If you were the current Transport Minister.

Wilfy2007 · Posted: Sun Sep 21, 2008 10:49 am

Gidday,

Just wondering what SA RP members would do to the Adelaide Railway system if they were the current Transport Minister.

Improvements are going to be made over the next 10 years, so is there anything else that needs to be done?

Regards,

Wilfy 2007

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BuddyALX · Posted: Sun Sep 21, 2008 4:44 pm

Two ways I could go.

Personal Preference: Change the Metro colours back to Blue, White and Orange and actually convert the Jumbos to electric trains after electrification. Oh and I would also extend the line to Seaford. I'd also run the Hs more often when they are in tip top shape.

Realistic Perspective: Do what the current goverment is doing but involve the extension to Seaford in the midst of the time frame. Also converting the Jumbos to electric trains as well as refurbishing the whole lot instead of scrapping them (except 2009). That way if demand increases, we would be ready.

Of course, I'd probably be off my rocker doing either one.

Dan.

Daniel Hall.
MSTS STA Driver,

Somebody in the WWW · Posted: Sun Sep 21, 2008 5:01 pm

I am not from South Australia, however that has not stopped Wilfy from flogging his ideas. My list would roughly be..

Continue with the present upgrading program for the suburban heavy & light rail networks.

Upgrade metropolitan bus services to feed trains (where appropriate), following direct routes. Run bus & rail services at high 'turn up and go' frequencies, none of this 30 min business.

Consider a freight bypass of the Adelaide Hills via the most appropriate route, as well as solutions to other bottlenecks to the efficient movement of freight.

Implement an efficient bus service connecting with trains at Gawler Central to Nuriootpa and Angaston via the Barossa Valley Hwy. Replace this with an interurban rail service in the medium term.

In general, plan metropolitan & interurban public transport as a service designed to serve the majority of residents, not as a social welfare or charity service.

Extend the Noarlunga Centre Line to Seaford over the Onkaparinga River, as a relatively low priority after other projects have been sorted.

After the completion of the metropolitan system upgrades & Barossa Valley railcar service. consider extending the reach of the country passenger rail network.

Transport Textbook: Public transport analysis & discussion.

David Peters · Posted: Sun Sep 21, 2008 5:40 pm

Somebody your third thing has not got anything to do with the state, the freight bypass is a Federal problem as their company ARTC are the standard gauge track owners in this state. The state has little or no say in what happens to these tracks! Also the last of your suggestions is also a federal problem, all country passenger services were sold at the time to AN, so that is also a federal problem, but the rest is indeed good ideas!

The only passenger services that are run by the state government are metro only, I do not think it will change that much, though the lines may be slowly extended as urban sprawl continues! Cool

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kipioneer · Posted: Sun Sep 21, 2008 6:52 pm

David,

You premises may have been true with the handing over of the SAR country network to AN in 1978, but the rules changed in 1997 with the sale of AN.

Effectively the ultimate owner of our railways is the SA Minister for Transport in that the railways will return to the Minister if they are no longer required.

Hence the SA Minister of Transport potentially does have a considerable say in the future of our railways.

It is the DTEI and SA Minister who are driving government response to the use of the Wallaroo and Mt Gambier lines, not the Commonwealth government.

The Commonwealth may have a say but only to the extent of providing money.

Much the same could be said of ARTC main lines. The passage and conduct of trains is under SA law, not Commonwealth law. ARTC is a limited liability company, not a Commonwealth Statutory Authority.

The Commonwealth may be the only shareholder, and as such be the prime source of funds, but there is nothing preventing the SA Government from intervening including contributing funds.

Neil - the KIPioneer
Hawthorn SA

David Peters · Posted: Sun Sep 21, 2008 8:44 pm

That is true but I want to see state money spent on things like metro services or extensions if needed.

The ARTC are the sole owners of most standard gauge track at the moment, and the agreement I think you will find only covers below rail and buildings etc, much like AN had. In other words after they remove the rails etc then it goes back to the state government. I could not see them leaving perfectly good assets laying there for someone else to use! Cool

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kipioneer · Posted: Sun Sep 21, 2008 9:30 pm

nutbagg · Posted: Mon Sep 22, 2008 12:47 am

john-ston · Posted: Mon Sep 22, 2008 9:41 am

Like SitWWW, I am not a South Australian (and indeed, I am not an Australian at all Laughing

), but I had one suggestion:

Why not keep the Jumbos diesel powered and use them for possible country services. Am I correct in saying that they were designed for high-speed services (around the 130kph level), and if so, that would make them ideal.

409 · Posted: Mon Sep 22, 2008 11:12 am

Mechanically, the Jumbos were based on the old Prospector railcars out in Western Australia which ran one of the fastest passenger services in the country between Perth and Kalgoorlie. While the Jumbos would be perfectly suitable for use in country service, their are a couple of things holding them back.

- The bogies: While gauge conversion of the system doesn't exactly help, the broad gauge bogies under the Jumbos are solid steel castings weighing between 3 and 5 tonnes (depending on whether it is a power or trailing bogie). You can imagine how much these would cost in rebuilding to suit standard gauge.

- Age: At the present time, the 2000 series railcars are starting to get a little long in the tooth and will be celebrating their 29th year of service in January next year. Over the ten years of the proposed rail rebuild program, these would continue in service as they are until around 2016-2018 by which time they would be 37-39 years old, well and truly at the end of their lifespan.

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2001 · Posted: Mon Sep 22, 2008 11:24 am

nm39 · Posted: Mon Sep 22, 2008 11:48 am

David Peters · Posted: Mon Sep 22, 2008 12:10 pm

Nuttbag the Leigh Creek line is already owned by the state government and PN are the haulage contractors on this line, PN also provide the rollingstock as well! Cool

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fabricator · Posted: Mon Sep 22, 2008 4:23 pm

Life time ban from burger restaurants, 3 year Jenny Craig subscription....
Oh you mean about the trains ?

Apart from using the Jumbos to run services to the Barossa (the current trains ex Gawler depot), there isn't much that can be done without planning.

1. Order additional electric trains so that there are enough unconverted 3000s left to run country services. Or just buy some velocities.
2. Have new trains constructed in this state, as there is obviously limited production available due to the demands from Melbourne, QR, Perth. Work from SA can be supplemented with contacts from interstate.
3. Look seriously at Victoria, we have 1/3rd of their population, but 1/10th of their passenger rail network.
4. Build a new tram track to the eastern suburbs.
5. Actually extend the rail network BEFORE the large housing estates are built.
6. Hit the federal government from $1b+ and use on the results of #3 above.

David Peters · Posted: Mon Sep 22, 2008 4:35 pm

Fabricator that idea number 5 is a bit rich, who in the meantime is going to use that service if there are no houses already there, also what would happen if the developer suddenly went broke or somesuch, it does happen. By all mean's plan it into the development but only build it in after everything has been built, we have enough white elephants in SA with out starting on rail ones.

All new development plans should have transport corridors built into the design, later if needed you can use them, in the meantime you just get a bit more open space in the district, bit of a win all round there. The people moving in though have to be told that this area is earmarked for a transport corridor, to stop nimby complaints later on! Cool

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Ferroequinologist and Microferroequinologist.
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