The story starts

V/Line now has 115 and counting VLocity trains in service.

And with locomotive hauled trains on the way out, their diesel-electric locomotives ended up stored at Geelong.

And so in August 2023 V/Line invited expressions of interest to repurpose them on freight services.

V/Line is seeking proposals from organisations capable of repurposing its passenger locomotives for broad gauge freight in accordance with V/Line approved application(s).

V/Line is progressively retiring its fleet of ‘classic’ passenger locomotives as new V/Locity trains are introduced, creating an opportunity to reinvigorate competition in, and grow Broad Gauge (BG) rail freight in Victoria.

V/Line is seeking Expressions of Interest (EOI) from ONRSR (Office of National Rail Safety Regulator) accredited private sector organisations or consortia, to invest in locomotive upgrades to V/Line’s specification and maintenance requirements and operate them on the BG freight network.

The EOI proposals will encompass V/Lines classic passenger locomotive fleet, as they are progressively decommissioned, as they become available to be repurposed locomotive fleet for the BG Network.

A handful of of locomotives to start with, and more to come.

New VLocity trains are being introduced across the network, therefore V/Line is progressively retiring its fleet of ‘classic’ passenger locomotives. This fleet provides an opportunity to encourage competition and grow BG rail freight in Victoria.

To repurpose these locomotives, V/Line is running this public Invitation process for the N and P Class locomotives.

Following this, V/Line then expects to issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) to selected parties from the EOI Process.

The expectation is that the N and P Class locomotives will remain in V/Line ownership but will be made available for the freight network under a long-term lease arrangement.

While subject to change, the fleet surplus to requirements for this EOI Invitation is projected to be:
• 19 x N Class
• 3 x P Class

Of these, seven locomotives are available for repurposing now: four N Class and three P Class.

The next tranche of N Class locomotives will be released once replacement V/Locity trains are in service.

The total number of N Class made available through the program, and the timescales, are yet to be confirmed and will be subject to change.

With a hope to encourage more freight on rail in Victoria.

The objectives of the locomotive repurposing program are to:
• Increase the capacity and performance of the broad gauge freight system
• Prioritise proposals that support broad gauge freight growth, meet upgrade specifications, and offer co-investment on the freight system such as in wagons and terminals
• Support broader government policy on rail freight, health and road safety, and legislative requirements obligations under legislation such as the 2017 Climate Change Act and the 2010 Transport Integration Act.
• Maximise the return to the State through public tender processes that invite proposals from parties able to contribute to growing rail freight’s mode share

V/Line is looking for robust and innovative proposals that support these program objectives and demonstrate a collaborative approach to work with V/Line to improve BG rail freight in Victoria.
Key to this is to demonstrate value for money to the State. V/Line expects the EOIs to demonstrate this value, including by:
• direct investment in the locomotives (overhauls, upgrades, maintenance)
• investment in the BG freight network, such as in new/upgraded wagons and new/expanded freight rail terminals
• indicative lease payments to V/Line for locomotives
• indirect benefits including “externalities” such as reduced road damage and congestion, improved road safety and reduced carbon emissions.

Respondents are encouraged to prioritise investments in longer term assets, rather than just the lease payments for the locomotives.

And work around the ‘break of gauge‘ Victorian rail freight is limited by.

V/Line is currently investing $181 million on upgrades to the rail freight network. Complementary investment in the locomotive and wagon fleet is also being actively encouraged to maximise the benefits of these upgrades.

Surplus V/Line passenger locomotives are currently being repurposed and will be offered to rail operators for use on the BG freight network. The aim is to increase capacity and competition.

The Victorian BG freight system operates using a rolling stock fleet that is aging and, in some cases, not necessarily aligned to current and expected future requirements. The average age of the privately-owned BG freight locomotives in Victoria is 41 years, and most wagons in use are 30-50 years old.

SG rolling stock can operate on other networks interstate, therefore locomotives and rolling stock are more readily available and the market is more competitive.

In contrast, due to the relatively higher cost of meeting the gauge and axle load requirements, investment in growing the BG locomotive fleet has been historically restricted.

V/Line hopes that its commitment to, and investment in, the rail freight sector will generate commitment from freight operators towards growing their Victorian BG rail freight operations.

And it begins

In March 2024 four N class locomotives departed South Dynon for a new life on freight with the successful bidder – Southern Shorthaul Railroad.

N467 transferring classmates N463, N466, N455 and N464 along the goods lines under Footscray.

To Tottenham Yard, where the locomotives were handed over to Southern Shorthaul Railroad.

The V/Line and PTV branding was quickly stripped from the locomotives.

And on the evening of 16 March 2024 they led their first freight train, with N463 leading B80, S311 and N455 out of Melbourne on a grain train towards northern Victoria.

Allowing aging diesel locomotives from the 1950s to head into the workshops for a well overdue overhaul.

Footnote on the P class locomotives

Back in 2017 V/Line’s also retired a number of smaller P class locomotives.

Five were sold outright to Southern Shorthaul Railroad in April 2019, and pressed into service delivering newly completed High Capacity Metro Trains.

Transporting X’Trapolis trains to Ballarat for overhaul.

And Comeng trains to the scrapyard.

