Maldon Dombarton and NSW freight transport

On 12 July 2024, the University of Wollongong hosted at its Innovation Campus a visit from the Western Sydney Leadership Dialogue to release a Discussion Paper “Wollongong & The West” to promote completion of a rail freight link between Port Kembla and Western Sydney and for this link to have passenger capability.

On 19 July 2024, TfNSW released the submissions on to the website it received to a freight policy paper (including one from NF5). Two were of particular interest. 

One from Wollongong City Council that notes that the case for completing Maldon Dombarton has changed significantly sine the 1980s and that the alternative is thousands of truck movements on our roads per year. 

One from Professor David Currow, UOW Deputy Vice- Chancellor, supporting “the need for a rail connection between the Illawarra and western Sydney to meet the needs of our students and to ensure continued economic growth and connection to the growing metropolis to the west.” 

Subsequently, TfNSW released an Interim Directions Report in September 2024. However, the Maldon Dombarton rail link was not mentioned in the Interim Directions Report.  

Along with  Wollongong City Council,  the University of Wollongong Government Relations and the Western Sydney Leadership Dialogue, other submissions of note include: 

1.  The Rail Futures Institute    “Completion of the 35 km Maldon to Dombarton rail link would allow removal of most freight trains from the increasingly congested Tempe to Wollongong line including the Waterfall – Thirroul section that has had relatively frequent closures due to extreme weather events. “

2. The  Australasian Railway Association   re Maldon to Dombarton: “There is strong support for this next step from local MPs, local Councils (Wollongong, Wollondilly, Campbelltown, Shellharbour, Shoalhaven), Business Illawarra, Business Western Sydney, the University of Wollongong, and RDA Illawarra/Shoalhaven, along with freight customers including Cement Australia, Bluescope and GrainCorp.”

The official 2021 Illawarra-Shoalhaven Regional Transport Plan states “The transport of freight via the shared rail network is constrained by the needs of passenger transport, particularly during morning and afternoon passenger peaks. Transport freight services are often held for up to 11 hours as passenger services are given priority. To address the growing need for additional rail capacity to and from the Port of Port Kembla, Transport for NSW will investigate the completion of Maldon to Dombarton Line to facilitate additional freight movement between the Illawarra-Shoalhaven and Western Sydney.”

The Wollongong Neighbourhood Forum 5 notes that the Maldon Dombarton rail link would greatly improve the reliability and serviceability of the existing rail lines serving the Illawarra. These are the Illawarra line between Waterfall and Wombarra and the Unanderra Moss Vale Line. The operation of both lines is highly marginal in times of adverse weather. Furthermore the stability of the latter line up the face of the escarpment at West Dapto attracts high risk. 

Clearly, a way forward to complete the Maldon Dombarton link needs to be addressed by TfNSW in its final freight report. The Forum wishes to see the new link having a capacity to move passengers as well as freight. 

Can the new High Speed Rail Authority deliver after 4 decades of costly studies?

This article, by Philip Laird, was published in the Conversation on 13 June, 2023:

https://theconversation.com/can-the-new-high-speed-rail-authority-deliver-after-4-decades-of-costly-studies-206287

Illawarra business leaders call for abandoned Maldon-Dombarton rail line to get back on track + NOTES

From RAILPAGE

https://www.railpage.com.au/news/s/illawarra-business-leaders-call-for-abandoned-maldondombarton-rail-line-to-get-back-on-track

Updated yesterday by www.dailytelegraph.com.au

New South Wales Rail News

Business leaders have called on the state and federal governments to rethink the “train to nowhere”: an abandoned rail link with the potential to open up swathes of new land to homes and increased business links worth $2.8 billion between the Illawarra and the booming western Sydney region.

The 35-kilometre long partially-constructed rail line between Maldon and Dombarton south of Sydney was abandoned in 1988 after significant earth works and land acquisition had already been done.

But with the burgeoning aerotropolis springing up from around Western Sydney Airport, business leaders in the Illawarra are calling for renewed investment from the state and federal governments to get the line up and running.

NSW Ports CEO Marika Calfas said the aerotropolis was a “game changer” requiring a new rail link between the Sydney’s west and the key transport hub at Port Kembla.

“If you look at it in that context, the Maldon Dumbarton line is absolutely critical,” she said, adding the current line between Sydney and the Illawarra which hugs the coast didn’t have capacity to handle the freight required to build a new city in the west.

