The Last Twelve Months

Track Restoration

I am proud to report that many enthusiastic members of the Oberon Tarana Heritage Railway Inc. (OTHR) have made incredible achievements in restoring the line between Oberon and Hazelgrove since our previous Annual General Meeting was held on 1 st March 2006.

Hard-working volunteers have attended numerous working bees that have been held along the railway track in all types of weather. Our last working bee which was held on the weekend of 24 th and 25 th February was a history-making event with the first 175 original sleepers that were laid in 1923 being replaced by good quality second-hand sleepers that have been purchased from a distributor in Campbelltown . Sleeper laying training and equipment were generously provided to OTHR by Greg Noble of RailCorp and his team of gangers during that weekend and we are indebted to them for their assistance.

Dedicated members have worked hard sometimes alone clearing the track and a number of them consistently turned up for each Friday evening working bee. The weekend work sessions have attracted an average of thirty members and through the dedication of our members we are well and truly on the way to achieving our goal of restoring the line between Oberon and Hazelgrove by the end of February 2008.

I would encourage all members of OTHR who have yet to see the restoration work, to take time out during their next visit to Oberon to inspect the restored cattle stop on the southern side of the tip road and the recently laid sleepers at the Hazelgrove end near the crossing on Black Bullock Road.

During the year a second-hand trike and a shipping container were purchased for OTHR. The container has been renovated to store tools and documents and is currently located near the tip road. It is too early yet to consider using the trike on the line as our organisation must complete its legal requirements under the Rail Safety Act before we will gain approval from the authorities to run it on the line.

It is impossible in this report to name all of those people, groups and business organisations who have contributed so generously in numerous ways to the success we have achieved in restoring the track. Their support has been acknowledged already on our website and in the near future they will see their names listed on our roll of honour which will be erected along the railway line.

Safety Induction Training

It is a legal requirement that volunteers who attend the track restoration working sessions must firstly be inducted in the basic safety course which was prepared by our Systems Manager, Matt McMahon. Matt has given up many hours of his own time to conduct the induction sessions and these also include job safety analysis training for general clearing of debris from the line and sleeper replacement.

Accreditation by the Independent Transport Safety & Reliability Regulator (ITSRR)

In June 2006 OTHR received its conditional accreditation to run rolling stock on the line between Oberon and Tarana from ITSRR. As a heritage rail operator, OTHR has been advised it must complete all of its rail safety management documentation by June 2008 to comply with the National Rail Safety Guidelines. This is a huge task for volunteer railway organisations to undertake, but I am happy to report that our work on this legal requirement is well under way and should be completed well ahead of the due date.

In November 2006 two compliance officers from ITSRR conducted a full day's audit of OTHR's safety documents and they were very impressed with our progress. A rail safety consultant, Catriona Scott who was appointed by ITSRR subsequently spent a day with the Board members giving us invaluable advice about our rail safety operations.

Raising OTHR's Profile

Our organisation is becoming a household name in the community and the central tablelands region. This has been accomplished through monthly meetings, regular newsletters, the informative and popular website generously hosted by our Committee member Rick Fletcher, articles and photographs submitted to Oberon, Lithgow and Bathurst newspapers, radio interviews and local television news coverage.

Members have also set up information stands at the Maitland Steamfest, Black Springs School fete, the Oberon Show and the Oberon Daffodil Festival to attract new members as well as to seek oral history information from former employees on the railway. We have been fortunate to meet “old timers” from the region who have cheerfully provided us with interesting tales of the railway and its colourful characters. Recently a presentation about OTHR was given to members of the Oberon Plateau Tourist Association who enthusiastically expressed their support for our organisation's goals in making Oberon a popular tourist destination.

OTHR's Membership

I am pleased to report that during the past year, our membership has increased significantly and we currently have 178 family memberships of OTHR. Over 100 of those members are from the Oberon district but we are happy to say that we have heritage rail enthusiasts in OTHR from Sydney, the Hunter and the South Coast regions as well as from Tasmania and Western Australia.

At our last monthly meeting members voted to increase the cost of a family membership from $10 to $20 as OTHR will face increasing expenses in purchasing rolling stock, equipment and public liability insurance premiums as we move closer to the time when we can run a trike and a rail motor on the track between Oberon and Tarana.

The Next Twelve Months 

Our Goals

• To complete the restoration of the track from Oberon to Hazelgrove.
• To raise funds through a variety of fundraising activities, including applying for Government grants since 2007 will be a challenging financial year.
• To develop an OTHR sponsorship package and target local and regional business organisations to sponsor special projects along the line.
• To introduce the sale of attractive OTHR merchandise to raise funds as well as to raise OTHR's profile.
• To increase OTHR's membership by up to 50% and in particular, to attract younger members who can help with the restoration tasks.
• To complete all of OTHR's rail safety management documentation in compliance with the National Rail Safety Guidelines.
• To train workers in appropriate skills to use the rolling stock on the track.
• To publish a booklet on the history of the Oberon to Tarana line based on interviews of former railway employees and local residents.

Our Appreciation

On behalf of the Board and members of OTHR I want to express our gratitude to the many volunteers, organisations and businesses who have generously donated their valuable time, tools, timber and machinery, food and drinks for our working bees, advice and general support throughout the year. It is impossible to list everyone by name and their donations in this report but I want you to know how very much your support has been appreciated by OTHR. However, I would like to make special mention of our gratitude to the Oberon Council, our patron, Gerard Martin and Greg Noble and his team from RailCorp for their invaluable assistance to our organisation.

In conclusion, may I take this opportunity of thanking the members of the OTHR Board for their loyalty, camaraderie and hard work in making 2006 a year of great progress in achieving our goals.

Shane Moorhead - President