New construction around Geelong

There was plenty of work happening around Geelong, with construction of the stage 4A of the Geelong Ring Road underway at Waurn Ponds

Passing over the original 1868 stone bridge built by the Barrabool Shire.

And the railway station car park at Geelong station was being rebuilt.

At a cost of $24.5 million.

The heritage listed signal box at the Melbourne end of Geelong station also having been restored.

Progress in Melbourne

Myki was now active on the Melbourne railway network, with a stall at Flinders Street Station was promoting myki to passengers.

While the rollout to trams was continuing, with the installation of ticket machines at CBD tram stops.

New X’Trapolis trains were arriving into Melbourne, and I found one on the wharf at Webb Dock.

But much slower were repairs to storm damage at Southern Cross Station – two months on, and counting.

Scenes that have changed

2010 saw Metro Trains ramp up maintenance across the Melbourne rail network, with one projects being the relaying of track through South Yarra station.

Back then there were gardens beside the railway lines at South Yarra – since cleared to make room for Metro Tunnel works.

While the sidings at ‘E’ gate are now gone – cleared to make room for the West Gate ‘Tunnel’ project.

Ding ding

Malvern tram depot celebrated its centenary this month, with a public open day held to commemorate the opening of the Prahran and Malvern Tramways Trust on 30 May 1910.

Heritage trams #44 and #84 were brought down by road from the Bendigo Tramways for the occasion, with tram #44 running special trips between the depot and Dandenong Road.

Unfortunately in the decade since no heritage trams have operated on the Melbourne tramway network.

In the scrapyard

Rail freight operator Pacific National was busy scrapping redundant rolling stock.

Lifting the wagons off their bogies.

Lining them up beside the tracks.

Ready for a claw equipped excavator.

Ripping them up into a pile of shredded scrap metal.

Crash!

On 4 May a suburban train bound for Craigieburn proceeded past two red signals, and crashed into the rear of a stationary freight train.

They came together at a speed of 47 km/h, pushing the freight train forward 30 metres, before eventually coming to a halt 16 metres after the point of impact.

The driver and 14 passengers on the suburban train were treated by paramedics on site, with the driver and four passengers subsequently being taken to hospital.

The recovery of the train continued throughout the night.

The investigation determined that the driver of the suburban train had passed two signals at stop and travelled at speeds up to 69 km/h, in contravention of the normal rules and operating procedures, but the reason for their actions could not be determined.

However the safety issue that led to the crash was only partially addressed, leading to a similar collision in 2014. The ATSB then became involved, and so in 2018 Metro Trains finally put in place engineering controls to prevent a similar collision occurring again.

Footnote

Here you can find the rest of my ‘photos from ten years ago‘ series.

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Build it up

Work on the $48.5 million Kororoit Creek Road duplication project in Altona North had just kicked off.

Including the replacement of the Werribee line level crossing with a road overbridge.

Work on the project was completed in December 2011.

Gauge conversion of the Melbourne-Albury railway was still ongoing.

Buses replacing V/Line trains north of Seymour.

V/Line services eventually returned in 2011, but trains are frequently cancelled – the years since filled with attempts to fix the already deteriorating track.

Toot toot!

I headed up to Maryborough on a special train operated by the Seymour Railway Heritage Centre.

Travelling in style.

Sitting in the siding alongside was an equally elderly locomotive hauling an El Zorro grain train.

El Zorro having had the same train derailed at Tottenham Yard a few days earlier.

Thanks to the deteriorating track that passes for the Victorian freight network.

El Zorro went into administration in 2013, but the tracks they used are no better today – the Murray Basin Rail project intended to upgrade them ran out of money.

Storms

In March 2010 a massive storm hit Melbourne, with 10-centimetre hailstones hitting Southern Cross Station.

Photo by PageantUpdater talk • contribs ., via Wikimedia Commons

Tearing the plastic ‘bubbles’ in the roof.

Opening the station to the elements.

Flooding the concourse.

And the escalators.

Repairs were estimated to cost $5 million, with 43 of the 60 air pillows needing replacement, work commencing in April 2010 and lasting 12 to 14 weeks.

Things that are gone

Remember mX, the free newspaper that littered Melbourne trains and stations each afternoon?

The rise of smartphones saw readership drop, with the final edition published on 12 June 2015.

Myki was still new and shiny, with promotions across the rail network to get passengers to make the switch from Metcard.

Myki eventually took over from Metcard in December 2012.

The transition from Connex to Metro Trains as the operator of Melbourne trains was still ongoing, with trains slowly receiving the new branding.

