PUBLIC TRANSPORT NEWS. INTERNATIONAL AND INTERSTATE
Victorian minister fumes after train sabotaged before launch
Victoria’s Transport Minister has been left fuming, after what he’s described as an attempt to sabotage the operation of newer X’Trapolis trains on the Frankston rail line.
Terry Mulder said the driver’s seat on the train due to run today’s inaugural service was slashed overnight, in an apparent effort to have the carriage taken out of service.
“The idea of slashing the seat is that it's a safety issue for the driver, and the train was supposed not to run”, he told news crews in Frankston this morning.
“For someone to undertake an action like that would indicate to me they have no respect for the travelling public, and no respect for safety on the network”.
Metro was forced to shunt the vandalised carriage into the middle of the train, which ran as scheduled, albeit a few minutes late.
The CEO of Metro Trains, Andrew Lezala, said he was disappointed by the vandalism.
“I think it's disgraceful that people might do this sort of thing, and I have my suspicions about might have done it, and I think we'll get to the bottom of it”, he said.
Metro says the arm rest of the driver’s chair needed to be replaced.
The $115 million Bayside Rail Project is designed to improve the line’s capacity and reliability, but critics complain many of the changes are simply cosmetic.
The Rail, Tram and Bus Union accused the government of staging a pre-election publicity stunt, with the X’Trapolis train initially operating just two services a day on the line.
The train is required to run with two drivers, which the government says is essential to allow for training.
A number of temporary speed restrictions have also been imposed.
The Frankston line is seen as crucial to the government’s chances of winning the November 29 poll, with a number of marginal seats along its length.
The transport minister says the newer trains will offer commuters a more comfortable ride.
But many drivers complain the Ballarat-built carriages are noticeably bouncier than Melbourne’s other trains, because of the use of cheaper spring suspension systems.
X’Trapolis services are due to be extended to Werribee in April next year.
Read more at http://www.9news.com.au/national/2014/10/22/16/36/victorian-transport-minister-left-fuming#G4XQgxTbvhJWGC27.99
Victoria’s Transport Minister has been left fuming, after what he’s described as an attempt to sabotage the operation of newer X’Trapolis trains on the Frankston rail line.
Terry Mulder said the driver’s seat on the train due to run today’s inaugural service was slashed overnight, in an apparent effort to have the carriage taken out of service.
“The idea of slashing the seat is that it's a safety issue for the driver, and the train was supposed not to run”, he told news crews in Frankston this morning.
“For someone to undertake an action like that would indicate to me they have no respect for the travelling public, and no respect for safety on the network”.
Metro was forced to shunt the vandalised carriage into the middle of the train, which ran as scheduled, albeit a few minutes late.
The CEO of Metro Trains, Andrew Lezala, said he was disappointed by the vandalism.
“I think it's disgraceful that people might do this sort of thing, and I have my suspicions about might have done it, and I think we'll get to the bottom of it”, he said.
Metro says the arm rest of the driver’s chair needed to be replaced.
The $115 million Bayside Rail Project is designed to improve the line’s capacity and reliability, but critics complain many of the changes are simply cosmetic.
The Rail, Tram and Bus Union accused the government of staging a pre-election publicity stunt, with the X’Trapolis train initially operating just two services a day on the line.
The train is required to run with two drivers, which the government says is essential to allow for training.
A number of temporary speed restrictions have also been imposed.
The Frankston line is seen as crucial to the government’s chances of winning the November 29 poll, with a number of marginal seats along its length.
The transport minister says the newer trains will offer commuters a more comfortable ride.
But many drivers complain the Ballarat-built carriages are noticeably bouncier than Melbourne’s other trains, because of the use of cheaper spring suspension systems.
X’Trapolis services are due to be extended to Werribee in April next year.
Read more at http://www.9news.com.au/national/2014/10/22/16/36/victorian-transport-minister-left-fuming#G4XQgxTbvhJWGC27.99
Control centre alarm causes delays across Metro Train network
The entire train network across Melbourne ground to a halt on Saturday morning after a false alarm forced the evacuation of Metro Trains' control centre.
Trains stopped on all lines for 15 minutes after the alarm sounded just after 10am.
Metro Trains spokeswoman Pauline O'Connor said the entire control centre had to be evacuated due to the false alarm.
"As the situation was rectified quickly, we didn't need to activate our back-up control centre. When trains resumed, there were delays of up to 30 minutes as we recovered," she said.
Delays of 30 minutes were expected on all lines following the incident but the timetable was due return to normal by midday.
Meanwhile, a man was hit by a train at Tottenham railway station in Melbourne's western suburbs on Saturday morning.
The man aged in his 30s was hit by an outbound train on the Sunbury line just after 8:40am.
The man was taken to the Royal Melbourne Hospital in a stable condition, having suffered injuries to his upper body.
The entire train network across Melbourne ground to a halt on Saturday morning after a false alarm forced the evacuation of Metro Trains' control centre.
Trains stopped on all lines for 15 minutes after the alarm sounded just after 10am.
Metro Trains spokeswoman Pauline O'Connor said the entire control centre had to be evacuated due to the false alarm.
"As the situation was rectified quickly, we didn't need to activate our back-up control centre. When trains resumed, there were delays of up to 30 minutes as we recovered," she said.
Delays of 30 minutes were expected on all lines following the incident but the timetable was due return to normal by midday.
Meanwhile, a man was hit by a train at Tottenham railway station in Melbourne's western suburbs on Saturday morning.
The man aged in his 30s was hit by an outbound train on the Sunbury line just after 8:40am.
The man was taken to the Royal Melbourne Hospital in a stable condition, having suffered injuries to his upper body.
#cityfail: Twitter users share worst behaviour on Sydney trains
SYDNEY commuters fed up with the behaviour of fellow passengers on their daily City Rail grind have started a social media campaign using the hashtag #cityfail to publicly shame offenders.
From feet on seats, to discarded rubbish and people cutting their nails, passengers have had enough of the complete disrespect for social etiquette in a public space.
The campaign also extends to City Rail itself with commuters using the #cityfail to vent their frustrations about the newly introduced opal card, train delays and ongoing construction.
Using Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to unleash their anger the social media shaming campaign has gone viral in a hope to curb the inappropriate behaviour.
SYDNEY commuters fed up with the behaviour of fellow passengers on their daily City Rail grind have started a social media campaign using the hashtag #cityfail to publicly shame offenders.
From feet on seats, to discarded rubbish and people cutting their nails, passengers have had enough of the complete disrespect for social etiquette in a public space.
The campaign also extends to City Rail itself with commuters using the #cityfail to vent their frustrations about the newly introduced opal card, train delays and ongoing construction.
Using Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to unleash their anger the social media shaming campaign has gone viral in a hope to curb the inappropriate behaviour.
Safety fears lead to speed restrictions for X'Trapolis train on Frankston line
The first scheduled run of the X'Trapolis train on the Frankston line has been criticised as a desperate election stunt with Melbourne's newest and fastest train having to operate at a restricted speed because of fears it may be too fast for boom gates.
The train will travel to Frankston and back on Wednesday as a symbol of how much work the Napthine government has done to modernise the line, which was so unreliable four years ago some believe it cost Labor the election.
Then it will be taken out of service and stabled at Burnley for the rest of the day.
And the train will be set to run at a limited speed to avoid the danger of beating the boom gates at one of the line's 30 level crossings.
It will also have two drivers in the cab as a safety precaution.
The Napthine government is spending $115 million repairing and renewing the Frankston line, which was in such disrepair under Labor it had a punctuality rate of less than 70 per cent, but now tracks above 90 per cent.
Tracks and signalling are being upgraded and new safety and information features such as CCTV cameras and new colour-coded timetable information screens are being installed at stations.
But the government has been accused of running the train this week to score political points in the lead-up to the state election despite clear warning signs it is not yet equipped for it.
The solitary X'Trapolis train is scheduled to become a daily service doing just one run up and down the line from Wednesday, but it will run with a significant handicap.
An internal Metro safety notice states that "in conjunction with the bayside rail improvement project, temporary speed restrictions will be imposed on the Frankston line for X'Trapolis trains only".
"The purpose of the speed restriction is to mitigate the acceleration curve of the X'Trapolis trains when approaching some pedestrian and level crossings."
In response, the Rail, Tram and Bus Union has issued an ultimatum that Metro must meet a number of conditions to ensure safety is not compromised in the rush to get a single X'Trapolis train into service on the Frankston line before next month's election.
Among them is a prohibition on station skipping "because it will cause a danger at level crossings".
In an October 20 letter seen by Fairfax Media, union divisional secretary Marc Marotta issued Metro a list of 10 demands it should meet to guarantee the union's co-operation.
"Please be aware that these games that you are playing of not being advised, not having the information will not end well," Mr Marotta wrote.
Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder said on Monday that he had faith that the rail safety regulator had done everything to make sure the signalling system was safe for the new train type.
"Nothing is going to be done that is going to put people at risk or motorists at risk, so we're very confident that the work has been undertaken at the crossings with the signalling systems to accommodate the X'Trapolis trains," Mr Mulder said.
The bayside rail project is due for completion in December 2015, when an order of eight X'Trapolis trains that are currently being built are expected to have entered service.
The first scheduled run of the X'Trapolis train on the Frankston line has been criticised as a desperate election stunt with Melbourne's newest and fastest train having to operate at a restricted speed because of fears it may be too fast for boom gates.
The train will travel to Frankston and back on Wednesday as a symbol of how much work the Napthine government has done to modernise the line, which was so unreliable four years ago some believe it cost Labor the election.
Then it will be taken out of service and stabled at Burnley for the rest of the day.
And the train will be set to run at a limited speed to avoid the danger of beating the boom gates at one of the line's 30 level crossings.
It will also have two drivers in the cab as a safety precaution.
The Napthine government is spending $115 million repairing and renewing the Frankston line, which was in such disrepair under Labor it had a punctuality rate of less than 70 per cent, but now tracks above 90 per cent.
Tracks and signalling are being upgraded and new safety and information features such as CCTV cameras and new colour-coded timetable information screens are being installed at stations.
But the government has been accused of running the train this week to score political points in the lead-up to the state election despite clear warning signs it is not yet equipped for it.
The solitary X'Trapolis train is scheduled to become a daily service doing just one run up and down the line from Wednesday, but it will run with a significant handicap.
An internal Metro safety notice states that "in conjunction with the bayside rail improvement project, temporary speed restrictions will be imposed on the Frankston line for X'Trapolis trains only".
"The purpose of the speed restriction is to mitigate the acceleration curve of the X'Trapolis trains when approaching some pedestrian and level crossings."
In response, the Rail, Tram and Bus Union has issued an ultimatum that Metro must meet a number of conditions to ensure safety is not compromised in the rush to get a single X'Trapolis train into service on the Frankston line before next month's election.
Among them is a prohibition on station skipping "because it will cause a danger at level crossings".
In an October 20 letter seen by Fairfax Media, union divisional secretary Marc Marotta issued Metro a list of 10 demands it should meet to guarantee the union's co-operation.
"Please be aware that these games that you are playing of not being advised, not having the information will not end well," Mr Marotta wrote.
Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder said on Monday that he had faith that the rail safety regulator had done everything to make sure the signalling system was safe for the new train type.
"Nothing is going to be done that is going to put people at risk or motorists at risk, so we're very confident that the work has been undertaken at the crossings with the signalling systems to accommodate the X'Trapolis trains," Mr Mulder said.
The bayside rail project is due for completion in December 2015, when an order of eight X'Trapolis trains that are currently being built are expected to have entered service.
Hundreds evacuated from smoking train at Strathfield
About 200 commuters were evacuated from a train at Strathfield on Thursday afternoon, the second known incident involving smoke and a Sydney train in just over a week.A spokeswoman from Fire and Rescue NSW said authorities were called to the station about 5.10pm.
"There was smoke issuing from the exterior of one of the carriages, and about 200 people were evacuated as a precaution," the spokeswoman said.
"The smoke looked like it was coming from a battery compartment on the outside of the train," she said.
About 5.50pm, the train remained at the station, but was not causing delays to commuters, a spokeswoman from the Transport Management Centre said.
"The train is still near the platform but all the other trains are diverting around it," she said.
The incident comes less than two weeks after an empty train returning to Flemington for maintenance caught fire on an overpass at Granville.
Sydney Trains has not revealed the cause of that fire, which required a crane to evacuate
About 200 commuters were evacuated from a train at Strathfield on Thursday afternoon, the second known incident involving smoke and a Sydney train in just over a week.A spokeswoman from Fire and Rescue NSW said authorities were called to the station about 5.10pm.
"There was smoke issuing from the exterior of one of the carriages, and about 200 people were evacuated as a precaution," the spokeswoman said.
"The smoke looked like it was coming from a battery compartment on the outside of the train," she said.
About 5.50pm, the train remained at the station, but was not causing delays to commuters, a spokeswoman from the Transport Management Centre said.
"The train is still near the platform but all the other trains are diverting around it," she said.
The incident comes less than two weeks after an empty train returning to Flemington for maintenance caught fire on an overpass at Granville.
Sydney Trains has not revealed the cause of that fire, which required a crane to evacuate
Elderly St Kilda Rd tram passenger speaks out against ‘intimidating’ ticket inspectorsYARRA trams ticket inspectors have come under fire for “intimidating” a 69-year-old woman on St Kilda Rd.
Suzanne Evans said she was wrestling with her broken umbrella after boarding a tram at Domain Interchange on September 16, and had not had a chance to touch-on with her myki, when she was “ambushed” by a plainclothes inspector who boarded after her.
Dr Evans said she did not know why the man had approached her, and spent several minutes trying to work out what he was asking.
“I couldn’t understand what he was saying and I still had this umbrella that I was trying to untangle,” she said.
“I couldn’t see a badge or anything.”
The man took her myki card and launched into “a belligerent and intimidating interrogation”, tailing her as she got off the tram a few stops down the line at Leopold St.
“I was quite terrified of the guy,” she said.
HAVE YOU HAD A BAD EXPERIENCE ON MELBOURNE TRAMS? TELL US ABOUT IT BELOW.
Dr Evans said the inspector was accompanied by a female inspector and threatened to phone police if she did not pay an on-the-spot fine.
“They stood under the shelter while I had to stand in the rain with a broken umbrella,” Dr Evans said.
“There was no sense that I might be having difficulty ... I didn’t have my glasses on, so I couldn’t see the forms they were showing me.”
The inspectors took down Dr Evans’s drivers license details and she walked away without paying, fearing that she would be “tackled”.
She said she wanted to speak out against inspectors she believed were abusing their position.
“I’ve seen them do it to other old ladies, but never thought it would be me,” Dr Evans said.
“They love that sense of power.”
Dr Evans has contacted Albert Park MP Martin Foley about this latest incident.
Mr Foley has written to Transport Minister Terry Mulder and plans to raise the matter in the State Parliament.
Last November, Mr Mulder ordered an investigation into tram inspectors who forcefully restrained a fare-evading university student, pressing a knee to his throat as they held him under a Swanston St bench, with the dramatic arrest caught on video.
Michael Liu, 20, was confronted by several inspectors at the Lincoln Square tram stop after travelling two stops to Melbourne University without touching on.
Yarra Trams spokesman Simon Murphy said the agency was investigating Dr Evans’s complaint.
“Each interaction between an authorised officer and a customer is unique and we understand that each passenger will respond in a different way when intercepted,” Mr Murphy said.
“Yarra Trams places a great emphasis during formal training and managerial feedback on improving the way our officers interact with all customers, including the elderly.
“Our officers receive six weeks of training prior to starting work and three days of refresher training per year that has a strong focus on interpersonal behaviour.”
He said Yarra Trams had received one complaint for every 1.2 million passenger trips over the past four years.
Suzanne Evans said she was wrestling with her broken umbrella after boarding a tram at Domain Interchange on September 16, and had not had a chance to touch-on with her myki, when she was “ambushed” by a plainclothes inspector who boarded after her.
Dr Evans said she did not know why the man had approached her, and spent several minutes trying to work out what he was asking.
“I couldn’t understand what he was saying and I still had this umbrella that I was trying to untangle,” she said.
“I couldn’t see a badge or anything.”
The man took her myki card and launched into “a belligerent and intimidating interrogation”, tailing her as she got off the tram a few stops down the line at Leopold St.
“I was quite terrified of the guy,” she said.
HAVE YOU HAD A BAD EXPERIENCE ON MELBOURNE TRAMS? TELL US ABOUT IT BELOW.
Dr Evans said the inspector was accompanied by a female inspector and threatened to phone police if she did not pay an on-the-spot fine.
“They stood under the shelter while I had to stand in the rain with a broken umbrella,” Dr Evans said.
“There was no sense that I might be having difficulty ... I didn’t have my glasses on, so I couldn’t see the forms they were showing me.”
The inspectors took down Dr Evans’s drivers license details and she walked away without paying, fearing that she would be “tackled”.
She said she wanted to speak out against inspectors she believed were abusing their position.
“I’ve seen them do it to other old ladies, but never thought it would be me,” Dr Evans said.
“They love that sense of power.”
Dr Evans has contacted Albert Park MP Martin Foley about this latest incident.
Mr Foley has written to Transport Minister Terry Mulder and plans to raise the matter in the State Parliament.
Last November, Mr Mulder ordered an investigation into tram inspectors who forcefully restrained a fare-evading university student, pressing a knee to his throat as they held him under a Swanston St bench, with the dramatic arrest caught on video.
Michael Liu, 20, was confronted by several inspectors at the Lincoln Square tram stop after travelling two stops to Melbourne University without touching on.
Yarra Trams spokesman Simon Murphy said the agency was investigating Dr Evans’s complaint.
“Each interaction between an authorised officer and a customer is unique and we understand that each passenger will respond in a different way when intercepted,” Mr Murphy said.
“Yarra Trams places a great emphasis during formal training and managerial feedback on improving the way our officers interact with all customers, including the elderly.
“Our officers receive six weeks of training prior to starting work and three days of refresher training per year that has a strong focus on interpersonal behaviour.”
He said Yarra Trams had received one complaint for every 1.2 million passenger trips over the past four years.
Metro Trains avoids paying compensation for unreliable services despite a commuter crush and skipped stations
MELBOURNE commuters are being squashed on trains more often as others are left stranded by drivers skipping stations to dodge fines. But if you’re expecting compensation, forget it.
For regional passengers, the news is no better, with V/Line missing all of its punctuality targets.
Public Transport Victoria’s annual report tabled today revealed Metro met all of its targets, avoiding having to compensate commuters the cost of at least a daily ticket.
But questions have previously been raised about the accuracy of the figures, with Metro drivers being instructed to skip stations to avoid the fines and meet targets.
Metro must run 98 per cent of trains each month and 88 per cent must be on time to evade paying commuters compensation.
PTV spokesman Adrian Darwent said Metro has been asked to stop skipping stations except as a last resort in extreme circumstances.
“Altering a train’s stopping pattern can very occasionally be an effective way to return extremely disrupted services to normal if it benefits a large number of passengers, or when not altering the service would have a worse flow-on effect,” he said.
“However, stop-skipping a peak service, used by a large number of passengers, is clearly not in the best interest of commuters.”
The annual report also revealed there were 232 million train passengers, an increase of 2.9 per cent this financial year.
Opposition transport spokeswoman Jill Hennessy said the PTV annual report showed the Government cut $130 million from its budget.
“Denis Napthine’s punctuality figures have been built off the back of station skipping and timetable manipulation, adding minutes onto the services to enable service providers to more
easily meet contract benchmarks,” she said.
“The Napthine Government may have claimed it had fixed Victoria’s public transport system, but the reality for commuters is that in three years it has actually made it worse.”
There were also nine breaches of comfort levels inside trains in the AM peak, where passengers were crammed too tightly in carriages, compared to five the pervious year, and another nine in the PM peak, which rose from six.
Tram patronage dropped by 3.4 per cent to 179 million passengers to June 30 this year.
Yarra Trams’s punctuality improved but it recorded a poor result in January from issues caused during the heatwave.
Its trams are also cramming passengers, with 26 breaches of comfort levels in peak times.
Of those, 76 per cent of incidents have occurred on its old A and Z class trams, while its supersized E-class tram, travelling on route 96, did not have overcrowding issues in May.
V/Line did not meet any of punctuality benchmarks for the 2013-14 financial year.
“Regional train punctuality of affected by a range of factors including infrastructure and train faults, congestion on the metropolitan train network and disruptions on the northern line due to track condition,” the annual report said.
MELBOURNE commuters are being squashed on trains more often as others are left stranded by drivers skipping stations to dodge fines. But if you’re expecting compensation, forget it.
For regional passengers, the news is no better, with V/Line missing all of its punctuality targets.
Public Transport Victoria’s annual report tabled today revealed Metro met all of its targets, avoiding having to compensate commuters the cost of at least a daily ticket.
But questions have previously been raised about the accuracy of the figures, with Metro drivers being instructed to skip stations to avoid the fines and meet targets.
Metro must run 98 per cent of trains each month and 88 per cent must be on time to evade paying commuters compensation.
PTV spokesman Adrian Darwent said Metro has been asked to stop skipping stations except as a last resort in extreme circumstances.
“Altering a train’s stopping pattern can very occasionally be an effective way to return extremely disrupted services to normal if it benefits a large number of passengers, or when not altering the service would have a worse flow-on effect,” he said.
“However, stop-skipping a peak service, used by a large number of passengers, is clearly not in the best interest of commuters.”
The annual report also revealed there were 232 million train passengers, an increase of 2.9 per cent this financial year.
Opposition transport spokeswoman Jill Hennessy said the PTV annual report showed the Government cut $130 million from its budget.
“Denis Napthine’s punctuality figures have been built off the back of station skipping and timetable manipulation, adding minutes onto the services to enable service providers to more
easily meet contract benchmarks,” she said.
“The Napthine Government may have claimed it had fixed Victoria’s public transport system, but the reality for commuters is that in three years it has actually made it worse.”
There were also nine breaches of comfort levels inside trains in the AM peak, where passengers were crammed too tightly in carriages, compared to five the pervious year, and another nine in the PM peak, which rose from six.
Tram patronage dropped by 3.4 per cent to 179 million passengers to June 30 this year.
Yarra Trams’s punctuality improved but it recorded a poor result in January from issues caused during the heatwave.
Its trams are also cramming passengers, with 26 breaches of comfort levels in peak times.
Of those, 76 per cent of incidents have occurred on its old A and Z class trams, while its supersized E-class tram, travelling on route 96, did not have overcrowding issues in May.
V/Line did not meet any of punctuality benchmarks for the 2013-14 financial year.
“Regional train punctuality of affected by a range of factors including infrastructure and train faults, congestion on the metropolitan train network and disruptions on the northern line due to track condition,” the annual report said.
Joondalup trains cancelled due to technical issueTRAINS have resumed between Stirling and Whitfords station on the Joondalup line after a ‘technical issue’ stopped services this afternoon.
Replacement buses that were used to carry passengers between Stirling and Whitfords stations are now being stood down.
Transperth spokesman David Hynes thanked passengers for their patience while the issue – a splice in the overhead power lines that failed around 1.50pm – was resolved.
Passengers did not react well to the delays, flooding social media with complaints.
Adding to commuter woes this afternoon, dricvers on the Mitchell Freeway northbound had to deal with at least incidents that slowed traffic further.
Replacement buses that were used to carry passengers between Stirling and Whitfords stations are now being stood down.
Transperth spokesman David Hynes thanked passengers for their patience while the issue – a splice in the overhead power lines that failed around 1.50pm – was resolved.
Passengers did not react well to the delays, flooding social media with complaints.
Adding to commuter woes this afternoon, dricvers on the Mitchell Freeway northbound had to deal with at least incidents that slowed traffic further.
End of the line for Europe's iconic night trains?
The sleeper service is being phased out across the continent as operators are hit by hefty taxes and rise of budget airlines.
To their fans, night trains sum up the best of the European project. They are time efficient, environmentally sustainable, and irresistibly romantic: you go to sleep in one country and wake up in another, possibly having made friends along the way.
In public at least, Europe's politicians and railway companies agree: in December 2009, many of them ceremonially boarded a specially commissioned "Climate Express" from Brussels to the UN climate summit in Copenhagen.
Yet five years later, sleeper trains are being silently phased out across the continent, while countries elsewhere in the world are modernising their services.
Deutsche Bahn, the German rail provider, confirmed this month that its City Night Line sleeper trains on the Climate Express route would cease from 1 November, while the night train that connects Paris to Berlin, Hamburg and Munich will be stopped from December. The Amsterdam to Prague and Warsaw sleeper will be cut back to run from Cologne to Warsaw and Prague. The Elipsos night train from Paris to Barcelona and Madrid – launched in 1969 with ground-breaking technology, allowing carriages to switch between multiple track gauges – was discontinued in December.Thello, a joint venture between Trenitalia and France-based Transdev, in December scrapped its sleeper train between Rome and Paris, the continent's most romantic capitals. Passengers now have to make at least one change en route, usually at Turin or Milan. Services from Berlin to Warsaw and Kiev, as well as the weekly Sibirjak service to Siberia, have also been withdrawn recently.
"The EU is professing its investment in rail services," Mark Smith, who runs the award-winning Man on Seat 61 railway blog, told the Guardian. "But, in reality, it seems to be actually shifting traffic to the airways."
German rail services cite declining passenger numbers, caused by the rise of low-budget airlines, as the main reason for phasing out services. A spokesperson from Die Bahn said its night-train customers had fallen by 25% over the past five years, while its three least profitable sleeper lines had turned a loss of €12m. Julio Gómez-Pomar, the president of Renfe, Spain's state-owned company which operates freight and passenger trains, has said that some of its night services had been cut because they were circulating with empty coaches.
A spokesperson for Trenitalia, which has in recent years reduced the number of domestic sleepers connecting the south of the country to the north, said: "In the last 10 years there has been a reduction in night-train services, both in terms of the public resources earmarked for their running and because of the gradual decrease in their use, which has suffered a big decline connected to the arrival of low-cost flights, competition from coaches and the launch of the high-speed network." Sleeper trains are undoubtedly more expensive to run than day services. For a start, they hold fewer passengers: a typical sleeper carriage carries 36 people, as opposed to 70 on a seating-only train.In addition, since 2000 train services have had to pay track access charges as they cross borders, with additional administration and negotiations required to work out precise costs.
In Germany, train companies further complain that they are burdened by eco taxes and VAT on ticket sales from which airline operators are exempt.
Yet campaigners, many of whom rely on sleeper services as they choose not to fly for environmental reasons or cannot do so on health grounds, claim that rail providers' complaints about declining passenger figures are a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Since train companies have for years failed to invest in more comfortable carriages, overnight train journeys have for many lost their appeal. When the Paris to Berlin sleeper was launched in 2000, it had a dining car and onboard chef. These days, passengers on the same route can only buy microwave meals to eat on their laps.
While plane tickets can be bought cheaply months in advance, night train schedules are often changed at short notice due to overnight engineering works. Loco2, a UK booking agency for pan-European rail journeys, said it had seen a lot of demand for night trains, but was allowed by Deutsche Bahn to sell tickets only for its day services.
"There's no basis to the argument that sleeper trains are outmoded per se," said blogger Jon Worth, who has launched a petition to save the Copenhagen night train. Britain has announced upgrades to itsCaledonian and London-Penzance sleeper services, while China and Russia have invested in new night-train carriages, he pointed out.
"Railways are still the most environmentally sustainable and comfortable way of getting around Europe. You cannot expect people to spend a day on a train – you can expect them to spend a night."
The sleeper service is being phased out across the continent as operators are hit by hefty taxes and rise of budget airlines.
To their fans, night trains sum up the best of the European project. They are time efficient, environmentally sustainable, and irresistibly romantic: you go to sleep in one country and wake up in another, possibly having made friends along the way.
In public at least, Europe's politicians and railway companies agree: in December 2009, many of them ceremonially boarded a specially commissioned "Climate Express" from Brussels to the UN climate summit in Copenhagen.
Yet five years later, sleeper trains are being silently phased out across the continent, while countries elsewhere in the world are modernising their services.
Deutsche Bahn, the German rail provider, confirmed this month that its City Night Line sleeper trains on the Climate Express route would cease from 1 November, while the night train that connects Paris to Berlin, Hamburg and Munich will be stopped from December. The Amsterdam to Prague and Warsaw sleeper will be cut back to run from Cologne to Warsaw and Prague. The Elipsos night train from Paris to Barcelona and Madrid – launched in 1969 with ground-breaking technology, allowing carriages to switch between multiple track gauges – was discontinued in December.Thello, a joint venture between Trenitalia and France-based Transdev, in December scrapped its sleeper train between Rome and Paris, the continent's most romantic capitals. Passengers now have to make at least one change en route, usually at Turin or Milan. Services from Berlin to Warsaw and Kiev, as well as the weekly Sibirjak service to Siberia, have also been withdrawn recently.
"The EU is professing its investment in rail services," Mark Smith, who runs the award-winning Man on Seat 61 railway blog, told the Guardian. "But, in reality, it seems to be actually shifting traffic to the airways."
German rail services cite declining passenger numbers, caused by the rise of low-budget airlines, as the main reason for phasing out services. A spokesperson from Die Bahn said its night-train customers had fallen by 25% over the past five years, while its three least profitable sleeper lines had turned a loss of €12m. Julio Gómez-Pomar, the president of Renfe, Spain's state-owned company which operates freight and passenger trains, has said that some of its night services had been cut because they were circulating with empty coaches.
A spokesperson for Trenitalia, which has in recent years reduced the number of domestic sleepers connecting the south of the country to the north, said: "In the last 10 years there has been a reduction in night-train services, both in terms of the public resources earmarked for their running and because of the gradual decrease in their use, which has suffered a big decline connected to the arrival of low-cost flights, competition from coaches and the launch of the high-speed network." Sleeper trains are undoubtedly more expensive to run than day services. For a start, they hold fewer passengers: a typical sleeper carriage carries 36 people, as opposed to 70 on a seating-only train.In addition, since 2000 train services have had to pay track access charges as they cross borders, with additional administration and negotiations required to work out precise costs.
In Germany, train companies further complain that they are burdened by eco taxes and VAT on ticket sales from which airline operators are exempt.
Yet campaigners, many of whom rely on sleeper services as they choose not to fly for environmental reasons or cannot do so on health grounds, claim that rail providers' complaints about declining passenger figures are a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Since train companies have for years failed to invest in more comfortable carriages, overnight train journeys have for many lost their appeal. When the Paris to Berlin sleeper was launched in 2000, it had a dining car and onboard chef. These days, passengers on the same route can only buy microwave meals to eat on their laps.
While plane tickets can be bought cheaply months in advance, night train schedules are often changed at short notice due to overnight engineering works. Loco2, a UK booking agency for pan-European rail journeys, said it had seen a lot of demand for night trains, but was allowed by Deutsche Bahn to sell tickets only for its day services.
"There's no basis to the argument that sleeper trains are outmoded per se," said blogger Jon Worth, who has launched a petition to save the Copenhagen night train. Britain has announced upgrades to itsCaledonian and London-Penzance sleeper services, while China and Russia have invested in new night-train carriages, he pointed out.
"Railways are still the most environmentally sustainable and comfortable way of getting around Europe. You cannot expect people to spend a day on a train – you can expect them to spend a night."
Brisbane commuters abandon buses, choose cars instead
Commuters abandoned Brisbane's bus network en masse last financial year, with the network carrying nearly one million fewer passengers than the previous year.
Brisbane City Council's 2013-14 annual report, tabled at Tuesday's council meeting, reveals the city's bus fleet carried 2685 less passengers on average per day in 2013-14 than it did in 2012-13.
The figures were revealed on the same day Deputy Mayor Adrian Schrinner announced traffic on the city's road network rose by 3.3 per cent last year, or by 1000 vehicles per day. But City Hall's public transport chief Peter Matic rebuffed suggestions the drop in patronage was the result of cuts to the bus network last year.
Cr Matic said the fault lay squarely with the former state Labor administration.
He said Brisbane's public transport usage "continued to feel the pain of the legacy of the former Labor Government's fare hikes".
Fares rose by up to 15 per cent annually under the Bligh government.
"We expect these numbers will turn around as a result of the [LNP] state government's capped increase of 2.5 per cent in fares each year," Cr Matic said.
"It is apparent from the state government's community consultation to date that the community is calling for cheaper public transport fares, which is a concern that is reflected by the community with council."
Council opposition leader Milton Dick said the figures showed people in Brisbane were turning their backs on public transport.
"The Brisbane bus review and changes to bus routes and timetabling has made it harder for commuters to catch public transport because there are fewer and less frequent services available throughout the city," he said.
