The story starts

Opposition transport spokesman and part time gunzel Matthew Guy kicked off the topic with a video posted to Instagram, detailing how the newly built platforms at Deer Park station were 10 metres short of a nine car VLocity train.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Matthew Guy (@matthewguymp)

Liberal Party HQ also sending a media drop over to the Herald Sun, who published it on Sunday 18 August.

As well as a comment from the opposition transport spokesman who tipped the newspaper off to the topic.

To add to the confusion and frustration, a Freedom of In-formation request by the opposition seeking documents on the nine-car train plan was refused due to the fact it was an “unfunded future project”. The nine-carriage trains, which come in sets of three carriages, are 225m long, and Sunshine station was recently upgraded from 190m to 225m to allow them to stop there. But Deer Park station, re-built during the $234m Mt Derrimut level crossing removal, is only 215m.

Look at who else got a mention.

The oversight was spotted on rail documents by self-described “train nut” Marcus Wong, who described it on his transport blog as a “comedy of errors”.

The blog post in question being my piece “First day at the new Deer Park station” from May 2023.

Herald Sun cartoonist Mark Knight also drew the short platform in cartoon form for Tuesday 20 August edition.

On the ground at Deer Park

The new platforms at Deer Park are longer than a 6-car VLocity train, with plenty of empty platform beyond the back of the train.

But it turns out they aren’t actually long enough for the 9-car trains currently used on services to Wyndham Vale to stop at.

The new platforms are only 215 metres long – half a carriage (10 metres) too short!

So why can’t they be longer?

The western end of Deer Park station is located hard up against a brand new townhouse development.

The townhouses almost touching the retaining wall that supports the tracks.

So there is no room for the platforms to be any longer at that end.

But what about the city end?

Here the platforms end right where the reinforced earth embankment that the station is built atop also end.

The tracks transitioning to the precast concrete u-trough viaduct.

So why didn’t they make the viaduct a little bit shorter, so that the platform could be made a little big longer?

Personally I don’t know – possibly if they made the viaduct one span shorter, the bus interchange wouldn’t be long enough for the “one stop per bus route, no matter how infrequently it runs” rule PTV follows.

Or the longer station would have taken up space for car parking down at ground level, and “no net loss of car parking” is the one rule that level crossing removals always follow.

Footnote: the other Deer Park platform problem

The new platform at Deer Park was also built to a new platform height standard, which isn’t compatible with V/Line’s Sprinter trains.

OPERATING RESTRICTION – DEER PARK STATION
SPRINTER RAILCARS

Upon advice from V/Line Network Engineering, Sprinter Railcars will NOT be permitted to stop at Deer Park Station at KP 17.943.

Any Sprinter Railcars travelling towards/from Wyndham Vale and Geelong or Melton and Bacchus Marsh will be required to run express through Deer Park Station.

The Operating Restriction will apply until further advised due to clearance issues between the Sprinter Railcar and the new Platform when the doors are in the Open position.

You can read about that saga here.

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Working within a constrained railway corridor, there as no space to build a new station clear of the existing tracks.

So instead the entire railway line was shut down for three months, so the old track and stations could be demolished, and a new rail cutting and station built in it’s place.

To speed up the process, much of the station complex was prefabricated – divided up into truck sized modules, which were delivered as required from an offsite storage yard at Elgar Park in Mont Albert North.

But on the morning of 3 April 2023, things didn’t go to plan.

LXRP Update: Mont Albert Road is currently closed to traffic between Elgar Road and View Street. A detour is temporarily in place while a 6.4 metre wide new station building continues to be delivered to site and is needing to temporarily stay parked on Mont Albert Road. Access to driveways will be maintained during this period.

They tried to deliver a prefabricated section, but it couldn’t fit under some low trees – so they abandoned it on Mont Albert Road for the day.

Photo by Extranious A on Twitter

Photo by Extranious A on Twitter

Photo by Extranious A on Twitter

Getting some coverage on the Channel 7 TV news.

A massive portable building is blocking busy Mont Albert Road. https://t.co/5zYfOfGqUb #7NEWS pic.twitter.com/fJIadE5v4U

— 7NEWS Melbourne (@7NewsMelbourne) April 3, 2023

As well as on 3AW Melbourne radio.

Level Crossing Removal Authority contractors wanted to hack their way through the trees of Mont Albert Road.

Believing they were allowed to do whatever they liked.

Current advice (3 April 2pm) Is, that despite their best efforts to negotiate an alternative solution (perhaps even just a different route) City of Whitehorse arborists have been advised by the LXRP they are able to do whatever it wants to in order to progress the project.

