The Melba Line is a 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) narrow-gauge railway on the West Coast of Tasmania. The line was originally constructed as a private railway line named the Emu Bay Railway and was one of the longest-lasting and most successful private railway companies in Australia. While at present the line travels from Burnie to Melba Flats, it previously ran through to Zeehan carrying minerals and passengers as an essential service for the West Coast community.
Following the opening of the Murchison Highway, the line was closed between Rosebery and Zeehan in August 1965.[6] After being sold in 1967 to EZ Industries, the line was upgraded to carry heavier trains and reopened in January 1970 from Rosebery to Melba Flats.[7] During the construction of the Pieman River hydro electric scheme in the late 1970s, the line was diverted in places and new bridges were built.
The Melba Line was included in the October 1984 sale of EZ Industries to North Broken Hill Peko, which merged with CRA Limited to form Pasminco in 1988. In 1989, an 11-kilometre branch opened from Moorey Junction to serve Aberfoyle's Hellyer Mine. On 22 May 1998, the line was sold by Pasminco to the Australian Transport Network and integrated into its Tasrail business.[5][8][9][10] In February 2004, it was included in the sale of Tasrail to Pacific National, and was purchased by the newly established government-owned TasRail in September 2009.[11]
Stopping places
Map of the original route
At its peak as a steam operation, the railway had approximately 23 stopping or named places (including names for watering locations and other passenger operation related points) on its line and adjacent lines:
^TASMANIA. HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY. TRAMWAY : (No. 90.) Report on Survey of proposed by Mr. J. C. Climie, CE. laid upon the Table by the Minister of Lands, and ordered by the House to be printed, 16 August 1882
