Melbourne Trains

[ozbob]

Twitter

Daniel Bowen Retweeted
Seb Costello ‏@SebCostello9 4m

A six-carriage X'trapolis train has derailed at Rushall station in Fitzroy Nth. Details @9NewsMelb

[ozbob]

Twitter

ABC News ‏@abcnews 17 minutes ago

Train derails at Rushall Station on Melbourne's South Morang line http://ab.co/1QMjAJY

[ozbob]

 

[ozbob]

The end result of privatisation and j.i.t maintenance ...

QR, despite our bleats, is very good IMO

[red dragin]

Wonder what condition the flanges are in..... Apparently Metro trains are showing wear now too.

[ozbob]

Wonder what condition the flanges are in..... Apparently Metro trains are showing wear now too.

Err fuked ..

Is probably the most accurate description   

Sad days .. privatisation reaps its costs ...

[ozbob]

Twitter

Terry Rawnsley ‏@TRaw_SGS 2h

A great chart showing heavy rail passenger journeys (millions) over a century for Sydney & Melbourne.

[colinw]

By those trends, Brisbane should have been over 100 million by now.

But that big spike upward in recent years was deliberately clobbered by the 15% repeating fare rises, insane fare structure, and mediocre service frequency.

Interesting that you can clearly see the upward spike in Melbourne after electrification in 1918, but Sydney shows no comparable jump after electrification in 1923, rather steady growth at the same rate as before.

Also, what happened around 1950?  Is that just post war decline, or the beginning of service cuts, or perhaps the release of cheaply available Holden, etc. cars?

[#Metro]

This happened:

The Liberal-Country Party Coalition, under Prime Minister Menzies, keeping a pre-election undertaking to abolish petrol rationing,[109] finally declared petrol rationing at an end on 8 February 1950, even though "sharp differences of opinion ... [between] London and Canberra" occurred before rationing ended. [110]

https://www.awm.gov.au/journal/j36/petrol.asp

The freeway era then began soon after that.

[ozbob]

Twitter

Daniel Bowen ‏@danielbowen 2 minutes ago Melbourne, Victoria

Second derailment at Rushall in a week. Serious questions need to be asked about this. #MetroTrains #SpringSt

[ozbob]

Twitter

Robert Dow ‏@Robert_Dow 21 minutes ago Brisbane, Queensland

Good one @metrotrains how is that track maintenance deficit going? @vline wheel wear again? #springst

[ozbob]

Appears a track machine is in the dirt at the site of the previous derailment!

[ozbob]

Victoria Police --> Man charged with sabotage at Hurstbridge station

Twitter

Pat Mitchell ‏@patty_mitchell 24m

Vandals derail a train in Hurstbridge. @3AW693



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Twitter

Metro Trains ‏@metrotrains 1h

Hurstbridge line suspended between Hurstbridge - Diamond Creek due to an emergency services request. Info: http://www.metrotrains.com.au

[ozbob]

^

Twitter

Daniel Bowen ‏@danielbowen 47s

Ch7 and Ch9 reporting the charged man is a #MetroTrains employee, CFA and Newport rail volunteer. Explains a lot.

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> Hurstbridge train derailing: police arrest suspect on arson, sabotage offences

[ozbob]

http://www.premier.vic.gov.au/biggest-train-order-in-victorias-history/

Media release

Biggest Train Order In Victoria's History

The Andrews Labor Government has nearly doubled its order of high-capacity trains, making it the biggest single order of trains in Victoria's history.

Premier Daniel Andrews joined Minister for Public Transport Jacinta Allan today to announce that the Labor Government has increased its initial order of High Capacity Metro Trains from 37 to 65 seven-carriage sets.

The new trains will begin arriving in 2018 and will immediately reduce congestion on the Cranbourne Pakenham line – Melbourne's busiest.

Together with the removal of nine level crossings, rebuilding of five stations, and new power and signalling infrastructure, the new trains will boost capacity on the Dandenong rail corridor by more than 40 per cent, allowing 11,000 extra passengers in the peak.

The announcement brings forward the second stage of metropolitan train orders set out in the Victorian Rolling Stock Strategy: Trains, Trams, Jobs: 2015-2025.

The 455 carriages will be built in Victoria for Victoria, with at least 50 per cent local build requirement set to create up to 800 local jobs and support thousands across the supply chain.