This will likely mean more than 40 trees on Mont Albert Road between Elgar and Hamilton Street will be ‘trimmed’ to accommodate the 5.3 metre high toilet block down a road which vehicles over 4.6m are not permitted.

But the City of Whitehorse told them to bugger off.

An update on the building stuck on a truck in Mont Albert Road. Council Officers have advised me tonight that Council does NOT support the trees in Mont Albert Road being pruned. The LXRA have been advised the truck must be backed out along Mont Albert Road and the building returned to Elgar Park. They must then find an alternative method of diverting the building to site.

The result – LXRA backing away with their tail between their legs.

LXRP update: Between 9pm Mon 3 April and 5am Tues 4 April, the station building currently located on Mont Albert Rd will be transported back along Mont Albert Road, Elgar Road and to Surrey Park. Traffic management will be in place to assist while the building is moved.

The modular toilet block being parked in the LXRA’s compound at Surrey Park.

Still sitting on the truck, awaiting their next move.

That time came 10 days later.

An oversized delivery comprising 1 of the new Union Station buildings will be delivered to site overnight between Thursday 13 April and Friday 14 April via Union Road, Windsor Crescent and Leopold Crescent.

This route ensures no permanent loss of trees.

To enable the building to be delivered, on street car parking will be temporarily removed on Leopold Crescent – and continue to be unavailable on Windsor Crescent – from 9am, Thursday 13 April to 9am, Friday 14 April.

Up to 20 trees along Windsor and Leopold Crescents will be pruned to protect these trees from damage. The pruning will be overseen by qualified arborists.

One tree in the roundabout – at the intersection of Windsor and Leopold Crescents – will be temporarily removed and then reinstated once the building has been delivered.

No driveways will be blocked, however residents may have to wait for a small amount of time while the heavy vehicle passes during its overnight journey.

Access to your property and driveway will be maintained, with assistance from traffic control staff.

On-street parking will be closed on both sides of Leopold Crescent and Windsor Crescent. Vehicles will need to be parked overnight within your property or in an adjoining street. Any vehicle parked on these 2 streets after 9am, Thursday 13 April may be towed out of the way.

Alternative off-street parking will be available in the project’s Hamilton Street car park.

And getting in the news again – in The Australian of all newspapers!

State agency musters cops against locals

Rachel Baxendale
Victorian political reporter

Victoria’s Level Crossing Removal Authority has resorted to calling police to deal with residents who were found to have committed no crime, in the latest escalation in a series of disputes with locals affected by a large project in Melbourne’s east.

The incident on Thursday evening came as the Andrews government agency continues to refuse to reveal whether the communications manager for the Mont Albert and Surrey Hills level crossing removal still has a job, two months after footage was aired of him heavying local business owners over their ­concerns about the impact of the construction.

Mont Albert resident Greg Langford said Thursday evening’s clash – relating to the lopping of tree branches to allow for the transport of a large, prefabricated building through narrow residential streets – was the latest example of the Level Crossing Removal Project (LXRP) failing to genuinely consult locals and attempting to bully them into submission.

“The LXRP did one of their scant written communications, which really told us nothing,” Mr Langford said.

“A number of residents tried to contact the LXRP and were rebuffed, so we got in touch with (Whitehorse) Council, who sent one of their arborists down.”

Mr Langford said the council arborist had walked through the planned route with him and local progress association president Greg Buchanan on Thursday morning, detailing “every single tree branch” that was to be removed, ahead of the planned lopping of the trees and trans­portation of the building on Thursday night.

“Council were terrific in sharing the information, and the LXRP just stonewalled us,” Mr Langford said.

When it became clear to residents that numerous trees and branches in the heritage-listed oak, elm and plane tree-lined street were to be removed unnecessarily, more than 20 locals gathered on the nature strip on Windsor Crescent, refusing to move unless the LXRP consulted them on which branches to remove.

Mr Langford said residents were told by project communications manager David Fitzgerald – who appears to have replaced former Labor staffer Lance Wilson in the role after the footage of Wilson made headlines – “If you don’t move, I am calling the police and having you arrested.”

“Rather than engaging constructively with us, they called the police, but we knew exactly where the LXRP exclusion zone began and finished and we knew they had no jurisdiction over the nature strip … and ultimately the police decided that we were committing no offences,” Mr Langford said.

“Ultimately what happened was they were forced to trim the trees one by one in front of the big load, otherwise we were going to delay them and it would disrupt their works further.
“Our intent was to minimise the damage and we succeeded in saving 80 to 90 per cent of the branches they had originally proposed to lop.

“The moral of the story is that we support the level crossing removal, but we’re tired of being bullied by the LXRP and their lack of engagement. It just goes to show that when you force them to the table and they’ve got a deadline to meet, you can actually achieve some constructive, positive outcomes.”

