Benalla railway station

Benalla railway station is located on the North East line, in Victoria, Australia. It serves the town of Benalla, and opened on 18 August 1873, as the temporary terminus of the line from Violet Town, before the line was extended to Wangaratta on 28 October 1873.[1]

Benalla
Westbound view in November 2008
Location	Mackellar Street, Benalla Australia
Coordinates	36°32′41″S 145°59′02″E
Owned by	VicTrack
Operated by	V/Line
Line(s)	North East Oaklands Tatong
Distance	195.25 kilometres from Southern Cross
Platforms	2 (1 island)
Tracks	5
Construction
Structure type	Ground
Disabled access	Yes
Other information
Status	Staffed
Station code	BEN
Fare zone	Myki Zone 16
Website	Public Transport Victoria
History
Opened	18 August 1873
Services
Preceding station V/Line Following station Violet Town towards Southern Cross Albury line Wangaratta towards Albury Preceding station NSW TrainLink Following station Seymour toward Melbourne NSW TrainLink Southern Line Melbourne XPT Wangaratta toward Sydney
Former services Preceding station   Disused railways   Following station Junction   Oaklands line   Goorambat Junction   Tatong line   Towards Tatong   List of closed railway stations in Victoria

A goods shed and sidings are located to the west of the station, whilst a locomotive depot was formerly located to the north. A turntable remains, and, until the broad gauge was converted to standard gauge, was occasionally used by steam locomotives.

To the north of the station, the Oaklands line, towards Yarrawonga, branches off. Benalla was also the junction for the now closed Tatong line.

Former station Baddaginnie was located between Benalla and Violet Town, while former stations Winton and Glenrowan were located between Benalla and Wangaratta.

History

The site of the station was a controversial decision at the time, guided by the 1870 flood of the Broken River to the south that engulfed the town. The railway line opened on 18 August 1873, but only temporary facilities were provided. The first permanent building, of identical design to that at Seymour railway station, was provided in 1874. It was extended in 1888, with the addition of dining and refreshment room facilities and administrative offices, all topped by a large tower.[2][3][4]

The bridge over the Broken River, of iron plate-girder construction, was the longest metal girder bridge in Australia at the time of construction, totalling 241.7 metres. Listed on the Victorian Heritage Register, it was the second bridge of its type built in Victoria, and the first metal railway bridge both designed and fabricated within the colony.[5]

The Oaklands branch line to St James opened in 1883, and was extended to Yarrawonga in 1886. The goods yard was expanded for this extra traffic in 1885, with more sidings added in 1902. Around this time, the original goods shed was demolished and replaced. The Tatong branch line followed in 1913, and remained until closure in 1947.[2]

In 1913, Benalla gained a second and third platform, these being a wide island platform, with a cantilevered verandah, located to the west of the main station building. The platforms were linked by an iron footbridge, which was provided in 1888, and was located across the station yard. The island platform was removed in 1937, leaving the main platform only.[2] Two signal boxes were built in 1888, both being extended in 1914.[2] Only the signal box at the Up end remains today, but is unused.

A locomotive shed was provided at Benalla early on, located at the down end of the station yard. Of corrugated iron construction, it could house six engines. In 1899, a roundhouse shed was erected, with the old shed used for wagon repairs. In 1908, a 70-foot (21 m) turntable was provided, replaced in 1953 by an electrically driven unit. Its use declined after the demise of steam locomotives, and several stalls were removed in 1960 to allow the construction of the parallel standard gauge track.[2]

In 1974, the two-storey section and tower of the 1889 station building were demolished, on the basis that the whole building was too expensive to maintain, and to provide space for a car park. The demolition was postponed several times, due to the opposition of various local groups.[3]

An underpass was provided at the Up end of the station in 1979, to replace the footbridge that had been located at the down end of the station.

In 1985, the former Way & Works area was replace with a new camp site. During that time, the former office and crew rooms of the locomotive depot were also demolished,[6] and the passenger facilities in the main station building were also refurbished.[7]

On 27 April 1988, the former BP and Mobil oil sidings were abolished.[8]

Further alterations occurred in May 1991, including the removal of a number of sidings, crossovers, disc signals and signal posts, and the sleeving of a number of levers,[9] with further alterations occurring in July of the same year.[10] Also during 1991, the electric staff sections Benalla - Glenrowan - Wangaratta were abolished, and were replaced with electric staff section Benalla 'B' Box - Wangaratta.[11]

The locomotive depot was hit by a severe storm on 22 November 1994, leaving the shed damaged and destroying two Tait carriages stored inside. The shed was later demolished.[12]

Qube Logistics constructed an intermodal terminal in the former goods yard in late 2018 to receive containerised cement and fly ash from Sydney for use in pre-cast panels being manufactured by Boral for the West Gate Tunnel. The first cement was delivered to the facility on 19 December of that year.[13]

Platforms and services

Benalla has 2 Platforms One on the eastern side and one on the Western Side

Platform 1:

• Albury line: V/Line services to Southern Cross & services to Albury
• NSW TrainLink Southern: XPT services to Sydney Central

Platform 2:

• NSW TrainLink Southern: XPT services to Southern Cross

Transport links

V/Line operates road coach services to Shepparton, Adelaide, Mulwala, Bendigo, La Trobe Uni Bendigo, Seymour, Wangaratta, Albury

Benalla Bus Lines operates one route via Benalla station, under contract to Public Transport Victoria:

• 2: Benalla – Benalla East[14]

References

1. Benalla Vicsig
2. Turton, Keith W (1973). Six and a Half Inches From Destiny. Australian Railway Historical Society. p. 99. ISBN 0-85849-012-9.
3. Ruppert, Simon (9 October 2019). "Benalla station demolished". Benalla Ensign. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
4. "Way & Works". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. February 1975. p. 44.
5. "Railway Bridge over Broken River - Benalla". National Trust of Australia. Retrieved 24 December 2008.
6. "Works". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. September 1985. p. 281.
7. "Works". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. May 1985. p. 147.
8. "Works". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. July 1988. p. 220.
9. "Works". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. August 1991. p. 253.
10. "Works". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. November 1991. p. 374.
11. "Works". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. October 1991. p. 338.
12. "Operations". Newsrail. Australian Railway Heritage Society: 55. February 1995.
13. "Observations". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. 47 (3): 85. March 2019.
14. "Benalla 2 Benalla - Benalla East". Public Transport Victoria.

External links

• Media related to Benalla railway station at Wikimedia Commons
• Rail Geelong gallery
• Victorian Railway Stations gallery