Oliver Hill Railway
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Western Australia
Oliver Hill railway station in 2011 with the railcar Captain Hussey | |
| Location | Rottnest Island Western Australia |
|---|---|
| Website | www.rottnestisland.com |
The Oliver Hill Railway is a heritage railway on Rottnest Island, Australia.
In 1935 construction commenced on a nine kilometre military railway to service two 9.2-inch guns at Oliver Hill and two six inch guns at Bickley on Rottnest Island.[1] Two light diesel locomotives named Crab and Crayfish were used. It had fallen out of use by the 1950s.[2]
In 1966 the Rottnest Island Board of Control purchased the line with a petrol locomotive and eight wagons from the Australian Army with the aim of reopening it as a scenic railway.[3] However it was not until 1993 that work began to restore 6.5 kilometres of the line with track recovered from the Miling line.[4][5] It was officially opened by Premier of Western Australia Richard Court on 3 July 1994.[6][7]
The initial rolling stock was two former Western Australian Government Railways 4wDH shunting tractors loaned from Rail Heritage WA. In 2003, a new diesel railcar built by Gemco Rail, Forrestfield named Captain Hussey, after Frank Hussey who oversaw the construction of the original railway, entered service.[8][9]
Arc Infrastructure undertakes an annual maintenance program on the line.[10][11][12]
References
- ↑ Still running Track & Signal issue 19/4 November 2015 page 99
- ↑ The Rottnest Island Defence Tramway Light Railways issue 46 Summer 1973 pages 3-9
- ↑ Here & There Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin issue 342 April 1966 page 8
- ↑ Westrail helps to rebuild the historic Rottnest railway Westrail News April 1993 page 12
- ↑ Oliver Hill Railway The Westland issue 101 June 1993 page 12
- ↑ Rottnest Island Railway Opening The Westland issue 115 August 1994 page 7
- ↑ Rottnest Island Tourist Railway Continental Railway Journal issue 100 January 1995 page 103
- ↑ Oliver Hill Railway, Rottnest Island Continental Railway Journal issue 135 October 2003 page 52
- ↑ News in brief Railway Digest January 2004 page 15
- ↑ Arc Infrastructure invests $300,000 in WA's Oliver Hill Railway Rail Express 19 November 2019
- ↑ Preserving a piece of history on Rottnest Arc Infrastructure 28 October 2022
- ↑ Extended scope of works at Rottnest Island Arc Infrastructure 3 November 2025
External links
Media related to Oliver Hill Railway at Wikimedia Commons
| Main lines | |
|---|---|
| Goldfields–Esperance | |
| Great Southern | |
| Mid West | |
| Peel | |
| Pilbara | |
| Perth | |
| South West | |
| Wheatbelt | |
| Tourist and heritage railways | |
| Timber railway lines | |
| Trams and tramways | |
| Approved by Parliament but not constructed | |
^† Denotes railway is closed, partially closed or has been removedSee also: Agricultural railways ♦ Wheatbelt railways | |