Know the boss

KNOW THE BOSS The number of employers in the Australian rail, tram and bus industry has expanded since privatisation started in Metrobus Melbourne in 1993, third party operators began working the interstate railways in 1995, and rail privatisation took off in 1997. Here is a list of current employers, a short summary of their operations, and contact details. If you have anything to add to any of these profiles, or corrections to suggest, please contact the RTBU National Office at rtbu@rtbu-nat.asn.au to put forward your suggestion.

3801 Limited

3801 operates tour and heritage trains. It has scheduled tourist trains on Wednesdays and Sundays from Sydney to Robertson and return to Sydney via Wollongong, as well as other steam and diesel heritage trains throughout the year.

Address: Suite G01, National Innovation Centre, Australian Technology Park, Eveleigh, NSW 1430. PO Box 3801, Redfern NSW 2016

Phone: (02) 9699 2737 Fax: (02) 9698 4553

Email: jglasto@ozemail.com.au

Website: http://www.3801limited.com.au

Alstom Australia Limited - Rail Transport Division

Alstom Australia Ltd is owned by Alstom France, a huge engineering company with a long association with the French National Railways SNCF. Alstom Australia Limited specialises in integrated rail solutions, turnkey project management, rolling stock maintenance and supply, infrastructure construction and maintenance, repairs and overhauls, service contracts and consulting Alstom was a partner with Leighton Holdings in the Speedrail Consortium, favoured to build and operate the Very Fast Train between Sydney and Canberra, however, the Federal Government refused to provide the huge subsidy requested.

Its products include high speed, tilt and conventional passenger rolling stock, including light rail vehicles, freight wagons, traction equipment and systems, signalling and control systems, automatic train control and protection, signals and point machines, impedance bonds and track circuits, traction substations and equipment, communication systems, Closed Circuit TV and video systems and passenger information systems. Accredited to ISO 9001 and ISO 14001.

Alstom now controls the Chullora Railway Workshops through a joint venture with RailCorp.

Address: Level 3, 3 Bridge St, Pymble NSW 2073.

Phone: (02) 9488 4888. Fax: (02) 9488 4955

Email: phil.terry@transport.alstom.com

Website: http://www.alstom.com.au

Austrac Rail Pty Ltd

Austrac Rail is an accredited Rail Operator, able to provide ad hoc freight services and repetitive tasks on the standard gauge tracks of south east Australia and north western NSW. Austrac also provides crewing and 'hook and pull' services for other operators. Its railway maintenance facility at Junee can provide a full maintenance, repair and re-manufacture facility for rail users.

Address: Railway Roundhouse, Junee NSW 2663

PO Box 4016, Guildford West NSW 2161

Ph: (02) 9892 4333. Fax: (02) 9892 4933

Email: ngregory@austrac.com.au

Website: http://www.austrac.com.au

Australian Rail Track Corporation Ltd

ARTC was established in 1998 to own and operate the Federal government's part of the interstate mainline network, and to create a management and access regime - a 'one-stop shop' - for the entire interstate rail network. Its objectives are improved transit times, and greater reliability in the rail industry.

ARTC manages 3,600 kilometres of standard gauge track on four major interstate rail corridors, from Brisbane to Kalgoorlie via Melbourne and Adelaide, and via Broken Hill to Port Augusta.

In addition to the ARTC's own capital investment program, ARTC is managing the last phase of the Federal Government's four-year, $250 million Australian Rail Infrastructure Fund for investment in the interstate rail network, announced in 1997.

During 2001, ARTC conducted an independent audit of the Interstate Rail Network and identified an optimised investment strategy of the future. It recommended a modest investment program of $507 million, mainly focused on the Melbourne - Sydney - Brisbane corridors.

Action on this program only started when the NSW governmetn signed a 60 year lease for its mainline and Hunter Valley Coal Lines with the ARTC at the end of 2003. In July 2004, th eFederal Government announced its AusLink strategy, which included $1.8 billion in rail investmetns, through ARTC, over the next five years. This will be spent mainly in the Melboure - Sydney - Brisbane corridors.

