Rail Observations 2024

[Linto63]

But in Sydney, sometimes guards needs to actually get out of the train for a clear sight to ensure the safety of departure, which makes the picture redundant because of blind spots.

Exactly, Oatley and Wollstonecraft are examples of stations on significant curves requiring the guard to step away from the train after closing the doors to ensure there are no obstructions.

[BAMBAM]

But in Sydney, sometimes guards needs to actually get out of the train for a clear sight to ensure the safety of departure, which makes the picture redundant because of blind spots.

Exactly, Oatley and Wollstonecraft are examples of stations on significant curves requiring the guard to step away from the train after closing the doors to ensure there are no obstructions.

Happy to have technology to aid workers but not to replace workers. How many times technology has caused anger and a coles or Woolies checkout

[Glen]

But in Sydney, sometimes guards needs to actually get out of the train for a clear sight to ensure the safety of departure, which makes the picture redundant because of blind spots.

Exactly, Oatley and Wollstonecraft are examples of stations on significant curves requiring the guard to step away from the train after closing the doors to ensure there are no obstructions.

Beecroft too, I suspect.

[tonyp]

In that picture, it’s easy if all platforms was straight. But in Sydney, sometimes guards needs to actually get out of the train for a clear sight to ensure the safety of departure, which makes the picture redundant because of blind spots.

Yes that's fine, but the point is that the guard should get back in and close the door before belling the train off. There's no need to have the door open once the train is moving. Which brings us back to why are the NIF being altered so that the guard's door can remain open when the train is moving? Hopefully this is the episode that wakes everybody up. The RTBU itself has been very irresponsible in terms of its own members lobbying for increasing a safety hazard when the train had been built with that hazard reduced. It seems to me that the opening window or stable door is the compromise that's needed.

Just to mention that I've ridden with intercity guards and drivers and observed and talked to them about their jobs, so I'm not taking an armchair position.

[Linto63]

Did you tell them that they were dinosaurs and it was time both they and their union should be consigned to history?

[swtt]

In that picture, it’s easy if all platforms was straight.

In Japanese scenarios, they have underground stations that don't have straight platforms, but the guard is able to perform door closing activities safely with the cameras and screens available.

[BAMBAM]

Just to mention that I've ridden with intercity guards and drivers and observed and talked to them about their jobs, so I'm not taking an armchair position.

If talking and riding with people qualifies someone being an expert, then everyone is an expert

Then that’s the case, you and the constant talk about buses that’s not being fully low floor from front to back is redundant because as long the buses turn up, people board and sit down then the bus is doing the job. We don’t need low floor buses, because I’ve ridden buses with steps at the back and talk to the drivers so I’m an expert too and if people are sitting at the back then there’s no problem with the current standards that Bustech, Custom Bus and Volgren are rolling out.

It was a medical episode which lead to the train guard fallen off the train. There are bigger things to fry on about rather changing the way guards do their job.

[BAMBAM]

Did you tell them that they were dinosaurs and it was time both they and their union should be consigned to history?

Probably only caught Kiama to Bomadery services as this person in past has refused to go on double decker trains

[tonyp]

If talking and riding with people qualifies someone being an expert, then everyone is an expert

Then that’s the case, you and the constant talk about buses that’s not being fully low floor from front to back is redundant because as long the buses turn up, people board and sit down then the bus is doing the job. We don’t need low floor buses, because I’ve ridden buses with steps at the back and talk to the drivers so I’m an expert too and if people are sitting at the back then there’s no problem with the current standards that Bustech, Custom Bus and Volgren are rolling out.

It was a medical episode which lead to the train guard fallen off the train. There are bigger things to fry on about rather changing the way guards do their job.

It was a railway-related work trip across the Blue Mountains during which we looked at the issues of trains and the different types of platforms they use.

A medical episode sounds like all the more reason that the guard should be better protected.

Every other agency in the developed world looks at how they can improve the functionality, productivity and passenger experience of their buses (even in Melbourne they do more about it more than in Sydney and they're not really a bus city). The views of much of the NSW bus sector are completely detached from current developments and best practice. It's a bit of a NSW phenomenon that we think we know better than anybody else. I've come across it in other professional areas too. I call it the Premier State Syndrome.

Custom designed a low floor bus of their own precisely because they're up to speed with current international best practice. They also, with Volgren, body different chassis that customers want, which occasionally include low floor chassis, but inevitably most are still low-entry. Bustech just never gets it right, even when they're presented with a low-floor chassis.

