Rail Express Apr 2022

I S S U E 3 | A P R I L 2022

W W W. R A I L E X P R E S S . C O M . A U

More diversity, less adversity With public transport facing labour shortages, there is a critical need to attract and retain a diverse, inclusive and innovative workforce to ensure future sustainability of the industry – PAGE 30

Reports from AusRAIL PLUS

Global first for digital twins

The role of mechatronics

PAGE 20

PAGE 36

PAGE 46

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Contents Issue 3 - April 2022

18

4

From the Editor

6

Industry news

20

AusRAIL PLUS Conference and Exhibition

27

Feature: High-speed rail

30

Feature: Diversity and inclusion

D I G I TA L I S AT I O N A N D D E S I G N

24

40

35

mIoT at the far edge of rail

36

World first for Willow

39

McConnell Dowell removes the smokescreen

40

Keep track of tracks with 4Tel

42

GS1 helps accurate capture of data

M A J O R P ROJ E CT S A N D I N F RA S T R U CT U R E

44 49

Manila metro coup for Thales

RO L L I N G S TO C K A N D M A N U F ACT U R I N G

45

New CRRC bogies create value

O P E R AT I O N S A N D M A I N T E N A N C E

I S S U E 3 | A P R I L 2022

More diversity, less adversity

Reports from AusRAIL PLUS

Global first for digital twins

The role of mechatronics

PAGE 20

PAGE 36

PAGE 46

SUPPORTED BY:

Mechatronics in the Manco mindset

48

Mosdorfer in Pfisterer Rail acquisition

49

MFB has enclosure solutions covered

I N D U S T R Y A S S O C I AT I O N S

W W W. R A I L E X P R E S S . C O M . A U

With public transport facing labour shortages, there is a critical need to attract and retain a diverse, inclusive and innovative workforce to ensure future sustainability of the industry – PAGE 30

46

COVER STORY With public transport facing labour shortages, there is a critical need to attract and retain a diverse, inclusive and innovative workforce to ensure future sustainability of the industry.

See page 30.

50

RTAA: Reaching out to the next generation

51

RISBB: Spotlight on social responsibility

52

ARA: Return to rail driving benefits

CO N T RACT S, T E N D E R S E O I S

54

Contracts and projects around Australia

WWW.RAILEXPRESS.COM.AU | 3

From the Editor Issue 3 - April 2022

Published by:

Ray Chan Editor - Rail Express

11-15 Buckhurst St South Melbourne VIC 3205 T: 03 9690 8766 www.primecreativemedia.com.au

Publisher Christine Clancy E: christine.clancy@primecreative.com.au Chief Operating Officer Zelda Tupicoff E: zelda.tupicoff@primecreative.com.au Group Managing Editor (Southern) Sarah Baker E: sarah.baker@primecreative.com.au Editor Ray Chan E: ray.chan@primecreative.com.au Business Development Manager Alex Cowdery M: 0422 657 148 E: alex.cowdery@primecreative.com.au Client Success Manager Janine Clements E: janine.clements@primecreative.com.au Design Production Manager Michelle Weston E: michelle.weston@primecreative.com.au Art Director Blake Storey E: blake.storey@primecreative.com.au Design Kerry Pert, Aisling McComiskey Subscriptions subscriptions@primecreative.com.au

www.RailExpress.com.au The Publisher reserves the right to alter or omit any article or advertisement submitted and requires indemnity from the advertisers and contributors against damages or liabilities that may arise from material published. © Copyright – No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the permission of the Publisher.

4 | ISSUE 3 - A PR I L 2022 | RAIL EXPRESS

Welcome to the April issue of Rail Express

W

hat a bumper issue it is.

This edition looks back at last month’s successful AusRAIL PLUS Conference, which had resumed after a COVIDinduced hiatus.

The entire rail industry – from stakeholders to suppliers – made the most of the opportunity to reconnect, walking through an extensive exhibition showcasing more than 250 suppliers while listening to 134 speakers present keynotes and a range of panel discussions with major decision-makers.

We visited some of the innovative displays on show and gathered the opinions of some of the participants about the major challenges facing the industry.

Also highlighted at AusRAIL PLUS were the emerging digital technologies and products offered by various stakeholders and operators in the rail sector, and how they are handling the transition into the digital age.

This issue features players involved in this profound transformation, driven by emerging digital technologies like 5G, big data, the Internet of Things, automation, artificial intelligence, and blockchain.

Indeed, pretty much every component of railway operations is being affected by digitalisation. In terms of rolling stock, big advances in areas such as automation, selfdiagnoses, or real-time geolocation tracking mean that trains are becoming considerably smarter and safer.

When it comes to signalling, digital systems radically enhance the reliability and performance of operations. No more is there the need to rely on outdated signal boxes and heavy copper wires.

On the condition monitoring side, sensors and devices are proving to be godsends in obstacle and damage detection, preventive maintenance, and linkages with other systems, external operators and transport modes. Smart surveillance systems are changing the way controllers manage hazards, intrusions, railway crossings, and driver behavior.

Digital development thus provides a unique opportunity for operators not just to increase efficiencies in the overall logistics market, but also to become an integral part of progress towards greener, more sustainable

freight transport.

But despite its potential, the digitisation of rail comes with a number of challenges, ranging from privacy and security concerns to issues related to the ownership of data and proprietary systems, the impact on jobs, and the fear of investing in assets that may turn into liabilities down the track (no pun intended).

Meanwhile, as we move into a brand-new world of digitalisation, we also make headway into a business world that is demanding more focus on environmental, social and governance (ESG) priorities.

ESG is a holistic concept about an organisation’s ability to create and sustain long-term value in a rapidly changing world, and managing the risks and opportunities associated with these changes.

The principle is used as a framework to assess how an organisation manages risks and opportunities that changing market and nonmarket conditions create.

The uncertain risks of a pandemic and the climate crisis have made many investors and policymakers realise a greater need to accelerate investments and progress on businesses which prioritise ESG. A prominent part of ESG is the focus on diversity and inclusion, and in a special feature within, you can read about how companies are honing in on this aspect as part of their operations.

Apart from these articles, there is an extended look at the case for high-speed rail in Australia, backed up by Federal Election promises and a commitment to build faster connections between Brisbane and the Gold Coast in time for the 2032 Olympics; and a report on the Australian Government’s decision to establish a national intermodal corporation to serve the needs of Inland Rail.

And of course, there is our usual roundup of news from across the country and New Zealand; a brief summary of contracts, tenders and Expressions of Interests; and contributions from our industry partners.

We are sure you will enjoy the issue.

Happy reading.

ray.chan@primecreative.com.au

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News

New South Wales

UGL takes over Country Rail Network reins UGL Regional Linx (UGLRL) has begun its 10-year tenure as the custodians of Country Regional Network’s (CRN’s) 5500 kilometres of railway infrastructure.

UGLRL won a $1.5 billion contract with Transport NSW early last year, allowing the company to take over the operation and maintenance of the rail assets, which link broad areas of regional NSW to interstate and metropolitan rail systems.

The firm, a branch of asset management company UGL (owned by international firm CIMIC Group), takes over from John Holland, which held the rail maintenance contract for the previous 10 years.

The CRN covers 27,000 hectares of land and infrastructure, including 1200 property assets and almost 1000 bridges.

NSW’s Minister for Regional Transport and Roads Sam Farraway said the $1.5 billion contract represented a significant investment by the NSW Government in rail infrastructure to keep rail moving across the CRN. “The CRN is the backbone of our regional rail network for both passenger and freight services and plays a critical role in moving grain to the silo and port,” he said.

“We have worked closely with UGLRL to ensure that not only will operational performance measures be hit but we also

The CRN covers 27,000 hectares of land and infrastructure.

consider the positive impact of increased regional employment in our communities.

“At least 80 per cent of jobs must be regionally based and we have set an industry-leading target of 12 per cent for the employment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.”

“Under John Holland’s management, more than 1,300,000 old timber sleepers were replaced, more than 3220 kilometres of track was resurfaced, 844,000 tonnes of ballast installed, 26 road over rail bridges renewed and 69 level crossings were upgraded.

“I look forward to UGLRL continuing this great work as they take over the operation and maintenance of the CRN.”

UGLRL chief executive officer John Pistak said he was looking forward to a new era for the network.

“The CRN is a crucial link between rural, regional and metropolitan communities, and we are ready to roll out our significant skills to operate and maintain it,” he said.

The CRN includes the regional rail lines that connect to the Australian Rail Track Corporation’s national network and the Sydney Trains network.

It comprises more than 2400 kilometres of operational rail lines, more than 3100 kilometres of non-operational lines, and hundreds of bridges and property assets such as stations.

First green track laid for Parramatta Light Rail

The green track uses 81 per cent less concrete in its construction and will deliver environmental benefits.

6 | ISSUE 3 - A PR I L 2022 | RAIL EXPRESS

Work on the NSW Government’s $2.4 billion Stage 1 Parramatta Light Rail continues, with Australia’s longest stretch of green track recently laid along the line.

Transport and Minister for Veterans Minister David Elliott said the unique green track had been rolled out alongside Robin Thomas Reserve, bringing the project a step closer to completion.

“In a New South Wales first, we have designed and integrated green track beautifully, with wire-free technology, within heritage sensitive environments along the Parramatta Light Rail alignment,” he said.

“As a sustainable alternative to concrete, this green track will use 81 per cent less concrete in its construction and deliver environmental and health benefits.

“There will be 1.3 kilometres of green track laid across the 12-kilometre alignment, with

grass to be planted at Cumberland Precinct and Tramway Avenue too.”

Green track involves planting grass or groundcovers between and beside light rail tracks. The Zoysia ‘Nara’ grass species was selected after a 12-month testing process in Rosehill to assess growth rate and durability in Western Sydney conditions.

“As an Australian native species, Zoysia ‘Nara’ turf is highly durable and well-equipped to tolerate Parramatta’s unique soil and climatic conditions,” Elliott said.

“Its key advantage is the species’ slow growth rate, which makes it low maintenance.

The community will also benefit from the reduced urban heat and greener spaces.”

Stage 1 of the Parramatta Light Rail, which will connect Westmead to Carlingford via the Parramatta CBD, is expected to operate services for customers in 2023.

News

Queensland

Rail sleepers help keep the economy awake The Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) has awarded a contract for the supply of more than 1.3 million concrete sleepers for Inland Rail projects to Austrak.

The $143 million agreement between the ARTC and Austrak will include the delivery of 615,000 dual gauge for projects in Queensland.

Sleepers at Austrak’s Rockhampton facility.

ARTC Inland Rail Interim Chief Executive Rebecca Pickering said the contract was a concrete commitment to Inland Rail’s delivery, which will be a catalyst for regional employment and economic opportunity.

“Inland Rail is a game changer for regional Australia. It will transform how we move goods around Australia, better link businesses to markets and generate new opportunities for industries and regions,” she said.

“We’ve already committed more than 700 contracts to businesses in both Queensland and New South Wales with a committed value of $2.3 billion across the two states, and this agreement will create even more economic stimulus as the country recovers from the impacts of the pandemic.

“Austrak will employ approximately 30 people at the peak of this work – these are jobs that Inland Rail is directly supporting.

“Large-scale infrastructure projects such as Inland Rail are a catalyst for growth – they support jobs, give businesses the boost they need to employ more people and encourage local investment.”

Austrak managing director Murray Adams said the company is delighted that ARTC Inland Rail selected Austrak for a contract of this magnitude in this important nation building project.

“This contract win means a great deal to our local communities in Rockhampton where we employ over 60 people, and in Wagga where we will employ 35 people while supporting the delivery of Inland Rail,” he said.

“It’s our biggest ever contract and recognises the capabilities of the whole Austrak team who continually producing high quality sleepers that meet the increasing demands of our customers and underpin the increasing importance that rail will play into the future.”

Pickering said the appointment of Austrak for the delivery of sleepers will allow accelerated investment and local opportunities to regional Australia.

“Sleepers are a vital part of our work on Inland Rail and this contract with Austrak will support the delivery of a project that will join Melbourne and Brisbane with fast, reliable and cost-competitive freight rail,” she said.

Hats, bags, air pods, ashes ... and false teeth Queensland Rail has reminded passengers to keep their belongings close when traveling on trains, with tens of thousands of items lost on the south-east Queensland rail network each year.

Queensland Rail’s Head of South East Queensland Scott Riedel said the lost property hub was brimming with items from the ordinary to the extraordinary.

“One of the items that really stands out is the number of school hats that are found on our network each year,” he said.

Between 1300 and 1800 lost property items are logged across the Queensland Rail network each month and all are stored at the Lost Property Office located near Central Station.

Among the weird and whacky items that have entered lost property are a stove top and false teeth. Other items include umbrellas, handbags, mobile phones, air pods, skateboards, scooters, musical instruments and passports.

Lost Property Officer Nadia Ribeiro said even a box containing what appears to be ashes was found last year.

“We couldn’t bear the thought of discarding

School hats left behind on QR trains.

what could be someone’s loved one. We’ve been keeping the container past the usual cut-off date hoping the owner walks in,” she said.

Lost property officers try to track down owners a number of ways including sending letters and contacting organisations that the owner is indicated as being a member of, such as libraries, sports clubs, education centres as well as using serial numbers on items.

“Items like keys, credit cards and medication

are destroyed after two months, however sporting equipment, clothing, cameras and books are donated to one of many charity partners like St Vincent de Paul,” Ribeiro said.

“Glasses are donated to Lions for Sight and phones enter a program where data is securely erased from the phone in order for it to be refurbished giving the devices a second life, or responsibly recycled when the phone is beyond repair.”

8 | ISSUE 3 - A PR I L 2022 | RAIL EXPRESS

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News

Victoria

Tunnel on track as first rail arrives Melbourne’s Metro Tunnel Project has entered a new stage of construction, with crews preparing to lay track through the completed tunnels – a step closer to getting more than half a million extra passengers on the rail network during the peaks every week.

The first of almost 40km of rail has been delivered to the Metro Tunnel’s western entrance in the past week as works gear up to install rail systems and tracks through the project’s twin nine-kilometre tunnels.

Work on the rail tunnel and station fit-outs have been ramping up since four tunnel boring machines finished the nine kilometre long, 6.3 metre high rail tunnels in May 2021, excavating more than 600,000 cubic metres of rock and soil.

At the five new stations – Arden, Parkville, State Library, Town Hall and Anzac – crews are installing features such as escalators and lifts and fitting out back-of-house equipment rooms.

The station platforms are taking shape up to 30m underground, along with ceilings, stairs, walls and mechanical and electrical systems.

Inside the tunnels crews are fixing brackets and cable trays to the tunnel walls to hold electrical and communication cabling in place, as well as installing fire safety pipework and signalling equipment.

Specially designed gantries with bespoke “zero gravity” lifting arms travel along the length of the tunnels on wheels, allowing workers to carefully manoeuvre the equipment into place as they go. These machines make working on the project much safer by reducing the need for manual handling.

Track installation will take about a year.

10 | ISSUE 3 - A P R I L 2022 | RAIL EXPRESS

Crews will install 165 metre lengths of steel rail to form a continuous line along the tunnels.

Across the 18km of tunnel length workers will install almost 50,000 brackets, 15km of elevated steel walkway for emergency and maintenance access, almost 500km of electrical and fibre cables, 16km of pipework to carry fire retardant, and more than 3000 lights.

Installing the track will take up to a year, beginning with crews laying 4000 highperformance precast concrete panels through the twin tunnels.

There are 300 different panel shapes to account for the varying curvature and elevation of the tunnels as they wind from Kensington to South Yarra up to 30m underground.

The state-of-the-art concrete panels –

similar to track used in other world class metro systems – require significantly less maintenance compared to conventional surface railway tracks, which use sleepers laid on ballast.

From mid-2022 crews will install 165 metre lengths of steel rail, progressively clipping them to the concrete panels and welding them together to form a continuous rail line along the length of the tunnels.

Once overhead power and the new hightech signalling is installed in the tunnels and stations, along with more than 2km of platform screen doors, testing will begin in the tunnels with Melbourne’s new fleet of bigger, more modern trains in 2023.

When it opens in 2025, the Metro Tunnel will create a new end-to-end line from Cranbourne/Pakenham in the south east to Sunbury in the west.

That will save about 40 minutes on a return journey to Parkville for Sunbury Line passengers, and 30 minutes for Cranbourne/Pakenham Line passengers connecting to the future Melbourne Airport Rail line via Sunshine.

Premier Daniel Andrews said the Metro Tunnel would slash travel times and create space for hundreds of thousands more passengers across the network, making travel faster, more reliable and more comfortable.