The annual report also shows there were 220,000 less bus trips than the previous year, or a 7.1 per cent drop in services, following the council's public transport "optimisation review", the recommendations of which were implemented in the latter half of 2013.
"The lack of a frequent, reliable and affordable bus service is really starting to bite and it's forcing more people back into their cars," Cr Dick said.
However, the report is not damning of Brisbane's entire public transport network.
Ferry services carried an extra 300,000 passengers in the 2013-14 financial year, which Cr Matic said was largely fuelled by the success of the free CityHopper.
Approximately 6.2 million passengers caught the CityCat, CityFerry or the CityHopper last year, up from 5.9 million the previous year.
"Last financial year, 1.91 million passengers took advantage of council's free CityHopper service offering convenient cross-river transport, which has seen an increase in the number of passengers on council's ferry services," he said.
Cr Matic said it the growth came despite a year in which CityCat services from Brisbane's northside were slightly reduced due to a "go-slow zone" around the new Riverwalk construction site.
"Council launched a new ferry timetable this week, taking into account the removal of the go-slow requirements that were part of the Riverwalk re-construction project," he said.
"The new timetable will allow even more passengers to take advantage of additional CityCat and Ferry services."
"More than ever before we are seeing Brisbane residents take advantage of other public transport opportunities such as the CityHopper and CityCycle."
Commuters abandoned Brisbane's bus network en masse last financial year, with the network carrying nearly one million fewer passengers than the previous year.
Brisbane City Council's 2013-14 annual report, tabled at Tuesday's council meeting, reveals the city's bus fleet carried 2685 less passengers on average per day in 2013-14 than it did in 2012-13.
The figures were revealed on the same day Deputy Mayor Adrian Schrinner announced traffic on the city's road network rose by 3.3 per cent last year, or by 1000 vehicles per day. But City Hall's public transport chief Peter Matic rebuffed suggestions the drop in patronage was the result of cuts to the bus network last year.
Cr Matic said the fault lay squarely with the former state Labor administration.
He said Brisbane's public transport usage "continued to feel the pain of the legacy of the former Labor Government's fare hikes".
Fares rose by up to 15 per cent annually under the Bligh government.
"We expect these numbers will turn around as a result of the [LNP] state government's capped increase of 2.5 per cent in fares each year," Cr Matic said.
"It is apparent from the state government's community consultation to date that the community is calling for cheaper public transport fares, which is a concern that is reflected by the community with council."
Council opposition leader Milton Dick said the figures showed people in Brisbane were turning their backs on public transport.
"The Brisbane bus review and changes to bus routes and timetabling has made it harder for commuters to catch public transport because there are fewer and less frequent services available throughout the city," he said.
The annual report also shows there were 220,000 less bus trips than the previous year, or a 7.1 per cent drop in services, following the council's public transport "optimisation review", the recommendations of which were implemented in the latter half of 2013.
"The lack of a frequent, reliable and affordable bus service is really starting to bite and it's forcing more people back into their cars," Cr Dick said.
However, the report is not damning of Brisbane's entire public transport network.
Ferry services carried an extra 300,000 passengers in the 2013-14 financial year, which Cr Matic said was largely fuelled by the success of the free CityHopper.
Approximately 6.2 million passengers caught the CityCat, CityFerry or the CityHopper last year, up from 5.9 million the previous year.
"Last financial year, 1.91 million passengers took advantage of council's free CityHopper service offering convenient cross-river transport, which has seen an increase in the number of passengers on council's ferry services," he said.
Cr Matic said it the growth came despite a year in which CityCat services from Brisbane's northside were slightly reduced due to a "go-slow zone" around the new Riverwalk construction site.
"Council launched a new ferry timetable this week, taking into account the removal of the go-slow requirements that were part of the Riverwalk re-construction project," he said.
"The new timetable will allow even more passengers to take advantage of additional CityCat and Ferry services."
"More than ever before we are seeing Brisbane residents take advantage of other public transport opportunities such as the CityHopper and CityCycle."
Chatswood train station closes due to fire
The busy Chatswood railway station was closed and hundreds of people were evacuated from a nearby building after a fire in a loading dock.
Shortly before 2pm on Thursday, Fire and Rescue NSW called for the station in Sydney's north to be closed.
Trains were passing through Chatswood, but not stopping, a spokeswoman for the Transport Management Centre said.
"It was in a loading dock in a building just near the station," a Fire and Rescue NSW spokesman said.
Around 200 people from 30 floors of the building were told to leave while the internal sprinkler system and firefighters worked to put the blaze out.
Shuttle buses were taking train passengers to Chatswood from Artarmon and Roseville - the stations to either side of Chatswood.
By around 3:30pm, it was largely extinguished.
The Transport Management Centre said that, by 4:20pm, trains were again stopping at Chatswood station.
The busy Chatswood railway station was closed and hundreds of people were evacuated from a nearby building after a fire in a loading dock.
Shortly before 2pm on Thursday, Fire and Rescue NSW called for the station in Sydney's north to be closed.
Trains were passing through Chatswood, but not stopping, a spokeswoman for the Transport Management Centre said.
"It was in a loading dock in a building just near the station," a Fire and Rescue NSW spokesman said.
Around 200 people from 30 floors of the building were told to leave while the internal sprinkler system and firefighters worked to put the blaze out.
Shuttle buses were taking train passengers to Chatswood from Artarmon and Roseville - the stations to either side of Chatswood.
By around 3:30pm, it was largely extinguished.
The Transport Management Centre said that, by 4:20pm, trains were again stopping at Chatswood station.
Upfield line Metro Trains driver Tim Lloyd pleads for people to stop crossing in front of trains
UPFIELD line Metro Trains driver Tim Lloyd has pleaded for people to stop crossing in front of trains after 10 people “risked their lives” in a dangerous 10-minute span.
Mr Lloyd said commuters dangerously dashed across the tracks close to his city-bound Upfield train, prompting the driver to make a public Facebook plea.
Rail operator Metro backed the Mr Lloyd’s call for patience around crossings, with spokeswoman Pauline O’Connor saying train drivers witnessed almost one near-miss every day.
HAVE YOU SEEN PEOPLE ACTING DANGEROUSLY NEAR TRAINS? TELL US BELOW
Mr Lloyd said a train “weighs around 250 tonnes, not counting passengers”, meaning there was “no instant gratification when you hit the brakes”.
He said on one trip:
FOUR people bypassed safety gates at Gowrie station and ran in front of his train, despite wet weather;
AT Fawkner station two more “did the same dash, they were lucky, also”;
AT Merlynston station, a woman pushed through the gate as Mr Lloyd’s train departed, but he sounded a loud whistle, causing her to retreat;
A CYCLIST at Batman station decided to beat the boomgates but was almost knocked off his bike as the boom fell on the opposite side;
AND at Coburg station, two cyclists attempted to go over the crossing before the train departed but stopped at the last second as a train came from the other direction, “with very little time to spare”.
UPFIELD line Metro Trains driver Tim Lloyd has pleaded for people to stop crossing in front of trains after 10 people “risked their lives” in a dangerous 10-minute span.
Mr Lloyd said commuters dangerously dashed across the tracks close to his city-bound Upfield train, prompting the driver to make a public Facebook plea.
Rail operator Metro backed the Mr Lloyd’s call for patience around crossings, with spokeswoman Pauline O’Connor saying train drivers witnessed almost one near-miss every day.
HAVE YOU SEEN PEOPLE ACTING DANGEROUSLY NEAR TRAINS? TELL US BELOW
Mr Lloyd said a train “weighs around 250 tonnes, not counting passengers”, meaning there was “no instant gratification when you hit the brakes”.
He said on one trip:
FOUR people bypassed safety gates at Gowrie station and ran in front of his train, despite wet weather;
AT Fawkner station two more “did the same dash, they were lucky, also”;
AT Merlynston station, a woman pushed through the gate as Mr Lloyd’s train departed, but he sounded a loud whistle, causing her to retreat;
A CYCLIST at Batman station decided to beat the boomgates but was almost knocked off his bike as the boom fell on the opposite side;
AND at Coburg station, two cyclists attempted to go over the crossing before the train departed but stopped at the last second as a train came from the other direction, “with very little time to spare”.
Ageing XPTs hit their use-by date: Report shows train break down rate up and recurring brake and engine woes
THE number of breakdowns in NSW’s ageing fleet of long-distance XPT trains has nearly tripled in four years.
XPTs broke down every 700,000km in 2008-09.
But new figures obtained under freedom of information show the trains’ engines are now packing it in every 250,000km.
Documents showed the fleet of 19 engines and 60 carriages have recurring problems with brakes and engines.
RailCorp’s Rolling Stock Annual Asset Integrity report 2012-2013 said the performance of the diesel fleet, including the XPTs, had “been declining during 2012-13”.
The report said the XPT fleet was at risk from “bogie (wheels) fatigue issues” and corrosion of electric ducting in the diesel-electric engines.
The report said the rail cars, some of which first went into service in 1982, have travelled an average of 9.945 million kilometres — the equivalent of nearly 13 times to the moon and back.
They were designed to travel 7.5 million kilometres before being retired.
Transport minister Gladys Berejiklian told a Budget Estimates hearing the government was concentrating on replacing rolling stock for the suburban network.
“The next thing for us to look at are XPTs,’’ she said.
She was unable to give a date when a decision on replacing the XPT will be made.
Sydney Trains CEO Howard Collins told the committee there was a “huge backlog of work to be done here”.
THE number of breakdowns in NSW’s ageing fleet of long-distance XPT trains has nearly tripled in four years.
XPTs broke down every 700,000km in 2008-09.
But new figures obtained under freedom of information show the trains’ engines are now packing it in every 250,000km.
Documents showed the fleet of 19 engines and 60 carriages have recurring problems with brakes and engines.
RailCorp’s Rolling Stock Annual Asset Integrity report 2012-2013 said the performance of the diesel fleet, including the XPTs, had “been declining during 2012-13”.
The report said the XPT fleet was at risk from “bogie (wheels) fatigue issues” and corrosion of electric ducting in the diesel-electric engines.
The report said the rail cars, some of which first went into service in 1982, have travelled an average of 9.945 million kilometres — the equivalent of nearly 13 times to the moon and back.
They were designed to travel 7.5 million kilometres before being retired.
Transport minister Gladys Berejiklian told a Budget Estimates hearing the government was concentrating on replacing rolling stock for the suburban network.
“The next thing for us to look at are XPTs,’’ she said.
She was unable to give a date when a decision on replacing the XPT will be made.
Sydney Trains CEO Howard Collins told the committee there was a “huge backlog of work to be done here”.
Trains resume after fire at Cleveland stationTrain services to Cleveland station have resumed after a fire broke out near the entrance on Wednesday morning.
Detectives are still investigating the cause of the blaze, but witnesses reported seeing flames and smoke coming from a bin near one of the station's entrances just before 11am.
Police, firefighters and emergency services were called to the scene after black, acrid smoke started filling the station's foyer.
Cleveland fire station officer Rob Onley said there were some delays at the station while the fire was dealt with.
"Through the quick actions of the fire service [the fire] was extinguished and the train was then subsequently allowed to come into the station and people could disembark when it was safe to do so," he said.
Specialists also provided back-up breathing material for the firefighters.
Shore Street West was closed in both directions after the blaze was extinguished.
A Queensland Rail spokesman said normal services resumed after the station was "briefly evacuated".
"No customers or staff were injured as result of the fire and only minimal damage was sustained by the station building," he said.
Police have cordoned off the immediate area around the fire while officers investigate.
The fire is the second major incident at the station in two years, after a train ran off the rails and plunged over the platform into the station master's office on January 31 last year.
Repair works after the passenger train ploughed through the station toilet block cost $400,000 and were carried out less than a year after the station underwent a $1.2 million overhaul.
Detectives are still investigating the cause of the blaze, but witnesses reported seeing flames and smoke coming from a bin near one of the station's entrances just before 11am.
Police, firefighters and emergency services were called to the scene after black, acrid smoke started filling the station's foyer.
Cleveland fire station officer Rob Onley said there were some delays at the station while the fire was dealt with.
"Through the quick actions of the fire service [the fire] was extinguished and the train was then subsequently allowed to come into the station and people could disembark when it was safe to do so," he said.
Specialists also provided back-up breathing material for the firefighters.
Shore Street West was closed in both directions after the blaze was extinguished.
A Queensland Rail spokesman said normal services resumed after the station was "briefly evacuated".
"No customers or staff were injured as result of the fire and only minimal damage was sustained by the station building," he said.
Police have cordoned off the immediate area around the fire while officers investigate.
The fire is the second major incident at the station in two years, after a train ran off the rails and plunged over the platform into the station master's office on January 31 last year.
Repair works after the passenger train ploughed through the station toilet block cost $400,000 and were carried out less than a year after the station underwent a $1.2 million overhaul.
Couple launch video campaign to get dogs allowed on Metrolink trams
Meet Pippa - the little dog making a big noise to get her fellow pooches on Manchester’s Metrolink trams.
Pippa, seven, an Affenpinscher, is the star of a video filmed by owners Wayne and Mandy Smedly to support the Campaign to Allow Dogs on Trams.
It is set in Manchester as well as Blackpool, where dogs are allowed on the tram for a 40p surcharge.
Wayne, who also features on the video as Pippa’s squeaky ‘dog voice’, said: “We saw the Facebook campaign page and just wanted to do something to help.
“We filmed in Blackpool and we asked them what they thought and they said it was ridiculous not allowing dogs on in Manchester.
“I just think it’s ridiculous when you think about how man people have dogs - and people have to find a bus or a train which is sometimes not acceptable.”
This isn’t Pippa’s first foray into film, having made her debut in 2008 after Wayne, 39, and Mandy, 53, got a camera as a wedding gift.
Pippa, and her fellow Affenpinscher Cassie, now star in a series of films posted to YouTube under Affie Films.
Dad of two Wayne, from Chorley, added: “Pippa is an absolute star. The voice I use started because it makes my wife laugh but now we’ll be in the supermarket and people will come up and ask me to do the voice. Pippa is a little dog who just loves life. Whenever we’re in Manchester people come up to give her a cuddle.”
Solicitor Phil Bradby launched the Facebook campaign a year ago.
Phil, of Chorlton, who travels all over the world with his Miniature Schnauzer Luke,10, said: “The video is cute, but then dogs are. When I travel on trains with Luke I99 per cent come up and say isn’t he well behaved. The rule is daft - dogs are banned for the sake of it.”
Phil, a regular commuter to London, added: “I can get the Underground to Euston with Luke, then get on a train, travel all the way to Manchester and then I’m stuck.”
Peter Cushing, TfGM’s Metrolink Director, said the law has been in place since Metrolink’s launch in 1992, and excludes assistance dogs or those on their way to the PDSA in Old Trafford.
He added: “This bye-law was introduced in the interests of passenger health and safety because Metrolink operates as a high-frequency, high-volume, unstaffed system and there is no representative available on board to assess the potential risk posed by animals.”
He said in response to the campaign, members of the TfGM committee would meet in September to look into a possible consultation on the matter.
Meet Pippa - the little dog making a big noise to get her fellow pooches on Manchester’s Metrolink trams.
Pippa, seven, an Affenpinscher, is the star of a video filmed by owners Wayne and Mandy Smedly to support the Campaign to Allow Dogs on Trams.
It is set in Manchester as well as Blackpool, where dogs are allowed on the tram for a 40p surcharge.
Wayne, who also features on the video as Pippa’s squeaky ‘dog voice’, said: “We saw the Facebook campaign page and just wanted to do something to help.
“We filmed in Blackpool and we asked them what they thought and they said it was ridiculous not allowing dogs on in Manchester.
“I just think it’s ridiculous when you think about how man people have dogs - and people have to find a bus or a train which is sometimes not acceptable.”
This isn’t Pippa’s first foray into film, having made her debut in 2008 after Wayne, 39, and Mandy, 53, got a camera as a wedding gift.
Pippa, and her fellow Affenpinscher Cassie, now star in a series of films posted to YouTube under Affie Films.
Dad of two Wayne, from Chorley, added: “Pippa is an absolute star. The voice I use started because it makes my wife laugh but now we’ll be in the supermarket and people will come up and ask me to do the voice. Pippa is a little dog who just loves life. Whenever we’re in Manchester people come up to give her a cuddle.”
Solicitor Phil Bradby launched the Facebook campaign a year ago.
Phil, of Chorlton, who travels all over the world with his Miniature Schnauzer Luke,10, said: “The video is cute, but then dogs are. When I travel on trains with Luke I99 per cent come up and say isn’t he well behaved. The rule is daft - dogs are banned for the sake of it.”
Phil, a regular commuter to London, added: “I can get the Underground to Euston with Luke, then get on a train, travel all the way to Manchester and then I’m stuck.”
Peter Cushing, TfGM’s Metrolink Director, said the law has been in place since Metrolink’s launch in 1992, and excludes assistance dogs or those on their way to the PDSA in Old Trafford.
He added: “This bye-law was introduced in the interests of passenger health and safety because Metrolink operates as a high-frequency, high-volume, unstaffed system and there is no representative available on board to assess the potential risk posed by animals.”
He said in response to the campaign, members of the TfGM committee would meet in September to look into a possible consultation on the matter.
Boom gates fail on Stony Point line forcing Metro to limit train service
Malfunctioning boom gates have been swinging open as trains approach at level crossings on the Stony Point line south of Melbourne, forcing Metro to pull trains out of service and put passengers on buses to avoid the risk of a crash.
Metro has issued a safety alert to staff warning them of the boom gate failures and has banned single-car trains from running on the line until further notice. It has also blamed train drivers for sprinkling too much sand onto the tracks from the train's "sander".
The internal alert states: "There have been a number of level crossing failures (where booms have raised prior to a train passing through or clearing a level crossing) on the Stony Point line."
Train drivers have reported three cases where boom gates have dangerously swung open this year, Metro says. All three happened while the train was stopped at a station platform and no train passed through a crossing with raised booms. On Sunday Metro cancelled three Stony Point trains per day until further notice, because its ban on single-car trains means it no longer has enough trains to meet the timetable. The trains will be replaced with buses.Metro operates the Stony Point line using diesel Sprinter trains provided by V/Line.
The line, between Frankston and Stony Point on the Mornington Peninsula, is by far the quietest line in Metro's network, with just seven passenger trains a day. Freight trains also use the line to go to and from the Port of Hastings.
Metro has laid part of the blame for the problem on its drivers, accusing some of them of being too quick to use the train's sander, an instrument that provides more adhesion on the rails.
Tim Young, Metro's head of train services, told staff data logs showed some drivers were using much more sand than others and should only do so to avoid a "safety critical incident" such as a collision, platform overshoot, or running a red signal.
Tony Morton, president of the Public Transport Users Association, said it was a ridiculous situation that indicated the rail line was in poor shape.
"It certainly adds to the impression that the train network is basically held together with string and gaffer tape," Dr Morton said. "You're meant to have failsafe signalling in level crossing systems ... the equipment obviously is no longer up to scratch, it's just been allowed to deteriorate."
Metro's Larisa Tait said the operator had recently increased its track maintenance regime to keep the line free of debris and rust. She said there was never any risk of a train-to-vehicle smash.
"There have not been any instances where a train has travelled through a level crossing with the booms in the up position, and there has never been any risk of collision with cars or pedestrians when a train has proceeded at extreme caution," Ms Tait said.
It is not the first time single-car trains have been barred from running in Victoria because they failed to trigger boom gates. In 2012 V/Line stopped running them on the Geelong line because of an infestation of millipedes and overgrown fairy grass that were interfering with track circuits.
V/Line no longer operates single-car Sprinters, due to increased patronage.
Malfunctioning boom gates have been swinging open as trains approach at level crossings on the Stony Point line south of Melbourne, forcing Metro to pull trains out of service and put passengers on buses to avoid the risk of a crash.
Metro has issued a safety alert to staff warning them of the boom gate failures and has banned single-car trains from running on the line until further notice. It has also blamed train drivers for sprinkling too much sand onto the tracks from the train's "sander".
The internal alert states: "There have been a number of level crossing failures (where booms have raised prior to a train passing through or clearing a level crossing) on the Stony Point line."
Train drivers have reported three cases where boom gates have dangerously swung open this year, Metro says. All three happened while the train was stopped at a station platform and no train passed through a crossing with raised booms. On Sunday Metro cancelled three Stony Point trains per day until further notice, because its ban on single-car trains means it no longer has enough trains to meet the timetable. The trains will be replaced with buses.Metro operates the Stony Point line using diesel Sprinter trains provided by V/Line.
The line, between Frankston and Stony Point on the Mornington Peninsula, is by far the quietest line in Metro's network, with just seven passenger trains a day. Freight trains also use the line to go to and from the Port of Hastings.
Metro has laid part of the blame for the problem on its drivers, accusing some of them of being too quick to use the train's sander, an instrument that provides more adhesion on the rails.
Tim Young, Metro's head of train services, told staff data logs showed some drivers were using much more sand than others and should only do so to avoid a "safety critical incident" such as a collision, platform overshoot, or running a red signal.
Tony Morton, president of the Public Transport Users Association, said it was a ridiculous situation that indicated the rail line was in poor shape.
"It certainly adds to the impression that the train network is basically held together with string and gaffer tape," Dr Morton said. "You're meant to have failsafe signalling in level crossing systems ... the equipment obviously is no longer up to scratch, it's just been allowed to deteriorate."
Metro's Larisa Tait said the operator had recently increased its track maintenance regime to keep the line free of debris and rust. She said there was never any risk of a train-to-vehicle smash.
"There have not been any instances where a train has travelled through a level crossing with the booms in the up position, and there has never been any risk of collision with cars or pedestrians when a train has proceeded at extreme caution," Ms Tait said.
It is not the first time single-car trains have been barred from running in Victoria because they failed to trigger boom gates. In 2012 V/Line stopped running them on the Geelong line because of an infestation of millipedes and overgrown fairy grass that were interfering with track circuits.
V/Line no longer operates single-car Sprinters, due to increased patronage.
Fewer people catch trains
Patronage on Perth's public transport network fell by more than two million in 2013-14 - the first annual decline in more than a decade.
The Public Transport Authority has partly blamed the fall on economic factors, with evidence Perth families are spending less of their disposable income on public transport.
The Opposition said the decrease was a result of overcrowded trains, fare rises and the lack of public transport expansion in Perth's growth suburbs.
The latest figures show overall patronage fell from 149.7 million boardings in 2012-13 to 147.6 million in 2013-14.
Train travel was down across all lines, with the biggest falls on the Fremantle line (down 581,495, or 6.6 per cent) and Armadale (down 491,553, or 5.1 per cent).
Bus patronage rose slightly (by 170,666, or 0.2 per cent) but ferry numbers fell to their lowest in at least 11 years (down 29,628, or 6.4 per cent).
PTA spokesman David Hynes said the state of the economy appeared to be a factor, with strong evidence of less discretionary travel on the network.
"FamilyRider and DayRider use are down," he said. "This suggests some passengers may have less disposable income and are choosing to stay at home or are at least being more measured in their amount of leisure activity.
"Further, office vacancy rates are up, so we believe fewer people are travelling into the city on a typical work day."
Mr Hynes said the Perth City Link project had two major shutdowns, in July and August, which had an impact on patronage.
"There was also very bad weather between July and September last year," he said.
Shadow transport minister Ken Travers said public transport patronage was often price sensitive and fare increases in the past two years may have had an impact. Overcrowding had also discouraged the use of public transport.
Mr Travers said the fall in patronage was also a reflection of the Barnett Government's inability to service Perth's urban growth areas with trains.
Patronage on Perth's public transport network fell by more than two million in 2013-14 - the first annual decline in more than a decade.
The Public Transport Authority has partly blamed the fall on economic factors, with evidence Perth families are spending less of their disposable income on public transport.
The Opposition said the decrease was a result of overcrowded trains, fare rises and the lack of public transport expansion in Perth's growth suburbs.
The latest figures show overall patronage fell from 149.7 million boardings in 2012-13 to 147.6 million in 2013-14.
Train travel was down across all lines, with the biggest falls on the Fremantle line (down 581,495, or 6.6 per cent) and Armadale (down 491,553, or 5.1 per cent).
Bus patronage rose slightly (by 170,666, or 0.2 per cent) but ferry numbers fell to their lowest in at least 11 years (down 29,628, or 6.4 per cent).
PTA spokesman David Hynes said the state of the economy appeared to be a factor, with strong evidence of less discretionary travel on the network.
"FamilyRider and DayRider use are down," he said. "This suggests some passengers may have less disposable income and are choosing to stay at home or are at least being more measured in their amount of leisure activity.
"Further, office vacancy rates are up, so we believe fewer people are travelling into the city on a typical work day."
Mr Hynes said the Perth City Link project had two major shutdowns, in July and August, which had an impact on patronage.
"There was also very bad weather between July and September last year," he said.
Shadow transport minister Ken Travers said public transport patronage was often price sensitive and fare increases in the past two years may have had an impact. Overcrowding had also discouraged the use of public transport.
Mr Travers said the fall in patronage was also a reflection of the Barnett Government's inability to service Perth's urban growth areas with trains.
Train crash at Altona leaves nine injured
Nine people were injured when two trains crashed near the Maidstone Street crossing in Altona at about 7pm on Friday.
Police say a passenger train travelling east, towards the CBD, had stopped near the crossing when a Geelong train smashed into it from behind.
Seven of the 60 passengers on the suburban train sustained minor injuries.
There were no passengers on the Geelong train, but the driver and conductor also had minor injuries.
Werribee line: All Werribee line trains will be running via the Altona Loop until further notice due to an incident.
Nine people were injured when two trains crashed near the Maidstone Street crossing in Altona at about 7pm on Friday.
Police say a passenger train travelling east, towards the CBD, had stopped near the crossing when a Geelong train smashed into it from behind.
Seven of the 60 passengers on the suburban train sustained minor injuries.
There were no passengers on the Geelong train, but the driver and conductor also had minor injuries.
Werribee line: All Werribee line trains will be running via the Altona Loop until further notice due to an incident.
Dozens killed in Egyptian bus crash
At least 33 people were killed when two buses collided near a popular Red Sea resort in Egypt early on Friday, in the country's worst road accident in nearly two years.
The buses were coming from opposite directions when they collided on a main road about 30 miles from Sharm el-Sheikh, a resort town popular with beachgoers and scuba divers.
Forty-one people were injured, with some sustaining fractured skulls, said Khaled Abu Hashem, a local emergency services official. Twenty-two were receiving treatment in Sharm el-Sheikh hospital, including four people in the intensive care unit, said another emergency health official, Mohammed Sultan.
Two Saudis were among the dead, while four foreigners – a 20-year-old Ukrainian woman, a Yemeni man and a Saudi woman and child – were injured.
The tourism minister, Hisham Zaazoue, said the vehicles were not tourist buses and belonged to transportation companies, the state news agency Mena reported. The cause of the accident was not yet known.
About 13,000 people were killed on Egypt's road last year. Friday's accident was the deadliest since November 2012, when a train crashed into a bus carrying children to nursery, killing more than 50 people.
Gold Coast tram drivers ‘traumatised’ by near misses with drivers and pedestriansFrightening new video has emerged of Gold Coast drivers dicing with disaster when it comes to the city’s new trams.
The series of near misses has been released to scare new drivers into paying attention.
They are the close calls that could have ended in disaster including one man shown walking dangerously close to a tram then over the Southport Bridge.
“Not only do they put their own lives at risk, they are putting other people’s lives at risk and they traumatise, particularly, tram drivers who are there doing the right thing,” Queensland transport minister Scott Emerson said.
It’s a new system so there is bound to be teething problems and there are education programs in place to warn commuters and drivers.
The images prove the coast’s extensive CCTV network is firmly fixed on the tram tracks.
Those that make a mistake are being watched and will be tracked down to pay the fine if they break the law or cause damage to any trams.
The buses were coming from opposite directions when they collided on a main road about 30 miles from Sharm el-Sheikh, a resort town popular with beachgoers and scuba divers.
Forty-one people were injured, with some sustaining fractured skulls, said Khaled Abu Hashem, a local emergency services official. Twenty-two were receiving treatment in Sharm el-Sheikh hospital, including four people in the intensive care unit, said another emergency health official, Mohammed Sultan.
Two Saudis were among the dead, while four foreigners – a 20-year-old Ukrainian woman, a Yemeni man and a Saudi woman and child – were injured.
The tourism minister, Hisham Zaazoue, said the vehicles were not tourist buses and belonged to transportation companies, the state news agency Mena reported. The cause of the accident was not yet known.
About 13,000 people were killed on Egypt's road last year. Friday's accident was the deadliest since November 2012, when a train crashed into a bus carrying children to nursery, killing more than 50 people.
Gold Coast tram drivers ‘traumatised’ by near misses with drivers and pedestriansFrightening new video has emerged of Gold Coast drivers dicing with disaster when it comes to the city’s new trams.
The series of near misses has been released to scare new drivers into paying attention.
They are the close calls that could have ended in disaster including one man shown walking dangerously close to a tram then over the Southport Bridge.
“Not only do they put their own lives at risk, they are putting other people’s lives at risk and they traumatise, particularly, tram drivers who are there doing the right thing,” Queensland transport minister Scott Emerson said.
It’s a new system so there is bound to be teething problems and there are education programs in place to warn commuters and drivers.
The images prove the coast’s extensive CCTV network is firmly fixed on the tram tracks.
Those that make a mistake are being watched and will be tracked down to pay the fine if they break the law or cause damage to any trams.
Major tram delays: Car stuck on Swanston Street tracks
Nine tram routes were subject to major delays and diversions on Monday night, with a car stuck on Swanston Street tracks causing havoc for commuters.
A Yarra Trams spokesman confirmed a driver had entered Swanston Street just before 8pm and became stuck outside the State Library, near the corner of Little Lonsdale Street.
The car was sitting with two wheels on the platform, two wheels on the track with its axle stuck on the platform.
Routes 1 and 8 kept running as normal northbound, but were diverted southbound.
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Routes 3, 5, 6, 16, 64, 67 and 72 began and terminated just before the crash site.
The car was removed about 45 minutes after it collided with the tram stop.
Nine tram routes were subject to major delays and diversions on Monday night, with a car stuck on Swanston Street tracks causing havoc for commuters.
A Yarra Trams spokesman confirmed a driver had entered Swanston Street just before 8pm and became stuck outside the State Library, near the corner of Little Lonsdale Street.
The car was sitting with two wheels on the platform, two wheels on the track with its axle stuck on the platform.
Routes 1 and 8 kept running as normal northbound, but were diverted southbound.
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Routes 3, 5, 6, 16, 64, 67 and 72 began and terminated just before the crash site.
The car was removed about 45 minutes after it collided with the tram stop.
The internet is the express line for train spottersWhile Metra commuters file onto their usual trains at Ogilvie Transportation Center, Chicago, Fred Van Dorpe frantically weaves from one platform to the next with a hand-held video camera strapped to his palm.
In a matter of minutes, the 20-year-old from Chicago captures the engine of one train and the brake system of another, and then drops to his knees for a panoramic angle of rail cars leaving the station with a city skyline backdrop.
"This is a lot of action," Van Dorpe shouts excitedly over the trains' deafening hums and bells. "It all adds up on YouTube."
Van Dorpe is one of many young train enthusiasts reinventing the hobby of rail watching, a pastime once reserved for old-timers and eccentric transportation buffs. With the help of internet tools including Facebook, YouTube and Flickr, crowds of teens and 20-somethings meet online and gather with lawn chairs at dusk at otherwise sleepy stations across Chicago's suburbs.
There they collect video footage and still images that draw thousands of online views. Some of the images have been picked up by railroad lines and popular rail magazines, which pay hundreds of dollars for unique shots. Other rail watchers are making hundreds of dollars a month posting videos of trains on YouTube.
"I know some of these kids are making more money than I do," Steve Barry, editor of Railfan & Railroad magazine, said with a chuckle. The New Jersey-based publication has 18,000 subscribers.
In acknowledgment of the younger audience, the magazine is launching a new app that will allow train watchers to pass along real-time information about trains travelling the United States.
"It's always good to have young kids come into the hobby," Barry said.
For years, Chicago and its suburbs have attracted train enthusiasts who revel in the many railroad lines that travel local tracks. Rail watchers, often members of long-standing model railroad clubs, bond over sightings of trains painted special colors to mark historic railroad anniversaries; chugging through snow, rain and other weather; or derailing for unexpected reasons.
From the window of Elijah's, her Elmhurst coffee shop, Laura Giese has admired the passion of the rail watchers, who start setting up their chairs along the tracks after the sun goes down.