Bringing forward this additional order means every train needed for Melbourne Metro Rail will be ready when the project opens.

The 65 new trains will be longer and able to carry more people with each trip. They will run on the new cross-city line Melbourne Metro Rail will create, and enable 39,000 extra passengers to catch the train in the peak.

This investment – expected to be around $2 billion – will also include High Capacity Signalling on every train, and the expansion of the train depot in Pakenham announced as part of the original order last year.

The project will be delivered as a Public Private Partnership. A tender process is underway, with three shortlisted consortia: Bombardier, Eureka Rail, and Evolution Rail. The contract is expected to be awarded late this year.

Quotes attributable to Premier Daniel Andrews

"We're making the biggest order of new trains in Victoria's history to create local jobs, reduce congestion on Melbourne's busiest line and make the most of Melbourne Metro Rail from day one."

"These 455 new carriages will be built in Victoria, for Victoria – boosting the capacity of the network and creating hundreds of long-term Victorian jobs.

Quotes attributable to Minister for Public Transport and Employment, Jacinta Allan

"Victoria is growing and so are the number of passengers on using our train system, which is why we're building Melbourne Metro Rail and ordering 65 new, high-capacity trains to carry more people, every single day."

"This is about passengers, jobs and the future of our train system. After four wasted years under the former Liberal Government – we're getting on with it."

[ozbob]

The Guardian --> Premier apologises for Melbourne train delays that left thousands stranded

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Melbourne Age --> Melbourne train chaos: Single cable caused Metro meltdown

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Melbourne Age --> 'Newest, fastest' trains for Frankston line slow to arrive

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Melbourne Age --> Melbourne train graffiti crackdown nets 50 vandals

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> Thousands of rail faults force Metro to find a new way to manage failures

The most critical infrastructure that keeps Melbourne's trains running - the tracks, signals and overhead equipment - is so fault-ridden and obsolete that it would need a fourfold increase in government funding to fix and replace it all, Metro Trains has calculated.

A 2014 assessment of Melbourne's rail infrastructure by the company identified an overwhelming 13,000 faults that needed repair or renewal, with no prospect of fixing them all in the near future based on current funding levels.

Infrastructure faults have a direct impact on commuters, causing frequent train delays, cancellations and in the worst cases, system-wide meltdowns.

The chronic funding gap has led Metro to overhaul the way it spends public money finding and fixing faults and introduce a more rigorous system for identifying the infrastructure in most urgent need of repair. 

Metro Trains is allocated hundreds of millions of dollars of taxpayers' money each year for the maintenance and renewal of the rail network, and has responsibility for prioritising where it is spent.

It puts the value of that infrastructure at an estimated $30 billion ...

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/thousands-of-rail-faults-force-metro-to-find-a-new-way-to-manage-failures-20160522-gp0y7c.html

[ozbob]

^

Twitter

Robert Dow ‏@Robert_Dow 11m

Hey Melbourne! You. are. rooted! You're welcome ... Fix up what you have got! Forget pipe-dreams .. #springst

^^ https://twitter.com/Robert_Dow/status/734789554167648256

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> Running terribly late to get on track for repairs to Melbourne's rail system

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Melbourne Age --> Not the end of the line: How people power saved the Upfield rail line

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Melbourne Age --> Melbourne peak-hour train crush to continue, with no immediate timetable boost

[ozbob]

#9News was given a rare look inside Metro's secret nerve centre. @andrew_lund reports. https://t.co/tWvtjYxypy

— Nine News Melbourne (@9NewsMelb) July 22, 2016

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> Metro cancels 29 rail services to teach train drivers how to use new tracks

[ozbob]

Believe or not, this is happening right now ..

Oh sh%t! Southbound #Frankston train is stuck at #Glenhuntly because driver is not qualified for new track section. #LXRA #MetroTrains

— Michael Bell (@Xtrackka) August 25, 2016

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> Metro ranked worst rail network in Australia ... again

Metro Trains has been voted the worst city rail system in the country for the fifth year running, with aggrieved commuters singling out the myki ticketing system as the biggest problem.

A nationwide satisfaction survey rating service reliability, trip comfort, ticketing, timetables, and station and train cleanliness has found Melbourne passengers are the most dissatisfied.

