Railway Digest Magazine February 2019 Back Issue

The Geraldton iron ores
The coastal city of Geraldton, 424km north of Perth, is a major service and logisitics hub for the region, with a busy port serving the local mining industry. Phil Melling looks at the recent history and current operations of the iron ore mines and the railways that serve them.

Ballarat line upgrade works
In recent years, factors such as freeways and frequent rail services to Melbourne have driven strong population growth in the Ballarat area, as well as elsewhere in regional Victoria. Remarkably, the line from Melbourne to Ballarat is predominantly single track, though as David Campbell explains, serious moves are underway to improve the capacity of this increasingly busy route.

The SMR Centenary Event
Over the weekend 8-9 December 2018, South Maitland Railways commemorated the 125th anniversary of the opening of the Railway from East Greta Junction to East Greta, and the centenary of the formation of SMR Ltd, which took over operations on the expanded private system serving the South Maitland coalfield. The public open days featured various rail industry exhibits and an extensive program of special excursions operating over the company’s line. Robert Driver reports.

Two upgrades for the Sunshine Coast line
Still mostly single track north of Caboolture/Beerburrum, the rail corridor from Brisbane to Nambour is very busy; carrying suburban, interurban and long distance passenger trains, as well as freight services operated by Pacific National and Aurizon, and seasonal cattle trains and grain trains. Mike Martin looks at two projects aiming to significantly increase capacity on the line.