The Train Simulator community has been asking for an Australian Railways route and I would like to present a proposal that would feature heaps to do. The Ballarat Line is a 123km (76-miles) long route, connecting Melbourne to the Goldfields town of Ballarat with 10 intermediate stops in the way. The Route The route, 123km long which has 10 stations along the way, this is a little bit longer than average TSW routes currently available. This line features an urban landscape slowly fading away as you further venture onwards to the rural areas, Melton, Bacchus Marsh, Ballan and Ballarat. The Ballarat Line has a bit for everyone, whether it was express passenger, stopping all station passenger, shunting movements or freight movements, it seems like a route that would be best suited to Train Sim World. Ballarat Line map and illustrating RRR BLU (Ballarat Line upgrades). The line was rebuilt in 2005, to better suit the VLocity units which were being introduced at the time and make the line suited for 160kph (100mph) operations. This included replacement of the majority of the wooden sleepers and realignment of the infamous Bull Farm Curve. In recent years, 2018-2020, the line is being once again upgraded under the 'Regional Rail Revival's Ballarat Line Upgrade' which the map above illustrate the changes being implemented for completion in 2020. V/Line Driver Training Video, Melbourne to Wendouree Majority of the line is single-tracked, with passing loops at various locations (Rockbank, Melton, Parwan, Bacchus Marsh, Bank Box, Bungaree. A66+SSH (Six Carriage H set)-PH(Power Head-End) at Bull Farm (Parwan) Curve. Photo Credit: Corey Gibson The current operator, V/Line Victoria (Passenger) operates around 46 services in each direction (at the core, Sunshine - Southern Cross) Roughly 20 services each way.. V/Line uses a mix of locomotive-hauled services (run during peak periods and as far as Bacchus Marsh) and DMU Vlocity units to run the Ballarat Line. The main point of this submission was one of those services was especially notable was A66, which was the last operational regular running streamliner, running the 0630 ex-Bacchus Marsh for Melbourne, and 1612 Bacchus Marsh ex-Spencer Street Station (yes, I say that. Its not Southern Cross Station :P). A66 was iconically known in the railway community as 'the loco that didn't want to retire' with many attempts to retire A66 from revenue service. That day came in September 2018, A66 was put into long term storage and hasn't been seen since. The line would be best suited to the pre-2018 upgrade, as you would've got a mix of diesel locomotives and the RRL (Regional Rail Link) Geelong Line joining at Deer Park and Bendigo Line joining at Sunshine heading into Melbourne. The line beyond Melton heading towards Ballarat would be mostly single track as seen in the video. Important Key Notable Places: A few key notable places of interest would be: Southern Cross Station (formerly Spencer Street Station) Southern Cross Station is the major station interchanging all suburban and regional trains under the one roof. It features 16 platforms with 10 of them being used for regional train services servicing across Victoria. It was rebuilt and renamed to Southern Cross Station which was completed in 2006. Melton Weir A66 crosses Melton Weir. Photo Credit: Marcus Wong I quote a Victorian Heritage Database which had recorded the following: "Standing 38 metres over the Werribee River, the 375-metre long bridge is constructed of double lattice trusses supported on square tapering trestles constructed of trussed wrought iron legs. The bridge has bluestone abutments and pier bases of coursed rock-faced bluestone with drafted margins. The larger piers, now sometimes submerged in the Melton Reservoir, have sharply tapered cutwaters with curved coping at their tops." Bungaree Loop V/Line VLocity (VL11) uses the new bypass (South Line) loop track. Photo Credit: Marcus Wong Bungaree Loop is a place of interest of the Ballarat Line (between Ballan and Ballarat), where the line splits away. Trains can either use the new deviation or the old deviation. The North Line follows the original Ballarat Line which goes to Bungaree and onwards to Ballarat. The South Line is the direct connection (which was constructed in 2005) which bypasses Bungaree which saves a whopping 5km of the existing North Line. In 2020, the old North Line is set to be closed with a new loop being constructed alongside the existing South Line. Locomotives / Diesel Multiple Units The locomotive power included A class, N class and P class locomotives while VLocity units slowly replace the 'ageing' classic fleet. A Class Locomotives: The A-class locomotives were rebuilt from 1950's Victorian Railway's B classes. This was under the 1980's 'New Deal project which had intended to rebuild all 25 B class locos, which