Inland Rail construction continues under safe Covid-19 work practices
Inland Rail construction is continuing along the Narrabri to North Star (N2NS) section of the alignment with special measures in place to protect workers and the local community from Covid-19.
August 2, 2021
Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) Inland Rail Delivery Director Central Heather Parry said construction needed to continue as the track needed to be operational in time to resume services ahead of the next grain season.
“ARTC has developed a construction schedule allowing works on the Narrabri North to Moree section to be undertaken minimising impact on key harvest and offtake periods as much as possible,” Mrs Parry said. “We are continuing to work with all stakeholders including grain growers, traders and train operators using the existing network to assess the impact to their operations and appropriate mitigations.”
“Australians rely on the freight network to deliver essential supplies such as food, medicine, medical equipment, which are critical now more than ever,” she said. “ARTC takes our responsibility to maintain a safe and reliable rail network very seriously and we are working hard to ensure we balance the challenge of ensuring the safety and reliability of a critical transport network, alongside our obligations to meet and respond to the current public health challenge.”
“ARTC is continuously monitoring COVID restrictions across various jurisdictions and adapting work practices on our national network to conform with the latest advice. We are very conscious of our own ongoing responsibilities to not only the health and safety of our workers, but the communities where we work and live.”
Mrs Parry said the current Sydney outbreak posed a challenging set of circumstances.
“As coronavirus (COVID-19) cases in Greater Sydney remain we have implemented additional preventative measures to ensure the safety of our team and the Moree and Narrabri communities,” she said.
“Workers involved on Inland Rail construction in Moree are tested on arrival and then regularly throughout their time at the workers’ accommodation and we are meeting all NSW Government guidelines to ensure our workers and the community are protected.”
“We are committed to the safe delivery of Inland Rail during this unprecedented Covid-19 pandemic, and we want to give the community confidence we are on track to re-open the track on October 31.”
Mrs Parry said construction has been progressing well against a backdrop of wet conditions and workers taking extra health precautions to safely manage the risks of Covid-19 while at work.
How Australian Rail Track Corporation is managing COVID-19 risks on Inland Rail construction:
Travel
- Minimising non-essential travel of our staff
- Workers on leave must observe border directions and not visit any hot spot zones if staying in NSW
- Workers who return to hot spots must stay in those areas until restrictions are lifted and follow the ‘stay at home’ orders issued by NSW Health
- Where travel is essential, workers are encouraged to use low-risk options, such as charter flights or private vehicles
- Symptom check of workers before they travel
Construction sites
- Covid test on arrival for shift and regular tests every seven days or more frequently in accordance with applicable Health Department guidelines
- Check-in app in use at each office and on site to enable detailed contact tracing if required
- Workers encouraged to access vaccinations with leave approved to attend appointments and to recover from any side effects
- Symptom check of workers before each shift
- Ensuring social distancing and good hygiene practices
- Reducing the size of groups working and rearranging facilities to meet social distancing requirements
- Increasing the cleaning and disinfection of our offices and facilities
- Implementing a COVID Safety Management Plan in the Moree Accommodation facility
- Restricting the number of staff who can travel in a vehicle together.
