V/Line Shutdown

Well after two days going top speed on the re-sleepering job next to the V/Line track, we’ve managed to install and clip up 178 concrete sleepers.

We’ve made excellent progress, with this picture featuring Clive showing off the fact that this effort now means we have at least 1 in 2 sleepers in this section now concrete, in fact coupled with our previous efforts here we actually have quite a few more than 1 in 2 as concrete now, but the entire length should be at least 1 in 2 once we finish.

It’s been a mammoth effort and it’s far from over but we’re making amazing progress.

We started the job at a safe clearance from the mainline near Rowe Street Crossing and we’ve managed to get right down to (and including) Forest St. Bridge. However over Forest St bridge, we’ve replaced all sleepers with concrete, a job which we expected might have taken a whole day only took a few hours!

Will, from the Yarra Valley Railway came to lend a hand and he can be seen here clipping up a sleeper.

It should be noted that whenever we do this, the excavator is completely immobilized using the safely cutout feature so there is no risk to the individual during this operation.

At close of play today the bridge was looking very smart, having gone from okay but poor timber to fully concrete!

To greatly quicken the tamping process and because we had far too many people to do the bridge job, a team set about boxing up the completed sleepers, a terrible job to do but it will save us a lot of work and effort tomorrow.

We’ll be back into it tomorrow through till Sunday with lots to go yet, meeting 8am at Rowe Street Crossing.