Random observations around the network ...

[HappyTrainGuy]

Translink doesn't believe in the Sunshine Coast.

[Arnz]

He can't find the railbus whilst the line is taken up by freight?  

[Fares_Fair]

It was the government grinch that stole Christmas for the Sunshine Coast children (SW's idea, not mine) 

[Gazza]

Stair handrails at Chelmer are not building code compliant, except for elves:
http://g.co/maps/gxyr4

[ozbob]

At Darra, just noted the heritage DEL 1620 empty coal wagon, three wooden pass cars UP between Oxley and Darra ....

[Fares_Fair]

No power to Go card readers at Palmwoods and Beerwah stations earlier this morning.
A free trip into the city today for commuters from those stations.

TTBOMK, first time this has occurred since I started go card use in January this year.

[SurfRail]

Onboard announcements this morning saying that all trains between Dutton Park and the city would be replaced by buses from 9pm this evening to last train.

I have a sneaking suspicion this has to do with the platforms at South Brisbane being a mite too high (a la Indooroopilly)...

[Golliwog]

Onboard announcements this morning saying that all trains between Dutton Park and the city would be replaced by buses from 9pm this evening to last train.

I have a sneaking suspicion this has to do with the platforms at South Brisbane being a mite too high (a la Indooroopilly)...

Not sure what it's for, but the closure had been listed up on Translink for a while now.

[mufreight]

Onboard announcements this morning saying that all trains between Dutton Park and the city would be replaced by buses from 9pm this evening to last train.

I have a sneaking suspicion this has to do with the platforms at South Brisbane being a mite too high (a la Indooroopilly)...

Your sneaking suspicion is entirely wrong, the platform heights at South Brisbane have been raised to carriage floor height unlike Indoorpilly where the platform heights were not raised and the actual rails were thus increasing the step up into the carriage and increasing the gap.
Might I suggest that you and all others interested take the time to make a trip to South Brisbane and have an actual look at the work that has been and the ongoing work that continues to be carried out on the refurbishment of this station.
A good effort that QR earns a pat on the back for in terms of the actual refurbishment and the improvements that have been made to improve passenger amenity.   

[SurfRail]

Onboard announcements this morning saying that all trains between Dutton Park and the city would be replaced by buses from 9pm this evening to last train.

I have a sneaking suspicion this has to do with the platforms at South Brisbane being a mite too high (a la Indooroopilly)...

Your sneaking suspicion is entirely wrong, the platform heights at South Brisbane have been raised to carriage floor height unlike Indoorpilly where the platform heights were not raised and the actual rails were thus increasing the step up into the carriage and increasing the gap.
Might I suggest that you and all others interested take the time to make a trip to South Brisbane and have an actual look at the work that has been and the ongoing work that continues to be carried out on the refurbishment of this station.
A good effort that QR earns a pat on the back for in terms of the actual refurbishment and the improvements that have been made to improve passenger amenity.   

I use South Brisbane regularly, and was there from day 1 following the renovation.  The issues with platform 2 are quite noticeable, laudable though the rest of the work is.  I am happy to be proved wrong in this instance.

[STB]

Onboard announcements this morning saying that all trains between Dutton Park and the city would be replaced by buses from 9pm this evening to last train.

I have a sneaking suspicion this has to do with the platforms at South Brisbane being a mite too high (a la Indooroopilly)...

Your sneaking suspicion is entirely wrong, the platform heights at South Brisbane have been raised to carriage floor height unlike Indoorpilly where the platform heights were not raised and the actual rails were thus increasing the step up into the carriage and increasing the gap.
Might I suggest that you and all others interested take the time to make a trip to South Brisbane and have an actual look at the work that has been and the ongoing work that continues to be carried out on the refurbishment of this station.
A good effort that QR earns a pat on the back for in terms of the actual refurbishment and the improvements that have been made to improve passenger amenity.   

