Mt Gambier network - thoughts

["fg" <andrei@axs.com.au>]

Reading a 4 page article in Track + Signal (Jul-Sep 99) on 'The Mount
Gambier and District Railway Society Inc.'(MGDRS) trading as 'the Limestone
Coast Railway', it was interesting to note that the whole area's track is
still useable.

'...the track... is controlled by ASR...but not all of it.  The remainder
...(from Coonawarra to Bordertown and from Snuggery to Millicent) remains
under state control. ...To the east of Mount Gambier is the the track to
Heywood in Victoria and LCR has a standing lease application on this track
from the State border with the Victorian Rail Track Corporation (VicTrack) -
to prevent the track from being pulled up.'

also

'ASR has given Limestone Coast Railway use of its track for tourist train
operations in return for track maintenance services. ... A recent
development...was a grant of access given by the South Australian Government
for 10 kilometres of its track between Snuggery and...Millicent.'

The article sounds very optimistic about freight potential in the area,
particularly as the Scott road transport group are based in Mt Gambier.  The
group is doing quite well: they own the local newspaper and TV station as
well as sponsoring Port Adelaide.

An obvious step forward would be connectedness to the rest of rail network.
There are 2 options:
a) Change to SG
b) Connect to BG

a) Change to SG
    - distances (approx) -
north
Mt Gambier to Coonawarra    61 km
Coonawarra to Naracoorte     40 km
Naracoorte to Bordertown       82 km
west
Mt Gambier to Snuggery         39 km
Snuggery to Millicent               10 km
east
Mt Gambier to Dartmoor         53 km
Dartmoor to Heywood             35 km
Total                                         320 km

Between Mt Gambier and Coonawarra the track is laid on sleepers, of which
60% are steel sleepers. I've never seen steel sleepers, but the article says
they exist.  Do they?  Is this a problem? or does one need to completely
change these sleepers when changing gauge.

b) Connect to BG.
    - distances (approx) -
Victoria
Heywood to Hamilton                58 km
Hamilton to Glenthompson       50 km
Glenthompson to  Ararat          54 km
Total                                          162 km


Are the sleepers between Heywood and Ararat timber or concrete?(Again, need
for sleeper replacement?)  This option involves making the Heywood to Ararat
line dual gauge and reopening the Ararat to Ballarat line.  Are trees
popping up between the rails on the Ballarat-Ararat section yet?

What's cheaper?  Gauge conversion of the whole network or putting in another
rail over a distance of 162 km.

Who would run trains over this network?  Freight Victoria is probably the
only company with BG locos, so only it would run in and out of Mt Gambier
from the east.  Would it bother travelling north of Mt Gambier for freight?
Where would the freight be coming from/to - Portland or Geelong and
Melbourne.

Perhaps FV would be happier to convert Heywood to Mt Gambier only, to SG,
but this would make the west and north branch useless.

So it seems to me, that for FV, if the network is connected to BG it would
be a FV monopoly, but it costs too much to lay another track for 162 km to
Ararat (plus start maintaining track to Ballarat again).

If they convert 88km from Mt Gambier to Heywood, everyone with an SG loco
will have access.  Not good.  Plus the locals would probably want the whole
network converted in one hit.  This will provide twice as much access for
FV's competition (Bordertown and Heywood).  (These locals include the SA
governent and ASR.)

NB    Is this mainly a FV issue if the work is done in VIC, while if work is
carried out in SA it also involves SA gov and ASR?  Perhaps, this is the
crux of the issue.

Plus there is always the possibility of passenger rail movement, but that
will probably not provide the impetus for a connection.

End train of thought.  Anyone have any ideas, facts.


Andrei