Special_K wrote: ↑Sun Jan 09, 2022 1:56 pm
Rather than run empty to Dubbo, there is scope to operate a second daily service, departing Dubbo in the early AM and Sydney in the late afternoon. Up and down sets would cross at a convenient location between Bathurst and Orange.
This is a very simple suggestion and practical issues such as fleet type on a particular train would be required for seat bookings etc.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I calculate that there are currently the equivalent of 7x3 car Explorer services for the Northern Tablelands, Canberra and Broken Hill/Griffith services with a 1x2 car set for maintenance. A total of 23 cars, including a converted Endeavour set. Except for the Canberra Explorer, the makeup of each of the other Explorer consists can vary depending upon the demand.
The new CAF Short Regional sets will consist of 9x3 car sets and with one set for maintenance, that leaves a spare set for other services, such as a second daily service for Dubbo. I'm assuming that the current afternoon Dubbo XPT set, which is usually 4 cars, will be replaced by a 6 car Long Regional set, as it links up with the various road coach services from as far away as Broken Hill and Bourke. An early morning Dubbo service could be operated by a Short Regional set as it would basically be catering for local travellers. It would have to be timetabled to fit in with the Bathurst Bullet services for both the Up and Down journeys so that they don't overlap. The Bathurst Bullet services would be operated by the Regional Intercity sets and would be the only sets which would require dead running to and from Dubbo.
There has been agitation for a Bullet service to start from Orange and that could be the later service now departing Bathurst, but starting earlier at Orange. Orange would then have two morning services, including from Dubbo, and Bathurst three services, with equivalent afternoon and evening return services from Sydney. The Orange service would reduce the amount of dead running, but only marginally.
It's a shame that the government hasn't seen fit to order more Regional Train fleet sets to augment existing services and introduce new services, but that is still an option further down the track. I suggest that there would be the potential to increase the Canberra service to at least 4 trains each way per day; reinstate a daily afternoon Riverina Express service with 2x3 car Short Regional sets splitting at Junee to Albury and Griffith with morning return services, similar to the Northern Tablelands service; a second daily Long Regional Train Brisbane service similar to Melbourne; a thrice weekly Short Regional Train return service to Broken Hill, with connections to Adelaide; a Short Regional Train return service from Tamworth to Newcastle.