[boxythingy]

Macquarie Fields prioritised for TAP upgrades. It will be 2026, at earliest, by the time the station will become accessible, but at least we know it is coming after decades of "prioritisation", and advocacy whilst Casula, an even quieter station got lifts in conjunction with upgrades associated and coinciding with the Southern Sydney Freight Line and the esteemed citizenry of Wollstonecraft got access to lifts despite having ramps of barely a slight incline (compared to the grande marvels of those Minto, Ingleburn, Doonside or Rooty Hill within).

As a more recent resident, I would have only needed to wait almost two decades before gaining access to these facilities. It would have been closer to 30, for more longer-term residents approaching almost half a century. Just wanted to put this on the public record for posterity about the type of timeframes and injustices that humans had to endure in the mid-20th to early 21st century in this great country of ours in a metropolitain area of our supposedly showcase world city of Sydney.

Very interesting that this is going full steam ahead when considering that the consistently Labor held seat of Macquarie Fields gained swings in their favour at the latest election: https://www.abc.net.au/news/elections/n ... guide/macq

The local member, Anoulack Chanthivong whilst in opposition strongly advocated for the accessibility of the station, and would have failed to honour a long-standing commitment had this fallen through.

The seven NSW train stations on track for major accessibility upgrades
By Matt O'Sullivan
February 12, 2024 — 5.00am


Four railway stations in Sydney and three in regional areas will be upgraded at a cost of about $186 million, leaving about 13 per cent of the state’s stations and ferry wharves to be renovated to meet accessibility rules.

Macquarie Fields station in Sydney’s south-west will be the first of the seven stations to be upgraded, which will result in the construction of a new footbridge with lifts and stairs, a covered walkway to train platforms, a new family-accessible toilet and improved lighting.

Major construction at Macquarie Fields is due to begin late this year, following the development of planning approval documents. The work is expected to take about 18 months to complete.

It will be followed by makeovers to stations in Sydney at Bardwell Park, Chester Hill and Lewisham, as well as Moss Vale on the Southern Highlands rail line, Queanbeyan and Griffith.

Premier Chris Minns said it was unacceptable that a person in a wheelchair or parents with prams could not access a station in NSW.

“We committed to upgrading train stations to make them more accessible, safe and secure for the people who need them the most,” he said.

The upgrade to the 136-year-old Macquarie Fields station will also result in six accessible parking spaces, two drop-off spaces and a relocated bus stop on Railway Parade. A new pedestrian crossing and signage will also improve access.

At present, the station’s city-bound platform is accessible only via stairs.

Final details of the upgrades to the other stations will be confirmed over the coming months.

The upgrade to Lewisham station will take longer because its location in a constrained site in Sydney’s inner west makes it a more complicated job. Specific costs for each station have yet to be confirmed because the projects need to go to tender.

The government has allocated $801 million over the next four years for accessibility upgrades to stations and wharves. The funding is a combination of the former transport accessibility and commuter car park programs, as well as Labor’s commitment at last year’s state election for an extra $300 million to accelerate accessibility upgrades.

Under federal law, Transport for NSW has an obligation to provide accessible services to people with disabilities in a way that is not discriminatory.

Eight of Sydney’s 37 ferry wharves still have to be upgraded to meet accessibility requirements, while a further 14 stations on the Sydney Trains network will need to be renovated once the latest batch is completed.

A $166 million upgrade to Redfern station, which was completed last October after delays and cost overruns, was partly aimed at ensuring it met accessibility standards. The work comprised construction of a 90-metre-long pedestrian bridge spanning 10 rail lines, as well as lifts and stairs to platforms.

[tonyp]

It will be followed by makeovers to stations in Sydney at Bardwell Park, Chester Hill and Lewisham, as well as Moss Vale on the Southern Highlands rail line, Queanbeyan and Griffith.

Sometimes you wonder whether there's some clerical error in these lists, as many of the country stations are streetside with level access and kerb ramps. Once, Bomaderry appeared in the list, only to later quietly disappear. I wonder why? Maybe somebody put down the map and went and actually visited the station.

Similarly Griffith is streetside with an existing compliant ramp to the platform. Queanbeyan is streetside. Moss Vale can be accessed from the street, but likely they're referring to one end of the footbridge.

The world is divided into those who sit in an office and those who go out into the field. One job I had once was renovating Albury Station. The architects in Transport House were redesigning everything so that the SM's office only faced the platform, rather than also looking over the station forecourt. Went down to Albury and talked to the staff. They wanted to continue being able to observe both the trains and the coaches from their office. Anybody who's worked in the public service would know the outcome: Transport House 1; Albury SM 0.

Edit: I'm told that those three country stations that are already legally accessible will have some minor additional works to justify them being on the list because they're all in marginal seats.