But a decade later, the Metro livery surprisingly survives.

In 2010 bright yellow ‘bumbleebee’ trams were still making their way around Melbourne.

But by 2014 the decals were torn and faded, so the trams were repainted into the standard PTV livery.

The next train displays in the City Loop were also coloured by destination.

There were replaced by plain looking white on black LCD screens in 2011, but the use of colours was brought back in 2018, but only at Flinders Street Station.

V/Line trains to Geelong used to run via the Werribee line.

Since 2015 they have travelled via the new Melbourne suburbs of Wyndham Vale and Tarneit, follow the completion of Regional Rail Link.

Passing through what were once empty paddocks.

This farm west of Werribee is now Alwood Estate and King’s Leigh Estate.

I also ended up down in Gippsland at the Energy Brix briquette factory.

The ageing factory and associated brown coal fired power station closed in 2014, with demolition now underway, despite being heritage listed.

Footnote

Here you can find the rest of my ‘photos from ten years ago‘ series.

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Initially much has been made of the gap between the train and the sharply curved platform at Heyington.

But the real cause was something far more concerning.

Moving a train while the doors are open

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau released their final report into the Heyington fatality in April 2016, and detailed how the train moved while the doors are open:

The train was equipped with a traction interlocking device to prevent the train from moving while its carriage doors were open. The device, as designed, deactivated after a period of time and allowed the train to depart with the doors held open.

The report explains the normal operation of the train doors by the driver.

The driving cab at each end of the EMU contains the equipment and devices to enable the driver to operate and monitor the train doors. Located on the driver’s control console are two yellow pushbuttons that open the left and right hand side doors respectively and a blue pushbutton that closes doors on both sides.

To close the doors, the driver presses the blue pushbutton on the console. An intermittent beep sounds at each door for three seconds to warn passengers of imminent door closure. The yellow pushbutton lamp at the control console is extinguished and the doors close while emitting an intermittent beep at the doors. When the doors are successfully closed, the beep ceases and the pushbutton lamp on the door is extinguished. The blue pushbutton lamp on the console illuminates and flashes continuously until the doors are detected closed and then displays a steady blue light.

As well as how the train driver is prevented from moving the train while the doors are open.

Pressing the blue pushbutton at the console initiates door closing and a 60 second time delay for traction authorisation. Detection of all doors closed and locked before the 60 seconds elapse, activates traction authorisation.

And something concerning – a safety feature that automatically disengages itself.

Should the doors fail to close and lock after 60 seconds, the system is designed such that traction is authorised, despite the possibility that the doors have not closed. Once traction is authorised and applied the train will move.

Which led to the incident at Heyington.

The driver activated the door close command at 23:51:24 and shortly after made two attempts to apply traction. The train did not move as the traction interlock system had detected the open door and inhibited the application of power to the motors.

The end doors of the fourth car and the doors on all the other cars had closed, but the centre doors of the fourth car were held open by the two youths. After a short delay, the driver made an announcement for passengers to keep the doors clear. During this period, as designed, the doors attempted to close several times, but were held open.

The driver then applied traction again at about 23:53:30 and the train commenced moving along the platform with the doors held open, as the traction interlock system had timed out as designed.

Enter human factors

The ATSB argued that the design of the X’Trapolis train’s traction interlock system was flawed.

Where the design of a safety system such as a traction interlock times out automatically, it would be prudent to have additional indications/alarms to warn a driver of a change of state in the vehicle controls, particularly during passenger boarding at a station. Further, formally documenting the operation of the traction interlock override systems in the MTM training manuals would increase driver awareness of the risks associated with these systems.

And that other rail operators are much safer.

Traction override systems on passenger rolling stock managed by other operators also required drivers to intervene and operate a switch if they are required to override a traction interlock. In most cases, procedures require the use of the override when there is a failure of the door closed detection equipment or electrical circuitry. Prior to operating the manual override, drivers are required to follow procedures to ensure doors are closed and locked, and to verify this action by seeking authority from a train control centre.

But in Melbourne, we don’t do that.

MTM operates Comeng, X’Trapolis and Siemens trains on its network. The traction interlocking systems on the Comeng and X’Trapolis trains in Melbourne are designed such that the interlocking system is deactivated automatically after a period of time. MTM advised that the train’s traction interlock system was designed to deactivate to enable trains to be moved in case of door faults.

Except on one kind of train.

The traction interlocking system on the Siemens type trains, also operated in the MTM fleet, would not allow the train to move with the doors open without driver intervention to override the interlock.