Minister for Transport Infrastructure Jacinta Allan said it was exciting to see the Metro Tunnel take a huge step from a construction site towards its future as a functioning rail tunnel that would change the face of public transport in the city.

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News

Western Australia

The earth starts moving for Ellenbrook The sod has been turned at the Ellenbrook train station site on WA’s METRONET MorleyEllenbrook Line.

The first stage of work at the Ellenbrook Station site includes bulk earthworks, installation of in-ground services and station footings, followed by structural works, facades and interior.

It will be the most northern of the five new stations along the new 21-kilometre rail line to Perth, with stations constructed at Whiteman Park, Malaga, Noranda and Morley, before the train links to the Midland Line at the new Bayswater Station.

Site compounds will be located at the Ellenbrook, Whiteman Park and Malaga station sites while, in the rail corridor, clearing and service relocations have started.

Work is also continuing on the Tonkin Gap project, which is delivering works on the Morley-Ellenbrook Line. Recently eight bridge beams were installed as part of the Broun Avenue bridge, which will become the new bus interchange for the METRONET Morley Station, and a further six bridge beams have been lifted for the Morley Drive rail bridge.

The new Ellenbrook Station is being constructed in the heart of Ellenbrook’s town centre and will offer quick and easy transport services to the more than 46,000 residents currently living in and around the suburb,

WA Premier Mark McGowan (second from right) and Transport Minister Rita Saffioti (second from left) helped turn the sod.

slashing public transport travel times by up to 50 per cent.

The population of residents living within a one-kilometre radius of the station is

anticipated to increase from under 4080 to more than 7300, with local jobs anticipated to grow from 2710 to over 3500.

Ellenbrook Station has been designed as a major activity centre to support this growth, while making the most of vacant land around the station, with high intensity development in areas close to the future strategic station precinct anticipated to increase dwellings from 1580 to 2840.

As planned, the Morley-Ellenbrook Line is expected to be operational by the end of 2024.

The project had been a Liberal Party election commitment in 2008, and encouraged many people to move to the Ellenbook region and surrounds. But anger grew among residents when rail developments kept getting stalled.

An artist’s impression of the new Ellenbrook station.

Fares re-imposed for post-midnight rides Fares were reintroduced on Transperth’s postmidnight trains on Friday and Saturday nights from February, for a three-month trial.

The move aimed to create consistency across the rail network by making fares payable regardless of the time of day, while also improving security and contact tracing at Perth stations and on-board trains.

The trial coincides with the implementation of the State Government’s major election commitment to cap public transport fares to two zones, which came into effect on January 1.

The two-zone fare cap means no passenger will pay any more than $4.90 regardless of where they are travelling to or from.

Since the introduction of free late trains in 2015, the Public Transport Authority (PTA) has noted an increase in unlawful and antisocial behaviour reports on services and

12 | ISSUE 3 - A P R I L 2022 | RAIL EXPRESS

Reintroducing paid fares will allow PTA staff to provide a safer and more enjoyable experience for passengers.

within stations. Members of the community as well as workers had raised concerns that under the previous arrangements, anyone could have been on the station platform and potentially causing problems.

Reintroducing paid fares will allow PTA staff to provide a safer and more enjoyable experience for passengers and assist with COVID-19 contact tracing.

Tagging on and off Transperth services with a SmartRider has been the chosen method for contract tracers who may need to track down potential chains of COVID transmission.

The move comes on top of a range of new measures implemented by the Government to tackle antisocial behaviour in Northbridge and the Perth CBD, including an additional police presence, better coordination of outreach services and $2.5 million to upgrade the Perth Train Station forecourt.

Transit officers and PTA staff will be able to provide vouchers for free travel to passengers in genuine financial hardship or who may feel unsafe.

News

South Australia

Steely resolve delivers boost for Whyalla The Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) has signed a contract worth $292 million with Liberty Primary Steel for the supply of heavy duty rail that will support 1500 jobs in the coming years.

The Whyalla-based business will soon start rolling the steel rail under the contract, including more than 110,000 tonnes for the remaining sections of Inland Rail.

It will also support upgrades between Narrabri and Turrawan, a vital connection between Inland Rail and the Hunter Valley coal network, and the Southern Highlands line in New South Wales.

Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development Minister Barnaby Joyce said the contract was a vote of confidence in Australian manufacturing, “ensuring the high-quality steel needed to bring Inland Rail to life is made by Australians for the benefit of Australians”.

Finance Minister and Senator for South

Australia Simon Birmingham said the contract would be an enormous boost for Whyalla, delivering a pipeline of jobs and economic activity.

“South Australian-made steel is among the highest quality in the world, which makes it only right for it to be used for the construction of Inland Rail and our national freight network,” he said.

“I’m pleased that South Australians will continue making such a significant contribution to Australia’s major infrastructure projects that are a catalyst for jobs and economic stimulus across Australia.”

Liberty Primary Steel has previously supplied steel for Inland Rail, including contracts worth $51 million for the Parkes to Narromine and Narrabri to North Star sections of the project.

Federal Member for Grey Rowan Ramsey said rail orders rolling into Whyalla is good news for the region.

Liberty Primary Steel will supply more than 110,000 tonnes of heavy duty rail for the remaining sections of Inland Rail.

“Those orders in the period soon after GFG Alliance took ownership were vitally important to the survival of the steelworks,” he said.

“In recent times the facility has returned to profit and I am confident this profitability will result in the investment we require to ensure the steelworks’ long-term viability.”

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News

New Zealand

Faster trips, lower emissions with light rail The New Zealand Government has announced plans to progress light rail from Auckland’s CBD to the airport, while creating a linked-up rapid transport network as part of a 30-year plan.

Deputy Prime Minister and Infrastructure Minister Grant Robertson said with Auckland’s population projected to rise to two million by early next decade, a well-planned and connected infrastructure was needed to move people around the country’s largest city safely and efficiently.

“We have deliberately chosen this option for Auckland Light Rail that will integrate with other major infrastructure projects across Auckland, like the additional Waitematā Harbour crossing, the Auckland Rapid Transit Plan and Kāinga Ora Large Scale Projects,” he said.

Transport Minister Michael Wood said a linked-up rapid transit transport network would make it faster to move through the city, connecting communities, providing greater access to businesses, all while helping to reduce congestion.

The Government is proceeding with the option recommended by the Auckland Light

The 24km route includes up to 18 stations from the City Centre to Māngere and the airport.

Rail Establishment Unit, which will see light rail in a tunnel from Wynyard Quarter to Mt Roskill, which comes to the surface and runs alongside the SH20 motorway to the airport.

Features of the chosen light rail option include: • 24km route with up to 18 stations or stops from the City Centre to Māngere and the airport, running every five minutes so people can turn up and go.

• Capability to carry up to 15,000 passengers per hour at peak, which is four times more passengers than a dedicated busway or trackless trams.

• Removal of up to 13 car lanes or taking 12,000 cars off the road, which is a great result for local streets, communities and carbon emissions.

• Integration with current train and bus hubs and the City Rail Link stations and connections. Light rail can also be extended to the North Shore and North West without having to transfer from one line to the other.

• Estimated building of up to 66,000 new homes by 2051 and opening up housing along the corridor in Mt Roskill, Onehunga and Māngere.

New train stations set for South Auckland Two new train stations for Southern Auckland are a step closer after planning consent was granted for the Drury Central and Paerata stations, which were approved under the fast-track provisions of New Zealand’s COVID recovery legislation.

Working in collaboration with Auckland Transport and Waka Kotahi, KiwiRail is the lead agency for three stations between Papakura and Pukekohe. The third station is planned for Drury West.

KiwiRail Acting Chief Executive David

Concept art for the new Pukekohe station.

Gordon said the decision is good news for the people who live or intend to live in Southern Auckland and provides those investing in housing developments confidence on linkages and integration with the rail commuter network.

“With more than 100,000 people expected to move into the area over the next 30 years, the stations and our project to electrify the railway between Papakura and Pukekohe, will provide them with better access to public transport,” he said.

The stations will include bicycle and walking connections, bicycle parking, bus interchanges, accessways and park and ride car parks.

Funding for all three stations was provided by the Government through the New Zealand Upgrade Programme. It is part of KiwiRail’s $1.5 billion suite of projects to modernise the rail network in New Zealand’s biggest city.

In addition to the three stations and electrification project, there will be general upgrades across the network and a third main track is being built to relieve congestion on the busiest section of the network between Wiri and Westfield.

This infrastructure, and the City Rail Link, will improve capacity for passenger services across the network and make a huge contribution to reducing carbon emissions in Auckland.

Drury Central and Paerata stations are expected to be completed in early 2025.

Pending the outcome of planning and other hearings, Drury West could be completed later in 2025.

WWW.RAILEXPRESS.COM.AU | 15

News

National

Review aims to unlock rail policy gridlock An Australian-first review will aim to unlock the continuing policy constraints holding back the efficiency of the nation’s rail freight industry.

The review - Establishing an efficient freight transport network for Australia - will be headed by former Deputy Prime Minister John Anderson.

Anderson said rail freight transport and logistics performed a vital role in supporting more than $350 billion in resources and agricultural exports each year.

“At a time of significant rail infrastructure funding – including Inland Rail – impediments to the utilisation of rail freight are costly for the Australian economy and the community,” he said. “Despite many clear benefits, on major freight corridors across Australia there continues to be a shift of freight from rail to road.

“What is required is an evidence-based assessment of the key impediments to rail and identifying practical policy changes that improve the productivity of rail freight and allow the industry to bring more freight onto rail where rail offers safety, economic and environmental benefits for customers and for the community.”

Key issues the Review will consider include:

There continues to be a shift of freight from rail to road.

• Factors affecting the current mode share of rail freight on key corridors.

• The role of infrastructure provision and investment.

• Addressing how heavy vehicles pay far lower infrastructure usage charges creating an uneven playing field.

• Opportunities to efficiently meet the current and emerging requirements of Australian industries that rely on freight supply chains to transport products to markets in Australia and to export markets.

The Review is being jointly funded by the Freight on Rail Group of Australia (FORG), the Australasian Railway Association (ARA) and the Federal Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications.

The study will be undertaken by specialist economic advisory firm, Synergies Economic Consulting together with the Australasian Centre for Rail Innovation (ACRI).

The review is expected to be published in Q3 2022.

Massive repair job for Trans-Australian Railway

The first train on the reopened track.

Operations finally resumed on the TransAustralian Railway between Adelaide and Tarcoola following an intensive 24-day repair operation by the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) in February.

The reopening allowed much-needed supplies such as fresh food, beverages and retail goods to move on this vital rail link connecting Western Australia and the Northern Territory to the Eastern states.

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Following significant rainfall and flooding in South Australia between January 21-23, which was described by meteorologists as a one-in-200-to-300-year event with more than 200mm of rain in 24 hours, ARTC had to close the inter-state network between Port Augusta and Tarcoola.

ARTC Group Executive Interstate Network Simon Ormsby said ARTC crews from Port Augusta led the charge with support by

teams from Kalgoorlie, Adelaide and Port Augusta.

“In the end we had more than 100 staff on ground working around the clock to fix 18 locations along a 300km stretch of track in 24 days. This was a tremendous display of coordination and effort with our on ground work supported by ARTC project management and logistics staff from across the country,” he said.

Ormsby also thanked the companies that rallied to pitch in such as McMahons, Exact Mining and Bardavcol, which reallocated resources from their mining and road projects in the region to support the rail recovery efforts.

“John Holland brought in specialist rail construction resources from the Eastern States and Arc Infrastructure and Sydney Trains supplied specialist equipment to be utilised in the recovery effort,” he said.

New national intermodal corporation for Inland Rail To deliver its plan of an integrated network of independent terminals, the Australian Government has announced plans to establish the National Intermodal Corporation.

Previously known as Moorebank Intermodal Company, National Intermodal will support the planning, delivery and operation of the Government’s significant investment in new state-of-the-art intermodal terminals across Australia’s east coast.

Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development Minister Barnaby Joyce said the establishment of National Intermodal will service Inland Rail and facilitate an integrated approach to Australia’s interstate rail freight network.

“As an exporting nation, Australia relies on our commodities and manufactured goods reaching international markets to generate the wealth that underpins our standard of living and prosperity,” he said.

“We are building Inland Rail to build additional resilience into Australia’s supply chains and better connect our exporting industries with their customers, so that our nation can continue to earn the money that pays for the services Australians need and deserve.

“National Intermodal will work with the Commonwealth, State Governments, the Australian Rail Track Corporation and industry to develop and operate the Melbourne and Brisbane intermodal freight terminals in time for the commencement of Inland Rail’s full operations in 2027.”

Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts Minister Paul Fletcher said the government-owned company delivering Moorebank is well placed to deliver the Commonwealth’s future intermodal investments.

“Moorebank Intermodal Company has built up significant expertise over the last decade, facilitating the development of Australia’s largest open access intermodal terminals precinct – the Moorebank Logistics Park in Sydney,” he said.

“We now want the company’s board and management to utilise that experience and expertise in the development of the national network of modern, state-of-the-art, open access interstate terminals.

“Through the establishment of National Intermodal, Australia’s east-coast interstate rail network will for the first time have a network of interconnected modern, efficient terminals, managed by an independent company, leveraging industry experience, and genuinely promoting open access to encourage new entrants.

“These important terminals will provide

The Moorebank Logistics Park in Sydney is Australia’s largest open access intermodal terminals precinct.

additional resilience and choice for the nation’s supply chains to ensure that supermarket shelves remain stocked and industry gets the materials it requires.”

Finance Minister Simon Birmingham said the establishment of National Intermodal would help support Australia’s exporters and help ensure they remain internationally competitive.

“As we continue our economic recovery from COVID is it critical that we have the necessary rail infrastructure in place to support the movement of goods around Australia and overseas in the most efficient and cost-effective ways,” he said.

“This is about backing Australia’s farmers and businesses by making it as easy possible for them to reach their customers through increasing the capacity of our freight rail network to manage the movement of large volumes of goods across long distances.”

Moorebank Intermodal Company chair Erin Flaherty said National Intermodal’s vision is to create an interconnected network of terminals that provide fair and equal access for all aboverail operators.

“We are working with industry to enable an increase in the movement of freight by rail by helping to create a cost effective, safe and more environmentally sustainable transport mode for our customers, partners and stakeholders,” she said.

Moorebank Intermodal Company CEO James Baulderstone said the success of National Intermodal would be measured by the ability, working together with governments and industry, to ensure nationally significant world class rail infrastructure is designed and built, enhancing rail’s competitiveness and capturing an increasing share of the interstate freight market.

“We are excited to assist the Government to create a suite of nationally integrated state-of-the-art intermodal terminals to ensure movement of rail freight across state boundaries can occur in a seamless and highly efficient manner,” he said.

“Together with our current and future industry partners, we will bring together a wealth of practical insight, proven success and a clear development model to make these essential national infrastructure projects a reality.”

The move has been welcomed by the Australasian Railway Association (ARA), with CEO Caroline Wilkie saying a series of interconnected intermodal terminals was critical to realising the benefits promised by Inland Rail.

“A network of technologically advanced, open access terminals servicing national and regional freight rail infrastructure will enhance the resilience of the network, facilitate efficient multi-modal supply chains and contribute to realising the capacity projected from the Inland Rail project,” she said.

“Innovative, world-leading terminal infrastructure is vital to the competitiveness of freight rail and enhances rail’s attractiveness to customers and freight forwarders.

“This commitment shows the Commonwealth Government recognises that well planned and funded freight rail projects play a vital role in keeping cities moving, delivering more environmentally sustainable freight solutions and reducing congestion.”

Wilkie said the announcement also acknowledged the important role modern terminals play in the efficiency and cost-competitiveness of the national rail freight market.

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News

International

Recognition for Alstom work environment Alstom has received Top Employer 2022 recognition in Europe, Asia-Pacific and North America, with certificates in 14 countries.

This is the third consecutive year that the comnpany has received the distinction in Europe, and the second year for the two other markets referenced.

Alstom is the leader in smart, sustainable mobility needs that respond to the growing demand for greener, more modern train, metro and tram fleets with optimised capacity throughout the world.

With an order book worth €77.8 billion, the Group is looking to recruit 7500 talents worldwide in 2022. This includes around 6000 engineers and managers, mostly in Europe and Asia-Pacific, and around 1500 workers and technicians, primarily in Europe, North America and Latin America.

These hires are for projects relating to rolling stock, signalling and services.

Globally, engineering accounts for half of the permanent position openings.

Alstom chief human resources officer AnneSophie Chauveau-Galas said the company was proud to have received the Top Employer certification once again.

“This distinction recognises our continuing commitment to making Alstom one of the best working environments in the world,” she said.

