Wheatbelt railway lines of Western Australia

[1] In 1905 the report of the Royal Commission into Immigration in Western Australia[2][3] stated: All considerable areas of agricultural land must have a 15 mile rail serviceIn 1947, the Royal Commission into railway management[4] stated of the 1905 and after era of construction: ... to construct railways in agricultural areas as cheaply as possible, lines were built with 45 lb.

rail sections which practically followed the surface of the ground with (a) earth ballasting (b) half-round timber sleepers (c) providing the bare minimum station facilities only Transport of wheat on the WAGR system was identified by station/siding early in annual reports, as a commodity of importance to the railways.

[5] Early transport of grain was organised through the railways and growers with the Cooperative Wheat Pool of Western Australia as a main player.

The feasibility of bulk handling and storage, and the relationship with the railway networks then in place, was a concern of Westralian Farmers in the 1930s,[6] as well as that of the Western Australian government of the time.

[27] Considerable concern was raised as to the closure proposals of the Tier 3 lines,[28] and the expected consequent increase in road traffic.

[1] In October 2012, the WA Treasurer Troy Buswell announced a delay in closure of the Tier 3 railway lines, and a move of the onus for upgrading onto the operators, and not for the government to fund or maintain.

[31][32][33][34] The January 2013 report by the Western Australian Auditor General Colin Murphy was critical of the Public Transport Authority and its management of the rail freight network lease.