Shell Oil Siding

A private siding was opened in 1927 on the flour mill side of the Doveton Street level crossing serving an oil depot operated by Shell.  The siding is only visible for its first part disappearing behind silos into part of the Garden City Flour Mill as hidden staging tracks.

The track runs parallel with the backdrop and disappears behind the silo in the right of the photo.

The siding runs parallel with the backdrop with buildings adjacent to the track modelled in low relief or painted on the backdrop. The chain-mesh fence, shed and signal cabinets and tree between the oil siding and the flour mill sidings are also modelled. I have included some photos of the siding and surrounds taken in 2005.  The track remained in place beneath the gravel drive and an oil drum transfer shed was visible within the oil depot compound. It appears that all the storage tanks had been removed. Old warning signs were also present on the fence adjacent to the access gate.

By the early 1980's the siding was disused but it remained intact. I have chosen to model it as if it were operating, mainly because I don't have the oil sidings on the Eureka branch to generate petroleum traffic on the layout.  The siding receives inward deliveries of petroleum products in tank wagons and occasionally there are delivery of oil drums in open wagons. Oil wagons arrive twice a week in Ballarat on the Horsham block oil train or via the Melbourne - Ballarat Goods. The siding is usually shunted by the afternoon Flour Mill Pilot (97 and 98).

Y170 shunts flour hoppers past the Shell Oil Siding while on the Flour Mill Pilot. The empty oil tank will be cleared by the afternoon pilot.

Most of the deliveries are in BP oil tanks as my tank wagon fleet is dominated by tank wagons with BP logos.