A New Australian Railroad. Then North to Darwin

Abstract

Contraction rather than growth has characterized the rail systems of most countries in recent decades. The opening of a major new line is not without importance, especially when it is envisaged as part of a transcontinental link that may be completed during the 1980s. The new Central Australian Railway to Alice Springs was officially opened on October 9, 1980 (Fig. 1). Construction of the standard-gauge line, starting in 1975 at Tarcoola on the Trans-Australian Railway, was completed a year ahead of schedule and in its budget of $A145 million (approximately US$164 million). The achievement was remarkable in a time of rapid inflation and in an area with a harsh semiarid environment and few inhabitants. The 831-kilometer track is the largest single Australian rail project in more than sixty years. Construction of the first railroad to Alice Springs began in 1878 at Port Augusta, but not until 1929 was the destination reached.' The problems that plagued the building of that narrow-gauge line-mainly costs and the physical environment-continued throughout its period of use and were the principal reasons for its replacement. A standard-gauge line was installed between Port Augusta and Marree in 1957 to provide for the movement of coal from Leigh Creek to the main South Australian power stations near Port Augusta.2 The old line remained open as far north as Hawker until 1972. However, the most troublesome sections remained. Put down with little or no earthworks in a