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The Main North Line (also known as the Great Northern Railway) is a major railway in New South Wales, Australia. It runs through the Central Coast, Hunter and New England regions. The line was the original main line between Sydney and Brisbane, however this required a change of gauge at Wallangarra. The line is now closed north of Armidale, with the main route between Sydney and Brisbane now the North Coast line. ==Description of route== The line starts as a branch off the Main Suburban line at Strathfield in Sydney. The line heads north as a quadruple track electrified line to Rhodes, crossing the John Whitton Bridge over the Parramatta River as a double track line. At West Ryde the line again expands out to four tracks through to Epping. The line is then largely double track through the northern suburbs of Sydney, crossing the Hawkesbury River Railway Bridge, before passing through the Central Coast. At Fassifern, a former branch line to Toronto divided off in an eastwards direction until closed in 1990. The line continues north to Broadmeadow in the inner western suburbs of Newcastle. North of Broadmeadow is the junction with the Newcastle branch line. Electrification of the main line ends at Broadmeadow but continues along the Newcastle branch line. The line was electrified to Gosford in January 1960, Wyong in April 1982〔(Railway Sign Official Opening Gosford - Wyong Electrification 3 April 1982 ) Powerhouse Museum Collection〕 and Newcastle in June 1984.〔"The Official Opening of Newcastle Rail Electrification" ''Railway Digest'' July 1984 page 218〕 Freight trains were hauled by electric locomotives until March 1998.〔"Electric Locos" ''Railway Digest'' June 1998 page 35〕 The line then swings westwards as four tracks (two main line and two coal roads) through the outer suburbs of Newcastle to Maitland. Maitland is the junction of the North Coast line which continues to Brisbane. The line becomes double track immediately west of Maitland and heads through the Upper Hunter Valley through the townships of Branxton, Singleton and Muswellbrook where the double track ends. Muswellbrook is the junction point for the cross country line to Sandy Hollow and Gulgong. The Main North continues northwards through the Ardglen Tunnel to Werris Creek, where the Mungindi Line branches off to Moree, and a cross country branch continues to Binnaway and ultimately Dubbo. The line continues north, but sees limited traffic beyond Werris Creek. The line reaches the major New England towns of Tamworth and Armidale, the latter being the northernmost extent of service on the line. Until the mid-2000s freight traffic continued to the disused station at Dumaresq which is home to a now-also-disused agricultural fertilizer depot. There is now wire across the corridor at several points between Armidale and Dumaresq, after which the line is for all intents and purposes closed. A block is placed across the tracks at the 590 kilometre mark (a short distance on from Dumaresq), and north of Glen Innes the line, particularly its bridges, has fallen into disrepair. In December 1991 the line was severed when the Roads & Traffic Authority built a deviation of the New England Highway over the line at Bluff Rock south of Tenterfield.〔"Line cut at Bluff Rock" ''Railway Digest'' March 1992 page 90〕 At Wallangarra, the line met Queensland Railways' Southern railway line. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Main North railway line, New South Wales」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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