Tuesday 13 January 2009

Scorching weather across the state over the next couple of days will result in slower V/Line trains and delays to some services.

On hot days V/Line puts heat speed restrictions in place as a safety precaution. This is common practice on rail networks around the world.

General Manager, Ursula McGinnes, said services today and tomorrow may run up to 30 minutes slower, with a small number of services fully or partially replaced by coaches.

“Morning peak trains are generally unaffected by hot weather, however from midday people should allow extra travel time,” Ms McGinnes said.

“To ensure evening peak trains can depart Melbourne on time, a few early afternoon trains may need to be replaced by coaches. This means we can limit the inconvenience for most customers.”

“The Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo and Seymour lines are all affected by extreme heat today, with slightly cooler weather in Gippsland looking like it’s off the hook until tomorrow.”

V/Line applies heat speed restrictions when the temperature reaches 36 degrees across the state, with the exception at Swan Hill and Echuca where it is 33 degrees.

Generally trains slow to about 90 km/h though this can vary across the state.

Ms McGinnes advised passenger to check their service before travelling.

“We have several avenues for people to check their services,” Ms McGinnes said.

“Also, information on trains that are affected by cancellations or delays is now available through text messaging to mobile phones or email alerts. People can register by going to vline.com.au/inform.

“Slower trains do inconvenience passengers; however heat speed restrictions are an important safety measure. The best advice to anyone travelling is to be prepared for heat and allow the extra time,” Ms McGinnes said.

Please visit vline.com.au/heat or call us on 136 196 for more details.