They have also been used on infrastructure inspection trains.

To transport rails, ballast and sleepers to work sites.

And to fill in for the bigger B and S class diesels on grain trains.

Initially they ran around in a stripped V/Line livery, but were eventually repainted in SSR yellow and black in 2022.

Post retrieved by 35.215.163.46 using

The post Retired V/Line locomotives now hauling freight appeared first on Waking up in Geelong.

V/Line fleet overview

The newest trains in the V/Line fleet are the VLocity diesel multiple units. Each train is made up of three carriages, each with a diesel engine beneath.

The first units entered service in 2004, with additional trains rolling out of the Bombardier factory at Dandenong every few months.

Next up are the Sprinter diesel multiple units. Mechanically similar to the newer VLocity trains, the Sprinter fleet was built between 1993 and 1995, so are now approaching 25 years of age.

But the oldest part of the V/Line fleet is what they call their ‘classic fleet’, carriages hauled by diesel locomotives.

The N class are the core of the V/Line locomotive fleet, with 25 units built between 1985 and 1987.

Along with a single A class locomotive – built in 1985 on the frame of a B class locomotive built way back in 1952.

While V/Line’s carriage fleet fall into three classes.

The newest are the ‘N’ type carriages, built in the early 1980s and used on long distance services.

The ‘H’ type carriages used on commuter trains are younger, having been built in 1984-1992, but using the bodies of retired ‘Harris’ suburban trains from the 1950s.

While the oldest are the ‘Z’ type carriages used on long distance services – built way back in the 1950s, and the subject to cracked bogies back in 2013.

So which train is more reliable?

One would expect something brand new should be more reliable than something old, and that a simple piece of machinery is less likely to break down than a complicated one.

Using that logic, a carriage is a simple box with doors on wheels, a locomotive is something complicated with an engine that can break down, and a diesel multiple unit is the most complex, putting all of the above into a tight space.

So which ones breaks down the most? The V/Line annual report for 2016-17 has the answer.

New trains are more reliable than old ones, and simple trains break down less than complicated ones.

The annual report explains further:

VLocity

Each VLocity carriage travelled an average of 157,805 kilometres between faults in 2016-17 compared with 155,082 kilometres during 2015-16.

The average availability of VLocity carriages during scheduled service periods, which includes maintenance and operational issues, was 91.7 per cent against a target of 86.5, the percentage of the fleet that is required to meet timetable requirements.

Sprinters

This year, Sprinters travelled an average of 42,533 kilometres between faults, against a target of 30,259 kilometres. This compares with 40,066 kilometres between faults in 2016-17, a six per cent reliability improvement.

The average availability of Sprinters was 85 per cent against the target of 84.6 per cent. This decrease from 90.3 per cent availability in 2016-17 was due to In Cab Equipment (ICE) radio installation and fire damage to a Sprinter, effectively reducing the fleet size by one for most of the year.

Carriages

Classic fleet carriages travelled an average of 162,895 kilometres between faults against a target of 130,000 kilometres.

Average carriage availability of 74.3 per cent is measured against a target of 73.2 per cent and was down from 81.4 per cent the previous year. This was due to carriages being unavailable after the Pirron Yallock level crossing collision and structural assessment to enable life extension until 2025.

Locomotives

Locomotives travelled an average of 22,957 kilometres between faults, against a target of 29,962 kilometres, compared with 27,049 kilometres in 2016-17. This represents a 15 per cent decrease.

Average availability was 70.2 per cent, against a target of 69 per cent, compared with 82.1 per cent in the previous year due to the repair of the locomotive involved in the Pirron Yallock level crossing incident.

Some interesting data – the performance of an increasing elderly carriage fleet being a stand out.

So how old is the V/Line fleet

In August 2017 the Victorian Auditor-General’s Office released their report into V/Line Passenger Services – Figure 4D detailed the average age of rolling stock.

VAGO, based on V/Line ACCRI Project, 2015

As well as V/Line’s historical neglect, of both infrastructure and rolling stock.

Asset management

In the past, major periodic maintenance funding has not kept pace with the levels of funding required to maintain a fully operational and reliable passenger network. This has resulted in a deterioration of the network.

Until recently V/Line did not have a comprehensive understanding of the condition of its assets. It was therefore unable to develop sound long-term asset management strategies or to make evidence-based decisions on how it funded and prioritised maintenance and renewal work.

In 2015, V/Line changed its asset management approach from ‘fix on fail’ to ‘predict and prevent’, based on known asset condition. V/Line has now identified its maintenance backlog and has prioritised investments according to criticality and risk. The scale of funding required to address the maintenance backlog is significant—approximately $534.8 million across the entire V/Line network.

Asset failures limit V/Line’s ability to deliver agreed service levels, resulting in customer delays and service cancellations. Many of the vehicles in V/Line’s rolling stock fleet have been in service beyond their expected life, which is typically 30 years. Consequently they have a high failure rate and require significant investment in replacement and refurbishment.

Given V/Line’s difficulty in merely keeping up with patronage growth, I don’t see the retirement of life expired rolling stock happening any time soon.

Post retrieved by 35.215.163.46 using

The post Which V/Line train type is the most reliable? appeared first on Waking up in Geelong.