Address: Passenger Rail Terminal Road, Off Sir Donald Bradman Drive, Mile End SA 5031. PO Box 10343 Gouger Street, Adelaide SA 5000

Ph: (08) 8217 4366 Fax: (08) 8217 4578

Email: skosick@artc.com.au

Website: http://www.artc.com.au

Australian Railroad Group (ARG)

Australian Railroad Group (ARG) is a Western Australian-based joint venture between Wesfarmers Limited, a major Australian industrial group, and Genesee & Wyoming Inc, a US-based international rail operator. ARG bought Westrail Freight from the WA government in November 2000, for $585 million.

Australian Southern Railroad (ASR) is part of the ARG, and operates the South Australian Freight services of the former Australian National Railways, which was privatised in November 1997. ASR owns the non-mainline rail infrastructure in South Australia, except for the Leigh Creek to Port Augusta track. ARG leases WestNet Rail in Western Australia, which provides track access to ARG and other operators.

Altogether, ARG operates about 8,500 kilometres of narrow gauge and standard gauge track in Western Australia and South Australia.

In South Australia and Western Australia, ASR provides intrastate rail freight haulage of bulk commodities to key industries, including bauxite and alumina, woodchips, grain, gypsum, iron ore and limestone. It is also a major supplier of locomotives, crews and wagon leasing services to freight forwarders and infrastructure providers operating on interstate rail corridors.

ARG is the largest region in terms of tonnage and revenue of US-based Genesee & Wyoming Inc, a prominent operator of regional freight railroads covering more than 7,500 kilometres of track in the USA, Canada, Australia and Mexico.

Address: Westrail Centre, West Parade, Perth WA 6000. GPO Box S1422, Perth WA 6845

Phone: (08) 9212 2500. Fax: (08) 9212 2730

Website: http://www.arg.net.au

ASR

Barclay Mowlem Construction Ltd

The Barclay Mowlem Rail Group started in 1972, laying track for the coal mining industry in Queensland and NSW. It won a contract to help construct the Alice Springs - Darwin rail line, the biggest rail construction project in Australia in recent decades.

Barclay Mowlem has contracts in the Taiwan High Sped Rail Project, and is refurbishing and doubling 180 kilometres of track between Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh, in Malaysia.

Address: Level 2, Building 3, 20 Bridge St, Pymble NSW 2073

Locked Bag 1008, Pymble NSW 2073

Ph: (02) 9855 1600. Fax: (02) 9855 1786

Website: http://www.barclaymowlem.com.au

Bombardier Transportation

Bombardier Transportation produces passenger rail cars and complete rail transportation systems. It also manufactures locomotives, freight cars, propulsion and controls, and provides signalling equipment and systems. It has plants in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Maryborough, Queensland.

Its Dandenong plant is building the new high speed passenger trains for Victoria's inter-city passenger service, under a $410 million contract with the Victorian Government.

Bombardier Transportation is a Canadian company based in Montreal, Quebec. Originally a manufacturer of snowmobilies, it has been active in rail transport since 1974, but became a major player in the 1987 when it allied with Alsthom to market the French TGV (Very Fast Train) in North America. In 1989 it bought ANF-Industrie, France's sencond largest rail equipment manufacturer. In 2001, it bought Adtranz from DaimlerChrysler. Adtranz was a merger of ABB Transportation and AEG Transportation, and made Bombardier a global leader in the rail industry. It has railcar production plants in China and Mexico as well as North America and Europe, and a US$7.9 billion contract for the refurbishment of the London Underground.

Bombardier Group had 64,600 employees worldwide and revenues of US$15 billion in 2003.

Address: 35-45 Frankston - Dandenong Road, Dandenong, VIC 3175. PO Box 618, Dandenong, Vic 3175

Phone: (03) 9794 2111 Fax: (03) 9706 9219

Email: lars.persson@au.transport.bombardier.com

Websire: http://www.transport.bombardier.com

Bradken Rail

Bradken Rail provides freight wagons, bogies, drawgear, inventory management, spare and renewed parts and maintenance, servicing and refurbishment of rolling stock. Its success in Australia has allowed it to export freight wagons and services to Thailand, Israel, Malaysia, New Zealand, South Africa, Indonesia and the USA.

