Former track manager with Rail Infrastructure Corporation Brian Fisher has 32 years of experience in the transport industry, including 20-years with NSW railways, where he worked on some of this state's biggest rail infrastructure projects, including concrete sleeper upgrades.
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Mr Fisher started his career as a fetler at Wallerawang in a sleeper upgrading gang on the main western line. He worked his way up into a track manager's position, where he was responsible for about 500 kilometres of infrastructure and 33 staff on the Main South Sydney-Melbourne corridor.
He was engaged by the Save the Great Northern Rail Group to prepare a report detailing a scope of works with costings to reinstate the Armidale to Wallangarra line, which his report has put at $45 million, with another $2-$5 million each for the construction or upgrade of freight terminals at Tamworth, Armidale, Glen Innes, Tenterfield and Wallangarra. Add to that the cost of a third rail line from Wallangarra to Brisbane to provide standard gauge from the border to Brisbane and it would seem to be quite a tidy sum.
Allow $25 million for bridge works between Armidale and Wallangarra using a mix of new and second hand materials which includes the bridge at Deepwater.
- Brian Fisher
"I have performed walking inspections for the full length, from Armidale to Wallangarra ... taking digital images and documenting repairs required, volunteering my labour," Mr Fisher said.
He thought a better way to deal with the McLennan rail underbridge at Armidale was to simply lower the road by one metre.
"I have inspected the bridge and the steel structure, bridge transoms, brick head and wing walls are in sound condition. I've read the report by the rail trail lobby tabled by council," he said.
"First, there is no logic in pulling the line up. The cost to remove the line alone is more than the cost of repair."
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Mr Fisher said if the track itself had to be dismantled, the job would be labour intensive because the rails would have to be removed from the sleepers using dog pullers.
"Especially because of the tracks are in good, almost new, condition in places, such as from Armidale to Dumaresq," he said.
"Then you have to pick up all the rail scrap metal, dogs, plates, pins and anchors, that's tipper truck loads of scrap metal. Front end loaders and tip trucks to remove all the ballast at the rate of 4,000 ton per kilometre, or 200 bogie axle tipper loads per kilometre, that then has to be disposed of somewhere.
"On top of that, you have the expense of building the rail trails. That cost alone is more per kilometre than simply reopening the line, and the line between Armidale and Glen Innes could easily be recommissioned.
"I take the opportunity to thank the local farmers who kindly transported me moving my vehicle along the corridor as I walked the section and providing access via their leases."