"I would have never thought anyone would be at all interested in watching trains, but it's this whole thing," said Giese, whose employees have become accustomed to customers who say they've driven miles in search of certain train cars.
And more recently, Giese has noticed that the train-loving crowds are not just retirees, but often much younger.
Stephen Schmidt, an 18-year-old from Wood Dale, heads out several times each week with his video camera to capture footage of interesting-looking trains. He learns about noteworthy incoming trains through Facebook groups where people he's never met post updates about cars that have passed through their towns.
Sometimes Facebook friends meet at the same station - the railroad park in Rochelle, or the stations in Franklin Park or Blue Island - where they bring food to grill and sleeping bags for overnight viewing and photo-taking parties.
"It really makes great friendships," Schmidt said. "There are a lot more younger people than you would think that are into it."
Chase Gunnoe, 19, of Charleston, West Virginia, helps run the railpictures.net website where train enthusiasts view and post footage. He attributes the hobby's appeal to his generation to the immediacy and exposure the technology allows.
Even mediocre photos on the website typically get 300 to 400 views, while more significant or newsworthy ones can attract 3000 to 4000 views in 24 hours, Gunnoe said.
"The young people are getting into the photography and video aspect because it's instant feedback on what they're doing," Gunnoe said.
The potential for a financial payoff isn't bad, either.
Drayton Blackgrove, of Jackson, Michigan, travels to Chicago three times each year to collect footage of trains for a YouTube site he created in 2011.
Within a week of posting footage collected in Chicago, Blackgrove, 18, had 12,000 views, prompting YouTube officials to contact him about placing advertising on his channel, he said.
A year later, video from a nonfatal Amtrak accident about 2 kilometres from his home attracted 100,000 views and more channel subscribers. Today the high school senior spends his free time making appointments to interview railroad industry officials, filming unique trains and attending well-known rail watching events.
As of last week he had 10,000 subscribers on his YouTube channel and 6.5 million views - which amounts to a $US75 to $US100 daily payout, he said.
"I'll be able to pay my way through college in today's crazy world ... and it's all just a hobby that took me where I am today," he said.
Barry, of Railfan & Railroad magazine, said he and other train enthusiasts had expected to see more youth interest in the hobby beginning in the 1980s, when Thomas & Friends became a popular TV series about an animated train. But as well-loved as the series was, it didn't make a noticeable impact on the rail fan hobby for adults, he said.
So today's interest comes as a pleasant - if not unfamiliar - surprise to longtime rail fans, who are learning to communicate with the younger generation by following YouTube channels, joining Facebook groups and surveying pictures on Flickr.
"I'm Facebook friends with a lot of rail fans, and their enthusiasm is pretty intense," Barry said. "There are a lot more kids congregating together than I've ever seen."
It's a trend you don't have to explain to Van Dorpe, of Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood. The young rail fan became interested in trains after his parents took him to the Illinois Railway Museum in Union when he was a toddler. A decade later he discovered train videos online and began shooting his own with a cellphone camera.
Today he uses an upgraded camera to capture a mix of video clips at Ogilvie, which he'll later edit into one cohesive video. Hard at work on a recent afternoon, he answers a call on his cellphone - a Facebook friend he's never met in person just arrived at Union Station and wants to meet up.
"Hold on, dude," Van Dorpe tells the caller, knowing he'll understand. "This was a unique angle; I've never done that before."
In a matter of minutes, the 20-year-old from Chicago captures the engine of one train and the brake system of another, and then drops to his knees for a panoramic angle of rail cars leaving the station with a city skyline backdrop.
"This is a lot of action," Van Dorpe shouts excitedly over the trains' deafening hums and bells. "It all adds up on YouTube."
Van Dorpe is one of many young train enthusiasts reinventing the hobby of rail watching, a pastime once reserved for old-timers and eccentric transportation buffs. With the help of internet tools including Facebook, YouTube and Flickr, crowds of teens and 20-somethings meet online and gather with lawn chairs at dusk at otherwise sleepy stations across Chicago's suburbs.
There they collect video footage and still images that draw thousands of online views. Some of the images have been picked up by railroad lines and popular rail magazines, which pay hundreds of dollars for unique shots. Other rail watchers are making hundreds of dollars a month posting videos of trains on YouTube.
"I know some of these kids are making more money than I do," Steve Barry, editor of Railfan & Railroad magazine, said with a chuckle. The New Jersey-based publication has 18,000 subscribers.
In acknowledgment of the younger audience, the magazine is launching a new app that will allow train watchers to pass along real-time information about trains travelling the United States.
"It's always good to have young kids come into the hobby," Barry said.
For years, Chicago and its suburbs have attracted train enthusiasts who revel in the many railroad lines that travel local tracks. Rail watchers, often members of long-standing model railroad clubs, bond over sightings of trains painted special colors to mark historic railroad anniversaries; chugging through snow, rain and other weather; or derailing for unexpected reasons.
From the window of Elijah's, her Elmhurst coffee shop, Laura Giese has admired the passion of the rail watchers, who start setting up their chairs along the tracks after the sun goes down.
"I would have never thought anyone would be at all interested in watching trains, but it's this whole thing," said Giese, whose employees have become accustomed to customers who say they've driven miles in search of certain train cars.
And more recently, Giese has noticed that the train-loving crowds are not just retirees, but often much younger.
Stephen Schmidt, an 18-year-old from Wood Dale, heads out several times each week with his video camera to capture footage of interesting-looking trains. He learns about noteworthy incoming trains through Facebook groups where people he's never met post updates about cars that have passed through their towns.
Sometimes Facebook friends meet at the same station - the railroad park in Rochelle, or the stations in Franklin Park or Blue Island - where they bring food to grill and sleeping bags for overnight viewing and photo-taking parties.
"It really makes great friendships," Schmidt said. "There are a lot more younger people than you would think that are into it."
Chase Gunnoe, 19, of Charleston, West Virginia, helps run the railpictures.net website where train enthusiasts view and post footage. He attributes the hobby's appeal to his generation to the immediacy and exposure the technology allows.
Even mediocre photos on the website typically get 300 to 400 views, while more significant or newsworthy ones can attract 3000 to 4000 views in 24 hours, Gunnoe said.
"The young people are getting into the photography and video aspect because it's instant feedback on what they're doing," Gunnoe said.
The potential for a financial payoff isn't bad, either.
Drayton Blackgrove, of Jackson, Michigan, travels to Chicago three times each year to collect footage of trains for a YouTube site he created in 2011.
Within a week of posting footage collected in Chicago, Blackgrove, 18, had 12,000 views, prompting YouTube officials to contact him about placing advertising on his channel, he said.
A year later, video from a nonfatal Amtrak accident about 2 kilometres from his home attracted 100,000 views and more channel subscribers. Today the high school senior spends his free time making appointments to interview railroad industry officials, filming unique trains and attending well-known rail watching events.
As of last week he had 10,000 subscribers on his YouTube channel and 6.5 million views - which amounts to a $US75 to $US100 daily payout, he said.
"I'll be able to pay my way through college in today's crazy world ... and it's all just a hobby that took me where I am today," he said.
Barry, of Railfan & Railroad magazine, said he and other train enthusiasts had expected to see more youth interest in the hobby beginning in the 1980s, when Thomas & Friends became a popular TV series about an animated train. But as well-loved as the series was, it didn't make a noticeable impact on the rail fan hobby for adults, he said.
So today's interest comes as a pleasant - if not unfamiliar - surprise to longtime rail fans, who are learning to communicate with the younger generation by following YouTube channels, joining Facebook groups and surveying pictures on Flickr.
"I'm Facebook friends with a lot of rail fans, and their enthusiasm is pretty intense," Barry said. "There are a lot more kids congregating together than I've ever seen."
It's a trend you don't have to explain to Van Dorpe, of Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood. The young rail fan became interested in trains after his parents took him to the Illinois Railway Museum in Union when he was a toddler. A decade later he discovered train videos online and began shooting his own with a cellphone camera.
Today he uses an upgraded camera to capture a mix of video clips at Ogilvie, which he'll later edit into one cohesive video. Hard at work on a recent afternoon, he answers a call on his cellphone - a Facebook friend he's never met in person just arrived at Union Station and wants to meet up.
"Hold on, dude," Van Dorpe tells the caller, knowing he'll understand. "This was a unique angle; I've never done that before."
Scant detail about buses
PASSENGERS aren't the only ones waiting for information from the state government about the bus services that will replace Newcastle's heavy rail when work to truncate the line begins at Christmas.
Its own city bus operator, Newcastle Buses, is also in the dark, according to an internal staff newsletter this month, obtained by the Newcastle Herald.
In it, general manager Darren Carey wrote he was "unaware of [Transport for NSW's] thoughts on operators" of the replacement shuttle service.
"I have little to nothing to tell you at this stage," he advised his staff.
It is unclear whether the shuttle will be put to competitive tender or run by Newcastle Buses, part of the State Transit Authority.
"As far as I am concerned, we are best placed to operate the rail replacement shuttle service," Mr Carey wrote.
The government announced at the start of this month rail services between Wickham and Newcastle will cease on Boxing Day.
Trains will stop at Broadmeadow from December 26 until January 4 to enable signalling and platforms at Hamilton station to be upgraded.
Trains will then terminate there or at Broadmeadow until the interchange is finished at the end of 2016 and trains end there instead.
Shuttle buses will run into the city from those stations until light rail is installed, which may not start until the end of next year.
The government has said it will announce more details about the buses ahead of the rail closure.
A Transport for NSW spokeswoman said it was "currently considering options for the efficient and effective provision of the required new rail replacement bus services".
A later revamp of city bus services is also expected, to cut those services that would double up with the light rail once it is in place.
PASSENGERS aren't the only ones waiting for information from the state government about the bus services that will replace Newcastle's heavy rail when work to truncate the line begins at Christmas.
Its own city bus operator, Newcastle Buses, is also in the dark, according to an internal staff newsletter this month, obtained by the Newcastle Herald.
In it, general manager Darren Carey wrote he was "unaware of [Transport for NSW's] thoughts on operators" of the replacement shuttle service.
"I have little to nothing to tell you at this stage," he advised his staff.
It is unclear whether the shuttle will be put to competitive tender or run by Newcastle Buses, part of the State Transit Authority.
"As far as I am concerned, we are best placed to operate the rail replacement shuttle service," Mr Carey wrote.
The government announced at the start of this month rail services between Wickham and Newcastle will cease on Boxing Day.
Trains will stop at Broadmeadow from December 26 until January 4 to enable signalling and platforms at Hamilton station to be upgraded.
Trains will then terminate there or at Broadmeadow until the interchange is finished at the end of 2016 and trains end there instead.
Shuttle buses will run into the city from those stations until light rail is installed, which may not start until the end of next year.
The government has said it will announce more details about the buses ahead of the rail closure.
A Transport for NSW spokeswoman said it was "currently considering options for the efficient and effective provision of the required new rail replacement bus services".
A later revamp of city bus services is also expected, to cut those services that would double up with the light rail once it is in place.
Deadpool arrested on Sydney train: Police alerted to superhero armed with guns, grenades and ninja swords
Police stormed a packed Sydney peak hour train this morning after reports of a man armed with handguns, grenades and samurai swords was travelling in the last carriage.
Scared passengers on the Emu Plains to CBD morning express called triple 0, telling police a man wearing a menacing red and black one-piece costume was carrying deadly weapons.
When the train pulled in at Blacktown station about 7.20am, uniformed officers jumped on board and bundled the man out of the carriage onto the platform.
But after police spoke to the man the found that all the “weapons” were plastic fakes and he was dressed as “Spiderman” as part of a charity fundraising campaign called Superhero Week.
He was wearing the costume to work to help raise money for Bear Cottage at Manly, a hospice for children.
The man, Reuben Rose, said he was wearing the costume to his workplace at St Leonards for the day to help convince his workmates to donate to Bear Cottage.
“Someone on the train got worried and called the police about a bloke with guns on the train.
“The police told him to put all his gear into his bag and it was OK for him to catch the next train.
“But this train’s been held up for 10 minutes.”
Mr Rose said police did not charge him with any offence.
- Reuben Rose, dressed as Marvel character Deadpool was hauled off a train at Blacktown by police
- Concerned commuters had reported him after seeing his guns, swords and grenade
- His superhero get-up, however was in aid of children’s hospice Bear Cottage
Police stormed a packed Sydney peak hour train this morning after reports of a man armed with handguns, grenades and samurai swords was travelling in the last carriage.
Scared passengers on the Emu Plains to CBD morning express called triple 0, telling police a man wearing a menacing red and black one-piece costume was carrying deadly weapons.
When the train pulled in at Blacktown station about 7.20am, uniformed officers jumped on board and bundled the man out of the carriage onto the platform.
But after police spoke to the man the found that all the “weapons” were plastic fakes and he was dressed as “Spiderman” as part of a charity fundraising campaign called Superhero Week.
He was wearing the costume to work to help raise money for Bear Cottage at Manly, a hospice for children.
The man, Reuben Rose, said he was wearing the costume to his workplace at St Leonards for the day to help convince his workmates to donate to Bear Cottage.
“Someone on the train got worried and called the police about a bloke with guns on the train.
“The police told him to put all his gear into his bag and it was OK for him to catch the next train.
“But this train’s been held up for 10 minutes.”
Mr Rose said police did not charge him with any offence.
Test proves Yarra Trams' E-Class trams too power hungry for network
Further doubts have emerged about whether Melbourne’s tram system can cope with the greater power demands of 50 larger trams that are progressively being put into service, after the system failed an important test.
Six early morning tests in May involving four high-capacity E-Class trams running along a section of Nicholson Street found power problems whenever more than two trams operated at a time.
Yarra Trams has identified the need to build or boost 16 electrical substations around Melbourne so the system can cope with the full order of E-Class trams, and is in a race to secure the land at five sites where more power is needed.
There are currently just five E-Class trams operating, all of them on route 96 between Brunswick East and St Kilda Beach, with the remaining 45 due to be introduced at the rate of one a month from July.
But the first real test of the network’s capacity to move the power-hungry trams - which was conducted on a single section of route 96 between the Blyth Street terminus in Brunswick East and the intersection of Nicholson and Park streets in Fitzroy North - found there was a lack of voltage to reliably power more than two trams at once.
“In general, with a fourth tram in the section the network struggles to hold up,” an email seen by Fairfax Media states. “In summary, tests 2, 5 and 6 strongly indicate that 3 x E-Class trams in section PK.0.2 will cause operational difficulties.”
In one test, three trams simultaneously accelerating caused a total power outage to the section.
Yarra Trams chief executive Clement Michel this week said there were no problems regarding the power of the tram network and that testing had merely identified the amount of power still needed.
“Now we have tested the resistance of the tram network power grid with these five trams and we didn’t have any issue so we are pretty confident that we will not have any power issues going forward with the E-Class trams,” Mr Michel told media at the announcement of the revamped Brunswick tram depot on Tuesday.
With the last of the 50 new trams scheduled to be introduced in 2018, he said there was ample time to secure the land and build or upgrade the new substations the network needs.
“This program is over several years so we are not in a rush to find the land currently,” he said.
Public Transport Victoria said the testing had identified the system’s future power needs and where the substations should go.
“Planning also identified that building this infrastructure would be complex and require innovative approaches to the retrofitting of new power substations,” spokesman Adrian Darwent said.
“With the power aspects of the upgrade, there have been a number of challenges but none of these have proven to be insurmountable and all are in the process of being resolved.”
The E-Class trams, ordered by the former Labor government in 2009 in response to rising tram patronage, cost the state $300 million and are part of an $800 million investment in the network. They will initially run solely on route 96 and free other larger, low-floor trams to run on other busy routes.
Manufacturing problems delayed their initial rollout by seven months and the first tram entered service in November. The contract with manufacturer Bombardier includes an option for a further 100 trams.
Yarra Trams says Melbourne needs 110 E-Class trams in total by 2020 to cope with rising demand and to enable the progressive retirement of the older Z-Class tram fleet.
Further doubts have emerged about whether Melbourne’s tram system can cope with the greater power demands of 50 larger trams that are progressively being put into service, after the system failed an important test.
Six early morning tests in May involving four high-capacity E-Class trams running along a section of Nicholson Street found power problems whenever more than two trams operated at a time.
Yarra Trams has identified the need to build or boost 16 electrical substations around Melbourne so the system can cope with the full order of E-Class trams, and is in a race to secure the land at five sites where more power is needed.
There are currently just five E-Class trams operating, all of them on route 96 between Brunswick East and St Kilda Beach, with the remaining 45 due to be introduced at the rate of one a month from July.
But the first real test of the network’s capacity to move the power-hungry trams - which was conducted on a single section of route 96 between the Blyth Street terminus in Brunswick East and the intersection of Nicholson and Park streets in Fitzroy North - found there was a lack of voltage to reliably power more than two trams at once.
“In general, with a fourth tram in the section the network struggles to hold up,” an email seen by Fairfax Media states. “In summary, tests 2, 5 and 6 strongly indicate that 3 x E-Class trams in section PK.0.2 will cause operational difficulties.”
In one test, three trams simultaneously accelerating caused a total power outage to the section.
Yarra Trams chief executive Clement Michel this week said there were no problems regarding the power of the tram network and that testing had merely identified the amount of power still needed.
“Now we have tested the resistance of the tram network power grid with these five trams and we didn’t have any issue so we are pretty confident that we will not have any power issues going forward with the E-Class trams,” Mr Michel told media at the announcement of the revamped Brunswick tram depot on Tuesday.
With the last of the 50 new trams scheduled to be introduced in 2018, he said there was ample time to secure the land and build or upgrade the new substations the network needs.
“This program is over several years so we are not in a rush to find the land currently,” he said.
Public Transport Victoria said the testing had identified the system’s future power needs and where the substations should go.
“Planning also identified that building this infrastructure would be complex and require innovative approaches to the retrofitting of new power substations,” spokesman Adrian Darwent said.
“With the power aspects of the upgrade, there have been a number of challenges but none of these have proven to be insurmountable and all are in the process of being resolved.”
The E-Class trams, ordered by the former Labor government in 2009 in response to rising tram patronage, cost the state $300 million and are part of an $800 million investment in the network. They will initially run solely on route 96 and free other larger, low-floor trams to run on other busy routes.
Manufacturing problems delayed their initial rollout by seven months and the first tram entered service in November. The contract with manufacturer Bombardier includes an option for a further 100 trams.
Yarra Trams says Melbourne needs 110 E-Class trams in total by 2020 to cope with rising demand and to enable the progressive retirement of the older Z-Class tram fleet.
Alarming 60% jump in sexual assaults on public transport
Sexual assaults on public transport hit a 10-year high last year, with an "alarming" 60 per cent more assaults reported than a decade ago.
The Victoria Police statistics showed sexual assaults on trams, trains, buses and taxis jumped from 167 in 2003-04 to 268 in 2012-13.
Last year's figures also revealed almost one in 11 sexual assaults that were recorded in public places happened on public transport.
"It's quite alarming there's been such an increase," Public Transport Users Association spokesman Daniel Bowen said.
"It may reflect that more incidents are being eported rather than an increase in the activity itself, but it's still quite alarming to hear that. Everybody deserves to have a safe and enjoyable trip on public transport."It comes as police appealed for help after two schoolgirls were allegedly indecently assaulted on a packed mid-afternoon tram in Melbourne last month.
The two year 11 girls, travelling on a tram at St Kilda at 3.30pm on June 20, snapped photos on their mobile phones of the man they told police assaulted them.
Mr Bowen called for more staff and more security on the public transport network.
"If you look back over the decades, we used to have a tram conductor on every tram and that's no longer the case. We used to have station staff at every station and that's no longer the case," he said.
"We have PSOs [Protective Service Officers] at stations after 6pm, but there are still a lot of stations that have no staff during the day."
The statistics showed sexual assaults on public transport accounted for about 4 per cent of all sexual assaults, while more than half took place at private residences.
"Mostly people know the person that assaults them and it occurs where they feel safe," Victorian Centre Against Sexual Assault spokeswoman Carolyn Worth said.
"Having said that, public transport is also a place you should feel safe."
She said the statistics mean more victims are reporting incidents that can have debilitating effects.
"It's more likely that women don't feel as embarrassed and ashamed and come forward and say this happened and this is not ok," she said.
"It would leave you very uncomfortable and frightened about what could happen next time."
The assault statistics are recorded during a time when use of public transport increased by about 140 million journeys.
The increased numbers could be attributed to an rise in reporting of offences by the community, Transit police Acting Superintendent Trevor Cornwill said.
"Transit police and local members continue to patrol the public transport network while Protective Services Officers work across the metropolitan train network from 6pm to the last train every day of the week," he said.
Police Minister Kim Wells said the government aimed to recruit, train and deploy 940 protective services officers by this November to keep commuters safe.
"This forms part of the single largest law and order recruitment exercise in Victoria’s history," he said. "People who use trains have told us that they welcome the presence of PSOs at train stations. They make people feel safe when travelling at night."
There are currently 801 PSOs deployed throughout the train network.
A Yarra Trams spokeswoman said criminal activity on trams is "minimal" and transit police ride on trams and trains on a daily basis with staff available to attend incidents.
A Metro Trains spokesman said passengers could alert the train driver by pressing the red emergency button in any carriage and security cameras are on all trains and stations.
Sexual assaults on public transport hit a 10-year high last year, with an "alarming" 60 per cent more assaults reported than a decade ago.
The Victoria Police statistics showed sexual assaults on trams, trains, buses and taxis jumped from 167 in 2003-04 to 268 in 2012-13.
Last year's figures also revealed almost one in 11 sexual assaults that were recorded in public places happened on public transport.
"It's quite alarming there's been such an increase," Public Transport Users Association spokesman Daniel Bowen said.
"It may reflect that more incidents are being eported rather than an increase in the activity itself, but it's still quite alarming to hear that. Everybody deserves to have a safe and enjoyable trip on public transport."It comes as police appealed for help after two schoolgirls were allegedly indecently assaulted on a packed mid-afternoon tram in Melbourne last month.
The two year 11 girls, travelling on a tram at St Kilda at 3.30pm on June 20, snapped photos on their mobile phones of the man they told police assaulted them.
Mr Bowen called for more staff and more security on the public transport network.
"If you look back over the decades, we used to have a tram conductor on every tram and that's no longer the case. We used to have station staff at every station and that's no longer the case," he said.
"We have PSOs [Protective Service Officers] at stations after 6pm, but there are still a lot of stations that have no staff during the day."
The statistics showed sexual assaults on public transport accounted for about 4 per cent of all sexual assaults, while more than half took place at private residences.
"Mostly people know the person that assaults them and it occurs where they feel safe," Victorian Centre Against Sexual Assault spokeswoman Carolyn Worth said.
"Having said that, public transport is also a place you should feel safe."
She said the statistics mean more victims are reporting incidents that can have debilitating effects.
"It's more likely that women don't feel as embarrassed and ashamed and come forward and say this happened and this is not ok," she said.
"It would leave you very uncomfortable and frightened about what could happen next time."
The assault statistics are recorded during a time when use of public transport increased by about 140 million journeys.
The increased numbers could be attributed to an rise in reporting of offences by the community, Transit police Acting Superintendent Trevor Cornwill said.
"Transit police and local members continue to patrol the public transport network while Protective Services Officers work across the metropolitan train network from 6pm to the last train every day of the week," he said.
Police Minister Kim Wells said the government aimed to recruit, train and deploy 940 protective services officers by this November to keep commuters safe.
"This forms part of the single largest law and order recruitment exercise in Victoria’s history," he said. "People who use trains have told us that they welcome the presence of PSOs at train stations. They make people feel safe when travelling at night."
There are currently 801 PSOs deployed throughout the train network.
A Yarra Trams spokeswoman said criminal activity on trams is "minimal" and transit police ride on trams and trains on a daily basis with staff available to attend incidents.
A Metro Trains spokesman said passengers could alert the train driver by pressing the red emergency button in any carriage and security cameras are on all trains and stations.
Commuters face peak hour delays on Frankston train line
Commuters are facing delays after trains have been suspended on part of the Frankston line during peak hour after a fatality on the rail line.
Metro has suspended services on the line on Thursday evening following a request by Victoria Police. The suspension is expected to continue for hours.
"We expect the Frankston line suspension to go for several hours while @VictoriaPolice conduct their work," Metro tweeted at 6.45pm.
"We're sorry for the inconvenience."
Buses will run between Cheltenham and Mordialloc stations.
A Victoria Police spokeswoman said it would take some time to determine what had happened because the train driver did not stop.
"The driver of the train that apparently struck the person didn't realise ... so other trains later on have actually seen the person’s body," she said.
The body was found about 100 metres from
Commuters are facing delays after trains have been suspended on part of the Frankston line during peak hour after a fatality on the rail line.
Metro has suspended services on the line on Thursday evening following a request by Victoria Police. The suspension is expected to continue for hours.
"We expect the Frankston line suspension to go for several hours while @VictoriaPolice conduct their work," Metro tweeted at 6.45pm.
"We're sorry for the inconvenience."
Buses will run between Cheltenham and Mordialloc stations.
A Victoria Police spokeswoman said it would take some time to determine what had happened because the train driver did not stop.
"The driver of the train that apparently struck the person didn't realise ... so other trains later on have actually seen the person’s body," she said.
The body was found about 100 metres from
Scare for passengers as train carriages are derailed at North Melbourne
A TRAIN derailment is yet to be cleared up at North Melbourne but it will have no impact on peak hour travels according to rail authorities.
All Albury bound passengers continue to be be put on buses, while investigators continue to look at the cause of the incident, which saw two carriages came off the tracks of a Sydney-bound train that left Southern Cross station at 8.30am.
The Geelong and Traralgon lines will run without any disruptions, a V/Line spokesman said.
Trains running on the Metro line will also be unaffected.
About 180 passengers were transferred to buses after the CountryLink train derailed.
Staff helped passengers off the train and there were no injuries.
Delays are expected on regional and interstate trains.
A TRAIN derailment is yet to be cleared up at North Melbourne but it will have no impact on peak hour travels according to rail authorities.
All Albury bound passengers continue to be be put on buses, while investigators continue to look at the cause of the incident, which saw two carriages came off the tracks of a Sydney-bound train that left Southern Cross station at 8.30am.
The Geelong and Traralgon lines will run without any disruptions, a V/Line spokesman said.
Trains running on the Metro line will also be unaffected.
About 180 passengers were transferred to buses after the CountryLink train derailed.
Staff helped passengers off the train and there were no injuries.
Delays are expected on regional and interstate trains.
Metro Transit Bus Barrels Out Of Control In DT Mpls., Driver Dies A Metro Transit bus went out of control Friday morning on a downtown Minneapolis street when the driver suffered a medical emergency and later died.
The accident happened at about 10:10 a.m. between 10th Street and 11th Street on Nicollet Mall.
Witnesses saw the Number 10 bus drive up on the mall’s sidewalk across from the Dakota Jazz Club. It ran over garbage cans, smashed into light posts, scraped against buildings and destroyed the metal awning over the Mall Studio window of the WCCO-TV building.
WCCO Meteorologist Mike Augustyniak was walking down the mall and narrowly missed being hit.
“You do a quick calculation: Do I run away or sneak by it? Because it was moving so slowly, I decided to run toward it and around it, but had to jump over some debris that was being pushed towards me,” Augustyniak said. “The streets were empty because it’s a holiday, so I would say, all and all, lucky no pedestrians were hurt.”
A bicyclist near Augustyniak was sideswiped. He suffered some scrapes, and received medical attention at the scene.
The bus came to a stop next to Peavey Plaza on the corner of 12th Street and Nicollet Mall. Gasoline was seen spewing from the back of the bus, leaving a trail across Nicollet.
Lawrence Boykins and his daughter were passengers on the runaway bus. He had promised his daughter a morning in Loring Park, but they never thought their bus ride there would end like it did.
“All of a sudden it seemed like I was in a dream or something. All of a sudden the bus is going to the side. I told my daughter just to sit back and relax and I was going run, I tried to run up front … and try to hit the brakes or something … and that’s when I twisted my ankle,” Boykins said.
Witness Riley Coley says there were less than a dozen people on the bus at the time.
“It was like a tornado was coming to meet us, but really we were just on the sidewalk just tearing down, it was devastating,” Coley said.
Boykins says the driver slumped over while driving. Fire Crews and an ambulance arrived soon after. The driver was put on a stretcher by emergency crews and underwent CPR.
No one else on board was injured.
Metro Transit General Manager Brian Lamb confirmed the death of the driver, whose name is being withheld until his family is notified.
“Metro Transit extends its deepest sympathies and condolences to the operator’s family and friends,” Lamb said. “Metro Transit operators are in many ways an extended family and this loss will be felt throughout the organization.”
Lamb says the driver has been a Metro Transit employee since 2013.
The accident happened at about 10:10 a.m. between 10th Street and 11th Street on Nicollet Mall.
Witnesses saw the Number 10 bus drive up on the mall’s sidewalk across from the Dakota Jazz Club. It ran over garbage cans, smashed into light posts, scraped against buildings and destroyed the metal awning over the Mall Studio window of the WCCO-TV building.
WCCO Meteorologist Mike Augustyniak was walking down the mall and narrowly missed being hit.
“You do a quick calculation: Do I run away or sneak by it? Because it was moving so slowly, I decided to run toward it and around it, but had to jump over some debris that was being pushed towards me,” Augustyniak said. “The streets were empty because it’s a holiday, so I would say, all and all, lucky no pedestrians were hurt.”
A bicyclist near Augustyniak was sideswiped. He suffered some scrapes, and received medical attention at the scene.
The bus came to a stop next to Peavey Plaza on the corner of 12th Street and Nicollet Mall. Gasoline was seen spewing from the back of the bus, leaving a trail across Nicollet.
Lawrence Boykins and his daughter were passengers on the runaway bus. He had promised his daughter a morning in Loring Park, but they never thought their bus ride there would end like it did.
“All of a sudden it seemed like I was in a dream or something. All of a sudden the bus is going to the side. I told my daughter just to sit back and relax and I was going run, I tried to run up front … and try to hit the brakes or something … and that’s when I twisted my ankle,” Boykins said.
Witness Riley Coley says there were less than a dozen people on the bus at the time.
“It was like a tornado was coming to meet us, but really we were just on the sidewalk just tearing down, it was devastating,” Coley said.
Boykins says the driver slumped over while driving. Fire Crews and an ambulance arrived soon after. The driver was put on a stretcher by emergency crews and underwent CPR.
No one else on board was injured.
Metro Transit General Manager Brian Lamb confirmed the death of the driver, whose name is being withheld until his family is notified.
“Metro Transit extends its deepest sympathies and condolences to the operator’s family and friends,” Lamb said. “Metro Transit operators are in many ways an extended family and this loss will be felt throughout the organization.”
Lamb says the driver has been a Metro Transit employee since 2013.
Bendigo's historic trams could be resurrected for public transport if new study proves feasibility
A new study will try to answer one of Bendigo's most passionately debated questions - could the city's trams once again be used as public transport?
A fleet of historic trams is one of Bendigo's main tourist drawcards, but the network has not been used as a mass transit system since the 1970s.
Many locals have pushed in the years since to have the service restored, but questions about the viability of the idea have persisted.
The State Government feasibility study was announced by Bendigo-based National Party MP Damian Drum.
"It's something that is serious, it's something that has merit and if it proves to be commercially viable in fact, then we'll go further ahead with it again," he said.
The study will look at issues such as whether continuing the Talking Tram attraction remains the best option, through to whether new tracks should be built to extend the network.
Staff at the City of Greater Bendigo completed a preliminary investigation last year into how much it would cost to build new tram tracks between the hospital and the railway station and came up with a figure of $35 million to $40 million.
Important to keep trams as part of 'our heritage'"All of these associated questions will be covered and answered and give both local government here and also State Government the answers to this long-debated issue," Mr Drum said.
The tourist trams are run by the Bendigo Trust, which said there would be some hurdles to reviving the public transport service.
"It doesn't really go from where the people of Bendigo are to where they want to go," the trust's chief executive, Tom Seddon, said.
"We don't go to the art gallery, we don't go to other places that tourists would want to go.
"So if Bendigo is the museum it would be great if the tramway was how you got around the various parts of it."
The tourist tram service has been running for more than 40 years and in 2012, the trust expressed concern that the attraction was growing "stale".
Mr Seddon said the future of the trams was important to Bendigo.
"We're one of the few cities that kept this sort of infrastructure and so it's part of our heritage, it's important to keep it," he said.
A new study will try to answer one of Bendigo's most passionately debated questions - could the city's trams once again be used as public transport?
A fleet of historic trams is one of Bendigo's main tourist drawcards, but the network has not been used as a mass transit system since the 1970s.
