V/News issue 212 - 22 April 2022

Issue 212 / 22 April 2022

V/Line Cup returns in 2022 More than 600 of the best young footballers from across regional Victoria finally got an opportunity to pull on their boots and participate in the V/Line Cup. The tournament was unable to go

unable to go ahead in 2020 and

ahead over the past two years due

2021,” Matt said.

to the pandemic but returned bigger

“This is the second time Shepparton

and better last week, with players converging on Shepparton to take part in the event.

hosted the competition and it was really exciting to see so much young talent from across the state coming

V/Line CEO Matt Carrick travelled

together to compete.”

to the north-east to celebrate the

The tournament took place between

launch of the event on Wednesday 6 April, alongside Mayor of Greater Shepparton Kim O’Keeffe.

11 and 14 April, with boys and girls who would have competed in the under 15 age group in 2021 eligible

“It’s wonderful to see the return of

to participate in one of the three

the tournament this year after being

divisions.

Since 2010, more than 100 V/Line Cup players have been drafted to the AFL and AFLW, including Essendon Football Club captain Dyson Heppell and Lily Mithen from the Melbourne Football Club.

V/Line has been premier partner of the event since 2004 and plays a critical role in the competition’s success.

In this issue • New fence for community safety • Sunshine Signal Control Centre • Investment Prioritisation is on Engine Room • Focus on Health in winter • Gearing up for R U OK? Day • V/Line and the growling grass frog

V/News / Issue 212

New fence to improve rail and community safety Works on a new rail safety fence near the Latrobe Regional Hospital between Morwell and Traralgon have been completed.

V/Line worked closely with the hospital to help finalise the location and design of the 1.5-kilometre safety fence, which runs between the north side of the rail line and Princes Highway opposite the hospital.

Construction of the fence was funded as part of the Victorian Government’s economic response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Funding has also now been secured to extend the safety fence past the recently built Traralgon Regional Residential Rehabilitation Centre, with planning and design for the extension already underway.

The fence alignment has been selected to minimise the

environmental impact on the protected Grey Billy Buttons (Craspedia canens).

A crew of 10 workers were involved in the project, which was completed on 25 March.

To help minimise the disruption to services, crews completed some of the works while coaches were replacing Gippsland line trains due to level crossing removal works on the metropolitan network.

Work to deliver improved journeys and more services to the region as part of the Gippsland Line Upgrade is progressing between Pakenham and Traralgon, targeting completion later this year.

It’s official: Commonwealth Games coming to regional Victoria in 2026 Victoria has been confirmed as the host of the 2026 Commonwealth Games, with the state’s regions set to shine on the world stage.

The Games will be held across regional Victoria, with four regional hubs to be established in Geelong, Bendigo, Ballarat and Gippsland.

Each of the hubs will have its own athletes’ village and sport program, with Shepparton also hosting sporting and cultural events as part of Victoria 2026.

CEO Matt Carrick said the announcement presented an enormous opportunity for V/Line to showcase its connectivity with regional Victorian communities.

“This is a really exciting announcement for Victoria and will shine a spotlight on the regions,” he said.

“It presents a significant opportunity for us to support the Games and we will have a really important role to play in connecting people to regional Victoria during the event.”

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V/News / Issue 212

Sunshine Signal Control Centre switches on A state-of-the-art train control hub that will be the nerve centre for services through the Metro Tunnel and upgraded Sunbury line is up and running.

The Sunshine Signal Control Centre has been purpose-built to support more frequent train services on the metropolitan network.

The centre will also benefit V/Line passengers by laying the groundwork for the future airport rail link through Sunshine Station, which will provide

regional passengers with easy access to Melbourne Airport.

Communications equipment installed on trains and on the ground will transmit data in real time back to the control centres, with signal controllers monitoring train movements to ensure services are running safely

and smoothly.

The hub will control trains on the Sunbury line and through the Metro Tunnel to the eastern tunnel entrance in South Yarra, with capacity to manage future rail projects in the west, including Melbourne Airport Rail.