An LXRP spokeswoman said: “Our project team transported one of the buildings for the new Union Station to the eastern concourse overnight. Doing this safely while minimising impacts to vegetation was our main priority.

“We expect all our interactions with community members to be respectful, with our staff treating others, and being treated, with respect.”

A Victoria Police spokeswoman confirmed police had attended a dispute in Mont Albert on Thursday.

“Officers were called to reports of a dispute between residents on Windsor Crescent and workers on a railway upgrade project about 9pm,” the spokeswoman said. “Police had presence in the area to allow the work to take place safely and no crime was committed.”

But eventually, the prefabricated module was delivered to the Mont Albert end of the new Union station.

Facing Lorne Parade.

And still bearing the battle scars from it’s failed journey along the tree lined Mont Albert Road.

Footnote: what’s up with The Australian?

For some reason the level crossing removal project at Mont Albert has been a cause célèbre for Victorian political reporter Rachel Baxendale at The Australian, with no less than 10 pieces published between February and May 2023.

13 Feb 2023: More secrecy claims over Andrews’ crossing project

Members of a second Melbourne community have accused the Level Crossing Removal Authority of secrecy, ‘sham’ consultation and a lack of due process.

15 Feb 2023: Manager caught in threats to business

A senior Victorian Level Crossing Removal Project executive and former Labor staffer has been caught on camera threatening the livelihood of small business owners.

16 Feb 2023: Secrecy on threatening rail boss

Victoria’s Level Crossing Removal Authority has refused to say whether one of its executives will be disciplined after being caught on camera bullying small-business owners.

16 Feb 2023: Project staffer caught ‘bullying’ investigated

The Victorian government says it is investigating after a senior Victorian Level Crossing Removal Project executive was caught bullying small business owners in Melbourne’s east.

21 Feb 2023: Barricaded from home by works

Residents in Melbourne’s east are unable to access properties for the next three months, despite receiving written assurances to the contrary from the Level Crossing Removal Authority.

22 Feb 2023: Level crossing secrecy slammed

A 90-year-old woman has accused the Andrews government’s Level Crossing Removal Authority of extreme secrecy and intimidatory behaviour.

28 Feb 2023: ‘No place for violence’: Andrews on alleged headbutt

Emergency services were called to the scene after a level crossing removal contractor allegedly headbutted the man in Melbourne.

28 Feb 2023: Prangs dent faith in level crossing work

Residents near an Andrews government level crossing removal project have ­accused authorities of ducking ­responsibility after their cars were damaged by construction trucks.

14 Apr 2023: State agency calls cops on the locals

Residents say their peaceful protest succeeded in saving 80 to 90 per cent of the tree branches the Andrews government’s level crossing removal agency had planned to lop.

22 May 2023: Level crossing ‘bully’ still has job

After months of refusing to comment on its investigation into the stakeholder relations manager’s conduct, Jacinta Allan has confirmed the former Labor staffer has kept his job.

You’ve gotta love Rupert’s Murdoch’s ‘flagship’ newspaper sending their Victorian political reporter out to cover local neighbourhood disputes in an feeble attempt to dig up a bad news story about Dan Andrews.

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Taking a look around

The new station has two side platforms, flanking a pair of tracks.

The station itself is located on a reinforced earth embankment.

With a pedestrian underpass running through the middle.

Shelter for passengers follows the current woeful standards – a little over 60% on the citybound platform.

And stuff all on the outbound platform 2.

The approach at the city end is a now standard U-trough viaduct.

Made up of two parallel single track viaducts.

But the crossing of Mt Derrimut Road itself is a pair of single track steel spans.

Each track has a walkway on either side.

An emergency detraining walkway along the inner flange, and a maintenance walkway along the outer edge.

The walls of the U-trough combined with noise walls hide trains from down below.

And the unfinished bits

The decision was made to open the new station at Deer Park immediately after work had been completed to connect the new elevated track into the existing rail corridor, so that station building was nowhere near complete.

Passengers required to follow a convoluted route through the construction site to access trains.

The permanent ramp is currently the only way to access platform 1.

The lift incomplete, as with the rest of the station buildings.

And the set of stairs had random bits of paving removed – a victim of poor installation?

While passengers accessing platform 2 had a long walk through the construction site.

Facing multiple blind corners.

Passing under the tracks.

And then up a flight of temporary steps built of scaffolding.

Until they finally emerge on platform 2.

There is a lift shaft in place at platform 2, but it was nowhere near completed.

The reason – it was located on the alignment used by trains serving the old ground level station.

Hence couldn’t be constructed until the old station was closed.

