EASTER services on the popular Mornington tourist train were unexpectedly cancelled on Saturday (8 April) after the old “red rattler” heritage train came off its tracks close to the Watt Road station.
The train was on a training run from Moorooduc to Mornington with a driver and supervisor on board. Nobody was injured and the train was not carrying passengers.
Mornington Railway Preservation Society president Andrew Swaine said the cause of the derailing was unknown and the train would not be back in service until investigations were completed.
The train runs on part of the former Victorian Railways’ Baxter to Mornington branch line.
Swaine said the derailing “couldn’t have happened at a worse time” as the Easter holidays were always a busy time for the volunteer-run service.
He said he hoped the train would be back in business before too long.
First published in the Mornington News – 11 April 2023
