Nannup Branch Railway

The Nannup Branch Railway, also known as the Wonnerup to Nannup Railway, was a branch line of the Western Australian Government Railways (WAGR) between Wonnerup and Nannup.

Nannup Branch
W927 & W908 haul a special train out of Nannup in 1968
Overview
Owner	Public Transport Authority
Termini	Wonnerup Nannup
Service
Type	Heavy rail
History
Opened	June 1871 (as Ballaarat Tramway) then in stages until 31 March 1909 (Jarrahwood-Nannup)
Technical
Line length	62 km (39 mi)
Track gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Route map km Ballaarat Tramway 0 Wonnerup Flinders Bay Branch 6.9 Ruabon 12.5 Tutunup 16.2 Cartis 17.0 Yoganup 24.5 Maryvale Ballaarat Tramway (end) 26.5 Claymore Public Works Department / State Saw Mills Tramway 31.3 Quilergup 35.2 Jarrahwood Millars Karri and Jarrah Forests Limited Tramways 45.7 Cambray Kauri Timber Company Tramway 49.0 Dellerton Sussex Timber Company Tramway 53.7 Bibilup Blackwood River 61.3 Nannup Township 62.4 Nannup 62.4 Nannup Kauri Timber Company Tramway

History

In 1897 the Jarrah Wood and Saw Mills Company leased the W.A. Timber Company's former timber concession in the South West of Western Australia. The section of the W.A. Timber Company's Ballaarat Tramway route south of the Bunbury-Busselton railway was reused by the Jarrah Wood and Saw Mills Company for the construction of a railway between Wonnerup and Jarrahwood[1] in 1898–99.

The line operated until 1903, and was bought by the WAGR in 1907.[2] Residents in the Nannup region were advocating for the extension to the railway in 1905[3][4][5] and in 1909 the Jarrahwood to Nannup line was completed and opened.[6]

As operated by the WAGR, the line was 38 miles 64 chains (62.44 km) from Wonnerup to Nannup and saw three trains per week in each direction during the 1940s.[7]

The line was closed in 1984.[8] A re-commissioning study was conducted in 1989[9] but did not result in the reinstatement of the railway.

Rail Trail

While the rails have been lifted, the rail corridor is still owned by the Government, through the Public Transport Authority.[10]
The section between Jarrahwood and Nannup has been converted to the Sidings Rail Trail and forms part of the Munda Biddi Trail.[11]

Notes

1. "Ballaarat Tramline". Monument Australia. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
2. page 66 – Quinlan, Howard; Newland, John R; Australian Railway Historical Society. New South Wales Division (2000), Australian railway routes 1854 to 2000, Australian Railway Historical Society – New South Wales Division, ISBN 978-0-909650-49-0
3. Even earlier (1900) for the first section [Petition to the Hon. the Premier from the residents of the Sussex district re the construction of the Wonnerup – Jarrahwood Railway southwards to the Lower Blackwood], [19--], 1900, retrieved 8 February 2014
4. In 1905 – "THE PREMIER IN THE SUSSEX ELECTORATE". The West Australian. Perth: National Library of Australia. 13 June 1905. p. 5. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
5. "THE PREMIER IN THE SUSSEX ELECTORATE". Western Mail. Perth: National Library of Australia. 17 June 1905. p. 18. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
6. "THE NANNUP RAILWAY". Western Mail. Perth: National Library of Australia. 1 May 1909. p. 28. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
7. Western Australian Government Railways (1946). Time Table for passenger, mixed, and goods trains over all lines. Perth: Western Australian Government Railways.
8. McNess, Archibald E. J (2005), Original railways of the southwest (Western Australia) : Busselton – Margaret River, Flinders Bay railway construction and Busselton – Wonnerup, Nannup railway line, A.E.J. McNess, retrieved 8 February 2014
9. MacFarlane, Helen (Helen Mary); Busselton (W.A. : Shire); Western Australia. South West Development Authority; Nannup (W.A. : Shire) (1989), Feasibility study into the recommissioning of the Capel-Busselton and Wonnerup-Nannup railway lines, MacFarlane Research, retrieved 8 February 2014
10. Public Transport Authority Network Map Public Transport Authority
11. "Sidings Rail Trail". Rail Trails Australia. Retrieved 28 August 2020.