The Outer Circle: A History of the Oakleigh to Fairfield Railway -Used- (UBVC-0974H)
Product No.: UBVC-0974H
Title: The Outer Circle: A History of the Oakleigh to Fairfield Railway
Author(s): Beardsell, David V. & Herbert, Bruce H.
Illustrator(s): N/A
Publisher: A.R.H.S (Victorian Division)
ISBN: 0858490242
Condition: Used
Binding: Hardcover
Dust Jacket: Fair (Spine-Sunned & Slight Tearing)
Edition: 1st Edition
Publication Year: 1979
Features: 126 Pages with Black/White Photos.
The railway never ran as one entire service from Oakleigh to the city. In fact it didn't go as far as the city. In Fairfield it met a line from Heidelberg which went as far as Collingwood. From there travellers could wait whilst the engine was unhooked and moved to the other end of the train, or take a cable car. Trains were changed at Norwood (Ashburton) and Riversdale. To travel from Oakleigh to the city took 4 hours.
The track was used in its entirety for only 26 months with the Fairfield to Deepdene end closing first. Next to close was the Norwood to Oakleigh section. In fact 5 years after its construction, for a 12 month period, no trains operated on the railway at all. The depression of the 1890's meant that development in the outer areas of Melbourne was delayed. Eventually the section between Ashburton and Deepdene was reopened for passengers, with a few extra stations operating. Amongst these were Stanley* (Mont Albert Road) renamed Roystead; Hartwell Station renamed Burwood; and Hartwell Hill renamed Hartwell.
The station for the latter came from Walhalla. Stations were not manned and passengers bought tickets from the guard. Trains were serviced in Camberwell. This line was very popular with its passengers and continued until 1927. There wouldn't have been much traffic on the roads, but when a main road like Whitehorse Road was reached, the train had to stop, the guard with his red flag would step out onto the road, the train would cross, stop again and wait for the guard to climb back on board.
Although part of the line was electrified, these were the days of steam trains; the wood depot at the Belmore Road and High Street corner in Kew used a section as a service line until 1943, whilst the Australian Paper Mill in Fairfield did likewise until 1996. Whilst sleepers are still being taken up in Fairfield, sections of land where the trains once ran are now well used as walking and cycling tracks.
Where bridges were built, they were made wide enough for two tracks, so a bridge like that on the Chandler Highway is still used today for vehicle traffic.