The ‘Accessible shuttle’

With no lift or ramp allowing access to platform 2, V/Line was forced to provide an accessible shuttle to allow passengers from Deer Park to access train services.

Dysons were providing low floor buses to run the service.

With a wheelchair accessible maxi taxi also on standby.

But these shuttles has been implemented in one of the most bizarre ways possible – by backtracking halfway across the western suburbs!

If travelling on a Geelong Line train, passengers are advised to get off at Tarneit, then travel back to Deer Park on either the next train or an accessible shuttle bus.

If travelling on a Ballarat Line train, passengers are advised to get off at Caroline Springs, then travel back to Deer Park on either the next train or an accessible shuttle bus.

The weekday 4:17pm, 4:39pm, 4:58pm, 5:18pm, 5:38pm and 5:58pm Southern Cross to Ballarat trains do not stop at Caroline Springs so passengers should exit the train at Rockbank then travel back to Deer Park on an accessible shuttle bus.

The weekday 6:18pm Southern Cross to Ballarat train does not stop at either Caroline Springs or Rockbank. The next stop after Deer Park is Melton. Passengers on this service should exit the train at Melton, then travel back to Deer Park on an accessible shuttle bus.

A far more logical solution would have been to have passengers leave the train at Sunshine station, and travel via Forrest Street and Tilburn Road to Deer Park – a 6 kilometre, 10 minute drive, compared to the twice as long trip to Tarneit.

The only possible reason I can find for V/Line’s bizarre choice of alternate transport – ticketing laws are actually written in such a way that exiting at V/Line train at Sunshine is illegal.

With Authorised Officers even staking out Sunshine platform 4 to catch passengers trying to do just that.

No lighting

For some reason permanent lighting had yet to be installed across much of the station.

Temporary lighting having been installed across the platform and ramp at platform 1.

But for some reason the less finished platform 2 had permanent light fixtures installed.

The new station also had security staff keeping watch over both platforms at night, so possibly the installation of CCTV systems had also been cut in the rush to get the station opened.

No Myki equipment

Myki equipment was another victim of the hurried construction timeline.

‘Free travel from Deer Park station until 7 May 2023’ flyers being handed out by staff to intending passengers, permitting them to travel from the station while there was nowhere to touch on or topup Myki cards.

The Bunnings Warehouse special

For some reason the new Deer Park station is covered with these cheap looking steel bench seats.

I found them on the ramp to platform 1.

Midway along the convoluted walkway through the construction zone.

I also found a big pile of them sitting in the middle of the old station site.

Turns out they are Marquee brand ‘Steel Park Benches’ that are sold by Bunnings Warehouse!

Surely sourcing some proper bench seats should have been part of the project plan?

One highlight – bike parking

Surprisingly the new Parkiteer cage at Deer Park was open for use – just without a locking door to secure bikes inside.

But unfortunately it’s hidden down a walkway that weaves through the construction site.

So I also found bikes locked up the first piece of fence the owner could find.

And finally – platform screwups

The new platforms at Deer Park are longer than a 6-car VLocity train, with plenty of empty platform beyond the back of the train.

But it turns out they aren’t actually long enough for the 9-car trains currently used on services to Wyndham Vale to stop at.

The new platforms are only 215 metres long – half a carriage (10 metres) too short!

What makes this omission even worse is that V/Line just completed a week long shutdown of the Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo lines to extend the 190 metre platforms at Sunshine to 225 metres long.

And adding to the comedy of errors – some V/Line trains aren’t allowed to stop at the new station!

Upon advice of V/Line Network Engineering, Sprinter railcars will NOT be permitted to stop at Deer Park station. Any Sprinter railcars will be required to run express through Deer Park station.

The operating restriction will apply until further advised due to clearance issues between the Sprinter railcar and the new platform when the doors are in the open position.

The reason – Sprinter railcars have outward plug doors that are lower than the floor level of the train, increasing the risk of getting stuck on a higher than normal platform.

What a comedy of errors!

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Off to Geelong

On Saturday 25 March 2023 I decided to jump on a train from Melbourne down to Geelong, and the trip was mostly uneventful.

Other than a toilet temporarily out of service.

And rock hard seating in what was a ‘short distance’ VLocity carriage.

The first oddity was the ‘No trains departing from platform 1 for the next hour’ message on the next train display at Tarneit station.

Trains to and from Geelong normally run every 40 minutes on the weekend, so that was a confusing sight.

Another odd sight as the large crowd awaiting at North Geelong station, but given their Collingwood and Bulldogs scarves, I assumed it was just a busy day for footy fans headed to the game.

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But on my arrival at Geelong I saw that wasn’t the only crowd.

The next Melbourne-bound train was about to depart, and it had standees all the way down the train.

