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Gawler line

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The Gawler line, also known as the Gawler Central line, is a suburban commuter railway line in the city of Adelaide, South Australia. The Gawler Line is the most frequent and heavily patronised line in the Adelaide rail network. It is also the only line to have no other interchange with another line except Adelaide.

Gawler line
Gawler railway station
Overview
LocaleAdelaide, South Australia
Termini
Stations27
Service
TypeCommuter rail
Operator(s)Adelaide Metro
Rolling stock3000/3100 class (1987–2023)
4000 class (2022–)
Daily ridership21,000[1]
History
Opened
  • 1857 (to Gawler)
  • 1911 (to Gawler Central)
Re-sleepered
(concrete)
  • June–September 2010 (to Mawson Lakes)
  • September 2011 – March 2012 (to Gawler Central)
Electrified2020–2022
Closed24 December 2020
Reopened12 June 2022
Technical
Line length42.2 km (26.2 mi)
Number of tracks
  • 2 (to Gawler)
  • 1 (to Gawler Central)
Track gauge1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in)
Electrification25 kV 50 Hz AC from overhead catenary (2022–)
Route map

Legend
km
to Penrice
(Aurizon)
Edith Street
Murray Street
42.2
Gawler Central
end of suburban network
King Street (pedestrian only)
Howard Street
Victoria Terrace
41.4
 Gawler Oval
South Para River
to Roseworthy
(Aurizon)
Overway Bridge Road
39.8
 Gawler Buses in Adelaide Buses in Adelaide
Gawler Depot
39.3
Gawler Racecourse
Race days only
Barnet Road
Para Road
38.3
 Evanston
Gawler Bypass
 Tambelin (original site)
1947–86
Clark Road
37.4
 Tambelin
34.1
 Kudla
Dalkeith Road
 Munno Para (original site)
1978–2012
32.2
 Munno Para Buses in Adelaide
Curtis Road
Anderson Walk
30.2
 Smithfield Buses in Adelaide
Munitions Store
28.2
 Broadmeadows
Womma Road
27.3
 Womma
Winterslow Road
25.8
 Elizabeth Buses in Adelaide
24.0
 Elizabeth South
GMH
closed 1992
Tugger Way (private road)
21.6
 Nurlutta (to Gawler)
Commercial Road
21.5
 Nurlutta (to Adelaide)
Penfield line
to Port Augusta
(ARTC)
Salisbury Highway
20.2
 Salisbury Buses in Adelaide
Park Terrace
18.6
 Chidda
Kings Road
17.7
 Parafield
16.6
 Parafield Gardens
15.5
 Greenfields
Elder Smith Road
14.3
 Mawson Lakes Buses in Adelaide
Port Wakefield Road
Aurizon Dry Creek North & South Yards
Dry Creek Depot and Control Centre
formerly Northfield line junction
10.6
 Dry Creek
to Port Adelaide
Cormack Road
Grand Junction Road
6.0
 Tube Mills
Private freight sidings
7.7
 Kilburn
Adelaide Freight Terminal
 Islington Works
closed 2000
Islington Railway Workshops
Regency Road
6.0
 Islington
Pym Street
4.9
 Dudley Park
Belford Avenue
3.6
 Ovingham
Torrens Road
Hawker Street
Park Terrace
2.5
 North Adelaide
Outer Harbor and Grange lines
River Torrens
to Melbourne
Belair, Seaford and Flinders lines
Adelaide Depot
closed 2011
0.0
 Adelaide Trams in Adelaide Buses in Adelaide
km
broad gauge
standard gauge
This diagram:

History

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Gawler Central station, one of two terminus stations in the town of Gawler
 
Elizabeth Interchange in 2023
 
Salisbury Interchange in 2012
 
Mawson Lakes Interchange in 2021
 
Rail Bridge over the Little Para River in Salisbury, built prior to 1889 and still in use[2]

The line was opened in 1857 from Adelaide to Gawler.[3][4] It was extended to Kapunda in 1860. Branches were later built from Gawler to termini in Angaston, Truro, Morgan, Robertstown, Peterborough, Spalding and Gladstone. Between Adelaide and Salisbury, the two broad gauge lines are paralleled by one standard gauge line on the Adelaide to Port Augusta line. A little north of Salisbury the standard gauge line heads north-west. From Salisbury to Gawler there are two broad gauge tracks, with a single broad gauge track north of Gawler. Today, none of the lines are used beyond Gawler.