Many locals have pushed in the years since to have the service restored, but questions about the viability of the idea have persisted.
The State Government feasibility study was announced by Bendigo-based National Party MP Damian Drum.
"It's something that is serious, it's something that has merit and if it proves to be commercially viable in fact, then we'll go further ahead with it again," he said.
The study will look at issues such as whether continuing the Talking Tram attraction remains the best option, through to whether new tracks should be built to extend the network.
Staff at the City of Greater Bendigo completed a preliminary investigation last year into how much it would cost to build new tram tracks between the hospital and the railway station and came up with a figure of $35 million to $40 million.
Important to keep trams as part of 'our heritage'"All of these associated questions will be covered and answered and give both local government here and also State Government the answers to this long-debated issue," Mr Drum said.
The tourist trams are run by the Bendigo Trust, which said there would be some hurdles to reviving the public transport service.
"It doesn't really go from where the people of Bendigo are to where they want to go," the trust's chief executive, Tom Seddon, said.
"We don't go to the art gallery, we don't go to other places that tourists would want to go.
"So if Bendigo is the museum it would be great if the tramway was how you got around the various parts of it."
The tourist tram service has been running for more than 40 years and in 2012, the trust expressed concern that the attraction was growing "stale".
Mr Seddon said the future of the trams was important to Bendigo.
"We're one of the few cities that kept this sort of infrastructure and so it's part of our heritage, it's important to keep it," he said.
Delhi to Agra in 99 minutes; train hits 160 kmph on trial run
NEW DELHI: In a modest step towards fulfilling India's desire to run high speed trains, railways on Thursday successfully conducted a trial run of a passenger train at a speed of 160 km per hour between Delhi and Agra, making it the country's fastest train.
Rail travellers will be able to reach the Taj city from New Delhi in around 99 minutes once railways starts commercial operations in November.
The train completed the 200 km journey in around 99 minutes and hit the highest speed seen on Indian tracks at 160 kmph -- 10 kmph more than the previous record of Shatabdi trains.
As of now, the fastest train is the Delhi-Bhopal Shatabdi Express which takes 126 minutes to reach Agra from Delhi, running at a maximum speed of 150 kmph and an average speed of 110 kmph.
"The train ran at 160 kmph on almost 50% of the stretch. Now, this is the fastest train in the country," Anurag Sachan, divisional railway manager (DRM), Delhi told TOI.
The introduction of high-speed corridors and bullet trains were one of the key promises of Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his election campaign.
The successful trial run of the train — labelled "semi-high speed" - has raised the hopes of rail travellers who have been denied high speed travel for decades.
However, the plan to run high speed trains on long haul routes faces two major roadblocks. One, the worn-out tracks are not equipped to take the load of fast trains and two, the demand for halts solely based on political considerations, defying commercial concerns, is seen as a big drag.
Also, with rail lines cutting through densely populated areas, the railways will have to fence the tracks, which will be a burden for the cash-strapped state-run transporter.
However, the cost of running semi-high speed trains will not be too high as these corridors already have fast trains like the Shatabdis and the Rajdhanis and it can make do with some refurbishment of the tracks.
The Delhi-Agra trial, conducted by Northern and North Central Zone with technical support of High Speed Rail Corporation, is seen as a step forward for India's ambition to run high speed trains, but the train, though fast by Indian standards, is some way from bullet trains run by China, Japan and European countries.
Railways has planned to run similar semi-high speed trains between Delhi-Kanpur and Delhi-Chandigarh.
However, it will be a challenge for railways to run full-length trains with 21 coaches as the trial run was conducted with a 10-coach train and two generator cars.
NEW DELHI: In a modest step towards fulfilling India's desire to run high speed trains, railways on Thursday successfully conducted a trial run of a passenger train at a speed of 160 km per hour between Delhi and Agra, making it the country's fastest train.
Rail travellers will be able to reach the Taj city from New Delhi in around 99 minutes once railways starts commercial operations in November.
The train completed the 200 km journey in around 99 minutes and hit the highest speed seen on Indian tracks at 160 kmph -- 10 kmph more than the previous record of Shatabdi trains.
As of now, the fastest train is the Delhi-Bhopal Shatabdi Express which takes 126 minutes to reach Agra from Delhi, running at a maximum speed of 150 kmph and an average speed of 110 kmph.
"The train ran at 160 kmph on almost 50% of the stretch. Now, this is the fastest train in the country," Anurag Sachan, divisional railway manager (DRM), Delhi told TOI.
The introduction of high-speed corridors and bullet trains were one of the key promises of Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his election campaign.
The successful trial run of the train — labelled "semi-high speed" - has raised the hopes of rail travellers who have been denied high speed travel for decades.
However, the plan to run high speed trains on long haul routes faces two major roadblocks. One, the worn-out tracks are not equipped to take the load of fast trains and two, the demand for halts solely based on political considerations, defying commercial concerns, is seen as a big drag.
Also, with rail lines cutting through densely populated areas, the railways will have to fence the tracks, which will be a burden for the cash-strapped state-run transporter.
However, the cost of running semi-high speed trains will not be too high as these corridors already have fast trains like the Shatabdis and the Rajdhanis and it can make do with some refurbishment of the tracks.
The Delhi-Agra trial, conducted by Northern and North Central Zone with technical support of High Speed Rail Corporation, is seen as a step forward for India's ambition to run high speed trains, but the train, though fast by Indian standards, is some way from bullet trains run by China, Japan and European countries.
Railways has planned to run similar semi-high speed trains between Delhi-Kanpur and Delhi-Chandigarh.
However, it will be a challenge for railways to run full-length trains with 21 coaches as the trial run was conducted with a 10-coach train and two generator cars.
Geelong-Ballarat-Bendigo train ride aims to revive regional rail
The railway line between Maryborough and Castlemaine turns 140 this year and parts of it look every day of it. Decaying sleepers better suited to firewood than fast trains, flood-wracked foundations and rusted rail bridges pockmark the 55-kilometre line, which has been fallow for the past 10 years.
On Sunday a gang of 50 rail enthusiasts will pay homage to the derelict line, and have hired a heritage diesel train to ride from Melbourne to Maryborough on a cross-country route via Geelong and Ballarat.
The meandering joy ride is a celebration of rail heritage with a political message many in Spring Street would prefer not to hear.
The four-hour journey is meant to demonstrate that those quiet regional rail lines are fit for the return of passenger trains, just like the Coalition promised it would plan for at the last election.
From opposition the Coalition thundered that it was “unacceptable” that Victoria’s three largest regional cities, with a combined population of more than 400,000, had no direct rail connections.
Its promise to “plan for the return of passenger trains between Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo on a cross-country route via Meredith, Maryborough and Castlemaine” resulted in a $2 million feasibility study that found doing so would cost up to $935 million and made no economic sense.
But some in the regions refused to give up on the idea and are at pains to point out that excluding the Maryborough-Castlemaine leg, the rail lines at issue are currently used by V/Line and/or freight trains every day. The Geelong-Ballarat line was closed to passenger trains by the former Kennett government and currently has an 80 km/h speed limit for freight trains.
Maryborough resident Noel Laidlaw insists government authority Public Transport Victoria’s study “gold-plated” the infrastructure well beyond the modest improvements needed to provide a basic service. Upgrading the line to a maximum speed of 160 km/h and building wider bridges and extra tracks “is a laudable thing but not really what community expectations are”, Mr Laidlaw says.
“People want to be able to get on a train and sort of travel as fast as a car.”
It is expected the 84-year-old diesel train will do just that on Sunday, travelling at 70-80 km/h for much of the journey. A V/Line driver has been hired to drive the train, although V/Line points out it has no political motive in joining the exercise.
The Greens this week made reopening the “Goldfields line” part of their November election platform. Victorian Greens leader Greg Barber said the government and freight rail operators should share the cost of returning the line to a standard capable of supporting "an affordable basic service...fast enough to compete with car travel".
Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder said the estimated $760 million to $935 million cost of returning passenger trains to the lines was due to “Labor’s closure of most of the Castlemaine-Maryborough line and necessary upgrades to bridges, culverts, passing loops and station platforms”.
The government would keep the rail reservations in place on the inoperable section of track and “examine what further steps need to be taken to preserve these assets,” he said.
The railway line between Maryborough and Castlemaine turns 140 this year and parts of it look every day of it. Decaying sleepers better suited to firewood than fast trains, flood-wracked foundations and rusted rail bridges pockmark the 55-kilometre line, which has been fallow for the past 10 years.
On Sunday a gang of 50 rail enthusiasts will pay homage to the derelict line, and have hired a heritage diesel train to ride from Melbourne to Maryborough on a cross-country route via Geelong and Ballarat.
The meandering joy ride is a celebration of rail heritage with a political message many in Spring Street would prefer not to hear.
The four-hour journey is meant to demonstrate that those quiet regional rail lines are fit for the return of passenger trains, just like the Coalition promised it would plan for at the last election.
From opposition the Coalition thundered that it was “unacceptable” that Victoria’s three largest regional cities, with a combined population of more than 400,000, had no direct rail connections.
Its promise to “plan for the return of passenger trains between Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo on a cross-country route via Meredith, Maryborough and Castlemaine” resulted in a $2 million feasibility study that found doing so would cost up to $935 million and made no economic sense.
But some in the regions refused to give up on the idea and are at pains to point out that excluding the Maryborough-Castlemaine leg, the rail lines at issue are currently used by V/Line and/or freight trains every day. The Geelong-Ballarat line was closed to passenger trains by the former Kennett government and currently has an 80 km/h speed limit for freight trains.
Maryborough resident Noel Laidlaw insists government authority Public Transport Victoria’s study “gold-plated” the infrastructure well beyond the modest improvements needed to provide a basic service. Upgrading the line to a maximum speed of 160 km/h and building wider bridges and extra tracks “is a laudable thing but not really what community expectations are”, Mr Laidlaw says.
“People want to be able to get on a train and sort of travel as fast as a car.”
It is expected the 84-year-old diesel train will do just that on Sunday, travelling at 70-80 km/h for much of the journey. A V/Line driver has been hired to drive the train, although V/Line points out it has no political motive in joining the exercise.
The Greens this week made reopening the “Goldfields line” part of their November election platform. Victorian Greens leader Greg Barber said the government and freight rail operators should share the cost of returning the line to a standard capable of supporting "an affordable basic service...fast enough to compete with car travel".
Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder said the estimated $760 million to $935 million cost of returning passenger trains to the lines was due to “Labor’s closure of most of the Castlemaine-Maryborough line and necessary upgrades to bridges, culverts, passing loops and station platforms”.
The government would keep the rail reservations in place on the inoperable section of track and “examine what further steps need to be taken to preserve these assets,” he said.
Overpass collapses in Brazil
An overpass under construction has collapsed in a World Cup host city, killing at least two people and trapping a commuter bus, two construction trucks and a car, Brazilian authorities say.
Nineteen people have been reported injured in the incident, which took place on one of the infrastructure improvement projects planned for the World Cup.
But like most urban transportation projects related to the tournament it was not finished on time for the event.
A woman who was driving a commuter bus trapped by the overpass died, said Federico Pascual of the Belo Horizonte fire department. An official in the mayor's office said a second person died, raising the death toll to two.
The official said 19 people were known to be injured so far. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorised to talk to the media about the incident.
The overpass collapsed about five kilometres from the Mineirao stadium, which has hosted several World Cup matches in recent weeks and is the site of a semi-final match on Tuesday.
The overpass "arched over a really busy thoroughfare," Pascual said.
Security camera footage showed heavy traffic on the street below the structure the moment that the overpass collapsed, striking vehicles below and trapping them underneath.
An overpass under construction has collapsed in a World Cup host city, killing at least two people and trapping a commuter bus, two construction trucks and a car, Brazilian authorities say.
Nineteen people have been reported injured in the incident, which took place on one of the infrastructure improvement projects planned for the World Cup.
But like most urban transportation projects related to the tournament it was not finished on time for the event.
A woman who was driving a commuter bus trapped by the overpass died, said Federico Pascual of the Belo Horizonte fire department. An official in the mayor's office said a second person died, raising the death toll to two.
The official said 19 people were known to be injured so far. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorised to talk to the media about the incident.
The overpass collapsed about five kilometres from the Mineirao stadium, which has hosted several World Cup matches in recent weeks and is the site of a semi-final match on Tuesday.
The overpass "arched over a really busy thoroughfare," Pascual said.
Security camera footage showed heavy traffic on the street below the structure the moment that the overpass collapsed, striking vehicles below and trapping them underneath.
Tram crisis gets quick fix
ROCK HALL — “The tram was never intended, in my mind, to be a money maker.”
Jim Rich, innkeeper host at The Inn at Huntingfield Creek, said that about the tram system during a mostly tame Rock Hall town council meeting Monday, June 30, and his sentiment seemed to resonate with the attending public.
Formed a few years ago, the system was designed to ferry visitors and residents around in the tourist season.
Those present for the meeting were council members Brian Jones, Susan Francis, Butch Price, Brian Nesspor, Town Manager Ronald Fithian and Town Attorney Charles “Chip” MacLeod. Mayor Bob E. Willis did not attend.
After approving the night’s workshop meeting agenda and the June 2 meeting minutes, a letter from the Greater Rock Hall Business Association about the trams’ new fee increase, dated Friday, June 27, was read aloud by Jones, who is vice mayor.
In it, the association unanimously objected to the mayor’s and council’s recent decision to raise the tram fee from $1 to $2, citing that “doubling the fee will result in fewer riders, less revenue and fewer driver tips.”
According to the letter, the tram system costs approximately $30,000 per year to operate and the $1 fee has generated $15,000 in the last 12 months. Advertising and special events should help raise more money for Fiscal Year 2015
The letter went on to say that it is estimated, with the new fee, that the trams will “lose more than half of their current riders, driver tips will suffer and advertisers have said if they had known the fee was going to increase, then they would not have advertised. It also endangers next year’s revenue.”
The letter concluded with the Greater Rock Hall Business Association request of the council that the tram fee reverts to $1. Rich, a representative from the association, along with real estate agent Cindy Genter, then spoke at the meeting.
Touching upon how the council and business association put together the tram system a couple of years back to “fill the gap in tourism,” Rich talked about how the initial thought was that advertising would pay for the tram, but “the advertising for last year wasn’t sold.”
“It was $3,700 in ads sold last year, some of them we sold this year and just got into the fiscal budget,” Rich said.
He went on to say that he and Genther took over the advertising and they soon ran out of things to sell. According to Rich, this year’s advertising was $9,000 plus. With four weddings already done at The Inn, special events will generate $2,000 to $3,000 and “there’s more on the books.”
Rich also said that, “Today’s ridership is 165, and the town clerk estimated they had something in the 600s for the past weekend.” However, he was adamant in his belief that the tram system was never meant to rake in money for the town.
“It was intended to move people from the marina into town,” he said. “You tell me which city has a transportation system that’s making money. They don’t.”
The main goal, according to Rich and Genther, is to break even. If the fee remains at $2, it might create more profit for a while, but the number of those riding the trams will decrease greatly. “You might get $8,000 or $9,000 more, but then we got 4,000 less people,” he said.
He went on to talk about how the town’s Main Street’s health was suffering and how there are empty buildings scattered around.
“If you’re proud of what’s down there ... I’m not,” Rich said.
Rich said that the trams promote growth and new faces into town. He said that ridership and people visiting Rock Hall is extremely important.
In his conclusion, he broached his idea: “Go one more year at a buck, see what washes out ... I think you’ll break even. And then I think you’ll make the decision, what to do with our trams?” He also suggested that beefing up the trams system will do wonders for it and that it would make sense to then change ridership and advertising fees.
“We’d like you to rethink the $2 trams fee, we think it would be detrimental to Main Street and ask you to at least think about it. Thank you,” Rich said and left it to the council to discuss.
Individually, each council member was of a mixed mind. Francis agreed “whole-heartily” with Rich, saying she did not agree about the raise for the trams in the budget.
Price said he was torn on the issue, because both ways were logical. However, he agreed that the tram system should not be costing the taxpayers who don’t use it money and that it should be self-supporting. His initial idea was to raise the fare to $1.50 and be able to offer incentives to both people and businesses.
“I, personally, want to see a panel put together really, of people and businesses to sit down and talk about this,” Price said. “They can work something out that is reasonable and yet have the trams sustain themselves and not cost money.” He offered to be on such a committee.
Nesspor also agreed with Rich, saying how he doesn’t want any distance placed between the council and the Greater Rock Hall Business Association.
“None of us want to raise anything,” he said. He also was in favor of Price’s idea of $1.50 and putting together a panel.
However, Francis said, “Legally, we passed a resolution for the budget based on $2.”
MacLeod said that the budget can be amended.
Jones said, “This council was placed in a very difficult position and we had to balance the budget by tomorrow ... we looked at the numbers very closely. Prior to meeting with the town staff, we had four different budget meetings, just to see what we could do.
“We were down to the point where we’d have to raise taxes for all citizens or find creative ways to generate revenue,” he said. “It’s not a good way to generate revenue ... it’s really tough.”
Jones agreed though, that the trams should not be making money for the town and that they should be self-sufficient. He also was on board with the panel idea.
Price recommended temporarily suspending the $2 fee and to have Rich and Genther gather a group together to talk about solutions.
“The budget will carry on, and if need be, we can amend the budget,” he said.
Jones objected, saying “There’s $16,000 on tram revenue, it’s going to have to come from somewhere.”
“Can I ask where the $16,000 is coming from? You’re making assumptions about your ridership,” Rich said.
Jones replied it was projected revenue.
“I suggest a 30-day suspension on the fee ... Jim and I are more than willing to lead the group,” Genther said. “(We are) happy to do it, but let’s not penalize the citizens and others who use this tram to go to the grocery store, our constituents and kids.”
The audience also put in different ideas, such as seasonal and family passes and discounts. However, there seemed to be no clear way of tracking who held the account.
“You might take a page from Disney’s book,” one member of the public said, referring to the concept of a hand stamp.
Ultimately, Price motioned to temporarily suspend the $2 fee on the tram system, revert it back to $1, have Rich and Genther spearhead a panel with Price on it and come back at the next workshop meeting to see what resolutions they gained. Nesspor seconded the motion and it was approved.
ROCK HALL — “The tram was never intended, in my mind, to be a money maker.”
Jim Rich, innkeeper host at The Inn at Huntingfield Creek, said that about the tram system during a mostly tame Rock Hall town council meeting Monday, June 30, and his sentiment seemed to resonate with the attending public.
Formed a few years ago, the system was designed to ferry visitors and residents around in the tourist season.
Those present for the meeting were council members Brian Jones, Susan Francis, Butch Price, Brian Nesspor, Town Manager Ronald Fithian and Town Attorney Charles “Chip” MacLeod. Mayor Bob E. Willis did not attend.
After approving the night’s workshop meeting agenda and the June 2 meeting minutes, a letter from the Greater Rock Hall Business Association about the trams’ new fee increase, dated Friday, June 27, was read aloud by Jones, who is vice mayor.
In it, the association unanimously objected to the mayor’s and council’s recent decision to raise the tram fee from $1 to $2, citing that “doubling the fee will result in fewer riders, less revenue and fewer driver tips.”
According to the letter, the tram system costs approximately $30,000 per year to operate and the $1 fee has generated $15,000 in the last 12 months. Advertising and special events should help raise more money for Fiscal Year 2015
The letter went on to say that it is estimated, with the new fee, that the trams will “lose more than half of their current riders, driver tips will suffer and advertisers have said if they had known the fee was going to increase, then they would not have advertised. It also endangers next year’s revenue.”
The letter concluded with the Greater Rock Hall Business Association request of the council that the tram fee reverts to $1. Rich, a representative from the association, along with real estate agent Cindy Genter, then spoke at the meeting.
Touching upon how the council and business association put together the tram system a couple of years back to “fill the gap in tourism,” Rich talked about how the initial thought was that advertising would pay for the tram, but “the advertising for last year wasn’t sold.”
“It was $3,700 in ads sold last year, some of them we sold this year and just got into the fiscal budget,” Rich said.
He went on to say that he and Genther took over the advertising and they soon ran out of things to sell. According to Rich, this year’s advertising was $9,000 plus. With four weddings already done at The Inn, special events will generate $2,000 to $3,000 and “there’s more on the books.”
Rich also said that, “Today’s ridership is 165, and the town clerk estimated they had something in the 600s for the past weekend.” However, he was adamant in his belief that the tram system was never meant to rake in money for the town.
“It was intended to move people from the marina into town,” he said. “You tell me which city has a transportation system that’s making money. They don’t.”
The main goal, according to Rich and Genther, is to break even. If the fee remains at $2, it might create more profit for a while, but the number of those riding the trams will decrease greatly. “You might get $8,000 or $9,000 more, but then we got 4,000 less people,” he said.
He went on to talk about how the town’s Main Street’s health was suffering and how there are empty buildings scattered around.
“If you’re proud of what’s down there ... I’m not,” Rich said.
Rich said that the trams promote growth and new faces into town. He said that ridership and people visiting Rock Hall is extremely important.
In his conclusion, he broached his idea: “Go one more year at a buck, see what washes out ... I think you’ll break even. And then I think you’ll make the decision, what to do with our trams?” He also suggested that beefing up the trams system will do wonders for it and that it would make sense to then change ridership and advertising fees.
“We’d like you to rethink the $2 trams fee, we think it would be detrimental to Main Street and ask you to at least think about it. Thank you,” Rich said and left it to the council to discuss.
Individually, each council member was of a mixed mind. Francis agreed “whole-heartily” with Rich, saying she did not agree about the raise for the trams in the budget.
Price said he was torn on the issue, because both ways were logical. However, he agreed that the tram system should not be costing the taxpayers who don’t use it money and that it should be self-supporting. His initial idea was to raise the fare to $1.50 and be able to offer incentives to both people and businesses.
“I, personally, want to see a panel put together really, of people and businesses to sit down and talk about this,” Price said. “They can work something out that is reasonable and yet have the trams sustain themselves and not cost money.” He offered to be on such a committee.
Nesspor also agreed with Rich, saying how he doesn’t want any distance placed between the council and the Greater Rock Hall Business Association.
“None of us want to raise anything,” he said. He also was in favor of Price’s idea of $1.50 and putting together a panel.
However, Francis said, “Legally, we passed a resolution for the budget based on $2.”
MacLeod said that the budget can be amended.
Jones said, “This council was placed in a very difficult position and we had to balance the budget by tomorrow ... we looked at the numbers very closely. Prior to meeting with the town staff, we had four different budget meetings, just to see what we could do.
“We were down to the point where we’d have to raise taxes for all citizens or find creative ways to generate revenue,” he said. “It’s not a good way to generate revenue ... it’s really tough.”
Jones agreed though, that the trams should not be making money for the town and that they should be self-sufficient. He also was on board with the panel idea.
Price recommended temporarily suspending the $2 fee and to have Rich and Genther gather a group together to talk about solutions.
“The budget will carry on, and if need be, we can amend the budget,” he said.
Jones objected, saying “There’s $16,000 on tram revenue, it’s going to have to come from somewhere.”
“Can I ask where the $16,000 is coming from? You’re making assumptions about your ridership,” Rich said.
Jones replied it was projected revenue.
“I suggest a 30-day suspension on the fee ... Jim and I are more than willing to lead the group,” Genther said. “(We are) happy to do it, but let’s not penalize the citizens and others who use this tram to go to the grocery store, our constituents and kids.”
The audience also put in different ideas, such as seasonal and family passes and discounts. However, there seemed to be no clear way of tracking who held the account.
“You might take a page from Disney’s book,” one member of the public said, referring to the concept of a hand stamp.
Ultimately, Price motioned to temporarily suspend the $2 fee on the tram system, revert it back to $1, have Rich and Genther spearhead a panel with Price on it and come back at the next workshop meeting to see what resolutions they gained. Nesspor seconded the motion and it was approved.
Tram bells silenced as residents angered by noise
TRAM drivers have been told to silence their bells while passing through the West End after residents complained the constant ‘ding ding’ was driving them mad.
Bosses have ordered trams to travel through the Torphichen Street and Palmerston Place junction without sounding the alert, with drivers told only to ding when absolutely necessary.
It comes after a raft of complaints from residents about the regular ringing which starts with the first tram at 5.30am and continues until the last service at midnight.
During training, drivers were told to use the distinctive electronic bell to signal the tram’s presence along the route, although residents complained the ringing continued even when the streets were deserted. West End Community Council chairman Gordon Renton, who lives around 100 yards from the West End stop, said: “It is being used regularly and does not serve a legitimate purpose for tram or road safety.
“It is very loud and very annoying for all residents who live within a considerable distance of the lines.
“I can hear the bell in my sitting room every time the tram passes the junction.
“As there is no-one on the track and all traffic is stopped, what is the legitimate point of announcing to the public that the tram is in the area?
“No-one can run and make it to the stop on time. It serves no purpose.”
Long-time tram critic Grant McKeeman, of Copymade, whose West Maitland Street shop sits directly beside the line, said: “It’s a right pain in the backside. There is no need for it at all, it’s constant throughout the day.
“I can’t understand why the drivers have to ring the bell so frequently.”
It is understood that drivers have now been instructed not to sound the bell as a matter of course in the West End and instead only use it or the tram horn when necessary to warn passengers or to clear traffic.
The decibel level of the city’s tram bell is a relatively modest 72db – similar to the noise of a vacuum cleaner – and is somewhat quieter than the Nottingham tram bell which has been registered at 80db and the Luas tram bell in Dublin which is 82db.
Simon Johnston, editor of Tramways and Urban Transit magazine, said: “I haven’t heard of this issue in regards the tram bell being sounded so frequently in other cities such as Sheffield, Manchester or Nottingham. Obviously the drivers are using it as a more gentle way of alerting road users to an approaching tram, but the problem is that if you use it too often people become used to it and then ignore it.”
A spokeswoman for Transport for Edinburgh said: “Safety is our number one priority at Transport for Edinburgh.
“We train our drivers to the highest standards and trust them to use their judgement based on the conditions around them.
“Our ongoing driver training assessments are carried out regularly and review all of their driving techniques including the use of the bell and horn.”
Last month we told how the tram public address system at the Saughton stop was to be placed under curfew after residents complained the regular announcements could be heard 200 yards away, with a constant loop repeating every few minutes from the first service of the day.
TRAM drivers have been told to silence their bells while passing through the West End after residents complained the constant ‘ding ding’ was driving them mad.
Bosses have ordered trams to travel through the Torphichen Street and Palmerston Place junction without sounding the alert, with drivers told only to ding when absolutely necessary.
It comes after a raft of complaints from residents about the regular ringing which starts with the first tram at 5.30am and continues until the last service at midnight.
During training, drivers were told to use the distinctive electronic bell to signal the tram’s presence along the route, although residents complained the ringing continued even when the streets were deserted. West End Community Council chairman Gordon Renton, who lives around 100 yards from the West End stop, said: “It is being used regularly and does not serve a legitimate purpose for tram or road safety.
“It is very loud and very annoying for all residents who live within a considerable distance of the lines.
“I can hear the bell in my sitting room every time the tram passes the junction.
“As there is no-one on the track and all traffic is stopped, what is the legitimate point of announcing to the public that the tram is in the area?
“No-one can run and make it to the stop on time. It serves no purpose.”
Long-time tram critic Grant McKeeman, of Copymade, whose West Maitland Street shop sits directly beside the line, said: “It’s a right pain in the backside. There is no need for it at all, it’s constant throughout the day.
“I can’t understand why the drivers have to ring the bell so frequently.”
It is understood that drivers have now been instructed not to sound the bell as a matter of course in the West End and instead only use it or the tram horn when necessary to warn passengers or to clear traffic.
The decibel level of the city’s tram bell is a relatively modest 72db – similar to the noise of a vacuum cleaner – and is somewhat quieter than the Nottingham tram bell which has been registered at 80db and the Luas tram bell in Dublin which is 82db.
Simon Johnston, editor of Tramways and Urban Transit magazine, said: “I haven’t heard of this issue in regards the tram bell being sounded so frequently in other cities such as Sheffield, Manchester or Nottingham. Obviously the drivers are using it as a more gentle way of alerting road users to an approaching tram, but the problem is that if you use it too often people become used to it and then ignore it.”
A spokeswoman for Transport for Edinburgh said: “Safety is our number one priority at Transport for Edinburgh.
“We train our drivers to the highest standards and trust them to use their judgement based on the conditions around them.
“Our ongoing driver training assessments are carried out regularly and review all of their driving techniques including the use of the bell and horn.”
Last month we told how the tram public address system at the Saughton stop was to be placed under curfew after residents complained the regular announcements could be heard 200 yards away, with a constant loop repeating every few minutes from the first service of the day.
Racist train rant woman apologises to victim
Police say they will charge the woman filmed hurling a tirade of racist abuse on a Sydney train despite originally letting her "go about her journey".
Mobile footage uploaded by a fellow passenger showed Central Coast woman Sue Wilkins launch a vile tirade against an Asian passenger.
Earlier today Ms Wilkins, 55, told ninemsn she had no excuse for her offensive attack yesterday and she was embarrassed by the footage uploaded online, which has attracted widespread condemnation and sparked a police investigation.
In the video Ms Wilkins heckles an innocent Asian passenger standing next to the man filming an earlier incident, calling her victim a "gook", mocking her accent, pulling at her eyes back in imitation and jeering her for coming to "our country".
"It's not nice what I did to that lady," Ms Wilkins told ninemsn.
"It wasn't nice to say that to her because it's not nice when people say that to me ... call me white trash and fatso. I know how it hurts and I shouldn't be saying it to other people."
Ms Wilkins, who had that day taken buses and trains from the NSW Central Coast down to Sydney to look for work, says she has been carrying the burden of being scammed out of $100,000 by a Dutch man she met on dating website RSVP.
Since returning from Holland after the failed romance, Ms Wilkins said she had been lucky enough that her family on the Central Coast had allowed her to live with them while she searched desperately for work as a secretary.
On the day she was filmed on the train, Ms Wilkins says she had asked a group of children to stand up for her to sit down.
Ms Wilkins says she argued with the children's mother, who told her they did not have to leave their seats.
"I thought it was just a disgrace," Ms Wilkins said.
"What sort of an example is that setting for your children? It's just appalling."
Her racist tirade began after a man started filming her as she phoned police to complain about the children who would not vacate their seats.
Ms Wilkins first started taunting the man filming – calling him a "sad, poor, pathetic man" – before locking eyes with the woman beside him, who he had no association with.
What followed was Ms Wilkins' abusive heckles, calling the woman a "gook" and telling the man filming he couldn't "even get a regular girlfriend".
"Oh, look at this bogan here, he's got a gook. Oh look at it, isn't it sad that he can't get a regular girlfriend, he's got to get an Asian? And she probably thinks he's rich," Ms Wilkins said.
Despite saying she was having a "really, really rotten day" when she lashed out on the train, Ms Wilkins admits now she acted inappropriately.
"I had a rotten day, I've been chasing work for quite some time now. It's awful what I said to that woman, I do agree," Ms Wilkins said.
Her racist tirade began after a man started filming her as she phoned police to complain about the children who would not vacate their seats.
Ms Wilkins first started taunting the man filming – calling him a "sad, poor, pathetic man" – before locking eyes with the woman beside him, who he had no association with.
What followed was Ms Wilkins' abusive heckles, calling the woman a "gook" and telling the man filming he couldn't "even get a regular girlfriend".
"Oh, look at this bogan here, he's got a gook. Oh look at it, isn't it sad that he can't get a regular girlfriend, he's got to get an Asian? And she probably thinks he's rich," Ms Wilkins said.
Despite saying she was having a "really, really rotten day" when she lashed out on the train, Ms Wilkins admits now she acted inappropriately.
"I had a rotten day, I've been chasing work for quite some time now. It's awful what I said to that woman, I do agree," Ms Wilkins said.
"There's no excuse to rant at people like that.
"It's awful and I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy, regardless of any race."
A NSW Police spokeswoman told ninemsn officers were trying to track down people involved in the incident.
"We take incidents such as this very seriously and we are attempting to identify and locate those involved," she said.
"Anyone who witnessed the incident or can assist with inquiries is urged to come forward."
Transport for NSW has said it will not "tolerate threats to customers".
"We'll work with (NSW Police) to ensure customers feel safe on every journey," the department said.
Ms Wilkins faces a $500 fine if found guilty of offensive behavior.
Police say they will charge the woman filmed hurling a tirade of racist abuse on a Sydney train despite originally letting her "go about her journey".
Mobile footage uploaded by a fellow passenger showed Central Coast woman Sue Wilkins launch a vile tirade against an Asian passenger.