Bradken Rail focuses on services to the Iron Ore, Coal, Intermodal and Bulk commodity segments of the market. It has three business units - Freight Rollingstock, MainteNet, and Express Parts.

Address: Maud Street, Waratah NSW 2298. PO Box 105, Waratah NSW 2298

Phone : (02) 4600 2667. Fax: (02) 4941 2661

Email: rail@bradken.com.au

Website: http://www.bradken.com.au

Brisbane Transport

Brisbane Transport is owned by the Brisbane City Council, and is the core provider of bus and ferry services in the Brisbane region. It is unique in Australia as a public transport provider owned by local government.

In the late 1990s, Brisbane Transport undertook a major review and reorganisation. This enabled a major route review, new service numbering system, new fare system with extended concessions, and new services. Capacity expanded by 25%, and patronage grew. While Brisbane Transport continues to rely on City Council and State Government subsidies, it is more self-reliant.

Address: 2265 Logan Road, Upper Mt Gravatt Qld 4122

PO Box 6435, Upper Mt Gravatt Qld 4122

Ph: 07 3407 2244

Fax: 07 3403 7303

CFCL Australia

CFCL Australia provides leased locomotives and rolling stock, with full maintenance if required by clients.

Its current capacity is 49 locomotives and over 725 wagons in use or under construction. Its contract to re-build of 14 3,000hp units by 2003 has been reduced to 12 units and is not yet complete. Its program to manufacture 50 new multi-purpose low profile skeletal wagons ahs also been delayed. It provided 45 ballast wagons to ASR for the Alice Springs - Darwin construction project. It has ordered 61 new 100-tonne bulk grain hoppers from Alstom's Ballarat plant.

CFCL Australia is owned by Chicago Leasing, a large locomotive and rolling stock leasing company in the USA.

Address: Unit 603, Pier 6/7, 19 Hickson Road, Dawes Point, NSW 2000. PO Box 6406, North Sydney NSW 2060

Ph: (02) 9252 0044. Fax: (02) 9252 0144

Email: mcgeemj@aol.com

Website:

http://www.cfcla.com.au

http://www.crdx.com in the USA.

Connex Group Australia Pty Ltd

Connex is part of the giant Veolia Environment group, which emerged from a crisis re-structure of the even bigger French media, water and transport conglomerate, called Vivendi. Veolia Environment has four groups - Veolia Water, Onyx waste management, Dalkia energy, and Connex. Connex is the world's largest private operator in the public transport sector, covering urban, suburban, inter-city and regional passenger services on buses, trains, trams and ferries. It has 55,000 employees serving over 5,000 local authorities, with over 1.4 billion passenger journeys every year.

Connex Group Australia was established in 1997, and in early 1998, it won a seven-year contract to operate 17% of the Perth Bus system. In August 1998, it took over operation of the Sydney Monorail and Sydney Light Rail, after the breakup of the TNT group. In 1999, Connex bought Sydney's Southtrans Bus Company. It also won the bid for Hillside Train in Melbourne. In 2004 Connex took over the whole of Melbourne's urban passenger trains, following the withdrawal of the British National Express company in early 2003. Connex Group Australia also operates a bus company in Noumea, New Caledonia (Kanaky), and has won the contract for Auckland's urban train system in New Zealand. It now has 3,200 employees.

Address: GPO Box 5092BB, Melbourne, VIC 3001

Ph: (03) 9610 2015. Fax: (02) 9610 2066

Email: office@connexaustralia.com.au

Website: http://www.connexaustralia.com.au

CRT Group Pty Ltd

CRT Intermodal provides a coordinated private rail service from its own sidings that link production, packaging and warehousing to rail, road and shipping transport modes. It has strong links with international shipping. Its terminals are at Yennora in Sydney and Altona North in Melbourne.

CRT runs a new type of diesel motor unit called a Cargo Sprinter. It provides a fast freight train service for a small number of containers, between Melbourne and Sydney. Its plans to extend services to Brisbane and Adelaide Outer Harbour are still on the drawing boards.

CRT Group is owned by Westpark Rail Pty Ltd.