Their brakes might not work, but at least Siemens got something right!

So time to fix the problem?

In April 2016 the ATSB raised a safety issue with Metro Trains Melbourne.

As designed, the traction interlock automatically deactivated after a period of time. This allowed traction to be applied and the train to depart with the carriage doors open.

Who initially responded:

MTM advised the ATSB that subsequent to the incident MTM has made no changes to the traction interlock system on the rolling stock, but has commenced a risk review of the traction interlock timing.

The ATSB wasn’t happy, so in July 2016 they recommended Metro Trains modify the traction interlock override system to incorporate additional risk mitigations, which they accepted:

MTM has now completed a risk review of the traction interlock timing. It is considering proposals to modify the interlock override system on both X’Trapolis and Comeng Fleets which have the same functional design.

The proposed steps are to undertake circuit modifications and install a key operated override switch. When implemented, these measures will allow a train to gain traction control in circumstances where a door appears to be open, but will differ from the arrangement at the time of the incident in that they require an additional manual intervention from the driver.

Circuit modifications will necessitate the removal of the existing timer relay circuit that provides for the functionality to be restored after a 60 second delay. Therefore if a ‘door open’ condition is detected following the initiation of the ‘door close’ command, the circuit will inhibit traction without time limitation, until the key switch is operated to reinstate traction.

During the running of a train, MTM’s systems will be such that the key can only be operated by a driver properly authorised and having the appropriate operating key. It should be noted that this is a similar configuration currently on the Siemens fleet.

In December 2016 tests of the modified traction interlock system had commenced on a single Comeng train, with a warning sign in the cab informing drivers of the modification, while Metro Trains gave the following timeline of implementation:

For Comeng trains within the MTM fleet, the installation of the proposed solution is being undertaken as part of the Comeng Life Extension program and is planned to commence by December 2016.

The Comeng Life Extension program is currently halfway complete, with the new override key switches appearing in each cab.

But for the X’Trapolis trains, money and technical difficulties got in the way.

For X’Trapolis trains, the implementation works are scheduled to commence after circuit validation by the train designer ALSTOM. For a number of reasons, MTM cannot proceed to make these alterations without ALSTOM approval.

In discussion with DEDJTR (Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources) it is proposed that new X’Trapolis trains being ordered would be the first fitted, with changes to other X’Trapolis trains being the subject of further review of funding options.

But it looks like the X’Trapolis fix is now on the way.

The 2017 Metro Trains Melbourne franchise extension included the ‘Indef. Traction Interlock XT Fleet Project’ as a line item, and since late-2018 dozens of X’Trapolis trains have passed through the Alstom Ballarat workshops for upgrades – hopefully a fix to the traction interlocking was one of the changes.

Footnote: everything old is new again

Way back in November 2008 then rail operator Connex Melbourne undertook an investigation into the problem of Comeng trains moving away from stations with doors still open.

Between 3 July and 23 September 2008, there were 17 confirmed incidents relating to Comeng trains moving with at least one passenger saloon door open.

The report recommended six actions, one of which was:

That a review of the operation of the Comeng door system be undertaken to determine its suitability in the current (2008) operating conditions. This review to consider the adequacy of the 15-second traction delay as provided.

Metro Trains took over from Connex in 2009 and implemented a fix for the problem.

MTM advise that this review has been completed. The 15-second traction delay has been increased to 60 seconds, and by June 2010 approximately 70 per cent of the fleet has received the modification.

The Heyington fatality in 2014 suggests that wasn’t enough – but thankfully the current works should fix it for good.

Sources

• Investigation number RO-2014-005: Fatality at Heyington Railway Station, Toorak, Vic., on 22 February 2014
• Safety issue RO-2014-005-SI-01: The train could be moved with the carriage doors open

And a housekeeping note

I recently launched a page on Patreon where you can help support my work. Next week’s blog post is “Southern Cross Station – what could have been” – and if you sign up over at https://www.patreon.com/wongm you’ll get a sneak peak!

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October 31, 2013

A broken boom gate at North Shore station. We now have police there making sure trains are safe to pass until its fixed #vline

— V/Line Geelong Line (@vline_geelong) October 31, 2013

August 12, 2015

Police and V/Line staff inspect a downed boom barrier arm at Station Street, North Shore

November 16, 2016

Delays, cancellations and alterations are expected on the Geelong train line due to a broken boom gate arm at North Shore.

