Oberon Tarana Heritage Railway

The Oberon Tarana Heritage Railway inc (OTHR) is a volunteer association aiming to reopen the Oberon to Tarana railway line in the Central Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia, and run heritage trains.^[1]

The Line

The Oberon railway line is a 24-kilometre disused branch railway, which junctions with the Main Western line at Tarana and heads in a southerly direction to the town of Oberon. Opened on 3 October 1923,^[2] the line was lightly constructed, and included steep grades (1 in 25 or 4 %) and tight curves. It was operated by lightweight locomotives, mainly 19 class steam locomotives, and then 49 class diesels.^[3] It transported local seasonal vegetables, timber and livestock. Passenger services ceased in 1971, and freight services in 1979, with the line effectively closing then.

Rolling stock

In May 2010, end platform carriages CBA850 and HLF854 were acquired on loan from the New South Wales Rail Transport Museum,^[4] as well as railmotor CPH13 from the Canberra Railway Museum.^[5] In May 2010, locomotives 7307 and 7321 were purchased from Patrick Portlink.^[6]

Goals

1. to ensure the preservation of the existing rail infrastructure between & including both the junction station at Tarana and the terminus at Oberon
2. to operate in consultation and co-operation with the local Councils, local landholders and the broader Oberon / Tarana community
3. to progressively rebuild the line in stages to accommodate light traffic such as Railmotors (possibly a CPH rail motor or others) or by means of a light locomotive and carriages.
4. in the first stages of development, utilise OTHR volunteers and donated machinery to facilitate reconstruction
5. to initially focus on the reconstruction of the line and associated infrastructure
6. to encourage the resumption of commercial use of the line

The restoration of the line is being undertaken in three stages.

• Stage 1: Oberon to Hazelgrove
• Stage 2: Hazelgrove to Carlwood
• Stage 3: Carlwood to Tarana

References

• "Tarana to Oberon Railway Act, Act No. 8, 1919" (PDF). austlii.edu.au. Retrieved 26 August 2014.

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Railway lines in New South Wales

Main lines
Broken Hill South Coast (Illawarra) Main North Main Southern Main Western North Coast

Country branch lines

Operational Berrima Binnaway-Werris Creek Blayney-Demondrille Boggabilla Bombala Canberra Cobar Coonamble Grenfell Gwabegar Hay Lake Cargelligo Medway Quarry Mungindi Naradhan Newcastle Oaklands Parkes to Narromine Picton-Mittagong loop Pokataroo Sandy Hollow-Gulgong South Maitland Railway Stockinbingal-Parkes Temora-Roto Tottenham Troy Junction-Merrygoen Unanderra-Moss Vale Walgett Warren Yanco-Griffith Closed Ballina Barraba Belmont Boorowa Brewarrina Burcher Camden Captains Flat Corowa Crookwell Dorrigo Eugowra Holbrook Inverell Kunama Kywong Merriwa Molong-Dubbo Morpeth Mount Hope Murwillumbah Newnes Oberon Rand Rankins Springs Richmond Vale Railway Taralga Tocumwal Toronto Tumbarumba Tumut Wallsend Westby

Sydney lines
Commuter rail Airport Bankstown City Circle Cronulla Eastern Suburbs East Hills Main Suburban North Shore Olympic Park Richmond South West Goods lines Sydney Freight Network Southern Sydney Freight Rapid transit Sydney Metro North West **Epping to Chatswood (converted) Closed Camden Carlingford Holsworthy Kurrajong Rogans Hill Ropes Creek Royal National Park Sandown

Proposed or under construction
Sydney Metro Western Sydney Airport West Inland Rail Maldon–Dombarton Western Sydney Freight Line

Tourist & heritage railways
Byron Bay Railroad Company Glenreagh Mountain Railway Lachlan Valley Railway NSW Rail Museum Oberon Tarana Heritage Railway Richmond Vale Railway Skitube Zig Zag Railway