Earlier today Ms Wilkins, 55, told ninemsn she had no excuse for her offensive attack yesterday and she was embarrassed by the footage uploaded online, which has attracted widespread condemnation and sparked a police investigation.
In the video Ms Wilkins heckles an innocent Asian passenger standing next to the man filming an earlier incident, calling her victim a "gook", mocking her accent, pulling at her eyes back in imitation and jeering her for coming to "our country".
"It's not nice what I did to that lady," Ms Wilkins told ninemsn.
"It wasn't nice to say that to her because it's not nice when people say that to me ... call me white trash and fatso. I know how it hurts and I shouldn't be saying it to other people."
Ms Wilkins, who had that day taken buses and trains from the NSW Central Coast down to Sydney to look for work, says she has been carrying the burden of being scammed out of $100,000 by a Dutch man she met on dating website RSVP.
Since returning from Holland after the failed romance, Ms Wilkins said she had been lucky enough that her family on the Central Coast had allowed her to live with them while she searched desperately for work as a secretary.
On the day she was filmed on the train, Ms Wilkins says she had asked a group of children to stand up for her to sit down.
Ms Wilkins says she argued with the children's mother, who told her they did not have to leave their seats.
"I thought it was just a disgrace," Ms Wilkins said.
"What sort of an example is that setting for your children? It's just appalling."
Her racist tirade began after a man started filming her as she phoned police to complain about the children who would not vacate their seats.
Ms Wilkins first started taunting the man filming – calling him a "sad, poor, pathetic man" – before locking eyes with the woman beside him, who he had no association with.
What followed was Ms Wilkins' abusive heckles, calling the woman a "gook" and telling the man filming he couldn't "even get a regular girlfriend".
"Oh, look at this bogan here, he's got a gook. Oh look at it, isn't it sad that he can't get a regular girlfriend, he's got to get an Asian? And she probably thinks he's rich," Ms Wilkins said.
Despite saying she was having a "really, really rotten day" when she lashed out on the train, Ms Wilkins admits now she acted inappropriately.
"I had a rotten day, I've been chasing work for quite some time now. It's awful what I said to that woman, I do agree," Ms Wilkins said.
Her racist tirade began after a man started filming her as she phoned police to complain about the children who would not vacate their seats.
Ms Wilkins first started taunting the man filming – calling him a "sad, poor, pathetic man" – before locking eyes with the woman beside him, who he had no association with.
What followed was Ms Wilkins' abusive heckles, calling the woman a "gook" and telling the man filming he couldn't "even get a regular girlfriend".
"Oh, look at this bogan here, he's got a gook. Oh look at it, isn't it sad that he can't get a regular girlfriend, he's got to get an Asian? And she probably thinks he's rich," Ms Wilkins said.
Despite saying she was having a "really, really rotten day" when she lashed out on the train, Ms Wilkins admits now she acted inappropriately.
"I had a rotten day, I've been chasing work for quite some time now. It's awful what I said to that woman, I do agree," Ms Wilkins said.
"There's no excuse to rant at people like that.
"It's awful and I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy, regardless of any race."
A NSW Police spokeswoman told ninemsn officers were trying to track down people involved in the incident.
"We take incidents such as this very seriously and we are attempting to identify and locate those involved," she said.
"Anyone who witnessed the incident or can assist with inquiries is urged to come forward."
Transport for NSW has said it will not "tolerate threats to customers".
"We'll work with (NSW Police) to ensure customers feel safe on every journey," the department said.
Ms Wilkins faces a $500 fine if found guilty of offensive behavior.
Dangerous faults on Sydney's buses
After a spate of serious crashes, investigations by police and transport officials are starting to identify widespread faults in buses run by private operators in western Sydney.
Police officers and Roads and Maritime Services on Monday conducted their second inspection of a bus depot in weeks and found about a third of buses had some defect.
The inspection of the Busabout depot at Smeaton Grange in south-west Sydney on Monday followed separate operations at depots run by another company Busways on June 20.
“Passengers getting on a bus and paying for the privilege expect the vehicle they are getting into is road worthy and safe,” said the commander of Traffic and Highway Patrol Stuart Smith.
"Given these large vehicles also transport our children to and from school each day, [this] highlights why they must be mechanically sound and able to operate safely all of the time,” Mr Smith said.
The inspection ran the ruler over 88 buses at the Busabout depot, which serviced Campbelltown, Narellan and Camden. It found 32 were defective and six defects were considered “major”.
One bus had no active rear brake lights. Other notices were issued for suspension, tyres, brakes and warning lights.
The joint heavy vehicle taskforce between Police and RMS was set up to crack down on rogue truckers and trucking companies. But it recently turned its attention to bus companies.
A 34-year-old cyclist died after a collision with a bus in Mount Druitt on June 19. A Busways bus was fortunate not to hit any members of a young family after it ran out of control and slammed into a Glenmore Park home on June 15.
During inspections of Busways depots after that incident, 201 buses were looked over and 14 defects were found.
Police also conducted more than 200 random drug and breath tests, recording no positive results.
Spokesmen for Busabout and Busways were unable to be contacted late on Monday. The executive director of the industry organisation BusNSW Darryl Mellish was also unavailable for comment.
Assistant secretary of the NSW Transport Workers Union Michael Aird said the results of the investigations were "alarming but not surprising".
"In a recent survey of 285 bus drivers across western Sydney and NSW, 55 per cent of drivers reported maintenance issues going unresolved," Mr Aird said.
RMS general manager of compliance operations Paul Endycott said the inspections would continue.
“We are continuing our joint operation targeting bus companies to ensure vehicles are compliant but also to ensure drivers are fit and proper to operate passenger vehicles,” Mr Endycott said.
After a spate of serious crashes, investigations by police and transport officials are starting to identify widespread faults in buses run by private operators in western Sydney.
Police officers and Roads and Maritime Services on Monday conducted their second inspection of a bus depot in weeks and found about a third of buses had some defect.
The inspection of the Busabout depot at Smeaton Grange in south-west Sydney on Monday followed separate operations at depots run by another company Busways on June 20.
“Passengers getting on a bus and paying for the privilege expect the vehicle they are getting into is road worthy and safe,” said the commander of Traffic and Highway Patrol Stuart Smith.
"Given these large vehicles also transport our children to and from school each day, [this] highlights why they must be mechanically sound and able to operate safely all of the time,” Mr Smith said.
The inspection ran the ruler over 88 buses at the Busabout depot, which serviced Campbelltown, Narellan and Camden. It found 32 were defective and six defects were considered “major”.
One bus had no active rear brake lights. Other notices were issued for suspension, tyres, brakes and warning lights.
The joint heavy vehicle taskforce between Police and RMS was set up to crack down on rogue truckers and trucking companies. But it recently turned its attention to bus companies.
A 34-year-old cyclist died after a collision with a bus in Mount Druitt on June 19. A Busways bus was fortunate not to hit any members of a young family after it ran out of control and slammed into a Glenmore Park home on June 15.
During inspections of Busways depots after that incident, 201 buses were looked over and 14 defects were found.
Police also conducted more than 200 random drug and breath tests, recording no positive results.
Spokesmen for Busabout and Busways were unable to be contacted late on Monday. The executive director of the industry organisation BusNSW Darryl Mellish was also unavailable for comment.
Assistant secretary of the NSW Transport Workers Union Michael Aird said the results of the investigations were "alarming but not surprising".
"In a recent survey of 285 bus drivers across western Sydney and NSW, 55 per cent of drivers reported maintenance issues going unresolved," Mr Aird said.
RMS general manager of compliance operations Paul Endycott said the inspections would continue.
“We are continuing our joint operation targeting bus companies to ensure vehicles are compliant but also to ensure drivers are fit and proper to operate passenger vehicles,” Mr Endycott said.
Revealed: London's worst bus routes at night
Research has revealed London’s worst bus routes travelling at night and why they are so unpopular.
Drunken behaviour, shouting, smelly fast food, and people fighting are the reasons Londoners hate catching the bus home at night, according to hundreds of passengers surveyed.
The worst was found to be the 262 from Stratford to Beckton, which a fifth of those surveyed named and shamed as the capital’s worst among night buses and daytime routes that run late.The second was the 152 from Pollards Hill to New Malden which 10.6 per cent of people surveyed called the worst.
Passengers who took to twitter to rant about their experiences include examples such as “@TfLBusAlerts why is it every night the 03:37ish 149 from London bridge always looks like a rubbish bin” and “so... I’m experiencing my first London night bus bc I missed the tube. Drunk people really aren’t my fave,” while another says “The nightbus is most definitely the worst part of a London night out.”
The research was compiled by Kabbee, a taxi comparison and booking service, which compiled the worst ten routes by asking 500 bus users their thoughts on 25 routes they had discovered were most complained about on social media.
A thousand Londoners were also asked about what they disliked about night buses, with nearly three fifths saying drunk people and nearly half saying people shouting or chanting. Another 43 per cent said people eating smelly fast food was the worst annoyance, and 40 per cent said discarded beer bottles at their feet. Nearly a third said people fighting was the worst thing about night bus travel.
To go along with the research, Kabbee also released a number of spoof videos on YouTube, with actors played out scenes of some of people’s worst night bus gripes in front of real-life unsuspecting passengers, whose reactions are captured on film. They included someone being sick after a night out, friends being rowdy on a stag do, and two men having a “rap battle”.
ustin Peters, Kabbee CEO and Founder said: “London’s public transport system is one of the best in the world, however when it comes night buses, there’s an obvious need for further improvement.”
He claimed problems with buses that run at night had lead to an increase in people booking minicabs after the tube closes.
Mike Weston, TfL’s Director of Buses, said: “London has the most extensive night bus service in the world which supports the life and culture of this vibrant 24-hour city.
"Night bus services carry more than 42 million passengers every year and demand for services has tripled since 1999 – which is testament to their popularity.
"Almost half of the passengers who travel on night bus routes are going to or returning from work and, with many other travel options closing down overnight for essential maintenance, the network comes into its own – driving the city’s economy at all hours.”
Top 10 worst bus routes at night1. 262 – Stratford to Beckford
2. 30 – Marble Arch to Hackney Wick
3. 49 – Clapham Junction to White City
4. N343 – New Cross Gate to Tower Bridge Road
5. 191 – Brimsdown Station to Edmonton Green
6. 228 – Maida Hill to Park Royal
7. 176 – 24-hour route from Penge to Tottenham Court Road Station
8. N63 – Crystal Palace to King’s Cross Station
9. 152 – Pollards Hill to New Malden
10. 452 – Kensal Rise to Wandsworth Road
Research has revealed London’s worst bus routes travelling at night and why they are so unpopular.
Drunken behaviour, shouting, smelly fast food, and people fighting are the reasons Londoners hate catching the bus home at night, according to hundreds of passengers surveyed.
The worst was found to be the 262 from Stratford to Beckton, which a fifth of those surveyed named and shamed as the capital’s worst among night buses and daytime routes that run late.The second was the 152 from Pollards Hill to New Malden which 10.6 per cent of people surveyed called the worst.
Passengers who took to twitter to rant about their experiences include examples such as “@TfLBusAlerts why is it every night the 03:37ish 149 from London bridge always looks like a rubbish bin” and “so... I’m experiencing my first London night bus bc I missed the tube. Drunk people really aren’t my fave,” while another says “The nightbus is most definitely the worst part of a London night out.”
The research was compiled by Kabbee, a taxi comparison and booking service, which compiled the worst ten routes by asking 500 bus users their thoughts on 25 routes they had discovered were most complained about on social media.
A thousand Londoners were also asked about what they disliked about night buses, with nearly three fifths saying drunk people and nearly half saying people shouting or chanting. Another 43 per cent said people eating smelly fast food was the worst annoyance, and 40 per cent said discarded beer bottles at their feet. Nearly a third said people fighting was the worst thing about night bus travel.
To go along with the research, Kabbee also released a number of spoof videos on YouTube, with actors played out scenes of some of people’s worst night bus gripes in front of real-life unsuspecting passengers, whose reactions are captured on film. They included someone being sick after a night out, friends being rowdy on a stag do, and two men having a “rap battle”.
ustin Peters, Kabbee CEO and Founder said: “London’s public transport system is one of the best in the world, however when it comes night buses, there’s an obvious need for further improvement.”
He claimed problems with buses that run at night had lead to an increase in people booking minicabs after the tube closes.
Mike Weston, TfL’s Director of Buses, said: “London has the most extensive night bus service in the world which supports the life and culture of this vibrant 24-hour city.
"Night bus services carry more than 42 million passengers every year and demand for services has tripled since 1999 – which is testament to their popularity.
"Almost half of the passengers who travel on night bus routes are going to or returning from work and, with many other travel options closing down overnight for essential maintenance, the network comes into its own – driving the city’s economy at all hours.”
Top 10 worst bus routes at night1. 262 – Stratford to Beckford
2. 30 – Marble Arch to Hackney Wick
3. 49 – Clapham Junction to White City
4. N343 – New Cross Gate to Tower Bridge Road
5. 191 – Brimsdown Station to Edmonton Green
6. 228 – Maida Hill to Park Royal
7. 176 – 24-hour route from Penge to Tottenham Court Road Station
8. N63 – Crystal Palace to King’s Cross Station
9. 152 – Pollards Hill to New Malden
10. 452 – Kensal Rise to Wandsworth Road
Opposition slams govt transport plan
The Victorian government has failed to improve public transport in almost four years in office despite a recent series of initiatives, Opposition Leader Daniel Andrews says.
Victorian Opposition leader Daniel Andrews says the govt has failed to improve public transport in almost four years in office.
Since May, the government has pledged to build a new rail tunnel linking Melbourne's north and south, a new airport rail link, a new ferry from the western suburbs to Docklands and additional train, tram and bus services a week across the state from July 27.
But the government faces criticism because it abandoned the Melbourne Metro plan to link north and south with new stations in the busy Parkville university and health precinct in favour of its rail tunnel, which will run via South Melbourne.
Meanwhile, a Yarra Trams report, detailed in Fairfax newspapers on Monday, says the government must order at least 110 new large E-class trams and scrap 147 smaller, 1970s-era Z-class trams to meet commuter demand.
Mr Andrews said the 50 new E-class trams that have been ordered already were ordered by Labor before it lost the 2010 state election.
Problems with overhead wires that shut an 8km stretch of the Frankston rail line on Monday morning was exacerbated by a failure to arrange enough replacement buses for commuters, he said.
Mr Andrews said Premier Denis Napthine has 'no real plan' for public transport.
'He's in the last six months of his four-year term. He's got a botched rail plan that takes people to parts of the city where no-one lives but cancels stations in that Parkville-University of Melbourne-Royal Children's Hospital precinct, where 150,000 people visit and work every single day,' he said.
'Denis Napthine is for slick ads on TV and a $20 billion toll road tunnel, not investing in the basics, the things that make a real difference for people using public transport.'
Mr Andrews said a Labor government would introduce all-night public transport on Fridays and Saturdays and restore the Metro proposal.
A response has been sought from the government.
The Victorian government has failed to improve public transport in almost four years in office despite a recent series of initiatives, Opposition Leader Daniel Andrews says.
Victorian Opposition leader Daniel Andrews says the govt has failed to improve public transport in almost four years in office.
Since May, the government has pledged to build a new rail tunnel linking Melbourne's north and south, a new airport rail link, a new ferry from the western suburbs to Docklands and additional train, tram and bus services a week across the state from July 27.
But the government faces criticism because it abandoned the Melbourne Metro plan to link north and south with new stations in the busy Parkville university and health precinct in favour of its rail tunnel, which will run via South Melbourne.
Meanwhile, a Yarra Trams report, detailed in Fairfax newspapers on Monday, says the government must order at least 110 new large E-class trams and scrap 147 smaller, 1970s-era Z-class trams to meet commuter demand.
Mr Andrews said the 50 new E-class trams that have been ordered already were ordered by Labor before it lost the 2010 state election.
Problems with overhead wires that shut an 8km stretch of the Frankston rail line on Monday morning was exacerbated by a failure to arrange enough replacement buses for commuters, he said.
Mr Andrews said Premier Denis Napthine has 'no real plan' for public transport.
'He's in the last six months of his four-year term. He's got a botched rail plan that takes people to parts of the city where no-one lives but cancels stations in that Parkville-University of Melbourne-Royal Children's Hospital precinct, where 150,000 people visit and work every single day,' he said.
'Denis Napthine is for slick ads on TV and a $20 billion toll road tunnel, not investing in the basics, the things that make a real difference for people using public transport.'
Mr Andrews said a Labor government would introduce all-night public transport on Fridays and Saturdays and restore the Metro proposal.
A response has been sought from the government.
Near-miss footage shows Queensland motorists, pedestrians playing 'Russian roulette' with trains
Motorists and pedestrians in Queensland are playing Russian roulette with trains, a minister has said after releasing footage of numerous near misses at level crossings.
Among the "disturbing" incidents caught on Queensland Rail cameras were a driver crashing through a lowered boom gate to beat a train by seconds, and a man and woman pushing a pram across the tracks as a train approached.
Transport Minister Scott Emerson today visited Coopers Plains train station, one of the state's hotspots for railway crossing near misses where 46 or the 135 near misses reported across the state so far this year occurred.
He described the footage "shocking and disturbing".
"We see evidence and footage of this in terms of people putting their own lives at risk. They are so lucky to be alive today - if not for a moment of seconds, they could have been killed or very badly injured," he said.
"You wonder why people put their lives at risk. They must be trying to save a couple of seconds to get from A to B, but the reality is the cost and price they may have to pay is beyond belief."
Last year in Queensland there were 285 incidents described as near misses, a drop from the 397 recorded in 2012.
"I want to see no one putting their lives at risk and playing Russian roulette with trains," Mr Emerson said.
Train drivers 'never forget' near missesTrain driver Shaun Boland said the impact of near misses weighed heavily on Queensland Rail workers.
"It's something you never forget," he said.
"The worse situations always seem to stay at the forefront of your mind when you're running through that section of track again and again every day."
RACQ executive manager of technical and safety policy Steve Spalding said there was no excuse for driving past the flashing lights or around a boom gate.
"You're not just breaking the road rules but you're also placing yourself and your passengers in a dangerous situation and possibly risking the lives of those on board the train," Mr Spalding said.
Pedestrians caught ignoring railway crossing protection could receive an on the spot fine of $220, and offending motorists could face a $330 penalty and three demerit points.
Motorists who damage railway crossings can be fined up to $8,800.
Since July 2013, Queensland Rail has successfully recovered more than $239,000 in repair costs that would otherwise be borne by taxpayers.
Motorists and pedestrians in Queensland are playing Russian roulette with trains, a minister has said after releasing footage of numerous near misses at level crossings.
Among the "disturbing" incidents caught on Queensland Rail cameras were a driver crashing through a lowered boom gate to beat a train by seconds, and a man and woman pushing a pram across the tracks as a train approached.
Transport Minister Scott Emerson today visited Coopers Plains train station, one of the state's hotspots for railway crossing near misses where 46 or the 135 near misses reported across the state so far this year occurred.
He described the footage "shocking and disturbing".
"We see evidence and footage of this in terms of people putting their own lives at risk. They are so lucky to be alive today - if not for a moment of seconds, they could have been killed or very badly injured," he said.
"You wonder why people put their lives at risk. They must be trying to save a couple of seconds to get from A to B, but the reality is the cost and price they may have to pay is beyond belief."
Last year in Queensland there were 285 incidents described as near misses, a drop from the 397 recorded in 2012.
"I want to see no one putting their lives at risk and playing Russian roulette with trains," Mr Emerson said.
Train drivers 'never forget' near missesTrain driver Shaun Boland said the impact of near misses weighed heavily on Queensland Rail workers.
"It's something you never forget," he said.
"The worse situations always seem to stay at the forefront of your mind when you're running through that section of track again and again every day."
RACQ executive manager of technical and safety policy Steve Spalding said there was no excuse for driving past the flashing lights or around a boom gate.
"You're not just breaking the road rules but you're also placing yourself and your passengers in a dangerous situation and possibly risking the lives of those on board the train," Mr Spalding said.
Pedestrians caught ignoring railway crossing protection could receive an on the spot fine of $220, and offending motorists could face a $330 penalty and three demerit points.
Motorists who damage railway crossings can be fined up to $8,800.
Since July 2013, Queensland Rail has successfully recovered more than $239,000 in repair costs that would otherwise be borne by taxpayers.
Protesters block trains at Southern Cross stationUnion members have blocked a train track at Southern Cross station, demanding V/line reinstate a conductor who was sacked after a fight with a passenger.
Four members of the Rail, Tram and Bus Union, including state secretary Luba Grigorovitch, stormed the track at platform 16B about 5.15pm.
The protest was sparked by the sacking of V/line conductor Dervin D’Costa, who the union say was fired after he was forced to defend himself from two ‘‘unruly youth’’ who abused passengers before throwing punches at Mr D’Costa at Ballan station in early April.
Mr D’Costa had been employed for 40 years and had no prior warnings from management during his career, the union said. The youths were not travelling with valid tickets when they had lashed out at Mr D’Costa and another conductor.
The protest has delayed the 5.21pm Marshall train, which is waiting on the platform with passengers onboard, but it is believed other trains have been diverted.
About 15 colleagues are standing on the platform waving placards calling for an end to indescriminate sackings and double standards.
Members are chanting ‘‘when they say sack, we say fight back’’ as Protective Services Officers watch on.
The protest ended shortly after 6pm.
A statement to members in a union newsletter released late last month said an unfair dismissal claim had been lodged on behalf of Mr D'Costa.
V/Line condemned the action of the protesters in a statement on Wednesday night, describing it as reckless, stupid and dangerous behaviour.
Spokesman Colin Tyrus said Mr D'Costa's dismissal was ''fair and reasonable in the circumstances'', adding that Fair Work Australia was the proper place to air such concerns.
In the statement, Mr Tyrus said V/Line would not tolerate attacks on its employees in their workplace.
The rail authority said verbal and physical assaults on V/Line staff had declined in the past five years from 761 in 2008-2009 to 306 in 2013-2014.
''The fact that assaults are declining reinforces our commitment to safety and security on the network,'' he said.
Four members of the Rail, Tram and Bus Union, including state secretary Luba Grigorovitch, stormed the track at platform 16B about 5.15pm.
The protest was sparked by the sacking of V/line conductor Dervin D’Costa, who the union say was fired after he was forced to defend himself from two ‘‘unruly youth’’ who abused passengers before throwing punches at Mr D’Costa at Ballan station in early April.
Mr D’Costa had been employed for 40 years and had no prior warnings from management during his career, the union said. The youths were not travelling with valid tickets when they had lashed out at Mr D’Costa and another conductor.
The protest has delayed the 5.21pm Marshall train, which is waiting on the platform with passengers onboard, but it is believed other trains have been diverted.
About 15 colleagues are standing on the platform waving placards calling for an end to indescriminate sackings and double standards.
Members are chanting ‘‘when they say sack, we say fight back’’ as Protective Services Officers watch on.
The protest ended shortly after 6pm.
A statement to members in a union newsletter released late last month said an unfair dismissal claim had been lodged on behalf of Mr D'Costa.
V/Line condemned the action of the protesters in a statement on Wednesday night, describing it as reckless, stupid and dangerous behaviour.
Spokesman Colin Tyrus said Mr D'Costa's dismissal was ''fair and reasonable in the circumstances'', adding that Fair Work Australia was the proper place to air such concerns.
In the statement, Mr Tyrus said V/Line would not tolerate attacks on its employees in their workplace.
The rail authority said verbal and physical assaults on V/Line staff had declined in the past five years from 761 in 2008-2009 to 306 in 2013-2014.
''The fact that assaults are declining reinforces our commitment to safety and security on the network,'' he said.
Train vandals condemned for social media video
A video glorifying train vandalism and trespass has been condemned by Victoria Police and Metro Trains in the wake of two deaths from train stunts in Melbourne since mid-May.
The YouTube clip shows a group of teenagers breaking into the rooftops of a number of luxury hotels and high-rises in Melbourne, including The Langham, Crowne Plaza, Rydges Hotel and Melbourne's GPO building before retailer H&M opened in April.
Most of the slickly produced footage, complete with a hip-hop soundtrack, shows the teens walking around rooftops, dangling their legs from floors high above the city's skyline and taking photographs. At the end of the video, a teen in an empty train driver's carriage films his friends sneaking onto a station platform, jumping onto the back of the train and hitching a lift on the rear carriage of the train as it passes through Southern Cross Station.
The footage is unlikely to shock many, but the recent deaths of a teenager and young father in separate incidents that involved stunts on trains prompted Victoria Police and Metro Trains to speak publicly to condemn it and caution against social media posts glorifying behaviour that can easily lead to a wasted life.
Twenty-six-year-old street artist Jordan Porter, known as Sinch, was electrocuted at Balaclava train station on June 27 after stripping naked and climbing onto the roof of a train. Mr Porter had a six-year-old daughter and was believed to have been carrying out a stunt that a friend was going to film to generate publicity for himself.
Two weeks earlier, 17-year-old Jack Irving, of Beaumaris, was killed as he leaned out of a train carriage near Malvern station. It is believed he had broken into a train driver's carriage with three other teens, including his younger brother, when he was killed after hanging his head out of the train.
Inspector Darren Cooper, from the transport tasking and co-ordination unit, said police could charge those in the YouTube video with criminal damage and conduct endangering life. He said the video celebrated risky behaviour but also made it easy for police to charge those responsible.
‘‘If you’re on tracks and there’s live trains, if you’re in areas within the train where you’re not supposed to be, or if you’re on top of the train, clearly you’re creating significant risk to yourself," he said.
‘‘I don’t consider it trendy, I consider it very, very risky [and] quite silly in many ways.’’
Inspector Cooper said sharing videos of dangerous behaviour via social media may be motivating offenders and websites needed to be socially responsible.
‘‘I would encourage those people that behave like that to actually think about their families. If they get caught in a situation and they’re seriously injured or they die, those that are left to grieve are their family and friends.’’
He said the offenders generally acted in sophisticated groups, sometimes pretending to be Metro employees or using illegally obtained keys to access restricted areas.
Metro Trains chief executive officer Andrew Lezala said it was never safe to trespass around trains.
"Recently we have seen a number of incidents involving people filming themselves while behaving dangerously around trains," Mr Lezala said.
"They are taking videos of stunts and uploading them to social media, with each stunt trying to outdo the last.
"There needs to be a groundswell in the community to clamp down on this behavior because it’s incredibly dangerous and reckless. It also traumatises our drivers and customers who witness this risky behavior. About half of the external factors that cause train delays relate to these types of incidents."
Mr Lezala said no stunt was worth somebody’s life.
A video glorifying train vandalism and trespass has been condemned by Victoria Police and Metro Trains in the wake of two deaths from train stunts in Melbourne since mid-May.
The YouTube clip shows a group of teenagers breaking into the rooftops of a number of luxury hotels and high-rises in Melbourne, including The Langham, Crowne Plaza, Rydges Hotel and Melbourne's GPO building before retailer H&M opened in April.
Most of the slickly produced footage, complete with a hip-hop soundtrack, shows the teens walking around rooftops, dangling their legs from floors high above the city's skyline and taking photographs. At the end of the video, a teen in an empty train driver's carriage films his friends sneaking onto a station platform, jumping onto the back of the train and hitching a lift on the rear carriage of the train as it passes through Southern Cross Station.
The footage is unlikely to shock many, but the recent deaths of a teenager and young father in separate incidents that involved stunts on trains prompted Victoria Police and Metro Trains to speak publicly to condemn it and caution against social media posts glorifying behaviour that can easily lead to a wasted life.
Twenty-six-year-old street artist Jordan Porter, known as Sinch, was electrocuted at Balaclava train station on June 27 after stripping naked and climbing onto the roof of a train. Mr Porter had a six-year-old daughter and was believed to have been carrying out a stunt that a friend was going to film to generate publicity for himself.
Two weeks earlier, 17-year-old Jack Irving, of Beaumaris, was killed as he leaned out of a train carriage near Malvern station. It is believed he had broken into a train driver's carriage with three other teens, including his younger brother, when he was killed after hanging his head out of the train.
Inspector Darren Cooper, from the transport tasking and co-ordination unit, said police could charge those in the YouTube video with criminal damage and conduct endangering life. He said the video celebrated risky behaviour but also made it easy for police to charge those responsible.
‘‘If you’re on tracks and there’s live trains, if you’re in areas within the train where you’re not supposed to be, or if you’re on top of the train, clearly you’re creating significant risk to yourself," he said.
‘‘I don’t consider it trendy, I consider it very, very risky [and] quite silly in many ways.’’
Inspector Cooper said sharing videos of dangerous behaviour via social media may be motivating offenders and websites needed to be socially responsible.
‘‘I would encourage those people that behave like that to actually think about their families. If they get caught in a situation and they’re seriously injured or they die, those that are left to grieve are their family and friends.’’
He said the offenders generally acted in sophisticated groups, sometimes pretending to be Metro employees or using illegally obtained keys to access restricted areas.
Metro Trains chief executive officer Andrew Lezala said it was never safe to trespass around trains.
"Recently we have seen a number of incidents involving people filming themselves while behaving dangerously around trains," Mr Lezala said.
"They are taking videos of stunts and uploading them to social media, with each stunt trying to outdo the last.
"There needs to be a groundswell in the community to clamp down on this behavior because it’s incredibly dangerous and reckless. It also traumatises our drivers and customers who witness this risky behavior. About half of the external factors that cause train delays relate to these types of incidents."
Mr Lezala said no stunt was worth somebody’s life.
Sydney Trains 'refresh' 28 stations for $33 million
Sydney Trains will go on a pre-election blitz to spruce up 28 stations, including some that have only recently had multimillion-dollar upgrades.Less than two years after Newtown Station had a $35 million upgrade, the station was included in a list to be “refreshed” in coming months.
Transport Minister Gladys Berejiklian on Tuesday said the $33 million program would be an opportunity to upgrade toilets, install new lighting and furniture, and repaint and landscape stations.
Sydenham Station, which had a $35 million upgrade last year, will also be “refreshed”, as will the relatively recently upgraded North Sydney Station.
Asked why these stations were getting another overhaul, Sydney Trains chief executive Howard Collins said: "A lot of the stations, including the ones that got modernised, had been not looked after in terms of the decor."
Ms Berejiklian and Mr Collins announced the upgrades on the first anniversary of the establishment of Sydney Trains and NSW TrainLink, the organisations set up after the break-up RailCorp.
Mr Collins said recent improvements had led to rise of about a 3 per cent in patronage in the past year.
“We are listening to our customers,” he said. “They also want better facilities … it’s not putting lipstick on a pig.”
Ms Berejiklian defended the government’s record on upgrading stations after reports that upgrade promises made before the last election were not being kept.
"We have 120 projects on the go at the moment around easy access, more car parks, better improved stations,” she said.
The 28 stations to be upgraded by the end of this year are: Ashfield, Auburn, Cabramatta, Fairfield, Rockdale, Macquarie University, Bankstown, Mount Druitt, Liverpool, Edgecliff, Campsie, North Sydney, Rhodes, Chatswood, Hornsby, Epping, Eastwood, Artarmon, Westmead, Gordon, Newtown, Campbelltown, St Peters, Sutherland, Seven Hills, Sydenham, Turramurra and Milsons Point.
Sydney Trains will go on a pre-election blitz to spruce up 28 stations, including some that have only recently had multimillion-dollar upgrades.Less than two years after Newtown Station had a $35 million upgrade, the station was included in a list to be “refreshed” in coming months.
Transport Minister Gladys Berejiklian on Tuesday said the $33 million program would be an opportunity to upgrade toilets, install new lighting and furniture, and repaint and landscape stations.
Sydenham Station, which had a $35 million upgrade last year, will also be “refreshed”, as will the relatively recently upgraded North Sydney Station.
Asked why these stations were getting another overhaul, Sydney Trains chief executive Howard Collins said: "A lot of the stations, including the ones that got modernised, had been not looked after in terms of the decor."
Ms Berejiklian and Mr Collins announced the upgrades on the first anniversary of the establishment of Sydney Trains and NSW TrainLink, the organisations set up after the break-up RailCorp.
Mr Collins said recent improvements had led to rise of about a 3 per cent in patronage in the past year.
“We are listening to our customers,” he said. “They also want better facilities … it’s not putting lipstick on a pig.”
Ms Berejiklian defended the government’s record on upgrading stations after reports that upgrade promises made before the last election were not being kept.
"We have 120 projects on the go at the moment around easy access, more car parks, better improved stations,” she said.