It turns out the previous service – the 10:38 Waurn Ponds to- Southern Cross – had been cancelled.

The 10:38 Waurn Ponds – Southern Cross service will not run today

More information at https://t.co/IiZLwHhuoI pic.twitter.com/kDmNHRRuYG

— V/Line Geelong Line (@vline_geelong) March 24, 2023

And thanks to the 40 minute weekend service frequency, two services worth of passengers had to try and board a normally rather full service.

Admittedly V/Line put some effort into moving the passengers left behind – 15 minutes later a coach from usual rail replacement operator Endeavour Coach Company arrived at Geelong station.

But for my trip home, the same inadequate timetable struck again – Geelong station was full of intending passengers.

With the next service to Melbourne being an already full long-distance service from Warrnambool.

This train had standees on leaving Geelong, and at stations along the way the train had long delays as intending passengers tried to find a doorway not already filled with standing passengers.

I hate to see what these services look after the fare cuts!

Spare trains ahoy

The reason V/Line doesn’t run any more services isn’t a lack of trains – on my way past Wyndham Vale all four sidings were filled with VLocity trains awaiting their next run on Monday morning.

There were more VLocity carriages in the sidings next to the turntable at Geelong.

Three complete 6-car trains worth.

Another 6-car train parked beside the train wash.

And two older locomotive hauled trains stabled beside Geelong station.

And these trains aren’t ‘awaiting maintenance’ – the only work that gets done at these sidings is overnight refuelling and toilet decanting.

The big shed outside Southern Cross Station is the main maintenance facility.

Alongside the Alstom facility at Ballarat East.

The blame lies at the feet of the State Government.

They’ve allocated $207 million over four years to increase the frequency of weekend services in regional Victoria – but the changes won’t occur until July 2024 for the Geelong line, and July 2025 for the rest of the network.

Just a little late!

Footnote: getting pedantic

Trains might be sitting empty in sidings, but if you decided to utilise them more intensively, then maintenance requirements also increase – something that Connex struggled to do in 2009 on the Melbourne suburban network – and which V/Line ignored following the opening of Regional Rail Link in 2015, which resulted in the mass withdrawal of the VLocity train fleet with wheel wear issues.

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Photo by Webaware, via Wikimedia Commons

The story starts with the construction of Liddell Power Station in the Hunter Valley by the Electricity Commission of New South Wales (Elcom). The first of four 500 megawatt generators was completed in 1971, followed by two more in 1972, and the fourth in 1973. The complex was the first major power station in New South Wales to be built inland, and at the time of its completion was the most powerful generating station in Australia.

However a few years later all was not well at Elcom – maintenance on the generating system was being deferred, and the massive scale of new power stations left the system without reserve capacity should any of the units go off line.

This came to a head when in March 1981, when a stator winding fault at Liddell took one of the units out of service. Initially the Snowy Mountain Scheme was used to supply peak electricity load, but an ongoing drought had reduced the amount of water available, which led to the introduction of power restrictions in late June.

In November 1981 the situation worsened, when two more generators at Liddell suffered identical stator winding faults, with further power restrictions imposed for twenty days in December 1981, and twenty-six days in March-April 1982.

Canberra Times – 1 April 1982

Leaving both industry and households in the dark.

In one day of power rationing to industry it was estimated that 253,000 workers were stood down after 7,000 factories closed at a cost of $25 million to NSW industry.

Householders were restricted to half the normal lights on in a house, no air-conditioning, no radiators and, despite possible health risks, only two hours a day for filtering swimming pools.

To fill the gap, 300 MW of gas turbine generators was hurriedly acquired.

Twelve 25MW gas turbines were purchased by the Electricity Commission of New South Wales in 1982 to assist in meeting demand during the electrical energy crisis in that year resulting from the failure of alternator windings in three generating units at Liddell Power Station.

The units were connected to the State network in April, May and June, 1982. Total capital cost was $89 million. Two units are located at Bunnerong, two at Port Kembla, four at Eraring and four at Koolkhan near Grafton.

All gas turbines were used during the energy crisis in the period April to September, 1982. Operating times totalled approximately 5,000 unit hours, 85 per cent of the energy being generated using natural gas at Bunnerong and Port Kembla.

That were expensive to run.

For statistical and costing purposes a fuel consumption of 8.3 tonnes of distillate per hour is an average value recorded for each gas turbine when operating at full load.

The gas turbines at Bunnerong and Port Kembla use natural gas as fuel and for these units the gas consumption is 15.0 MJ/GWh.

In 1982 the cost of distillate was $267 to $3 10 per tonne. These values have been used to calculate a distillate fuel cost of $88 per MWh.

