Western NSW fast rail

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Electrification

As part of the "NSW fast rail program" the rail corridor between Lithgow and Bathurst will be electrified. This will allow for direct services between Sydney and Bathurst . The electrification will also allow the new bi-modal regional fleet to use Electric traction all the way out to Bathurst here. As part of the program, there will be feasibility study's for the reopening of Bowenfels, Marrangaroo, Wallerawang, Wambool, Raglan & Kelso. The potential reopening of these stations will boost the far western economy and create a lager market for accommodation. The electrification works are proposed to cost $300 million and take roughly 3 years. It is proposed to extend every second Lithgow terminating train to Bathurst in the off peak and every train during the peak, Mt Victoria terminating trains will now terminate at Lithgow. A selection of OSCars (H sets) will not be converted to suburban carriages and will instead be used to create an hourly shuttle between Mt Victoria and Lithgow, Mt Victoria and Katoomba and a 2 hourly service form central to Mt Victoria. Bathurst station platform 2 will be restored and put back into service to allow a train to depart or arrive while another is boarding. The goods yard (some of which is still in use) will be upgraded to allow for off peak and overnight stabling of trains.

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Signaling

As part of the "Fast rain NSW" program, a new ETCS (European Train Control System) signalling system will be built. This system removes the reliance on traditional trackside signalling and instead uses an in-cab signalling module that allows trains to use dynamic "blocks" allowing trains be closer together and higher frequency. The majority of signalling will take place at the ROC (Rail Command Center), there will be manned yard signal boxes which will manage sections of the network at Bathurst, Lithgow, Mt Victoria, Orange, Parkes & Broken hill. Much of this infrastructure is in place. The implementation of the ETCS will be completed in three stages.

The new ECTS system will be installed on the NRF and NIF. The system will be level 2 ETCS, which uses radio based communication to constantly report the trains location to the ROC. The railway will still retain all of its traditional trackside signalling for 10 years after the ETCS system is operational in order to give private rail operators time

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Rail Upgrades

The regional NSW rail network is desperately in need of an upgrade. As part of the Western NSW Fast Rail, damaged rail will be replaced, bypasses will be added & switch points will be upgraded. This will allow for more constant fast speeds, instead of slowing down and spending up to cope with the rails. The upgrades to the rails will also help trains stay on time and keep to their tight schedules. A small list of places that will receive upgrades is:

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Project Summary

The regional NSW rail network is desperately in need of an upgrade. As part of the Western NSW Fast Rail, damaged rail will be replaced, a new signalling system will be built, electrification will be extended to Bathurst & many other smaller improvements will take place. The total estimated cost for the project is $2.9 billion.

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Grahamec, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons