Mildura Rail Feasibility Study - Public Transport Victoria

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Mildura Rail Feasibility Study Final Report AECOM 1.0 Introduction 1.1 About the Mildura Rail Corridor 1.1.1 The railway The Mildura railway runs from Gheringhap near Geelong, via Ballarat, Maryborough, St Arnaud, Donald, Birchip, Woomelang and Ouyen to Mildura. The total distance is some 526 kilometres; from Ballarat to Mildura some 454 kilometres. Characteristics of the line include: Single track operations. Broad gauge. Regularly spaced crossing loops to allow trains to pass. The crossing loops are fitted with ‘trailable points’, self-resetting points which do not require remote control. 9 level crossings with boom barriers. 58 level crossings with flashing lights. Over 155 passively protected crossings. Numerous minor ‘occupational’ crossings. It carries regular intermodal and grain freight trains. 1.1.2 A brief history of passenger services Passenger services first operated on the line in 1903 and, during 90 years of operation, a wide range of services were operated. Daylight and overnight services, various days of the week, different departure times, and via Geelong and Bacchus Marsh, were all operated in response to changing patronage and business conditions. Motorail services were introduced in 1968. The Vinelander, the final form of passenger train services to Mildura, was first introduced in 1972. It ran overnight six nights a week. Catering was added in 1977. A three day a week daylight service, the Sunraysia, was trialled from 1987 but was withdrawn in 1990. At the same time the Vinelander was reduced to four nights a week with two nights provided by coach. It was finally withdrawn in September 1993. Elsewhere on the corridor a rail motor train service operated between Ballarat and Donald until March 1981, with some short trips only between Ballarat and Maryborough. These services stopped at numerous smaller stations on the rail corridor which closed when the service ceased. V/Line coach services began operating to Mildura in 1984, with the initial service offered via Bendigo as Sunlink. On the closure of the Vinelander in 1993, a connection was also added to the Swan Hill train in addition to the replacement of the Vinelander by coaches. This service was supplemented in April 2006 when a second daily Swan Hill train and connecting coach were introduced as part of early delivery of some elements of the new statewide service plan introduced as part of the Regional Fast Rail project. 1.1.3 Freight services Currently two types of freight services operate on the line – an intermodal container train and grain trains. There is currently a three-times weekly freight train service on the Mildura line. As of September 2009, it operates overnight from Mildura to Melbourne on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday, during daylight from Melbourne on Mondays and Wednesdays, and overnight from Melbourne on Fridays. Some services run via Geelong in order to accommodate cement traffic. The regular freight train is currently substantially shorter than in the past. Its average length is currently 430 metres. Historically, trains of 1200 metres were normal. The current freight train can use any of the crossing loops on the line and is thus relatively easy to schedule other services around. Grain trains are classed as ‘unscheduled trains’ for service planning and as a result they are managed to not conflict with any passenger train operations. In recent years there has been a decline in the freight task on the Mildura line related to the sustained drought reducing grain production and changes in the grain logistics chain. 7 October 2010 1
Mildura Rail Feasibility Study Final Report AECOM The Victorian Government recently completed a $73 million upgrade of the Mildura corridor to improve the performance of freight services, and a range of other Government policies and stakeholder forums are developing ongoing strategies for the development of the freight task. In Ready for Tomorrow - A Blueprint for Regional and Rural Victoria released in June 2010, Government has committed a further $12 million investment on the north-west rail corridor to Mildura to improve its freight carrying efficiency. This investment includes the upgrading of 15 level crossings on the rail corridor to improve safety and improve transit times. 1.1.4 Policy Context Mildura Rail Corridor Specific Policies The withdrawal of passenger services in 1993 was part of a wider rationalisation of regional passenger rail services in Victoria at the time under the Kennett Government. The rationalisations included: Sale – Bairnsdale Ballarat – Dimboola Shepparton – Cobram Dandenong – Leongatha Ballarat – Mildura As part of its election commitments in 1999, the Labor Party undertook a study to assess the feasibility of restoring the five closed passenger rail services. In 2001 the Victorian Government announced its intention to restore a passenger service to Mildura, Ararat, Leongatha and Bairnsdale. Dimboola was not feasible due to a change of gauge since the line’s closure to passenger trains and the case for restoration to Cobram was not made. The commitments were included in the Growing Victoria Together policy statement of 2001 (Department of Premier and Cabinet, 2001, page 16). Subsequently, passenger services were restored to Bairnsdale and Ararat in 2004 and the Government restated that the other reopening remained part of its policy platform. In May 2008 the Government announced that passenger services would not be restored to Leongatha; instead, a comprehensive upgrade of coach services was introduced in two stages in July and November 2009. Previous Government policy also included the option to convert the Mildura rail service to standard gauge. This policy was subsequently influenced by the findings of the Victorian Rail Freight Network Review, which found that there was no immediate case to convert parts of the network from broad to standard gauge. Restoration of passenger train services to Mildura does not form part of the Victorian Transport Plan, the Victorian Government’s current overarching transport strategy, but the restoration of services to Maryborough is included. General Regional Public Transport Policies The expansion of rail public transport services in Regional Victoria is consistent with the Victorian Government’s overarching Growing Victoria Together policy statement, specifically “Regional rail services will be available to more Victorians” (DPC, 2001, page 6). As an open-ended statement, this goal reflects a commitment to continue to expand regional rail services, not necessarily just in terms of network coverage (i.e. more lines) but also in terms of frequency, service span, accessibility, affordability and so on. Other relevant goals may include “Greenhouse gas emissions from the production and use of energy will be reduced” and “Disadvantage in health, education and housing among communities will be reduced”. The supply of public transport contributes to achieving these goals by offering a modal choice alternative to the private car (and in some circumstances, air travel), thus allowing a different emissions profile to be achieved from transport services. Regional public transport is also recognised as a means of providing access to health and education services in particular, where these are not available in the local area. The Government’s A Fairer Victoria action plan launched in 2005 identifies “Providing fairer access to services” and “Making services more affordable” as priority strategies under the objective “Reducing barriers to opportunity” (DPCD, 2005, pages 29 and 32). Supply of public transport can contribute to achieving this as outlined above, but is itself also a service that should be available equitably and affordably across the Victorian community. Fares policy has already been adjusted in Victoria to provide highly affordable fares between Melbourne and Mildura rail 7 October 2010 2
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Mildura Rail Feasibility Study - Public Transport Victoria

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