Address: 1 Chambers Rd, Altona North VIC 3025. PO Box 334, Altona North VIC 3025

Ph: (03) 9290 1700. Fax: (03) 9399 1754

Email: andrews@crtgroup.com.au

Website: http://www.crtgroup.com.au

EDI Rail

EDI is now owned by Downer EDI Ltd. It is over 100 years old and includes the former Evans Deakin Industries, Clyde Engineering and Walkers Ltd of Maryborough, with a fine record of locomotive and rolling stock manufacture.

Downer EDI employs over 15,000 people to provide infrastructure services, including in rail, to Australia and New Zealand and countries in the Asia-Pacific region.

EDI Rail is building and maintaining the Millennium double deck passenger trains for NSW CityRail. It delivered two high speed tilt trains for the Brisbane - Cairns QR service in June 2003, cutting the journey time to 25 hours. It is building new EMU units for the Perth urban system and has more orders from QR and Pacific National for 4000 Class narrow gauge AC traction locomotives., and it built the four 4000 hp locomotives and 150 wagons for the Adelaide - Darwin freight service which began in January 2004.

EDI Rail now operates the Sydney Maintrain facility, which provides Level 2 and 3 maintenance to the CityRail fleet as well as wheelset and bogie maintenance to freight railways. It has a core business in maintaining locomotives and freight wagons for ARG and pacific Naitonal and passenger vehicles for V-Line passenger.

Address: 2B Factory St, Granville NSW 2142

Ph: (02) 9637 8288. Fax: (02) 9637 6783

Email: sales@edirail.com.au

Website: http://www.edirail.com.au

Fluor Global Services

Fluor Global Services provides asset management and maintenance services to major rail authorities across Australia. Also, since 1968, Fluor has been maintaining and upgrading Hamersley Iron's heavy haul railway in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

Fluor is part of the US-based Fluor Corporation, one of the world's largest publicly listed engineering, maintenance, construction and diversified services companies.

Fluor has won track maintenance contracts in NSW and WA.

Fluor bids to provide services to heavy haul rail, interstate freight and passenger rail, and suburban train networks, including asset management; track infrastructure maintenance and construction; signals, communications and overhead traction maintenance; design and engineering; simulation services; and project development and management.

Address: 420 St Kilda Rd, Melbourne VIC 3004

Phone: (03) 8803 5600 Fax: (03) 8803 5699

Email: louis.reed@fluor.com

Website: http://www.fluor.com

Freight Australia

Freight Australia was created when RailAmerica, a small US rail company, bought V/Line Freight from the Victorian Government in May 1999. It has a 45 year lease on 4,000 kilometres of track, owns 107 locomotives, 2600 freight wagons and employs over 700 people.

Management has aggressively expanded the business and is upgrading its locomotive and wagon fleet and management systems. However, it has not succeeded in bids to buy other public freight rail systems and has now been squeezed by Pacific National and ARG. Its main business is grain haulage, which has been drought affected. In early 2004, Pacific National made a successful bid to buy Freight Australia. But it was not consummated by August 2004.

Address: Level 1, 589 Collins St, Melbourne VIC 3000

GPO Box 1646N, Melbourne VIC 3001

Ph: (03) 9619 1311. Fax: (03) 9619 4555

Email: inquiries@freightaustralia.com.au

Website: http://www.freightaustralia.com.au

Freight Link Pty Ltd

Freight Link is the commercial rail operator of the new transcontinental freight link connecting Asia with Australia's southern states through the Port of Darwin.

Address: 1 Station Place, Hindmarsh, SA 5007

Ph: (08) 8245 9100 Fax: (08) 8346 7244

Website: http://www.freightlink.com.au

Great Southern Railway Limited

GSR is the owner and operator of the flagship Indian Pacific and Ghan interstate rail passenger trains, servicing Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Alice Springs, Perth and Darwin, as well as The Overland, operating between Adelaide and Melbourne.

The consortium bought the business when Australian National Railways was broken into three parts and privatised in November 1997.

