Railways of Australia (ROA) was an association of railways operators. It was established in November 1963 when the government railway operators of Australia and New Zealand decided to unite to promote the industry on a national scale.[1]

Railways of Australia
FoundedNovember 1963
FounderCommonwealth Railways
New South Wales Government Railways
New Zealand Railways Department
Queensland Railways
South Australian Railways
Tasmanian Government Railways
Victorian Railways
Western Australian Government Railways
Headquarters

The inaugural members were the Commonwealth Railways, New South Wales Government Railways, New Zealand Railways Department, Queensland Railways, South Australian Railways, Tasmanian Government Railways, Victorian Railways and Western Australian Government Railways.[2] Headquartered in Melbourne, it also maintained a sales office in London, England.

The Ghan train with carriages branded Railways of Australia travelling through Heavitree Gap near Alice Springs

The Indian Pacific passenger train that was jointly operated by four operators, launched in 1970, carried Railways of Australia branding on its carriages.

When most of the government train operators were privatised in the 1990s, Railways of Australia was superseded by the Australasian Railway Association,[3] which as of 2021 comprised 150 member organisations, including listed and private rail-related companies, government agencies and franchisees, passenger and freight operators, track owners and managers, suppliers, manufacturers, contractors and consultants.[4]

Periodical

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Beginning in 1964, the ROA published Network, initially published monthly; in the 1980s it became quarterly. In 1997 it was renamed Network Rail, becoming a bi-monthly publication.[5] Publication ended in 1999.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "Network Makes its Bow" Network June 1964 page 1
  2. ^ "The Significance of Railways of Australia" Western Australian Government Railways News Letter March 1971 page 4
  3. ^ "Farewell and Hail" Network January 1995 page 4
  4. ^ "Australasian Railway Association". Australasian Railway Association. February 2022. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
  5. ^ "Welcome" Network Rail February 1997 page 5
  6. ^ "It's also vale Network Rail" Network Rail June 1999 page 5