All aboard the Santa Express!

[Arnz]

According to a known insider, the train used this year will be a IMU.  Let's hope it's a IMU with a Working toilet, not a IMU with the "TOILET OUT OF ORDER" lit up.

Santa will probably need a toilet for the trip to Goldie and Nambour.  An SMU was used on the Santa Express last year, even to Goldie.

[Fares_Fair]

Santa Express to the Sunshine Coast : Timetable

Sourced from QR website here, check the web site for any late changes.
http://www.queenslandrail.com.au/AboutUs/MediaCentre/Campaigns/Pages/SantaExpress.aspx

Tuesday 13 December 2011

Roma Street to Nambour                   Nambour to Roma Street
Roma Street                 Dep 0942          Nambour                    Dep 1238
Central                         Dep 0946         Woombye                          1243
Fortitude Valley                   0948          Palmwoods                        1247
Bowen Hills                         0950          Eudlo                                1253
Albion                                0954           Mooloolah                         1304
Wooloowin                         0956           Landsborough                    1310
Eagle Junction                    0958           Beerwah                            1315
Toombul                            1001           Glass House Mtns               1320
Nundah                             1004           Beerburrum                        1327
Northgate                          1007           Elimbah                              1332
Virginia                              1009          Caboolture                          1338
Sunshine                           1010           Exp to Petrie
Geebung                            1012          Petrie                                  1354
Zillmere                             1014          Exp to Northgate
Carseldine                         1017           Northgate                            1416
Bald Hills                           1020           Nundah                               1418
Strathpine                         1023           Toombul                              1421
Bray Park                          1025           Eagle Junction                      1423
Lawnton                            1028           Wooloowin                           1425
Petrie                                1031           Albion                                  1427
Dakabin                            1035            Bowen Hills                  Dep  1432
Narangba                          1038            Fortitude Valley            Dep 1434
Burpengary                       1043            Central                        Dep 1439
Morayfield                         1047            Roma Street                  Arr 1441
Caboolture                 Dep 1103            
Elimbah                            1110
Beerburrum                      1115
Glass House Mtns       Dep 1128
Beerwah                          1134
Landsborough                  1140
Mooloolah                        1146
Eudlo                              1152
Palmwoods                      1158
Woombye                        1203
Nambour                         1207

* Services subject to change without notice dependant on operational requirements

[mufreight]

I actually think QR was always going to do this, thus I don't think RBOT had any leverage in getting this to happen.  The planning and authorization to run steam trains was a bit of a complex thing to do back in my time for the Sunshine Coast line, and it wouldn't surprise me if this slightly delayed the release of the timetable to get the steam train up there.

Regardless it's good news!

STB the bad news is that your justification for gross stupidity by Translink is in this case without substance, the Santa Express is not a steam hauled train as it is operated by an electric, last year a SMU this year if inteligence prevails by an IMU with a working toilet.

[somebody]

this year if inteligence prevails by an IMU with a working toilet.

Arguable.  Most of this trains runs will be done on non-toilet runs so perhaps it should be an SMU to prevent robbing an IMU from the coast runs.

[Arnz]

this year if inteligence prevails by an IMU with a working toilet.

Arguable.  Most of this trains runs will be done on non-toilet runs so perhaps it should be an SMU to prevent robbing an IMU from the coast runs.

That would require 2 trains to be stickered up otherwise.  Which is debatable. 

IMU utilsation iirc is fairly high, but I'm sure they may be able to leave 1 3-car unit with a working toilet for the 5 days of travelling.  That's if the inside source is correct on the IMU being used.

[mufreight]

A little logic on the subject please.
It is understood that with the final deliveries now having been made of the current build of IMU sets there are now 3 six car trains of IMU's avaliable that at this time last year.
Applying a little logic the last two three car sets delivered would be the sets decaled for the Santa Express making the six car train for the Santa Express and these cars would still be avaliable on most days for the peak operation of normal IMU services, might require a little creative rostering of train sets but it can be done.
Perhaps rather that a culture of Oh No we can't possibly do that, it is too hard what is needed is an old fashioned culture and methodology of How can we make this work applied accross all rail passenger operations.
The easy way to do something is usually not the only way to do something and 100% negativity achives 0% results.   

[somebody]

A little logic on the subject please.
It is understood that with the final deliveries now having been made of the current build of IMU sets there are now 3 six car trains of IMU's avaliable that at this time last year.
Applying a little logic the last two three car sets delivered would be the sets decaled for the Santa Express making the six car train for the Santa Express and these cars would still be avaliable on most days for the peak operation of normal IMU services, might require a little creative rostering of train sets but it can be done.
Perhaps rather that a culture of Oh No we can't possibly do that, it is too hard what is needed is an old fashioned culture and methodology of How can we make this work applied accross all rail passenger operations.
The easy way to do something is usually not the only way to do something and 100% negativity achives 0% results.   

In spite of everything you said, if they didn't have enough IMUs this time last year, witnessed by the frequent appearance of SMU260s on Coast runs, it is plausible that they still don't.

