Western Australian Government Railways (WAGR) was the state owned operator of railways in the state of Western Australia between October 1890 and June 2003. Owned by the state government, it was renamed a number of times to reflect extra responsibility for tram and ferry operations that it assumed and later relinquished. Westrail was the trading name of the WAGR from September 1975 until December 2000, when the WAGR's freight division and the Westrail brand were privatised. Its remaining passenger operations were transferred to the Public Transport Authority in July 2003.

History of operations The WAGR had its origins (as Western Australian Railways, or just WAR) in 1879, when the Department of Works and Railways was established.

The first government railway line in Western Australia opened on 26 July 1879, between Geraldton and Northampton. It was followed by the Eastern Railway from Fremantle to Guildford via Perth on 1 March 1881. The WAR adopted the narrow gauge of to reduce construction costs.

Over the next few decades, an extensive network of railway lines throughout Western Australia was built, primarily to service the wheatbelt. Prior to the expanded use of road transport, the network was of vital importance in the state, particularly for moving agricultural, forestry and mining products.

In 1890, WAR and the Department of Works and Railways were abolished and replaced by the WAGR and the Department of Works and Buildings (later the Public Works Department).

The WAGR network was joined to that of the rest of mainland Australia, albeit to , a different gauge, in October 1917 with the opening of the Commonwealth Railways' Trans-Australian Railway to Kalgoorlie.

Legislative restrictions were implemented to limit competition from road transport, most notably from the 1930s until the 1950s, when the Transport Co-ordination Board kept strict control over commercial road traffic through powers vested by the State Transport Co-ordination Act 1933.State Transport Co-ordination Act 1933 Government of Western Australia As road transportation expanded and losses escalated, many lines closed from 1949.

The network peaked in 1937 at . Unusually for such a large network, only one tunnel was required, the Swan View Tunnel. A few isolated lines were operated, such as the Marble Bar line in the Pilbara and the Hopetoun to Ravensthorpe railway line on the South Coast. With many lines in need of heavy maintenance, rolling stock in need of replacement and heavy losses being incurred, during the 1950s many branches closed with of the network so treated in 1956–57, although were subsequently reopened on a seasonal basis.

In the late 1960s, the Eastern and Eastern Goldfields lines between Perth and Kalgoorlie was gauge converted to allow through operation of trains from the eastern states along with the Esperance & Menzies lines, with sections through the Avon River and east of Southern Cross built on new alignments. A concerted program of dieselisation saw diesel locomotives replace the last steam locomotives in March 1972.

In the late 20th century, the end of restrictions on competing road transport resulted in the WAGR and its successors moving from being a small customer-oriented system to a predominantly main line bulk carrier operation. This resulted in many smaller communities losing their facilities. However, in the wheatbelt, bulk handling of grain continued despite the changes.

Westrail In September 1975, the WAGR adopted the trading name Westrail and an associated logo. However, the official name of the WAGR was not changed.

The new name was the main element of a complete program to improve the WAGR's public image. Every visible feature of the organisation was to be associated with the new Westrail identity. The transition from WAGR to Westrail quickly began, with the new name rapidly and almost universally replacing the old one in the vocabulary of staff and the public.

Strong impetus to acceptance of the new corporate identity was given by the completion of a new Westrail office headquarters and passenger facility at East Perth Terminal (then known as Perth Terminal). The new building, named the Westrail Centre, was opened by the Premier of Western Australia, Charles Court, on 12 November 1976.

Westrail was responsible for managing the state's rail infrastructure. It operated urban and regional passenger and freight services throughout Western Australia. In Perth, Westrail provided the metropolitan area rail service, under contract to another arm of the state government. Its country passenger services involved the operation of both trains and road coaches.

In October 1987, it was announced by Premier Brian Burke and Federal Minister for Land Transport & Infrastructure Support, Peter Duncan, that a merger of Westrail with Australian National was being investigated."Profitable merger" Railway Gazette International volume 143 issue 12 December 1987 page 786 Nothing ever came of it.AN-Westrail Integration: An Assessment of Options Bureau of Transport Economics May 1988

On 17 December 2000, the WAGR's freight division along with the Westrail name and logo were sold to Australia Western Railroad, a subsidiary of the Australian Railroad Group (ARG). The deal also saw the WAGR's freight lines leased to ARG for 49 years."Australian Railroad Group buys Westrail freight" Railway Digest December 2000 page 23Annual Report June 2002 Western Australian Government Railways Commission

The WAGR's remaining functions, including owning the rail network and operating regional passenger services, were transferred to the Western Australian Government Railways Commission. On 1 January 2003, the WAGR Commission's functions were absorbed by the Public Transport Authority.

The former Westrail Centre is now known as the Public Transport Centre.