The partially built Dombarton to Maldon rail bridge. Picture: NSW Government

“Going up the south coast line then going out west from there is not going to be an option going forward because there isn’t the capacity in the line.”

“The western Sydney area is going to have three million people – you’ve got to get cement there, sand, all those products to build housing and infrastructure – if you don’t have rail connectivity from Illawarra to western Sydney, all of that has to go by truck.”

“I think it has come off governments’ agenda – and it needs to come back on the agenda.”

NSW Ports CEO Marika Calfas said the aerotropolis needed a new rail link between the Sydney’s west and the key transport hub at Port Kembla. . Picture: Max Mason-Hubers

Then-Federal infrastructure shadow minister Anthony Albanese pledged $50m to completing the line ahead of the 2019 election, but following that election loss the Commonwealth has no plans for the project.

Hectic weather events which knocked out the Moss Vale-Unanderra rail line which links the south and west of the state with Sydney for months last year, further exposing the need for a southwest rail link, Business Illawarra’s executive director Adam Zarth said.

The unfinished Dombarton to Maldon rail bridge. Picture: NSW Government

A 2021 study by the group found a south west Illawarra rail link would deliver an economic benefit of $2.8 billion by 2036 to the region.

“It’s been really endorsed as the only future rail solution to connect the Illawarra to Greater Sydney because of the frailty of the south coast line,” he said.

“If we’re to get real about economic development and growing our freight and supply chain, we need to utilise this.

“Once that western Sydney airport comes online, there’s a massive … employment and demand for better freight connectivity to keep our economy moving. It’ll support two cities.”

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NOTES WTC:

Completion of the 35 km Maldon Dombarton rail link would improve separation of freight and passenger trains within Sydney and get them off the congested Sydenham Sutherland line

In 2014, the NSW Department of Planning gave approval to Boral to increase road haulage of quarry products from its Dunmore quarry, and stated that "Boral is unable to increase the amount of product supplied by rail ...as it is unable to gain access to additional rail paths or utilise longer trains;..."

This situation of rail congestion has recently repeated itself in regards to Manildra wishing to open an export facility at Port Kembla for ethanol. The Company has claimed in advice during 2022 to the NSW Government and others, that Rail paths to Bomaderry are allocated to rail operators by Sydney Trains, which is a NSW Government Department. Manildra’s rail operator has been allocated 14 rail paths to Bomaderry, which are fully utilised. The Main Line Network Owner (Sydney Trains) is adamant that no further rail paths are available due to the requirements of the passenger service which operates between Kiama and Bomaderry on a frequent operational schedule.

The South Coast line linking Sydney to Port Kembla was by the mid 2010s operating at near full capacity during the day and for some of the night. The Moss Vale Unanderra line has severe speed-weight restrictions and extra distance for freight moving between Port Kembla and Western Sydney. It was also not operating for several months during 2022.

Manildra opts for A Double Tankers instead of Rail

35 Metre A Double trucks are much longer than B Doubles which are longer than 19 metre semitrailers. 

Manildra plans to use A Double tankers to move ethanol from its Bomaderry ethanol plant to a new Port Kembla facility for export. This is despite the NSW Government recently investing $40 million to upgrade the Kiama Bomaderry rail track for more and heavier freight trains. 

If you have concerns about sharing your roads when driving to Port Kembla or down south to Kiama or points south with giant A Doubles, then share these concerns with the NSW Dept of Planning who have invited submissions by Monday 15 August. 

Don’t wait to then, jump on:  

https://www.planningportal.nsw.gov.au/major-projects/projects/manildra-port-kembla-bulk-liquid-terminal 

and ask that NSW Government request Manildra give close consideration to using rail to move their ethanol to Port Kembla. 

(image from manildra.com.au/manildra-facilities)

Faster Rail

The July agenda paper for Neighbourhood Forum 5 that operates under the auspices of Wollongong City Council noted in part that on 21 June, the NSW Treasurer delivered the state budget, which includes “a record $112.7 billion investment in infrastructure over the next four years. This includes $76.7 billion for transformative transport infrastructure…”.

The 36 page overview notes inter alia $274.5 million to continue planning of the Fast Rail program to deliver faster connections between Sydney, Canberra, Bomaderry, Newcastle, the Central Coast and the Central West which is NSW and Commonwealth Government-funded.