The motive power is contracted to Pacific National, and the on-board services are supplied by the leading consortium member, Serco. Serco imposed Australian Workplace Agreements (individual non-union contracts) on the on-board employees of AN when they re-applied for their jobs, and on new recruits. The Rail Tram & Bus Union has continued to organise the on-board employees and to campaign for a union collective industrial agreement.

AddressKeswick Rail Terminal, off Sir Donald Bradman Drive, Mile End, SA 5033

Ph: (08) 8213 4444. Fax: (08) 8213 4483

Email dcampbell@gsr.com.au

Website: http://www.trainways.com.au

Hoys Roadlines Pty Ltd

Hoys won the contract to operate rail passenger services between Melbourne and Shepparton during the Kennett Government.

Address: 47 Mackay Street, Wangaratta, VIC 3677

Ph: (03) 9620 0128 Fax: (03) 9620 0129

Email: helen@hoys.com.au

Website: http://www.hoys.com.au

Interail Australia

Interail Australia is Queensland Rail's interstate rail freight operator, aiming to provide fast, efficient, safe and cost effective rail based transport services to customers across Australia. It won rail haulage contracts in the NSW Hunter Valley in 2002.

Address: Bent Street, Casino, NSW 2740

Ph: (02) 6660 0888 Fax: (02) 6660 0899

Email: neil.buckley@interail.com.au

Website: http://www.interail.com.au

John Holland Pty Ltd - Rail Division

John Holland specialises in railway construction and rehabilitation, and infrastructure maintenance, both in Australia and in the Asia-pacific region. The company is also a major operator in civil and heavy engineering. It is owned by the German construction multinational Hochtief.

Address: 10th Fl, 263 Adelaide Tce, Perth WA 6000

Ph: (08) 9225 4777. Fax: (08) 9325 7024

171 Laurens Street, North Melbourne, VIC 3059

Ph: (03) 9619 6133 Fax: (03) 9619 6160

Level 6, 235 Pyrmont st, Pyrmont, NSW 2009

Ph: (02) 952 4288 Fax: (02) 9660 1720

Email: rail@jhg.com.au

Website: http://www.johnholland.com.au

Leighton Contractors Pty Ltd

Leightons is a construction industry major, with a focus on design, construction and maintenance of transport infrastructure. It is an active player in rail construction project bidding. Leighton Holdings is 50.7% owned by the Hochtief Group of Germany, and owns 100% of Thiess, and 70% of John Holland.

Address: 472 Pacific Highway, St Leonards, NSW 2065. PO Box 5000, Crows Nest, NSW 2065

Ph: (02) 9925 6666 Fax: (02) 9925 6004

Email: peter.hicks@leicon.com.au

Website: http://www.leightoncontractors.com.au

Manildra Group

This is a flour milling company that decided to operate its own trains and supply train services to the grain industry in NSW. Its mills are in Manildra and Gunnedah, and its processing plant is at Nowra.

Address: The Crescent, Auburn NSW 2144. PO Box 72, Auburn NSW 1835

Ph: (02) 8863 6261. Fax: (02) 8863 6262

Email: ballport@manildra.com.au

Website: http://www.manildra.com.au

Metro Tasmania Pty Ltd

Metro Tasmania replaced the previous Metropolitan Transport Trust in February 1998. It is owned by the Tasmanian Government to provide bus services in metropolitan Hobart, Launceston and Burnie. Besides peak and off-peak urban bus services, Metro Tasmania provides charter services, and specialised small bus services called "Shopper Stopper", "Doorstopper" and "Busy Bee".

In May 1999, Metro bought Hobart Coaches Pty Ltd and thus extended its services to the semi-rural towns south east and south west of Hobart.

Address: 212 - 220 Main Road, Moonah TAS 7009. PO Box 61, Moonah TAS 7009

Ph: 03 6233 4232 Fax: 03 6272 8770

National Express Group (Australia) Pty Ltd

National Express is one of the world's largest private passenger transport companies, operating train, bus, coach, and tram companies and airports, in the UK, Europe, USA and Australia.

