Travel & Leisure
25 January, 2026
Attention turns to final track works on Loop Line
Heritage trains are one step closer to returning to the historic Loop Line between Buxton and Colo Vale.
Heritage trains are one step closer to returning to the historic Loop Line between Buxton and Colo Vale.
Transport Heritage NSW (THNSW) announced earlier this month that geotechnical works along the Loop Line were complete and its attention would now turn to final track works.
The remediation works were carried out at 11 cuttings along the Loop Line and included the scaling of loose rocks and the installation of more than 500 rock bolts – the most significant remediation of the cuttings in more than a century.
Rock scaling is a technique used to remove loose rocks and boulders from steep slopes or cliff faces to reduce the risk of rockfall.
THNSW Head of Rail Operations and Infrastructure, Daniel Page, said the cuttings were now ready for train operations and the organisation’s focus would now shift to final track works.
THNSW has already upgraded five level crossings along the Loop Line to improve safety for members of the community and heritage trains that will operate on the line.
The works included new asphalt on the road approaches and new linemarkings and signage in accordance with Australian standards.
The level crossings will be activated in the lead up to heritage train operations commencing later this year.
It also announced last month that “fantastic” progress was being made on works to the Colo Vale Railway Station as part of the Loop Line Upgrade Project.
Earthworks and fencing have been completed and final landscaping and garden works as well as repairs to the station building will follow in coming months.
The upgrade project is being funded by the NSW Government to the tune of $21.7 million and will see heritage trains return to Colo Vale for the first time in more than 40 years.
The project is expected to contribute “significantly” to the local visitor economy and support the continued success of the NSW Railway Museum in Thirlmere.
The section of track between Picton and Buxton is also being upgraded as part of the project to ensure the safe, efficient and reliable operation of heritage trains and improved connection with the main line.
There are no plans at this stage to reactivate the 8.8km section of track between Colo Vale and Mittagong.
The Picton-Mittagong Loop Line opened in 1867 as part of the original Main Southern Railway.
It was bypassed by a new double track alignment in 1919 but regular services continued along the Loop Line through until the 1970s.
It was designed by the Engineer-in-Chief for Railways, John Whitton.
While Braemar was initially the only stop between Picton and Mittagong, other stations gradually opened including Couridjah in 1867, Balmoral (1878), Hill Top (1878), Colo Vale (1883), Thirlmere (1885) and Buxton (1893).
Colo Vale Station originally opened as Coleman’s Siding but was renamed Colo Vale in August 1885. The original station building was destroyed by fire in 1928 but the replacement building is the one that still remains today – nearly 100 years later.
One of the focal points of the upgrade works has been the Box Hill Cutting between Balmoral and Hilltop. At the time of its construction it was the deepest cutting in Australia and 150 years later is still described by THNSW as being in “remarkably” good condition.
Read More: Wollondilly, Southern Highlands, Buxton, Colo Vale, Thirlmere, Picton, Mittagong, Balmoral