“With a presence in over 70 countries, we

The award recognises Alstom’s continuing commitment to making its working environments one of the best in the world.

offer worldwide opportunities to work in the fields of production, software, engineering, and services for people who want to make a concrete difference for the planet.”

There are opportunities throughout the value chain, from production to methods, supplies and functions. In addition to contributing to the delivery of current and future projects for Alstom’s customers, the

company is recruiting project and tender managers and planners.

In Australia, there are more than 300 existing positions to fill, primarily in engineering, signalling and qualified production roles in addition to the different functions. Alstom is recruiting for qualified engineers and tradespeople across its entire portfolio.

Saudi women apply for train driver jobs

The advertisement attracted about 28,000 applicants.

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skills had helped it to reduce the number of candidates by around half, with appointments made last month.

The 30 selected women will drive bullet trains between the cities of Mecca and Medina after a year of paid training.

Renfe, which said it was keen to create opportunities for women in its local business,

Image: Reuters

A job advertisement to recruit 30 female train drivers in Saudi Arabia recently attracted 28,000 applicants, highlighting the scale of pent-up demand as the conservative kingdom opens up more opportunities to women.

Reuters reports that Spanish railway operator Renfe said an online assessment of academic background and English language

currently employs 80 men to drive its trains in Saudi Arabia, and has 50 more under instruction.

Job opportunities for Saudi women have until recently been limited to roles such as teachers and medical workers, as they had to observe strict gender segregation rules.

Women were not even allowed to drive in the kingdom until 2018.

Female participation in the workforce has nearly doubled in the past five years, to 33 per cent, amid a drive by the Saudi crown price to open up the kingdom and diversify the economy, and women are now taking up jobs once restricted to men and migrant workers.

But the proportion of women working in the kingdom was still around half that of men in the third quarter of last year, at 34.1 per cent, and female unemployment was well over three times higher than for men, at 21.9 per cent.

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AusRAIL PLUS Conference and Exhibition

Transforming how goods are moved around Australia Work on Australia’s largest freight rail infrastructure project is well underway, and the ARTC is working with regional businesses and communities to make it happen.

The Australian Government is investing up to $14.5 billion in equity for the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) to build Inland Rail, in partnership with the private sector. Inland Rail is expected to deliver an economic boost of more than $18 billion GDP during construction and the first 50 years of operation.

Once operational, Inland Rail will become part of ARTC’s freight rail network and complete the missing link in Australia’s supply chain. The North West Connection at Parkes in New South Wales links Inland Rail to Brisbane, Melbourne and the East-West line to Perth – reducing the rail distance between Brisbane and Perth and Brisbane and Adelaide by 500 kilometres and ultimately connecting all of Australia.

And it’s no surprise that Inland Rail’s biggest supporter is its interim chief executive Rebecca Pickering, who has absolutely no doubts about the world-class project set to transform the way freight is moved around Australia.

Addressing delegates at last month’s AusRAIL PLUS conference, she spoke enthusiastically about using the benefits of an enhanced logistics network to grow businesses and deliver regional opportunities.

“To be involved in an infrastructure project of such scale and national significance is a huge honour, and I look forward to continuing the great work as we transition from planning and approvals into delivery,” she said.

“The number of stakeholders involved shows the size and the magnitude of this project, which crosses Victoria, NSW and Queensland.

“We are already encountering multiple regulators, 36 different local government areas that we pass through, and 26 traditional owner groups along the Inland Rail alignment. Not to mention well over 1000 property owners whose properties we are going through or alongside in some way.

“Then the Australian government authorities, common business and all of our industry associates, including our construction partners and suppliers.”

As an example of the scale of the project, Pickering reminded attendees of the 1700-kilometre connection from Melbourne to Brisbane. “The line will take 1.8-kilometre-long

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ARTC’s Rebecca Pickering speaking at AusRAIL PLUS.

trains carrying double stacked containerised freight in a more direct pathway that goes up through inland regions,” she said.

“At the moment moving freight between Melbourne and Brisbane means going through Sydney, which does encounter congestion and involve privatisation of passenger rail, and that coastal route itself can take the brunt of some weather events.”

But Pickering said to encourage people to start using Inland Rail, the reliability of the line needs to be demonstrated.

“This is a very modern-day piece of infrastructure, with significant investments in the security of its performance and operations. And that’s going to be important if we’re going to ask our customers to put rail into their supply chains, they want to know that trains will turn up at the intermodal on time so that they can schedule everything around that. So we need to make sure that we have those transit times down and reliable.

“And clearly there has to be a cost advantage to get people to move freight onto rail.”

Pickering also addressed the current stages of the project in the three states.

“In Victoria, from simply raising bridges and lowering track at the planning approval stages, we are well advanced,” she said.

“We will be ready to award our contractors to get underway into construction this year. So things are really going ahead well in Victoria.

“Going further north, NSW sees the biggest footprint of our projects, with over 800 kilometres split up into seven different projects.

We’ve already finished construction on one of those between Parkes and Narromine, and we’re currently constructing another 200-kilometre section from Narrabri north to the border.

“And we are starting to get to the pointy end on a number of the planning approvals on a couple of the other projects. We’re hoping that we can get sort of into construction at the back end of this year and some of the new sections in NSW.” In Queensland, Inland Rail includes upgrades to 120 kilometres of existing rail corridor and the development of 273 kilometres of new track from the Queensland border near Goondiwindi to Brisbane.

Construction on the first section in Queensland is expected to start this year, with businesses benefiting from Inland Rail stimulus and almost 700 contracts already committed to companies supporting everything from geotechnical studies and flood modelling, to office fit outs and car hire. Construction across all Queensland sections is expected to have begun by 2023.

“But the recent floods in Queensland remind us that, more than any other state, it is incredibly prone to major weather events and so we have taken further time to make sure that all of our designs can satisfy the communities’ concerns about flooding and the fairly extraordinary weather events in the Sunshine State,” Pickering said.

She welcomed the big increase in manufacturing around Australia, and the opportunity to get local industries involved with Inland Rail. But she warned this came with the challenges of finding adequate staff with adequate skills.

“This is a whole of rail industry issue. Where are your next apprentices coming from? How are you attracting more people to the rail industry?” she said.

“If you establish or expand your business into regional areas to support the construction efforts, it means attracting people to move into those regional areas to support that.”

Wabtec aims to break the bias Leading rail technology company Wabtec is committed to its focus on highlighting equality and inclusion.

Speaking at AusRAIL PLUS, Wabtec Senior Regional Vice President (South East Asia, Australia and New Zealand) Wendy McMillan said the company was committed to fostering a supportive work environment.

“This means we are committed to a diverse and inclusive workforce built on the foundation that all employees treat each another with respect and dignity, and that everyone feels safe bringing their authentic selves to work every day. And we know meaningful change starts with exceptional leadership,” she said.

McMillan noted the Women of Wabtec initiative, which emanated from the company’s Pittsburgh head office, which pledges a global effort towards encouraging diversity.

“It’s of critical importance for an employer to be seen to be in touch with community, and reflecting community attitudes and meeting those expectations,” she said.

“We have a range of maturity of personnel

and management who have come from different-decision making frameworks, so we’re really trying to break down the unconscious and conscious bias which exists everywhere.

“That includes the use of facilities and spaces for women to work in, and also flexibility, for example when working during the pandemic.

“Work doesn’t have to be done hard and fast 9 to 5. We are an employer where people understand that we do trust an employee, and even if we get some hits every now and then, it’s better to have our policies and our attitudes that reflect the majority of the working cohort.

“On gender diversity, we’re just under 50 per cent of females on the executive for ANZ, and we’ll strive for that in our recruitment and other processes. It’s a constant challenge and we want that dialogue to come through from the floor up.

“It’s not about selecting the female or male for the position, it’s about attracting a more diverse candidate base to actually come

Wendy McMillan (left) and Wabtec head of transit Shannon Wolff.

forward and apply for those positions.”

McMillan said there was a wide cultural diversity in the company as well.

“Not just gender, people have to feel comfortable that they can exist there. For example, a person of Muslim faith might need to leave for prayer time. They have to know that actually won’t be a negative, and they won’t be discriminated against.”

Pointing industry in the right direction Siemens Mobility‘s focus at AusRAIL PLUS this year was around enhancing how operators manage their equipment.

Speaking from the company’s stand, Siemens Mobility Head of Product Innovation Stephen Baker said the focus was not just around the products themselves, but the enhancements put on top of those products.

“For example, we’ve got systems here where we can actually monitor the behaviour of all that equipment for our axle counter and the behaviour conditionings,” he said.

Siemens Mobility had a number of high level systems on display at AusRAIL PLUS, including a point machine and a train vacancy detection system, among others – and they were all running live at the event.

“Everything visitors saw here was live, there were no blank screens,” Baker said.

“The point machine is Australian designed and manufactured, while the axle counter is

from overseas. “We’ve also got a system that is monitoring the whole Alice Springs Darwin railway and some of our broader offerings for mass transit. We had a machine over here which was part of our mobility exhibition in Perth, which fits on the front end of the train and continuously monitors the railway for defects in the rail.”

With a number of high level systems showcased at the event, Baker said it went deeper towards a more in-depth maintenance level. “We’ve made a lot of enhancements so that these are easier to install and easier to maintain,” he said.

“Mobility is not just a cull face, it’s about what the enhancements can do on a digital level and the stats you can provide to clients because that gives them the opportunity to manage their railway and maintain it. These dashboards we had on display are really a dataset and a tool for that.

Stephen Baker from Siemens (middle) with the team at the Siemens stand.

“Railways evolve – most old railway equipment are all in museums as they are high maintenance and have a high input. But what we need to do now is have systems that maintain, while having data systems sitting on top of them to make complex tasks more easily manageable.”

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AusRAIL PLUS Conference and Exhibition

Manco Rail Boom hits new heights Manco Rail’s impressive installation at AusRAIL PLUS drew the attention of many rail industry professionals, in particular the latest version of the Manco Rail Boom, which Manco Rail’s Ryan Black said had been modified specifically for the rail industry.

“This new system has a EURO6 engine on it, so it’s emissions-compliant,” he said. “We gutted out the hydraulic system and put a specialist rail compatible system in there. That allows you to rotate the boom 360 degrees, which you need in the rail; whereas the traditional boom would be limited to go one way and then stop.

“We upgraded the hydraulics slewing; by rotating 360 degrees, it means that you actually have to have the hydraulic hoses spinning at a continuous 360 as well.”

The benefits of a continuous slew and the overall simplicity of the system garnered tremendous interest at AusRAIL PLUS. “We’ve had a lot of interest in the vehicle and a lot of people that have been supporting other competitors of ours are showing a real interest because of the benefits we’ve

exhibited,” Black said. “We’re getting the kind of response we’d want for redesigning something that was already doing well in the marketplace.

We’ve already sold three units prior to production, which is pretty good considering the market’s only about 10 units a year.”

Manco Rail’s products have given the operator the ability to use various speeds and have more control in the workplace, along with many other benefits that create an improved operator experience and good accessibility across the board.

“We’ve noticed in the first model you couldn’t quite get to all the areas as easy as you would in a rail environment,” Black said.

“Whereas with this version, the cover comes off and you can access every hose easily, which is a big one for us.”

This innovation is contributing to Manco Rail’s success and is benefitting both the company and its customers in terms of efficiency and maintaining a steady price point.

“In a world with steel prices, the base unit prices and all the component prices going

The Manco Rail Boom on display.

up, because it’s so much more efficient with the plumbing and the wiring, we’ve been able to maintain that same price point.

We’re really, really keen on pushing these for track maintenance throughout the whole of Australia,” Black said.

Project experts deliver on time, on budget The newly-minted group managing director of TBH (Tracey Brunstrom & Hammond), Jonathan Jacobs, says the company is focused on ensuring clients deliver their projects to completion while meeting budgets, as rail projects continue to expand.

TBH is Australia’s largest privately owned and independent specialist planning and management consultancy, with offices across Australia, Asia, Middle East and North Africa.

Since its first major rail commission in 1977, TBH has undertaken more than 250 separate commissions in this sector, including trackworks, OHW, signalling, stations, train procurement and maintenance.

Speaking from the AusRAIL PLUS conference, Jonathan said the sector met many challenges in Australia, as it deals with growing spend for the next five years, with rail spending anticipated to peak at about $14 billion in 2024.

“We are then faced with all sorts of

things like supply chain problems, resource constraints, and even COVID might reappear again,” he said.

“With all of the spend driving the world’s post-pandemic economic recovery, projects have become more and more complex, are under greater scrutiny and are higher risk. And that’s where TBH’s 56 years’ international experience comes into play.

“As Australia finds its way towards the new normal, TBH’s critical support functions of time, cost and risk management will remain invaluable to the successful delivery of these projects, programs, and portfolios.

“What our client partners really are going to need is an organisation like ourselves that truly understands how to deliver a project, and what the key indicators are that make delivery successful. In providing this service, we can give them the confidence that they need to deliver their projects on time and on budget.”

TBH group managing director Jonathan Jacobs at AusRAIL PLUS.

Jonathan said TBH essentially provides an integrated project controls solution ensuring the schedule is linked to cost and risk.

“We report on all of those three functions and basically give our clients the visibility they need to manage projects,” he said.

“Our forecasting ability is very strong, and we’re able to give reliable estimates of when projects are likely to finish … as well as completion costs.”

Recent TBH projects have included Western Sydney Airport, Sydney Metro, Cross River Rail in Queensland, the Suburban Rail Loop project in Melbourne, and various WA METRONET jobs.

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AusRAIL PLUS Conference and Exhibition

Alstom drives greener message Visitors to the Alstom stand at AusRAIL PLUS could not help but have their attention drawn to the company’s focus on sustainability.

Speaking at the conference, Alstom commercial director Todd Garvey said the commitment to sustainable transportation and a sustainable industry was clear.

“We’re now taking it to the next level where we’re really moving towards the decarbonisation of rail and across that whole approach,” he said.

“Our entire portfolio has a role to play in that decarbonisation, and we are increasing the efficiency of existing equipment so, for example, we get 20 per cent more efficiency on new traction, motors or otherwise, which will reduce electricity consumption.

“While we’re pushing towards that move towards green energy in the first place, we are also looking at zero emission technologies.

For example, fundamentally the replacement of diesel fleets with alternate propulsion technologies.

“Alstom are among the leaders in hydrogen-

Alstom commercial director Todd Garvey (middle) talking to visitors at the Alstom stand.

powered vehicles but we also use batterydriven trains and so forth.

“The purpose of us here is really focusing on how the entire portfolio across rolling stock, digitally integrated systems and services can all contribute to increasing the sustainability of the rail sector. We are explaining the role of the different technologies and the role that they can play within the rail sector to address those sustainability issues.”

Garvey said the transport sector accounted for 25 per cent of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions.

“So we want to be a leader in that we’re not waiting for governments to make the decisions. We’re coming up with the technology solutions that will enable it to happen,” he said.

“We’re not relying on legislation or the stick, we’re creating the carrot for our customers.”

It’s pitch perfect for Arup engineer Arup Graduate Rail Engineer Jaya Negi has won the AusRAIL PLUS pitching competition.

The Young Rail Professionals Pitching

Jaya Negi delivered the best pitch at AusRAIL PLUS.

24 | ISSUE 3 - A P R I L 2022 | RAIL EXPRESS

Competition is held each year at AusRAIL, and provides an opportunity for young rail professionals to showcase their ideas to senior industry leaders.

Negi submitted an app named COchoo, that would use a carbon footprint calculator to educate people on sustainable travel and attract more commuters to rail.

Australasian Railway Association (ARA) Chief Executive Officer and pitching competition judge Caroline Wilkie said Negi’s solution could make a real difference in the rail industry.

“At the core of Jaya’s pitch were two critical issues for the rail industry right now – supporting a return to rail after COVID-19 lockdowns and facilitating sustainable travel to support our long term future,” she said.

“Jaya’s concept offers an engaging approach to informing people on how they can support emissions reduction by leaving the car at home and choosing rail.”

Four finalists pitched their concepts from the conference stage, which encompassed a

wide range of solutions to support the future of the industry.

Arup Railway Engineer Athi Selladurai discussed the potential for rail to support sustainability communities, with a pitch to deliver solar powered micro-mobility solutions at railway stations.

WSP Engineers Melissa Bong highlighted the importance of brining people back to the rail network following the easing of pandemic restrictions, sharing her vision for a loyalty rewards program for people using rail in their daily livers.

SYSTRA Scott Lister Graduate Engineer Benjamin Voss delivered his pitch on a ‘green solution’ for rail.