Under the current gas contract, fuel cost when burning natural gas is $84 per MWh for units at Bunnerong and Port Kembla.

The cost of running a gas turbine at full load (25 MW) for one hour is:
(a) natural gas fuel – $2,100 on current gas price.
(b) distillate fuel – $2,200 on 1982 fuel price. $3,875 on 1986 replacement fuel price.

With power restrictions finally averted by the commissioning of the first 660 MW unit at the coal fired Eraring Power Station in March 1982.

Photo by Nick Pitsas, CSIRO, via Wikimedia Commons

So what happened to the gas turbines?

After the power crisis had ended, some in parliament thought they should be sold off.

In 1982, in a panic move after the blackouts of 1981 the commission, at the Government’s insistence, purchased twelve gas turbines at a cost of $130 million. These turbines are not in use, have never been used and have no use, because they are too costly to operate.

The turbines should be sold to recoup the $130 million paid for them. The excuse that the turbines are to be used for a black start is not acceptable. It is absolute nonsense to give that excuse, and the Minister well knows it.

But Elcom did make use of the gas turbines in times of peak demand.

During autumn 1983 the natural gas turbines at Bunnerong and Port Kembla were operated due to reduced water storages in the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Scheme as a result of a prolonged drought. Operating hours totalled approximately 1,700 unit hours.

In addition, gas turbines have been operated for brief periods, as follows:

• Koolkhan to assist with a local supply problem in April 1984.
• Bunnerong and Port Kembla to assist the State Electricity Commission of Victoria following plant failures in that State.
• At all locations on one day in March 1983, as a result of loss of thermal generating plant due to switchboard flashovers.
• At all locations for three days during February 1986, during the coalminers’ strike.
• For one hour each month as a test on performance.

The units installed at Koolkhan have allowed deferment of some 330 kV transmission line projects in the area north of Armidale, with resultant cost savings of about $2 million.

Capable of generating at full load within 12 minutes of start-up, the turbines were seen as ideal emergency backup despite average annual maintenance costs of $3,200 per unit, which saw Elcom redeploy them to other parts of the network.

A review has been undertaken of the need to retain the gas turbine units.

Present forecasts of load growth indicate that there could be a need for the installation of additional combustion turbines towards the middle of the 1990’s and at this stage it has been decided not to sell any of the gas turbine units.

The benefit to the Commission of relocating gas turbines on the State grid would far outweigh the return obtained by selling this plant.

Action is in hand to relocate the Bunnerong units to the Upper Hunter district to provide “black start” capability for Liddell and Bayswater Power Stations, and it is proposed to relocate the Port Kembla units to Broken Hill as emergency standby supply in case of any failure in the transmission system.

The two units at Bunnerong Power Station were removed by 1984, and recommissioned between the Bayswater and Liddell Power Stations in 1988. They passed to Macquarie Generation as part of the breakup of Elcom, and remain in service today as the ‘Hunter Valley Gas Turbines’ owned by AGL Macquarie.

Google Earth 2020

The two units at Port Kembla were also relocated as planned to Broken Hill, being recommissioned in 1989.

Today it serves as a backup electricity supply to the isolated city of Broken Hill, should the single 220 kV transmission line be down for maintenance or an unplanned outage.

Google Earth 2020

Four gas turbines at Koolkhan fill a similar role, supplying to the far north coast of NSW should there be an outage on the 330 kV line from down south. Around 2000 Elcom successor Pacific Power decommissioned the gas turbines, which were sold off and exported to the USA. The site now lays empty.

Google Earth 2004

And finally, the four turbines at Eraring. They were passed to Elcom successor Eraring Energy, which operated two units as the ‘Northern Gas Turbines’ until they were decommissioned in 2001.

The site is now empty, but Eraring Energy did commissioned a 40 MW rated ‘Emergency Black Start Gas Turbine‘ in 2007 to meet the same role.

Google Earth 2020

Footnote: modern day equivalents

During the 2017-18 summer the Australian Energy Market Operator hired 105 diesel-powered generators that were setup at the Energy Brix Power Station site in Morwell, to supply up to 110 MW of electricity to Victoria in an emergency. They were never used, and did not return.

Aggreko Australia photo

In 2017 the South Australian government did something similar, purchasing nine new aero-derivative turbines to supply up to 276 MW of electricity to the state. After laying idle during the 2017-18 summer, they saw first use in January 2019, only be be sold to the private sector later that year.

South Australian government photo

Footnote: how did I get here?

The genesis of this post was a simple train photo, captioned “8119 and 8131 unloading at Eraring Power Station Coal Loop. 29 January 1994“.

To which someone replied:

Four 25mw diesel turbines just right of centre. I worked on some electrical modifications to these in about 1981.

