Bridgewater Railway Line - Closure of The Line

Closure of The Line

When the more direct South Eastern Freeway opened in the 1960s, patronage to Bridgewater declined heavily, as more people had access to cars and the car journey was much quicker and shorter. On Sunday 26 July 1987, passenger services to Bridgewater were withdrawn, attributed to high cost of operation and low passenger numbers. All stations beyond Belair were closed and all suburban trains now terminate at Belair.

In 1995 the main line from Adelaide to Melbourne was converted from Broad Gauge (1600mm) to Standard Gauge (1435mm). This prevented any restoration of local trains to Bridgewater or beyond, and also disconnected a number of the South Australian country broad gauge services from Adelaide. Between Goodwood and Belair, the former double track route became two parallel single lines – one Broad Gauge for suburban railcars, the other Standard Gauge for interstate freight.

Along with this conversion, stations on the Belair line at Mile End Goods, Millswood, Hawthorn and Clapham were closed. The other Belair line stations; Unley Park, Torrens Park, Lynton, Eden Hills, Coromandel, Glenalta, Pinera and Belair each had one platform closed.