In August 1999, National Express won the franchises for Bayside Trains (M>Train), Swanston Trams (M>Tram), and V/Line Passenger in Victoria, and bought a majority shareholding in the National Bus Company which operates the privatised Melbourne bus service, the Westbus, Glenorie and Blue Ribbon services in Sydney, and Southern Coast Transit in Perth. In early 2003, National Express abruptly withdrew from Bayside Trains and Swanston Trams and V/Line Passenger, but continues to operate the privatised MetroBus.

Address: Level 3, 459 Collins St, Melbourne VIC 3000. PO Box 5112, Melbourne VIC 3001

Ph: (03) 9619 5900. Fax: (03) 9619 5902

Websites:

http://www.nationalbus.com.au

http://www.sctransit.com.au

http://www.westbus.com.au

http://www.nationalexpressgroup.com (UK)

Pacific National

Pacific National was created by Toll Holdings and Patricks Stevedoring to purchase the publicly owned National Rail Corporation and NSW FreightCorp, in early 2002. The two large rail freight operators are now merged, along with the small 'hook and pull' Toll Rail and Patrick Rail Corporation operations.

Pacific National is the most powerful rail freight operation yet seen in Australia, with strong commercial links into the road freight and ports sectors. Its creation has triggered a major rationalisation of rail freight services, especially in NSW, but also Australia-wide. Pacific National acquired the ailing Tasrail Services in 2003, and made the winning bid for Freight Australia in 2004 - $285 million.

Address: Level 6, 15 Blue Street, North Sydney NSW 2060. Locked Bag 90, Parramatta NSW 2124

Ph: (02) 9839 2500 Fax: (02) 9839 2501

Email: communication@pacificnational.com.au

Website: http://www.pacificnational.com.au

Public Transport Authority of Western Australia

The Public Transport Authority (PTA) was created by the Public Transport Authority Act 2003, bringing together the services of Transperth, Transwa, School Bus Services and the WA Government Railways Commission. The PTA is responsible for rail, bus and ferry services in the metropolitan area; public transport services in regional centres; coach and rail passenger services in regional areas; and school buses.

Address: Public Transport Centre, West Parade, Perth, WA 6000. PO Box 8125, Perth Business Cenrtre, Perth, WA 6849,

Ph: (08) 9326 2000 Fax: (08) 9326 2936

Queensland Rail

Queensland Rail (QR) is a corporation owned by the people of Queensland, providing transport and logistic services. QR's Board of Directors is responsible for commercial operations within a broad strategic framework established by the Queensland Government.

Major business activities include:

• Providing transport services to the mining, mineral processing and electricity generation industries
• Transporting container traffic and bulk fuels between major industrial, regional and mining centres
• Carrying livestock, sugar, grain and other primary produce between centres
• Providing a door-to-door network for small freight
• Accommodating the needs of tourists and long distance rail travellers
• Supplying safe, fast and comfortable urban and inter-City passenger rail travel
• Developing and maintaining and providing third party access to a rail network across most population centres in Queensland
• Exporting rail technology and expertise interstate and overseas through iQR to countries such as Hong Kong, India, Iran, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Thailand, Vietnam and Britain.

Tilt Train

The QR Tilt Trains are Australia's fastest trains, reaching 210 kilometres per hour in speed trials. This makes it the world's fastest narrow gauge train.

QR carried 156.4 million tonnes of freight in 2003, making it Australia's largest rail freight company. The bulk of the freight task is in coal haulage for export. Through its subsidiary Interail, QR has contracts to haul 12 million tonnes of coal in the NSW Hunter Valley.

QR is Australia's only genuinely integrated rail company, combining infrastructure services, signalling and train control, and train operations under one overall management.

Address: Railcentre 1, 305 Edward St, Brisbane QLD 4000. GPO Box 1429, Brisbane, QLD 4001

Ph: (07) 3235 1371 Fax: (07) 3235 1856

Website: http://www.qr.com.au

Rail Corporation of NSW

RailCorp is owned by the people of NSW and has a Board of Directors appointed by the NSW government, and operates under the Government-Owned Corporations Act. It operates CityRail and CountryLink rail passenger services and owns and maintains the CityRail network and the country branch lines not leased to ARTC.

It supplies the maintenance workforce for the ARTC leased tracks in NSW.

