V/Line hired locomotives
29 July 2021
Occasionally V/Line has motive power shortages or failures, and need to hire locomotives from other operators for use on their own trains. In the photos here it is Freight Australia / Pacific National as the hirer
IEV100 track evaluation vehicle
19 July 2021
Formerly known as EM100, IEV100 is a track evaluation vehicle that traverses the Victorian railway network to test track quality. Diesel powered, it has both standard and broad gauge bogies.
Metro Trains Melbourne - Northern group
19 July 2021
Metro Trains Melbourne services on the Werribee, Altona, Williamstown, Sunbury, Craigieburn and Upfield lines that make up the Northern group.
Melbourne Airport Rail
19 July 2021
The Melbourne Airport Rail is building a new double track railway branch from Albion station to Melbourne Airport, running parallel to the existing Albion-Jacana freight line as far as Keilor East, then following Airport Drive and Melrose Drive to the terminal area.
Qube Logistics Apex quarry train
19 July 2021
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.
Commercialising commuters
18 July 2021
For Melbourne's privatised public transport operators, they don't make money by moving people - they make money selling their captive audiences to advertisers and other commercial outfits.
V/Line around Melbourne
17 July 2021
Pictures of V/line trains 'under the wires' around Melbourne and surrounding suburbs. V/line has a mix of loco-hauled and DMU-run services.
Failing rail infrastructure of Melbourne
17 July 2021
Melbourne's railway network is held together with bubblegum and duct tape - here are examples of the way that it is falling apart.
Melbourne stations and infrastructure
13 July 2021
Photos of railway infrastructure in suburban Melbourne - stations, signals, and such
Myki
13 July 2021
Photos of bits and pieces to do with Melbourne's 'Myki' smartcard ticketing system
Flinders Street Station
13 July 2021
Flinders Street Station is the main suburban train station for Melbourne, Victoria
Metro Trains Melbourne - inner suburban
13 July 2021
Metro Trains Melbourne services in the inner suburban area, covering Flinders Street Station, Southern Cross Station, the City Loop, North Melbourne and Richmond.
High Capacity Corridor Upgrade project
13 July 2021
The High Capacity Corridor Upgrade project (previously the Cranbourne Pakenham Line Upgrade project) is being delivered by the Level Crossing Removal Authority to support the new High Capacity Metro Train (HCMT) fleet. The work includes track duplication on the Cranbourne line at Dandenong South, minor platform extensions, and the replacement of signalling, overhead wires and traction substations along the Cranbourne and Pakenham railway lines.
Melbourne suburban passenger information displays
13 July 2021
Next train displays at Melbourne suburban railway stations.
Metro Trains Melbourne - Burnley group
13 July 2021
Metro Trains Melbourne services on the Belgrave, Lilydale, Alamein and Glen Waverley lines that make up the Burnley group.
Melbourne suburban Digital Train Radio System
13 July 2021
The GSM-R based Digital Train Radio System (DTRS) replaced the analogue Urban Train Radio System (UTRS) used for communication on the Melbourne suburban rail network. Approximately 100 base stations make up the system with more than 70 new towers added to cover the network. Work stated in September 2009 and was completed in 2011, with trials of the on train equipment starting in 2012.
Richmond station
13 July 2021
A windblown concrete monolith from the 1950s with inadequate passenger interchange passageways and narrow platforms
Metro Trains Melbourne - Caulfield group
13 July 2021
Metro Trains Melbourne services on the Pakenham, Cranbourne, Frankston and Sandringham lines that make up the Caulfield group.
Melbourne suburban bits and pieces
13 July 2021
Photos of bits and pieces on and around Melbourne's suburban trains
Failing infrastructure at Southern Cross Station
13 July 2021
Southern Cross Station was only finished a decade ago, but the building is already starting to fall apart
V/Line workshops, yards and shunting
13 July 2021
Pictures of V/Line trains and carriages at the West Melbourne Depot and Dudley Street carriage yards next to Southern Cross Station, Melbourne Yard, and South Dynon.
Southern Shorthaul Railroad works trains
13 July 2021
Since August 2019 Southern Shorthaul Railroad has been operating works trains on the Melbourne suburban rail network on behalf of Metro Trains Melbourne.
V/Line - Regional Rail Link
12 July 2021
V/Line trains using the new Regional Rail Link tracks that have progressively come into use since December 2013.
Pacific National - Western standard gauge
11 July 2021
Out on the Western standard gauge, from beyond Gheringhap across the plains towards South Australia
North Dynon
5 July 2021
Located between the main passenger lines at South Kensington and Dynon Roads, along with Moonee Ponds Creek and the Maribyrnong River, the North Dynon precinct includes the Agents Sidings and the P&O Trans Australia container terminal at 'T' gate.
