Re: VIC - Cut from Border mail, Alb/Wod - Saturday.

["Rod [Comtrain]" <freight_man@hotmail.com>]

Here is a little bet, if any one wants top take me on.
Bet they do not build any station at all!
why? Glad you asked that.
They are saying that the Victorian Government is to Standardise the BG line
from Seymour to Albury, which in itself is a bloody good idea. Two buggered
lines from Melbourne has got to be better than one, and the BG traffic is
nearly stopped now anyway.
It is my opinion that the promised $400 millions for this conversion [you
think that too much see note 1 below]
does not exist, and if the Wodonga Diversion actually does start, we will be
told to use the Albury Railway Station, until the Bg is converted. They may
even build the two lines across the plains, but I doubt they will build a BG
yard at West Wodonga at all.
That rules out cement [unless they build a bogie exchange at Geelong]
It also rules out the new Timber Contract, which will continue next year, by
which time many thousands of tonnes will be available for transport.
It rules out Super Phosphate unless major monies are available to extend SG
around Geelong.
Basically it rules out Wodonga all together.
SCT run their own trains from Sydney to Melbourne and will shunt the siding
at west Wodonga themselves.
National Rail will try to win the Uncle Bens traffic and also shunt them
selves.
V/Line Pass have all their Rolling Stock heavily Committed. And so
converting three sets of cars to SG, with spares will mess their whole
strategy up, increase costs as much as to make the Service uneconomical.
The proposed Railway Station is about 4 km away from town, in an Industrial
area. You will find patronage will fall away dramatically when people need
to go to Albury, and as a result the New Station will magically become
unviable.
So what have we left?
Two SG lines to Albury [still with a 40 kph curve, this time though it is at
the Murray River.]
a possibility of only 4 XPT services a day
and no local Railway activity at all!

any takers?
Note 1. Sg line would need to go to Oaklands as their are political
implications with this line. I believe the Japs own the biggest Brown coal
deposits in the world, in this area. The last time this line was talked
about being closed The Japs made Financial
contributions to the Thompson Government to guarantee this line stayed in
place. Liquefaction plants have been tested in Japan and Australia, and it
is believed that Japan will export hundreds of thousands of tonnes of coal
to its plants in Japan, and the time is fast approaching as prices climb
upwards every day.
Note 2. It is becoming increasingly evident that the Shepparton and Tocumwal
lines, the star in Freight Australia's Crown, will have to be converted to
SG, and that allows them to move North as well. This would have to be a
priority over the Albury line.
This will also put tremendous pressure on the Geelong line. Perhaps convert
the west Line to SG and leave the East line to Wally Rail, and Goods to
Warrnambool
Cheers
Rod [comtrain]
ps there again what do I know [not much if my last efforts mean anything]
;o)


"David Bromage" <dbromage@fang.omni.com.au> wrote in message
6BmW5.26$FK2.3496@news0.optus.net.au">news:6BmW5.26$FK2.3496@news0.optus.net.au...
> Michael (michael@bitsnpcs.com.au) wrote:
> > A NEW Wodonga railway station will be built on the new railway bypass
near
> > Maloney Drive's intersection with the Hume Freeway.
>
> > Under the relocation plan, the old station will be part of the central
> > redevelopment area but is likely to be retained as an historic feature.
>
> > It has previously been proposed to create a new town square called Jack
Hore
> > Place, between the station and Elgin St.
>
> How far is this from the current station, i.e. how far out of town?
>
> Ditto for Albury.
>
> Putting any great distance between the population and the station is a
> major disincentive to travel.
>
> Cheers
> David