I use South Brisbane regularly, and was there from day 1 following the renovation.  The issues with platform 2 are quite noticeable, laudable though the rest of the work is.  I am happy to be proved wrong in this instance.

And you're not the only one that has noticed it.  Others on other transport forums have noticed it and I've noticed it as well.  Still, what they have done so far is impressive.  And I'd say that the platform height would be easily fixed (it's only a slightly above the step of the train).

[somebody]

Horizontal gap is significantly more than some of the better high level platforms, like Domestic.

[Set in train]

And you're not the only one that has noticed it.  Others on other transport forums have noticed it and I've noticed it as well.  Still, what they have done so far is impressive.  And I'd say that the platform height would be easily fixed (it's only a slightly above the step of the train).

What other forums? Always keen to read more about related topics. Thanks.

[Gazza]

^It's pretty much just the Transport forum on Ozscrapers @ Skyscraper City, and Railpage.
But they are more general interest than advocacy.

[Arnz]

ATDB aka BusAustralia.com is another (General Transport forum with primary focus on buses).

[Fares_Fair]

What is this for?
It appears to be recently installed at Northgate station, and is suspended from the centre awning roof.

Regards,
Fares_Fair.

Apology for poor photo, the train interior lights can be seen refelcted by the glass.

[somebody]

What is this for?
It appears to be recently installed at Northgate station, and is suspended from the centre awning roof.

My guess is a PID will be put into it.

[Fares_Fair]

What is this for?
It appears to be recently installed at Northgate station, and is suspended from the centre awning roof.

My guess is a PID will be put into it.

There are existing operational PID's there (see background of photo).

[Arnz]

My guess is the existing PIDs will be replaced by monitor PIDs?

[HappyTrainGuy]

Yep. The old dot matrix pid network is slowly being switched off and phased out due to their limitations and problems across the network. Northgate, Park Road and Eagle Junction have already lost some of their displays. Bowen Hills should be losing their's soon aswell.

[somebody]

Yep. The old dot matrix pid network is slowly being switched off and phased out due to their limitations and problems across the network. Northgate, Park Road and Eagle Junction have already lost some of their displays. Bowen Hills should be losing their's soon aswell.

Does that mean that the limitation of PIDs still showing cancelled trains will be fixed?

[HappyTrainGuy]

Can't say but its still a long while off from happening yet. Probs just going to keep running the system until they run out of spare parts which is why Eagle Junction, Northgate and a couple others have already lost some of their displays

It should also be noted that Eagle Junction might be losing the last of their dot matrix displays during its little upgrade.

[Cam]

A work collegue said that the 4.34pm Nambour service didn't stop at Narangba yesterday afternoon. 

Fortunately, there was a return service within 10 minutes at Burpengary.

[SurfRail]

My guess is the existing PIDs will be replaced by monitor PIDs?

It would appear to be fairly widespread.  The brackets are now at Nerang.

[mufreight]

Horizontal gap is significantly more than some of the better high level platforms, like Domestic.

The horozontal gap on platform 2 is noticably wider than that on platform 1 but definately not sufficently so as to pose a risk.
On Wednesday when I caught the train there to go over to Roma Street for the trip home to Ipswich there was a woman in a wheelchair who boarded the train unassisted into the rear of the fourth carriage and then disembarked again unassisted at Roma Street to change to the Ipswich line service which she boarded through the front door of the fourth carriage after having informed the guard where she intende to disembark which turned out to be of all stations Darra where she required the assistance of the guard.
I for one would think that nothing more needs be said about the benefits of full height platforms and the failure to raise the platform height at Darra when the new platform 1 was constructed.

[p858snake]

A work collegue said that the 4.34pm Nambour service didn't stop at Narangba yesterday afternoon. 

Fortunately, there was a return service within 10 minutes at Burpengary.

That was driver accident (according to what I saw on twitter).

[ClintonL94]

Here's a Brisbane Airport train at Varsity Lakes on Thursday while I was chasing the Santa Express!

