The North East railway line is a railway line in Victoria, Australia.[1] The line runs from Southern Cross railway station on the western edge of the Melbourne central business district to Albury railway station in the border settlement of Albury-Wodonga, serving the cities of Wangaratta and Seymour, and smaller towns in northeastern Victoria.
The railway line is both standard gauge and broad gauge. It originally was built as broad gauge the entire length, but another track was built as standard gauge between Seymour and Albury, with construction of the standard gauge track commencing in November 1959 and completed in January 1962, completing the Sydney-Melbourne standard gauge railway. Between 2008 and 2010, the broad gauge track between Seymour and Albury was finally converted to be the line's second standard gauge track. The original section between Southern Cross and Jacana remains broad gauge, with the standard gauge joining and running parallel to the broad gauge between Jacana and Seymour, where the broad gauge branches off on the Tocumwal line, and finally continuing as standard gauge all the way to Albury.
The line is owned by VicTrack, but the standard gauge sections are leased to and maintained by the Australian Rail Track Corporation.[2]
The Melbourne and Essendon Railway Company opened the first section of the Albury line, from North Melbourne to Essendon, in 1860.[3] Following its takeover by the Victorian Government in 1867, the line was extended by 1872[4] to School House Lane on the south side of the Goulburn River near Seymour, and later that year to Seymour and then to Longwood. Violet Town, Benalla, Wangaratta, Springhurst and Wodonga were reached in 1873,[3] connecting with the New South Wales Government Railways at Albury at a break of gauge in 1883. The design engineer was Robert Watson.
The section between Flinders Street and Essendon was used by suburban services and in May 1919, that section was part of the first lines to be electrified in Melbourne, apart from a test installation on the Flemington Racecourse line.[5] In 1921, the line was electrified to Broadmeadows, where it remained till the extension of electrification in 2007.
Until 2008, the Albury V/line service continued to run via Essendon along the broad gauge tracks, together with the Seymour and Shepparton V/line services.
Preliminary work for construction of the standard gauge track began in November 1957 with the establishment of camps for the building gangs, with the first section being laid in November 1959, and the final section on 5 April 1962.[6] The track ran via what is now Albion–Jacana railway line and does not run parallel with the broad gauge track between Jacana and Spencer Street stations.
The line was used by prestige passenger services between the state capitals of Melbourne and Sydney, including the Sydney Limited, Spirit of Progress, Southern Aurora, and Intercapital Daylight. Due to high costs and declining patronage, they were replaced by the XPT in the 1990s.
Maintaining two parallel railways between Seymour and Albury drew criticism, noting inefficiencies in maintaining track, operating trains, and duplicated train control centres.[7] By 2001, the State Government announced the conversion of the broad gauge line to standard,[8] but action was stifled, due largely to complex leasing arrangements. Speed restrictions were eventually applied to the broad gauge line due to track deterioration.[9]
In May 2008, it was announced that the tracks would be upgraded, including a 5 km (3.1 mi) bypass around Wodonga, the conversion of 200 kilometres (120 mi) of the North East railway line to standard gauge between Seymour and Albury as well as other upgrades to the North East line.[10] Costing A$501.3 million, the Victorian Government was to contribute A$171.3 million, the Australian Government A$45 million for the Wodonga Rail Bypass, and the Australian Rail Track Corporation A$285 million and take responsibility for the standard-gauge line under a 45-year lease from Victoria.[11] The project was due for completion by 2010, with passenger services to be disrupted for up to 12 months.[12]
On 8 November 2008, broad gauge passenger trains ceased after the evening V/Line service from Melbourne to Albury and a special train operated by the Seymour Railway Heritage Centre, the final broad-gauge passenger train from Albury to Melbourne.[13][14] In December 2008, standardisation works commenced, contracted by ARTC to the Southern Improvement Alliance. The first train on the Wodonga Rail Bypass was in March 2010.[15]
