John Holland Completes the WA Eastern Goldfields Railway

Upgrades to one of Western Australia’s most critical pieces of infrastructure – the Eastern Goldfields Railway has officially been completed.

The track is the main interstate line between WA and the Eastern States which carries, grain, freight and passenger services and has been used for more than 100 years.

John Holland was awarded the $6 million contract to replace a 15km section of life-expired dual gauge rail near Toodyay by Arc Infrastructure, continuing a strong working relationship spanning more than 20 years.

John Holland Project Manager Darren Claridge said the replacement program was completed on time and on budget. He said:

“We started construction on this section of rail in early August and finished at the end of October. It’s quite a technically complex and aggressive project as we replace the line which continues to be used when we are not directly on it.”

The project involves a team of more than 60 people, including engineers, re-rail specialists, traffic management, signal technicians and safety specialists.

Once the team takes possession of a track and the old rail is removed, the new rail is welded together at more than 1000 degrees Celsius.

When the appropriate temperature is reached, grinding equipment is used to make sure the surface is smooth, before an engineer checks and signs off on the work.

This process happens every 110m and every step is meticulously recorded. Mr Claridge said:

“The team is like a well-oiled machine, working tirelessly to change more than 1000m of track every day. Efficiency and safety are at the core of what we do – this line is a crucial link between East and West and if something critical happens, it all shuts down. We even have an onsite firefighting appliance to quickly deal with any potential fire risk from the sparks.”

The crew has even played wildlife rescuers, saving a duckling which had become trapped on the tracks and later a long-neck turtle in a similar predicament. Mr Claridge said:

“Apart from our work, John Holland tries to leave a positive impression in every community we operate in. The team supports local business as much as possible – staying at the Toodyay Caravan Park, shopping in town and using local catering. This also includes keeping an eye out for and protecting the native wildlife.”