— V/Line Geelong Line (@vline_geelong) November 16, 2016

December 14, 2016

09:33 Waurn Ponds to SCS held at North Shore due to level crossing boom gate damage

— V/Line Geelong Line (@vline_geelong) December 13, 2016

February 15, 2017

Geelong Advertiser
Geelong V/Line train delays as damaged level crossings impact commuters

Almost 200 peak-hour commuters were stuck at the station this morning as a Geelong-bound train stalled at North Shore. The first service to suffer was the 7.10am from Southern Cross Station to South Geelong.

August 17, 2017

Another day, another disruption on the Geelong line thanks to a car taking out the level crossing at North Shore

Geelong Advertiser
Boom gate damage at North Shore brings Geelong V/Line to standstill

Damage to a local level crossing caused commuter chaos for those travelling on in and outbound Geelong VLine services this morning.

November 27, 2017

16:06 SCS – Waurn Ponds will terminate at Marshall due to late running caused by a damaged level crossing at North Shore. Customers wishing to continue their journey are asked to board the next available service.

— V/Line Geelong Line (@vline_geelong) November 27, 2017

.@vline_geelong is delayed/services disrupted at North Shore station after issues with boom gate at level crossing pic.twitter.com/SjEz6b4g1z

— Joanna Crothers (@jocrothers) November 27, 2017

December 12, 2018

Trains on the Geelong line are likely to be delayed due to a faulty boom gate arm at North Shore.

— V/Line Geelong Line (@vline_geelong) December 12, 2018

Geelong Advertiser
Trains cancelled, replaced with buses
V/Line trains on the Geelong line were halted for an hour on Wednesday night due to a faulty boom gate at North Shore and at least two trains were cancelled. Trains resumed just before 6pm but commuters were still reporting long delays.

October 28, 2019 update

A new one – two hits in one day! The first one at 9.30am.

Major delays and service changes are expected on Geelong Line trains due to a level crossing fault near North Shore Station. Individual service change updates to follow as required. pic.twitter.com/Ccb1jxW3mk

— V/Line Geelong Line (@vline_geelong) October 28, 2019

With trains back running again by 10am.

Trains on the Geelong Line are resuming following the level crossing fault near North Shore. Traffic management is on site. Residual delays and service changes may occur as we restore normal scheduling. Thank you for your patience during this disruption. pic.twitter.com/FNRbJiiQKQ

— V/Line Geelong Line (@vline_geelong) October 28, 2019

Only for someone else to take it out again for evening peak.

Delays are expected due to a broken boom gate at North Shore. More information to come.

— V/Line Geelong Line (@vline_geelong) October 29, 2019

With traffic controllers taking an hour to arrive.

Geelong line update. Traffic management is on scene at North Shore. Trains will shortly resume at caution speed through the area. pic.twitter.com/Q3CaFcIMrn

— V/Line Geelong Line (@vline_geelong) October 29, 2019

April 2, 2020 update

Another one!

Police say the collision between a freight train and a V/Line replacement bus occurred at the North Shore Road level crossing near the North Shore train station at about 10.50am on Thursday.

The ATSB report finding.

The coach had stopped past the boom barrier with the front-left corner of the coach foul of the western standard-gauge track.

The coach driver reported that they had stopped in response to the crossing warning signals and was reluctant to proceed across the crossing because of fear of a complaint.

The acute road-to-rail track angle may have influenced the driver’s perception of the crossing and the position of the left-front corner of the bus relative to the track.

The boom barrier protecting the inner lane of Station Street has been damaged by vehicles 20 times in the previous six years.

The driver also reported not expecting a train because they were operating a train-replacement service.

Had the driver not stopped the coach, there was adequate time to complete the crossing prior to the arrival of the freight train.

July 20, 2022 update

Yes, it’s happened again.

Services on the Geelong Line are currently experiencing significant delays due to a level crossing fault near North Shore. More Information at https://t.co/IiZLwHgWza pic.twitter.com/xseKN1r1GN

— V/Line Geelong Line (@vline_geelong) July 20, 2022

But compounding the disruption for affected passengers – incompetence by V/Line.

A four-hour delay for about 100 passengers on a Warrnambool to Melbourne train service on Wednesday was “embarrassing” and “not good enough”, V/Line’s chief executive officer has said.

The train came to a stop at North Shore in Geelong due to a damaged boom gate at the Station Street level crossing.

Ms Kelly said no water or food was offered to travellers until about 3pm, and it was not until around that time that one bus was finally sent to the stranded train.

But the bus could only transport about 45 people, leaving more than half of the passengers to continue waiting.

Those who were left on the train did not arrive at Southern Cross until about 6pm.

But the fix didn’t last long – two days later, the boom barriers got stuck, stopping road traffic.