Wilkie judged the awards together with ARA Young Leaders Advisory Board members Melanie Bowden, Liam O’Shannessy and Tahni Littlejohn.

The winner will receive free entry to the next AusRAIL conference later this year and be offered the opportunity to speak as part of the program.

Thales communications systems get smart As a global transportation business, Thales Australia undertakes solutions for signalling for mainline and metro as well as revenue collection systems. However, its biggest presence in Australia lies in integrated communications and supervision.

Speaking at AusRAIL PLUS, Thales Australia general manager of Ground Transportation System Elias Barakat said as an example, the company provided mainly Sydney Metro with the central control system and “all of the comms equipment that you find on the metro stations such as customer information, public address CCTV and so on.

“Here at AusRAIL, we are showcasing our Data-Driven Operation Control Centre, which is our latest offering for the OCC for the metro lines.

“It provides the operator with one interface where they can actually see all of the systems that our control system interfaces to on the one screen, and be able to monitor and control those various subsystems.”

The Data-Driven Operation Control Centre removes the need to utilise a separate screen on a separate desk to monitor and control the systems and creates a streamlined experience for the user.

The first day of the AusRAIL event garnered substantial interest in the Centre, as well as in DIVA, Thales’ video analytics solution that helps the operator make better informed decisions around passenger behaviour.

“It basically provides video analytics of passengers in trains or stations and can detect people who are wearing masks, if they are needed

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Elias Barakat at the Thales stand.

to wear a mask, and it can provide all of these analytics back to the operator,” Barakat said.

Other innovations on display at the Thales Australia booth included its passenger flow application and smart intermodal mobility.

“Our passenger flow application gives the ability to monitor passenger flow in trains and on stations, so that it gives the operator the ability to make decisions about routing and about timetabling and so on,” Barakat said.

“And finally, our smart intermodal mobility, based on our revenue collection system, which is the equivalent of the Opal system that you have in Sydney.”

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High-Speed Rail Property prices around connected high speed rail stations are expected to skyrocket.

Australia still slow over high-speed rail The value of high-speed rail was enhanced recently by a new study which shows that funding for such projects could come from the increased values of property surrounding the lines.

One of the great frustrations faced by the rail sector is that Australia still does not have a high-speed rail (HSR) system, despite many arguments backing its introduction.

Now a new study by the University of NSW has further affirmed the many benefits of HSR, not the least of which is its impact on land values.

It comes in the wake of claims by the Rail, Tram & Bus Union and mobility leader Alstom that the time is opportune now for the foundations for such systems to be laid, as reported in the previous issue of Rail Express.

The UNSW paper – High-Speed Rail Value Uplift: Preliminary Investigation Report – says property prices around connected rail stations would increase by potentially up to $140 billion, which in turn could be dedicated to funding HSR construction.

Released by the UNSW City Futures Research Centre (CFRC), it calculates estimated growth – or ‘value uplift’ – in land values due to the HSR and suggests adopting policies that funnel economic growth from the HSR towards offsetting its costs would see taxpayers share the benefits of land value increases while reducing the pressure on Governments to finance it.

According to report estimates, the land surrounding a number of stations along the proposed HSR line on the east coast would experience a significant value increase – between $48 billion to $140 billion, in the population growth scenarios used in the report.

The projections on both infrastructure-related uplift for existing residential properties from

improved accessibility and planning-related value uplift from land rezoned to residential use around the stations.

CFRC director Professor Christopher Pettit carried out the research alongside postgraduate researchers Will Thackway and Reg Wade through the Value Australia project, which has received funding support through the federal government’s Cooperative Research Centre Project (CRC-P) program. The project uses the power of data analytics and artificial intelligence to provide insights into Australia’s property market.

“We’ve put together this report for policymakers and decision-makers to explore these growth scenarios and make informed decisions based on big data and analytics,” Pettit said.

“There are a lot of opportunities around the HSR for Australia to build stronger connectivity between cities and inject significant wealth and job opportunities into the regions. The numbers in the report confirm and help quantify that considerable potential.”

The researchers calculated value uplift from improved accessibility by applying a particular coefficient, based on international case studies, on the total value of existing residential dwellings within the catchment area of proposed regional HSR stops.

The value uplift from planning control changes was calculated by subtracting the development costs from each area’s expected new dwelling values to obtain the residual land value (RLV) per new dwelling. The projected RLV for each area was then multiplied by a

range of population growth scenarios to get the final figures.

“We expect the values to be a conservative approach to estimation and that the total value uplift could actually be higher,” Pettit said.

“This is while still factoring in a profit for the developers after all the external costs, including stamp duty, legal fees and building costs.”

The report says the value uplift, as a direct result of the HSR and population growth in surrounding areas, can be captured with various policies known as ‘value capture.’

While the concept isn’t new – it partially funded the Sydney Harbour Bridge’s construction – it has been used to fund many major rail projects abroad. Recently, the Crossrail project in the UK (the Greater London Authority) implemented a Business Rate Supplement, which is expected to generate £4.1 billion ($7.7 billion), contributing substantially to the total cost of the whole project of £14.8 billion ($27.9 billion).

Betterment levies, developer charges or taxes on property transactions are among the various mechanisms available to secure some of the benefits delivered by public investment.

For the HSR in Australia, just how much value uplift can be captured comes down to the value

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High-Speed Rail

The Queensland Government is funding faster rail infrastructure.

capture policy frameworks and structure put in place.

“If you were to capture a substantial proportion of this value uplift, it could pay for a huge amount of the HSR,” Pettit said. “You would be looking at tens of billions of dollars just from the residential value uplift alone, without even factoring in commercial, industrial and other beneficiaries.

“Some of that value capture could also be used to invest into housing affordability schemes. It doesn’t necessarily all need to go towards the infrastructure.”

SYDNEY TO NEWCASTLE Indeed, calls for HSR in Australia are nothing new, with the concept under investigation since the early 1980s.

Every Federal Government since this time has investigated the feasibility of constructing rail systems with speeds above 200 kilometres per hour, but to date nothing has ever gone beyond the detailed planning stage.

With a Federal election looming this year, the concept has again been put forward as a carrot for voters, with the Opposition vowing to make fast rail connections between Sydney, the Central Coast and Newcastle a reality by assigning top priority for a new High-Speed Rail Authority (HSRA).

Labor leader Anthony Albanese said his party, if elected, would provide a $500 million down payment in his first budget to start corridor acquisition, planning and early works.

It will work closely with the New South Wales Government, which had already identified the project as a key priority.

“During our last period in Government, we invested more in rail projects than all previous governments combined,” he said.

The Phase 2 study report into high-speed

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rail commissioned by Albanese when he was Infrastructure Minister identified Sydney to Newcastle as forming the first component of an eventual line to Brisbane.

He said he would establish the HSRA as a statutory agency and issue a clear statement of expectations for it to begin work on the Sydney to Newcastle corridor as a matter of priority.

The line would include stops in the Central Coast, with Wyong and Gosford as obvious possibilities.

“We recognise the potential of our regions and the vibrant jobs and lifestyle options they offer all Australians,” he said.

“And with the population of the Hunter Valley and Central Coast forecast to grow by close to 200,000 people by 2040, Labor knows that planning for our medium to long term future requires vision, dedication and a commitment to work cooperatively with the states and territories.”

The NSW Government’s projections show the population of the Central Coast and the Hunter Valley is already growing by about 200,000 by 2040, making better transport connections a necessity.

Albanese said Labor shared the NSW government’s vision of a brighter future for the regions, with fast rail connections offering people more choice of where to live and work.

“Fast and high-speed rail connections are not short-term political fixes, they are the kind of significant nation-building projects visionary governments invest in,” he said.

“This line will be built with the capacity for trains to run up to and over 250kmh. This would slash journey times from Sydney to Newcastle from over two and a half hours to just 45 minutes. Travel from Sydney to Gosford would take only half an hour.

“Given that this is a staged project with a long-term focus, the new HSRA would work collaboratively with the NSW Government to determine the best way of delivering the project, whether that be a phased faster rail approach or an immediate provision of HSR services.”

While the Sydney to Newcastle route is a priority, the HSRA would continue work on advancing other sections of the line, eventually connecting Melbourne, Canberra, Sydney and Brisbane.

At the 2019 NSW State Election, then premier Gladys Berejiklian promised that her government would start work on a faster rail network. It looked at three options for fast rail services to regional centres: 1. Faster rail: speeds of 160-200km/h, requires track improvements on existing routes.

2. Fast rail: speeds of 200-250km/h, requires new rolling stock on a mixture of new and upgraded track sections.

3. High-speed rail: speeds surpassing 250km/h, expected to require a new dedicated and purpose-built line.

INFRASTRUCTURE AUSTRALIA Infrastructure Australia, the nation’s independent infrastructure advisor, has already advocated for governments to engage in protection and early acquisition of key infrastructure corridors.

Infrastructure Australia Chairman Mark Birrell identified the east coast high speed rail corridor as the “most urgent priority for protection”, due to its proximity to major population centres.

Corridor protection and early acquisition can reduce the costs of major projects and minimise the need for underground tunnelling.

The organisation’s 2021 Australian Infrastructure Plan recommends that the Australian Government invests in faster rail, fast rail and high-speed rail infrastructure.

It also believes the Commonwealth should take the lead on confirming the long-term interoperability requirements for fast rail, faster rail and high-speed rail lines that cross state and territory borders.

This will ensure consistency across jurisdictions on technical standards for tracks, operator training and communication and signalling systems.

THE CORRIDOR CONCEPT As it stands, the incumbent Federal Government prefers picking specific corridors for fast rail projects.

Urban Infrastructure Minister Paul Fletcher said during Albanese’s term as infrastructure

minister from 2007 to 2013, he could have started work on rapid rail.

“If he was serious about delivering highspeed rail, he had plenty of time to get work under way. All he actually delivered was a study that did not exactly give the project a glowing bill of health,” he said.

“If you want to talk about high-speed rail from Melbourne to Brisbane, then you need be honest with the Australian people about how much it is going to cost.

“What Albanese has promised would on any credible estimate cost between $200 billion and $300 billion. That huge spend has to be paid for by the taxpayer, including taxpayers in Adelaide, Cairns, Darwin, Hobart or Perth, who may never use it.

“The Coalition is already delivering a 20-year faster rail plan to deliver faster rail journey times along strategic corridors connecting major regional centres with capital cities.

Faster rail has the potential to deliver more sooner across multiple corridors, and at a more affordable cost.”

The National Faster Rail Agency was established on 1 July, 2019 to work with state and territory governments to deliver the plan, which includes a $2 billion commitment to faster rail between Geelong and Melbourne and funding to develop business cases for strategic corridors in NSW, Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia.

In the 2021-22 Budget, the Government committed $178.1 million towards preconstruction activities for the Kuraby to Beenleigh section as part of the Logan to Gold Coast Faster Rail project.

The Labor Party is promising to establish a High-Speed Rail Authority.

In the west, Australia’s largest state is using the funding to develop a strategic business case that will investigate options to provide faster passenger rail services from Perth to the city of Bunbury, about 200 kilometres away.

Identifying existing constraints and determine future demand and operational requirements, it will include a planning and investment program that will identify potential projects, cost and staging options to help guide future investment decisions.

The project will also consider population growth, travel patterns, private sector financing opportunities and access to jobs, services and affordable housing.

The strategic business case, estimated to cost $8 million, will determine the economic, environmental and social costs and benefits of improved passenger rail services between the two cities. WA will cover half the costs.

The strategic business case began on 11 August, 2021 and is expected to be completed in mid-2023.

QUEENSLAND FAST TRACKS TO FAST RAIL Meanwhile, the case for faster rail in Queensland has been given further impetus with the impending Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2032, which has prompted the need for supporting infrastructure.

Upgrading road infrastructure to connect large population centres like Brisbane and the Gold and Sunshine Coasts will only create induced demand and a favourable environment for cars, resulting in more traffic gridlock.

High speed rail and fast rail not only moves large amounts of people around quickly, but

also mean long distances are no longer a problem. More train services can be added to scale up capacity, saving space on existing roads for essential services.

Recognising this, the Queensland Government has committed an additional $1.121 billion to deliver faster rail services between Brisbane, Logan, Beenleigh and the Gold Coast.

As the first piece of Olympics transport infrastructure, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the major project would see more tracks laid and level crossings removed to support faster, more frequent train services.

“To ensure South East Queensland can continue to grow, we must keep evolving our rail network so it plays a bigger role in moving people from A to B,” she said.

“We continue to see progress made on the transformational Cross River Rail project, which this investment will complement – meaning faster, more frequent journeys.”

Transport and Main Roads Minister Mark Bailey said trains between Kuraby and Beenleigh currently share a single track in each direction.

“We are limited in the number of peak services we run each day, but by duplicating the track between Kuraby and Beenleigh stations, we can increase capacity through the region,” he said.

“Local motorists will also benefit with five level crossings to be removed and nine stations will be upgraded – vastly improving the amenities available to local commuters.”

The move has been welcomed by the Australasian Railway Association (ARA) , with Chief Executive Officer Caroline Wilkie saying faster rail would have a transformative impact on the region.

The ARA’s Faster Rail Report, released in 2021, confirmed the need for urgent action to deliver faster, more reliable and more frequent services between capital cities and regional centres.

“Investment in faster rail on routes like Brisbane to Gold Coast will make it easier for people to leave the car at home for their daily commute or weekend away,” Wilkie said.

“It will not only speed journey times, but increase flexibility for customers by enabling more trains, more often along the route.

“The global experience tells us faster rail drives urban renewal along the rail corridor, creating the opportunity for new housing and business precincts beyond capital city centres.

“With the Olympics just around the corner, faster rail will help showcase the very best Queensland has to offer and drive new development and growth long after the Games are over.”

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Diversity and Inclusion

The importance of diversity and inclusion in the workplace is key to enhancing the future of Australia’s rail sector.

More diversity with less adversity

Environmental, Social and Governance matters have gained a greater importance in recent years, and it’s certainly more than just a clichéd phrase.

The railway sector, like many other industries, has rightly prioritised sustainability in its operations and practices.

But it’s not just about environmental stewardship: it involves social welfare to deliver long-term value to stakeholders, encompassed in the ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) philosophy, which represents a framework to identify, evaluate and manage non-financial issues relevant to both an organisation and its stakeholders.

The environmental aspect looks at impacts on the planet such as energy and water use, waste discharges and resources needed, as well as development of sustainable products and services.

Governance considers the policies, organisational structure, and systems of practice that guide how an organisation operates in a transparent and inclusive manner.

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And the social element – which has been growing in prominence – drives awareness of and improvement of workforce inclusivity and wellbeing, human rights and social equity, as well as relationships with local communities and stakeholders throughout the value chain.

Overall, strong ESG performance creates shared value for workers, communities, investors and broader society: how the industry operates is as important as what it does.

The rail industry must be both safe and environmentally and socially responsible in order to both make an economic contribution and support societal ambitions, such as meeting climate change targets.

Robust ESG performance is built off investment in workforce skills and capability, research, new technologies and innovative practice to improve safety and workforce diversity, drive down emissions and water use,

support biodiversity and reduce waste.

A 2020 report by Victoria University into changing workforces stated that with labour shortages a long-term issue currently facing public transport, there is a critical need to attract and retain a diverse and innovative workforce to ensure future sustainability of the industry.

The paper said that to understand what is needed by the rolling stock sector, it is important to ascertain the organisational and cultural strengths within it, and the barriers to creating “an inclusive learning workforce that can retain and attract the diverse and innovative workforce they wish to become”.

It said that due to the evolution of technology and the need for innovation, people and the work they do in all areas of public transport are now critical to the future sustainability of the sector as a whole.

Image: Major Transport Infrastructure Authority, Victoria

BREAKING DOWN THE BIAS The rail sector has had a long history of being a male-dominated industry, which has meant that women were not knocking on the door of opportunity within rail as much as men.

According to Aurizon Talent Acquisition Manager Matthew Clifford-Jones, the lack of women did not mean that women weren’t interested in the profession.

In a report to the 2019 Heavy Haul Rail conference, he said females were outperforming males in technical and STEM subjects at school and beyond.

“So the skill, talent and interest appears to be there,” he said.

“I’d say it’s more of a perceived “cultural” mismatch. And that is something the rail industry needs to take active steps to change.”

An additional barrier is finding a diverse range of people with the skills, experience and qualifications for roles, throughout the organisation. However, Clifford-Jones believes that taking on people with indirect but transferable skills and experience can be just as good, if not better.

“Bringing someone in with transferrable skills and experience from another industry can

Diversity ensures that we reflect the communities in which we operate.

be a great move. And actually, it often pays to introduce new ways of thinking and cultural approaches to rail that have worked well in other sectors,” he said.