In early August 2010, CountryLink decided to terminate all Sydney-Melbourne XPTs at Albury for an indefinite length of time, due to defects in the newly re-sleepered track. "Mud holes" resulted in speed restrictions on more than 200 kilometres (about 66 per cent) of the line, adding an extra 1.5 hours to the travelling time.[16] Train drivers have blamed the ARTC's $285 million concrete sleeper project for the track issues, stating that the incorrect insertion of 300,000 new concrete sleepers is to blame. They have repeatedly reported freight trains breaking couplings due to the rough track.[17] CountryLink trains resumed in mid September 2010, V/Line trains the following year.[18]
On 20 February 2020, a NSW TrainLink XPT passenger train towards Sydney derailed at Wallan, resulting in suspension of freight, V/Line and NSW TrainLink services on the North East Line and the adjacent broad gauge Tocumwal railway line. V/Line services resumed on 1 and 2 March 2020.[19]
The North East Line Upgrade (part of the Regional Rail Revival Program) was unveiled in mid 2018, with a series of upgrades announced to the line.[20][21] Upgrades were delivered by different parties, including:[22][23][24]
The upgrades were completed December 2020 and allowed the introduction of VLocity DMUs on the Albury V/Line rail service, replacing existing locomotive hauled train sets.[25]
Seymour and Shepparton V/Line services continue to use the adjacent broad gauge tracks.
Since 2010, the entire line is utilised by V/Line Albury trains, which stops at every station between Albury and Seymour. South of Seymour, all passenger trains heading to, and from, Melbourne (Southern Cross) only make a scheduled stop at Broadmeadows. The services are run using dedicated standard gauge VLocity DMUs.
The Spirit of Progress was the premier express passenger train on the Victorian Railways in Australia.
From its introduction in November 1937 until April 1962 the train service ran on the broad gauge line from Spencer Street station to Albury, on the New South Wales / Victorian border, where passengers changed to a New South Wales Government Railways train (the Melbourne Limited Express), running on the standard gauge track to complete the journey to Sydney. Following the completion of the standard gauge line between Melbourne and Albury in April 1962 the Spirit of Progress was extended to Sydney. With declining passenger numbers it was decided to combine the Spirit of Progress and Southern Aurora into one train, the Sydney/Melbourne Express. The Spirit of Progress ran for the last time on 2 August 1986.[26][27]
The Inter-Capital Daylight was a daytime express passenger train that operated between Australia's two largest cities, Sydney and Melbourne
On 26 March 1956, the New South Wales Government Railways and Victorian Railways introduced connecting daytime services named the Sydney–Melbourne (Melbourne–Sydney) Daylight Express.[28] Following the completion of the standard gauge to Melbourne, the New South Wales train was extended to Melbourne from 16 April 1962 and named Inter-Capital Daylight.[29] With deregulation of the Australian airline industry in the 1990's, patronage dropped to around 30%. A decision was made to cancel the service with the last service operating on 31 August 1991.[30]
The Southern Aurora was an overnight express passenger train that operated between Australia's two largest cities, Sydney and Melbourne. First-class throughout, including the dining facilities, the Southern Aurora featured all-sleeper accommodation.
The train first ran on 13 April 1962 after the opening of the standard gauge line from Melbourne to Albury,[31] eliminating the break-of-gauge between the capital cities.[32] The Southern Aurora ran for the last time on 2 August 1986.[33][27]
The Sydney–Melbourne Express was an overnight intercapital passenger train service that operated between Australia's largest two cities, Sydney and Melbourne, the name depended on the direction of travel, with the train nicknamed the 'Sex' or 'Mex'.[26][27]
The Sydney–Melbourne Express was formed to replace the Spirit of Progress and Southern Aurora to cut operating costs of the intercapital rail service with the first train operating on 2 August 1986. The last Melbourne Express ran on the night of 20 November 1993 ex Sydney, with the last Sydney Express running ex Melbourne on 21 November.[27]
In November 1993, XPTs replaced locomotive hauled stock on the overnight Sydney/Melbourne Express.[34] In December 1994 an XPT daylight service to Melbourne was introduced by extending the Riverina XPT from Albury.[35]
The entire line is used by NSW TrainLink Southern services to, and from, Sydney (Central), which makes limited stops on this section. The services are run using New South Wales XPT diesel-powered passenger trains.