And so I went this rabbit hole.

Sources

• Electricity Commission Gas Turbines Legislative Council Questions on Notice (1 February 1987)
• N.S.W. Power and the on/off Resources Boom Jim Falk and Graham Larcombe, Journal of Australian Political Economy (1983)
• Development of a Comprehensive Decision Making Framework for Power Projects in New South Wales Ayse Topal (2014)
• Inquiry concerning alleged inadequate maintenance procedures by the Electricity Commission at Liddell Power Station New South Wales Ombudsman (1983)
• The Electricity Commission of New South Wales and its place in the rise of centralised coordination of bulk electricity generation and transmission 1888 – 2003 Kenneth David Thornton (2015)
• Lifting power rationing does little to relieve the gloom Canberra Times (1 April 1982)

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But it wasn’t just garden variety late running and chronically dirty buses that led to the company being dropped, but something that slipped under the radar of the Melbourne media – a lack of essential maintenance that resulted in so many buses becoming unroadworthy in September 2017 that other operators had to be called up to assist in the running on normal bus services.

It begins

The rumours of a roadworthy crisis at Transdev started swirling in the world of bus spotters (yes, it’s a thing!) but the first public sign came on 18 September 2017, when buses from Dyson Group started appearing on routes normally operated by Transdev Melbourne.

As did vehicles from Sita Buslines.

Confirmation

The first media outlet to pick up the story was the Manningham Leader on September 19 – the area is dependant on buses for public transport, so I guess that’s why they noticed.

More than 30 of Melbourne’s Transdev buses ordered off the road after failing roadworthy checks
Andrew Rogers
Manningham Leader

More than 30 Melbourne buses have been ordered off the streets after being deemed unroadworthy.

Transport Safety Victoria ordered an emergency safety inspection at bus contractor Transdev’s Doncaster and North Fitzroy depots on September 11 and 12 after routine tests by VicRoads found safety breaches with 33 buses.

In a staff bulletin seen by Leader News, Transdev managing director Warwick Horsley told employees the company would now carry out checks on its entire fleet of more than 500 buses.

“We will continue to work closely with TSV to assess the remainder of our fleet for any defects, as well as any issues with our maintenance procedures,” he said.

The company — which operates 30 per cent of Melbourne’s buses — was forced to withdraw 33 buses from service after they were found to have safety defects, but VicRoads has refused to publicly detail the findings.

Shaun Rodenburg, acting director of bus safety at TSV, said: “We are working with Transdev to make sure the immediate safety issues are effectively managed and their safety systems are sufficiently robust to ensure the ongoing safety of their bus services.”

Transport Safety Victoria has confirmed it will follow up with another safety audit once Transdev has fixed the faulty buses and has ordered a more frequent audit regimen to monitor the company’s vehicle maintenance.

Transdev is yet to respond to Leader’s questions relating to the safety defects and how routes and customers will be affected.

It took The Age a day later to pick up the story.

Melbourne’s second biggest bus operator has been ordered to take a dozen of its buses off the road due to serious defects that posed a danger to passengers.

A blitz by safety inspectors on two Transdev bus depots found 33 defective buses, with 12 in such poor condition they were ordered off the road for urgent repairs.

Victoria’s transport safety watchdog, Transport Safety Victoria, said it was the highest number of defective buses it had ever taken off the road in a blitz.

Transport Safety Victoria said it would increase its inspection regime of Transdev’s fleet of buses until it is satisfied the company’s maintenance standards are adequate.

It is currently inspecting about 40 buses a day for potential safety problems.

“We are working with Transdev to make sure the immediate safety issues are effectively managed and their safety systems are sufficiently robust to ensure the ongoing safety of their bus services,” said Shaun Rodenburg, the acting director of bus safety at Transport Safety Victoria.

Defects included engine and transmission faults, fluid and air leaks, loose fitting panels and suspension faults.

The high number of potentially dangerous faults earned a rebuke from Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allan.

“This was not acceptable and we’re taking this situation very seriously, as the safety of people travelling on buses is our highest priority,” Ms Allan said.

Public Transport Victoria is reviewing the maintenance failures “so we understand the root cause of this issue and stop it from happening again”, Ms Allan said.

With Transport Safety Victoria issuing a media release on September 22.

In response to safety data analysis, Transport Safety Victoria (TSV) recently engaged with Vic Roads to run a series of safety inspections over two nights on Transdev buses.