But why?

Eight confirmed hits in six years – so why do so many motorists manage to take out the boom gates at North Shore Road?

The level crossing is on a curve.

With a ‘T’ intersection on the northern approach.

With motorists from Station Street approaching the crossing on an angle.

But that doesn’t really answer the question – maybe decades of unfluorinated water rotted the brains, not just the teeth of locals?

A history of fatalities

December 30, 1907

A tragedy at the North Shore rail crossing. A father and daughter on a horse and buggy colliding with a train. The remnants of the buggy are on the right hand side.

September 19, 2005

The Age
Mother’s despair at teen’s train death

A distraught mother has spoken of her pain at witnessing her daughter’s death this morning as she was hit by a train.

Schoolgirl Sarah Stringer, 14, was running across the tracks at Geelong’s North Shore station when a V/Line express train slammed into her, killing her instantly.

Sarah, who was on her way to visit her grandparents in Melbourne, ran across the tracks because she was running late, but did not know the train was not stopping at North Shore.

What about removing the level crossing?

Way back in 1972 Neil Trezise, local member for Geelong North, questioned the progress made towards grade separating the level crossing:

GRADE SEPARATION AT NORTH SHORE LEVEL CROSSING.
(Question No. 813)

Mr. TREZISE (Geelong North) asked the Minister of Transport

With regard to the North Shore rail crossing at Geelong-

1. What is the present daily-
(a) road; and
(b) rail traffic figure?
2. When approval was given for grade separation works?
3. When it is expected that grade separation works will- (a) commence; and (b) be completed?
4. Whether plans or construction dates have been varied in recent years; if so, when and for what reasons?

Mr. WILCOX (Minister of Transport)

The answer is-
1.
(a) The Country Roads Board has advised that its last traffic count at the North Shore road level crossing was in February, 1968. At that time the average week-day volume of road traffic passing over the crossing was 3,471 vehicles per 24 hour day.
(b) The number of regularly scheduled trains passing over the crossing on weekdays is 58, exclusive of shunting movements. Special train movements would raise this figure as high as 75 trains daily in busy seasons.
2. Approval was given for grade separation works on 7th November, 1969.
3. The timing of the grade separation at North Shore road has been discussed by the Abolition of Level Crossings CommiHee and the committee has not recommended a commencing date at this time.
4. No.

Fast forward five decades, and it looks like that grade separation won’t be coming any time soon.

According to the ALCAM 2008 list, the North Shore Road / Station Street level crossing is the 126th most dangerous level crossing in Victoria – and the current State Government’s level crossing removal program doesn’t feature it, despite including a half dozen level crossings lower on the list.

And a politics related footnote

Don’t confuse Neil Trezise:

• Member for Geelong West 1964–1967
• Member for Geelong North 1967–1992
• Minister for Youth, Sport and Recreation 1982–1985
• Minister for Sport and Recreation 1985–1992

For his son Ian Trezise:

• Member for Geelong 1999–2014

I almost did!

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Some examples from Melbourne

The railway cutting at Camberwell was built back in the 1920s, with the red brick walls having been patched up many times in the decades since.

A low steel guard rail prevents cars on the parallel streets ending up on the tracks, with a rusted cyclone fence preventing people from doing the same.

Gardiner station is a modern example where shotcrete and piling forms the cutting walls, but graffiti still covers virtually every surface.

Here parkland separates the railway from the streets that parallel the tracks, so a cyclone fence along the top of the cutting wall has been deemed sufficient protection.

At the other end of the cutting is the railway station car park, so a waist height concrete barrier has been added to prevent motorists ploughing through after confusing the brake and the accelerator.

Over at Mitcham station is a similarly deep railway cutting.

At the Ringwood end, concrete barriers prevent motorists from bunny hopping out of their parking spaces.

But at the city end, a concrete kerb was deemed sufficient protection from motorists, who instead park at parallel to the tracks.

Finally we visit Wyndham Vale station – located on the other side of Melbourne and hewn out of solid basalt.

Here a residential street parallels the tracks, so a solid concrete wall follows the top of the cutting, topped with an even higher welded mesh steel fence.

Do they work?

