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The Australian Rail Track Corporation’s (ARTC) Hunter Valley network will shut down for 72
hours next week to deliver major upgrade works and carry out important maintenance to
keep the network safe and reliable.
An ARTC spokesperson said works will be taking place from 6am Tuesday 30 September
through to 6am Friday 3 October.
“Hunter Valley network closedowns like this one are huge tasks, the result of months of
planning and organisation and many moving parts,” the spokesperson said.
“We take the opportunity to package as much work as possible during the closedown, as
they provide the safest, most efficient and productive windows to complete them in.”
“These planned shutdowns not only allow ARTC to work network-wide but gives the entire
coal chain a clear window to schedule important maintenance.”
On average ARTC completes around 120 projects, worth in excess of $20 million, and over
a thousand workers are on the corridor, including local contractors and suppliers, stretching
from the Port in the South, out to the Ulan in the West and Narrabri in the North.
“In addition to work on major infrastructure projects, including current works at Gunnedah,
Scone and Hexham this shutdown, we carry out general track maintenance activities to
maintain the safety and reliability of the track for both passenger and freight train services,”
the spokesperson said.
“Pre-planned network closures of this size balance the need to maintain and grow the
network while minimising disruption to our customers.”
ARTC has delivered nearly $1.5bn of capital works to the Hunter Valley since 2007.
There are changes to passenger services during this time, for information on impact to
services, customers should visit: www.sydneytrains.info or www.nswtrainlink.info