Final preparations are underway for maintenance and renewal works on the Geelong and Warrnambool lines, starting Monday 31 March until Sunday 13 April.
While trains aren’t running, crews will complete essential rail maintenance and improvement works, including level crossing upgrades in Lara and Little River, mudhole removals, rail tamping and ballast replacement.
Across the 14 days, works will also take place to upgrade the stabling yard near Warrnambool Station, to enable VLocity trains to be housed overnight.
Does top management at V/Line and DOT think the catering Regional travellers requirements are the SAME as Metropolitan travellers?
Refer to their “One size fits all Policy” aka VLocity with Metropolitan passenger with layout closely spaced seats.
If trains were all the SAME railway forefathers, wouldn’t gone to all that trouble of quoting a pecking order for all types of rolling stock.
From top aka Sleeper/Dining = caters days travelling onboard
To the min Metropolitan standard caters for short periods on board 1-2 hrs.
The current VLocity Metropolitan rolling stock passenger layout seats closely spaced, no Buffet ,WC drinking fountains Metropolitan posing as Regional
N set Regional the former acceptable standard for passenger layout seats wider spaced, WCs, buffet & extra storage in carriages and the ACN for bulky items.
As some now being retired without a suitable replacement to take its place!
It seems the service standard of your trains has hit critical mass.
You can’t cut maintenance funding for the older trains when the newer train, VLocity are still having problems on route.
3/3/2025 VoLcity on the return Warrnambool has intermittent electrical fault on route at Geelong. It lost the lights, power air-conditioning after pulling at Geelong station that evening the crew was able to reset something and we able to continue back, if unresolved had gone completely it meant a late night we managed to pull and tech person came boarded shortly that night to assess why it happened in the first place.
As how can you withdrawal and reduce maintenance on the older trains fleet and give away locomotives and carriages when these issues with the newer train has not being rectified just yet?
If Ben Pyland the head of rolling stock and ticketing has concerns of loss of 42 seat if they included buffet on the current Broad gauge VLocity fleet design , what stopping him from reconfiguring the DMU to be similar like our aging XPT DMU standard gauge that NSW has? SnuffleNose
During these critical works, coaches will replace Geelong Line trains between Waurn Ponds and Wyndham Vale, and Warrnambool Line trains for the entire journey between Warrnambool and Southern Cross.
It was not long ago the Warrnambool Line closed for maintenance why now more closures? The network is crumbling under service disruption and other issues and we have substandard trains running on longer distance services. V/line is at the crossroads and it does look sadly like the network is going backwards.
We thank passengers for their patience during this time.
Again, V/line not thinking things through. It’s school holidays and the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.
I can’t remember a time in the last five years where works were ever timed well.
For more information and to plan your journey, visit:
Geelong Line – https://go.vline.com.au/3RfMcRU
Warrnambool Line – https://go.vline.com.au/4c1Mp4J
Yep to activate those stabling yard for the VLocity trains and loco hauls will cease after this upgrade..
Why do we need constant long shutdowns it is ridiculous and inconvenient for passengers. Why can’t the maintenance been done overnight when trains are not running?