Passenger Ratings

Brands	Overall satisfaction*	Service reliability	Ticketing system	Timetable/scheduling
TransPerth	★★★★★	★★★★★	★★★★★	★★★★★
Adelaide Metro	★★★★	★★★★	★★★★	★★★★
Queensland Rail	★★★★	★★★★	★★★	★★★★
Sydney Trains	★★★★	★★★★	★★★	★★★★
Metro Trains	★★★	★★★	★★	★★★
* Overall satisfaction is an individual rating and not a combined total of all ratings. Brands with equal overall satisfaction ratings are listed in alphabetical order. Source: canstarblue.com.au

[ozbob]

 

65 brand new trains + 1,100 local jobs + 60 per cent local content. Built in Victoria, for Victoria. #gettingitdone pic.twitter.com/ZvW9H5yfOa

— Jacinta Allan (@JacintaAllanMP) September 11, 2016

[ozbob]

^

Rolling Stock 12 September 2016

>> http://www.premier.vic.gov.au/trains/

High Capacity Metro Trains

The brand new HCMTs will be longer than existing trains — with more space to reduce overcrowding in every journey — and the innovative design will use the latest technology, making them safer, more reliable and more comfortable for passengers.

All 65 of the new trains will be built in Victoria, for Victoria, with 60 per cent local content – far surpassing the Labor Government's 50 per cent local content requirement – set to create 1,100 highly-skilled jobs and further cement Victoria as a global hub of rolling stock manufacturing.

Major Australian train orders since 2010

While other states build trains overseas, and the previous Liberal Government tried to, the Andrews Labor Government is building our 65 new High Capacity Metro Trains in Melbourne, for Melbourne, creating 1,100 new jobs with 60 per cent local content.

[ozbob]

http://www.premier.vic.gov.au/1100-jobs-with-65-new-trains-built-in-victoria-for-victoria/

1,100 Jobs With 65 New Trains Built In Victoria, For Victoria

Premier 12 September 2016

The Andrews Labor Government will create 1,100 highly-skilled local jobs with the state's single largest order of trains to be built in Victoria, for Victoria.

Premier Daniel Andrews joined Minister for Public Transport Jacinta Allan and Minister for Industry and Employment Wade Noonan to announce that the Evolution Rail consortium, comprising Downer Rail, CRRC, and Plenary, are the preferred consortium to build Melbourne's 65 new High Capacity Metro Trains (HCMT).

This decision follows an extensive 12-month global tender process, with three competing consortia, each of which included a world-class mix of international and local manufacturers.

All 65 of the new trains will be built in Victoria, for Victoria, with 60 per cent local content. This surpasses the Labor Government's promise of 50 per cent local content and will create 1,100 highly-skilled jobs, further cementing Victoria's reputation as a global hub of rolling stock manufacturing.

The trains will be manufactured with a strong industry participation plan that includes 15 per cent Victorian apprentices, trainees and cadets, as well as workers from disadvantaged backgrounds. Partnerships with Toyota, Chisholm Institute and Swinburne University will help transition automotive manufacturing workers on to the project.

To build the trains, Downer's Newport manufacturing facility will undergo a $16 million upgrade, CRRC will establish a new regional headquarters in Melbourne, and Australia's only bogie manufacturer will be established.

A new maintenance and stabling depot in Pakenham East will be built with 87 per cent local content and provide 100 new long-term ongoing jobs for the community.

The lead members of the Evolution Rail consortium, the local Downer EDI, and CRRC – the world's largest train manufacturer – have a proven track record of delivering trains both in Australia and around the world, including Sydney, Hong Kong, Beijing, Chicago and Boston.

The brand new HCMTs will be longer than existing trains – with 20 per cent more space to reduce overcrowding – and the innovative design will use the latest technology, making them safer, more reliable and more comfortable for passengers.

The first high capacity train will be delivered and in testing by November 2018, boosting capacity on the level-crossing free Cranbourne-Pakenham Line from 2019, with all 65 trains rolling out as a dedicated fleet in time for the opening of the Metro Tunnel in 2026.

Nine new six-car trains will also be ordered from Alstom to meet demand on the network prior to the roll-out of HCMTs, securing work at Alstom's Ballarat workshop until at least 2019, with 114 carriages ordered.

