Geography · Ch 7 — Transport and Communication
The Australian Trans–Continental Railway
The Australian Trans–Continental Railway
The Australian Trans–Continental Railway is a major east–west rail corridor that cuts across the southern part of the Australian continent. It connects the west coast city of Perth to the east coast city of Sydney, running through the interior mining and pastoral towns of Kalgoorlie, Broken Hill, and Port Augusta.
This line is significant because it links the mineral-rich western region (especially the goldfields around Kalgoorlie) with the industrial and population centres of the east. The route passes through arid and semi-arid landscapes, and its construction was a major engineering feat that helped unify the Australian economy.
In addition to this east–west trunk line, there is a separate north–south railway that connects Adelaide in the south with Alice Springs in the centre of the continent. This line is planned to be extended further north to join the existing Darwin–Birdum line, which would eventually create a continuous rail link from the southern coast to the northern coast of Australia. …
The map is a simple, schematic outline of Australia, oriented with north at the top. The continent is labelled AUSTRALIA in bold. The surrounding water bodies are named: the Indian Ocean to the west and south-west, the Timor Sea to the north-west, the Coral Sea to the north-east, and the Tasman Sea to the south-east. The island of Tasmania is drawn off the south-eastern coast. A latitude–longitude grid is marked, spanning from 10°S to 40°S and from 110°E to 150°E, giving a clear sense of Australia’s position in the Southern Hemisphere.
The central feature is the Trans–Continental Railway, shown as a dashed line running roughly west–east across the southern part of the continent. It begins at Perth on the west coast, then passes through Kalgoorlie (inland), Forrest, Port Augusta, Port Pirie, Peterborough, Broken Hill, Roto, and Porkes before reaching Sydney on the east coast. A southern branch splits off from this main line and heads down to Melbourne and Albury. The map does not show any other railway lines, roads, or cities beyond those listed.
The textbook text mentions a north–south line from Adelaide to Alice Springs and Darwin, but Map 7.7 does not include that line. The map focuses exclusively on the east–west transcontinental route and its southern branch. …