RailCorp was created on January 1 2004, after the NSW Government introduced a bill to merge the Rail Infrastructure Corporation and the State Rail Authority. This was a major response to the Special Commission of Inquiry into the Waterfall Fatal Train Crash.

RIC was a champion of the new open access competition model for railway management, and aggressively contracted out infrastructure maintenance in 1997. However, a state-wide strike by RIC workers in 1998 led to a moratorium on contracting out, and finally in June 2000, the government decided to stop contracting out of rail infrastructure maintenance.

RailCorp is managing the construction of the Epping - Chatswood Rail Link, costed at $1.4 billion, to be completed in 2006.

The intrastate rail link between Cowra and Blayney was reopened for operations in 1999 and the Kandos - Gulgong link is to open by the end of 2000. Feasibility studies are underway on the reopening of a further six country lines.

Address: 18 Lee Street, Chippendale NSW 2008. PO Box K349, Haymarket, NSW 1238

Ph: (02) 9379 3000 Fax: (02) 8202 2001

Email: vince.graham@railcorp.nsw.gov.au

Website: http://www.railcorp.nsw.gov.au

Silverton Rail

Silverton goes back to 1886 when it ran the railway from Cockburn (SA) to Silverton, near Broken Hill, and the service was later extended to Broken Hill. Today, Silverton operates regional and specialised rail services in country and metropolitan NSW.

Silverton owns a range of locomotives and wagons, which enable the company to undertake a wide variety of rail tasks. Silverton also leases locomotives and wagons to other rail users for either short or long term tasks.

Address: Suite 5, 499 St Kilda Rd, Melbourne VIC 3004. PO Box 7024, Melbourne, VIC 8004

Ph: (03) 9866 7672; Fax: (03) 9866 7641

Email: clementsg@silverton.net.au

Level 5, 20 Charles St, Parramatta, NSW 2150. PO box 415, Parramatta, NSW 2124

Ph: (02) 9633 5777 Fax: (02) 9633 5766

Email: mcarthurj@silverton.net.au

SkiTube

The SkiTube links Bullocks Flat with Perisher Valley and Mt Blue Cow ski fields in the Australian Alps, and has an Enterprise Agreement with the Rail Tram & Bus Union. SkiTube is owned by Kerry Packer's family company PBL.

This is an 8.5 kilometre 1,435 mm gauge, ABT rack rail track, with a 12.5% maximum gradient. The train is powered by 1,500v DC, and reaches 21 kilometres per hour on the downhill run. It operates sets of two to four carriages per train, and there are eleven carriages in the fleet.

Contact: Bullocks Flat, Alpine Way, Jindabyne NSW 2627

Ph: 02) 6456 2010

Fax: (02) 6456 2615

SCT

SCT began running 'box car' freight trains between Melbourne and Perth in 1995 when National Rail Corporation refused to deliver this service and the interstate track was opened to third party access under National Competition Policy.

SCT has developed its services since then by starting its 'Australia First' refrigerated rail freight service in January 1998, opening a terminal in Perth in October 1998, and a Melbourne Terminal in October 1999. SCT's new Adelaide Terminal opened in August 2001.

SCT also provides road freight haulage between Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne, linking to refrigerated and dry freight rail service from Melbourne to Perth.

SCT hires locomotive power and wagons from Freight Australia.

Contact: 7 Westlink Court, Altona VIC 3018. PO Box 373, Laverton VIC 3028

Ph: (03) 9931 5333. Fax: (03) 9369 9747

Email: information@sct.net.au

Website: http://www.sct.net.au

State Transit Authority of New South Wales

State Transit is the largest operator of buses and ferries in Australia with services covering much of metropolitan Sydney and Newcastle. It is owned by the NSW government, and operates under the Passenger Transport Act, 1990.

STA Sydney Buses operates from Palm Beach in the north, to Carlingford, Lidcombe and Bankstown in the west, and Miranda and Hurstville in the south. Ferry services cover the harbour and Parramatta River from Manly to Parramatta. In Newcastle bus and ferry services go from Caves beach in the south north to the Hunter and west to Sandgate and Boolaroo.