Bombardier in Dandenong are currently delivering Victoria's VLocity Regional Trains and Melbourne's E-Class trams, with more than $811 million invested in new VLocity and E-Class orders since 2015, and the option for further contract extensions in the future.

The Government is also developing a business case for a Next Generation Regional Train, a major diesel train contract expected to go to market by 2018 to deliver hundreds of new regional carriages for the V/Line network.

These new trains and trams are all part of Victoria's 10-year Rolling Stock Strategy, with more than $3 billion already invested in a long-term order book of new and upgraded trains and trams since the start of 2015.

Quotes attributable to Premier Daniel Andrews

"The state's largest single order of new trains will be built in Victoria, for Victoria."

"This brings enormous benefits to our state, creating 1,100 local jobs and cementing Victoria's reputation as the nation's hub for high-skilled manufacturing and a global hub for train building."

Quotes attributable to Minister for Public Transport Jacinta Allan

"This is every train we need to boost services in Melbourne's south east and run the turn-up-and-go services we'll deliver by building the Metro Tunnel."

"These new high capacity trains will do the heavy lifting on the Cranbourne-Pakenham lines, ahead of the opening of the Metro Tunnel, enabling more passengers to travel during the busiest parts of the day."

Quotes attributable to Minister for Industry and Employment Wade Noonan

"While the previous Liberal Government sent train building jobs overseas and other states are offshoring this work – Victoria is proud to be creating new jobs in this vital industry."

"We're guaranteeing more local work than ever with 60 per cent local content , as well as ensuring the inclusion of 15 per cent Victorian apprentices, trainees and cadets, and a partnership with Toyota to help transition workers out of the auto industry."

Read more at http://www.premier.vic.gov.au/trains

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I like Dan.  He has his own trains page!  WTG 

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> New $2 billion train deal to create 1000 local jobs

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Melbourne Age --> Leaked Metro Trains report shows thousands of unrepaired faults on city's rails

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PTV --> Passenger load surveys

Latest: > May 2016 Load standard survey - metropolitan train - accessible version (DOC) 717kB

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> Overcrowding getting worse on Melbourne's train network

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Melbourne Age --> Rail meltdown ignites calls to move network control centre to secure location

Pressure is mounting on the state government and the trains operator to move the metropolitan rail system's control centre to prevent network paralysis brought on by minor faults.

Melbourne's entire train network came to a total standstill on Thursday night after the Metro Trains' control centre was evacuated due to a power failure.

The evacuation, at 7.30pm, sent the metropolitan rail network into chaos.

All train lines were suspended for about 30 minutes. Trams were delayed in parts of the city as they struggled to accommodate the surge in demand.

Last year, commuters faced a peak-hour shutdown on the train system after a water leak triggered an alarm at the control centre, also forcing an evacuation. 

Public Transport Users Association spokesman Daniel Bowen said the centre should be moved to a secure location where it was not vulnerable to false alarms and minor problems.

"It obviously needs to be in a facility where they're not at the mercy of any little fault that could occur in the building," he said.

Mr Bowen said Thursday night's meltdown would have been much worse had it occurred a few hours earlier.

"It's a small mercy that it happened after peak hour but we might not be so lucky next time."

Metro spokesman Marcus Williams said the control centre was affected by a blackout triggered by a power provider fault.

Although the centre's backup power was maintained, the building's generators failed causing the evacuation.

"We are conducting a full investigation into the incident and recognise this was a very frustrating night for our customers," he said.

Mr Williams said the network's secondary control centre was activated but the primary facility was then deemed safe, allowing services to resume about half an hour later.

Opposition public transport spokesman David Hodgett said the government should consider moving the control centre.

"It just seems extraordinary that one false alarm can shut down our entire metro network," he said. 

The state government has been contacted for comment.

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> Metro Trains, it's time you got your act together

It seems to have been only sheer luck that the complete shutdown of Melbourne's rail network last Thursday night did not occur in peak hour.

Trains halted from 7:30pm for about 30 minutes, apparently due to a power issue that triggered an alarm and evacuation of Metro's control centre "Metrol".

As it was, thousands of passengers were delayed – but it could have been hundreds of thousands had it occurred two hours earlier.

Unfortunately, it is not the first time this has happened. In 2005 a water leak in the building caused a similar evacuation, stopping trains for about two hours in the middle of the day.

