Update on Rail Traffic North Coast Line
Rockhampton / Gladstone
Today we went to Rockhampton by car. 11/04/2017. Although there were many coal trains stowed up, we actually saw three loaded coal trains coming to Gladstone. Two were Aurizon and one Pacific National. The Pacific National was hauled by three electrics. I thought FMB but the last loco had about 20 wagons behind it. One of the Aurizon trains was Electric FMB consist. The other was Diesel. There were empty trains heading west. As we were passing Raglan an electric FMB was leaving from the middle road. I don’t know if it had been stowed there or was passing through.
A grain train was parked in the North Coast Loop at Rocklands. The Western Loop there had a container train parked up. On the way home from Rockhampton the Rocklands / Yeppon section was closed to all traffic while some maintenance was being performed. This section had been ballasted and machines were tampering and regulating the ballast. At Midgee a Aurizon container was waiting to get into Rockhampton. At the Archer Down Home an empty Stocky was held up.
Empty coal trains were stowed at Yarwun or the new unloading siding. Another stowed at Aldoga in the new siding. Another in the down road Raglan.
It appears that coal is once again coming in from the Black Water Coalfields. Empties are also heading out to the coalfields. In Rockhampton the river is starting to show the rocks again.