Popular tourism venture stopped in its tracks after train derailment

West Coast Wilderness Railway staff raced to provide food and drink — and even food for an assistance dog — for passengers stranded for hours after a derailment. LATEST >

West Coast Wilderness Railway, Queenstown, Tasmania credit: Nick Osborne

SOME of the 90 train passengers stranded on the West Coast Wilderness Railway after a derailment in February have vented their frustration at the food, drink and toilet facilities on offer during their long wait on a remote section of track.

The WCWR has apologised for the long delays and says it will conduct a full debrief to identify where it can improve its response to future incidents.

On February 28, the railway suffered a derailment when the front wheels of the historic train came off the track.

Passengers online said the incident resulted in a 13-hour standstill.

WCWR acting general manager Ian Robertson said the operators acknowledged that it was a long day and apologised to those impacted.

“Passengers were stationary for around 4-5 hours, and it took some time to transport them back to Queenstown via a second train,” Mr Robertson said.

“On track, drinks were immediately served to all passengers, including tea, coffee, and water while food was transported via a hi-rail vehicle for passengers without catering included in their ticket price.

“On return to Queenstown, complimentary meals were provided to all returned passengers, plus one assistance dog, we sought dog food from one of the staff homes.

“All tickets were fully refunded.”

There were also concerns raised about a lack of toilet facilities for those stuck on board.

“While the carriages do not have toilet facilities, these are planned for in the case of emergency and were deployed as needed.

“We are undertaking a full debrief internally on the areas that we can improve our response to any future incidents along our railway.

“While it is deeply regrettable that our customers did not receive the day they anticipated, staff went above and beyond to minimise the impact and we continue to work tirelessly to ensure we are as reliable as we can be.”

Brakes slammed on popular Tasmanian tourism attraction

The West Coast Wilderness Railway has temporarily put a stop to its Strahan to Queenstown journey after a train derailment incident late last month.

The popular service was on a return journey to Strahan on February 28 when the incident occurred.

“The front wheels only came away from the track,” West Coast Wilderness Railway acting general manager Ian Robertson said.

“There were 90 passenger on board in three carriages … there were no injuries and the speed of the loco was very slow, they’re very slow speeds on that part of the track.

“I would imagine no more than 10-15km/h.

West Coast Wilderness Railway, Queenstown, Tasmania credit: Nick Osborne

Mr Robertson said the incident was minor one.

“A ‘derailment’ is a dramatic word,” he said.

“The train remained mostly on the track and it came to an immediate stop.

“We’re still undertaking investigations to establish why it did that.”

Mr Robertson decided to suspend the 34km journey from Strahan to Queenstown, because of the uncertainty around the incident, and it’s not yet know exactly when it will run again.

The half day passenger service from Queenstown will continue as normal.

“Because the engineers cannot give me a conclusive answer, I’ve decided to stop the passenger service … safety comes first,” Mr Robertson said.

“At this stage, we have more work to do before I am fully satisfied that there is minimal risk in continuing journeys along this section of track.”

West Coast Wilderness Railway, Queenstown, Tasmania credit: Nick Osborne

Mr Robertson said the incident had come during the peak season, and he believed the business would lose thousands of dollars.

“It feels like peak season hasn’t stopped,” he said.

“It’s really tough on the passengers not just the ones on the trip on the day but the ones that are affected because we are having to cancel reservations.

“When something like this happens, everybody feels it.

“It’s a vital part of our community and our future on the West Coast.”

Mr Robertson said staff had been calling passengers with booking to advise of the situation.

He was disappointed by the small number of passengers abusing and harassing staff.

“The reservation staff have to call impacted customers and passengers, that’s hundreds and hundreds of passengers,” he said.

“We do understand passengers will be disappointed … we want them to come to Queenstown and have a great day

“Unfortunately sometimes some passenger vent that out and cumulatively that can have an effect on staff, I think that’s unfair … it’s out of their hands and unjustified.”