[mufreight]

A little logic on the subject please.
It is understood that with the final deliveries now having been made of the current build of IMU sets there are now 3 six car trains of IMU's avaliable that at this time last year.
Applying a little logic the last two three car sets delivered would be the sets decaled for the Santa Express making the six car train for the Santa Express and these cars would still be avaliable on most days for the peak operation of normal IMU services, might require a little creative rostering of train sets but it can be done.
Perhaps rather that a culture of Oh No we can't possibly do that, it is too hard what is needed is an old fashioned culture and methodology of How can we make this work applied accross all rail passenger operations.
The easy way to do something is usually not the only way to do something and 100% negativity achives 0% results.   

In spite of everything you said, if they didn't have enough IMUs this time last year, witnessed by the frequent appearance of SMU260s on Coast runs, it is plausible that they still don't.

Possibly not, but they are now three six car train sets better off and the Santa Express utilises a train set that would off peak be out of service anyway so for the five days there is effectively neglible difference other than diagram changes to the rostering to position the Santa Express set which would need to be done anyway.

[HappyTrainGuy]

Please remember the Gold Coast line is not a dedicated IMU only line. IMUs/SMU260s are rosted as they are the only rollingstock capable of sticking to the timetable past Beenleigh. It also gives more flexability when it comes to rollingstock maintainence including refurbs/upgrades/vandalism/rollingstock generation (IMU101 can't be paired up with IMU161), rollingstock positioning/recovery (failed units, delayed units/replaced units etc) and sharing IMUs on the Nambour line.

[Fares_Fair]

Backflip! Santa's on track
Maroochy Journal
Friday December 9, 2011
By Sherine Conyers

http://paper.questnews.com.au/QST_MJL/mjl018.pdf

Robert Dow, of Rail back on Track and Stillwater are quoted in the story  

Backflip!
Santa's
on track

ALL ABOARD: The Santa Express is coming to Nambour.
SHERINE CONYERS
conyerss@qst.newsltd.com.au

AFTER making a list and
checking it twice Queensland
Rail has bowed to community
pressure to run the
Santa Express to Nambour.
The Sunshine Coast was
initially left off the Santa
Express route while the Gold
Coast, Beenleigh, Ferny
G r o v e , C a b o o l t u r e ,
Doomben, Shorncliffe and
Cleveland were all included.
But angry residents
flooded to the Rail Back on
Track website to express
their dismay at the lack of
forethought accusing QR of
being a ''grinch that stole
christmas''.
The Journal made inquires
on Monday morning as to
why the Santa Express
would not pass Caboolture
and by Monday afternoon
QR had a change of heart.
Rail Back on Track
spokesperson Robert Dow
said Sunshine Coast commuters
felt marginalised
enough by the lack of service
along that track, however he
was thrilled that QR backflipped
on its initial decision.
''It's amazing what a bit of
attention will achieve,'' he
said.
When the Sunshine Coast
was initially left off the list
Mr Dow said perhaps Santa
could notmake the trip without
a toilet.
The RBoT web forum was
full of comments from frustrated
commuters slamming
QR's decision to leave the
coast off the list.
One commuter said: ''QR is
the Grinch that stole Christmas
as far as the kids of the
Sunshine Coast are concerned.''
A Qu e e n s l a n d R a i l
spokesperson said Santa had
reconsidered his plans.
''We are pleased to confirm
on November 13, Santa Claus
is definitely coming to
town,'' she said.
[\quote]

[ClintonL94]

I went on the Santa Express on Thursday and Friday. Bought along some of my family members too.

Thursday:

Beenleigh


Varsity Lakes


Robina


Doomben




Friday:

Roma Street


Richlands


We were behind schedule on the way to Rosewood so I didn't have a opportunity to get a few photos at Rosewood.

[SurfRail]

In other news, the last train for nearly 2 years has been delivered... 

(A nice gesture keeping it nice and clean for the Santa run anyway!)

[ozbob]

Twitter

BoysMumma Zoe Garner
Blogged: riding the train with st Nick himself http://t.co/QyT7ewqF
Retweeted by QueenslandRail

[mufreight]

And they gave Santa an IMU with working clean toilets so as an Xmas present to long suffering NCL line passengers there should be another IMU avaliable to add to their comfort in their travels post Xmas.   

[Arnz]

And they gave Santa an IMU with working clean toilets so as an Xmas present to long suffering NCL line passengers there should be another IMU avaliable to add to their comfort in their travels post Xmas.  

The 'toilet' situations isn't that bad when it comes to off-peak and most weekend services.  Most of the off-peak services are provided with toilets (as the trains come from Robina, Ipswich and Mayne stabling in the morning - according to working timetables), however there's bound to be one of the toilets out of order (which that is a issue on the GCL as well).

Peak hour is where the toilet allocation issues from time to time as most services rely on Mayne stabling with the exception of one service running empty from Ipswich stabling in the afternoon to from the 4:30pm Roma Street departure to Nambour and the 3:37pm Roma Street arrival from Nambour turning back at a siding near Roma Street, then pulls back into Roma Street forming the 4:00pm departure back to Nambour.  The 4:00pm service is usually a IMU 90% of the time (that service is worked by the unit that comes from Robina stabling in the morning).