<< Back | Home | Site Map
This section includes a major contribution from Roderick B. Smith, Editor of "Rail News Victoria" and includes timetables collected over many years from a variety of sources including Jack McLean, Roderick B. Smith, Bob Whitehead and Des Jowett.
Contributed by Roderick B. Smith
* Maryborough refreshment room was closed from 1961.
* From Tuesday15.2.66 recently-converted Mini Buffets were introduced on "Mildura Sunlight", which was accelerated. Birchip and Ouyen refreshment rooms were closed from Sunday13.2.66.
* The last run of "Mildura Sunlight" was on Thursday 27.4.67. From the next day services reverted to six overnight trains each way per week, departing Sunday-Friday.
* To introduce Motorail service AX8 was fitted with marker lamps. Trials were conducted on Sunday 4.8.68, using only the lower deck. Portable ramps were provided at Spencer Street [surely just a bridging piece] and Mildura (rising from ground level; this station did not have a carriage dock, a common feature of earlier stations). Regular services commenced on Friday16.8, attached to the front northbound on Monday, Wednesday and Friday; to the rear southbound Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. The cost was $10 per car.
In the week Monday16-Thursday19.12.68 a loading ramp was tried with AX11 at Spencer Street to enable the use of the upper deck. Chairman Brown's Ford limousine was used for the trial. Because it was not travelling, it had to reverse down the ramp (normally cars arriving from Mildura could be driven off forwards). Early in April the service was expanded to run on six nights per week each way, and to load both decks. This required a second, higher, ramp to be provided at Mildura (a ground to top deck ramp had been in use in Melbourne Yard since 1961).
"The Vinelander" and "The Sunraysia"
* An upgrading was implemented in 1972. Four new sleeping cars were built for the "The Overland"; four older sleeping cars were transferred to VR and were repainted blue. The train was named the "The Vinelander", following a public competition. The train was displayed in Melbourne on Tues.8.8, and made its first northbound run that night. In the first year patronage increased by 13,300.
* Following the cancellation of Melbourne - Canberra through-carriage working in 1974, the two VAC sleeping & sitting cars were placed on broad gauge in 1976-77 and were used on The Vinelander" occasionally. Following a year in which 100,000 passengers were carried, two BS carriages were rebuilt as MRS mini-buffets with a lounge section. They entered service from Monday18.7.77 (northbound) and Tuesday19.7 (southbound). A new Mildura station building was constructed through 1977 (occupied from October-November). Part of the former building was incorporated, with a new roof and external brickwork. The VACs were rebuilt as 16-berth sleeping cars in 1978, and were used until 1988-89.
* With the October 81 new-look services the "The Vinelander" sitting section ran to Bendigo as well. Later the sitting section became a standard 4-car Z set: ACZ-BZ-BRS-BS. To increase capacity elsewhere, "The Vinelander" sets were reduced to three carriages: ACZ-BRS-BZ.
* From Monday16.2.87 a mixed day and night service was tried again; this time both had Motorail; both ran via North Shore to serve Geelong. "The Sunraysia" ran on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday; "The Vinelander" ran on Thursday, Friday and Sunday. The last "The Sunraysia" trains ran on Wednesday 30.5.90. The replacement overnight service had only four trains per week each way. A single 3-car set was used from Melbourne on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday; from Mildura on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. A 4-car set was released from other working to provide a Friday down and Sunday up.
* The incoming Liberal government targeted the train for bus replacement, to save $5 million per year. It excused its renege by stating that the losses were greater than thought when the unequivocal guarantee of retention was made. Suitable buses were not yet ready for the 23.8.93 changes; an interim timetable was published. The proposed last run was the up from Mildura on Friday17.9. The buses were available earlier. The last "The Vinelander" was the up from Mildura on Sunday12.9, with N466, set Z61 and sleeping cars SJ282 & "Nomuldi". The down was docked at Spencer Street platform 5 (N459 with SJ & SZ sleeping cars), and passengers had boarded. At 21.20 they were told that a landslide had blocked the tracks; they were taken by bus; one car was sent by semitrailer. The excuse was exposed in the press next week as a fabrication to avoid a repetition of the Bairnsdale impounding of a passenger train.
References:
* DD: Divisional Diary; NL: VR News Letter; RT: Railway Transportation.
* Poole `VR passenger rollingstock' in Feb.54 ARHS Bulletin (many mistakes).
* Smith `VR airconditioned carriages' in Aug.74 Newsrail.
* Insall `Cheers to the Vinelander' in Sept.93 Newsrail.
* Gould Century of rail; History of rail services Birchip and district 1893-1993 (Sunnyland Press, 1993).
* Isaacs et al Railway refreshments in Victoria (Australian Association of Timetable Collectors, 1992).
The following timetables have been extracted from Public Timetables and Working Time Tables (Internal operating documents) published by the Victorian Railways and its successors. The timetables shown are representative of the train services for the lines covered in this history.
Note: The reference "Public" indicates Public Timetable source; "WTT" indicates the source is an internal Working Time Table document.
| << Back | Home | Site Map | Copyright © 2003 Bruce McLean, All Rights Reserved |