“They come in, shake things up in a good way and bring fresh ideas and experience – and most importantly, diversity of thought. That’s invaluable to us.”

Clifford-Jones said the importance of diversity and inclusion in the workplace extended far beyond fairness and equal rights, and is key to enhancing the future of Australia’s rail sector.

“Creating a culture where everybody feels safe and included to come to work should be a priority for every organisation,” he said.

“Organisations in our industry should reflect on how they make inclusion visible for women, indigenous Australians, people with disability, people from different cultural and religious backgrounds and the LGBTIQ+ community. If your workforce does not represent these communities than you need to make this a priority.”

EXAMPLES IN ACTION • Pacific National Pacific National has released its FY 2021 ESG Report, incorporating its ESG strategy which includes expanded goals for Australia’s largest private rail freight operator.

The strategy is focussed on achieving measures in the key areas of health and safety, inclusion and diversity, and environment.

Chief executive officer Paul Scurrah said Pacific National had shifted from reporting simply on its ESG performance metrics, to outlining a comprehensive pathway focused

on achieving specific goals in key areas in its annual ESG report. Complementing it is its company-wide values and priorities program launched by Scurrah in early 2021.

“The ‘Pacific National Approach’ (PNA) includes our strategic priorities and shared values which bind us together as a business and guide how we operate,” he said.

“Central to it is encouraging a diverse workforce, which is why our ESG framework supports a number of concrete initiatives, such as recognising our LGBTQI+ colleagues, our successful women’s mentoring program, and committing to targets to increase participation for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.

“Pacific National’s history, values and operational track record are a strong foundation to continue to grow and mature our ESG strategy to achieve our vision to be recognised as Australia’s most trusted and respected logistics partner.”

• ARTC The Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) is a strong supporter of gender and diversity balance in the workplace, and Joni Kua is a shining example of how the opportunity to work at the organisation has been grasped to the fullest.

The Network Performance Manager began her career as part of work experience in her final year of mechanical and manufacturing engineering studies at the University of South Australia.

She put her skills and smarts to good use straight away, and it’s now 16 years later.

In that time, she has earned a Master’s in Engineering – Railway Infrastructure and

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Diversity and Inclusion

Joni Kua relishes her role at ARTC.

has become an integral member of ARTC’s Operational Performance and Asset Condition Sub-Committee.

In her role as a Network Performance Manager, Kua and her team use data sourced from operations, track recordings and rail inspection cars to provide analysis, advice and reporting assistance to the Interstate and Hunter Valley asset management and operations teams.

With two young children, Joni tries to squeeze in “me time” , believing that balance is the best way to make the most out of life.

• Victoria’s Big Build Victoria’s Big Build, the massive transport infrastructure project across the state, has put in place many initiatives to help attract and grow the next generation of skilled, confident women in transport: • The Building Equality Policy is designed to address gender stereotypes in the building industry. Applying to new government projects valued at $20 million or more, it mandates female representation in at least: - 3 per cent of each trade role - 7 per cent of each non-trade position - 35 per cent of management, supervisor and specialist labour roles - 4 per cent of labour hours for apprentices and trainees.

• The Women in Apprenticeships fund supports 10 projects to create a pipeline of skilled workers.

• The Victorian Government’s Women in Transport Program supports women working in construction.

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Stefania Calati, a building manager for the Metro Tunnel Project’s Arden Station, is a civil engineer with 15 years of experience in the construction engineering field. She completed a double degree in Civil Engineering and Arts at the University of Melbourne, where she combined her love of mathematics and languages.

“As a female manager I bring a different type of energy to large infrastructure projects, the sites I work at, and the teams I work with.

I think differently, share differently, and listen differently,” she said.

“Little by little, I’m aiming to change how the roles of women in construction are perceived, so that women taking on key roles across major transport infrastructure projects like the Metro Tunnel Project becomes more the norm and less the exception.”

Rail and Infrastructure Graduate Adele Aldaoud is with the Suburban Rail Loop Authority, and moved to Australia from Syria.

Coupled with a love and talent for math, she knew engineering was for her. With the unwavering support of her parents, Adele completed a Bachelor of Civil Engineering at Al-Ba’ath University in Syria, then a Masters in Civil and Structural Engineering at the University of Tasmania.

“I like that engineering is all about innovation creativity, that you can make an impact on the community – and even the world – for the future,” she said.

Meanwhile, Level Crossing Removal Project engineers Sylvia Stephens and Aleks Knez are spreading the message that their traditionally male-dominated profession can provide a supportive environment for managing work and motherhood.

They have both returned from parental leave to project sites at Glen Huntly and Hurstbridge where works have ramped up to transform how commuters travel around Melbourne’s southeast and north-east.

Sylvia Stephens’ baby daughter Zoe pictured in her very own construction uniform.

Stephens is currently working part-time after giving birth to her first child, Zoe. She started working on the Level Crossing Removal Project as part of a graduate program in 2016 and has been part of the Caulfield to Dandenong, Seaford, Kananook and now Glen Huntly projects.

Returning to work earlier this year has also been a smooth process, and she has been supported by her manager and team to ensure she can continue in her role as Project Engineer, transforming the way people travel across Melbourne.

32-year-old Knez’ second child recently turned one. She returned to full-time work after Christmas with the support of her parents, in-laws and childcare. The Senior Project Engineer has a demanding role as part of works duplicating 3.5km of the Hurstbridge line and building new stations at Greensborough and Montmorency.

“Having diversity in the industry brings different perspectives and ways to solve problems. It’s the conversations and roles we play a part in everyday on big public projects that can deliver better outcomes for the community,” she said.

ARA GENDER DIVERSITY REPORT In its latest Gender Diversity Report, the Australasian Railway Association (ARA) found that more women were advancing their careers in rail but action is needed to support stronger female participation in the industry.

ARA Chief Executive Officer Caroline Wilkie said women now made up 24 per cent of the rail workforce, with industry strongly focusing on gender diversity.

The survey found 89 per cent of participating organisations have formal policies or strategies to support gender diversity and 80 per cent have recruitment policies or strategies to improve gender equity in their organisations.

The freight and intermodal sector saw the biggest rise in female participation, with a 12 per cent increase in the last two years. There was also a 16 per cent increase in female representation within rail industry governing bodies, with 27 per cent of governing body chairs being women.

The effect of the COVID pandemic was also evident, with 79 per cent of respondents having formal policies or strategies for flexible working arrangements, a five per cent increase in the last two years and above the Workplace Gender Equality Agency’s (WGEA) national average.

Wilkie said attracting females into rail apprenticeships or rail training and attracting skilled or qualified female candidates were key challenges reported by participating organisations.

Awards honour outstanding women achievers There is another exceptional field in the Women in Industry Awards, which recognise outstanding women from the industrials sector.

Rail Express has partnered with Prime Creative Media publications Australian Mining, PACE, Manufacturers’ Monthly, MHD Supply Chain Solutions, Prime Mover, Trailer, Waste Management Review, Roads & Infrastructure Australia and Australian Bulk Handling Review to acknowledge the exceptional women who have achieved success through their invaluable leadership, innovation and commitment to their respective fields.

The Women in Industry Awards honour outstanding women from the industrials sector – those who work in mining, road transport, manufacturing, engineering, logistics, bulk handling, waste management, rail and infrastructure.

This is an opportunity to recognise the women who are driving change in the industry and, in doing so, breaking down barriers and creating new possibilities for the next generation.

The 2021 finalists from the rail sector include: • Social Leader of the Year Anne Williams – Plant Operations Manager Rail, John Holland Anne Williams is changing the face of rail in Western Australia while also implementing cultural changes to develop and maintain a more diverse and inclusive workforce.

She has been in the John Holland company for more than 22 years and is excelling in her current role as the Plant Operations Manager.

Her self-belief and resilience have been a

Anne Williams, Plant Operations Manager Rail, John Holland

driving motivation for her ongoing commitment to creating pathways and making it easier for others to work within the industry.

Williams’ active involvement in the industry and the wider community is how she became aware of the Clontarf Foundation and its mission. Further, her passion for providing apprenticeship programs and opportunities for young people and new entrants are resulting in powerful and meaningful change across the industry.

• Excellence in Transport Catherine Baxter – Chief Operating Officer, Metro Trains Catherine Baxter is the Chief Operating Officer at Metro Trains Melbourne and is responsible for safely operating metropolitan passengers’ services, on-time and cost effective.

This past 12-plus months, under her leadership, MTM has rolled out some rail transport industry-driving firsts and much innovation to drive continuous improvement.

She inspires her leadership team to perform at the highest possible level, pushing her direct reports to not only achieve the franchise targets set by the State, but ensures that it demonstrates the Metro company values.

Baxter has been an important role model for other women in and outside of the industry, giving motivation to other women who aspire to achieve great things in transport.

Kirstyn Glass – Rail Operations Consultant, Trapeze Group Asia Pacific Kirstyn Glass has worked with Trapeze Group since 2019 to present, providing subject matter advice on rail technology to both transport authorities and operators within Australia and overseas.

She has used her operational knowledge and experience to enable Trapeze to gain a greater understanding of the rail industry, and the challenges faced by our clients.

With her many years of experience, she has been played a major role in designing new features and functionality within their system.

Since joining Trapeze Group, Glass has been an advocate for women in rail. Having

Jo Sainsbury, Director, Kickass Women

successfully worked in the rail industry for a lengthy time, she understands how rewarding it can be, the challenges that women face, and how increasing diversity by including more women in the industry will bring benefits across the board.

• Industry Advocacy Award Jo Sainsbury – Director, Kickass Women Jo Sainsbury drives women to succeed and has spent the past eight years learning, developing, and growing in her role and to strive for change.

She inspires other women to consider a career or career change and to pursue roles within these diverse industries, and has been a strong drive in introducing a campaign that will launch in August called ‘The Future is Female.’

Sainsbury is the loud and proud creator and founder of Kickass Women, which is building a distinctive role in the rail, mining, resource, STEM and construction industries.

She is using her voice via public speaking and social media to promote positive career success and career pathway outcomes for women and younger women.

The winners will be announced at a presentation event on Thursday, 7 April, at the Arts Centre, Melbourne.

Tickets are available from: https://primecreative.eventsair.com/women-inindustry-awards/tickets/Site/Landing

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Digitalisation and Design

Captis at the far edge of rail Australian Internet of Things (IoT) device manufacturer and software developer mIoT recently unveiled its latest version of its renowned and award-winning Captis digitisation tool.

Captis enables simple digitisation of traditional monitoring and measurement processes, operating where others cannot – at the far edge.

With a plug-and-play design, Captis easily connects to a variety of in-field sensors and utilises IoT cellular networks (Cat-M1 and NB-IoT) to log, store, and send sensor data to a device management cloud platform where users can gain real-time visibility of your devices and data.

Rail Express (REX) spoke to mIoT chief executive officer John Naughton about the updates made to the Captis range and the emerging reliance of IoT in the digitisation of rail networks.

REX: Rail operators are increasingly adopting IoT systems into their network – how do you see IoT transforming the rail industry?

Naughton: “IoT is no longer an emerging technology, these days it’s a critical component of the digitisation of industrial operations.

“The rail industry has so many moving parts, both literally and figuratively, so it only makes sense as the industry moves forward that it embraces digitisation, and therefore mIoT recently introduced the Captis Recharge as part of its V 1.2 release, a rechargeable successor to the Captis Solar.

automation and remote monitoring capability which IoT can provide.

“With Captis, it’s that environmental monitoring piece that is so valuable for rail operators concerned with both environmental risk mitigation and the safety of their passengers and the community.”

REX: You’ve mentioned environmental monitoring – what else can Captis provide?

Naughton: “Our customers work in remote, difficult to reach, and often harsh environments where power and connectivity is scarce.

“We help them overcome this challenge by providing a solution that operates at the far edge, where others cannot.

“By pairing the physical and digital worlds through our hardware and software, we provide a way to responsibly manage resources and equipment and, as I mentioned before, monitor the environment, all remotely.”

REX: Can you share any rail customer success stories that illustrate this?

Naughton: “In 2021 we assisted one of Australia’s largest freight rail operators in optimising its service through the

application of localised ambient air temperature monitoring.

“Speed restrictions come into play during extreme weather events such as high temperatures, so the rail operator was seeking a solution that could not only capture localised weather data, but one that could operate in very remote sections of the network.

“This is exactly the kind of application that Captis is made for.

“Its rugged design meant that it could withstand those same extreme weather events that it was monitoring, and the NB-IoT cellular technology meant that it could read, log, and send even in the most remote parts of Australia.

“The application was environmental monitoring, but the outcome was so much more – localised zone speed restrictions in high temperature affected areas only in place of blanket speed restrictions, and therefore a significant reduction in delayed minutes across the network.”

REX: How is Captis Version 1.2. different to Captis Gen 1.0?

Naughton: “We unveiled Captis Version 1.2 in February, with the devices set for release next month.

“This version boasts a series of refinements across the board, but our main focus has been to deliver a device with a more plugand-play design.

“Customers can also expect a more rugged and secure device, increased flexibility with sensors, and most notably, Captis Version 1.2 will support Microsoft Azure IoT native integration, which means devices will be able to communicate seamlessly with Microsoft Azure cloud environments out-of-the-box.”

REX: What’s next?

Naughton: “In addition to product development and some very exciting product launches on the horizon, we have a genuine commitment to addressing interoperability challenges for businesses adopting or seeking to adopt, IoT technology.

“Through strategic partnerships we hope to provide a seamless flow of data from edge to enterprise and help evolve the industrial IoT landscape.”

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Digitalisation and Design

BHP has partnered with Willow to implement a digital twin of its heavy haul network in Western Australia.

Digital twins transforming heavy haul freight in Australia The concept of digital twins is not new, but now – in an Australian first – it’s gone from just a buzzword to reality, with the application being used for BHP’s heavy haul freight in WA’s Pilbara.

The demands on rail are great, with rail owners needing to have their finger on the pulse across a complex array of data and market forces.

As expectations increase, there is pressure on owners to take advantage of new technologies, to ensure infrastructure networks can perform at their full potential.

But with new forms of automation and mechanisation come added complexity, with millions of new connected devices added to infrastructure networks every day.

There’s an abundance of data that rail owners are required to manage, from train

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cycle times to the effects of speed restrictions and understanding where the root cause defects are coming from within rolling stock and the track infrastructure.

However, much of this information exists in independent systems creating siloed data that is not easily shared – a major pain point.

It can be the norm for most rail owners to be dealing with multiple separate enterprisegrade software systems for asset management and maintenance. Each comes with its own interface and data protocol.

In this environment, decision-makers are left to connect the dots on their own, often making

critical judgements based on incomplete information and manual reports.

Improving network availability and cycle time throughout networks is a key imperative, especially for heavy haul owners. To make operations more flexible to respond to market demands, owners need accurate, real-time performance insights, so they can identify and resolve, for example, speed restrictions and defects quickly.

Enter WillowTwin for Rail, a powerful software platform developed from deep knowledge in operating and maintaining railway networks.

WillowTwin for Rail centralises and structures information from rail systems, to create a ‘digital twin” — a digital replica of a rail network. By aggregating live, static and spatial data, the platform provides a single source of truth to undertake smart asset management functions.

WillowTwin for Rail integrates with a multitude of widely used rail operating and maintenance systems, creating an open protocol and agnostic tool.

Built by rail engineers, the platform sets a new standard of railway asset management and maintenance across heavy haul, light rail, metro and passenger rail networks.

As Willow Head of Australia, Daniel Kalnins explains: “We connect subject matter experts with the right software expertise, so we can predict where the failures will be on the railway network.”

Kalnins said the benefits of WillowTwin for Rail include: • The ability to view an entire rail network in a single platform.

• Increased overall track availability and throughput of production.

• Live data on asset condition, availability, and performance against historical data to derive actionable insights.

• Reduction in maintenance costs, Temporary Speed Restrictions (TSRs), average time between failures and unplanned downtime.

“In our partnerships with global railway owners, operators and maintainers, we’ve demonstrated that with WillowTwin we can improve network availability, safety and reliability, all while lowering maintenance costs,” Kalnins said.

PROOF IN THE PILBARA In a global first, world-leading resources company BHP has partnered with Willow to implement a digital twin of its heavy haul network in Western Australia.

This case study was presented jointly at the recent AusRail PLUS conference, titled Enabling the transformation of heavy haul rail through digital twin technology with BHP as part of the Rail Freight and Heavy Haul stream.

“The challenge for BHP, like many owners, is that they faced managing a sea of fragmented technology vendors, each with their own language and interface,” Kalnins said.

