The State Transport Authority was a State Government of Victoria

Government of Victoria

The Government of Victoria, under the Constitution of Australia, ceded certain legislative and judicial powers to the Commonwealth, but retained complete independence in all other areas...

 owned corporate body which operated country passenger and freight trains in Victoria

Victoria (Australia)

Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. It was established under the Transport Act 1983

Transport Act 1983

The Transport Act 1983 was the main statute establishing government transport organisations and regulating land transport activities in the State of Victoria, Australia for 27 years from mid 1983 to mid 2010...

, succeeding the Victorian Railways

Victorian Railways

The Victorian Railways operated railways in the Australian state of Victoria from 1859 to 1983. The first railways in Victoria were private companies, but when these companies failed or defaulted, the Victorian Railways was established to take over their operations...

. The Authority commenced operations on 1 July 1983.

The State Transport Authority operated under the trading name V/Line

V/Line

V/Line is a not for profit regional passenger train and coach service in Victoria, Australia. It was created after the split-up of VicRail in 1983. V/Line is owned by the V/Line Corporation which is a Victorian State Government statutory authority...

, and provided rail service support to the then Metropolitan Transit Authority

Metropolitan Transit Authority (Victoria)

The Metropolitan Transit Authority was a State Government of Victoria owned corporate body that operated suburban passenger trains,trams and buses in Victoria, Australia. It was set up under Section 15 of the Transport Act 1983 and commenced operation on 1 July 1983...

 which was formed at the same time with responsibility for metropolitan train and tram operations. The Transport (Amendment) Act 1989 merged the State Transport Authority with the Metropolitan Transit Authority from 1 July 1989 to form the Public Transport Corporation

Public Transport Corporation

The Public Transport Corporation was a State Government of Victoria owned corporate body formed under the Transport Act 1983 which operated passenger and freight trains, trams and bus services in Victoria, Australia....

.