27 Feb 2020: SEQ - More trains between Nambour and Gympie North, please

[ozbob]

Media release 27th February 2020

More trains between Nambour and Gympie North, please

A complete rebuild of the Cooran and Pomona railway stations in Noosa Shire, as well as elimination of the rusting temporary station platform at Eumundi, together with other improvements at Yandina and Cooroy in recent years, form a solid foundation for improving the reliability of Citytrain passenger services north of Nambour, according to public transport advocacy group RAIL Back On Track.

"As more people call the railway towns of the Sunshine Coast and Noosa hinterland home, additional thought needs to be given to the contribution they make to the settlement pattern of South-East and the need generated for more frequent trains operating as shuttles between Nambour and Gympie North," said Robert Dow, RAIL Back On Track Administrator.

"We thank the Queensland Government for making the significant $7m investment in the station upgrades at Cooran, Pomona and Eumundi and for keeping open the cross-town path that has served Pomona residents for more than a century.

"It creates the active link for an integrated transport hub at Pomona, eventually to incorporate bus stops and pedestrian and bicycle paths serving the town. This is in keeping with state and local government strategic thinking and supports the 'walkable town' concept residents have fought hard to maintain and expand.

"RAIL Back On Track looks forward to the Noosa Council playing its part in expanding the network of walking and cycling paths through Pomona, connecting to the state school and secondary campus, as well as to Cooroora Creek Park and the AFL Sports Ground.

"We acknowledge the contribution Queensland Rail has had in the overall connectivity vision."

Mr Dow continued: "The momentum gained with this work needs to continue, first by ensuring that the reliability of the existing two return train services a day achieve an on-time running performance rating above the 79.04 per cent (force majeure adjusted) level recorded in financial year 2018-19 (target > 95%).

"This can be done by using trains other than the ageing InterCity Express (ICE) train sets, which are at the end of their useful life, and fitting new trains with safety gear (Automatic Train Protection - ATP) appropriate for reliable operation north of Nambour to Gympie North.

"The unacceptable reliability of the Gympie North train services has forced some people into their cars to drive south and take the train from Nambour," Mr Dow said.

He said that with the full delivery of new New Generation Rollingstock (NGR) trains and additional capacity for drivers and guards to staff the trains available to operate on the network, it was time to re-think the timetable to have five trains operating each way Nambour <> Gympie North, in addition to the express through services to Brisbane.

"This should be the next evolution of the rail service that Queensland Rail provides the 30,000 residents of the northern Sunshine Coast and Noosa hinterland railway towns, excluding the populations of Nambour and Gympie," Mr Dow said.

ENDS

Contacts:

Jeff Addison
Sunshine Coast Region Spokesperson for RAIL Back On Track


Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org
RAIL Back On Track https://backontrack.org

[ozbob]

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