“This environment restricts clear data for real-time decisions and automation, making reporting on critical issues such as performance or maintenance effectiveness more difficult.”

WillowTwin For Rail provides a single

source of truth for the network, enabling BHP to better visualise asset information, enable more contextual and effective decisionmaking and effectively enable more problem solvers across its team.

During BHP and Willow’s jointly presented case study, an example was shared of identifying and resolving a defect in an

the spatial map to view the live track data to identify the problem,” Kalnins said.

“This information is available to both the reliability engineer at the office and the track inspector on site via their mobile device. Using intelligent analytics, it is possible to monitor for example switch performance over weeks or months to identify, predict and resolve faults

“Live data brings digital twins to life. For example, if you are alerted to a defect or a speed restriction you can immediately drill into the spatial map to view the live track data to identify the problem.”

Daniel Kalins, Willow Head of Australia

WillowTwin for Rail centralises and structures data from rail systems, to create a digital twin.

individual switch asset. It demonstrated the core benefits of WillowTwin’s data centralisation, visualisation and validation, along with the ability to review condition monitoring and measurement data of critical assets in the field.

Having this kind of data centralised and available can transform the way organisations operate and can enable more people across a rail team to problem solve issues, rather than just relying on those with specialised software or experience.

“Live data brings digital twins to life. For example, if you are alerted to a defect or a speed restriction you can immediately drill into

before they become a major disruptive issue to the network and a major cost.”

Kalnins is working closely with BHP to set the future roadmap to continuously enhance the digital twin as it evolves through further integrations to deliver real time KPIs, advanced analytics, scenario planning and the forecasting of asset health.

The aim is for the platform to enable a predictive approach to asset management, resulting in advanced modelling and scenariobased predictions across a network.

For more information on WillowTwin for Rail, visit www.willowinc.com

WWW.RAILEXPRESS.COM.AU | 37

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Digitalisation and Design

Removing the smokescreen McConnell Dowell is using the power of digitalisation and Internet of Things sensors to simplify supply chain management.

For 60 years customers have been coming to McConnell Dowell with complex projects that require innovative solutions.

Known as the creative construction company, McConnell Dowell has built thousands of quality assets and facilities for customers and communities, from remote resource projects to city-shaping infrastructure. Its expertise has grown steadily to span rail, building, civil, electrical, fabrication, marine, mechanical, pipelines, tunnel and underground construction.

Always on the lookout for new technologies and smarter ways of working, the company identified the Internet of Things (IoT) as a driver of new efficiencies. This could include, for example, reducing the number of physical site visits by using video technology, location-based services, or drones.

Monitoring for noise and dust could improve environmental compliance. In doing so, the cost of acoustic specialists could be saved.

Asset management, tracking, and geo-fencing could not only provide end-to-end visibility and prevent potential theft, but also help to better coordinate employees with physical assets to improve uptime and operational efficiency.

Technology, if coordinated correctly, can also increase the monitoring of progress. With greater visibility and predictability through tracking, there could be less focus on contingency planning and more bottom-line savings.

CASE STUDY: CHERRY STREET, WERRIBEE The Cherry Street project involved a road over rail bridge adjacent to the busy shopping centre of Werribee in Victoria.

A precast manufacturer and steel fabricator client had required an improvement of his The Cherry Street, Werribee, project involves a road over rail bridge.

data collection system to be more transparent, which had been a constant area of potential misinformation and error management.

McConnell Dowell General Manager Rail, Kyle Mortimer, said the goal was to remove any smokescreens but at the same time use technology to fulfill the role of a person “spending hours in front of their computer compiling reports and required documentation”.

“This in turn will enable people to spend more time contributing to more ‘value-add’ activities as part of their main job/role over paperwork,” he said.

“The intent is to engage with the suppliers to introduce a new process to replace the existing one. This involved some very basic but necessary requirement gathering as the process is undertaken.

“The problem with the method of data collection in the past is that it is often compiled across disparate systems, and more importantly across different stakeholders, in this example, between lead constructor and supplier.

“We had to determine a method to capture this information through a digital means to allow it to be shared, i.e. using leading edge technology proven across many other industries outside of construction.

“In summary, we needed to digitise a manual and disparate process, using both the power of digitalisation and Internet of Things (IoT) sensors.”

Mortimer said use of the sensors enabled the company to further leverage its already wellestablished IoT technology platform to store and categorise the collected information.

“Enhancing that same platform further to include or integrate to a simple data

entry functionality and therefore facilitate the digitisation of a paper form, allowed us to look to remove some of these historical issues,” he said.

So for this particular client, when it came to the production of these individual elements, once a precast panel (as an example) was cast or initially put together, photos and images would be scanned. The same details originally detailed out on the paper form for later entry into the internal system would now be entered directly into a tablet and that same data collected digitally.

“Photos are also enabled to capture cement testing and/or steel certificates for reference later,” Mortimer said. “This information is also then transparent to the head contractor, enabling them to keep the manufacturer up to date with their expected time of delivery as the construction program changes.

“This also allows for full visibility and reporting across all levels (from the site supervisor through to the Business Unit Manager and CEO) on whether the manufacturing process is ahead, on track or behind the production plan.”

This same theory is then repeated at key points in the element’s lifecycle, for example: • Delivery – understanding and comparing delivery timing to ensure critical path elements are delivered prior to being required. This phase also includes all quality assurance details and photos that go with the element for reference.

• Storage location – enabling the team to be always made aware where the element has been stored across one or numerous laydown locations for better planning around the actual installation in terms of logistics should equipment be required to shift the elements, or staging is an issue.

• Installation location – Using a digital interface of where the element is to be placed, a last-minute check can be made to ensure the element is being placed into the correct location.

“This then provides within one system full visibility of a single element from when it was originally put into the cast, when it was birthed, when and where it was delivered, and lastly, when it was installed, along with maintaining a complete quality assurance history,” Mortimer said.

WWW.RAILEXPRESS.COM.AU | 39

Digitalisation and Design

App speeds up protection process A digital Permit-To-Work system has revolutionised the way in which Track Occupancy Authorities are managed in Australia.

Track maintenance and repair work is of course a constant requirement to ensure safety of journeys along the rail lines.

When this is carried out, it is necessary to ensure that the section being worked on is protected and clearly notified to rail operators: a task carried out by a repair crew’s protection officer in liaison with the network controllers.

Yet in this day and age of advanced technology, communication between parties to gain permits to work and Track Occupancy Authorities (TOAs) often still takes the form of phone calls – which may go unanswered during busy periods – and tedious paperwork, which can be time-consuming and contribute to workforce inefficiencies.

All that has changed with wider usage of an electronic Permit-To-Work (PTW) system for managing authorities to support track maintenance activities, developed by Newcastle-based software and hardware engineering firm 4Tel – a company which specialises in rail systems, providing rail technology and services to both domestic and international companies.

Named 4PTW, the tool includes a mobile application (app) for use by protection officers and a central server to integrate this into the train control environment.

As general manager of control systems Graham Hjort explains, 4PTW is integrated with the train control systems to perform work on track functions that previously required multiple phone calls between track workers and network controllers.

“By replacing these phone calls with secure data messaging, users have been able to realise significant workforce efficiencies,” he said.

“Using the app to transact with the central server, workers do not need to seek train controller authority for low-risk activities. This significantly reduces non-productive time for track work staff waiting for network controller attention and clearance.

“Conversely, a busy controller no longer needs to transact all track work matters and is relieved of most routine matters previously

40 | ISSUE 3 - A P R I L 2022 | RAIL EXPRESS

An example of the 4PTW app display.

requiring interaction. For these reasons alone, 4PTW is a very powerful tool for improving track worker efficiency.

“When 4Tel began the process of developing a track worksite protection application, we asked ourselves three questions.

“Can we use technology to improve risk control effectiveness for track work activities?

“Is it possible to provide efficiencies to increase time on track?

“Can we make the technology cost effective and use equipment that track workers already have? The answer to each of these questions was ‘Yes’.

“With the app, 4Tel has been able to deliver significant operational benefits by improving the process of obtaining approval to conduct track work activities.”

4PTW had been developed to address the numerous risks associated with performing track work in a range of complex and multifaceted rail networks.

The benefits include reduction of verbal communication that can lead to human error, increased location assurance through map displays, clarity on agreed arrangements through transparency of information, and enforcement of staff competencies using login credentials.

The principle risk controls have been developed around providing a means of location assurance and reducing the reliance on

verbal communications to communicate safety critical information.

“The map display enables the protection officer to view the authority and worksite limits and confirm that the correct region is being blocked from trains to ensure repair work can be carried out,” Graham said.

“Unlike a static paper form, the 4PTW app interface can dynamically update as required.

SMS updates are used extensively to notify protection officers about changes that are relevant to their track occupancy authority, informing them of when they need to refresh the application.”

These benefits are realised through the use of existing technology available in most iOS and Android phones, and can also be increased based on the level of control system integration.

AUSTRALIAN RAIL TRACK CORPORATION The 4PTW app has proven to be an invaluable tool for the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC), which operates rail networks across five states.

The software was commissioned by the ARTC and modified specifically for its staff and contractors on the NSW network.

Named eTAP (for Electronic Track Access Protection), the app provides functionality for protection officers that replaces the traditional requirement to complete paper TOA forms and phone calls to network control for Look Out

Working (LOW) and Working In Corridor (WIC) notifications, needed to obtain the necessary safe working protection for work along the organisation’s rail lines.

ARTC deployed eTAP into the whole of the ARTC-managed NSW network in February 2020.

According to ARTC Project Manager of Operations Services, Stewart Haycock, 4Tel was able to make enhancements to the app to suit ARTC’s specific requirements, and provides a continuing service to maintain, improve and upgrade the system.

Stewart said the widespread use and quick uptake of eTAP in NSW has proven how userfriendly and efficient the tool is.

“From day 1 the utilisation of eTAP started at 70 per cent, and then within a matter of weeks this quickly escalated up to 90+ per cent,” he said.

“While the use of eTAP is not mandated, 99 per cent of al TOAs, LOW and WIC transactions today are done through the app.

“It tells me that, firstly, the product is very good. If people don’t like something, they just won’t use it. To see the use of eTAP sustained at that level means I think we really hit the mark well.

“The speed at which it was taken up meant there was a genuine craving from that particular user group – the protection officers – to use smart technology to make their lives better, safer and more efficient, in a highly pressurised environment in their day-to-day work.

“We’re also continuing to drive and look for new innovations and functionality to bring into the tool as driven by our end-users’ desires to continue to build on its capability.”

Stewart said the app was particularly valued by operators such as ARTC, which managed thousands of kilometres of track, and on which daily access for maintenance work is required by many dozens of maintenance crews, often at the same time.

“Because of eTAP we’ve seen a reduction of about 100,000 phone calls a year going into our two NSW Network Control Centres,” he said.

“That’s terrific from a network controller perspective, particularly at peak times for rail maintenance crews trying to access the network. You’ve got crews descending into the network at roughly at the same time, probably within an hour of each other, which means they’re all wanting to contact with control at the same time.

“So the volume of phone calls for network controllers at these peak times was very challenging to manage alongside prioritising other safety critical functions such as moving rail traffic safely through the network.

The app provides a means of location assurance and removes the need to use verbal communications to communicate safety information.

“Additionally, we have heard from protection officers who, when organising a simple 10 minute job, particularly in peak times, have been put on hold, waiting to speak to the network controller, for anywhere up to 30 minutes. With eTAP, we’ve solved that pain point.”

Stewart said the longer-term aim was to expand the safe working access types that the app managed as well as introduce eTAP into the other states.

“We are starting the process of assessing what we can do with respect to introducing this really great tool into the other parts of the ARTC network so we can unlock all those terrific benefits,” he said.

NSW REGIONAL NETWORK 4PTW was also modified into an app called ETW, to provide improved safety and efficiency outcomes for protection officers and network

control officers working on the country network previously maintained by John Holland, which covers thousands of kilometres of tracks and links broad areas of regional NSW to interstate and metropolitan rail systems, transporting coal, grain, cotton, minerals and containerised freight to domestic and export markets.

As with eTAP, it offers an alternate means of documentation for using TOAs. Only train controllers may still authorise TOAs, which give exclusive occupancy to the protection officer.

A single worksite, including equipment, and associated rail traffic, may occupy the portion of track defined by the TOA. Further updates to ETW have included Route Control Blocking, and a separate product, ETW-V, which is specifically designed for high rail vehicles providing a means for mapping their track vehicle journey within a TOA.

ARTC workers look at the ETAP app.

WWW.RAILEXPRESS.COM.AU | 41

Digitalisation and Design

Accurate capture of data across the supply chain For mobility leader Siemens, the standardisation of materials offered within Project i-TRACE has helped it streamline product identification processes and improve transaction efficiency.

Over the past few issues, Rail Express has expanded on the merits of Project i-TRACE, which focusses on a range of digitalisation initiatives including the standardised identification and marking of parts, components, and assets in the Australian rail industry.

Participating organisations use it to meet global data standards and support the growing use of automation in rail, to better leverage data analytics, machine learning and artificial intelligence to drive new efficiency gains and cost savings in their business.

The industry-wide initiative resulted from a collaboration between the Australasian Railway Association, global supply chain standards organisation GS1 Australia and innovative rail companies determined to digitise the rail industry, including asset and inventory management processes.

As GS1 Australia Senior Account Manager for Freight, Logistics and Industrial Sectors, Michiel Ruighaver, reminds us, GS1 licenses numbers to create globally unique identification keys for items across the supply chain (eg. rail parts, components, and assets), companies and locations. “Just like a road authority manages and communicates the ownership of licence plates for cars,” he said.

“GS1 defines how to structure barcode symbol characteristics and data encoded in the barcode to meet ISO standards. This ensures the data is captured accurately and consistently across the supply chain without confusion and to ensure interoperability.

“GS1 standards are software agnostic, enabling them to be adopted into existing business applications.”

CASE STUDY: SIEMENS Transport solutions leader Siemens Mobility is one of many companies whose operations have benefitted from Project i-TRACE. Warehouse manager Tim Best said adopting a standardisation approach had always been detailed in the company’s priorities.

“We have always wanted to adopt a

42 | ISSUE 3 - A P R I L 2022 | RAIL EXPRESS

streamlined approach to identifying product and transacting correctly and efficiently in our Enterprise Resource Planning systems,” he said.

“The Project was a great opportunity for us to do so. If the ARA had not mandated this requirement, I doubt we would have achieved what we have.”

Best said before implementing Project i-TRACE identification and barcoding standards, the process had been done manually and inefficiently.

“Our processes relied heavily on vendor labelling, product knowledge and manual data entry into our ERP system,” he said. “The Project i-TRACE framework makes transactions easier.”

The introduction of Project i-TRACE involved initial GS1 concept discussions with internal development teams and stakeholders, followed by meetings with external customers on specific GS1 guidelines and expectations. “We introduced the GS1 concept to external vendors to introduce GS1 compliant labelling,” Best said.

To further reinforce the program, Siemens enabled a warehouse management module into its SAP Enterprise Resource Planning software, developed and introduced applications to manage transactions with handheld devices using GS1 barcodes, and purchased appropriate hardware, such as label printers and handheld scanning devices.

“We also updated the internal process to enable GS1 identification and barcodes to be the predominant method of transacting in our warehousing and assembly plant,” Best said.

However, in the early stages, it wasn’t all smooth sailing. “At first, we struggled to fully understand the concept of what GS1 was, how the barcode structure actually worked and how we should use the GS1 barcode within our business,” Best said.

“But we wanted standardisation. We have since adapted our internal processes to meet GS1 guidelines and customer requirements. We have installed new infrastructure and secured networks to support the new handheld devices.

“Being a global company with divisions across the globe, it was challenging to have

Project i-TRACE label plates for Siemens point machines.

our implementation requirements understood and effected into our ERP system, and aligning processes within our global company framework.”

Best said the GS1 team were always on hand to assist and were helpful introducing Siemens to the concept and clarifying any technical requirements or questions.

The identification ease has impressed Siemens and has brought along with it many benefits.

“We have learned a great deal about how to warehouse materials correctly by standardising our storage practices,” Best said.

“We also realised GS1 can be used more widely in other industries. It is not just for retail.

“We are still learning to streamline our processes so transactions can take place using GS1 standards. Doing this will help us improve inventory accuracy and delivery performance.

“We can now scan all materials in simple transactions in real time.

“We now provide more information to our customers by embedding detail into the GS1 barcode. This means the customer no longer needs to contact us for this information.”

To make the most of the i-TRACE experience, Best offered some suggestions.