ended up to be the 11 locos that formed the A-Class fleet. This included a complete stripdown of the loco and rebuilt into whats has become the A class locomotive. The A-class has been fitted with EMD 12-645E3B prime movers and upgraded electronically. The A classes were able to reach speeds of 115kph (70mph). The A classes lack a HEP generator but were commonly paired up with a PH van (Head End Power Generator) to provide the HEP to the carriages. Passenger A class included: A60, A62, A66 and A70. Since the rebuilds, they had operated across the V/Line network being split into either passenger or freight operations. With the remaining passenger A class locos being used on the Bacchus Marsh services. One by one they slowly faded away into history. The rebuilt passenger A-classes are now in long term storage, awaiting their future as two of them has been allocated to heritage preservations. N Class Locomotives: The N class locomotives were built in the 1980s as part of the 'New Deal' project, which had only orders for 10 locos which was later extended to 25 after the A class rebuilds fell through. The N class locomotives were fitted with either EMD 12-645E3B or 12-645E3C prime movers. They had an advantage over the A class locos where they had been fitted with HEP (Head End Power) generators onboard the locomotive. Alongside the A classes, they too were able to reach speeds of 115kph (70mph) with current upgrades making them able to run up to 130kph (80mph). All 25 N classes (N451-475) operate across the various V/Line routes across Victoria and can be commonly seen on the Long Distance routes and various suburban/ interurban shuttles. In 2023-25, it's expected to see them phased out and retired. P Class Locomotives: The P class locomotives were rebuilds from former flattop T class locomotives in the 1980s as part of the 'New Deal' project. They too were upgraded with EMD 645 parts and rebuilt to have a different body to allow the HEP generator. In total, 12 were rebuilt into P class locomotives. They can run up to a max speed of 100kph (60mph). 5 of them were allocated to freight (P19-23). V/Line (P11-12/14-18) pairs them up with a six-car H set and another P class to form a push-pull consist. This allows flexibility within the V/Line short-haul services. They run as far as Wyndham Vale and Bacchus Marsh in recent years leading up to 2017. In 2017, the majority of the push-pull ended which saw 5 P class locomotives sold off to freight operators. V/Line retains P12, P13 (for standard gauge shunting) and P15 for various duties. VLocity DMU: The VLocity units were introduced in 2002, introducing a new era of 'higher-speed services' and speeding up Victoria's rail network. They are capable of 200kph (125mph) but are currently limited to 160kph (100mph) due to current track limitations. As of 2020, there are 80 Vlocity units in service with more on order. (VL00-VL88) They run on the majority of the interurban routes that V/Line cater, (Geelong, Bendigo, Traralgon, Ballarat lines). They also run a handful of long-distance routes including (Maryborough, Echuca, Ararat and Bairnsdale). Freight The line rarely sees freight during day time but it sees a handful of freight trains using the Ballarat Line to connect to Melbourne. This includes the QUBE Ultima Hay Train and SSR's Metro Trains being transferred to the Alstom Ballarat Workshops. Top it all of, there's the Southern Shorthaul Railroad's grain train that occasionally runs to Ballarat during the night. Heritage B74-X31 leads the way towards Bacchus Marsh, on an SRHC heritage special to Bacchus Marsh. One of my shots lol. Heritage trains occasionally use the Ballarat Line on an as-required basis. Heritage operators like Seymour Railway Heritage Centre, Steamrail Victoria and 707 Operation run tours across Victoria. Final Thoughts. The Ballarat Line offers a bit for everyone, whether it's shunting at Bacchus Marsh and stabling the train for the night, preparing a train during the peak heading back into Melbourne or running a normal commuter service in the peak. There are lots to do on the Ballarat Line. A line where you can sit back and relax while the scenery flies pass you. If DTG does decide to make this route, there are so many supporting documents that are in the public domain (including Line Gradient Graphs, Diagrams) and even photographic evidence of the stations. Here are two videos illustrating the peak periods with the various shunting movements prior to 2017 at Bacchus Marsh. Personal opinion but the upgrades were done in 2019-2020 ruins the country looks of this line significantly to transform it into an urban/suburban line.
Excellent idea and it's the same distance as Sherman Hill 123 km 76 mi. Some of the N & P class locomotives are in 1.435m Track Gauge for Albury NSW services via Wodonga Seymour from Spencer Street station.