Investment Prioritisation joins Engine Room If you have a great idea to improve V/Line and want to make it a reality, the Investment Prioritisation process is for you.

Acting Chief Financial Officer Scott Quirke said the Investment Prioritisation process enabled staff to put forward new ideas for making improvements, creating a single pipeline of initiatives from across the organisation.

“Initiatives are thoroughly considered and prioritised by the Business and SLA Planning Committee, with available funds allocated based on each initiative’s value to V/Line’s strategic goals, along with the effort required to carry out the work.

“Any idea is suitable to be brought forward, provided it is aligned with V/Line’s strategic objectives and is currently not funded,” he said.

“The Investment Prioritisation process is a great opportunity for staff to turn their ideas into reality and create positive change.”

To learn more about how to bring your initiative forward, please visit Investment Prioritisation on the Engine Room.

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V/News / Issue 212

New digital process for submitting and tracking MPM nominations The Asset Lifecycle Planning team has created a new Annual Works Plan Nomination e-Form to replace the previous Excel form.

The new form will transform the way staff nominate Major Periodic Maintenance (MPM) projects for the Annual Works Plan (AWP) and provide a quicker and more transparent online process for users.

Staff will be able to see where their nominations are sitting during each stage of the review process via the newly created MPM nomination approval dashboard.

Manager – Asset Lifecycle Planning Joy Gleeson said previously staff needed to submit nominations via an Excel form and email it to an individual for processing.

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“Once the form was emailed for processing, staff would then lose visibility of where it was in the approval process,” she said.

“The new digital and centralised process is not only quicker and easier but ensures users can track their nominations through each stage of review.”

To complement these changes, full visibility of the MPM program is now available at a glance via the MPM Database Dashboard, which provides a graphical representation of the MPM database.

The dashboards are linked in the top right-hand corner of the AWP Nomination e-Form (Power App).

You can also find links to each of these resources on the Asset Lifecycle Planning Engine Room page.

Joy said a lot of hard work had gone into the develop ment of the improved process.

“Thanks are extended to Business Analyst Des Yang and Asset Lifecycle Planner Stone Chen for their work in developing these improvements.”

V/News / Issue 212

Focus on health as winter approaches

V/Line’s flu vaccination program kicked off at the start of this month.

The program will run during April and May, with staff able to receive their flu jab at one of more than 20 regional V/Line offices and stations, along with six locations in the metropolitan area.

Staff unable to be vaccinated on-site will be provided vouchers for redemption at Priceline or Terry White Pharmacies, with other arrangements able to be made

if this is not suitable.

See the flu vaccination program info page on Engine Room.

Meanwhile, the Victorian Government has extended the state’s pandemic declaration for a further three months, effective from Thursday 12 April.

V/Line’s General Manager of COVID Assurance Cindy James said it was

important to remember that while the situation had improved, the pandemic was not yet over.

“It’s important to remember COVIDSafe practices over the school holidays and while in the workplace,” she said.

“Social distancing and mask-wearing where required are still vital to helping to control the spread of the virus.”

Four ways to stay COVIDSafe • Masks - Masks are still required on public transport, for V/Line’s frontline staff and in staff classrooms. Masks are also strongly encouraged for staff visiting public-facing parts of the organisation, such as Southern Cross Station. If you would prefer to wear a mask in a setting where it is not required, you are welcome to do so.

• Vaccination - If you have not yet had your booster/third vaccination, please consider making a booking.

Staff who are over 65 or in a vulnerable group are also now eligible to receive a fourth dose.

• Reporting - If you’re isolating as a household or close contact as a result of an exposure outside work, please be sure to report your status to the V/Line COVID Response Team.

• Testing - Surveillance testing continues across parts of the organisation where required and we thank those staff for

their ongoing support and participation in the program. Staff at 452 Flinders Street who develop symptoms whilst in the office, or are informed by the V/Line COVID Response Team that they are a close contact or exposed person while on-site, can now access a Rapid Antigen Test from reception on level six. Staff who receive a RAT must file a report with the COVID Response Team and forward the result to their manager.