The 28 stations to be upgraded by the end of this year are: Ashfield, Auburn, Cabramatta, Fairfield, Rockdale, Macquarie University, Bankstown, Mount Druitt, Liverpool, Edgecliff, Campsie, North Sydney, Rhodes, Chatswood, Hornsby, Epping, Eastwood, Artarmon, Westmead, Gordon, Newtown, Campbelltown, St Peters, Sutherland, Seven Hills, Sydenham, Turramurra and Milsons Point.
Vic Police to crack down on graffiti vandals following train-surfing YouTube videoGraffiti vandals will come under closer scrutiny after a YouTube video emerged showing people train-surfing and skylarking around Melbourne's underground tunnels and rooftops.
Victoria Police said graffiti vandals were operating in organised groups and impersonating Metro Trains staff to gain access to restricted areas.
The move comes days after 26-year-old graffiti artist Jordan Porter died while train-surfing at the Balaclava Station.
Police Inspector Darren Cooper said people were putting themselves and the public at risk.
"Some of these people are quite sophisticated, they operate in crews, they're anti-surveillance, they have a range of different techniques," Inspector Cooper said.
"They've accessed keys, we've seen in the past they've pretended to be Metro workers, so they use a range of different techniques and we're constantly adjusting our investigative techniques to get them."
Inspector Cooper said while YouTube clip "glamorised" criminal activity, police were using the footage to track down offenders.
The clip features sophisticated production values and had more than 8,000 views on YouTube on Tuesday.
It showed young people walking inside Melbourne's network of train tunnels, and atop the city's GPO building, Rydges Hotel and the Langham Hotel.
"Online you've got access to tens of thousands of people almost instantaneously, sometimes that's the motivation for these individuals to get it out there and increase their profile," he said.
"It's concerning in terms of people are trying to glamorise risky behaviour, but what is actually of benefit to us is when they post it, it makes it much easier for us to detect who's responsible for the behaviours."
Metro Trains CEO Andrew Lezala said the behaviour shown in the video was traumatic for train drivers and customers.
"There needs to be a groundswell in the community to clamp down on this behaviour because it’s incredibly dangerous and reckless," he said in a statement.
"It also traumatises our drivers and customers who witness this risky behaviour.
"About half of the external factors that cause train delays relate to these types of incidents.
"There have been two fatalities within two weeks as a result of this risk-taking behaviour around the railway and, put simply, there is no stunt that is worth somebody’s life."
Victoria Police said graffiti vandals were operating in organised groups and impersonating Metro Trains staff to gain access to restricted areas.
The move comes days after 26-year-old graffiti artist Jordan Porter died while train-surfing at the Balaclava Station.
Police Inspector Darren Cooper said people were putting themselves and the public at risk.
"Some of these people are quite sophisticated, they operate in crews, they're anti-surveillance, they have a range of different techniques," Inspector Cooper said.
"They've accessed keys, we've seen in the past they've pretended to be Metro workers, so they use a range of different techniques and we're constantly adjusting our investigative techniques to get them."
Inspector Cooper said while YouTube clip "glamorised" criminal activity, police were using the footage to track down offenders.
The clip features sophisticated production values and had more than 8,000 views on YouTube on Tuesday.
It showed young people walking inside Melbourne's network of train tunnels, and atop the city's GPO building, Rydges Hotel and the Langham Hotel.
"Online you've got access to tens of thousands of people almost instantaneously, sometimes that's the motivation for these individuals to get it out there and increase their profile," he said.
"It's concerning in terms of people are trying to glamorise risky behaviour, but what is actually of benefit to us is when they post it, it makes it much easier for us to detect who's responsible for the behaviours."
Metro Trains CEO Andrew Lezala said the behaviour shown in the video was traumatic for train drivers and customers.
"There needs to be a groundswell in the community to clamp down on this behaviour because it’s incredibly dangerous and reckless," he said in a statement.
"It also traumatises our drivers and customers who witness this risky behaviour.
"About half of the external factors that cause train delays relate to these types of incidents.
"There have been two fatalities within two weeks as a result of this risk-taking behaviour around the railway and, put simply, there is no stunt that is worth somebody’s life."
Historical rail lines in WA's Wheatbelt close as CBH and Brookfield continue negotiations
Despite rigorous efforts to negotiate continued access, the remaining Tier 3 rail lines in Western Australia's grain belt have been placed into care and maintenance.
The closure of more than 500 kilometres of track is feared to cause what some farmers are calling a 'trucking hell' on country roads.
"We're at a watershed moment in the transportation of our bulk commodities," said Cam Taylor who farms south-west of Tambellup.
He made a submission to last week's public hearing on the inquiry into the management of WA's freight rail network before the Economics and Industry Standing Committee.
Mr Taylor told ABC Rural he won't let a rail line that's served the grain belt for over a century go to waste.
"We're not going to sit by and watch and let our rail system be curtailed and let road transport dominate the transport of grain.
"I am passionate about this issue because that rail system has been there for a long time and just for the basic fact of maintenance, of upkeep, we're looking at losing a fair majority of it.
"Our rail system is part of an integrated network that delivers our food to the port to the world and that's why we're fighting to retain it."
The trains are operated by Watco Rail for the state's main grain handler the CBH Group.
The lines, which are used to cart grain from receival sites to port, are owned by the State Government and leased exclusively by Brookfield Rail until 2049.
It will cost an estimated $120 million to return the lines to an efficient operating condition and just who pays for what has caused a big spat between Brookfield and CBH.
David Capper, Manager of Operations at CBH, hopes to eventually come to some sort of commercial arrangement with Brookfield.
CBH is looking at other avenues to seek access to Tier 3, such as via the Economic Regulation Authority (ERA).
CBH has requested access to Tier 3 through a rail access code submission and that's currently going through an arbitration process.
"Today is a very important day in that process and today we expect to receive the floor and ceiling prices.
"That's basically the generation of the last six months of work that we've put into submissions through the ERA and their deliberation on those submissions.
"From here the negotiation phase begins for us and Brookfield over a track access agreement between that floor and ceiling price."
Around 870,000 tonnes of grain is still to be moved from sites located on the Tier 3 lines, which Mr Capper estimates will equate to an extra 30,000 truck movements.
A spokesperson from Brookfield declined ABC Rural’s request for an interview. Instead, it provided the following in a written statement.
In accordance with the Strategic Grain Network Review Committee’s decision and in the absence of the required capital investment, the four remaining Tier 3 grain freight rail lines will be placed into care and maintenance on 30 June 2014.
As a rail infrastructure business we would love to keep Tier 3 lines open, but there needs to be genuine cooperation from CBH to reach a commercial agreement which underpins the investment critical to the safe and reliable operation of these lines.
Brookfield Rail remains open and willing to work together with CBH to reach a commercial agreement that would return Tier 3 lines to full operational status, securing the safe, sustainable and economically viable operation for the benefit for the grain industry, our communities and the State.
Despite rigorous efforts to negotiate continued access, the remaining Tier 3 rail lines in Western Australia's grain belt have been placed into care and maintenance.
The closure of more than 500 kilometres of track is feared to cause what some farmers are calling a 'trucking hell' on country roads.
"We're at a watershed moment in the transportation of our bulk commodities," said Cam Taylor who farms south-west of Tambellup.
He made a submission to last week's public hearing on the inquiry into the management of WA's freight rail network before the Economics and Industry Standing Committee.
Mr Taylor told ABC Rural he won't let a rail line that's served the grain belt for over a century go to waste.
"We're not going to sit by and watch and let our rail system be curtailed and let road transport dominate the transport of grain.
"I am passionate about this issue because that rail system has been there for a long time and just for the basic fact of maintenance, of upkeep, we're looking at losing a fair majority of it.
"Our rail system is part of an integrated network that delivers our food to the port to the world and that's why we're fighting to retain it."
The trains are operated by Watco Rail for the state's main grain handler the CBH Group.
The lines, which are used to cart grain from receival sites to port, are owned by the State Government and leased exclusively by Brookfield Rail until 2049.
It will cost an estimated $120 million to return the lines to an efficient operating condition and just who pays for what has caused a big spat between Brookfield and CBH.
David Capper, Manager of Operations at CBH, hopes to eventually come to some sort of commercial arrangement with Brookfield.
CBH is looking at other avenues to seek access to Tier 3, such as via the Economic Regulation Authority (ERA).
CBH has requested access to Tier 3 through a rail access code submission and that's currently going through an arbitration process.
"Today is a very important day in that process and today we expect to receive the floor and ceiling prices.
"That's basically the generation of the last six months of work that we've put into submissions through the ERA and their deliberation on those submissions.
"From here the negotiation phase begins for us and Brookfield over a track access agreement between that floor and ceiling price."
Around 870,000 tonnes of grain is still to be moved from sites located on the Tier 3 lines, which Mr Capper estimates will equate to an extra 30,000 truck movements.
A spokesperson from Brookfield declined ABC Rural’s request for an interview. Instead, it provided the following in a written statement.
In accordance with the Strategic Grain Network Review Committee’s decision and in the absence of the required capital investment, the four remaining Tier 3 grain freight rail lines will be placed into care and maintenance on 30 June 2014.
As a rail infrastructure business we would love to keep Tier 3 lines open, but there needs to be genuine cooperation from CBH to reach a commercial agreement which underpins the investment critical to the safe and reliable operation of these lines.
Brookfield Rail remains open and willing to work together with CBH to reach a commercial agreement that would return Tier 3 lines to full operational status, securing the safe, sustainable and economically viable operation for the benefit for the grain industry, our communities and the State.
Woman Survives Being Run Over By 3 NYC Subway Trains
A 22-year-old New York City resident survived being run over by three subway trains Sunday morning, according to the police.
Mary Downey, an Irish immigrant from Woodlawn in the Bronx, was drunk when she fell onto the tracks at the W. 49th Street station in Manhattan around 6 a.m., law enforcement authorities said. Two train operators drove over Downey without noticing her; fortunately, a third saw the woman’s waving hand, but was not able to stop the train before some of its cars passed over her. Officials speculated that Downey must have rolled to a position in between the platform and the trains before she was run over.
Downey was rushed to Bellevue Hospital after being removed from the tracks, but appeared to have suffered nothing more than a fractured shoulder. She was released several hours later.
A 22-year-old New York City resident survived being run over by three subway trains Sunday morning, according to the police.
Mary Downey, an Irish immigrant from Woodlawn in the Bronx, was drunk when she fell onto the tracks at the W. 49th Street station in Manhattan around 6 a.m., law enforcement authorities said. Two train operators drove over Downey without noticing her; fortunately, a third saw the woman’s waving hand, but was not able to stop the train before some of its cars passed over her. Officials speculated that Downey must have rolled to a position in between the platform and the trains before she was run over.
Downey was rushed to Bellevue Hospital after being removed from the tracks, but appeared to have suffered nothing more than a fractured shoulder. She was released several hours later.
Tram system jammed as old carriages fall apart
Melbourne needs 110 new bumper-sized trams by 2020 to avoid chronic overcrowding and to address public safety concerns caused by the ageing tram network, Yarra Trams says.
Yet the Napthine government has committed to adding just 50 extra trams to the network in the next four years, and is yet to secure all of the land it needs for new electrical substations that must be built to power the larger, modern trams.
The government needs to build 16 new substations at various locations around the tram network in order to inject the necessary grunt to power the 50 E-Class trams it has ordered, but Fairfax Media has learnt it is yet to identify or secure the land for five of them.
A site in Preston at the terminus of tram route 112 must be found "urgently" if the government is to make good progress on its rollout of the E-Class trams, which can carry 210 passengers each, Yarra Trams says.
The identification of substation sites at St Kilda Road, St Kilda Beach, Lygon Street and Nicholson Street also must be "fast-tracked" to give tram routes on those streets the power to handle a greater number of high-capacity trams, the operator says.
Public Transport Victoria spokeswoman Helen Witton said: "Land has been secured for nine substations and significant progress has been made in identifying appropriate land for the remaining five."
The city's looming tram capacity crisis is being exacerbated by the impending need to retire 147 old Z-Class trams that still make up a large percentage of Yarra Trams' fleet but which have officially passed their expiry date.
The 1970s-era trams have capacity for just 70 passengers and struggled badly in Melbourne's recent summer heatwave, when dozens were forced out of service.
Rail, Tram and Bus Union divisional secretary Phil Altieri said the trams were hopelessly ill-equipped for the transport task.
"All were meant to be retired after the 2006 Commonwealth Games but there was a patronage spike and they're still running around. They've had very little work done on them because the government doesn't want to spend money on old vehicles that are past their use-by date," he said.
Earlier this month a Z-Class tram damaged a car when a tram lifeguard, designed to prevent people being caught beneath the wheels, fell off and crashed into the vehicle's tyres.
Mr Altieri said it was one of three incidents in the past month in which public safety was put at risk by malfunctioning tram infrastructure.
"We conclude that Yarra Trams is not maintaining the system; the numbers are unprecedented and we can only assume that something is not being done by this company," Mr Altieri said.
The union has images of a broken tram floor plate that was damaged when a tram point dislodged from the tracks and speared into the bottom of the tram on June 17. No one was injured on that occasion, although a woman was injured in an earlier incident in May when a tram floor plate dislodged and crashed into her legs. An ambulance attended the scene.
Yarra Trams is investigating all three incidents, but said "there is no evidence of any systemic issues across the fleet or the network".
Z-Class trams are inspected every two weeks as part of an annual $65 million investment in tram network maintenance.
The plan to steadily phase out all Z-Class trams by 2020 hinges on the procurement of 110 new E-Class trams by the same deadline. Manufacturer Bombardier has a contract to build 50 new trams by 2017, with an option for a further 100. Just five of the new low-floor trams are in service, operating on route 96 between Brunswick East and St Kilda Beach.
State transport authority Public Transport Victoria has a plan to "cascade" other low-floor, high-capacity trams on to other busy routes as more E-Class trams roll out.
As of January, patronage on 13 of Melbourne's tram routes exceeded capacity.
Those in line to get an entire fleet of newer trams before the decade's end are route 19 between Elizabeth Street and Coburg North, route 11 between West Preston and Docklands, route 12 between St Kilda and Richmond, route 86 between Bundoora and Docklands, route 48 between North Balwyn and Docklands and route 72 between Melbourne University and Camberwell.
Melbourne needs 110 new bumper-sized trams by 2020 to avoid chronic overcrowding and to address public safety concerns caused by the ageing tram network, Yarra Trams says.
Yet the Napthine government has committed to adding just 50 extra trams to the network in the next four years, and is yet to secure all of the land it needs for new electrical substations that must be built to power the larger, modern trams.
The government needs to build 16 new substations at various locations around the tram network in order to inject the necessary grunt to power the 50 E-Class trams it has ordered, but Fairfax Media has learnt it is yet to identify or secure the land for five of them.
A site in Preston at the terminus of tram route 112 must be found "urgently" if the government is to make good progress on its rollout of the E-Class trams, which can carry 210 passengers each, Yarra Trams says.
The identification of substation sites at St Kilda Road, St Kilda Beach, Lygon Street and Nicholson Street also must be "fast-tracked" to give tram routes on those streets the power to handle a greater number of high-capacity trams, the operator says.
Public Transport Victoria spokeswoman Helen Witton said: "Land has been secured for nine substations and significant progress has been made in identifying appropriate land for the remaining five."
The city's looming tram capacity crisis is being exacerbated by the impending need to retire 147 old Z-Class trams that still make up a large percentage of Yarra Trams' fleet but which have officially passed their expiry date.
The 1970s-era trams have capacity for just 70 passengers and struggled badly in Melbourne's recent summer heatwave, when dozens were forced out of service.
Rail, Tram and Bus Union divisional secretary Phil Altieri said the trams were hopelessly ill-equipped for the transport task.
"All were meant to be retired after the 2006 Commonwealth Games but there was a patronage spike and they're still running around. They've had very little work done on them because the government doesn't want to spend money on old vehicles that are past their use-by date," he said.
Earlier this month a Z-Class tram damaged a car when a tram lifeguard, designed to prevent people being caught beneath the wheels, fell off and crashed into the vehicle's tyres.
Mr Altieri said it was one of three incidents in the past month in which public safety was put at risk by malfunctioning tram infrastructure.
"We conclude that Yarra Trams is not maintaining the system; the numbers are unprecedented and we can only assume that something is not being done by this company," Mr Altieri said.
The union has images of a broken tram floor plate that was damaged when a tram point dislodged from the tracks and speared into the bottom of the tram on June 17. No one was injured on that occasion, although a woman was injured in an earlier incident in May when a tram floor plate dislodged and crashed into her legs. An ambulance attended the scene.
Yarra Trams is investigating all three incidents, but said "there is no evidence of any systemic issues across the fleet or the network".
Z-Class trams are inspected every two weeks as part of an annual $65 million investment in tram network maintenance.
The plan to steadily phase out all Z-Class trams by 2020 hinges on the procurement of 110 new E-Class trams by the same deadline. Manufacturer Bombardier has a contract to build 50 new trams by 2017, with an option for a further 100. Just five of the new low-floor trams are in service, operating on route 96 between Brunswick East and St Kilda Beach.
State transport authority Public Transport Victoria has a plan to "cascade" other low-floor, high-capacity trams on to other busy routes as more E-Class trams roll out.
As of January, patronage on 13 of Melbourne's tram routes exceeded capacity.
Those in line to get an entire fleet of newer trams before the decade's end are route 19 between Elizabeth Street and Coburg North, route 11 between West Preston and Docklands, route 12 between St Kilda and Richmond, route 86 between Bundoora and Docklands, route 48 between North Balwyn and Docklands and route 72 between Melbourne University and Camberwell.
The worst of winter winds is over, says Bureau of Meteorology
After last week’s once-a-year winter blues, Melbourne’s forecast looks set to improve with some welcome sunshine by midweek.
Weather experts have labelled Tuesday’s wintry blast a “once-a-year event” and Melburnians shouldn’t expect that again this winter.
Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Stephen King expects improvements in the conditions over the next couple of days with a high from the west clearing things up from Wednesday.
At the weekend the city delivered single-digit temperatures with south-westerly winds reaching up to 35km/h during the day.
While Saturday's wild winds have settled, there was little rain let-up on Sunday with 4 millimetres of rainfall recorded between 9am and 2pm.
Mr King confirmed the city has seen the last of the dramatic winds for the foreseeable future and only coastal warnings now exist.
Minor flood warnings have been lifted, although there are some still in north-east Victoria.
The week’s high of 17 degrees is due on Wednesday, followed by a maximum of 16 on Thursday.
The city is not completely in the clear, however, with another cold front due on Friday.
“We are unlikely to see the same front as we did on Tuesday. That is what we would call a yearly event at the most.”
Mr King said temperatures in the mid-teens are expected from this week, a norm for this time of year.
The forecasts for Monday and Tuesday showed cloudy isolated showers with winds between 15 and 25km/h.
The rain returns for Friday and Saturday with rainfall forecast of one to five millimetres.
After last week’s once-a-year winter blues, Melbourne’s forecast looks set to improve with some welcome sunshine by midweek.
Weather experts have labelled Tuesday’s wintry blast a “once-a-year event” and Melburnians shouldn’t expect that again this winter.
Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Stephen King expects improvements in the conditions over the next couple of days with a high from the west clearing things up from Wednesday.
At the weekend the city delivered single-digit temperatures with south-westerly winds reaching up to 35km/h during the day.
While Saturday's wild winds have settled, there was little rain let-up on Sunday with 4 millimetres of rainfall recorded between 9am and 2pm.
Mr King confirmed the city has seen the last of the dramatic winds for the foreseeable future and only coastal warnings now exist.
Minor flood warnings have been lifted, although there are some still in north-east Victoria.
The week’s high of 17 degrees is due on Wednesday, followed by a maximum of 16 on Thursday.
The city is not completely in the clear, however, with another cold front due on Friday.
“We are unlikely to see the same front as we did on Tuesday. That is what we would call a yearly event at the most.”
Mr King said temperatures in the mid-teens are expected from this week, a norm for this time of year.
The forecasts for Monday and Tuesday showed cloudy isolated showers with winds between 15 and 25km/h.
The rain returns for Friday and Saturday with rainfall forecast of one to five millimetres.
Metro Trains corruption claims
The former managing director of a company that completed millions of dollars of work for Metro Trains says he was told the rail operator was ‘‘awash with corruption’’.
The claim is detailed in a statutory declaration that also alleges employees who were ‘‘on the take’’ had been ‘‘gifted such things as jet skis and additions erected to their properties paid for by suppliers’’.
Mark Boulton, who headed Metro Trains supplier Vital Services Group from October 2012 until January this year, has detailed his allegations in a statutory declaration signed in March and seen by Fairfax Media. The statutory declaration was provided to Metro Trains as part of an internal audit into allegations of corruption and kickbacks.
The rail operator said on Sunday that an internal investigation team had examined the claims and concluded there was no evidence to support any wrongdoing by its employees.
Mr Boulton declined to comment when contacted on Sunday, saying only that he would take his claims to Victoria Police if a legal case against Metro Trains he is mounting came to nothing. ‘‘I will go to the police with my evidence if I don’t get satisfaction,’’ said Mr Boulton, who is understood to be involved in legal action against Metro Trains over alleged damage to his reputation.
In the statutory declaration, he alleges three employees of Metro Trains ‘‘conspired to obtain financial reward in return for offering subcontracting work to Vital Services Group’’.
Mr Boulton came to Australia in 2012 to head up Vital Services Group, which did maintenance work and provided track-side safety workers to Metro Trains.
Mr Boulton, like many senior railway managers now working in Melbourne, comes from Britain. He alleges a Metro Trains manager told him when he first arrived that the company was ‘‘awash with corruption’’.
That manager, the statutory declaration alleges, told Mr Boulton that ‘‘most of the foremen were ‘on the take’ and that some had been gifted such things as jet skis and had additions erected to their properties paid for by suppliers of Metro Trains Melbourne’’.
‘‘[They] told us that some had even created new limited companies to provide services to MTM, thereby making earnings out of MTM in addition to their salary,’’ the document stated.
The statutory declaration accuses a senior Metro Trains employee of colluding to set up a new company to ‘‘siphon’’ money from Metro Trains by ‘‘award[ing] labour hire and other work’’.
Mr Boulton said that - at one of a string of meals at Port Melbourne’s Railway Club Hotel - he was told of a Metro Trains employee who had been caught by an internal audit ‘‘setting up a supplier company in his own name’’.
Mr Boulton resigned from Vital Services Group in January after, his statutory declaration said, ‘‘the tap of work from Metro Trains Melbourne had almost been turned off’’.
The document was last week widely circulated within Melbourne’s rail industry. Among those to see a copy was Electrical Trades Union organiser Gerry Glover, who said there needed to be further investigation. ‘‘This is taxpayers' money,’’ he said, ‘‘so we need to know these allegations have been tested.’’
Metro Trains spokeswoman Leah Waymark said the allegations were very serious but the company’s extensive investigation had found no wrongdoing by those named in the document.
‘‘We have a whistleblower hot line in place and we actively encourage employees and suppliers who suspect inappropriate conduct to alert us for investigation,’’ she said.
Metro Trains’ investigation is understood to have included interviews, examination of transactions and receipts, and a check of the company’s IT system.
Despite this, the state opposition said the Napthine government needed to investigate because the rail system was publicly funded. Shadow public transport spokeswoman Jill Hennessy said the allegation ‘‘begs the question whether there is systemic rorting in the public transport sector’’.
Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder’s spokeswoman said the government had no knowledge of the matter but had been assured by Metro Trains that appropriate investigations had been undertaken.
The former managing director of a company that completed millions of dollars of work for Metro Trains says he was told the rail operator was ‘‘awash with corruption’’.
The claim is detailed in a statutory declaration that also alleges employees who were ‘‘on the take’’ had been ‘‘gifted such things as jet skis and additions erected to their properties paid for by suppliers’’.
Mark Boulton, who headed Metro Trains supplier Vital Services Group from October 2012 until January this year, has detailed his allegations in a statutory declaration signed in March and seen by Fairfax Media. The statutory declaration was provided to Metro Trains as part of an internal audit into allegations of corruption and kickbacks.
The rail operator said on Sunday that an internal investigation team had examined the claims and concluded there was no evidence to support any wrongdoing by its employees.
Mr Boulton declined to comment when contacted on Sunday, saying only that he would take his claims to Victoria Police if a legal case against Metro Trains he is mounting came to nothing. ‘‘I will go to the police with my evidence if I don’t get satisfaction,’’ said Mr Boulton, who is understood to be involved in legal action against Metro Trains over alleged damage to his reputation.
In the statutory declaration, he alleges three employees of Metro Trains ‘‘conspired to obtain financial reward in return for offering subcontracting work to Vital Services Group’’.
Mr Boulton came to Australia in 2012 to head up Vital Services Group, which did maintenance work and provided track-side safety workers to Metro Trains.
Mr Boulton, like many senior railway managers now working in Melbourne, comes from Britain. He alleges a Metro Trains manager told him when he first arrived that the company was ‘‘awash with corruption’’.
That manager, the statutory declaration alleges, told Mr Boulton that ‘‘most of the foremen were ‘on the take’ and that some had been gifted such things as jet skis and had additions erected to their properties paid for by suppliers of Metro Trains Melbourne’’.
‘‘[They] told us that some had even created new limited companies to provide services to MTM, thereby making earnings out of MTM in addition to their salary,’’ the document stated.
The statutory declaration accuses a senior Metro Trains employee of colluding to set up a new company to ‘‘siphon’’ money from Metro Trains by ‘‘award[ing] labour hire and other work’’.
Mr Boulton said that - at one of a string of meals at Port Melbourne’s Railway Club Hotel - he was told of a Metro Trains employee who had been caught by an internal audit ‘‘setting up a supplier company in his own name’’.
Mr Boulton resigned from Vital Services Group in January after, his statutory declaration said, ‘‘the tap of work from Metro Trains Melbourne had almost been turned off’’.
The document was last week widely circulated within Melbourne’s rail industry. Among those to see a copy was Electrical Trades Union organiser Gerry Glover, who said there needed to be further investigation. ‘‘This is taxpayers' money,’’ he said, ‘‘so we need to know these allegations have been tested.’’
Metro Trains spokeswoman Leah Waymark said the allegations were very serious but the company’s extensive investigation had found no wrongdoing by those named in the document.
‘‘We have a whistleblower hot line in place and we actively encourage employees and suppliers who suspect inappropriate conduct to alert us for investigation,’’ she said.
Metro Trains’ investigation is understood to have included interviews, examination of transactions and receipts, and a check of the company’s IT system.
Despite this, the state opposition said the Napthine government needed to investigate because the rail system was publicly funded. Shadow public transport spokeswoman Jill Hennessy said the allegation ‘‘begs the question whether there is systemic rorting in the public transport sector’’.
Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder’s spokeswoman said the government had no knowledge of the matter but had been assured by Metro Trains that appropriate investigations had been undertaken.
Train surfer 'electrocuted' while riding on top of Melbourne train
A naked man has died after apparently being electrocuted while riding on the roof of a train at Balaclava station in Melbourne's inner south-east.
Power had to be cut before emergency services could reach the man due to safety reasons.
Police believed the man in his 20s was a passenger on an outbound train and was riding on the roof as it pulled into the station.
"It appears a passenger on the train has climbed onto the roof as it approached the platform and was injured," a Victoria Police spokesperson said.
Ambulance Victoria were called to the scene at 2:30pm (AEST) on Friday.
Police are yet to formally identify the man and determine the exact cause of his death, but said the "possibility of misadventure" may form part of the investigation.
A witness who was working nearby told the ABC the man was naked and walking on the roof when he fell on top of the train's electrical system.
He said the man was "convulsing and shaking" and was on fire for about five minutes.
Paramedics assessed two train drivers at the scene but said they did not need further attention.
A naked man has died after apparently being electrocuted while riding on the roof of a train at Balaclava station in Melbourne's inner south-east.
Power had to be cut before emergency services could reach the man due to safety reasons.
Police believed the man in his 20s was a passenger on an outbound train and was riding on the roof as it pulled into the station.
"It appears a passenger on the train has climbed onto the roof as it approached the platform and was injured," a Victoria Police spokesperson said.
Ambulance Victoria were called to the scene at 2:30pm (AEST) on Friday.
Police are yet to formally identify the man and determine the exact cause of his death, but said the "possibility of misadventure" may form part of the investigation.
A witness who was working nearby told the ABC the man was naked and walking on the roof when he fell on top of the train's electrical system.
He said the man was "convulsing and shaking" and was on fire for about five minutes.
Paramedics assessed two train drivers at the scene but said they did not need further attention.
Melbourne bus driver makes hospital mercy dash to help stricken girl
A bus driver has made an unscheduled mercy dash to rush a 12-year-old girl suffering from suspected appendicitis to hospital.
Ventura bus driver Martin Fletcher was waiting for his next departure from Berwick train station during peak hour in early May when the girl’s father approached the bus.
“I had just come back from smoko and she was sitting there and the dad came up to me and said ‘look, my little girl’s really in pain,'” he said.
“She was pretty curled over and fairly distressed.”
Mr Fletcher bundled the 12-year-old and her father into the bus and made the five-minute dash to Casey Hospital, returning to the station in time for his next departure.
The bus driver of eight years’ experience said he had not yet spoken to the pair, but hoped the girl had recovered.
“As a concerned father myself, I’d like to see how things turned out,” he said.
A bus driver has made an unscheduled mercy dash to rush a 12-year-old girl suffering from suspected appendicitis to hospital.
Ventura bus driver Martin Fletcher was waiting for his next departure from Berwick train station during peak hour in early May when the girl’s father approached the bus.
“I had just come back from smoko and she was sitting there and the dad came up to me and said ‘look, my little girl’s really in pain,'” he said.
“She was pretty curled over and fairly distressed.”
Mr Fletcher bundled the 12-year-old and her father into the bus and made the five-minute dash to Casey Hospital, returning to the station in time for his next departure.
The bus driver of eight years’ experience said he had not yet spoken to the pair, but hoped the girl had recovered.
“As a concerned father myself, I’d like to see how things turned out,” he said.
Woman in critical condition after being hit by Sydney bus.
A WOMAN is in critical condition in hospital after being hit by a bus in central Sydney.
The woman, aged in her 30s, was crossing George Street when she was hit and has been taken to the nearby St Vincents Hospital in a with severe injuries.
"She's currently undergoing surgery," police said.
Police weren't able to say what her injuries were or whether she had crossed against the lights.
No one else was injured but one northbound lane of George Street has been closed as forensic specialists investigate.
"A city bus had a smashed windscreen and light at the front and the pavement has been cordoned off," an AAP reporter at the scene said.
Earlier on Sunday police expressed fears safety warnings aren't sinking in, after a second death on the state's roads this holiday weekend.
A 21-year-old driving through Binnaway, veered onto the wrong side of the road on Sunday before crashing and being thrown from the car.
It's believed the young man, who died at the scene wasn't wearing a seatbelt.
A teenage girl died and her four friends were injured when their four-wheel-drive car left the trail through Lowes Mount State Forest near Oberon, in NSW's central west, and rolled just after midnight on Saturday.
"Two people have now lost their lives on the state's roads this long weekend, which is two too many," Acting Assistant Commissioner Smith said on Sunday.
"Today's fatality was a tragedy.
He said it was disappointing so many people were still speeding, with more than 2100 speed infringement notices handed out so far this holiday period.
He urged drivers to remaining vigilant, drive to the conditions, take rest breaks, stay away from alcohol or drugs and the distractions by mobile devices.
"These steps could easily save a life," he said.
Major roads in the CBD will be closed on Sunday night as part of Sydney's Vivid festival.
"Anyone attending (Sunday)'s event should leave the car at home and catch one of the extra 3500 trains and buses operating," the Transport Management Centre said.
"All roads are expected to be reopened by midnight."
A WOMAN is in critical condition in hospital after being hit by a bus in central Sydney.
The woman, aged in her 30s, was crossing George Street when she was hit and has been taken to the nearby St Vincents Hospital in a with severe injuries.
"She's currently undergoing surgery," police said.
Police weren't able to say what her injuries were or whether she had crossed against the lights.
No one else was injured but one northbound lane of George Street has been closed as forensic specialists investigate.
"A city bus had a smashed windscreen and light at the front and the pavement has been cordoned off," an AAP reporter at the scene said.
Earlier on Sunday police expressed fears safety warnings aren't sinking in, after a second death on the state's roads this holiday weekend.
A 21-year-old driving through Binnaway, veered onto the wrong side of the road on Sunday before crashing and being thrown from the car.
It's believed the young man, who died at the scene wasn't wearing a seatbelt.
A teenage girl died and her four friends were injured when their four-wheel-drive car left the trail through Lowes Mount State Forest near Oberon, in NSW's central west, and rolled just after midnight on Saturday.
