Hamley Bridge–Gladstone railway line

Hamley Bridge–Gladstone railway line
The railway bridge over the Gilbert River at Hamley Bridge, (October 2010)
Overview
Status	Partially closed and removed, remaining section dormant
Termini	Hamley Bridge Gladstone
Continues from	Roseworthy-Peterborough line
Continues as	Wilmington line
Service
System	South Australian Railways
Operator(s)	South Australian Railways Australian National
History
Opened	Hamley Bridge-Balaklava: 15 January 1880 Balaklava-Blyth: 14 March 1876 Blyth to Gladstone: 2 July 1894
Closed	Gulnare-Gladstone: 11 May 1988 Balaklava-Gulnare: 29 March 1989 Balaklava-Hamley Bridge: 2004
Technical
Line length	147.7 km (91.8 mi)
Track gauge	1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in)
Old gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Route map Wilmington line to Broken Hill Gladstone Crystal Brook–Broken Hill line to Crystal Brook George Town Yackamoorundie Creek Gulnare Broughton River Yacka Koolunga Brinkworth Brinkworth–Kadina line to Kadina via Snowtown Anama Blyth Kybunga Hoyleton Halbury Wakefield River Balaklava Moonta line to Kadina via Port Wakefield Ridgeway Woods Owen Stockyard Creek Gilbert River to Burra & Peterborough Hamley Bridge Roseworthy–Peterborough line to Roseworthy & Adelaide broad gauge standard gauge 3 ft 6 in narrow gauge [1] This diagram: view talk edit

The Hamley Bridge–Gladstone railway line was a railway line on the South Australian Railways network. It extended from a junction at Hamley Bridge on the Roseworthy-Peterborough line (which provided connection through to Adelaide) through Balaklava and Brinkworth to Gladstone.

OPENING

The earliest part of the narrow gauge Hamley Bridge-Gladstone line opened from Balaklava to Blyth on 14 March 1876 as part of the Port Wakefield line. On 15 January 1880, the line opened from Hamley Bridge to Balaklava.^[2] It was extended north from Blyth to Gladstone on 2 July 1894 where it joined the Port Pirie-Cockburn and Wilmington lines. The line was gauge converted to 5 ft 3 in (1,600 mm) on 1 August 1927.

PARTIAL CLOSURE AND REMOVAL

The Gulnare to Gladstone section closed on 11 May 1988, followed by the Balaklava to Gulnare section on 29 March 1989.^[3] The section track between Balaklava and Gladstone was removed in late 1989, and the 10 km section between Halbury and Balaklava has now been converted into the Shamus Liptrot Cycling Trail.^{[4][self-published source]}

The last train to Balaklava was a bulk grain train in 2004.

As Balaklava railway station was originally on the Port Wakefield to Blyth line, before the railway from Hamley Bridge was built, and the new line entered the town from the south-east, trains using the route between Gladstone and Adelaide needed to change direction at Balaklava, as both the north and south lines entered the station from the east, with Port Wakefield being to the west.^[5]

The "Western System" included the railway from Hamley Bridge to Gladstone, along with the lines from Balaklava through Port Wakefield, Kadina and Wallaroo, and the line from Kadina through Snowtown to Brinkworth. All of these lines were prepared for conversion from narrow to broad gauge in the mid-1920s,^[6] with the switch made on 1 August 1927.^[3][7]

Aurizon does not list the line as being open or in use, but it is available for access. The line has fallen into disrepair, being severed at several points for drainage and road surface improvements. In 2022, the line was blocked off from the Gawler line, and the wider Adelaide metropolitan network after a fence was installed at the Gawler River bridge.^{[citation needed]}

The Shamus Liptrot Cycling Trail is a rail trail following the course of the disused line. It is open to pedestrians and cyclists, and runs for 11 km from Balaklava to Halbury.^[8]

The Trail was completed 2012. It was developed in memory of a local elite cyclist Shamus Liptrot who died in 2011, several years after suffering injuries in a cycling accident.^[9] The terrain of the trail is generally flat and it runs through a well vegetated corridor. It begins on the north side of the former railway line north of the intersection of War Memorial Dr and Railway Tce. Then it follows the path east along the back of Christopher St. The trail crosses Dunn's Bridge 1.5 km from Balaklava. It metal bowstring arch bridge which was constructed in 1880 and was heritage listed in 1995. Further 3 km along the trail is a small bridge built over a creek. The trail ends at Halbury with a well signed back roads trail which can be followed over the range to Leasingham and to the Riesling Trail.^[10]

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