AFTER the recent derailment of Pacific National carriage at Neila, some locals have questioned what the $50 million allocated to upgrade the Mount Isa line was spent on last year.
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A carriage derailed on the Mount Isa line on Sunday April 24, repairs to the line were undertaken and the line re-opened to traffic on Tuesday April 26.
A Queensland Rail spokesperson said it was too early to speculate the cause of the Neila incident and investigations are continuing.
“Derailments on the Mount Isa line are at a record low with only two derailments in the past three years determined the result of a track related failure.
“Safety is Queensland Rail’s highest priority and we invest heavily in a comprehensive maintenance program to ensure the Mount Isa line is safe and reliable.
“Last financial year, almost $50 million was spent maintaining the Mount Isa line and earlier this year the Government announced a further $25 million investment to replace sleepers and improve the reliability of the Mount Isa line.”
Member for Mount Isa, Robbie Katter, said the number of derailments was a direct cause from a lack of investment to maintain the condition of the line.
“Unfortunately, the condition of the rail line has suffered from the neglect of successive governments,” Mr Katter said.
“Once there are failures on the rail line, it’s much more expensive to fix when compared to maintaining the required level of maintenance. Maintenance on a critical piece of infrastructure that services an economic powerhouse such as the North West must be a priority.
“The state government announcement of $25 million earlier this year to replace steel sleepers with concrete is a good start and is already benefiting the economies of small towns on the line. But given the neglect of recent governments, it’s only the start of a journey to repair a vital transport corridor for the North West.”
The recent derailment at Neila put producers out of pocket as 1,400 head of cattle ready for sale waited in Cloncurry for the derailment to be cleared.
“We’ve fallen behind, and for a region that generates approximately $300m in royalties per annum and contributes $2.8 billion to the Queensland economy, it’s unacceptable,” he said.
“Whenever there is an issue on the line it comes at a significant cost to producers who simply cannot afford another impost.”