History
In the 1980s development of the Thredbo and Perisher Valley skifields was increasing, but the mountain road providing access to them was limited, and road and carparking expansion works were financially and environmentally unacceptable. In 1980 the National Parks and Wildlife Service proposed the establishment of a day visitors resort at Blue Cow Mountain, which increased the traffic demands. A number of transport modes were examined, including a funicular railway, chairlift, and an aerial gondola, but all were of limited capacity, affected by weather, and would scar the mountainsides.
A rack and pinion railway was found to be the best option, running mostly underground. The Perisher Skitube Joint Venture was established, with Transfield and Kumagai NSW (a division of Japanese firm Kumagai Gumi) holding a 49 percent share each. The main proponent of the scheme, Canberra engineer Ken Bilston, held a 2 percent share and was technical manager for the project. Feasibility studies commenced in 1982 for a double track railway on the assumption that the road would close in winter, but this was altered to a single track line with passing loops when the closure was ruled out.
Construction commenced in October 1984, with tunnelling beginning in June 1985. A consortium of Swiss and Australian companies provided the rolling stock, overhead wiring, sub-stations, communications and signalling. The line opened from Bullocks to Perisher on 26 July 1987 with the entire line officially opened on 29 August 1988.
Read more about this topic: Skitube Alpine Railway
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“The myth of independence from the mother is abandoned in mid- life as women learn new routes around the mother—both the mother without and the mother within. A mid-life daughter may reengage with a mother or put new controls on care and set limits to love. But whatever she does, her child’s history is never finished.”
—Terri Apter (20th century)
“If you look at the 150 years of modern China’s history since the Opium Wars, then you can’t avoid the conclusion that the last 15 years are the best 15 years in China’s modern history.”
—J. Stapleton Roy (b. 1935)
“Systematic philosophical and practical anti-intellectualism such as we are witnessing appears to be something truly novel in the history of human culture.”
—Johan Huizinga (1872–1945)