In October 1889, the Upfield railway line was extended to Somerton, but closed in July 1903. In March 1928, despite strong resistance from the Railways Commissioners, the state government ordered the reopening of the section from Fawkner to near Somerton for passengers,[38] although no actually connection was provided at this time.In May 1956, the line from Fawkner to Somerton was again closed, but only three years later, in July 1959, the Upfield to Somerton section reopened for goods trains.[39] In January 1963, the line from Somerton to the Ford factory was re-laid as dual gauge gauntlet track, a year after the North East standard gauge line through Somerton opened.
A branch line was opened during the Second World War to Broadstore, designed to connect Broadmeadows station with the Maygar Barracks. The line opened on 12 October 1942 and remaining in operation until 1982, when usage of the base began to.[40]
A branch line opened from Heathcote Junction (near Kilmore) to Kilmore in 1888 and to Tooborac in 1890, connecting with a line from Bendigo to Heathcote opened a little earlier. The Heathcote Junction – Heathcote line closed in 1968. A branch line from Kilmore to Lancefield opened in 1892, closed in 1904.
The Mansfield line opened from Tallarook to Yea in 1883, Molesworth in 1889, Cathkin and Merton in 1890 and Mansfield in 1891. It is now closed. A branch line was built from Cathkin to Koriella in 1890 and Alexandra in 1909. This line closed in 1978.
The Tocumwal line opened from Mangalore to Toolamba, Shepparton and Tocumwal in 1880.
A branch line opened from Benalla to St James in 1883, Yarrawonga in 1886 and Oaklands in 1938, with a break of gauge there until the State Rail Authority line closed south of Boree Creek. A second 18+1⁄4-mile (29.4 km) branch line from Benalla to Tatong was opened in 1914 and closed in 1947. In 2008 with the gauge conversion the Albury line from broad gauge to standard gauge would have left the Oaklands branch as an isolated and useless spur.[41] The local MP reported that the cost of converting this 125 km (77.7 mi) branch to standard gauge was just over $13m.[42] In October 2008 the Victorian State Government announced that an upgrade would take place.[43] The conversion was completed in December 2009.
The narrow-gauge Whitfield branch line opened from Wangaratta to Whitfield in 1899, closing in 1953.
A branch line opened from Bowser (north of Wangaratta) to Everton in 1875, which was extended to Beechworth in 1876 and Yackandandah in 1891. The line closed in 1954. Another branch line was built from Everton to Myrtleford in 1883 and Bright in 1890, now closed.
A short line to Peechelba East, which opened in 1928 and closed in 1986, also branched from Bowser.
A short branch line opened from Springhurst via Rutherglen to Wahgunyah in 1879. Services were suspended in 1995.
A branch line opened from Wodonga to Tallangatta between 1889 and 1891, Shelley in 1916, Beetoomba in 1919 and Cudgewa in 1921.[44] A connection from Albury was added near Wodonga, creating a turning triangle to enable the Sydney Limited and its successor Spirit of Progress with their observation cars to be turned as complete trains. part of the line was converted to dual gauge in 1944 to serve freight depots around Bandiana. The line closed beyond Bandiana in 1981,[45] and the connection to Wodonga later removed, with only standard gauge traffic continuing to use the line via Albury.[46] The Wodonga-Bandiana section closed on 1 September 2009 as part of the Wodonga Rail Bypass project.[47]
Alongside the passenger trains, North East line tracks and equipment are maintained by a fleet of engineering trains. The two types of engineering trains are: the shunting train, designed for moving trains along non-electrified corridors and for transporting other maintenance locomotives; and the infrastructure evaluation carriage designed for general infrastructure evaluation including track and electrical infrastructure (if travelling along electrified corridors).[48] Most of these trains are repurposed locomotives previously used by V/Line, Metro Trains, and the Southern Shorthaul Railroad.[48]