V/Line via the Brooklyn goods lines
6 January 2017
On 24 October 2007, the normal route for trains through Yarraville was closed due to a fatality. The down Geelong train I was travelling on was diverted via the freight lines, through the Bunbury Street tunnel, Tottenham Yard, Brooklyn, and the back of Newport.
Return of the Bendigo Hitachis, August 2006
31 August 2006
After their withdrawal from suburban service in Melbourne, in February 2004 four 3-car Hitachi sets were transferred to the Bendigo North Workshops and stored unsecured in the open. In 2006 stripped of parts, and with broken windows and covered with graffiti, they were moved back to Melbourne by El Zorro using Y145 and S302 in the middle of the night of August 30th. Here they are upon arrival the next morning at Newport Workshops.
Bellarine Peninsula Railway
6 April 2019
The Bellarine Peninsula Railway operates between Queenscliff and Drysdale on the Bellarine Peninsula, outside Geelong. Once a broad gauge line that closed in 1978, it is now regauged to 3"6' and has a wide variety of narrow gauge rolling stock from around Australia
Ballarat Workshops
25 October 2017
Currently operated by United Group they carry out work for Metro Trains Melbourne, Great Southern Rail and a number of other operators
First day of VLocity operations - Ballarat line launch
22 December 2005
December 22nd 2005 was the entry of V/Line's new VLocity trains into revenue service. I managed to catch the 1406 service to Ballarat, and the 1629 service from Ballarat. In this collection I've got pictures of the VLocity arriving at Southern Cross Station, for the first time with paying passengers on board, as well as the services that I travelled on.
Ballarat Tramway Museum
21 September 2019
Located on the shores of Lake Wendouree and with about a kilometre of single track with a single crossing loop, and a 7 road shed, the museum has a collection of trams representing those used on the Victorian provincial tramways
Hitachi transfer with T378 to Ballarat, August 2008
31 August 2008
SRHC's T378 took Elecrail Hitachi set 7M-1994T-225M-89M-1946T-99M from Newport to Ballarat Workshops via North Geelong for refurbishment. Here are some shots between Lara and Warrenheip.
Qube Logistics Apex quarry train
19 December 2019
The Apex train carries gravel and other quarry products from Kilmore East on the North East line, to Westall in south-eastern Melbourne, Brooklyn in western Melbourne, and North Shore in Geelong. Originally operated by Freight Australia then Pacific National, in 2016 Qube Logistics won the contract.
V/Line 2007 Avalon Airshow specials
25 March 2007
Every two years the Avalon Airshow is held outside Lara, with V/Line operating special trains between Melbourne, Geelong and Lara. Push-pull N classes on 8 car trains feature heavily.
Accidents and dimwits
24 December 2019
Miscellaneous accidents from around the place: derailments, clueless passengers, and broken bits and pieces.
707 Operations - Newport to Marshall August 2008
10 August 2008
On August 10, 707 Operations ran a charter train from Newport to Marshall for their members. R707 led 5 S and Z cars, a PCP power van, with T413 attached to the rear.
4Ds last run, March 2006
29 March 2006
The double deck 4D train had a difficult career, failing often and being an orphan in the fleet, and by 2003 it was in storage at Newport. By 2006 it reached the end of the line being stripped for parts. This was definitely the 4D train's last run, from Newport to Simsmetal at Brooklyn. El Zorro's Y168 and W241 took the 4D away, with a small number of other freight wagons for braking purposes.
V/Line - three car VLocity trains
3 October 2008
V/Line announced the construction of centre cars for the two-car long VLocity units in 2006. This album has some photo-manipulations of the trains, as well as photos of the actual three car long units during testing in mid 2008. There are now a number of them in revenue service.