The focus in our last blog was on the buffet service provided for regional rail trips. This blog provides a better understanding of the operating practices and the opportunity for capital, operating and maintenance cost savings and reduced environmental impacts.
An efficient professionally run railway must tailor regional train sizes to fit the return train patronage out and back from the outstation. Qantas would not run its 2200 flight to Sydney with a 787 when a 717 would do the job and the same rationale must apply for the operation of Victoria’s country passenger rail service.
History also teaches us the need to re-configure the fleet to suit the changing traffic task. But instead of using a mix of 3&4 car sets which allows trains to be run with 3,4, 6, 7, 8 or 9 cars with a range of car types, current VLine operating practices limit the options to multiples of a standard 3 car consist, with train sizes of 3, 6 and 9 cars for regional services.
The Inter City VL service can standardize on 4 car sets seating 230, and attach commuter type cars within Geelong, Bendigo or Traralgon unbooked as required. Buying powered trailers, or even non powering trailers saves a lot on fuel, and fleet maintenance which is distance based per car. Under existing policies, buying more 3 car sets with driving stations makes no sense. This costs more per seat in capex, and $ tens of millions p.a. in wasted opex, fuel and maintenance costs in running 6 car sets around when 4 would be enough. VLine has more than enough trains with 106 VL sets. What we need now is longer VL train sets.
In the case of the Inter City V/Locity for the Albury service the majority of trips require more than 152 seats. Under the current arrangement, with three car set modules this requires 6 cars. By inserting a trailer car with 80 seats in the 3 car Inter City consist, train capacity increases to 230 all serviced by one buffet. Instead of 6 cars powering we have 4 cars powering consuming 2/3 fuel of a 6-car set.
N sets built for the Inter City service with buffets were originally 3 cars seating 206. As patronage increased we moved to a mix of 4 and 5 car N sets seating 236 and 292. The 5 car sets were used on the am Inter City Ups and Evenings Downs. Ordering multiples of 3 car Inter City sets each seating 150 makes no sense based on past history of longer distance patronage.
All of the above reflects a short-term efficiency issue that should be addressed immediately. The Commonwealth games scheduled for 2026 should provide additional incentive to fix it but the environmental imperative remains compelling. This includes the need to replace the existing fleet with green energy powered vehicles which will be the subject of a later blog.