The Bellarine Railway, formerly know as the Bellarine Peninsula Railway, is a volunteer-operated steam-driven tourist railway located in Victoria, Australia. It operates on a 16 km section of a formerly disused branch line on the Bellarine Peninsula between the coastal town of Queenscliff and Drysdale, near Geelong.
History[]
The original line was commissioned in September 1878, and opened on 21 May 1879. It connected Queenscliff with South Geelong station, the terminus of the Geelong line, and the junction of the Warrnambool line. It was acknowledged at the time that although passenger traffic alone might not justify a railway line, military traffic from both the port and Fort Queenscliff—a key defence installation—would warrant its construction. It initially carried passenger, goods and military traffic, and continued to do so for several decades.
In the first few months of operation, it carried only one service per day, but at its peak, in January 1885, four trains per day ran in each direction, enabling the line to be used by commuters. However, this was decreased to three, and was cut back to two trains a day in 1910. Traffic on the line continued to fall over the next twenty years, and in 1931, passenger services were dropped completely—apart from the occasional Sunday excursion train. Freight services continued to run, although they were cut to back at first to twice-weekly, and then weekly operation.
The railway currently operates a Heritage Train Service between Queenscliff and Drysdale, along the southern shoreline of Swan Bay and through grazing land, with an intermediate stop at Laker's Siding.
The heritage service is available on Sundays, most public holidays, as well as Tuesdays and Thursdays during the Easter, June and September school holidays. During the summer school holidays, trains run every day from Boxing Day until the end of the first week in January, then every day until the Australia Day weekend, except for Mondays and Fridays. The Heritage Service does not run on Day Out With Thomas and Queenscliff Music Festival weekends.
Carriage hire is available as part of the Heritage Service and suitable for children's parties or groups looking for the benefits of private train hire without the added cost.
Steam Locomotive Roster[]
| Number | Images | Heritage | Type | Builder | Built | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No.2 | 
|
Fyansford Cement Works | Beyer Garrat MSA Class | Beyer Peacock | Stored | ||
| G33/No.3 | 
|
Fyansford Cement Works | Australian Standard Garratt | Newport Workshops | 1945 | Under Restoration | |
| No.4 | 
|
Fyansford Cement Works | Commonwealth Railways NB Class | Vulcan Iron Works | 1916 | Stored | |
| No.5 | 
|
Fyansford Cement Works | Commonwealth Railways NB Class | Vulcan Iron Works | 1916 | Stored Dismantled | |
| No.6 | 
|
Fyansford Cement Works | 0-4-2T | Hudswell Clarke | 1903 | Under Restoration | |
| No.11 | 
|
Fyansford Cement Works | 0-4-0T | Perry Engineering | 1926 | Stored Dismantled | |
| T251 | 
|
South Australian Railway | SAR T Class | Walkers | 1917 | Operational | |
| Klondyke | 
|
State Rivers and Water Supply
Commission of Victoria |
Perry 0-4-2T | Perry Engineering | 1927 | Operational | |
| Pozières | 
|
The Broken Hill Associated
Smelters |
0-6-0T | Andrew Barclay Sons & Co. | 1918 | Boiler Repairs | |
| V1209 | 
|
WAGR | WAGR V class | Robert Stephenson and Hawthorns | 1955 | Stored | |
| M6 | 
|
Tasmanian Government Railways | TGR M Class | Robert Stephenson and Hawthorns Ltd, UK | 1951 | Stored | |
| S547 | 
|
WAGR | WAGR S Class | WAGR Midland Workshops | 1947 | Stored Dismantled | |
| PB454 | 
|
Queensland Railways | QR 'PB-15' Class | Walkers Ltd, Maryborough QLD. | 1909 | Stored Dismantled | |
| 3620 | 
|
South African Railways | 24 Class | North British Locomotive Company, Glasgow. | 1948 | Operational |