"Two people have now lost their lives on the state's roads this long weekend, which is two too many," Acting Assistant Commissioner Smith said on Sunday.
"Today's fatality was a tragedy.
He said it was disappointing so many people were still speeding, with more than 2100 speed infringement notices handed out so far this holiday period.
He urged drivers to remaining vigilant, drive to the conditions, take rest breaks, stay away from alcohol or drugs and the distractions by mobile devices.
"These steps could easily save a life," he said.
Major roads in the CBD will be closed on Sunday night as part of Sydney's Vivid festival.
"Anyone attending (Sunday)'s event should leave the car at home and catch one of the extra 3500 trains and buses operating," the Transport Management Centre said.
"All roads are expected to be reopened by midnight."
Yarra Trams offers foreigners lucrative tram depot jobs
YARRA Trams is recruiting foreigners to manage its depots even though many locals are looking for work.
The tram operator has posted job vacancies for the position of tram driver and depot manager on job websites in Britain, offering salary packages of up to $140,000. It includes sponsorship under the skilled worker 457 visa program.
Over the past three years the company has advertised a number of lucrative positions, including performance managers and business unit managers, under the 457 temporary visa scheme.
More than 10 Yarra Trams employees have 457 visas.
Yarra Trams also employs a UK recruitment agency.
Rail, Tram and Bus Union, Tram and Bus Division secretary Phil Altieri said local workers were outraged.
“There are a lot of Australian workers. Don’t tell me they couldn’t find an adequate manager on our shores,” Mr Altieri said.
“They have no regard for Australian workers. It should be Australian jobs for Australian workers.”
CLICK HERE TO READ THE AD ON THE UK WEBSITE.
Mr Altieri said the tram operator had recently sacked some long-serving managers and replaced them with overseas managers.
Yarra Trams spokesman Simon Murphy said it employed workers on merit “regardless of nationality” and the role had been advertised locally.
“Of the 30 roles currently being recruited, 28 of them are being advertised only in Australia,” Mr Murphy said.
He said some highly technical roles often required a global search, and “we make no apology for attempting to recruit the people who are most capable of improving Melbourne’s tram network”.
Shadow minister Jill Hennessy said the Government had a track record of outsourcing Victorian jobs: “Surely the appointment of locally skilled workers with a knowledge of Victoria’s transport system would make more sense.”
YARRA Trams is recruiting foreigners to manage its depots even though many locals are looking for work.
The tram operator has posted job vacancies for the position of tram driver and depot manager on job websites in Britain, offering salary packages of up to $140,000. It includes sponsorship under the skilled worker 457 visa program.
Over the past three years the company has advertised a number of lucrative positions, including performance managers and business unit managers, under the 457 temporary visa scheme.
More than 10 Yarra Trams employees have 457 visas.
Yarra Trams also employs a UK recruitment agency.
Rail, Tram and Bus Union, Tram and Bus Division secretary Phil Altieri said local workers were outraged.
“There are a lot of Australian workers. Don’t tell me they couldn’t find an adequate manager on our shores,” Mr Altieri said.
“They have no regard for Australian workers. It should be Australian jobs for Australian workers.”
CLICK HERE TO READ THE AD ON THE UK WEBSITE.
Mr Altieri said the tram operator had recently sacked some long-serving managers and replaced them with overseas managers.
Yarra Trams spokesman Simon Murphy said it employed workers on merit “regardless of nationality” and the role had been advertised locally.
“Of the 30 roles currently being recruited, 28 of them are being advertised only in Australia,” Mr Murphy said.
He said some highly technical roles often required a global search, and “we make no apology for attempting to recruit the people who are most capable of improving Melbourne’s tram network”.
Shadow minister Jill Hennessy said the Government had a track record of outsourcing Victorian jobs: “Surely the appointment of locally skilled workers with a knowledge of Victoria’s transport system would make more sense.”
New peak-hour services for busiest rail lines
Victoria's public transport system will get a much-needed shot in the arm next month when new peak-hour services are added to some of Melbourne's busiest rail lines, and sweeping changes are made to tram and bus services.
Chronic overcrowding on the Dandenong rail corridor will be addressed with the addition of two extra peak-hour services in the morning and two in the evening. The extra peak hour trains were a $25 million commitment in last year's state budget. The Frankston railway line will also get two extra peak-hour trains.
Meanwhile, one of Melbourne's busiest tram routes will be split in two. The route 112 from West Preston to St Kilda will be broken into two new routes - route 11 running between West Preston and Docklands and route 12 between Victoria Gardens in Richmond and St Kilda. Both routes will run via Collins Street in the CBD, which will become significantly busier as a result.
The changes, to come in on July 27, will create the capacity for 34,000 more passengers a week on the network, state public transport authority Public Transport Victoria says.
“These service improvements are another step in transforming our network, with more service where they are needed most,” the transport authority said.
Four infrequent, part-time tram routes will be scrapped.
Bus routes across several parts of Melbourne will also be overhauled, including Brimbank in the north-western suburbs, Port Phillip in the inner south and Manningham in the east. In all, more than 130 bus routes will change, the authority said.
“Around the state, more than 130 local bus routes will have timetable changes to better coordinate with trains, provide more direct routes along major roads, and to boost public transport in areas that have grown and changed.”
Major changes to Brimbank's bus networks were first put to the community last year. Under the transport authority's proposal, the area's meandering bus routes would be straightened out and a brand new bus route be added that would run every 20 minutes between Watergardens shopping centre and Sunshine.
The mooted changes would increase frequency but put some neighbourhoods further away from the nearest bus stop.
Victoria's public transport system will get a much-needed shot in the arm next month when new peak-hour services are added to some of Melbourne's busiest rail lines, and sweeping changes are made to tram and bus services.
Chronic overcrowding on the Dandenong rail corridor will be addressed with the addition of two extra peak-hour services in the morning and two in the evening. The extra peak hour trains were a $25 million commitment in last year's state budget. The Frankston railway line will also get two extra peak-hour trains.
Meanwhile, one of Melbourne's busiest tram routes will be split in two. The route 112 from West Preston to St Kilda will be broken into two new routes - route 11 running between West Preston and Docklands and route 12 between Victoria Gardens in Richmond and St Kilda. Both routes will run via Collins Street in the CBD, which will become significantly busier as a result.
The changes, to come in on July 27, will create the capacity for 34,000 more passengers a week on the network, state public transport authority Public Transport Victoria says.
“These service improvements are another step in transforming our network, with more service where they are needed most,” the transport authority said.
Four infrequent, part-time tram routes will be scrapped.
Bus routes across several parts of Melbourne will also be overhauled, including Brimbank in the north-western suburbs, Port Phillip in the inner south and Manningham in the east. In all, more than 130 bus routes will change, the authority said.
“Around the state, more than 130 local bus routes will have timetable changes to better coordinate with trains, provide more direct routes along major roads, and to boost public transport in areas that have grown and changed.”
Major changes to Brimbank's bus networks were first put to the community last year. Under the transport authority's proposal, the area's meandering bus routes would be straightened out and a brand new bus route be added that would run every 20 minutes between Watergardens shopping centre and Sunshine.
The mooted changes would increase frequency but put some neighbourhoods further away from the nearest bus stop.
Four killed as train derails in eastern India
Patna (India) (AFP) - Four people were killed when a train derailed in eastern India on Wednesday, the latest in a series of deadly disasters to blight the country's dilapidated rail network.
While the rail board initially pointed the finger of blame at Maoist insurgents, police and government officials said there was no reason to suspect sabotage.
Some 12 carriages of the Rajdhani Express sleeper train, which was travelling from the capital New Delhi to the northeastern state of Assam, toppled over at around 2:00am (2030 GMT) in Bihar state's Saran district.
Railway Board chairman Arunendra Kumar was initially quoted as telling the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency that there "was a blast on the track" which could have caused the derailment, with suspicion falling on the Maoists as they had called a strike in the region.
But a spokesman later said sabotage was only "one of the possibilities" that was being investigated while a senior state and government officials were also cool on the idea that it was an attack.
"Prima facie it does not appear to be the handiwork of Maoists," Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi told reporters.
"No trace of blast on the track or any other evidence suggesting sabotage has been found so far," he added, according to PTI.
"The incident appears to be a result of error on the part of railways."
Speculation that it could have been an attack by the Maoists was heightened when police said they had recovered three crude explosive devices that had been planted in a marketplace in a nearby town.
Bihar is part of a group of states in eastern and central India that have borne the brunt of Maoist attacks which have claimed thousands of lives in recent decades.
But police spokesman Superintendent Sudhir Kumar told AFP: "I don't think there is any connection of the bombs with the train accident," while Home Minister Rajnath Singh said it was "too early" to blame the Maoists.
- 'The carriage tipped over and over' -
Eight other passengers were taken to hospital for treatment for their injuries after the train derailed.
One of the injured, Ram Pratap Singh, described how passengers in sleeper carriages had been woken by a "loud noise".
"The carriage tipped over and over again and a passenger on a top (berth) fell on me," Singh told the ABP network.
"Then we got up somehow and found a small opening to get out," he told the channel.
Stranded passengers were being ferried in special trains while railway workers were trying to fix the long stretch of broken tracks.
Wednesday's disaster is the latest deadly incident on India's run-down rail network, which is still the main form of long-distance travel for the middle-class and the poor.
Last month, 26 people were killed when a passenger express travelling in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh ploughed into a stationary freight train.
In 2012 a government report said almost 15,000 people were killed every year on the network, describing the deaths as an annual "massacre" due mainly to poor safety standards.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government, which came to power last month, has pledged to revive the railway network by infusing funds and introducing new trains.
Patna (India) (AFP) - Four people were killed when a train derailed in eastern India on Wednesday, the latest in a series of deadly disasters to blight the country's dilapidated rail network.
While the rail board initially pointed the finger of blame at Maoist insurgents, police and government officials said there was no reason to suspect sabotage.
Some 12 carriages of the Rajdhani Express sleeper train, which was travelling from the capital New Delhi to the northeastern state of Assam, toppled over at around 2:00am (2030 GMT) in Bihar state's Saran district.
Railway Board chairman Arunendra Kumar was initially quoted as telling the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency that there "was a blast on the track" which could have caused the derailment, with suspicion falling on the Maoists as they had called a strike in the region.
But a spokesman later said sabotage was only "one of the possibilities" that was being investigated while a senior state and government officials were also cool on the idea that it was an attack.
"Prima facie it does not appear to be the handiwork of Maoists," Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi told reporters.
"No trace of blast on the track or any other evidence suggesting sabotage has been found so far," he added, according to PTI.
"The incident appears to be a result of error on the part of railways."
Speculation that it could have been an attack by the Maoists was heightened when police said they had recovered three crude explosive devices that had been planted in a marketplace in a nearby town.
Bihar is part of a group of states in eastern and central India that have borne the brunt of Maoist attacks which have claimed thousands of lives in recent decades.
But police spokesman Superintendent Sudhir Kumar told AFP: "I don't think there is any connection of the bombs with the train accident," while Home Minister Rajnath Singh said it was "too early" to blame the Maoists.
- 'The carriage tipped over and over' -
Eight other passengers were taken to hospital for treatment for their injuries after the train derailed.
One of the injured, Ram Pratap Singh, described how passengers in sleeper carriages had been woken by a "loud noise".
"The carriage tipped over and over again and a passenger on a top (berth) fell on me," Singh told the ABP network.
"Then we got up somehow and found a small opening to get out," he told the channel.
Stranded passengers were being ferried in special trains while railway workers were trying to fix the long stretch of broken tracks.
Wednesday's disaster is the latest deadly incident on India's run-down rail network, which is still the main form of long-distance travel for the middle-class and the poor.
Last month, 26 people were killed when a passenger express travelling in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh ploughed into a stationary freight train.
In 2012 a government report said almost 15,000 people were killed every year on the network, describing the deaths as an annual "massacre" due mainly to poor safety standards.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government, which came to power last month, has pledged to revive the railway network by infusing funds and introducing new trains.
Vietnam's transport minister rejects proposal for another slow-speed railway
Transport minister Dinh La Thang has rejected a Vietnam Railways proposal for the construction of an additional one-meter gauge railway between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
In a letter to the state-owned railway company, Thang said the proposal failed to comply with the National Strategy on Railway Development until 2050 approved by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.
“The Ministry of Transport is seeking the prime minister’s approval on detailed plans, including building a double-track broad gauge railway that would allow trains to travel between 160 and 200 km per hour,” he wrote.
On May 30, Vietnam Railways proposed the ministry build another one-meter track to solve the current overload.
It takes at least 30 years to build a high speed railway and thus, it needs another one-meter track to solve urgent demand, according to the company’s proposal.
On June 17, Thang told the media that the proposal is “neither new nor suitable.”
Thang said Vietnam Railways’ proposal was just wasteful like “building an additional [unnecessary] makeshift house while waiting for your nice new home.”
It takes at least 29 hours to travel by train between Hanoi and HCMC on its current train system.
A project to build an express railway sparked a heated debate before being dismissed by the National Assembly, Vietnam's parliament, in 2010 when the government announced an estimated price tag of $56 billion, half of the country's then gross domestic product.
Lawmakers and experts were concerned by the high cost and the project's effectiveness, as well as piling up debt for future generations.
Transport minister Dinh La Thang has rejected a Vietnam Railways proposal for the construction of an additional one-meter gauge railway between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
In a letter to the state-owned railway company, Thang said the proposal failed to comply with the National Strategy on Railway Development until 2050 approved by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.
“The Ministry of Transport is seeking the prime minister’s approval on detailed plans, including building a double-track broad gauge railway that would allow trains to travel between 160 and 200 km per hour,” he wrote.
On May 30, Vietnam Railways proposed the ministry build another one-meter track to solve the current overload.
It takes at least 30 years to build a high speed railway and thus, it needs another one-meter track to solve urgent demand, according to the company’s proposal.
On June 17, Thang told the media that the proposal is “neither new nor suitable.”
Thang said Vietnam Railways’ proposal was just wasteful like “building an additional [unnecessary] makeshift house while waiting for your nice new home.”
It takes at least 29 hours to travel by train between Hanoi and HCMC on its current train system.
A project to build an express railway sparked a heated debate before being dismissed by the National Assembly, Vietnam's parliament, in 2010 when the government announced an estimated price tag of $56 billion, half of the country's then gross domestic product.
Lawmakers and experts were concerned by the high cost and the project's effectiveness, as well as piling up debt for future generations.
Storm creates commuter crisis for Melbourne's afternoon peak-hour
Melbourne is in the midst of a commuter crisis with major roads, train and tram lines and routes out of the city closed due to high winds, traffic accidents, flooding and strewn debris.
The evening commute is expected to be a heavy, slow affair in all directions as fallen trees have contributed to the suspension of five train lines - Hurtsbridge, Stony Point, Belgrave, Cranbourne and Pakenham.
Trains are not running between Bayswater and Belgrave due to a fallen tree at Upper Ferntree Gully; another fallen tree near Macleod has suspended the Hurtsbridge line between Heidelberg and Eltham in both directions; and trains aren't running on the Stony Point line between Stony Point and Frankston because of a fallen tree at Tyabb.
Emergency workers are frantically trying to clear the lines in time for peak hour and replacement buses are replacing trains.
Meanwhile, a car has been hit by a V/Line train and trains are not running on the Cranbourne and Pakenham lines between Caulfield and Oakleigh with significant delays expected.
Metro spokesperson Pauline O'Connor said no one had been injured and the car had since been cleared from the rail line."We're waiting for emergency services and Metro services to assess damages," she said.
Replacement buses have been ordered to service passengers between Caulfield and Oakleigh.
The east-bound lane on Glen Iris Road in Camberwell is closed due to fallen power lines. Emergency services are on site trying to clear the problem. Drivers in the area should brace for delays.
There is good news, however, for tram travellers with earlier disruptions on tram routes 96, 19 and 57 resolved for the afternoon peak-hour.
Commuters are urged to check Metro Train, V/Line and Yarra Trams websites before the trip home for the latest updates.
The state's public transport authority has apologised to commuters forced to battle service disruptions throughout the day.
Speed limits on the West Gate Bridge were halved to 40km/h for most of the day as wind gusts reach nearly 100 km/h, however the current speed limit has been upgraded to 60km/h. VicRoads is warning of heavy delays across the bridge and on the West Gate Freeway. Drivers are urged to take care.
The Eastern Freway at Balwyn North has all east-bound lanes closed after a vehicle breakdown.
The Queen Street Bridge has been reopened after being closed from Market Street, in the city, to Whiteman Street, Southbank. Drivers may experience residual delays.
All lanes are closed southbound from Flinders Street to Power Street due to flooding of the Yarra which has broken its banks in several places throughout the CBD.
Emergency services are on site and drivers are advised to seek an alternate route.
Two right-hand lanes inbound on the Tullamarine Freeway that were blocked due to fallen light poles were cleared about 4pm but drivers may experience some residual delays.
Further afield, all northbound lanes of the Hume Highway in Craigieburn were closed during most of the day due to a tree falling across the road.
A truck rolled over around lunchtime on Western Highway in Ravenhall, leaving all outbound lanes near Robinson Road closed. Both roads are expected to be closed for several hours.
Heavy snow falls have closed Marysville-Woods Point Road in Cambarville near Marysville as holidaymakers head towards the state's snow fields. VicRoads expects both roads to be closed for several hours. The Great Alpine Road at Harrietville was earlier closed but has now been reopened.
Scrubby Creek Track and the Benambra-Corryong Road in the Nariel Valley, near the New South Wales border, have also been closed.
They could remain closed for several days until the snow falls stop.
And in nearby Mitta Mitta, there are delays on the Omeo Highway between Lightning Creek and Glen Wills.
The following roads are closed in and around Melbourne:
Whittlesea-Kinglake Road, Kinglake
Omeo Highway, Glen Wills
Omeo Highway, Mitta Mitta
Canterbury Road, Camberwell
Mcdonald Road, Brooklyn
Dargo High Plains Road, Dargo
Dargo High Plains Road, Hotham Heights
Marysville-Woods Point Road, Camberville
Benambra-Corryong Road, Nariel Valley
Donna Buang Road, Healesville
Mt Difficult Road, Mount Dryden
Aberdeen Road, Goongerah
Coppermine Track, Dadswells Bridge
Old Mill Road, Zumsteins
Old Mill Road, Halls Gap
Bogong High Plains Road, Bundara
Bogong High Plains Road, Glen Valley
Yalmy Road, Jarrahmond
Ledcourt School Road, Ledcourt
Olive Plantation Road, Laharum
Nhill-Murrayville Road, Big Desert
Pohlners Road, Laharum
Old Whroo Road, Murchison
Traffic Alerts currently apply to the following roads:
Childs Road, Mill Park
Racecourse Road, Flemington
Raleigh Road, Maribynong
Woods Point Road, McMahons Creek
Western Highway, Beaufort
Princes Highway, Kalimna
Downings Road, Cowwarr
Grand Ridge Road, Grand Ridge
Melbourne is in the midst of a commuter crisis with major roads, train and tram lines and routes out of the city closed due to high winds, traffic accidents, flooding and strewn debris.
The evening commute is expected to be a heavy, slow affair in all directions as fallen trees have contributed to the suspension of five train lines - Hurtsbridge, Stony Point, Belgrave, Cranbourne and Pakenham.
Trains are not running between Bayswater and Belgrave due to a fallen tree at Upper Ferntree Gully; another fallen tree near Macleod has suspended the Hurtsbridge line between Heidelberg and Eltham in both directions; and trains aren't running on the Stony Point line between Stony Point and Frankston because of a fallen tree at Tyabb.
Emergency workers are frantically trying to clear the lines in time for peak hour and replacement buses are replacing trains.
Meanwhile, a car has been hit by a V/Line train and trains are not running on the Cranbourne and Pakenham lines between Caulfield and Oakleigh with significant delays expected.
Metro spokesperson Pauline O'Connor said no one had been injured and the car had since been cleared from the rail line."We're waiting for emergency services and Metro services to assess damages," she said.
Replacement buses have been ordered to service passengers between Caulfield and Oakleigh.
The east-bound lane on Glen Iris Road in Camberwell is closed due to fallen power lines. Emergency services are on site trying to clear the problem. Drivers in the area should brace for delays.
There is good news, however, for tram travellers with earlier disruptions on tram routes 96, 19 and 57 resolved for the afternoon peak-hour.
Commuters are urged to check Metro Train, V/Line and Yarra Trams websites before the trip home for the latest updates.
The state's public transport authority has apologised to commuters forced to battle service disruptions throughout the day.
Speed limits on the West Gate Bridge were halved to 40km/h for most of the day as wind gusts reach nearly 100 km/h, however the current speed limit has been upgraded to 60km/h. VicRoads is warning of heavy delays across the bridge and on the West Gate Freeway. Drivers are urged to take care.
The Eastern Freway at Balwyn North has all east-bound lanes closed after a vehicle breakdown.
The Queen Street Bridge has been reopened after being closed from Market Street, in the city, to Whiteman Street, Southbank. Drivers may experience residual delays.
All lanes are closed southbound from Flinders Street to Power Street due to flooding of the Yarra which has broken its banks in several places throughout the CBD.
Emergency services are on site and drivers are advised to seek an alternate route.
Two right-hand lanes inbound on the Tullamarine Freeway that were blocked due to fallen light poles were cleared about 4pm but drivers may experience some residual delays.
Further afield, all northbound lanes of the Hume Highway in Craigieburn were closed during most of the day due to a tree falling across the road.
A truck rolled over around lunchtime on Western Highway in Ravenhall, leaving all outbound lanes near Robinson Road closed. Both roads are expected to be closed for several hours.
Heavy snow falls have closed Marysville-Woods Point Road in Cambarville near Marysville as holidaymakers head towards the state's snow fields. VicRoads expects both roads to be closed for several hours. The Great Alpine Road at Harrietville was earlier closed but has now been reopened.
Scrubby Creek Track and the Benambra-Corryong Road in the Nariel Valley, near the New South Wales border, have also been closed.
They could remain closed for several days until the snow falls stop.
And in nearby Mitta Mitta, there are delays on the Omeo Highway between Lightning Creek and Glen Wills.
The following roads are closed in and around Melbourne:
Whittlesea-Kinglake Road, Kinglake
Omeo Highway, Glen Wills
Omeo Highway, Mitta Mitta
Canterbury Road, Camberwell
Mcdonald Road, Brooklyn
Dargo High Plains Road, Dargo
Dargo High Plains Road, Hotham Heights
Marysville-Woods Point Road, Camberville
Benambra-Corryong Road, Nariel Valley
Donna Buang Road, Healesville
Mt Difficult Road, Mount Dryden
Aberdeen Road, Goongerah
Coppermine Track, Dadswells Bridge
Old Mill Road, Zumsteins
Old Mill Road, Halls Gap
Bogong High Plains Road, Bundara
Bogong High Plains Road, Glen Valley
Yalmy Road, Jarrahmond
Ledcourt School Road, Ledcourt
Olive Plantation Road, Laharum
Nhill-Murrayville Road, Big Desert
Pohlners Road, Laharum
Old Whroo Road, Murchison
Traffic Alerts currently apply to the following roads:
Childs Road, Mill Park
Racecourse Road, Flemington
Raleigh Road, Maribynong
Woods Point Road, McMahons Creek
Western Highway, Beaufort
Princes Highway, Kalimna
Downings Road, Cowwarr
Grand Ridge Road, Grand Ridge
Rail commuters trapped on trains as signal failure at Martin Place causes chaos
A broken rail near Martin Place station caused peak hour chaos for tens of thousands of Sydney commuters this morning.
The damaged track caused trains to back up in both directions from Town Hall along the T4 Eastern Suburbs and Illawarra line before 9am.
It was the same line where, on January 15 this year, a three-metre long piece of metal pierced through the floor of a Tangara train near Edgecliff station, during the afternoon peak, narrowly missing several passengers.
A Sydney Trains spokesman said that by midday the broken rail had been repaired and services had resumed, but they were moving slowly past the repair site due to speed restrictions.
“Sydney Trains apologises for the inconvenience,” the spokesman said.
At 12.38pm, the Transport Management Centre reported that frequent trains were operating, but passengers should still allow additional travel time.
The broken rail brought city-bound commuters to a standstill this morning, with thousands of stuck on backlogged trains for up to 90 minutes as repair crews worked.
Some passengers were forced to endure a one-hour trip from Kings Cross to Martin Place, a journey that usually takes about three minutes.
At Bondi Junction, commuters on one train were instructed to move to an already packed second train on a parallel line before being advised to take a bus.
Frustrated commuters tweeted they had abandoned trains and buses due to overcrowding.
“Cityfail it is. At least you can walk. No trains. No space on buses. Work from tablet day,” wrote @s4sharpie.
“Should have walked... And wish someone at the station on the platform would have said something about delays before we got on,” wrote @darenthope.
With no signs of movement passengers at Edgecliff, Kings Cross and Bondi Junction scrambled to find alternative ways to get to work.
Extra buses were called in to move stranded rail passengers between Bondi Junction and the city and taxis were swamped by desperate workers.
One taxi driver said he had a woman jump into his cab when he already had a booking.
“I was in Kings Cross and Edgecliff and there were hundreds of people trying to get taxis,” he said.
“I hardly ever have customers after 9am but don’t have enough seats now.”
A broken rail near Martin Place station caused peak hour chaos for tens of thousands of Sydney commuters this morning.
The damaged track caused trains to back up in both directions from Town Hall along the T4 Eastern Suburbs and Illawarra line before 9am.
It was the same line where, on January 15 this year, a three-metre long piece of metal pierced through the floor of a Tangara train near Edgecliff station, during the afternoon peak, narrowly missing several passengers.
A Sydney Trains spokesman said that by midday the broken rail had been repaired and services had resumed, but they were moving slowly past the repair site due to speed restrictions.
“Sydney Trains apologises for the inconvenience,” the spokesman said.
At 12.38pm, the Transport Management Centre reported that frequent trains were operating, but passengers should still allow additional travel time.
The broken rail brought city-bound commuters to a standstill this morning, with thousands of stuck on backlogged trains for up to 90 minutes as repair crews worked.
Some passengers were forced to endure a one-hour trip from Kings Cross to Martin Place, a journey that usually takes about three minutes.
At Bondi Junction, commuters on one train were instructed to move to an already packed second train on a parallel line before being advised to take a bus.
Frustrated commuters tweeted they had abandoned trains and buses due to overcrowding.
“Cityfail it is. At least you can walk. No trains. No space on buses. Work from tablet day,” wrote @s4sharpie.
“Should have walked... And wish someone at the station on the platform would have said something about delays before we got on,” wrote @darenthope.
With no signs of movement passengers at Edgecliff, Kings Cross and Bondi Junction scrambled to find alternative ways to get to work.
Extra buses were called in to move stranded rail passengers between Bondi Junction and the city and taxis were swamped by desperate workers.
One taxi driver said he had a woman jump into his cab when he already had a booking.
“I was in Kings Cross and Edgecliff and there were hundreds of people trying to get taxis,” he said.
“I hardly ever have customers after 9am but don’t have enough seats now.”
Melbourne rail operator Metro investigates ice-affected train driver who ran red signalMelbourne rail operator Metro investigates ice-affected train driver who ran red signal
Melbourne's rail operator Metro is investigating after a train driver who was high on the drug ice ran through a red signal.
The driver alerted management that he went through the stop signal and he was instructed to pass through the closest train station at Albion and drop passengers at Sunshine to avoid congestion on the line.
He then dropped the empty train at St Albans before returning to the city for a drug test.
The test revealed he had more than 10 times the threshold for a positive reading of ice in his system.
Metro spokeswoman Larisa Tait said the rail operator was investigating how the incident on June 6 happened.
"The driver was completely lucid, he said he was OK to continue, we did a history check of that driver who didn't have a history," she said.
"We deemed that he was capable of driving the empty train from Sunshine to St Albans," she said.
Driver drug testing to be 'ramped up'
Ms Tait said the driver was suspended and has since resigned.
"We are taking it very seriously, given we have had an incident where this occurred," he said.
"We're conducting a review to ensure that we have enough checks and balances in place to ensure that another incident like this doesn't occur.
"We'll also be ramping up our random drug and alcohol testing."
Transport Minister Terry Mulder said it was a disturbing incident.
"I would say as a result of this we'll be having a very, very in depth discussion with I believe both Metro and Yarra Trams to have a look at the drug-testing regimes of drivers," he said.
"We want to make sure that the public are confident about the people who are behind the controls of trains and trams."
Melbourne's rail operator Metro is investigating after a train driver who was high on the drug ice ran through a red signal.
The driver alerted management that he went through the stop signal and he was instructed to pass through the closest train station at Albion and drop passengers at Sunshine to avoid congestion on the line.
He then dropped the empty train at St Albans before returning to the city for a drug test.
The test revealed he had more than 10 times the threshold for a positive reading of ice in his system.
Metro spokeswoman Larisa Tait said the rail operator was investigating how the incident on June 6 happened.
"The driver was completely lucid, he said he was OK to continue, we did a history check of that driver who didn't have a history," she said.
"We deemed that he was capable of driving the empty train from Sunshine to St Albans," she said.
Driver drug testing to be 'ramped up'
Ms Tait said the driver was suspended and has since resigned.
"We are taking it very seriously, given we have had an incident where this occurred," he said.
"We're conducting a review to ensure that we have enough checks and balances in place to ensure that another incident like this doesn't occur.
"We'll also be ramping up our random drug and alcohol testing."
Transport Minister Terry Mulder said it was a disturbing incident.
"I would say as a result of this we'll be having a very, very in depth discussion with I believe both Metro and Yarra Trams to have a look at the drug-testing regimes of drivers," he said.
"We want to make sure that the public are confident about the people who are behind the controls of trains and trams."
Rail trail wouldn't stop return of trains to Northern Rivers
NORTHERN Rivers Rail Trail spokeswoman Marie Lawton said it was "a myth" that removing the tracks would prevent train services coming back on the Casino to Murwillumbah rail line, because re-instating a rail service would require a whole new track.
North Coast train lobby group TOOT (Trains On Our Tracks) recently commented on Facebook that Ballina MP Don Page was planning to "rip up our rail line and turn it into a bike path".
But Ms Lawton pointed out the re-instatement of rail services would require a new track anyway.
"Having a rail trail there won't prevent the train from coming back," Ms Lawton said.
"What's preventing the train coming back is the cost of re-instating rail.
"The rail trail is a positive because it's going to prevent the corridor from being sold off.
"It's a way that we can use it in the meantime."
The rail trail would provide a track for walking and riding bikes and/or horses along the existing rail corridor, providing a safe and scenic route without steep hills between Northern Rivers towns.
Ms Lawton said because rail wasn't a viable option at present, a rail trail would help "babysit" the corridor.
"The rail trail will be sustainable; it will support itself," she said.
She predicted it was unlikely the government would even use the old corridor if it ever decided to start trains again, but build an entirely new line incorporating Ballina and Tweed.
NORTHERN Rivers Rail Trail spokeswoman Marie Lawton said it was "a myth" that removing the tracks would prevent train services coming back on the Casino to Murwillumbah rail line, because re-instating a rail service would require a whole new track.
North Coast train lobby group TOOT (Trains On Our Tracks) recently commented on Facebook that Ballina MP Don Page was planning to "rip up our rail line and turn it into a bike path".
But Ms Lawton pointed out the re-instatement of rail services would require a new track anyway.
"Having a rail trail there won't prevent the train from coming back," Ms Lawton said.
"What's preventing the train coming back is the cost of re-instating rail.
"The rail trail is a positive because it's going to prevent the corridor from being sold off.
"It's a way that we can use it in the meantime."
The rail trail would provide a track for walking and riding bikes and/or horses along the existing rail corridor, providing a safe and scenic route without steep hills between Northern Rivers towns.
Ms Lawton said because rail wasn't a viable option at present, a rail trail would help "babysit" the corridor.
"The rail trail will be sustainable; it will support itself," she said.
She predicted it was unlikely the government would even use the old corridor if it ever decided to start trains again, but build an entirely new line incorporating Ballina and Tweed.
Butler St residents want rail corridor used for Byron bypass
A BYRON Bay community group is spruiking a multi-use shared transit route to alleviate traffic woes.
Butler Street Community Network says its Grab The Rail bypass plan offers substantial benefits over Byron Shire Council's proposed mini and long bypass plans.
The residents will be the hardest hit by Byron Shire Council's decision to run the bypass along Butler Street and through part of the Cumbedin Reserve.
They proposed using the rail corridor as a bypass route at the same council meeting that approved the Butler Street option, but were unable to win support before the decision was rammed through.
