Freight train derailment on Kalgoorlie to Perth line causes Prospector delay

TransWA has put into motion a plan to get passengers stranded on the Kalgoorlie to Perth route east of Southern Cross today to their destination.

A freight train derailment on the Kalgoorlie to Perth route this morning forced the cancellation of the Prospector train service.

An Arc Infrastructure spokeswoman confirmed an interstate freight train derailed between Southern Cross and Koolyanobbing.

“Fortunately, there have been no injuries,” she said.

“As such the Prospector and other freight services have been impacted.

“Customers and operators have been informed and will be kept updated.”

A TransWA spokesman revealed the incident would lead to an estimated six to eight hour extension to the travel time for those still wishing to complete their journey today.

“Due to the location of the incident it will take some time to get passengers to their final destination via road coaches, which must get to the site of the trains to pick up passengers and also take a less-direct route than the train,” she said.

“As the extent of the track damage is unknown, it is not clear how long the Eastern Goldfields Railway will be blocked.

“In the meantime, the Prospector service will be operated by road coaches, which will take longer than the train.”

TransWA began calling passengers with tickets booked for this week’s services to inform them of the situation this morning and, by 1pm, hatched a plan to get today’s travellers to their destination.

That plan involves returning the westbound service to Bonnie Vale where passengers will be met by a road coach from Kalgoorlie.

“Those passengers who wish to continue their journey to Perth will be taken to Southern Cross, where they will meet the Perth-Kalgoorlie Prospector train,” a TransWA spokeswoman said.

“Once the Kalgoorlie-bound passengers de-train at Southern Cross, they will board road coaches and continue their journey to Kalgoorlie.

“The Perth-bound passengers who boarded the road coach at Bonnie Vale will catch the Prospector train from Southern Cross, and complete their journey to Perth.”

Passengers who did not wish to continue their trip to Perth will be returned to Kalgoorlie on the Prospector.

It is unknown how long the Prospector will be disrupted.

TransWA is planning to be running direct coaches between Perth and Kalgoorlie tomorrow.

Passengers have been offered the chance to cancel or reschedule, and today’s passengers are being provided with free meals and drinks while waiting for alternate travel arrangements to arrive.