And just last year, another incident halted services during morning peak for about 20 minutes, causing knock-on delays lasting hours, and disrupting hundreds of thousands of people.

Metrol is located in an office tower in Melbourne's CBD, making it at the mercy of every fault, hazard or alarm suffered by the numerous other tenants in the same building.

It's been this way since 1999 when the old train control centre building at Jolimont was demolished as part of the rejuvenation of the area that gave us Birrarung Marr and Federation Square.

But Metrol's current location was only meant to be temporary, to be replaced by a new facility.

It's time for the government to push ahead with getting this done. Moving the control centre to its own building would greatly reduce the risk of having to evacuate due to external factors.

A back-up centre is available, but this takes some time to activate. We understand V/Line is able to more quickly switch to its secondary control centre when required – something apparently much more difficult for the Metro system.

Metro should also look at other strategies to keep the trains running. Back-up options might include a level of manual control from suburban signal boxes and staff on the ground, limiting the use of points to switch trains between tracks, and speed restrictions. This might mean service has to be reduced while the control centre is out of action, but a reduced service is better than no service.

Longer term, there is merit in control of the rail network becoming less centralised, with improved technology allowing more functions to be either automatic, or shared across multiple control rooms around the network.

Regardless of moves to reduce shutdowns or limit their impact, Metro also needs to get better at ensuring information is passed down to frontline staff and passengers. There were numerous cases on Thursday night of passengers left uninformed about what was happening.

In some cases, people were told of major delays continuing, and alighted trains to find alternative transport, only to watch those trains depart without them as services resumed.

This is how the Public Transport Users Association got started in 1976 when commuter Frank Casey had that exact experience one evening at Ringwood station.

The mass transit system is fast becoming the backbone that underpins Melbourne's continuing prosperity, supporting many thousands of jobs in Melbourne's CBD and suburbs in a way not possible with any other transport mode.

This means that it's more important than ever that the train system is reliable and resilient. Train passengers – and our city at large – deserve nothing less.

Daniel Bowen is a public transport advocate and blogger.

[ozbob]

http://www.premier.vic.gov.au/third-new-train-for-the-bayside-line-hits-the-tracks/

Third New Train For The Bayside Line Hits The Tracks

Minister for Public Transport 20 November 2016

The second of more than 100 new trains ordered by Andrews Labor Government has hit the tracks and is running on the Frankston, Werribee and Williamstown lines.

Minister for Public Transport Jacinta Allan announced the introduction of the second new train today, which will make the daily commute more comfortable for thousands of  passengers.

The new train is in addition to the X'Trapolis train that has operated on the bayside lines for a number of years, and a third from the existing fleet that was also deployed on those lines today.

The three X'Trapolis trains – the biggest, safest and most modern on the metropolitan network – will operate 41 weekday services, 18 Saturday services and 16 Sunday services between Frankston, Werribee and Williamstown.

The Labor Government has ordered 19 X'Trapolis trains from Alstom in Ballarat, supporting local jobs and creating space for more than 17,000 passengers once they are all delivered.

They are part of the Government's unprecedented investment in new metropolitan and regional rolling stock, which also includes 48 new regional carriages, and 65 new High-Capacity Trains that will soon begin production.

The Labor Government's rolling stock strategy Trains, Trams, Jobs 2015-2025 sets out a ten year order-book for hundreds more trains for Melbourne and regional Victoria, as well as new high-capacity E-Class trams.

The strategy will ensure there are enough trains on the network to meet growing demand for train services, and support local jobs in Victoria's rolling stock industry, which employs up to 10,000 Victorians.

Quotes attributable to Minister for Public Transport Jacinta Allan

"These new trains will make the daily commute more comfortable for thousands of passengers around the bay."

"There are now three X'Trapolis trains on the Frankston, Werribee and Williamstown lines, and more to come as the new ones we have ordered roll off the production line and into service."

"These trains are built in Victoria, for Victoria – creating work for thousands of people, and getting thousands more home safer and sooner at night to their loved ones. We're putting people first."

[ozbob]

The second of more than 100 new trains is now in service. And the best part? It was made right here in Victoria.https://t.co/rVGGY8po7x

— Daniel Andrews (@DanielAndrewsMP) November 20, 2016