Diesel Locomotive Roster[]
| Number | Images | Heritage | Type | Builder | Built | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1107 | 
|
EBR 11 class | Walkers Limited, QLD | 1971 | Operational | ||
| 1604 | 
|
Queensland Railways | QR 1600 Class | English Electric | 1962 | Operational | It operated by Queensland Rail until 1991. |
| V8 | 
|
Tasmanian Government Railways | TGR V Class | Drewry Car Company | 1948 | Stored | It operated used by AN Tasrail until 1987. |
| VA1 | 
|
Tasmanian Government Railways | TGR V Class | Drewry Car Company | 1947 | Under Restoration | |
| X3 | 
|
Tasmanian Government Railways | TGR X Class | English Electric | 1950 | Operational | Operated by AN Tasrail until 1985 |
| X20 | 
|
Tasmanian Government Railways | TGR X Class | English Electric | 1950 | Operational | Operated used by AN Tasrail until 1987 |
| Z1 | 
|
Tasmanian Government Railways | TGR Z class | English Electric | 1973 | Operational | |
| Z4 | 
|
Tasmanian Government Railways | TGR Z class | English Electric | 1973 | Operational |
Rail-motor Roster[]
| Number | Images | Heritage | Type | Builder | Built | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DP28 | 
|
Tasmanian Government Railways | TGR DP Class | Commonwealth Engineering, Drewry, TGR | 1950 | Stored | |
| DP29 | 
|
Tasmanian Government Railways | TGR DP Class | Commonwealth Engineering, Drewry, TGR | 1950 | Stored |
Stations On The Queenscliff Line[]
| Station | Images | Began Service | Last Serviced | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Geelong | November 1, 1883 | Never Closed | In use by V/Line | Station serves as the junction between the
Warnambool line and the Queenscliff line. | |
| Moolap | August 1, 1881 | March 10, 1936 | Defunct | ||
| Kensington Hill | January 26, 1880 | July 30, 1881 | Defunct | Temporary station, replaced by
'Kensington Flat' (Later, 'Leopold') | |
| Leopold | August 1, 1881 | January 23, 1961 | Defunct | Began Service as 'Kensington Flat'
Renamed 'Leopold' 1886 | |
| Scarborough | May 13, 1889 | January 23, 1914 | Defunct | Replaced by Curlewis station | |
| Curlewis | January 23, 1914 | January 23, 1961 | Defunct | ||
| Drysdale | May 21, 1879 | November 6, 1976 | In use by BR | Home of 'the Q Train' | |
| Mannerim | February 1, 1883 | February 6, 1961 | Limited use by BR | Began Service as 'Marcus Hill'
Renamed 'Mannerim' 28th Oct, 1890. "The place where people stall if they run out of sand." | |
| Marcus | February 1, 1883 | February 6, 1961 | Defunct | Began Service as 'Ocean Grove'
Renamed 'Marcus Hill' in 1896, Renamed 'Marcus' in 1904. | |
| Suma (Sugma) Park | Limited use by BR | Often referred to as 'Sugma Park' | |||
| Laker's Siding | November 16, 1959 | November 6, 1976 | In use by BR | Primary workshop for the railway is
located here. | |
| Swan Bay | Limited use by BR | Modern Station, built to link with the Marine Center, Sees Very Occasional Use. | |||
| Queenscliff | May 21, 1879 | November 6, 1976 | In use by BR | Most BR services begin at this station. |
Trivia[]
- The line saw a revival during World War II, carrying mines from the Swan Island military base, but returned to pre-war levels afterwards. After the war, services became less frequent, with passenger services dropped altogether, apart from occasional special trains, and with goods services cut back to one a fortnight. The line was closed on 6 November 1976.
- The line is recognised as the oldest Victorian branch line still in operation.
- During 1976 and 1977, the Society engaged in fundraising efforts and began regauging a short section of track around Queenscliff station, in order to enable its rolling stock to operate on the line. With the help of some government funding, it succeeded in operating its first services from Queenscliff to Laker's Siding in May 1979, and to Drysdale not long after.