197707 – Thomas – Centralised Traffic Control and Power Signalling – Rockhampton-Gladstone – Part 1: Signalling and Installation

The first C.T.C. system to be commissioned in Queensland was the Moura-Gladstone Short Line.

This line was built for export coal traffic from the Thiess Peabody Mitsui open cut mine at Moura to the loading point at Gladstone, and was completed in January, 1968.

The line is 184 km in length, and apart from the terminal stations at Moura Mine and South Gladstone, there were five crossing loops, two isolated sidings, two junction stations with existing branch lines and a combined passing loop and interchange station with the Main North Coast Line at Callemondah, 5 km north of Gladstone.

Trailable facing points were installed on the crassing loops with mechanically operated points on the interchange crossovers at Callemondah.

A planning study report recommended that a C.T.C. system be installed, retaining the trailable facing point installations on the crossing loops, and providing electrically operated points where selective routing of trains was required.

As part of the scheme, the main North Coast Line between Gladstone, Callemondah and Yarwun was included.

The average number of trains on the Moura Line was thirteen per day, whereas the Main North Coast Line carries up to 50 trains per day.

The Moura Line transverses sparsely populated areas for much of its length, and the cost of providing a mains electricity supply at all locations was prohibitive.

A specification was prepared and a contract was let to Westinghouse McKenzie and Holland Pty. Ltd., for the supply and installation of a C.T.C. system.

The trailable points were retained at the crossing loops on the Moura Line with electric point machines at junction stations. The length of the crossing loops is 1.1 km.

Track circuits in the station yard areas were of the steady energy type, either rectifier or battery fed while the block section tracks were normally de-energised, battery fed, reversible type.

Track relays were McKenzie and Holland Style BT1-B, and the average length of track was 1,000 metres.

In the Gladstone-Yarwun section, power operated points and full signalling was provided at Mt. Miller and Callemondah and all track circuits were steady energy type. Trailable facing points were retained at Yarwun.

The supervisory system was the Westronic Style F1 with the Control Centre at Rockhampton.

As the Moura Line was under the control of the North Control Board and the Yarwun-Gladstone section under the South Control Board, a control panel and diagram was required in each control room, with shared transfer facilities provided for the working of Callemondah.

This system was commissioned in October, 1971.

A paper on the Moura-Gladstone C.T.C., by Mr. D.E. Evans of Q.R., and Mr. W. Birrell of Westinghouse McKenzie and Holland was read at a Technical Meeting of the Institution held in Brisbane on 14th July, 1972.