FOR more than 140 years, Molong’s railway station has been part of the town’s landscape.
Built in 1885, the timber station was once a gateway to the wider region, carrying passengers and goods and connecting Molong with communities across the line.
Passenger services through Molong ceased in the early 1990s. Almost three decades later, the future of the station was still significant enough to prompt a petition to Parliament calling for the restoration and upgrading of the station and railway line and the return of Molong to Central West passenger services. The petition, which closed in February 2021, attracted 134 signatures.
While the prospect of passenger trains returning remains a separate question, the station building itself is now facing a more immediate one: what should happen next?
Cabonne Council currently leases the Molong railway building from UGL Regional Linx and says it sees potential for the historic building.
“Council would support appropriate uses that contribute to the community, tourism, cultural activities or local economic development,” a municipal spokesperson said.
Council has received informal expressions of interest regarding the future use of the building, although it has not disclosed details of the proposals.
The building is recognised by council as a heritage asset with potential for community and tourism-related uses, but a municipal spokesperson said there is still work to be done before a new occupant can be considered.
“For the Molong railway building, the asset would first need to be restored to a suitable condition,” the spokesperson said.
“Once this occurs, council could consider opportunities to identify future occupants or uses through an expression of interest process.”
Some of that work has already taken place.
A Transport for NSW spokesperson said UGL Regional Linx completed refurbishment work on the station building in May, including repairs and painting, cleaning up debris, refurbishment of the bathrooms and pest treatment.
“Additional minor works are scheduled for next year to complete the refurbishment,” the spokesperson said.
The work is part of a broader program of refurbishment across the state’s regional and rural network, with Transport for New South Wales saying 11 assets have so far been refurbished, including railway buildings and stations at Armidale, Bathurst, Orange, and Mudgee.
Inspections of assets across the network, including Molong Railway Station, are conducted annually.
For council, the refurbishment is an important step towards determining what the building could become.
“Council believes there are opportunities to better utilise the Molong railway building through appropriate community, tourism, cultural or commercial uses once the necessary repairs and building improvements have been completed,” the spokesperson said.
The station’s heritage status protects the building.
The municipality has acknowledged its potential for a new purpose, and there has already been some informal interest in finding a use for the building. The question now is what that use might be.
The possibilities could range from community or cultural activities to tourism or commercial purposes, provided any proposed use is considered appropriate for the building and its heritage significance.
With restoration work underway and interest already emerging, the question is no longer simply whether the station has a future, but what role it can play in Molong’s next one.