Stockinbingal- Parkes railway line, New South Wales

The Stockinbingal- Parkes railway line (also known as the 'Forbes line') is a railway line in New South Wales, Australia which connects Stockinbingal on the Main South line with Parkes on the Main West line ["New South Wales Cross-Country Lines - Narromine-Cootamundra" Clark, L.A. Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin, July, 1953 pp85-88] . The line has come to be part of the main route for goods trains travelling between Sydney and the west of NSW and beyond, allowing trains to bypass the steep grades and passenger services on the Blue Mountains section of the Main West line.

Western goods trains were rescheduled to operate over this line in lieu of the Blue Mountains from 1993 when the now-defunct "National Rail" company commenced interstate freight haulage. ["National Rail to run Western trains via South". Railway Digest, April 1993. ARHS (NSW Division).] The line opened between Parkes and Forbes in 1893, and Forbes and Stockinbingal in 1918. [cite web | last = Bozier | first = Rolfe | coaauthors = "et al" | work = NSWrail.net | title = Stockinbingal- Parkes line | url=http://www.nswrail.net/lines/show.php?name=NSW:stockinbingal_parkes| accessdate = 2007-05-09 ] Passenger services were operated by CPH railmotors until their withdrawal between Stockinbingal and Forbes in October 1974. Services operated between Parkes and Forbes until 1983, consisting of a "Mail" train and a rail-motor service. [ Banger,C. "Passenger Rail Service Withdrawals By Line Section Since 1960." ARHS Bulletin, Vol 54, No 790. August 2003.]

No regular passenger services use the line, although Main West line passenger services occasionally divert over the line when trackwork closes the regular route. The line is owned by the Rail Infrastructure Corporation of New South Wales, however it is leased by the Australian Rail Track Corporation who are responsible for the maintenance and operation of the line. [cite web | ARTC| work = ARTC | title = Final Tripartite Agreement| url=http://www.artc.com.au/docs/nswlease/pdf/Final_Tripartite_Agreement.pdfname=NSW:grenfell | accessdate = 2007-05-24 ]

ee also

* Rail transport in New South Wales

References