Sale railway station is a regional railway station on the Gippsland line, part of the Victorian railway network. It serves the town of Sale, in Victoria, Australia. Sale station is a ground level staffed station, featuring one side platform. It opened on 1 June 1877, with the current station provided in 1983.[1][2]
Sale | |||||||||||
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| PTV regional rail station | |||||||||||
 Station carpark, entrance, platform and building, September 2015 | |||||||||||
| General information | |||||||||||
| Location | Pettit Drive, Sale, Victoria 3850 Shire of Wellington Australia | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 38°06′12″S 147°03′14″E / 38.1034°S 147.0540°E | ||||||||||
| Owned by | VicTrack | ||||||||||
| Operated by | V/Line | ||||||||||
| Line(s) | Gippsland | ||||||||||
| Distance | 206.02 kilometres from Southern Cross | ||||||||||
| Platforms | 1 | ||||||||||
| Tracks | 3 | ||||||||||
| Connections |  Bus | ||||||||||
| Construction | |||||||||||
| Structure type | At-grade | ||||||||||
| Parking | Yes | ||||||||||
| Accessible | Yes | ||||||||||
| Other information | |||||||||||
| Status | Operational, staffed | ||||||||||
| Station code | SAE | ||||||||||
| Fare zone | Myki not available. Paper ticket only. | ||||||||||
| Website | Public Transport Victoria | ||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||
| Opened | 1 June 1877 | ||||||||||
| Rebuilt | 4 December 1983 | ||||||||||
| Services | |||||||||||
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History
editThe original Sale station opened on 1 June 1877, as the terminus of the line from Morwell, before the line was extended to Stratford Junction on 8 May 1888. This original station was located in the town of Sale itself, east of Reeve Street. It was a dead-end terminus, with the line from Melbourne and the line to Stratford both entering from the west. Trains continuing along the line beyond Sale were required to reverse at the station, or use the Traralgon-Maffra-Stratford line, which avoided Sale altogether. At the peak of operations, the yard had five roads, passenger and goods platforms, a goods shed, a 47-lever signal box, a cattle yard, an engine shed, a coal stage, and a turntable.[2]
There was also a short branch line to the Sale Wharf, as well as a number of industrial sidings in the area, serving cool stores, fuel depots, a gas works, a flour mill, woollen mills, and stockyards.[2]
After many years of discussions between the local council and rail authorities,[3] the station was relocated in 1983, to a site outside the town, on a new section of track which linked the Melbourne and Stratford lines, without the need to run in and out of the original station. This formed a rail triangle for a short period of time. The goods facilities were first to be moved, which occurred on 28 September 1983,[4] using part of the Sale – Stratford line as the base of the yard. The last train ran to the old station on 12 November 1983, with the new station officially opening on 4 December of that year.[2] The last remnant of the railway line arriving directly into Sale was abolished in 1985, when parts of the former Port of Sale spur line were removed.[5] Full signalling was not provided until 1987.[2] Station staff were withdrawn in 1993, but have since been restored.[2]
Rail traffic beyond Sale ceased in December 1995, with Sale becoming the terminus for all trains on the line. Road coach services continued to Stratford, Bairnsdale, Lakes Entrance, Orbost and further east, with some continuing into southern New South Wales. However, in mid-1999, log trains began operating to Bairnsdale again, and the passenger service to Bairnsdale resumed on 3 May 2004.[1]
The original site of Sale station is now the Gippsland Centre Shopping Centre, although the signal box, level crossing gates, and two semaphore signals are statically preserved in situ.[6] To the west of the station, the Sale Industrial Sidings remain in place but unused, as do the goods sidings.[6] The sidings across from the platform were regularly used to allow Bairnsdale to Geelong log trains to cross passenger services, but log trains have ceased running.
Platforms and services
editSale has one platform. It is serviced by V/Line Bairnsdale line services.[7]
Platform 1:
- Gippsland line services to Bairnsdale and Southern Cross
Transport links
editLittle's Gippsland Coaches operates two routes via Sale station, under contract to Public Transport Victoria:
- 4 : to Sale (Gippsland Centre Shopping Centre)[8]
- 7 : Sale – Loch Sport[9]
Gallery
edit-
Southbound view, with a 707 Operations heritage special stabled in the siding, in June 2018 -
Disused signal box and semaphore signals, preserved in situ, pictured in June 2021
References
edit- ^ a b Sale Vicsig
- ^ a b c d e f Victorian Station Histories: Sale station
- ^ "Traffic". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. October 1978. p. 208.
- ^ "Works". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. December 1983. p. 344.
- ^ "Works". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. May 1985. p. 147.
- ^ a b Wong, Marcus. "Sale station". Wongm's Rail Gallery. Retrieved 25 July 2014.
- ^ Bairnsdale - Melbourne timetable Public Transport Victoria
- ^ 4 Sale - Sale Station via Reeve Street Public Transport Victoria
- ^ 7 Sale - Loch Sport via Longford Public Transport Victoria
External links
edit