[Merc1107]

The world is divided into those who sit in an office and those who go out into the field. One job I had once was renovating Albury Station. The architects in Transport House were redesigning everything so that the SM's office only faced the platform, rather than also looking over the station forecourt. Went down to Albury and talked to the staff. They wanted to continue being able to observe both the trains and the coaches from their office. Anybody who's worked in the public service would know the outcome: Transport House 1; Albury SM 0.

The sad thing is, this problem has infected entities well outside the reach of the public service too. Boeing and their "too big to fail" mindset being one more notable example of late.

[Campbelltown busboy]

They should really add a entry to Macquarie Fields station from the Macquarie Links housing estate that’s if the members of the Macquarie Links golf club lets it happen

[gascoyne]

There was an "incident" at Stanmore on Saturday 10 Feb 2024 which was officially described as a medical emergency and unofficially as a fatality. See
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/nsw/wha ... 5f3xj.html

I understand that trains were moving again by 3pm. However, at 10pm, well-dressed mature people of both sexes could be seen
hiking between Killara and Lindfield stations and doubtless elsewhere. The indicator on platform 1 at Killara showed 52 minutes until the next train.

What is T4NSW and/or Sydney Trains doing wrong that prevents recovery, even partial recovery, after seven hours?

[Transtopic]

Still no word on final report of Sydney Trains Review, which was supposed to be completed in October last. Has anyone heard anything?

[Aurora]

What is T4NSW and/or Sydney Trains doing wrong that prevents recovery, even partial recovery, after seven hours?

Running too many trains. There comes a point when the delays are so high because of crew displacement that the only way to recover is to scrap the timetable and run shuttle services with reduced frequency for the remainder of the night.

[Glen]

What would be examples of such shuttle services?

[swtt]

What would be examples of such shuttle services?

Strathfield platform 1 to Hornsby via Epping

[BAMBAM]

What is T4NSW and/or Sydney Trains doing wrong that prevents recovery, even partial recovery, after seven hours?

Running too many trains. There comes a point when the delays are so high because of crew displacement that the only way to recover is to scrap the timetable and run shuttle services with reduced frequency for the remainder of the night.

Doesn’t help when on weekends there are cross sector running for crew. So those normally on Sector 1 might be running on sector 2 and 3 and vice versa so crew aren’t at their point of duty because they make be stuck elsewhere and haven’t reached their relief points, add to that working into meal time would cause more delays in trying to find spare staff to relive potentially 2 crew at once.

The Railway Operation Centre that open in Alexandria several years ago was meant to be a game changer where teams that supervises crew, signallers and area controllers, fleet division and other teams to support train running are all in one to work with each other and mitigate long delays however since it’s inception it’s been a network wide disaster as often during times of duress there’s more headless chickens running around. Add into the fact that there’s less crew available for weekend running, any incident that has the potential to cripple will most likely will as there are less staff in all teams

[Glen]

Why do we have cross sector crew running on weekends?

[Aurora]

To maintain cross-sector qualifications, although the area qualified is generally limited by depot location.

[BAMBAM]

Why do we have cross sector crew running on weekends?

Back in the old days, there was no such thing as crew being limited to their depot as crew drove cross sector everyday.

[Glen]

That's probably why things went pear shaped quite often.

[Transtopic]

That's probably why things went pear shaped quite often.

And no doubt because of sectorisation. In a perfect world, crews should be restricted to their sector, rather than trying to spread them too thinly across the whole network, which at the end of the day is a cost saving measure. If Sydney Trains wants to transfer crews to another sector, then they should have to undergo further accreditation to work on that sector permanently. This would reduce the disruption caused on multiple lines because of an incident on one line, when there aren't enough crews on standby in the sector affected, which affects crewing on other lines. It's not exactly rocket science.

[BAMBAM]

That's probably why things went pear shaped quite often.

And no doubt because of sectorisation. In a perfect world, crews should be restricted to their sector, rather than trying to spread them too thinly across the whole network, which at the end of the day is a cost saving measure. If Sydney Trains wants to transfer crews to another sector, then they should have to undergo further accreditation to work on that sector permanently. This would reduce the disruption caused on multiple lines because of an incident on one line, when there aren't enough crews on standby in the sector affected, which affects crewing on other lines. It's not exactly rocket science.

Not really, back then before the Libs came in and blew up the joint, you had shift managers that actually was qualified to drive and help out during meltdowns instead of them being all corporate now. Back then everyone knew each other, sense of teamwork as people did favours to help the train moving because those dealing with meltdowns actually know the crew and not by the numbers. You may not believe this but cross-sector running causes more hinderance because crews has lost more qualifications than over the period of time, resulting more delays compared to like 10 years ago and more crew had more road knowledge. These days there seems to be more mistakes of cross sectors drivers making mistakes on lines they generally don’t run because they may not travelled on that line for a long time.