[BrizCommuter]

Yep. The old dot matrix pid network is slowly being switched off and phased out due to their limitations and problems across the network. Northgate, Park Road and Eagle Junction have already lost some of their displays. Bowen Hills should be losing their's soon aswell.

Really? Enoggera is getting its dot matrix PID reinstalled.

[HappyTrainGuy]

As I said before its still a long while off from happening but its slowly being done in parts.

[O_128]

On a new A set in Sydney, very impressed , dwell is the same if not quicker than seq, quiet, good pa and REVERSIBLE SEATING !!!

[SurfRail]

On a new A set in Sydney, very impressed , dwell is the same if not quicker than seq, quiet, good pa and REVERSIBLE SEATING !!!

Which you will find on most Sydney rollingstock except C-sets and (what were originally the only) suburban Tangaras.  A complete waste of time - Sydneysiders are far too precious about that feature, and it drives the cost up.

I find the A sets to be very unappealling from the front personally, even if they are nice and clean (for now).

[O_128]

On a new A set in Sydney, very impressed , dwell is the same if not quicker than seq, quiet, good pa and REVERSIBLE SEATING !!!

Which you will find on most Sydney rollingstock except C-sets and (what were originally the only) suburban Tangaras.  A complete waste of time - Sydneysiders are far too precious about that feature, and it drives the cost up.

I find the A sets to be very unappealling from the front personally, even if they are nice and clean (for now).

Yeh they don't look to amazing but great train and reversible seating is great. The other thing is that apparently in sydney its possible to run more than 2tph on dual track 

[SurfRail]

On a new A set in Sydney, very impressed , dwell is the same if not quicker than seq, quiet, good pa and REVERSIBLE SEATING !!!

Which you will find on most Sydney rollingstock except C-sets and (what were originally the only) suburban Tangaras.  A complete waste of time - Sydneysiders are far too precious about that feature, and it drives the cost up.

I find the A sets to be very unappealling from the front personally, even if they are nice and clean (for now).

Yeh they don't look to amazing but great train and reversible seating is great. The other thing is that apparently in sydney its possible to run more than 2tph on dual track 

Call me crazy, but there is actually a place in Sydney where legend holds that they run - wait for it - 6 whole trains per hour per direction on 2 tracks in the off-peak - and it isn't a bunched up line!

[somebody]

Call me crazy, but there is actually a place in Sydney where legend holds that they run - wait for it - 6 whole trains per hour per direction on 2 tracks in the off-peak - and it isn't a bunched up line!

That place can also have freight in between these services.  Technically, there is even a flat junction where down freight needs to cross 4/hour up pax.  The freight gets the straight through path though so it's a bit easier.

[jesse]

yesterday arvo came home from gold coast and had imu 101 as a three car unit  i thought it would be a six car unit, any1 know why??

[STB]

Because it's scheduled to be a 3 car unit...?  Which is the most likely answer.  Are you able to provide more info, such as what time it departed from the station you boarded on the Gold Coast (Be specific) so I can look it up on the master timetable?

Just a few things though, IMU101 isn't a light rail vehicle (out of curiosity why did you post this in the Light Rail forum) & I know it's up to the mods but may I suggest that this fits better under Random Observations, along with your other thread that you posted elsewhere.

[Gazza]

The reason he posted in the light rail forum is because I'm guessing he is a young kid, hence not using correct forums, and making simple posts.

[STB]

The reason he posted in the light rail forum is because I'm guessing he is a young kid, hence not using correct forums, and making simple posts.

I figured that as well.  School's out!    This sort of posting happens on other forums as well, much to the annoyance or amusement of said members of other forums.

[Arnz]

Kudos to Sunbus for putting extra 615s to and from Landsborough at short notice.  Most buses are at capacity with both Marcoola and Caloundra depots helping out.

[Arnz]

The Gympielander operated on the mains (instead of the usual suburbans) into Brissy this Arvo.