Turns out concrete barriers are a necessity anywhere cars get near a railway – normal fences aren’t enough to prevent idiot drivers from ending up on the tracks. Here are a few recent Melbourne examples:

• June 2011: drunk driver sends car down embankment at South Yarra
• Unknown: driver overshoots car park at Mitcham station, car falls off platform and onto tracks
• January 2016: driver overshoots ‘T’ intersection at Burnley, car ends up on tracks
• January 2016: driver overshoots ‘T’ intersection at Sunshine, car ends up on tracks
• July 2016: driver escapes car park at Narre Warren station and gets car stuck on tracks

And from elsewhere in Australia:

• July 2014: driver crashes through station fence, car ends up on tracks at Wyong station, NSW
• October 2014: driver sends car down embankment and onto platform at Croydon station, NSW

And in a similar vein is this incident from February 2016 – car lands at bottom of 10 metre deep hole after driver sends it crashing through hoardings at a construction site in Flemington.

Footnote

Have you ever noticed how news reports normally state that a car lost control, not the driver? The language of driving is hard – with accident, not crash the default term – a phenomenon that Streetsblog USA explains further. Even I had to edit my initial draft in order to get across that drivers are the ones that screw up!

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To make room for these new stops, the road on either side has been reduced to a single lane.

These narrow lanes are quite the hazard for clue challenged motorists to negotiate, going by the damage seen at some of the stops.

They also cause difficulties for long vehicles attempting to turn left into from side streets into Elizabeth – I found this bus run into trouble while operating a route 19 tram replacement service, a few weeks after the new stops had opened.

With the tram stop to his left and traffic light posts to his left, the corner was too tight to get a normal bus around, forcing the driver to reverse.

The next bus driver took the corner wider, but still got stuck.

With a third bus driver finally making it around by driving over the tram tracks in Bourke Street.

Eventually the buses avoided the traffic lane altogether, and took to the tram tracks.

Eventually somebody in a position of responsibility realised long vehicles had no chance of making left turns into Elizabeth Street, so ‘No left turn all vehicles over 8.8m long‘ signs were erected on the side streets leading towards the tram stops.

Unfortunately this doesn’t seem to have fixed the problem – many long vehicles still try and fail to navigate the sharp turn.

Footnote

Wondering where the 8.8 metre figure comes from? The Australian Standard for Parking Facilities
AS 2890.1-2004 (Standards Australia 2004) has the following categories of vehicles to consider when designing roads:

• Passenger vehicle (5.2 m)
• Service vehicle (8.8 m)
• Single unit truck/bus (12.5 m)
• Long rigid bus (14.5 m)
• Articulated bus (19 m)
• Prime mover and semi-trailer (19 m)
• Prime mover and long semi-trailer (25 m)
• B-double (25 m)
• B-double (26 m)
• B-triple (35.4 m, was formerly 36.5 m)
• A-double (Type I road train) (36.2 m)
• A-triple (Type II road train) (53.4 m)

Looks like whoever designed the tram stops along Elizabeth Street decided that service vehicles should be able to make the turn, but not buses or semi-trailers.

Further reading

• Austroads Design Vehicles and Turning Path Templates Guide

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Some history

Melbourne’s Comeng trains are currently the oldest in the suburban fleet as well as the most numerous. Having entered service between 1981 and 1988, they received their current interior look and feel during a mid-life refurbishment program completed between 2000 and 2003.

On first entering service the Comeng trains were operated by a two-person crew – a driver up front to make the train stop and go, and a guard at the rear to watch the doors and tell the driver when to depart – but the second person was removed during the Kennett-era reforms of the 1990s, when single person operation of suburban trains was introduced.

Since entering service, very little has changed with the Comeng train doors: on arriving at a station they are released by the driver and manually opened by passengers as required, then prior to departure the door close button is pushed, triggering the pneumatic actuators that hold the doors closed, which then illuminates a light once all the doors have been detected as closed.

Melbourne’s newer trains follow the same general process, but with one important difference – once the doors close a locking mechanism holds them shut, with the only way to unlocking being to use the door open button, or to engage the emergency release lever.

By comparison the Comeng train doors have two flaws: they can be forced open by applying as little as 20.5 kilograms of force applied to the handle,^[1] and as soon as the train loses power, the doors become unlocked. This causes many problems – at the Craigieburn depot they had to retrofit their brand new train wash so that Comeng train doors don’t get pushed opened by the cleaning brushes, and if your train loses power in the middle of peak hour atop a bridge, there is nothing to stop you falling out.

@metrotrains Thanks – pax stranded on a peak loaded train with doors open on a railway bridge, over a road & live tram overheads = big risk.

— MetroTrainsPassenger (@MetroTrainsPax) January 23, 2014

The start of safety concerns

In October 2009 a fatality occurred at Melbourne Central station, when a passenger forced the doors open and leapt from a departing Comeng train.

