Southern Cross Southwards Railway

The Southern Cross Southwards Railway, also referred to as the South Yilgarn railway, was an authorised but never constructed railway line in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia. The railway line was to head south from Southern Cross, where it connected to the Eastern Goldfields Railway.

History

The Eastern Goldfields Railway railway had been opened from Northam to Southern Cross in 1894 and extended to Kalgoorlie by 1897. In 1929, the Wyalkatchem to Southern Cross railway line was opened to the north of Southern Cross, connecting it to Wyalkatchem.

In 1927, a trunk railway line from Fremantle via Armadale, Brookton and Corrigin and on from there to Salmon Gums on the Coolgardie to Esperance railway was proposed, of which only the Fremantle to Armadale and Brookton to Corrigin sections already existed. Extending the recently opened Wagin to Newdegate railway line, located further south, to Salmon Gums was not seen as a feasible option as an alternative. It was seen as a necessity to build a connecting railway line south from Southern Cross to this new trunk line. Other railway lines, south of the proposed new trunk line, were also envisioned to connect to the new line, potentially including the isolated Hopetoun to Ravensthorpe railway line. It was also proposed that, from the Wagin to Newdegate line, a branch line from Lake Grace northbound was to be constructed, eventually connecting to Southern Cross as well, but this line was only ever taken as far as Hyden.

In late 1927 and early 1928, a survey for what was called then the South Yilgarn railway was carried out, heading south and then south-west from Southern Cross to Forrestania.