page_title: Trans-Australian Railway
section_title: Operations
hierarchical_section_title: Trans-Australian Railway / Operations
caption_attribution_description: English: A passenger chats with the crew of Australian National's GM29 (still in Commonwealth Railways maroon livery with Australian National Railways lettering), which, together with GM3 (in AN green and gold livery) and the Adelaide-bound Trans Australian, has arrived about 30 minutes early at Rawlinna, Western Australia, on the Trans-Australian Railway, where it is waiting to cross the Perth-bound Trans at 13:00 WST. Kodachrome slide converted by Kaiser Baas Photo Maker Pro into a digital image.
context_page_description: The Trans-Australian Railway, opened in 1917, crosses the Nullarbor Plain of Australia from Port Augusta in South Australia to Kalgoorlie in Western Australia. As the only rail freight corridor between Western Australia and the eastern states, the line is strategically important.
  It includes the world's longest section of completely straight track.
  The inaugural passenger train service was known as the Great Western Express; later it became the Trans-Australian. As of 2020, two passenger services use the line: the Indian Pacific for its entire length, and The Ghan between Port Augusta and Tarcoola before it proceeds north to Darwin.
context_section_description: Because of the inevitable problems of finding suitable water for steam locomotives in a desert, the original engineer, Henry Deane envisaged diesel locomotives for the line and made inquiries with potential manufacturers, although the technology was not well developed at the time. Unfortunately, a scandal involving the supply of sleepers led to Deane's resignation before the proposal had advanced.
  Initially trains were hauled by G class locomotives and from 1938 by C class locomotives, both steam. From 1951, diesel-electric locomotives hauled passenger services, using the new GM class locomotives.
  The railway originally had 400 m (1,300 ft)-long crossing loops (passing sidings) every 100 km (62 mi) or so. As traffic increased the number of crossing loops increased. To handle longer trains, crossing loops were lengthened so that in 2008 they were all at least 1,800 m (5,900 ft) long and spaced about 30 km (19 mi) to 60 km (37 mi) apart.
  Most crossing loops are unattended and train crew operate the turnouts as required. Crossing loops have self-restoring points, so that points are reset to the straight route when a train departs from a crossing loop. The loops are fitted with radio controls so that train crew can set the points as they approach. Locomotive cabs are fitted with an activated points system (ICAPS) to set the required route without having to stop the train.
  Safeworking is by train orders, using verbal communication.
caption: In 1986 the Trans-Australian at Rawlinna, WA is bound for Port Pirie. It will be another 18 years before all mainland state capitals are connected by standard gauge tracks.
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