Renewal and electrification

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In 2008, the State Government announced a plan to rebuild the Gawler line, in preparation for the line to be electrified with the Federal Government also to provide funding.[5] The track was removed, and the track bed, sleepers and track renewed. Dual gauge sleepers were laid to allow for the line to be converted to standard gauge at a future date. The line was closed between North Adelaide and Mawson Lakes for four months from June 2010 for this work to be performed, and between Mawson Lakes and Gawler Central stations for seven months from September 2011.[6][7][8] Following the withdrawal of Federal Government funding by the then newly elected Abbott Liberal-National government, the electrification was postponed in October 2013.[9]

In February 2011, a new Adelaide Metro railcar depot opened to the east of Dry Creek station, to replace the facility behind the new Royal Adelaide Hospital site and Adelaide station.[10] The depot is the major maintenance and re-fuelling facility for the diesel train fleet, with capacity to store 70 railcars with over 11 kilometres of track. The depot has been designed to allow future conversion to support electric rolling stock.

To facilitate work on the Torrens Rail Junction in 2017, the Gawler line between Adelaide and Mawson Lakes was closed from 1–15 October and 18 November to 5 December.[11]

Following a decade of on-again, off-again talks,[12] electrification of the Gawler line was announced in 2018. The announcement only promised Stage 1 electrification as far as Salisbury with works anticipated to commence in 2018.[13] A $220 million grant from the Federal Government allowed for Stage 2 electrification for the remainder of the line to proceed.[14] Works began in November 2019 with completion anticipated in 2021.[15] Contrary to the Seaford line electrification, which saw the line closed completely for 11 months, from October 2020 onward, main construction on the Gawler line was spread out across a rolling schedule of partial and full line closures across 12 months. Early works before October 2020 were spread across smaller closures, typically at nights and on weekends.

The entire line was closed in December 2020. It was intended to reopen in November 2021 but was delayed due to restrictions regarding the COVID-19 lockdown in July.[16][17] The line was expected to reopen around 30 April 2022, but following the state election in March, the reopening was pushed back to the end of June.[18]

The line was reopened on 12 June 2022.[19] A majority of services on the line are now operated by 4000 class trains, however, 3000/3100 class trains continued to operate select services while the delivery of new 4000 class train sets continued until December 2023 when the last 4000 class set was delivered, effectively replacing the 3000 trains serving Adelaide's north. [20]

Torrens Road Overpass

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In 2021, the Australian and South Australian governments announced that the Torrens Road level crossing would be removed, at a cost of $196 million.[21] The Torrens Road level crossing was previously identified as one of the most high risk crossings in Adelaide, in part due to it being both a passenger rail, and freight rail crossing.[22] Earlier, in 2020, an investigation was launched after a freight train passed through the level crossing without activating the crossing boomgates.[23]

In 2023, the Torrens Road overpass was officially opened. As part of the project, a new public park was constructed underneath the overpass, and the adjacent Ovingham railway station was rebuilt. [24][25]

Former branch lines

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Route

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The line runs from Adelaide station north via Prospect, Mawson Lakes, Salisbury, Elizabeth and Smithfield to the town Gawler on the outer northern metropolitan fringe. The line is 42.2 kilometres (26.2 mi) in length and is the longest of the Adelaide suburban railway lines.

Like the rest of the Adelaide suburban passenger rail network, the line is 1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in) broad gauge for its entire length. The Australian Rail Track Corporation's standard gauge Adelaide to Port Augusta line runs parallel to the route from the Adelaide Gaol triangle to Salisbury, then turns north west towards Virginia.

