From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Trail in New South Wales, Australia
Looking north from gate on right of above photo across Park Avenue level crossing towards former junction
The
Fernleigh Track
is a multi-use
rail trail
near Belmont in New South Wales. The track was constructed in the way of the former
Belmont railway line
. The project is a joint venture between
Newcastle City Council
and
City of Lake Macquarie
. The track extends from
Adamstown
to
Belmont
over an approximate distance of 15.5 km (10 mi). The former railway closed in December 1991. The first section between Adamstown and Burwood Road opened in 2003. Construction has continued in stages with the final section between
Jewells
and Belmont completed in March 2011.
[1]
The abandoned
Belmont railway line
was a coal
haulage
and passenger rail line from Adamstown to Belmont. In 1880 a rail line was built to
Redhead
with the line being extended to Belmont in 1916. At one stage there was talk of extending the line to
Swansea
.
A feature of the conversion of the former railway to a multi-use trail is the retention of many industrial heritage features. The trail passes through the brick-lined Fernleigh Tunnel under the
Pacific Highway
.
At the site of the former
Kahibah
station, the
cycleway
is crossed by the
Great North Walk
, a 250 km (155 mi) walking trail connecting
Newcastle
and
Sydney
. The track also passes through the centre of the
Glenrock Lagoon
catchment.
Track details
[
edit
]
Station/platform (distance)
[
edit
]
Track statistics
[
edit
]
- Level crossings, 5
- Tunnels, 1 (curved - 181 m (594 ft))
- Over Bridges, 2
- Drive through culvert, 1 (Little Flaggy Creek)
- Stations or Platforms, 10
- Signal Boxes, 4
- Major colliers served, 5
- Maximum gradient, 1 in 40
- Minimum elevation, 5 m (16 ft) (nr Belmont Station)
- Maximum elevation, 88 m (289 ft) (on main line)
- Length of Line, 15.51 km (10 mi)
History of the line
[
edit
]
- 1880 - Rail line opened to Redhead
- December 1916 - Rail line extended to Belmont
- 12 October 1922 - Special train left Newcastle for the opening of "Soldiers' Memorial Hall" at Kahibah.
- January 1925 - Redhead Loop name changed to Fernleigh Loop
- 1967 - Last passenger steam train to Belmont
- 8 April 1971 - At 17:10 the last rail passenger train to Belmont via Kahibah left Newcastle Station.
- 19 December 1991 - Rail line closed
- 2 February 2003 - Adamstown to Kahibah Station stage of the Fernleigh Track (cycleway) opened
- August 2004 - Dudley Junction to Whitebridge Station section of Fernleigh Track completed
- 7 May 2005 - Kahibah Station to Whitebridge Station section officially opened.
- November 2009 - Whitebridge Station to Redhead Station section of Fernleigh Track completed
- November 2010 - Redhead Station to Jewels section of Fernleigh Track completed
- 12 March 2011 - Fernleigh Track fully completed.
References
[
edit
]
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
Towns, suburbs
& localities
| |
---|
Rivers and
other waterways
| |
---|
Other places &
points of interest
| |
---|
|
---|
Towns, suburbs
& localities
| |
---|
Other places &
points of interest
| |
---|
|
---|
|
Education
|
---|
Primary
| |
---|
Secondary
| |
---|
Tertiary
| |
---|
|
|
Entertainment, sport & culture
|
---|
|
|
|
Historical
|
---|
Air transport
| |
---|
Defence
| |
---|
Education
| |
---|
General
| |
---|
Industry
| |
---|
Maritime
| |
---|
Natural disasters
| |
---|
Rail
| General
| |
---|
Railway lines
| |
---|
Railway stations
| |
---|
Trams
| |
---|
|
---|
Wine making
| |
---|
World War II
| |
---|
|
|
Infrastructure
|
---|
Transport
| Road
| |
---|
Road bridges
| |
---|
Railway lines
| |
---|
Railway stations
| |
---|
Bus
| |
---|
Air
| |
---|
Ferry
| |
---|
Light rail
| |
---|
|
---|
Utilities
| Electricity generation
| |
---|
Water supply
| |
---|
|
---|
|
|
|
Other
|
---|
Defence
| |
---|
General
| |
---|
Health & medical research
| |
---|
|
|