STA is innovative and tries to respond to passenger needs with new and expanded services, working to encourage greater use of public transport. Cross-regional bus services are part of this effort, with an inner-ring between Coogee Beach and Leichhardt, and an outer-ring linking Bondi Junction, and Burwood via the airport. STA won the contract to operate the dedicated busway between Liverpool and Parramatta.

STA made a magnificent contribution to the success of the 2000 Olympics, providing last-minute management and drivers for the floundering private bus component of the Olympics transport effort.

Address: Level 29, 100 Miller St, North Sydney NSW 2059

PO Box 1327, North Sydney NSW 2059

Ph: 02 9245 5777

Fax: 02 9245 5710

TransAdelaide

TransAdelaide is a South Australian government-owned enterprise, which operates trams and suburban passenger trains in Adelaide.

The conservative South Australian government privatised TransAdelaide's bus services between 1997 and 2000, and announced its intention to privatise the trams and train services as well. However, it was narrowly defeated in the 2002 state elections. The new Labor government is considering plans to refurbish both the trams and the trains.

Contact: Adelaide Railway Station, North terrace, Adelaide SA 5000

Ph: (08) 8218 2259; Fax: (08) 8218 2206

Website: http://www.transadelaide.com.au

Transfield Services (Australia) Pty Ltd

This unit is wholly-owned by Transfield Services Limited. It provides infrastructure maintenance services for Yarra Trams in Melbourne, and for the Australian Rail Track Corporation in South Australia, Tranz Rail in New Zealand, Australian Southern Railroad, OneSteel at Whyalla, the Brisbane Airport Link, and operates the Electrical Workshop at the Chullora Railway Workshops. It is a part-owner of the Airport Rail Link in Sydney, which is currently in administration.

Address: Level 12, 201 Kent St, Sydney NSW 2000. GPO Box 5344, Sydney NSW 2001

Ph: (02) 9475 5600; Fax: 02) 9475 5669

Website: http://www.transfieldservices.com

V/Line Passenger

V/Line Passenger is regional Victoria's major operator of passenger trains and road coach services, with rail routes to Geelong in the south-west, Ballarat and Ararat in western Victoria, Bendigo, Swan Hill and Echuca in the north, Seymour and Wodonga - Albury in the north-east and Traralgon, Sale and Bairnsdale in the east. V/Line will benefit from the incoming Regional Fast Rail Project, with 38 new two-car trains capable of speeds of 160 kph.

Address: Level 23, 570 Bourke St, Melbourne, VIC 3000. GPO Box 5343, Melbourne, VIC 3001

Ph: (03)9619 5900 Fax: (03) 9619 5906

Website: http://www.vline.com.au

VicTrack Access

VicTrack Access owns Victoria's rail and tram infrastructure and land, and leases access to it.

It manages on behalf of the Victorian government the commercial development of rail property, telecommunications services to the rail industry, facilities and project management.

Contact: Level 17, Transport House, 589 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000. PO Box 1681P, Melbourne, VIC 3001

Ph: (03) 9619 8850; Fax: (03) 9619 8851

Email: john.sutton@victrack.com.au

West Coast Railway

West Coast Railway was formed in 1993 to take over the operation of the Melbourne - Warrnambool passenger rail service when the Kennett Government franchised it.

West Coast Railway also has regular coastal, country and interstate connections down the line servicing Victoria's south west and through to Mt Gambier and Adelaide. The company has an Enterprise Agreement with the Rail Tram & Bus Union.

West Coast Railway uses locomotive power supplied by V/Line Passenger (owned by National Express Group). However, West Coast has its own employees certified for steam train services, and also for most safeworking and signalling duties beyond South Geelong.

Freight Australia supplies Train Control, radio, and safeworking services elsewhere and station facilities at Spencer St and Geelong.

West Coast Railway operates an overhaul and heavy maintenance workshop at Ballarat East, and a servicing facility at Geelong.

Contact: Level 3, 75-77 Moorabool Street, Geelong VIC 3220

Ph: (03) 5222 5900; Fax: (03) 522 5966

Email: enquiries@wcr.com.au

Website: http://www.wcr.com.au