Line guide

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Gawler Line
Name Distance from
Adelaide 		Year opened Serving suburbs Connections
Adelaide 0.0 km 1856 Adelaide Belair Flinders Grange
Outer Harbor Port Dock Seaford

  Bus   Tram

North Adelaide 2.5 km 1857 North Adelaide
Ovingham 3.6 km c. 1880 Ovingham, Renown Park
Dudley Park 4.9 km 1915 Dudley Park, Prospect
Islington 6.0 km Un­known Dudley Park, Prospect
Kilburn 7.7 km 1915 Kilburn
Dry Creek 10.6 km 1856 Dry Creek
Mawson Lakes 14.3 km 2006 Mawson Lakes   Bus Interchange
Greenfields 15.1 km 1969 Parafield Gardens
Parafield Gardens 16.6 km 1968 Parafield Gardens
Parafield 17.7 km 1928 Parafield, Parafield Gardens
Chidda 18.6 km Un­known Salisbury Downs, Salisbury South
Salisbury 20.2 km 1857 Salisbury   Bus Interchange
Nurlutta 21.5 km 1950 Elizabeth South, Salisbury
Elizabeth South 24.0 km 1955 Elizabeth South
Elizabeth 25.8 km 1960 Elizabeth   Bus
Womma 27.3 km 1950 Edinburgh North, Elizabeth North
Broadmeadows 28.2 km c. 1950 Davoren Park, Elizabeth North
Smithfield 30.2 km 1857 Smithfield   Bus Interchange
Munno Para 32.2 km 1978 Munno Para   Bus
Kudla 34.1 km 1959 Kudla
Tambelin 37.4 km 1947 Evanston Gardens
Evanston 38.3 km Un­known Evanston
Gawler Racecourse 39.3 km 1913 Evanston
Gawler 39.8 km 1857 Gawler South, Gawler West   Bus   Regional Coach
Gawler Oval 41.4 km Un­known Gawler
Gawler Central 42.2 km 1911 Gawler

Services

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Commuter

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All suburban rail passenger services are operated by Adelaide Metro. In April 2008, new timetables were introduced on the Gawler line in an effort to boost efficiency. Shorter secondary services that terminated at Dry Creek and Salisbury were withdrawn, new limited express services were introduced, and a new Hi-Frequency station policy adopted.[26] Nearly all services either start or terminate their journey at Gawler or Gawler Central stations, apart from a morning peak express service that begins its journey at Salisbury.[26]

Under this policy, the Hi-Frequency stations (Islington, Mawson Lakes, Parafield, Salisbury, Elizabeth, Smithfield, Tambelin and Gawler) have services every 15 minutes from Monday to Friday. All other stations have a 30-minute service, obtained by every other service skipping that station. This is in addition to several peak hour express services that stop only at selected Hi-Frequency stations.[26]

On weekends and public holidays, services operate with a 30-minute frequency at all stations, with the exception of stations between Dry Creek and Adelaide, which are hourly instead.[26]

Until April 2008, most services along the line were operated by 3000 class railcars. With the introduction of the new timetable, 2000 class railcars became more frequent, especially during peak hour. The 2000 class railcars were retired in August 2015.[27]

Freight

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Freight is a major factor along this transport corridor, with the Australian Rail Track Corporation's standard gauge Adelaide to Port Augusta line running parallel to the broad gauge track between Adelaide and Salisbury. Since 1984, this line has been standard gauge and had no interface with the suburban lines. Bowmans Rail, One Rail Australia, Pacific National, SCT Logistics, and Journey Beyond operate services via the line. Journey Beyond operates The Ghan and the Indian Pacific passenger trains along this section. Until 2007, grain trains operated from Roseworthy to Port Adelaide. The last freight service on the Gawler line was the Penrice Stone Train, which operated to Penrice until it ceased operating in June 2014.[28]

