fast trains

[Vaughan Williams <ender2000@my-deja.com>]

(this might show up twice.. deja is a pain)

Its all rather confusing and unclear really...

* Before the election NX were already contracted to buy the new 160km/h
sprinters which as suggested should take about 20 minutes off Bendigo
and 15 or so off Ballarat trips (best timing atm for Bendigo is
currently 1hr40min, Ballarat about 1hr30min)

* This would achieve the government target of 1hr20min for Bendigo but
not for Ballarat (1hr)

* New government were elected promising to develop "fast rail links" to
the regional centres and committing a total of 80 million to "kick
start" the project (it should be enough to build it, forget "kick
starting" and "partnership with the private sector"). They specified
desired travel times for Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo, while promising
a sum of money to fix up the Traralgon line.

* Some councils have been ranting about TGV and tilt trains and the
usual expensive numbers. We hope this isn't what the government has in
mind.

* To get Ballarats trip time down to an hour would require some work on
the line, mainly straightening some curves (especially that one where
the line wanders off to Bungaree, and the one just past the Marsh).

* For the other lines all they really need to do is sit and wait for
the new railcars already paid for to arrive to achieve the desired
travel times.

* It should also be possible to get the trains to move faster through
the suburbs

* In our view frequency of service is more important that actual travel
time, provided travel times are comparable or superior to times by car
(which the targets set are)

In article <8a4p71$uaf$1@nnrp1.deja.com>,
  james_ccj@my-deja.com wrote:
> In article <7ekx4.966$fw5.535194@news0.optus.net.au>,
>   dbromage@fang.omni.com.au (David Bromage) wrote:
> > Richard (richard_snook@primus.com.au) won a Nobel Prize for
> literature by writing:
> > > Lately the current gurus of Spring Street are to evaluate the idea
> of fast
> > > trains in the Regions!!
> >
> > > When they utter Fast-Trains...what are we talking about ??...  TGV
> > > technology...or something else...Sprinters on'drugs'..what is
> fast..150,
> > > 200,250 kph??
> 160kph, fast enough for Australian Standard.
>
> > 160km/h railcars. Should shave about 15 minutes off Ballarat and 20
> off
> > Bendigo.
> A lot more then that for Ballarat, they hope to shave running time
> between Melbourne and Ballarat to under one hour(50 minutes to be
> exact) best timing right now is about an hour an half, new Sprinter
> hopefully would cut 40 minutes off the current schedule,
>
> >Probably bring a limited express run to Geelong down to 45
> > minutes.
> >
> > The only infrastructure requirements are lengthening the bell blocks
> to
> > handle higher speeds, and possibly some relocation of distant
signals.
> Maybe curve easing.
>
> > National Express at one stage mooted ideas like "Bendigo in 1 hour"
> which
> > would require 200km/h, and probably tilt. It's possible, but
> >expensive.
> I would say they can cut off 10 minutes just by improving in between
St
> Alban and Spencer Street. Bendigo trains usually have to follow
> sunburban trains SLOWLY through this section.
>
> --
> Cheers
>
> James
>
> Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
> Before you buy.
>


Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.