Oz, the slow way! Winding through the Outback by luxury train

[John Ashworth]

Oz, the slow way! Winding through the Outback by luxury train where crocodile and buffalo are rustled up for dinner

[Mel Turner]

The article describes a trip from Adelaide to Darwin over open access track, hence 4(?) days https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ghan

This is over tracks owned by both the quango ARTC, and the US company Genesee & Wyoming Inc. Not much profit in bums on seats, so the Gan operator pays base track access rates. If they paid the more expensive express intermodal rates they would be entitled to 120kph, and would not have to give way to trains in either direction paying a higher access fee.

I recently picked up English relatives off the Gan, they were unable to comprehend the concept that passenger trains must give way to profitable container traffic. They spent hours in isolated passing loops waiting on faster freights to overtake. To make matters worse, they were in the rear section (train of 26 carriages plus a couple of car carriers, generator vans and crew coach) so too long for Adelaide's platform, train is split short of the station, and the locos then go back to collect the second section, delaying those passenger's arrival by around half an hour

The operator of the Ghan does not own locos, so uses a hook and pull contract. Interstate above rail operations in Australia are total laissez-faire, no franchises, any taxpayer has a legal right to run their own block trains between private sidings, hence most non-mineral rail freight operations are by companies with interests in port, stevedore, warehouse, trucking and rail. Long distance passenger rail is for tourists with time to burn.

[John Ashworth]

See viewtopic.php?f=35&t=15196