References

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  1. ^ "South Australia launches Gawler line electrification project". International Railway Journal. 29 October 2019. Archived from the original on 29 October 2019. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  2. ^ Railway bridge over the Little Para River – Photograph Archived 23 March 2022 at the Wayback Machine State Library of South Australia Retrieved 16 December 2019
  3. ^ Bassett Town & the Railway Archived 30 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine Town of Gawler
  4. ^ "Place ID 6072". Australian Heritage Database. Australian Government.
  5. ^ 2008/09 State Budget Archived 27 February 2015 at the Wayback Machine South Australian Department of Treasury & Finance June 2008
  6. ^ Gawler Line Reconstruction Archived 30 January 2015 at the Wayback Machine Coleman Rail
  7. ^ Gawler Line timetable Archived 30 January 2015 at the Wayback Machine Adelaide Metro
  8. ^ Rail Revitalisation Gawler Line Archived 23 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine Department for Transport, Energy & Infrastructure
  9. ^ Federal Government pulls plug on $76m Gawler Line electrification Archived 15 February 2014 at the Wayback Machine Adelaide Advertiser 24 October 2013
  10. ^ Railcar Depot Relocation Archived 13 April 2014 at the Wayback Machine Department of Planning, Transport & Infrastructure
  11. ^ Miles Kemp (13 September 2017). "Major disruption to Outer Harbor and Gawler train lines as work starts on Park Tce underpass". The Advertiser. Adelaide. Archived from the original on 13 September 2017. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
  12. ^ "Liberal MP's 'nana's nightie' remark on Gawler rail electrification steals the spotlight". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 18 January 2018. Archived from the original on 8 July 2018. Retrieved 7 July 2018.
  13. ^ Probert, Oliver (22 January 2018). "$615m Gawler electrification deal signed". Rail Express. Archived from the original on 7 July 2018. Retrieved 7 July 2018.
  14. ^ Langenberg, Adam (13 July 2018). "$615m Gawler electrification deal signed". The Advertiser. Adelaide. Retrieved 16 July 2018.
  15. ^ "Construction begins on SA rail line electrification". Infrastructure Magazine. 4 November 2019. Archived from the original on 4 December 2020. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
  16. ^ "Gawler rail line closures – Adelaide Metro". Archived from the original on 19 April 2021. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  17. ^ "SA's COVID-19 lockdown blamed for another delay to Gawler train line electrification". ABC News. 3 August 2021. Archived from the original on 3 August 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  18. ^ Boisvert, Eugene (2 April 2022). "Free substitute buses on Adelaide's Gawler train line as delays to electrification work revealed". ABC News. Archived from the original on 2 April 2022. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
  19. ^ "Gawler rail line reopens Sunday 12 June". Adelaide Metro. 6 June 2022. Archived from the original on 6 June 2022. Retrieved 6 June 2022.
  20. ^ It’s electrifying! Journey’s end for Gawler line project
  21. ^ Division, Infrastructure. "Ovingham Level Crossing Removal". dit.sa.gov.au. Retrieved 29 June 2023.
  22. ^ Polychronis, Gabriel (2 March 2021). "Transport Department reveals 31 highest risk level crossing". The Advertiser.
  23. ^ Bond, Caleb (8 December 2020). "Investigation after boomgates fail to lower at Ovingham level crossing for freight train".
  24. ^ "Ovingham Level Crossing Removal". PTP Alliance. Retrieved 29 June 2023.
  25. ^ Oates, Tayla (14 February 2023). "Ovingham Level Crossing Removal Project now complete". Infrastructure Magazine. Retrieved 29 June 2023.
  26. ^ a b c d Gawler timetable Archived 10 February 2014 at the Wayback Machine Adelaide Metro, 4 February 2013
  27. ^ "Limited life for 2000 class Jumbo railcars" Railway Digest January 2015 page 20
  28. ^ Penrice soda ash plant at Osborne closing Archived 24 April 2022 at the Wayback Machine ABC News 25 June 2014
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