Karoonda railway station explained

Karoonda
Address:Kr Wilson Drive, Karoonda, South Australia
Coordinates:-35.0958°N 139.8968°W
Distance:147 kilometres from Adelaide
Line:Loxton line
Structure:Ground
Platform:1
Tracks:1
Opened:1906
Closed:31 October 1987
Operator:Australian National
Status:Closed

Karoonda railway station was located at the junction of the Peebinga railway line, Waikerie railway line and the Barmera railway line. It served the town of Karoonda.

History

Karoonda railway station opened in 1906 with the opening of the Brown's Well railway line to Meribah.[1] It became a junction station with the opening of the Waikerie railway line on 23 September 1914 and the Peebinga railway line in December the same year.[2]

The station was a busy place with porters, staff, goods and maintenance sheds, refreshment rooms, passengers, and trains shunting everywhere. [3]

The station closed to regular traffic on 31 October 1987.[4] Part of the Brown's Well railway line plus most of the Loxton railway line spur from Alawoona were converted to standard gauge and remained as the Loxton railway line, used to carry part of the seasonal grain harvest. The rest of the line and branches were closed in the 1990s. The Loxton line closed on 20 July 2015, with all grain traffic now taken by road.[5]

Notes and References

  1. Railway Extension. Brown's Well line 21 December 1912
  2. Murray Railways Waikerie line recommended 21 September 1912
  3. Riverland and Mallee Railways
  4. Railway Carriages in Pioneer Park
  5. News: End of line for Murraylands, Mallee grain trains . Peri . Strathearn . 21 May 2015 . 4 August 2015 . Fairfax Regional Media . . 29 September 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150929101541/http://www.murrayvalleystandard.com.au/story/3094164/end-of-line-for-murraylands-mallee-grain-trains/ . dead .