The Office of the Chief Investigator investigated the incident, releasing their final report in January 2011. They found the following factors contributed to the incident:

• The victim forced open a powered door and attempted to alight from the moving train.
• Due to a faulty component preventing the correct operation of a safety circuit, the train driver was unaware of a door having been forced open.
• Although the existence of this fault condition on any train would not be evident to any casual observation, the train operator was aware that these trains were susceptible to developing this defect. There was no daily pre-service procedure to check for such a fault condition.

The ‘faulty component’ was incredibly small – a simple electrical connection between the two 3-carriage units of the train had shorted out, resulting in the ‘door closed’ lamp in the cab giving a false indication to the drivers, even though the doors in the rear half of the train had been forced open.

As a result Metro changed their procedures to ensure that the integrity of the door monitoring system is checked every time a new driver takes over a train.

However this was not the end of concerns around Comeng train doors, with Transport Safety Victoria issuing a safety notice to the Department of Transport in September 2011 regarding them:

Regulator concerned about train door safety
22 September 2011

Transport Safety Victoria (TSV) has issued a safety notice to the Department of Transport in relation to its concerns about the safety of passenger doors on Comeng trains.

TSV’s Safety Director, Alan Osborne, says the doors of these trains do not comply with modern passenger train design standards and have been associated with a number of incidents.

“Unlike other Victorian trains, the passenger doors of Comeng trains are able to be forced open,” said Mr Osborne.

“Being able to force the doors open of a moving train, or a train stopped between stations, increases the risk of fatal accidents occurring. Passengers should never do this, but the fact is they can because of the way the Comeng train doors are designed.”

A fatal accident occurred at Melbourne Central station in 2009, when a passenger forced open the doors of a train in motion. The passenger attempted to jump to a platform, but was caught and dragged by the moving train.

Mr Osborne has confirmed that the safety notice has been issued to require the Department of Transport to address the safety issues associated with the Comeng doors.

“There has been extensive consultation with the Department and Metro Trains about this issue and we still do not have any committed plans to address the safety risks,” said Mr Osborne.

“It is time to begin planning to address the risks of being able to force the train doors open, particularly as the Comeng trains could remain in operation for the next decade or two.’

In addition to recommending that the planning process start, the notice is intended to ensure statutory safety obligations are met.

Some of the actions referenced in the notice include removing the external and internal passenger door handles, installing a more sensitive door closing control on the doors, and installing a traction interlock system to prevent trains from departing stations until all doors are confirmed locked.

Mr Osborne has asked that these actions are undertaken at the next major overhaul of the fleet, in order to reduce the disruption to passenger services.

The actions will bring the Comeng trains to a similar standard of other passenger train door design standards currently in place on X’trapolis and Siemens trains, which are used on the metropolitan rail system.

The notice requires the Department of Transport to provide a response to the proposed actions once it has formally considered the issues. Part of this formal consideration requires the Director of Public Transport to consult with the Victorian Treasurer and Premier.

At the time of the notice being issued, Alan Osborne from Transport Safety Victoria said that the rectification works should only cost $10 million, but:

“I’m not getting good noises from the Department of Transport that this is going to be funded in the next major overhaul,” he said.

“I’m not saying there’s a massive risk that has to be dealt with right now, but what I do want to see is some committed plans put in place for the future so that we know that these things are going to get upgraded at the next major overhaul of the Comeng fleet.”

Transport minister Terry Mulder had the following to say:

“It’s a concern. We face that situation and we’re going to deal with it,” he said.

I’ll have further discussions with Metro. As I say, these trains are due for a mid-life overhaul and throughout the course of that, we may well be able to do that work.”

As with anything that politicians can’t cut the ribbon on, the issue of the Comeng train doors stayed on the backburner. Transport Safety Victoria complained again in October 2012, but upped the ante:

Transport Safety Victoria has placed a condition on train operator Metro’s accreditation: repair the doors on 96 Comeng trains from 2017 when the first train reaches the 35-year life expectancy or replace them.

It comes after TSV issued a safety notice to the Transport Department in September last year requiring the doors be fixed as they can be opened while the train is moving.

TSV acting director rail safety Andrew Doery said the regulator wanted a “funded, committed plan” to fix the problem, estimated by Metro to cost $12.9 million. “We’ve seen no program to rectify the doors,” Mr Doery said.

We now arrive at March 2014, three years out from the supposed retirement of the Comeng fleet, when Metro finally decides to pull their finger out and started trialling changes recommended all the way back in September 2011.

Deceptively simple, the modification has only been made to a single Comeng carriage (numbered 1097T) and consists of a new style of door handle, which is presumably harder for scrotes to force open with their foot.