Names The WAGR was renamed a number of times to reflect extra responsibility for tram and ferry operations that it assumed and later relinquished. 1 January 1880 – 30 September 1890: Department of Works & Railways 1 October 1890 – 30 June 1914: Western Australian Government Railways (I) 1 July 1914 – 30 June 1922: Western Australian Government Railways & Tramways 1 July 1922 – 30 June 1930: Western Australian Government Railways, Tramways & Electricity Supply 1 July 1930 – 30 June 1946: Western Australian Government Railways, Tramways, Ferries & Electricity Supply 1 July 1946 – 21 April 1949: Western Australian Government Railways, Tramways & Ferries 22 April 1949 – 16 December 2000: Western Australian Government Railways (II) 19 September 1975: WAGR adopted the trading name WestrailOur History 1951 to 1975 Public Transport Authority 17 December 2000: The freight business, Westrail name and a 49-year lease on the network outside of Perth were sold to the Australian Railroad Group.Our History Brookfield Rail The public entity that continued to operate passenger services was renamed the Western Australian Government Railways Commission (WAGRC). 1 July 2003: WAGRC succeeded by Public Transport Authority that today operates services under the Transperth and Transwa brands

Corporate identity Initially, Westrail applied an orange with blue stripe livery to its locomotives and passenger vehicles. Freight rolling stock and road trucks were painted yellow, and blue was used on all signs, buildings and printed material. The Westrail logo incorporated a stylised surmounted by a solid bar representing a railway track. Between the bar and the was the word .

In July 1997, a yellow with blue livery was unveiled when the first Q class diesel-electric locomotive was delivered."First of Westrail Locos Breaks Cover" Railway Digest August 1997 page 7

Inquiries and royal commissions A range of committees of inquiry as well as royal commissions were conducted on aspects of the railways between 1893 and 1959, however to appreciate the number of commissions that had relevance to railway operations, the coal and wheat industries were linked with the railway operations as well. The following are a selected group of commissions:

Report of the Royal Commission appointed to inquire into the condition and organisation of the railway workshops at Fremantle.Appointed:17/05/1893. Report:05/10/1893 in Western Australian Government Gazette No. 25, 18 May 1893, p.540 Chairperson: Charles Harper. Royal Commission on City Railway Traffic 1899WAGG No. 36, 2 July 1897, p. 1279 / WAGG No. 58, 5 Nov 1897, p. 2349 Tabled Paper 2/1899 3rd/4th 1899 - Vol I Chairperson: H. W. Venn 30/06/1897 Royal Commission appointed to inquire into the administration of the locomotive branch of the Western Australian Government Railways Chairperson: Richard Speight 23/08/1899 Royal Commission on charges made against high officials in the service of the Western Australian Government Railways 1906 Chairperson: Robert F. McMillan15/09/1906 04/10/1906 WAGG No. 63, 28 September 1906, p. 2935 Tabled Paper A6/1906 6th/2nd 1906 - Vol II Royal Commission on railways 1922 Chairperson: George W. Stead Report of the Royal Commission appointed to inquire into Australian Standard Garratt Locomotive 1947 Chairperson: Albert A. Wolff Second interim report of the Royal Commission appointed to enquire into (inter-alia) the supply of local coal to the Western Australian government railways Chairperson: Alexander J. Gibson First interim report of the Royal Commission appointed to inquire into the Midland Junction Workshops of the Western Australian Government Railways Chairperson: Alexander J. Gibson Report of the Royal Commission appointed to inquire into the management, workings and control of the Western Australian Government Railways Chairperson: Alexander J. Gibson Royal Commission appointed to inquire into administration of the Western Australian Government Railways - there were 10 separate reports over two years Report on the working of the government railways for quarter ended 30 September 1957 Report of the Western Australian Government Railways Commission for the year ended 30 June 1959 Chairperson: Alan G. Smith

Acquisitions The WAGR purchased the Great Southern Railway in December 1896 and the Midland Railway of Western Australia in August 1964.

Services The WAGR operated a wide variety of services throughout its history, including the more standard country and suburban passenger and freight workings as well as a limited electrified service, early country railcar services, road bus services and overnight sleeper services to distant destinations.

Named services

Although some passenger trains were bestowed nicknames, it was not until The Westland was launched in 1938, that a service was officially named. Further trains were named in the 1960s in an effort to increase the prestige of rail travel. NameOriginDestinationCommencedCeasedAlbany ProgressPerthAlbany19611978Albany WeekenderPerthAlbany19641975The AustralindPerthBunbury1947presentBunbury BellePerthBunbury19641975The ShopperPerthBunbury19641975The MidlanderPerthGeraldton19641975The WestlandPerthKalgoorlie19381969The KalgoorliePerthKalgoorlie19621971The ProspectorEast PerthKalgoorlie1971presentThe MullewaPerthMullewa19611974

Unnamed services The WAGR operated services from Perth to many destinations throughout the state. In 1935, it operated 63 sleeper services a week. It also operated local passenger, many operating as mixed trains. The last of these ceased in 1973.

Electrified services