“Ensure you understand the GS1 concept fully before trying to implement it,” he said.

“Plan your implementation very carefully and do not be in a rush to get it finished all at once.

“Plan and clarify your requirements correctly with GS1 Australia and your internal development teams, as this will save you a lot of time, effort, and cost.”

“Be prepared to change your initial plans on implementation, as your concept on what GS1 is will change as you progress.”

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More diversity, less adversity With public transport facing labour shortages, there is a critical need to attract and retain a diverse, inclusive and innovative workforce to ensure future sustainability of the industry – PAGE 30

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Major Projects and Infrastructure

Manila metro coup for Thales Thales will provide digital communications and supervision technologies for Metro Manila’s first underground subway.

Global mobility specialist Thales, in a consortium with Colas Rail (lead) and Egis, has been awarded a contract worth more than €1 billion by Mitsubishi Corporation to design and build the turnkey rail system for the Metro Manila Subway.

The state-of-the-art system, based on digital technologies, will provide an environmentally friendly transport alternative in Manila to improve connectivity as well as reduce congestion and atmospheric pollution in the city.

The Metro Manila Subway is one of the Philippines’ largest infrastructure projects aimed at creating an efficient rail system in the world’s most densely populated city.

As part of this push for development, construction has begun on a third Mass Rapid Transit line and the metropolis’ first underground subway line to connect its northern and southern cities.

In the frame of this contract, Thales will provide its Integrated Communications and Supervision (ICS) and Automatic Fare Collection (AFC) systems to the project, at a value of €156 million.

Set to connect Valenzuela in the north, to the southern city of Parañaque, the 35 kilometre line will consist of 15 underground stations that will reduce traffic congestion and promote more efficient commuter journeys.

The Philippines’ Department of Transportation (DOTr) estimates that the future subway line will reduce travel time from Quezon City to Taguig by two-thirds, from close to two hours today to 35 minutes.

This contract represents Thales’ noteworthy entry into the transportation sector in the Philippines. This is also the first in the Asian region where the latest generation of the company’s Integrated Communications and Supervision solution will be implemented, supported by global expertise from Thales teams in Singapore, Hong Kong, Portugal and France.

Thales will design and develop the integrated and secure communications networks (including radio, a multi-service network, wayside telephone and wireless LAN systems), wayside equipment for security systems (including CCTV and video analytics features), passenger information and public

44 | ISSUE 3 - A P R I L 2022 | RAIL EXPRESS

The Metro Manila Subway is one of the Philippines’ largest infrastructure projects.

address, the digital supervision solution as well as the centralised supervision of energy system (power-SCADA).

This state-of-the-art ICS solution is compliant with the highest cybersecurity standards and will offer DOTr the latest digital technologies for an intelligent, sustainable and scalable system that is designed to last.

Thales has built extensive experience in major metro projects in the region over the last decade, with strong local expertise from teams situated all across Asia, collaborating with Thales teams in Europe and North America.

Thales South East Asia Vice-President Nicolas Bouverot said he was delighted the company had been selected, together with its consortium partners, to help in the modernisation of Manila’s rapidly-changing urban infrastructure.

“The Metro Manila Subway will

significantly improve mobility for the city’s residents, and we are committed to working with our partners to bring innovative technology for safer, quicker, and more comfortable journeys,” he said.

“This contract also further reinforces Thales’ leading position in South East Asia for rail solutions, from signalling to integrated communications and supervision systems and ticketing, for some of the region’s most complex metro projects.

“This marks an exciting new journey for Thales in the Philippines, and with the strong collaboration from our teams in Asia and Europe, we look forward to helping the Philippines build a robust transportation network.”

Colas Rail will be responsible for the engineering and system integration, track, CBTC signalling, power distribution, as well as depot equipment and overhead lines. The other partner Egis secured the E&M systems and track works package subcontract.

Rolling Stock and Manufacturing More matched contact surface between the wheel and rail results in less wear of wheel and rail.

New bogies create value for customers CRRC has researched and developed a new generation of high-performance series-radial bogies with auxiliary frames.

China-based CRRC’s new bogies set out to solve the problems faced by traditional railway wagons, such as serious wear of wheel to rail, low environmental protection performance, and poor hunting stability, and improving the economy of railway transportation as a result.

Up to now, about 1000 wagons have been equipped with the radial bogies in Australia, and they are creating more economic value to customers.

TECHNICAL FEATURES • More matched contact surface between the wheel and rail lead to less wear of wheel and rail.

The bogies use large deflection rubber cushions with “appropriate parameters”, while coordinating the radial bogie technology to further reduce the dynamic action force of wheel to rail, slowing down the wear rates of wheel and rail, extending the service lives of wheel and rail and improving the wagon’s economy of application.

After several years of tracing research, CRRC found that the average wheel flange wear of radial bogies with auxiliary frame was about 33 per cent that of the bogie (with cross connecting rods) after the wheels run about 200,000km; and about 50 per cent of bogies with cross connecting rods after the wheels run about 400,000km.

The metal loss after re-profiling the wheel tread is reduced on average by about 14.5 per cent of bogies with cross connecting rods after the wheels run about 450,000km, which can reduce the machining amount and machining times for re-profiling, extending the service life of wheels by 1.6 times that of bogies with cross connecting rods.

• There is less unsprung weight, lower and more reasonable distribution of wheel to rail action force.

The auxiliary frame and adapter are designed individually, greatly reducing the unsprung weight, and achieve lower action force of wheel to rail.

They coordinate radial bogie technology and large deflection rubber cushion technology to enable more balanced distribution of lateral action force of wheel to rail, achieving low dynamic action force performance.

• The wagon has low operating resistance and better environmental protection performance.

The connection between the U-shaped auxiliary frames is flexible; it coordinates the radial bogie technology and the appropriate horizontal stiffness of the large deflection rubber cushion to ensure the impact angle of wheel to rail is only 20 to 40 per cent that of the traditional three-piece cast steel bogie.

This greatly reduces the operating resistance of the bogie (only 33 to 50 per cent that of the traditional bogie), and saves the energy used for dragging the wagons (5 per Type of bogie

cent that of traditional bogies), improving the environmental friendliness of the wagon.

• There is more reliable connection and more safety with the riveting technology used between the adapter and the U-shaped auxiliary frame to improve the connection reliability of the two parts.

The pinning limit-position technology between the cross connecting rods and the auxiliary frames eliminates escape of the traditional round pin connection completely, and improves the anti-escaping performance to ensure the safety and reliability of the wagon operating, while boosting the turnover rate and the transportation economy.

• The integrated brake device fitted has wide adaptability and stronger competition than others.

The product can be equipped with BAB series, DAB series, PAB series, PAB series and internationally well-known TMX, TMB-60, BFCB and other integrated brake devices.

It effectively improves the braking efficiency and ensures the safety operation of wagons while reducing their tare weight to improve the economy of application.

Track gauge (mm)

Journal/ Bearing

Axle load (t)

Diameter of wheel tread (mm)

Fixed wheelbase mm

Diameter of center plate (mm)

DZ6 type

1435

6 1/2"×9"

30

915

1860

419

DZ3 type

1435

353132A

27

915

1860

375

K7 type

1435

353130B

25

840

1800

375

HZ25E-AUS type

1435

6"×11"

25

840

1800

356

HZ25-1520 type

1520

313530B

25

957

1870

354

HZF23-AUS type

1600

6"×11"

23

840

1800

356

HZ14-TWN type

1067

5"×9"

14

860

1750

394

HZ20A-THA type

1000

6"×11"

20

851

1800

305

Specifications for the bogies.

WWW.RAILEXPRESS.COM.AU | 45

Operations and Maintenance

The mechatronics revolution transforming rail equipment sector Mechatronics, the interface of mechanical and electrical engineering with advanced computer technology, now plays a vital part in today’s rail construction, electrification, and maintenance programs.

Even as short as 10 years ago, the industry never envisaged a rail construction consisting of around 300 tonnes being fully controlled via a multi-channel remote handpiece that incorporates not only finite movements of multiple functions, but also a host of failsafe safety features.

Perhaps the mechatronic evolution was really advanced and was acknowledged when the control of today’s truck-mounted cranes moved completely into the radio remote control era.

Time endowed “hard to please” railmen, brought up with the likes of manual lever controls, safety chains, and wind-up and downrail modules are now conceding that without robust mechatronic systems, today’s rail efficiencies would be significantly hampered.

Manco Rail, a major rail equipment supplier over the past 40 years, has taken a leading role in embracing this revolution, starting from a team of talented young design engineers from a wide array of backgrounds, who frequently engage in demanding brainstorming sessions.

As Manco Rail managing director Bryan Black says, apart from the high level of productivity gains, the safety features are insurmountable, and have enabled the industry to provide a higher degree of worker safety, with the clear downstream benefits.

In Manco Rail’s particular case, examples of this evolution include: • Multiple self-drive and towed 50 tonne GVM trailers, locked in a consist of around 300 tonnes, with power units “talking to each other” as grades and track speed demands constantly change. Such a concept has been used in the Sydney Metro Line Wide, twin 15k rail tunnels.

• Automated fold-down handrails and folddown and -up access steps on Sydney Trains’ new Elevated Work Platforms, which enable the slewing function to be achieved at the lowest possible height when working under live wire conditions.

• Special low height 30 tonne capacity rail transporters, enabling large truck-mounted

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Manco Rail’s complex wire tensioning units and advanced PLC designs ensure the desired tension, track speed and drum feed speeds are fully interfaced while simultaneously feeding cantenary and contact wire.

vacuum excavators to gain access to tunnel environments, with the rail transporter direction and speed being controlled from either the operator or in the carried vehicle or any location within 100 metres of the operating unit.

• Complex wire tensioning units, interfacing advanced PLC designs, that ensure the desired tension, track speed and drum feed speeds are fully interfaced while simultaneously feeding both cantenary and contact wire.

• The constant and ongoing developments in providing automatic warning and shut down exclusion zones.

• Rail trailer-mounted radio-controlled multipurpose straddles that can transit trailer to trailer with significant loads up to six tonnes.

“These are just a few examples of the incredible advancements the hydraulic, electrical, robotic, and mechanical component

suppliers now interface to provide such manufacturers as Manco Rail with suitable and highly reliable integrated systems,” Black said.

“Where to next? Well, we are all familiar with automated driverless passenger transit units, so perhaps there will be an age where robots execute complex maintenance work, in high-risk environments controlled from a central control room.”

A Manco truck-mounted vacuum excavator.

AUSTRALASIAN RAILWAY ASSOCIATION

Operations and Maintenance

New global player in rail infrastructure Mosdorfer has boosted its rail infrastructure services with the acquisition of the Rail Products division of the Pfisterer Group.

For more than 25 years, Mosdorfer has been building a portfolio of safe and reliable powerdelivery systems designed specifically for electric railways.

For the renowned manufacturer of transmission and distribution-class overhead powerline equipment, this focus on rail took a huge step forward in December 2021 with the acquisition of the Rail Products division of the Pfisterer Group, manufacturer of high-voltage cable accessories and a system provider in the field of energy infrastructures.

According to Mosdorfer Graph managing director Anthony Jones, bringing together the products and also the R&D and manufacturing expertise of Mosdorfer and Pfisterer Rail has created a global leader in railroad infrastructure.

“The acquisition includes around 70 employees at three locations in Spain, Italy and the UK, and ideally complements the team and product range of Mosdorfer, which is part of the Knill Energy group of companies based in Weiz, Austria,” he said.

“With its products and systems, Knill Energy makes a significant contribution to the smooth supply of electricity worldwide.

“The core competencies of the Knill Energy companies lie in damping systems and

fittings for overhead lines, electric rail infrastructure equipment, monitoring and digital services for line management, and cabinets for energy, telecommunications, traffic and control systems.”

The Pfisterer Group invented the patented automatic spring-tensioning device known as Tensorex C+.

Through the interaction of a spiral spring and a cam (a pulley with variable radius), Tensorex C+ exerts a constant pulling force on the wiring system throughout day and night temperature fluctuations and variations through the seasons.

This compensates for changes in length and keeps the contact line at a constant geometry. The high precision of the system response means that the actual operating point can be read at a glance any time – no re-measuring is necessary.

With this system there is no need for regular lubrication or greasing. Once in service, the system is maintenance-free.

Knill Energy managing director Christian Knill said the company has risen to become a worldwide specialist in rail infrastructure.

“With the innovative Tensorex C+ technology, we become the world market leader in catenary compensating devices,” he said. “Together with our existing products

The Tensorex C+: a spring automatic tensioning device.

in overhead lines, this creates exciting opportunities and synergies.”

Complementing the tensioning systems is a huge range of catenary and cantilever systems, customised rail insulators, section insulators, plus an extensive variety of clamps and connectors for metro rail, light rail and highspeed rail networks worldwide.

To find out more about Tensorex C+ and the other Mosdorfer railway infrastructure components, contact Mosdorfer Graph Pty Ltd on +61 3 9899 2431, or email sales@ mosdorfergraph.com.au.

The range includes catenary clamps, insulators and droppers.

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MFB Products has enclosure solutions covered Starting up in 1970, Australian company MFB Products has established itself as a leader in design and manufacture of enclosures and metalwork for the communications, IT, security and defence industries across the country.

As a solution provider, MFB has the most comprehensive range of enclosure products to support all applications.

This includes the MFB S280 industrial enclosures, which are fully welded metal fabricated units manufactured in Australia from either mild steel or 316 stainless steels.

Enclosures are powder coated to a customer choice of colours. For stainless steel applications, generally they are left raw with a linished finish, but can be powder coated on request. Typically, these types of enclosures are for outdoor applications.

MFB S280 enclosures can include inside walls lined with Thermobreak, sunshields and weather hoods.

Fully welded enclosures provide greater IP (Ingress Protection) attributes.

As MFB managing director David Bilston explains, the S280 range conforms to AS 60529:2004 Degrees of Protection provided by an enclosure.

“As a minimum they meet IP54, where 5 indicates dust protection and limited ingress; and 4 means protection against water splashed from all directions, limited ingress,” he said.

“MFB S280 enclosures are third party accredited to IP66, where the first 6 means

it is dust-tight, and the second 6 means the enclosure is protected from water from heavy seas or water projections.”

The MFB S280s are data enclosures, built around the IEC 60297 19 inch racking format for data and electrical equipment.

The MFB range of standard S280 outdoor enclosures offer a variety of heights measured in rack units (RU), with widths typically between 600mm and 800mm, and a variety of depths.

Bilston said MFB can customise to suit unique conditions.

“We run Autodesk Inventor full modelling software, liaising with customers, in developing designs and finding solutions to their specific enclosure requirements,” he said.

“Examples of such customisation include MFB’s split enclosures, where the lower section is set aside to house batteries for example, and the upper section houses the electronics.

“MFB S280 enclosures can include sunshields and weather hoods to provide additional protection from the elements.

“The insulation product Thermobreak can be fitted to inside walls and doors to reduce thermal heat load on enclosures.

“For active cooling of enclosures, MFB uses exclusively the Seifert Systems range of air conditioning and thermal-related products.”

Also offered is a full range of accessories, including shelving, power, cable and air management. Importantly, MFB is able to install accessories where required, including third party supplied equipment, prior to delivery. Alternatively, accessories are supplied wrapped and ready to go, when the customer is ready.

“MFB Products has been in operation for over 50 years,” Bilson said.

“We have a standard portfolio of enclosures and accessories to suit. We have always encouraged working with customers in developing enclosures for specific applications.

“Our design and manufacturing knowledge, gives us a competitive edge. Being a local manufacturer, ensures a quick response to customer needs.”

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Industry Associations

Next generation of rail staff The RTAA is gearing up for its Rail Industry Field Day, the single most important event in the organisation’s calendar. It takes place on May 11-12 at Sydney Trains’ Chullora rail yards.

Walking around the AusRAIL PLUS conference, everyone I spoke to was keen for a return to the pre-COVID world where we could meet in person, celebrate our industry, and share our achievements. And the excitement was evident for the hands-on event that the Field Day promises to be.

For those who haven’t been to the field day before, it is the largest outdoor rail exhibition in Australia.

Hosted in a rail yard, it gives a unique opportunity to showcase heavy equipment, rail bound machines and demonstrate these fantastic machines in their native environment. Paired with live demonstrations of welding technology and

hands-on displays of hand tools, it is a unique event for maintainers and constructors to see and touch the latest technology.

It also presents an opportunity to reach out to the next generation of rail staff and show them what and how we do what we do.

With our colleagues in the learning and development industry, we can talk about the pathways to rail and how they can get the role that interests them.