The group says its proposal includes minimal disruption to residents, a more pedestrian-friendly atmosphere through the removal of traffic from Shirley Street and Bangalow Road and the provision and renewal of town infrastructure, reviving the rail corridor and town drainage.
The plan proposes using the railway corridor and Byron Street alignment from Kendall Street to Old Bangalow Road, dodging Cumbebin, bypassing traffic and creating access points to the town's business district.
The network says the plan could include a dual lane service road, light rail, rail shuttle, rail trail, bikeway and transit centre.
The council's mini bypass plan would cross the rail line at Marvell Street and head up Butler Street, while the long bypass would involve a rail crossing near Browning Street, heading through the wetlands and through Butler Street.
The network's president, architect Paul Jones, said recent moves towards a rail trail opened up the opportunity to use existing infrastructure in an innovative way.
"Collectively, we've been involved in numerous committees and studies to get the bypass," Mr Jones said.
"Previous schemes by the council and developers were primarily prepared with traffic modelling and the dollar factor in mind.
"I think their approach was narrowly blinkered and was not looking at other options available.
"They also believed they could never get hold of the rail corridor, but things have changed."
He said this bypass would cost roughly $15-20 million; the council plan would cost several million less.
The network will contact residents and businesses.
A BYRON Bay community group is spruiking a multi-use shared transit route to alleviate traffic woes.
Butler Street Community Network says its Grab The Rail bypass plan offers substantial benefits over Byron Shire Council's proposed mini and long bypass plans.
The residents will be the hardest hit by Byron Shire Council's decision to run the bypass along Butler Street and through part of the Cumbedin Reserve.
They proposed using the rail corridor as a bypass route at the same council meeting that approved the Butler Street option, but were unable to win support before the decision was rammed through.
The group says its proposal includes minimal disruption to residents, a more pedestrian-friendly atmosphere through the removal of traffic from Shirley Street and Bangalow Road and the provision and renewal of town infrastructure, reviving the rail corridor and town drainage.
The plan proposes using the railway corridor and Byron Street alignment from Kendall Street to Old Bangalow Road, dodging Cumbebin, bypassing traffic and creating access points to the town's business district.
The network says the plan could include a dual lane service road, light rail, rail shuttle, rail trail, bikeway and transit centre.
The council's mini bypass plan would cross the rail line at Marvell Street and head up Butler Street, while the long bypass would involve a rail crossing near Browning Street, heading through the wetlands and through Butler Street.
The network's president, architect Paul Jones, said recent moves towards a rail trail opened up the opportunity to use existing infrastructure in an innovative way.
"Collectively, we've been involved in numerous committees and studies to get the bypass," Mr Jones said.
"Previous schemes by the council and developers were primarily prepared with traffic modelling and the dollar factor in mind.
"I think their approach was narrowly blinkered and was not looking at other options available.
"They also believed they could never get hold of the rail corridor, but things have changed."
He said this bypass would cost roughly $15-20 million; the council plan would cost several million less.
The network will contact residents and businesses.
Planned new rail line would cut direct trains from inner west to Redfern, Sydney University
Thousands of commuters from inner west and south-west Sydney would be unable to catch trains direct to Redfern or Sydney University under the Baird government's plans for the future of the rail system.
Under the plans, the Bankstown Line between Bankstown and Sydenham would be converted to running privately operated single-deck trains, linking to northern Sydney through another harbour crossing.
But those trains would not stop between Sydenham and Central. This means commuters from inner west stations like Marrickville, Canterbury or Campsie would lose their direct link to Redfern or the fast-growing areas like St Peters and Erskineville.
To win support for its program of electricity privatisation, the Baird government released maps of what another harbour rail crossing would look like and said work could start on the project within two to three years if the privatisation was successful.
The new rail crossing, which would be privately operated, would connect to the north-west rail link at Chatswood. Three new stations would be built in central Sydney, but there would then be a distance of about 6 kilometres before the next station at Sydenham.
This is despite the fact the new line would run single-deck trains with more doors that allow people to get on and off quickly; the type of service that in overseas cities typically operates in densely populated areas with stations close together.
There are also no stops planned at northern Sydney employment hubs like Artarmon.
Transport Minister Gladys Berejiklian said the government may consider more stations at another time.
Ms Berejiklian also said that a previous commitment to convert the Illawarra Line to Hurstville to running single-deck trains linked to the new harbour crossing remained in the government's plans despite not being included in the privatisation promise.
It is understood Transport for NSW is struggling to work out how to allow freight trains to continue running on tracks it wants to convert to the new metro-style trains.
"We are building a brand new railway that will move more people, more quickly and more reliably than we have ever seen before in Sydney – and future proof our rail network for generations to come," Ms Berejiklian said.
Associate Professor Garry Glazebrook from the University of Technology Sydney said the reason there were no stops slated between Central and Sydenham was because the new line was being planned to run in a deep tunnel.
"There is a case for having a stop under Sydney University, serving the north Newtown end of things," Professor Glazebrook said.
Labor transport spokeswoman Penny Sharpe said the government's plans represented "lines on a map that have not been well thought through at all''.
"There are huge implications from the failure to stop at Redfern and what that would mean for places like St Peters and Erskineville," Ms Sharpe said.
Thousands of commuters from inner west and south-west Sydney would be unable to catch trains direct to Redfern or Sydney University under the Baird government's plans for the future of the rail system.
Under the plans, the Bankstown Line between Bankstown and Sydenham would be converted to running privately operated single-deck trains, linking to northern Sydney through another harbour crossing.
But those trains would not stop between Sydenham and Central. This means commuters from inner west stations like Marrickville, Canterbury or Campsie would lose their direct link to Redfern or the fast-growing areas like St Peters and Erskineville.
To win support for its program of electricity privatisation, the Baird government released maps of what another harbour rail crossing would look like and said work could start on the project within two to three years if the privatisation was successful.
The new rail crossing, which would be privately operated, would connect to the north-west rail link at Chatswood. Three new stations would be built in central Sydney, but there would then be a distance of about 6 kilometres before the next station at Sydenham.
This is despite the fact the new line would run single-deck trains with more doors that allow people to get on and off quickly; the type of service that in overseas cities typically operates in densely populated areas with stations close together.
There are also no stops planned at northern Sydney employment hubs like Artarmon.
Transport Minister Gladys Berejiklian said the government may consider more stations at another time.
Ms Berejiklian also said that a previous commitment to convert the Illawarra Line to Hurstville to running single-deck trains linked to the new harbour crossing remained in the government's plans despite not being included in the privatisation promise.
It is understood Transport for NSW is struggling to work out how to allow freight trains to continue running on tracks it wants to convert to the new metro-style trains.
"We are building a brand new railway that will move more people, more quickly and more reliably than we have ever seen before in Sydney – and future proof our rail network for generations to come," Ms Berejiklian said.
Associate Professor Garry Glazebrook from the University of Technology Sydney said the reason there were no stops slated between Central and Sydenham was because the new line was being planned to run in a deep tunnel.
"There is a case for having a stop under Sydney University, serving the north Newtown end of things," Professor Glazebrook said.
Labor transport spokeswoman Penny Sharpe said the government's plans represented "lines on a map that have not been well thought through at all''.
"There are huge implications from the failure to stop at Redfern and what that would mean for places like St Peters and Erskineville," Ms Sharpe said.
Melbourne train operator Metro to run Sydney's north-west rail link
The operator of train systems in Hong Kong and Melbourne has been chosen to run the first privately operated passenger rail line in Sydney, the north-west rail link.
Premier Mike Baird and Transport Minister Gladys Berejiklian announced on Tuesday morning that MTR Corporation, along with John Holland, Leighton Contractors, UGL Rail Services and Plenary Group, had been chosen to operate the $8.3 billion train line.
In time, the private train operator will also run other parts of Sydney's train system.
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In return for privatising sections of the state's electricity network, the Baird government has said it would also connect the north-west rail link to the Bankstown Line through another crossing of Sydney Harbour - in effect using one privatisation to pay for another.
“This is a landmark moment for the North West Rail Link and the NSW government will now work with the Northwest Rapid Transit consortium to further negotiate and finalise this multibillion-dollar contract, which is expected to be awarded later this year,” Mr Baird said.
MTR operates nine metro train lines through Hong Kong, but also runs lines and offers consultancy services internationally.
As Metro Trains Melbourne, it is the majority shareholder of the company that runs that city's rail services.
As well as running the north-west rail link, which is partly a new line that will be built from Epping to Rouse Hill and which will also include the existing Epping to Chatswood line, MTR's contract will feature a number of other responsibilities.
It will have to build the eight new rail stations, 4000 commuter car parking spaces, supply new driverless trains, and convert the Epping to Chatswood line to accommodate a new signalling system and new single-deck trains.
The government has not said how long the Epping to Chatswood line will need to be closed to allow for its conversion.
Ms Berejiklian said the government would provide more details about the contract with MTR's consortium when it was signed later this year. The announcement on Tuesday morning was that the government preferred its consortium to another led by Serco and Bombadier.
Ms Berejiklian said: "This ensures that NSW taxpayers get the best deal possible from this important contract, which will make up a large part of the total $8.3 billion project cost.”
The operator of train systems in Hong Kong and Melbourne has been chosen to run the first privately operated passenger rail line in Sydney, the north-west rail link.
Premier Mike Baird and Transport Minister Gladys Berejiklian announced on Tuesday morning that MTR Corporation, along with John Holland, Leighton Contractors, UGL Rail Services and Plenary Group, had been chosen to operate the $8.3 billion train line.
In time, the private train operator will also run other parts of Sydney's train system.
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In return for privatising sections of the state's electricity network, the Baird government has said it would also connect the north-west rail link to the Bankstown Line through another crossing of Sydney Harbour - in effect using one privatisation to pay for another.
“This is a landmark moment for the North West Rail Link and the NSW government will now work with the Northwest Rapid Transit consortium to further negotiate and finalise this multibillion-dollar contract, which is expected to be awarded later this year,” Mr Baird said.
MTR operates nine metro train lines through Hong Kong, but also runs lines and offers consultancy services internationally.
As Metro Trains Melbourne, it is the majority shareholder of the company that runs that city's rail services.
As well as running the north-west rail link, which is partly a new line that will be built from Epping to Rouse Hill and which will also include the existing Epping to Chatswood line, MTR's contract will feature a number of other responsibilities.
It will have to build the eight new rail stations, 4000 commuter car parking spaces, supply new driverless trains, and convert the Epping to Chatswood line to accommodate a new signalling system and new single-deck trains.
The government has not said how long the Epping to Chatswood line will need to be closed to allow for its conversion.
Ms Berejiklian said the government would provide more details about the contract with MTR's consortium when it was signed later this year. The announcement on Tuesday morning was that the government preferred its consortium to another led by Serco and Bombadier.
Ms Berejiklian said: "This ensures that NSW taxpayers get the best deal possible from this important contract, which will make up a large part of the total $8.3 billion project cost.”
Brisbane rail freight track on conference agenda.
A proposed multi-million dollar rail freight link between Toowoomba and Brisbane’s port will be one of the talking points at the first big agriculture conference held in Brisbane for many years.
The Queensland Government is one of the major sponsors of the Queensland Agricultural Conference at the Pullman Hotel in Roma Street on Thursday.
The idea of a new rail freight link was raised publicly by the Port of Brisbane in May last year.
Part of the plan is an underground tunnel from Acacia Ridge toward the port.The Port of Brisbane Authority has expressed its interest as a $300 million private-sector partner in the idea.
The freight link would bypass Brisbane’s new commuter rail line and, although plans are yet to be finalised, it was canvassed in last year’s federal election campaign.
The federal government supports the project, with Infrastructure Minister Warren Truss indicating last year he hoped to have it in place by 2020.
At that point the Port of Brisbane wanted the rail freight project in place because cotton production was booming on the Darling Downs.
Fairfax Media has been told the Port of Brisbane is interested – as a private partner - in investing in the futuristic freight line between Rosewood, near Amberley, and Kagaru, near Beaudesert.
Port of Brisbane chief executive Russell Smith predicted last year that container trade through the port would increase four-fold over the next 25 to 30 years.
On Thursday, Port of Brisbane general manager Peter Keyte, will talk about the latest planning for the project.
On June 2 this year Port of Brisbane confirmed it had signed a Deed of Agreement with the Australian Rail Track Corporation to build the freight link over 10 years.
“The Dedicated Freight Rail Corridor will shape a better future for Queensland by providing a new, commercially viable and dedicated freight rail corridor linking the consumer, agricultural and mining sectors west and south west of Toowoomba directly to the Port of Brisbane,” Russell Smith said.
Other speakers at Thursday’s conference include representatives from Suncorp, the Queensland Farmers Federation, BioSecurity Queensland, Oakey Meatworks, the Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation and the Australian Banana Growers Council.
Agriculture Minister John McVeigh and ministers Jeff Seeney (State Development) and Scott Emerson (Transport) will attend.
The government released the Queensland Agriculture Strategy last year and will use Thursday’s conference to build that strategy, Mr McVeigh said.
“We already export $8.9 billion in agriculture food and products a year, so naturally there’s been huge interest, with about 240 people expected to attend,” he said.
A proposed multi-million dollar rail freight link between Toowoomba and Brisbane’s port will be one of the talking points at the first big agriculture conference held in Brisbane for many years.
The Queensland Government is one of the major sponsors of the Queensland Agricultural Conference at the Pullman Hotel in Roma Street on Thursday.
The idea of a new rail freight link was raised publicly by the Port of Brisbane in May last year.
Part of the plan is an underground tunnel from Acacia Ridge toward the port.The Port of Brisbane Authority has expressed its interest as a $300 million private-sector partner in the idea.
The freight link would bypass Brisbane’s new commuter rail line and, although plans are yet to be finalised, it was canvassed in last year’s federal election campaign.
The federal government supports the project, with Infrastructure Minister Warren Truss indicating last year he hoped to have it in place by 2020.
At that point the Port of Brisbane wanted the rail freight project in place because cotton production was booming on the Darling Downs.
Fairfax Media has been told the Port of Brisbane is interested – as a private partner - in investing in the futuristic freight line between Rosewood, near Amberley, and Kagaru, near Beaudesert.
Port of Brisbane chief executive Russell Smith predicted last year that container trade through the port would increase four-fold over the next 25 to 30 years.
On Thursday, Port of Brisbane general manager Peter Keyte, will talk about the latest planning for the project.
On June 2 this year Port of Brisbane confirmed it had signed a Deed of Agreement with the Australian Rail Track Corporation to build the freight link over 10 years.
“The Dedicated Freight Rail Corridor will shape a better future for Queensland by providing a new, commercially viable and dedicated freight rail corridor linking the consumer, agricultural and mining sectors west and south west of Toowoomba directly to the Port of Brisbane,” Russell Smith said.
Other speakers at Thursday’s conference include representatives from Suncorp, the Queensland Farmers Federation, BioSecurity Queensland, Oakey Meatworks, the Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation and the Australian Banana Growers Council.
Agriculture Minister John McVeigh and ministers Jeff Seeney (State Development) and Scott Emerson (Transport) will attend.
The government released the Queensland Agriculture Strategy last year and will use Thursday’s conference to build that strategy, Mr McVeigh said.
“We already export $8.9 billion in agriculture food and products a year, so naturally there’s been huge interest, with about 240 people expected to attend,” he said.
Frankston leaders call on government to tackle its train station drug culture
Frankston community leaders have asked the Victorian Government to urgently deal with the drug culture they say is flourishing around its train station.
In an open letter, the current and former Frankston City mayors describe a “honey pot effect” because of the high concentration of opioid replacement therapy outlets in the area.
Former mayor Christine Richards told 774 ABC Melbourne's Jon Faine that there are too many pharmacists dispensing drugs such as methadone and buprenorphine to heroin addicts near the train station.
"There's two problems for us, one is that the concentration means there's a lot of people coming into the area for the treatment," Ms Richards said.
"The fact that all these outlets are around the same area has created a situation where a drug culture has built up."
Ms Richards said addicts should be treated “discreetly and humanely”, but she is concerned about drug trafficking in the area.
The former mayor said people are allowed to take away five doses at a time after a month of treatment, but she believes some of those doses are being sold on the street, with other drugs.
She believes Frankston is carrying too much of the burden, with a large number of pharmacies signing up to the program and each of them taking large numbers of patients.
"We're not complaining about doing it. We're complaining about the fact other municipalities aren't doing it," she said.
“We think the government should say, ‘we're not going to have, for social reasons, a pharmacotherapy outlet within a kilometre of another pharmacotherapy outlet'.
"The Department of Health thinks Frankston is a bit of a model, we deal with the people who come into our municipality... they are impervious to arguments from us that it stops shoppers from coming into the area."
John Ryan from the Penington Institute, an organisation working to reduce drug-related harm, says public transport routes are common heroin hot-spots.
He says there is no evidence that a concentration of pharmacists providing the therapy creates a “honey pot effect”.
"Public transport routes have always been attractive to people who are living on low incomes, so they use the system and that's why we've had heroin hot spots generally around big train stations," he said.
He says the there’s “no simple solution” to drug addiction and says opioid replacement therapies are effective on a range of levels.
“From reducing overdose, to reducing crime, and obviously, with reducing addiction," he said.
“The fact that there are pharmacists willing to provide the treatment, doctors willing to prescribe it, is a very good thing.”
Frankston community leaders have asked the Victorian Government to urgently deal with the drug culture they say is flourishing around its train station.
In an open letter, the current and former Frankston City mayors describe a “honey pot effect” because of the high concentration of opioid replacement therapy outlets in the area.
Former mayor Christine Richards told 774 ABC Melbourne's Jon Faine that there are too many pharmacists dispensing drugs such as methadone and buprenorphine to heroin addicts near the train station.
"There's two problems for us, one is that the concentration means there's a lot of people coming into the area for the treatment," Ms Richards said.
"The fact that all these outlets are around the same area has created a situation where a drug culture has built up."
Ms Richards said addicts should be treated “discreetly and humanely”, but she is concerned about drug trafficking in the area.
The former mayor said people are allowed to take away five doses at a time after a month of treatment, but she believes some of those doses are being sold on the street, with other drugs.
She believes Frankston is carrying too much of the burden, with a large number of pharmacies signing up to the program and each of them taking large numbers of patients.
"We're not complaining about doing it. We're complaining about the fact other municipalities aren't doing it," she said.
“We think the government should say, ‘we're not going to have, for social reasons, a pharmacotherapy outlet within a kilometre of another pharmacotherapy outlet'.
"The Department of Health thinks Frankston is a bit of a model, we deal with the people who come into our municipality... they are impervious to arguments from us that it stops shoppers from coming into the area."
John Ryan from the Penington Institute, an organisation working to reduce drug-related harm, says public transport routes are common heroin hot-spots.
He says there is no evidence that a concentration of pharmacists providing the therapy creates a “honey pot effect”.
"Public transport routes have always been attractive to people who are living on low incomes, so they use the system and that's why we've had heroin hot spots generally around big train stations," he said.
He says the there’s “no simple solution” to drug addiction and says opioid replacement therapies are effective on a range of levels.
“From reducing overdose, to reducing crime, and obviously, with reducing addiction," he said.
“The fact that there are pharmacists willing to provide the treatment, doctors willing to prescribe it, is a very good thing.”
Long-awaited railway plan finally on trackTHE second Harbour rail crossing promised by Premier Mike Baird if the sale of the electricity “poles and wires” gets through the election has been an obsession of transport minister Gladys Berejiklian and her head of the North West Rail Link project, Rodd Staples, for some time.
The plan is that the new single-decker “rapid transit” line would create extra capacity in the system — and new city stations — which would mean more trains on other services can run, helping with capacity on the crowded Western line.
The poles and wires sale is good news for Berejiklian and Staples because without that direct link to the city there were fears the North West Rail Link would become an $8.5 billion white elephant, with all passengers having to change at Chatswood.
When former premier Barry O’Farrell went to former PM Julia Gillard and asked for a promised federal contribution to state Labor of more than $2 billion to be transferred from the Epping to Parramatta rail line to the North West Rail project, one of the reasons Gillard was unwilling to hand over the money was the lack of commitment to a second Harbour crossing, which the federal government felt was needed to make the project work.
“We had plans (for the second Harbour crossing) ... but we couldn’t start construction until the North West finished (in 2019),” Berejiklian told me after the poles and wires announcement. “We now have capacity to start the project in the next two to three years. If you can start the project earlier, you can potentially save money.”
The entire project could be finished well within a decade, Berejiklian said.
The head of the Harbour rail crossing project will also be Staples — a former enthusiastic backer of a metro train system for Sydney.
Mr Staples’ grandfather Hayward was a rigger who helped to build the Harbour Bridge.
Staples told me last year when I visited the North West Rail Link construction sites that his department was working on the concept of the second crossing and a tunnel from Chatswood through St Leonards and involving the creation of a new station at North Sydney (we learnt a fortnight ago that this station will be known as Victoria Cross).
Staples said at the time the intention was to run the metro trains through the city and out to Hurstville, Bankstown and Liverpool eventually (the announcement a fortnight ago just had the metro-style line to Bankstown).
“Importantly for all of us working on the project, it’s part of something more significant when the project extends across the Harbour and rapid transit becomes (the norm),” Staples said.
“It would give a huge amount of relief to those existing stations in terms of crowding. The rail network needs the Harbour crossing. For Western Sydney and the south-west you need to do something significant to lift the capacity.”
Staples has been accused by some in town of having an “obsession” with the metro. He admits only to an obsession with improving Sydney public transport.
For Staples, it’s been a neat act getting the ear of Berejiklian, given he was a former acting CEO of the failed CBD Metro line which Berejiklian so roundly bagged the former Labor government for wasting $500 million on.
The “metro” vision may still become a reality for Sydney but in a vastly different above-ground form. Apart from giving us a system to rival the London underground or Paris metro in the nature of its quick get-off get-on services.
But you get the feeling for metro-style rail network to work properly in this city, you would need a lot more lines than a Rouse Hill to Bankstown.
And that will be a challenge for a second electricity sale tranche.
Regardless, there are three people whose reputations now completely ride on getting the project up successfully — Baird, Berejiklian and Staples.
The plan is that the new single-decker “rapid transit” line would create extra capacity in the system — and new city stations — which would mean more trains on other services can run, helping with capacity on the crowded Western line.
The poles and wires sale is good news for Berejiklian and Staples because without that direct link to the city there were fears the North West Rail Link would become an $8.5 billion white elephant, with all passengers having to change at Chatswood.
When former premier Barry O’Farrell went to former PM Julia Gillard and asked for a promised federal contribution to state Labor of more than $2 billion to be transferred from the Epping to Parramatta rail line to the North West Rail project, one of the reasons Gillard was unwilling to hand over the money was the lack of commitment to a second Harbour crossing, which the federal government felt was needed to make the project work.
“We had plans (for the second Harbour crossing) ... but we couldn’t start construction until the North West finished (in 2019),” Berejiklian told me after the poles and wires announcement. “We now have capacity to start the project in the next two to three years. If you can start the project earlier, you can potentially save money.”
The entire project could be finished well within a decade, Berejiklian said.
The head of the Harbour rail crossing project will also be Staples — a former enthusiastic backer of a metro train system for Sydney.
Mr Staples’ grandfather Hayward was a rigger who helped to build the Harbour Bridge.
Staples told me last year when I visited the North West Rail Link construction sites that his department was working on the concept of the second crossing and a tunnel from Chatswood through St Leonards and involving the creation of a new station at North Sydney (we learnt a fortnight ago that this station will be known as Victoria Cross).
Staples said at the time the intention was to run the metro trains through the city and out to Hurstville, Bankstown and Liverpool eventually (the announcement a fortnight ago just had the metro-style line to Bankstown).
“Importantly for all of us working on the project, it’s part of something more significant when the project extends across the Harbour and rapid transit becomes (the norm),” Staples said.
“It would give a huge amount of relief to those existing stations in terms of crowding. The rail network needs the Harbour crossing. For Western Sydney and the south-west you need to do something significant to lift the capacity.”
Staples has been accused by some in town of having an “obsession” with the metro. He admits only to an obsession with improving Sydney public transport.
For Staples, it’s been a neat act getting the ear of Berejiklian, given he was a former acting CEO of the failed CBD Metro line which Berejiklian so roundly bagged the former Labor government for wasting $500 million on.
The “metro” vision may still become a reality for Sydney but in a vastly different above-ground form. Apart from giving us a system to rival the London underground or Paris metro in the nature of its quick get-off get-on services.
But you get the feeling for metro-style rail network to work properly in this city, you would need a lot more lines than a Rouse Hill to Bankstown.
And that will be a challenge for a second electricity sale tranche.
Regardless, there are three people whose reputations now completely ride on getting the project up successfully — Baird, Berejiklian and Staples.
Road and rail for west of Sydney
Western Sydney, industrial development land and housing projects were the main winners in the NSW 2013 budget, according to property agents.
This comes as market watchers assess the activity of the 12 months, in the lead-up to the end of the 2012-13 financial year.
It was deemed one of the busiest for the listed and unlisted real estate investment trusts, particularly those with an exposure to the residential sector.
According to Craig James, the chief economist at CommSec, it has been a positive year, despite challenges such as geopolitical events (Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, Ukraine and Iraq, to name a few), the federal election, the shutdown of the US government and even weather events such as the harsh winter experienced in the northern hemisphere.
He said the returns on shares, residential property and bonds have all lifted over the past year, while interest rates and the Aussie dollar have ended little-changed on a year ago.
"The economy has grown by around 3 per cent in 2013/14 and we expect growth of around 3.3 per cent next year. Inflation may ease from 2.7 per cent to 2.4 per cent over the coming financial year, while unemployment may hold reasonably steady just below 6 per cent," Mr James said.
JLL's NSW managing director and national head of industrial, Michael Fenton, said the planned record spending announced on key infrastructure projects in the NSW budget was welcomed by the commercial property sector.
In the NSW 2014-15 budget, it showed improved operating balances across the four-year forecast horizon, but economists said Premier Mike Baird's plan for partial electricity network privatisation and significant infrastructure upgrades will be the main determinant of the state's finances going forward.
Mr Fenton said funding for key projects is expected to provide a boost to the economy and enable infrastructure to keep up with business and population growth. This flow-on effect will have a positive impact on the commercial property sector.
“Infrastructure spending on key projects including the North West Rail Link, WestConnex, NorthConnex, South West Rail Link and the Western Sydney roads package that will provide support to Sydney's second airport, are fundamental to the growth of the commercial property sector.
Mr Fenton said the increased confidence brought about by Federal and NSW government contributions to infrastructure projects, was expected to encourage investors to purchase and develop assets set to benefit from the projects.
Ai Group's NSW director Mark Goodsell said the investment in infrastructure will add significant value across the state economy, given its importance in lifting productivity and its potential for substantial flow-on effects for businesses in the State's manufacturing, services and construction sectors.
"The NSW government will also need to shoulder a significantly greater responsibility, by leading the way in coordinating the delivery of infrastructure and reducing any uncertainty surrounding major projects," Mr Goodsell said.
Western Sydney, industrial development land and housing projects were the main winners in the NSW 2013 budget, according to property agents.
This comes as market watchers assess the activity of the 12 months, in the lead-up to the end of the 2012-13 financial year.
It was deemed one of the busiest for the listed and unlisted real estate investment trusts, particularly those with an exposure to the residential sector.
According to Craig James, the chief economist at CommSec, it has been a positive year, despite challenges such as geopolitical events (Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, Ukraine and Iraq, to name a few), the federal election, the shutdown of the US government and even weather events such as the harsh winter experienced in the northern hemisphere.
He said the returns on shares, residential property and bonds have all lifted over the past year, while interest rates and the Aussie dollar have ended little-changed on a year ago.
"The economy has grown by around 3 per cent in 2013/14 and we expect growth of around 3.3 per cent next year. Inflation may ease from 2.7 per cent to 2.4 per cent over the coming financial year, while unemployment may hold reasonably steady just below 6 per cent," Mr James said.
JLL's NSW managing director and national head of industrial, Michael Fenton, said the planned record spending announced on key infrastructure projects in the NSW budget was welcomed by the commercial property sector.
In the NSW 2014-15 budget, it showed improved operating balances across the four-year forecast horizon, but economists said Premier Mike Baird's plan for partial electricity network privatisation and significant infrastructure upgrades will be the main determinant of the state's finances going forward.
Mr Fenton said funding for key projects is expected to provide a boost to the economy and enable infrastructure to keep up with business and population growth. This flow-on effect will have a positive impact on the commercial property sector.
“Infrastructure spending on key projects including the North West Rail Link, WestConnex, NorthConnex, South West Rail Link and the Western Sydney roads package that will provide support to Sydney's second airport, are fundamental to the growth of the commercial property sector.
Mr Fenton said the increased confidence brought about by Federal and NSW government contributions to infrastructure projects, was expected to encourage investors to purchase and develop assets set to benefit from the projects.
Ai Group's NSW director Mark Goodsell said the investment in infrastructure will add significant value across the state economy, given its importance in lifting productivity and its potential for substantial flow-on effects for businesses in the State's manufacturing, services and construction sectors.
"The NSW government will also need to shoulder a significantly greater responsibility, by leading the way in coordinating the delivery of infrastructure and reducing any uncertainty surrounding major projects," Mr Goodsell said.
Britain to consider east-west high-speed rail link - Osborne
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain will consider building an east-west high-speed railway between cities in northern England to help boost economic growth outside London, finance minister George Osborne will say on Monday.
Less than a year away from a national election and with his Conservatives trailing by six points in the polls, Osborne's call to build a "northern powerhouse" will be seen as an attempt to boost the party's appeal in the opposition Labour party's northern heartlands.
"The cities of the north are individually strong, but collectively not strong enough ... So the powerhouse of London dominates more and more. And that's not healthy for our economy. It's not good for our country," Osborne will say at a speech in Manchester, according to extracts released in advance.
"We need an ambitious plan to make the cities and towns here in this northern belt radically more connected from east to west ... That means considering a new high-speed rail link."
Osborne will say the potential link between Manchester and Leeds could be based on the existing rail route, but with trains running faster and with new tunnels and infrastructure.
A connected network of northern cities will provide better jobs and opportunities, Osborne will say.
"In the modern knowledge economy, businesses and entrepreneurial types want to flock together more than ever. To form clusters where they can learn from and spark off each other."
A north-south high-speed rail connection is already planned, with the first leg of the route between London and Birmingham in central England due to be completed in 2026, and an extension to Leeds and Manchester to be finished by 2033.
Work on the north-south line, which has proved contentious due to the estimated 43 billion pound price tag and a backlash from residents of constituencies along the planned route, is not due to start until 2017.
Labour economy spokesman Ed Balls said in a statement: "We said months ago that we need value for money for the taxpayer and to improve the existing plans to maximise the benefits for the whole country and strengthen the links between northern cities."
He added: "Nobody will believe the Tories (Conservatives) can deliver the jobs, growth and investment we need for the north of England. Regional growth divides have widened markedly since 2010."
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain will consider building an east-west high-speed railway between cities in northern England to help boost economic growth outside London, finance minister George Osborne will say on Monday.
Less than a year away from a national election and with his Conservatives trailing by six points in the polls, Osborne's call to build a "northern powerhouse" will be seen as an attempt to boost the party's appeal in the opposition Labour party's northern heartlands.
"The cities of the north are individually strong, but collectively not strong enough ... So the powerhouse of London dominates more and more. And that's not healthy for our economy. It's not good for our country," Osborne will say at a speech in Manchester, according to extracts released in advance.
"We need an ambitious plan to make the cities and towns here in this northern belt radically more connected from east to west ... That means considering a new high-speed rail link."
Osborne will say the potential link between Manchester and Leeds could be based on the existing rail route, but with trains running faster and with new tunnels and infrastructure.
A connected network of northern cities will provide better jobs and opportunities, Osborne will say.
"In the modern knowledge economy, businesses and entrepreneurial types want to flock together more than ever. To form clusters where they can learn from and spark off each other."
A north-south high-speed rail connection is already planned, with the first leg of the route between London and Birmingham in central England due to be completed in 2026, and an extension to Leeds and Manchester to be finished by 2033.
Work on the north-south line, which has proved contentious due to the estimated 43 billion pound price tag and a backlash from residents of constituencies along the planned route, is not due to start until 2017.
Labour economy spokesman Ed Balls said in a statement: "We said months ago that we need value for money for the taxpayer and to improve the existing plans to maximise the benefits for the whole country and strengthen the links between northern cities."
He added: "Nobody will believe the Tories (Conservatives) can deliver the jobs, growth and investment we need for the north of England. Regional growth divides have widened markedly since 2010."