train at the junction with the Melbourne-Ballarat line at
Warrenheip Ballarat region A branch line was built from Ballarat to
Newtown and
Skipton in 1883. This line closed in 1985. A branch was built between Newtown,
Cressy and
Irrewarra (east of Colac) about 1910. This line was closed in 1953. A branch line was built from
Linton junction to the
Ballarat Cattle Yards and
Redan in 1886. This line was closed in 1997.
Ararat region Until 1993, two daily V/Line services ran from Melbourne to Dimboola, as well as the nightly
The Overland service from Melbourne to
Adelaide. Under the
Kennett Government's economic reforms, the V/Line service to Dimboola was cut back to Ararat, with the towns beyond now served by
coaches. The Ararat−Serviceton section was converted to standard gauge and reopened as part of the
Western standard gauge railway line in 1995, which makes reinstatement of train services beyond Ararat unlikely.
The Overland service is now operated by
Journey Beyond and runs on the
Western standard gauge railway line, serving only some stations between
Southern Cross and
Adelaide Parklands Terminal. A branch line was built from Lubeck (between
Stawell and
Murtoa) to
Rupanyup in 1887, extended to
Marnoo by 1909, and to Bolangum in the 1927. It closed in 1983. A branch line was opened from Murtoa to
Warracknabeal in 1886 and extended to
Beulah in 1893,
Roseberry and
Hopetoun in 1894 and
Patchewollock in 1927. The section from Hopetoun to Patchewollock was closed in the 1980s. The line from Murtoa to Hopetoun was converted to standard gauge in 1995. It has not carried passengers for many years and grain services between Roseberry to Hopetoun were suspended in 2005. A branch line was completed between Horsham,
East Natimuk and Noradjuha in 1887, and progressively extended to
Balmoral by 1920, where it connected with a line from
Cavendish to
Hamilton. The whole line, from Noradjuha to Hamilton, was closed in 1979. A branch was opened from East Natimuk to
Goroke in 1894, and extended further west to Carpolac in 1927. It closed in 1986. A branch was opened from Dimboola to
Jeparit in 1894 and extended to
Rainbow in 1899 and
Yaapeet in 1914. The line was converted to standard gauge in 1995. The line was deemed unusable after severe flooding in January 2011. The Victorian Government announced that they would contribute $5.3 million to restoring the line from Dimboola to Rainbow in 2011. In 1905, a branch line was opened from Stawell to the Heatherlie quarry in
The Grampians, from which large amounts of high-quality
freestone were railed, to be used in a number of significant building projects. The branch was closed in 1949. Another branch line, from Jeparit to
Lorquon, was opened in 1912, and was extended to Yanac in 1916. It closed in 1986. A line was built from Ararat to
Portland in 1877, via
Maroona,
Hamilton, and
Heywood. A number of branch lines were built from this line, none of which are in use today. This line was converted to standard gauge in 1995; up to Maroona it forms part of the
Western standard gauge railway line, where it junctions with section of the line towards
North Shore. The Portland line saw further upgrades as part of the
Murray Basin Rail Project, connecting it to the Mildura line via the
Ararat-, which was converted to standard gauge also as part of the MBRP. ==References in popular culture==