As a result of this work:

• TSV issued 12 Prohibition Notices to Transdev, “grounding” 12 buses which presented a risk to safety;
• TSV issued one Improvement Notice to Transdev requiring it to assess its fleet for any more buses which may be unsafe and propose a remedial action plan for those buses before they be used to provide passenger services;
• TSV issued one Improvement Notice to Transdev requiring it to review its Maintenance Management System (MMS) to find how and why it failed and how to ensure the failure cannot recur; and
• TSV will conduct a targeted safety audit to test the effectiveness of Transdev’s remedial actions once they are complete. A more frequent audit regime will be applied until TSV is satisfied Transdev’s Maintenance Management System (MMS) is operating effectively.

“We are working with Transdev to make sure the immediate safety issues are effectively managed and their safety systems are sufficiently robust to ensure the ongoing safety of their bus services,” said Shaun Rodenburg, Acting Director Bus Safety at TSV.

And Public Transport Victoria adding a curt acknowledgement of the crisis on their website.

Replacement buses operating on some Transdev routes
Added: 22 September 2017

As a result of additional maintenance checks on Transdev buses, a number of their regular buses are currently out of service.

Transdev have made arrangements with other operators for replacement buses to supplement the fleet. These replacement buses may look different as they are branded by a different operator.

Customers will still need a valid myki to travel and should continue to touch on and touch off as normal on replacement buses. If a replacement bus does not have myki equipment, customers will be allowed to travel without touching on or touching off.

Real time information may not be available as some of the replacement buses are equipped with a different tracking system. Real time information on SmartBus displays, our PTV app and Next 5 on our website for these services will then display scheduled departure times.

We are working closely with Transdev to ensure that regularly scheduled services on Transdev routes are maintained and any disruptions are minimised.

The crisis grows

‘Foreign’ buses continued appearing at Transdev depots across Melbourne.

As the workshops started to fill up with unroadworthy Transdev buses.

By September 26 over a hundred Transdev buses were off the road, as Transport Safety Victoria inspectors made their way to each depot.

Now 110 @Transdev_Melb buses failed safety inspections, what does it take to actually DO something about the contract?? @JacintaAllanMP pic.twitter.com/SApbl72irg

— Transdev Watch (@TransdevWatch) September 26, 2017

Ventura, who lost a number of bus routes to Transdev back in 2013, was one of the operators called up to help.

As well as operators for further afield – like Mitchell Transit from Seymour.

CDC Ballarat.

And McHarry’s from Geelong.

But the replacement buses left a lot to be desired – plenty of older high floor vehicles were called back up into frontline service, like this one from Kastoria Bus Lines.

CDC Melbourne.

And this coach from Nuline Charter.

By October 6 Transdev managing director Warwick Horsley confirmed that 70 replacement buses were now in service.

Public transport @Transdev_Melb is significantly out of pocket after a safety audit pulled several buses from the road @laura_spurway #9News pic.twitter.com/2HbandcBhl

— Nine News Melbourne (@9NewsMelb) October 6, 2017

But it seems that even the replacement buses couldn’t avoid their death touch, as this broken down bus on hire to Transdev seems to suggest.

And back to ‘normal’

By late October the use of replacements buses operating on Transdev routes had petered out, but the quality of the bus fleet still left a lot to be desired.

Grafitti covered back seats.

Broken next stop buttons.

Duct tape holding together the front fairings.

Cracked front bumpers.

But it took until August 2018 for Transport Safety Victoria to close out their side of the investigation.

Transdev improving safety systems
2 August 2018

Since the grounding of 12 buses in September 2017, Bus Safety Victoria has been working closely with Transdev to ensure the operator’s safety systems are sufficiently robust to ensure the ongoing safety of its bus services.

A targeted audit program of Transdev began earlier this year, focussing on maintenance requirements and safety culture, and audits will be conducted at all Transdev depots.

To date we are seeing that Transdev has implemented many changes to improve their safety systems and culture.

And it took until December 2018 for the full scale of the roadworthy crisis to be made public.

Transdev pulled nearly 140 buses off the road after they were found to be defective last last year, The Age has confirmed.

I guess it just goes to show how little Melbourne cares about or bus system – if 20% of our tram or train fleet was pulled out of service due to flawed maintenance, it would be front page news.

A Myki related footnote

Public Transport Victoria mentioned myki use on replacement buses in passing.

Customers will still need a valid myki to travel and should continue to touch on and touch off as normal on replacement buses. If a replacement bus does not have myki equipment, customers will be allowed to travel without touching on or touching off.

But something they didn’t mention was that none of the buses with myki readers fitted ever had them switched on – turns out the equipment onboard each bus is only configured with the routes run by a given depot, so buses from other operators were unable to ‘log in’ to the system as a Transdev route, leaving the readers as dead weight.

Further reading

The November-December 2017 edition of Australian Bus Panorama has an article by Craig Halsall covering the Transdev fleet crisis in further detail.

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