Grange railway line
Grange Line | |
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Overview | |
Locale | Adelaide, South Australia |
Termini |
Adelaide Grange |
Stations | Woodville |
Services |
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Operation | |
Opened | 1882 |
Events | |
Re-sleepered (concrete) | 2010 |
Technical | |
Line length | 13.0 km (8.1 mi) |
No. of tracks |
Double track to Woodville Single track to Grange |
Track gauge | 1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in) |
The Grange railway line is a suburban branch line in Adelaide, South Australia.
History
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The railway line between Woodville and Grange opened in September 1882. This was a private railway, constructed by the Grange Railway and Investment Company. The early railway was not a financial success and was bought out by the South Australian Railways in 1893.[1]
Modifications to the track layout at Woodville station in 1909 enabled trains from the Grange branch to travel beyond Woodville to Adelaide.[1]
In November 1940, the Hendon branch line was opened diverging from the Grange line at Albert Park and running 1.1 kilometres to the Hendon munitions works. After the end of World War II, the Hendon trains operated only at shift-change times. In spite of low passenger numbers, the Hendon branch continued operation until 1 February 1980, after which the line was closed and removed.[1]
The terminus at Grange was relocated in the late 1980s on the eastern side of Military Road to eliminate a level crossing. The old station was formerly a stop on the Henley Beach line, an extension of the Grange line which closed in 1957.
A station named Holdens, located between Woodville and Albert Park stations adjacent to what is now the SA Manufacturing Park, was closed in 1992 and subsequently demolished.
A station called Cheltenham, serving both rail passengers and race-goers to Cheltenham Racecourse opened on the Grange line in 1895 but closed after only a few decades of operation. In 1959, an island-platform station opened 500 metres outbound from the original station and was named Cheltenham. The original station was renamed Cheltenham Racecourse, and was restricted to raceday services only until the early 1970s. On 21 February 2009, Cheltenham Park Racecourse closed to make way for new housing developments. In June 2012, the Racecourse station was demolished, and both platforms were removed.
Route
The line runs from the Adelaide to the seaside suburb of Grange. The route follows the same alignment as the Outer HarborlLine as far as Woodville station, where it diverges south west and across Port Road. The route then travels through Albert Park and bisects the Royal Adelaide Golf Club between Seaton Park and East Grange stations.
The line is single track from Woodville to Grange with no passing loops over its entire length. All stations on the line are unattended and have only very basic passenger waiting facilities. The line is 5.5 kilometres long and broad gauge (1600mm).
Services
Services operate in tandem with Outer Harbor line trains. Weekday off-peak services run every 30 minutes, Weekday peak services run every 20–30 minutes with hourly services on weekends.[2]
Once every two years services are temporarily cut back to Seaton Park for approximately two weeks for the running of the Jacob's Creek Open golf tournament. Rail replacement buses are used to transport passengers for the remainder of the route.
Until 1996, Grange line services previously operated as a shuttle from Woodville station at night and on weekends, connecting with Outer Harbor line services.
The vast majority of services are operated by 3000 class railcars. 2000 class railcars have not operated on the line since 2006.
Proposed extension
It has been proposed to divert the line from Albert Park along a new alignment to service Westfield West Lakes and Football Park,[3] which would provide a major patronage boost for the line, which is little used outside of peak hour. It has also been proposed to convert the line to light rail.
References
- 1 2 3 Rails Through Swamp and Sand – A History of the Port Adelaide Railway. M. Thompson pub. Port Dock Station Railway Museum (1988) ISBN 0-9595073-6-1.
- ↑ Outer Harbor & Grange timetable Adelaide Metro 23 February 2014
- ↑ "AAMI on a train to nowhere". AdelaideNow. 25 March 2008. Retrieved 2008-04-28.
External links
- Route map SA Track & Signal