Terminated terminus.
Another one mainly for the railway enthusiasts. This is the closed railway yard at Springsure. The silos give away the main use of the branch and this station in its later years. Like many closed lines, they were euphemistically "mothballed", an easy way to close and walk away from a line under the pretence that they could be reopened quick enough because all the infrastructure was left. Given the tracks have been decimated, the buildings removed and the whole former railway yard now a grain/trucking depot, I don't see it reopening any time soon. The diamond crossing in the previous photo is on the extreme right of the shot.
Here's a quick history of the railway from Emerald (Nogoa) to Springsure.
Nogoa – Springsure, 65 kilometres (40 mi). This line opened in 1887 to provide access to a fertile valley. Although built to pioneer standards such as 10 tonne axle load, it has remained in service, with the first 43 km to Wurba Junction being upgraded in conjunction with the opening of a coal loading balloon loop serving the Minerva mine in 2006. The section beyond Wurba Junction was closed on 26 June 2013.
For much of its later existence, the line served the silos and grain transport but rationalisation of grain transport saw this and many other lines close or be truncated. A large new GrainCorp terminal is nearing completion on the outskirts of Emerald.
Terminated terminus.
Another one mainly for the railway enthusiasts. This is the closed railway yard at Springsure. The silos give away the main use of the branch and this station in its later years. Like many closed lines, they were euphemistically "mothballed", an easy way to close and walk away from a line under the pretence that they could be reopened quick enough because all the infrastructure was left. Given the tracks have been decimated, the buildings removed and the whole former railway yard now a grain/trucking depot, I don't see it reopening any time soon. The diamond crossing in the previous photo is on the extreme right of the shot.
Here's a quick history of the railway from Emerald (Nogoa) to Springsure.
Nogoa – Springsure, 65 kilometres (40 mi). This line opened in 1887 to provide access to a fertile valley. Although built to pioneer standards such as 10 tonne axle load, it has remained in service, with the first 43 km to Wurba Junction being upgraded in conjunction with the opening of a coal loading balloon loop serving the Minerva mine in 2006. The section beyond Wurba Junction was closed on 26 June 2013.
For much of its later existence, the line served the silos and grain transport but rationalisation of grain transport saw this and many other lines close or be truncated. A large new GrainCorp terminal is nearing completion on the outskirts of Emerald.