Melbourne Yard
5 July 2021
Located south of Spencer Street station, it ran from Flinders Street north to Moonee Ponds Creek. Today it is all part of the Docklands redevelopment, except for the area north of Dudley Street.
Flinders Street Station upgrade
5 July 2021
In February 2015, the State Government announced a $100 million investment to repair the exterior of the station’s administration building as well as improve access and facilities for commuters. Work started in late 2015 and is due for completion in 2018.
Long Island steel train
5 July 2021
The Long Island steel train serves the BHP mill at Hastings, south of Frankston. The steel is transferred from broad to standard gauge trains at the Melbourne Freight Terminal at South Dynon. In 2015 this facility replaced the Melbourne Steel Terminal, just west of North Melbourne station.
Amskan RFID train identifier tags
5 July 2021
At some point in the past Amskan RFID train identifier tags were installed on Melbourne's fleet of Comeng and Hitachi trains, along with readers at Flinders Street Station, and possibly other locations
TPWS in suburban Melbourne
5 July 2021
Commencing in 2010 Train Protection & Warning System (TPWS) has been retrofitted to signals across suburban Melbourne.
V/Line at Southern Cross Station
5 July 2021
Southern Cross Station is the main hub of V/Line passenger services from around the state
Car parking at Melbourne stations
4 July 2021
Pacific National broad gauge grain
3 July 2021
Grain is a major freight traffic in Victoria, but drought has cut the level of traffic in recent years. Trains operate on both broad and standard gauges, with the main destinations being export terminals at Melbourne and Geelong, as well as Portland, and a number of domestic flour mills
South Dynon
23 June 2021
Located between Dynon and Footscray Roads, alongside Moonee Ponds Creek and the Maribyrnong River, the South Dynon precinct includes the Pacific National operated Melbourne Freight Terminal and Melbourne Operations Terminal
Kew Depot
23 June 2021
Kew Depot on at the corner of Barkers Road and High Street, Kew supplies trams to route 48, 78 and 109.
Pacific National Tocumwal freight
22 June 2021
Pacific National (formerly Patrick PortLink) operate a container service between Appleton Dock in Melbourne and Tocumwal, loading also being attached / removed at Mooroopna (Shepparton).
Smashed signs at Sunshine station
19 June 2021
What happens when you put a road sign right beside a tight corner, on a footpath leading through the Sunshine station car park? Clueless motorists drive over the top of it, over and over again.
Metro Trains Melbourne - Infrastructure Evaluation Vehicle IEV102
16 June 2021
Converted from carriage MTH102 by SSR Bendigo in 2010, as of March 2011 this inspection carriage has been used to check up of the status of the overhead wiring along Melbourne's suburban railway network.
Melbourne electric multiple unit interiors
19 May 2021
Interior views of Melbourne's electric multiple unit trains.
Poor service from Metro Trains Melbourne
17 May 2021
Woeful service from Metro Trains Melbourne is a running joke - here are some examples.
Melbourne rail replacement buses
15 May 2021
When the *%@! hits the fan on Melbourne's rail network, buses have to be called in to operate a replacement service for passengers.
V/Line diversions on the suburban lines
15 May 2021
Since 2015 all V/Line services towards Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo have used the new Regional Rail Link tracks out of Melbourne. An exception to this is major disruptions, when the trains get sent the 'old' way.
High Capacity Metro Trains at Newport Workshops
8 May 2021
The new High Capacity Metro Train (HCMT) fleet is being assembled by Downer at the Newport Workshops in Melbourne's west, with the body shells assembled by CRRC Changchun Railway Vehicles in China.
Werribee level crossing removal replacement buses
4 May 2021
During 2020 and 2021 buses have replaced trains on the Werribee line while level crossings were removed at Aviation Road Aircraft, Old Geelong Road Hoppers Crossing, and Werribee Street and Cherry Street in Werribee.
Calder Park Sidings
10 April 2021
The train stabling yard at Calder Park is located north of Watergardens station. The first stage opened in December 2014 was a three road yard large enough to stable six 6-car trains, with a second stage adding another three sidings in 2015. As part of the High Capacity Metro Train project, a light maintenance facility is also being constructed at the site.
Comeng Life Extension project
8 April 2021
The Comeng Life Extension project commenced in 2017 to update the interior and exterior of Melbourne's fleet of Comeng trains in order to keep them in service until 2022-27.
Poor service from V/Line
1 April 2021
Clutching failure from the jaws of success - that's the V/Line way.
V/Line to Bacchus Marsh
18 March 2021
Photos of the V/Line services that run to Bacchus Marsh, taken between there and the end of the wires back at Sunshine. As well as boring old VLocities and Sprinters, loco hauled trains with A, P and N classes are also used in peak times.