Rail death causes peak-hour chaos

– Shaun Inguanzo
A RAILWAY fatality in Noble Park wreaked havoc on peak-hour train services across Melbourne’s south east last Monday morning.
Victoria Police said a man died just before 5am last Monday at the rail crossing at Corrigan Road, Noble Park, after he was struck by a city-bound freight train. Police and the coroner attended the scene and brought train services on the Pakenham line to a halt during peak travel times. The line was not declared open until 8.05am.
A Victoria Police spokesperson said police had declared the death as non-suspicious.
Connex spokesperson Andrew Cassidy said the closure during peak travel times inconvenienced several thousands of commuters who rely on public transport to get to work.
Mr Cassidy said Connex arranged for up to 14 buses to shuttle passengers from station to station, to emulate the service offered by the rail network.
“The line was released to us at 8.05am by Victoria Police and the coroner’s office,” he said.
“We had no direct control as they needed to carry out an investigation on-site and we can’t start running services until they let us know it’s all clear and they are happy for us to resume service.”
Victoria Police refused to comment any further on their traffic operations along Corrigan Road because of the circumstances surrounding the death.