The best part? Entry to the Field Day is absolutely free! This is only achievable through the support of Sydney Trains and our fantastic sponsors and exhibitors.

Finally, what is the Field Day without its no-tie dinner? This year we are doubling down on BIG and the dinner will be at one of the largest venues around, Accor Stadium in Sydney Olympic Park on Wednesday May 11.

RAIL INDUSTRY FIELD DAYS 2022 we are back… bigger and better than ever!

Jonathan Barnes, President, RTAA

This is shaping up to be a fantastic night, heavy on the networking and light on the formality, so remember to leave your tie at home.

Wednesday 11th May Book your tickets now to the Field 6:15pm-late Day and the dinner, and I look forwardAccor to Stadium, seeing everyone at Chullora in May. More Sydney Olympic Park information can be found on our website www.rtaa.org.au/events.

GALA DINNER

11-12 May 2022 >>>>> Chullora

Register here: Contact the RTAA Field Days Organiser > 02 9431 8600 > rtaafieldday@rtaa.org.au

Register here: www.rtaa.org.au

We have a number of exclusive and varied sponsorship & exhibition opportunities available. For more information please visit the website or contact Andrea Diaz using the contact details above.

50 | ISSUE 3 - A P R I L 2022 | RAIL EXPRESS

Wednesday 11th May 6:15pm-late Accor Stadium, Sydney Olympic Park

www.rtaa.org.au

Industry Associations

Spotlight on social responsibility RISSB has been responding to stakeholders’ requirements for the integration of social responsibility into business strategies.

Long before the global climate summit (COP26) wrapped up in Glagow in 2021, RISSB was aware of, and responding to, stakeholders’ needs to integrate corporate social responsibility into business strategy and to demonstrate that risks were being mitigated so far as is reasonably practicable.

Traditionally, RISSB has achieved this through the development and release of Standards, Guidelines, Codes of Practice and Rules including (but not limited to): • Management of Locomotive Exhaust Emissions Code of Practice In 2018, we released a Code of Practice describing recommended practices for the management and improvement of exhaust emissions of diesel freight locomotives in the Australian rail industry. The Code addresses environmental considerations through a balanced approach to competing emissions outcomes and has been widely referenced since it was released.

• Environmental Management in Rail Construction Code of Practice To help organisations meet their environmental obligations, in 2019 we published an Environmental Management in Rail Construction Code of Practice which provides advice to organisations involved in rail construction on how to improve environmental performance outcomes, protect the environment by preventing pollution and environmental harm, and restore areas to leave a positive legacy.

• Railway – Energy Storage Standard We are now developing an Energy storage Standard that will set out requirements for existing, new and emerging technologies for rolling stock throughout their product life cycle and will release it mid- 2022.

It will help pave the way for the technologies that are starting to become available in other railways around the world as we improve our industry’s energy performance and avoid disharmonised practices in the process.

Today, RISSB sees opportunities to support and extend its current remit past releasing publications, to focus more on supporting its members’ sustainability efforts.

RISSB is exploring opportunities to partner with other industry groups to leverage combined industry expertise.

RISSB’S FOCUS ON SUSTAINABILITY IN THE PRESENT • Sustainability ideas identified through the Priority Planning Process Every year we consult with industry through the Priority Planning Process where stakeholders are encouraged to put forward an idea for a new publication or project and then assign a priority to it through an online consultation.

Reflecting changing industry priorities, sustainability has become a major consideration with a large proportion of ideas put forward during this year’s consultation containing sustainability-related themes.

• Sustainability study RISSB has commissioned a study to quantitively demonstrate how rail will be part of Australia’s net zero carbon future and will ensure all rail stakeholders are aligned in our efforts to reduce carbon and agree to priority areas. This report will be available mid-year.

• RISSB’s 2022 Rail Safety Conference RISSB’s Rail Safety Conference 2022 in May will address the theme ‘Safety Climate and Climate Safety’ a nod to the recent COP26 aspirational goals to secure global net zero mid century and adapt to protect communities.

Topics to be discussed during this conference include: • Safety culture • Sustainability

• The role of people: our workforce, customers, and communities • Climate change • Safety and sustainability as risk management • 2022 MasterClass Webinars RISSB’s fortnightly MasterClass webinars will focus on ways of increasing sustainability content – industry leaders share how they are creating a green future by introducing new technologies or systems such as hydrogen trains or battery-powered trains in their networks or creating a paradigm shift in thinking about sustainability across their operations.

RISSB’S FOCUS ON SUSTAINABILITY IN THE FUTURE RISSB enjoys an enviable position as an independent knowledge broker, bringing industry together to explore ideas and options.

To this end, RISSB is seeking to strengthen industry engagement around sustainability and is currently exploring opportunities to partner with other industry groups and in doing so, leverage combined industry expertise.

More information about this initiative will be provided in the coming months.

If you’d like to know about RISSB’s projects, Standards or events, go to www.rissb.com.au or send an email to info@rissb.com.au.

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Industry Associations

Return to rail to drive significant benefits In a changed world, the rail industry is now dealing with a new task of bringing people back to rail after two years of pandemic restrictions.

When the Australasian Railway Association (ARA) released its Value of Rail report in 2020, it confirmed steady growth of passenger rail across the country as rail became an increasingly important part of our daily lives.

Before the pandemic, an average of 3.5 million passenger journeys took place every weekday, with patronage rising about two per cent every year since 2010.

The growing focus on rail had been attributed to a range of factors, including the increasing investment in passenger rail projects, and rising populations in city centres.

That was a very positive trend given it has been well acknowledged that greater use of rail will be an essential part of managing urban growth and supporting transport emissions reduction over the coming years.

Now, as the rail industry tackles the challenge of bringing people back to rail after two years of pandemic restrictions, there are opportunities to use this moment in time to shape the future of rail and the public transport sector.

A return to rail is critical as populations begin to rise again after the pandemic.

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THE PANDEMIC IMPACT The ARA has published quarterly patronage reports on the rail network since the beginning of 2021 to track trends in the use of rail services against COVID-19 restrictions and policy settings.

The data predictably confirms that passenger numbers plummeted during lockdowns or times of significant restrictions.

This was to be expected given the shift to working from home and restrictions on a wide range of social events and other activities that would normally bring us out of our homes and into the community.

But the return to rail as restrictions have eased has been gradual, with the industry yet to meet the patronage levels experienced in pre-pandemic times.

By the end of last year, easing restrictions were starting to see a return to the network, but there is more progress to be made during 2022.The removal of many restrictions on the east coast of Australia in February, together

Caroline Wilkie, chief executive, Australasian Railway Association.

with the return of school students, has helped support the return to rail.

However, changes to our daily routines continues to impact the number of people on the network.

INDUSTRY RESPONSE The rail industry has continued to operate throughout the pandemic, keeping services operating even at the height of restrictions.

The increased cleaning and hygiene measures implemented across the network remain as part of the industry’s ongoing commitment to safe and accessible public transport for all.

New customer experience initiatives have also emerged from the pandemic.

Greater information on demand on the network is available, allowing people to better

plan their journey. This is an important part of ensuring responsive rail services that meet changing demand patterns and connect seamlessly with other public transport modes.

This, and a range of innovations introduced during the pandemic, were key issues discussed at the ARA’s Return to Rail Forum.

THE RETURN TO RAIL While a steady return to rail is expected as pandemic restrictions become a thing of the past, the fact remains that for many of us, our daily routines have fundamentally changed.

Work from home is expected to remain a feature of our lives for at least part of the week, with the five-day commute unlikely to return for many office workers.

However, that flexibility in our work life is also creating opportunities for different types of travel.

Globally, we have seen a shift to the localisation of the rail network, with travel within and between communities becoming just as critical as more traditional routes between the suburbs and the CBD. This creates opportunities to encourage more people back to rail as they connect with friends and family, or travel to enjoy doing the things they love.

We have seen a greater focus on mobility as a service to support this, and the seamless integration of rail services with other transport modes is a key part of that.

It is expected this will be a key part of the industry’s efforts to support connected communities that encourage the use of public transport for a range of journey types.

The ARA will be supporting this work through its Return to Rail Committee, which will deliver a dedicated program of work to support greater use of rail in 2022.

WELCOMING PEOPLE BACK A return to rail is critical for our communities as populations begin to rise again after the pandemic.

Rail has traditionally been the most popular mode of public transport, with 34 per cent of commuters choosing rail.

It is therefore an essential part of easing congestion in our cities.

One full commuter train takes 578 cars off the road, preventing traffic gridlock and ensuring a reliable travel option with more certain travel times than can sometimes be expected on the roads in peak periods.

The more people leave their cars at home and catch the train instead, the easier it is for us to move around and get to our destination free of congestion.

the outer suburbs and regions to access work, education and essential services without the need to go into the CBD. This will create new business and services precincts beyond the CBD, making it easier to choose rail on more occasions.

These approaches echo international examples, such as The graph shows how changes to our daily routines Copenhagen’s Cityringen metro, continues to impact the number of people on the network. which has been designed to respond to local community needs The benefits of people making this change and support the city’s climate change goals. are even broader, and will be critical in There are further opportunities in the supporting our path to net zero. regions too.

In 2017-18, car and motorcycle travel The speed, reliability and frequency of rail generated 22 times the emissions generated services are critical to supporting greater use by rail travel, highlighting the significant of rail. benefits that greater use of rail can deliver in ARA research in 2021 confirmed more our communities. people were considering a move to the regions Choosing rail is also beneficial at an as a result of changing work patterns during individual level, with rail travel providing time the pandemic. for work or leisure while travelling to your Faster rail connections would encourage destination, and the use of public transport more people to consider making that move. creating greater opportunities for movement Faster rail can therefore provide a good in your day. solution to support the growth of the regions.

So there are many reasons more of us At the moment, traditional need to leave the car at home and catch the underinvestment in rail compared to road has train instead. made it hard for rail travel times to compete with road when travelling between regional SHAPING FUTURE CITIES centres and city CBDs. While the focus of return to rail is on However, projects like the Geelong Fast Rail bringing people back to existing networks, will make rail a far more competitive option there is an opportunity to shape future urban and deliver the speed, reliability and frequency design and planning to facilitate greater use required to move more journeys to and from of active and public transport and support regional centres onto rail. sustainable growth.

International examples highlight the As Arup Global Transport Lead Isabel potential that maximising rail use in the Dedring observed at AusRAIL PLUS in regions can support.

February, rail has an important role to play in In Lille, the introduction of a high speed rail influencing the future development of cities station to support the Eurostar has not only and towns. maximised rail patronage but created huge Existing projects planned or under development opportunities. construction are already highlighting the As a result of thoughtful and considered benefits of this approach. rail development, the region is now home to The Sydney Metro project is creating new the third largest business quarter and second opportunities for development along the rail largest student population in France. line, most notably at Western Sydney.

Rail will provide a crucial role in connecting MEETING COMMUNITY NEEDS Ultimately, supporting a return to rail will the aerotropolis business precinct and the airport to the city, and will support be grounded in meeting the needs of the community. development and new growth opportunities in The rail industry has shown great the region. leadership in maintaining essential services This will have a profound effect on the throughout the pandemic, and are once again local community for years to come and will support greater use of public transport leading the way in responding to community needs and expectations in this new phase of to access school, work, education and the pandemic. leisure activities.

A return to rail is crucial to all of us to Similarly, the Suburban Rail Loop will ensure safe, accessible and sustainable support greater use of rail in Melbourne. The communities for years to come. project will make it easier for people from

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Contracts, EOIs, Tenders

NATIONAL Aldridge Railway Signals Kyosan, the developer of the world’s first automated platform gap fillers, has teamed up with Aldridge.

Established in 1917, Kyosan is a leading Japanese manufacturer of signal systems and developed the world’s first gap fillers in 2004, of which more than 200 are now installed on the Tokyo Subway.

Platform gap fillers of course are usually integrated with platform screen doors, which have evolved considerably since the first patent was granted in 1908 in Boston USA for a “safety fence and gate for railway-platforms”.

In 2000 Kyosan developed the “Partial Height Platform Screen Door”, primarily for use on Japan’s metro systems and then in 2016 these were further enhanced with transparent panels.

In addition to manufacturing mechanical gap fillers, platform screens and platform screen doors, Kyosan also produces railway signalling systems including automatic train control, interlocking signal controls, level crossing mechanisms and control systems and points machines.

NSW Sydney Metro West

There’s been plenty of movement on the Sydney Metro West project.

The New South Wales Government has shortlisted three consortia to deliver the Eastern Tunnelling package, which includes 3.5 kilometres of twin tunnels under Sydney Harbour between The Bays and the Sydney CBD. They are Acciona Construction Australia and Ferrovial Construction joint venture (AF JV); Bouygues Construction Australia, Vinci Construction Grands Projets Australia and Soletanche Bachy International joint venture (BV JV); and John Holland, CPB Contractors and Ghella joint venture (JCG JV).

The 24-kilometre new underground rail connection between the CBDs of Parramatta and Sydney will double rail capacity between the two CBDs, connecting the stations at 54 | ISSUE 3 - A P R I L 2022 | RAIL EXPRESS

Westmead, Parramatta, Sydney Olympic Park, North Strathfield, Burwood North, Five Dock, The Bays, Pyrmont and Hunter Street in the Sydney CBD. Due to the scale of this city-shaping mega project, the tunnelling and excavation works have been separated into geographicallyspecific contract packages between Westmead and the Sydney CBD. Acciona Ferrovial JV was awarded the 11-kilometre Central Tunnelling Package between Sydney Olympic Park to The Bays Precinct in 2020.

Sydney Metro West will double rail capacity between greater Parramatta and the Sydney CBD, with a target travel time of about 20 minutes between the two centres.

The ETP contract is expected to be awarded by the end of 2022.

Meanwhile, a consortium between Gamuda Australia and Laing O’Rourke has been appointed to deliver the $2.16 billion Western Tunnelling Package (WTP) for the project.

The project scope includes: • Twin 9km tunnels from Sydney Olympic Park to Westmead; • A Tunnel Boring Machine launch site at Rosehill, tunnelling first toward Sydney Olympic Park and relaunched from Rosehill toward Westmead; • Excavation for a services facility and crossover structure at Rosehill to allow provision for fresh air ventilation and emergency egress; • Tunnel portal and dive excavation at Clyde Services and Maintenance Facility; • Earthworks, retaining structures, drainage and utilities corridor for the Clyde Maintenance Facility; • Excavation and civil works for Parramatta and Westmead Stations; and • A segment manufacturing facility at Eastern Creek constructing over 60,000 segments.

Gamuda brings decades of international experience in metro rail construction and engineering innovation which will be harnessed during delivery of WTP. Early works will commence on the WTP within weeks, with tunnelling scheduled to start late 2023.

And finally, a major contract has been awarded as part of the new Sydney Metro– Western Sydney Airport line.

The $538.5 million contract to deliver approximately 10.4 kilometres of surface and civil alignment works has been awarded to CPB Contractors and United Infrastructure.

This latest contract includes: • 3.5km of elevated viaduct at Orchard Hills and Luddenham.

• 6.7km of earthworks for track formation.

• A 190m long rail bridge over the new M12 motorway.

• A 20m long rail bridge within the airport.

• Temporary and permanent access roads.

• Bulk earthworks for the stabling and maintenance facility site.

The driverless 23-kilometre metro line will link St Marys to the centre of the new Aerotropolis at Bradfield via the new Western Sydney International (Nancy-Bird Walton) Airport. Six stations will also be built along the alignment.

NEW ZEALAND Auckland Transport CAF (Compañía Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles) has signed a contract for the supply of 23 new electric units for Auckland in New Zealand.

The contract, worth in excess of €130M, includes the maintenance of the trains until the end of 2025 and has an extension option for up to 5 additional units.

In 2011, Auckland Transport awarded CAF the supply of 57 electric units and their maintenance for 12 years and in 2017 a further 15 units were purchased.

All 72 supplied units are currently in revenue service in Auckland.

CAF’s reliable fleet has completed a mileage in excess of 33 million kilometres and has played an essential role in the increase in passenger numbers using public transport across Auckland.

The units will be similar to the 72 previously supplied to the same customer, consisting of three cars, two cabbed end motor cars and one intermediate trailer car, with a total capacity for 380 passengers.

The car structure is made of stainless steel and each car is equipped with two passenger access doors per side.

Also, the intermediate car is low floor to facilitate access for persons with reduced mobility and wheelchair users.

This contract consolidates CAF’s presence in the region as in addition to the previous contracts for Auckland Transport: the company has been awarded a significant amount of projects in Australia since incorporating its subsidiary there in 2010, including the most recent ones of Parramatta Light Rail and Regional Rail Bi-Mode units in New South Wales.

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