Unfortunately the new design also makes it harder for people with frail hands to open the doors – instead of pushing at an exposed handle, one now needs to grip the insides of it with one’s fingers.

So why don’t we just retrofit the Comeng trains with power operated doors, identical to the newer trains in the Melbourne suburban fleet?

Turns out penny pinching was to blame – 7000 new door handles only cost $400,000 while retrofitted a new automatic door system would have cost $10 million.

Adelaide leads the way

Turns out Adelaide had exactly the same problem as Melbourne with their 3000 class diesel railcars. Built in Victoria between 1987 and 1996, these trains used the same body shells and doors as Melbourne’s Comeng trains, just with a diesel engine underneath the floor for propulsion instead of electric motors powered from overhead wires.

In 2009 TransAdelaide commenced a mid-life refurbishment program for their fleet of trains, which include the following features:

• Emergency call buttons next to doors to allow passengers to speak to the drivers.
• New passenger information display panels at each end of the railcar and automated audio announcements.
• Improved hand straps, seat grips and new bike stow areas with attachment rails.
• A new digital public address system with better audio.

Nothing new there, except for this last item:

• Push-button automated doors to prevent them being forced open while the train is in motion.

This is what the original doors on Adelaide’s 3000 class trains look like:

And a refurbished train, retrofitted with push-button operated lockable doors.

It makes you wonder – if Adelaide can do a job properly, why can’t we?

Further reading

Rail Safety Investigation Report No 2009/14 has more details of how the Comeng door mechanisms currently work.

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In the case Epsom Road in Ascot Vale, stop 30 on route 57 is taking quite a pounding, with cars crashing into the safety zone on a regular basis.

I first noticed damaged to the tram stop back in March 2012, when a damaged fence panel was replaced with plastic safety tape.

Repairs followed and I forgot about it until February 2013, when I found more damage – this time four of the fence panels were gone.

Again, repairs followed, until May 2013 when I found a ute impaled on five metres of the safety zone fence.

Once it was cleaned up, red plastic safety fence replaced the four damaged fence panels, along with a new safety zone sign to replaced that lost in the crash.

August 2013 found another driver ploughing through the safety zone fence, this time taking out five panels, the traffic light post, and a sign.

The end of August saw more repairs completed, but it only lasted a month – three fence panels were taken out by the next wayward motorist.

October 2013 rolled around, and I stumbled upon yet another car impaled on the fence.

One would not want to have been waiting for a tram when the car hit.

A few days later, the fence has been completely repaired.

Until January 2014 when a a record sized crash took out the tram stop – nine fence panels were taken out!

How long until someone manages to take out all 13 panels?

Why are motorists so clueless?

Unlike other tram stops, the one on Epsom Road has a unique feature – no massive concrete prowl to divert wayward cars. In addition, the approach to the tram stop for southbound traffic on Epsom Road is as follows

• Two lanes of traffic become one between Union Road and the Coles supermarket
• Single lane of traffic past tram stop 32
• Two lanes of traffic beneath the Flemington Racecourse railway bridge
• Another merge into one lane of traffic, due to kerbside parking
• Slew to the left, as the parking is replaced by a right turn lane for Flemington Drive
• Dodge the tram stop on the far side of the Flemington Drive intersection

All of the above requires a motorist to be paying attention and follow the road as it slews around the tram stop – but given the intelligence of the average Melbourne driver, no wonder so many fail to do so!

Sources

From “Towards a More Accessible Tram System in Melbourne – challenges for infrastructure design” by Andrea Macdonald and Selby Coxon:

4.1.2. Safety zone

The rest of the stops are safety zones comprising 1/3 network or nominally 400 stops. Waiting and boarding is in a separate fenced refuge in the centre of road adjoining the tram track. Widths vary and there may be a shelter and a timetable. Open railings have been replaced by fencing excluding informal access.

Footnote

Soon after publishing this post a journalist from Melbourne newspaper The Age dropped me a line, which resulted in an article appearing on their website on February 7, 2014. Yarra Trams had the following to say:

Yarra Trams spokesman Simon Murphy conceded that the number of repairs at this stop was “higher than average”.

There isn’t space to install a concrete “prow” to divert traffic, Mr Murphy said, because of the volumes of traffic going in and out of the racecourse.

“This stop is outside the entrance to Flemington Racecourse, presenting a challenge in terms of the space requirements available to install infrastructure,” he said.

Passengers generally wait at the other end of the stop, and Yarra Trams had no reports of passenger injuries.

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