Picton-Mittagong Loop Line set to roar once more
The once bustling Picton-Mittagong Loop Line is set to roar with the sound of locomotives again after the NSW Government announced it would fund a restoration of the line.
The once bustling Picton-Mittagong Loop Line is set to roar with the sound of locomotives again after the NSW Government announced it would fund a restoration of the line.
Boasting the deepest cutting in the southern hemisphere, known as the Big Hill Cutting, the loop line was once a bustling freight and passenger line but has largely been dormant for 44 years.
But the NSW Government has now allocated $5.5 million to rejuvenate the line between Buxton and Colo-Vale and to electrify the points at Picton Junction to allow diesel trains to operate from Campbelltown Station to Thirlmere.
Wollondilly MP Nathaniel Smith campaigned on the idea prior to the March state election and says it will provide a tourism and economic benefit to the region.
“You get roughly around 60,000 visitors to the NSW Rail Museum here in Thirlmere every year, we’d expect to double or triple that,” he said.
“We’ve seen what a great steam train service has done in Victoria at Puffing Billy, they get 460,000 patrons a year and with federal and state investment they’ll get around 735,000 patrons a year by 2027.
“It will help small business, there will be employment opportunities, training opportunities and also will be great for school kids to come through on excursions.”
Transport Heritage NSW CEO Andrew Moritz said the loop line’s rejuvenation would bring visitors from across the Western Sydney region.
“We’ve seen strong visitation growth and a lot of that is driven by the events that we put on and by the steam train rides that we’ve been able to put on the line,” he said.
“We’re confident we’ll bring additional visitors from the wider region.”
Mr Moritz said the rail museum gave the general public and rail enthusiasts a glimpse into the story of Australian rail and the different technologies developed over time.
He said reopening the line would also boost employment at the rail museum.
“We will also need to look at the carriages and locomotives we have in service,” he said.
“At the moment we mount a weekend operation quite comfortably but if we move to a more regular service we’re gonna need more people and equipment so we’re looking forward to developing those plans.”
Mr Smith couldn’t give a firm time frame on when the line would be open for business but estimated between a year and two years.
“It could be a little bit longer it could be a little bit shorter, it depends on the experts who come through and do the planning,” he said.
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