric services to Sydney.

As of 2014–15, the Southern Highlands Line experiences significantly worse peak hour on-time running performance than other suburban and intercity lines. [7]

Stations

Southern Highlands Line stations
NameRailway lineServing suburbs/townsNotes
Central Main Suburban Haymarket, Chippendale, Ultimo, Surry Hills Transport hub for Sydney Trains, other Intercity trains,
Regional trains, buses and light rail
Glenfield Main South GlenfieldInterchange with Sydney Trains
Campbelltown CampbelltownStarting point of most services
Interchange with Sydney Trains and Regional trains
Macarthur Ambarvale, Blair Athol, Glen AlpineInterchange with Sydney Trains
Menangle Park Menangle Park, Gilead
Menangle Menangle
Douglas Park Douglas Park, Wilton
Picton Picton, MaldonInterchange with Picton–Bowral loop line bus
Tahmoor Tahmoor, Couridjah, Buxton, Thirlmere
Bargo Bargo, Yanderra and Pheasants Nest
Yerrinbool Yerrinbool, Colo Vale, Hill Top, Alpine
Mittagong Mittagong, Braemar, Balaclava,
Willow Vale, Welby, Aylmerton		Interchange with Regional trains and Picton–Mittagong loop line bus
Bowral Bowral, Berrima, East BowralInterchange with Regional trains, Picton–Mittagong loop line bus and Bundanoon – Wollongong Coach
Burradoo Burradoo
Moss Vale Moss Vale, Bong Bong, Robertson,
Sutton Forest, Burrawang		Terminus of most services
Interchange with Regional trains and Bundanoon - Wollongong Coach
Exeter ExeterAlso served by Bundanoon – Wollongong Coach
Bundanoon BundanoonAlso served by Regional trains and Bundanoon – Wollongong Coach
Penrose Penrose
Wingello Wingello
Tallong Tallong
Marulan Marulan
Goulburn GoulburnAlso served by Regional trains

Patronage

The following table shows the patronage of each line of the NSW TrainLink Intercity network for the year ending 30 June 2022, based on Opal tap on and tap off data. [8]

2021–22 NSW TrainLink Intercity patronage by line
3 179 000
6 015 000
418 000
3 013 000
334 000

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Campbelltown railway station</span> Railway station in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Campbelltown railway station is located on the Main South line, serving the Sydney suburb of Campbelltown. It is served by Sydney Trains T8 Airport & South line services and NSW TrainLink services to Moss Vale, Goulburn, Canberra, Griffith and Melbourne.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bowral</span> Town in New South Wales, Australia

Bowral is the largest town in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales, Australia, about ninety minutes southwest of Sydney. It is the main business and entertainment precinct of the Wingecarribee Shire and Highlands.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">New South Wales Endeavour railcar</span> Class of diesel multiple unit

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Macarthur Division Rugby League</span>

The Macarthur Division Rugby League is a senior Rugby league competition in New South Wales, Australia, administered by the New South Wales Rugby League. Formerly known as Group 6, the competition was, until 2019, run under the auspices of the Country Rugby League. The geographical area covered by the former CRL Group 6 takes in much of the Southern Highlands and southern Macarthur regions of New South Wales, extending from Marulan, New South Wales in the south, to Mount Annan/ the M5 in the north and Warragamba in the west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Menangle Park railway station</span> Railway station in New South Wales, Australia

Menangle Park railway station is located on the Main South line in New South Wales, Australia. It serves the town of Menangle Park, opening on 26 September 1937.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Picton railway station</span> Railway station in New South Wales, Australia

Picton railway station is a heritage-listed railway station located on the Main South line in the south-western Sydney suburb of Picton in the Wollondilly Shire local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It was built from 1863 to 1919. It is also known as the Picton Railway Station group. The property was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999. The station opened on 1 July 1869. The station is unusually sited, with southbound journeys actually heading north out of the station before traversing a 225 degree horseshoe curve to again head south, and likewise northbound services heading south before rounding a number of curves to resume their true direction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bargo railway station</span> Railway station in New South Wales, Australia

Bargo railway station is located on the Main South line in New South Wales, Australia. It serves the town of Bargo, opening on 13 July 1919 as West Bargo at the same time as a new alignment between Picton and Mittagong. It was renamed Bargo on 1 November 1921.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yerrinbool railway station</span> Railway station in New South Wales, Australia

Yerrinbool railway station is located on the Main South line in New South Wales, Australia. It serves the town of Yerrinbool, opening on 13 July 1919 at the same time as a new alignment between Picton and Mittagong. In March 1991, the weatherboard building on Platform 1 was demolished.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mittagong railway station</span> Railway station in New South Wales, Australia

Mittagong railway station is a heritage-listed railway station on the Main South line in New South Wales, Australia. It serves the town of Mittagong in the Southern Highlands. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bowral railway station</span> Railway station in New South Wales, Australia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moss Vale railway station</span> Railway station in New South Wales, Australia

Moss Vale railway station is a heritage-listed railway station on the Main South line in New South Wales, Australia. It serves the town of Moss Vale. It opened on 2 December 1867 as Sutton Forest, being renamed in 1877. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Main Southern railway line, New South Wales</span> Railway line in New South Wales, Australia

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The Unanderra–Moss Vale railway line is a cross country railway line in New South Wales, Australia. The line branches from the Illawarra line at Unanderra and winds west up the Illawarra escarpment to join the Main South line at Moss Vale. The line is one of the most scenic in New South Wales, and for the first 20 km (12 mi) after leaving Unanderra has an almost continuous grade 1 in 30 providing extensive views over the Illawarra coastline.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Wollongong</span> Catholic ecclesiastical territory

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">NSW TrainLink</span> Operator of passenger rail services in New South Wales

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References

  1. ↑ Main South Line Archived 18 April 2013 at the Wayback Machine NSWrail.net
  2. ↑ Bayley, William A (197x). Picton-Mittagong Loop Line Railway. Bulli: Austrail Publications. ISBN   0-909597-14-6.
  3. 1 2 "Southern Highlands line timetable". Transport for NSW.
  4. ↑ "Southern timetable". NSW Trainlink. 7 September 2019.
  5. ↑ "Southern Passengers" Railway Digest January 1989 page 21
  6. ↑ "New Timetable Sees Demise of Loco-Hauled Services" Railway Digest July 1994
  7. ↑ "Service Delivery". Audit Office of New South Wales. Archived from the original on 25 November 2015. Retrieved 26 November 2015.
  8. ↑ "Train Patronage – Monthly Figures". Transport for NSW. Retrieved 20 August 2022.

Further reading

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