Most of this limited funding, which is dwarfed by an extra $5 billion to complete the Sydney and South West Metro will go to the Sydney Newcastle line.

A $16 million business case to investigate faster rail options from Sydney to Wollongong (and onto Bomaderry), cofunded by the Australian and NSW government was completed in March 2021.

To quote from the Australian Governments Faster Rail booklet “The current quality of the rail service in the Sydney to Wollongong corridor reflects a range of operational and infrastructure constraints including the Illawarra Escarpment and the single track Coalcliff Tunnel. Uncompetitive rail services add to congestion on roads linking Sydney and Wollongong. …Improved rail services have the potential to improve accessibility to the Sydney employment market from Wollongong, which has above average unemployment, and where a substantial percentage of the population travels to Sydney for work. Currently, approximately 17 per cent of the local population travel to Sydney to work.” The vulnerability of Wollongong to being cut off from most external access makes imperative the requirement for a more secure, more frequent rail service to Sydney.

As noted by Paul Scully MP in commenting on the 2022 NSW Budget, in 2019, the NSW Government commissioned the McNaughton Report on fast rail in NSW. This report remains secret despite his efforts to have it made public. The 2022 NSW budget included an allocation for faster rail along several routes in NSW, including through to Bomaderry, but did not provide any further project details. Mr Scully is seeking further details from the Government about what, if anything, this might mean for travel time and service frequency on the South Coast Line.

At its July 6 meeting, Neighbourhood Forum 5 thanked Mr Scully for this, and asked him to also seek the release of the report completed in March 2021 on improving South Coast travel times, and if we can have off peak trains to Sydney every half hour (like Newcastle has had for years) rather than every hour, prior to the major international cycle event in September 2022 to be held in Wollongong. 

The Forum also noted that the Leader of the Opposition Mr Minns in his budget report of 23 June did not raise the issue of improving regional rail, and has written to Mr Ryan Park, requesting a statement from either Mr Minns or the Shadow Minister for Regional Transport (Ms Jenny Aitchison), as to how a NSW ALP government if elected in March 2023 would provide for more and faster South Coast trains.

Wollongong Council’s Neighbourhood Forum 5 calls for another look at completing Maldon Dombarton

The May agenda papers for this forum notes that the Maldon-Dombarton rail link is a 35 kilometre partly completed freight line.  In 2014, Transport for NSW (TfNSW) prepared a business case for its completion, but this received in 2016-17 an adverse Project Business Case evaluation by Infrastructure Australia. 

The heavy rains in March and April 2022 have led to impacts on the South Coast line, around Otford requiring the extended cancellation of some passenger trains and replacement by buses between Waterfall and Thirroul. The line was recently closed to allow essential maintenance.

The Moss Vale Unanderra line which is now part of the Interstate Network managed by Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) was closed for routine maintenance for two days in January 2022 is understood to now require further maintenance to deal with the recent heavy rains. In normal times freight trains that use the Moss Vale Unanderra line could be diverted to the South Coast line. However, with problems on the South Coast line, this is not so easy. 

The recent rains highlight the capacity and other constraints on the South Coast and Moss Vale Unanderra lines, and demonstrate the desirability of completing the Maldon Dombarton link. 

At is May 2022 on line meeting, the Forum resolved to request the Paul Scully MP and Ryan Park MP to seek from the NSW Government an undertaking that the 2014 Business case for completion of the Maldon Dombarton rail link will be updated as a matter of urgency, and that the updated business case is to address the value of the new link when the South Coast line and or the Moss Vale Unanderra line is closed due to weather or other events. 

The Forum is awaiting advice from TfNSW via our local members.

https://wollongong.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0019/161704/NF5-Minutes-4-May-2022.pdf

State MP calls for better trains

On 23 May 2018, the NSW State member for Wollongong Paul Scully spoke in Parliament on the need for a better train service, and the need to complete the Maldon Dombarton link.

The link to this  speech is - https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/Hansard/Pages/HansardResult.aspx#/docid/HANSARD-1323879322-102190/link/2225

The speech notes that it is 30 years since the then Greiner government stopped work on the  Maldon Dombarton link.

This was when the contract to build the 4 km Avon tunnel was cancelled. The contract price was just over $20 million, and some $10 million was paid for preliminary work and compensation for not finishing the job.

 A very expensive mistake, as it will now cost over $100 million to build this tunnel.