Corporate Body

Victorian Railways (1883 - 1983)

Colony and State of Victoria

From
1883
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
To
1983
Functions
Rail Industry and Advisory or regulatory body
Alternative Names
  • Victorian Railways Board (Also known as, 1973 - 1983)
  • Victorian Railways Commissioners (Also known as, 1883 - 1973)
Reference No
VA 2876
Legal Status
Public Record Office of Victoria Registered Agency
Location
Melbourne, Victoria

Summary

Victorian Railways was established in 1883 under the Victorian Railways Commissioners Act 1883, and provided for the transfer of statutory responsibility for the state's railways from the Board of Land and Works to the Victorian Railway Commissioners, and the Department of Railways became subject to the authority of the Commissioners. It was responsible for the survey and construction of new railway lines as well as the maintenance of existing lines and the superintendence of railway services.

Under the Railways (Amendment) Act 1972 the management of the Victorian Railways, then known as VicRail, passed from the Victorian Railways Commissioners to the Victorian Railways Board.

In 1983, after a century of operation, Victorian Railways was abolished, with the State Transport Authority taking over responsibility for the provision of country rail and road, passenger and freight services, and the Metropolitan Transit Authority taking over responsibility for the operation of metropolitan rail services.

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Related People

Published resources

Books

  • Brook, Arthur, Lamps & lighting, volume 1: station platforms, buildings and yards, solid and liquid fuelled lamps and lighting (Daylesford, Vic.: Central Highlands Tourist Railway, 2019), [var.] pp. Details
  • Brook, Arthur, Lamps and lighting, volume 2: station platforms, buildings and yards, gas and electric lamps and lighting (Daylesford, Vic.: Central Highlands Tourist Railway, 2021), [var.] pp. Details
  • Merz, Charles H., Report on the application of electric traction to the Melbourne suburban railway system (Melbourne: Victorian Railways, 1908), 73 pp. Details

Book Sections

  • Adam-Smith, Patsy, 'Clapp, Sir Harold Winthrop (1875-1952), railway administrator' in Australian dictionary of biography, volume 8: 1891 - 1939 Cl-Gib, Bede Nairn and Geoffrey Serle, eds (Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 1981), pp. 1-3. http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A080002b.htm. Details

Edited Books

  • Stephenson, C. T. ed., The Electrification of the Metropolitan Railway System of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia (Melbourne: Industrial Australian and Mining Standard, 1919). http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-52838575. Details

Journal Articles

  • Frost, L. E., 'A Reinterpretation of Victoria's Railway Construction Boom of the 1880's', Australian Economic History Review, 26 (1) (1986), 40-55. Details

Resources

Resource Sections

  • 'VA 2876 Victorian Railways (also Victorian Railways Commissioners 1883-1973, Victorian Railways Board 1973-1983)', in Public Record Office Victoria online catalogue, Public Record Office Victoria, 2003, https://prov.vic.gov.au/archive/VA2876. Details

See also

Ailie Smith; Ken McInnes

Created: 20 September 2001, Last modified: 4 June 2024

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