More COVID safety information is available on the Engine Room.

Let’s get

Vaccinated

against flu

Protect yourself from the flu.

Book your vaccination today.

Click here to book your free flu vaccination

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V/News / Issue 212

Gearing up for Rail R U OK? Day Staff are being encouraged to support

Rail R U OK? Day on Thursday 28 April.

This annual industry-wide event encourages rail staff to look out for one another by asking “Are you okay?”

Rail Safety Ambassador, Paralympic Gold Medallist and World Record Holder Vanessa Low will be a special guest.

By participating in Rail R U OK? Day and encouraging meaningful conversations in the workplace, you’ll help create a stronger and more supportive rail industry.

As a rail accident survivor and professional athlete, Vanessa has overcome enormous adversity in her life and will share her tips for increasing mental fitness and the importance of checking in – both with herself and those around her.

As part of this important initiative, V/Line is joining forces with the Department of Transport, Metro Trains Melbourne and Yarra Trams to discuss the benefits of regular and meaningful conversations with workmates and within the industry.

Please join us for this special Rail R U OK? Day event on Thursday 28 April from 10:30am.

Please visit the Engine Room to find out more.

To help mark the day, TrackSAFE’s

Growing hope for growling grass frogs Staff visiting Donnybrook Rail Reserve are likely to hear the distinctive call of the growling grass frog.

An endangered species declining at an alarming rate, last year 10 growling grass frogs were rescued during trenching works at Donnybrook and relocated to the neighbouring dam.

The frogs have since had a remarkable breeding season, with more than 100 now calling the rail reserve and dam home.

V/Line is now maintaining this frog sanctuary, alongside the management of run-off from the rail line.

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Environment and Heritage Business Partner Linda Neilson said V/Line was working collaboratively with VicTrack and ARTC to ensure the long-term security of the valuable habitat, and the site had been included in its entirety on the V/Line lease.

“The growling grass frog population at Donnybrook Rail Reserve provides V/Line with a unique opportunity to demonstrate the Victorian Government’s commitment to the protection of biodiversity values,” she said.

V/News / Issue 212

Rare Elvis memorabilia on show in Bendigo Elvis: Direct from Graceland is running until July 17 at the Bendigo Art Gallery, featuring a wide range of costumes and memorabilia from Elvis Presley’s Graceland home.

V/Line has partnered with the exhibition through the Bendigo Art Gallery.

Metropolitan staff planning to take the trip out to Bendigo to see Elvis: Direct from Graceland may well be lucky enough to catch V/Line’s Elvis train.

Customer Experience Officer Mish Hinde said, “It’s been a pleasure

partnering with the Bendigo Art Gallery for the Elvis: Direct From Graceland exhibition. Bringing the Elvis train to life was an important piece of work for our team, and it’s great to see it out on the network.”

“After two years of lockdowns, it’s exciting to be able to support regional Victoria with this kind of sponsorship.”

Maerwynne is an eight-year-old Irish wolfhound who belongs to Geelong Station Assistant Paul Donovan. Her favourite things include sleeping, swimming, zooming and eating.

Maerwynne lives with Paul on a farm in the Otways so she has plenty of space to stretch and zoom, and keep Paul fit too!

Voice of Customer Compliment This week’s compliment is from a passenger of the week travelling on an Albury replacement coach.

“Our bus driver was driving a bus to replace the 12:45 service from Albury to Melbourne. A young woman just out of hospital took ill on the bus. He dealt with the matter in a most professional

and caring manner. Stopped the bus in a parking area, helped her out of the bus and into recovery position, sent for the ambulance and waited until she was in their care. He explained briefly to the

passengers what had happened and then went on, without making any attempt to make up time by speeding or careless driving.

This employee is a credit to his company and to V/Line.”

Have some news to share? Want to show off your pet?

Send your stories to comms@vline.com.au

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