V/Line Bendigo line experiencing ‘major disruption’ due to power outage near Woodend

V/Line had prepared for the outage and had back-up power available.

But a spokesperson said a back-up generator providing supplementary power to the signals failed temporarily, which meant trains were ordered to slow for safety reasons.

“While the fault was rectified quickly, there were flow-on delays and cancellations to some services throughout the day,” they said.

Two services on the Bendigo line were delayed by more than an hour.

“We apologise to Bendigo and Swan Hill passengers who were delayed due to a power outage affecting signals in the Woodend area on Monday,” the V/Line spokesperson said.

“Passengers who were delayed more than 60 minutes are encouraged to contact V/Line to seek compensation.”

For information about claiming compensation, phone 1800 800 007 or visit vline.com.au

UPDATE 2.43pm: V/LINE was informed of a planned power outage in the Woodend area last week, according to Powercor.

The outage was associated with cancellations and significant delays to train services on the Bendigo line earlier today.

“Our crews have been conducting work on overhead power lines as part of a job requested by a customer in Woodend,” a Powercor spokeswoman said.

“As part of this work, our crews needed to turn off power to some parts of Woodend.

“We notified customers, including V Line, about the planned outage last week.”

Powercor is expecting power to be restored by 3.30pm.

UPDATE 12.18pm: PASSENGERS on the 06:58 Swan Hill - Southern Cross train may be eligible for compensation from V/Line, with the service delayed by more than an hour.

V/Line is expecting the train to be delayed by 86 minutes due to an earlier power outage in the Woodend area, which it says is causing significant delays in both directions of travel on the Bendigo line.

Compensation may be available to V/Line customers who experience a delay of 60 minutes or more in a single journey, according to the V/Line website.

UPDATE 12:08pm: POWER has not been fully restored to Woodend Railway Station, as V/Line advised about an hour ago.

Though full power has been restored to all signals in the area, ticketing facilities and normal station operations won’t be restored until 3pm.

V/Line has advised of minor delays to train services as the Bendigo line is cleared of congestion.

Seven trains have either been replaced by coaches or experienced delays thus far today.

V/Line has advised the 14:28 Epsom - Southern Cross service will originate in Bendigo at 14:36 due to congestion related to the power outage

“Alternative transport will be provided for customers from Epsom to start their journey,” the regional public transport operator stated.

Commuters on the 10:20 Southern Cross – Bendigo service can expect delays of up to 17 minutes.

UPDATE 11.55am: DISRUPTIONS to trains on the Bendigo line are now categorised as ‘major’, with two services cancelled and others delayed by 50 up to minutes.

Both the 11:36 Bendigo - Southern Cross train and the 12:20 Southern Cross - Epsom train have been replaced by coaches due to ‘significant track congestion’ in both directions on the Bendigo line.

The 09:14 Southern Cross - Bendigo and the 06:58 Swan Hill - Southern Cross trains are both delayed by 50 minutes.

A delay of 17 minutes is anticipated for customers on the 07:41 Southern Cross - Swan Hill train.

V/Line cited an earlier power outage in the Woodend area as the cause of the disruptions.

UPDATE 10.58am: POWER has been restored to Woodend Railway Station.

V/Line expects minor delays to train services on the Bendigo line as it is cleared of congestion.

All ticketing facilities and normal station operations at Woodend will resume as normal, after a planned power outage earlier in the morning.

The 09:14 Southern Cross - Bendigo service and the 06:58 Swan Hill - Southern Cross are experiencing delays due to the outage.

A delay of 18 minutes is anticipated for the 06:58 Swan Hill - Southern Cross service.

EARLIER: V/LINE is advising of delays of up to, and possibly more than, 30 minutes on the Bendigo line.

The delays are due to a planned power outage in the Woodend area.

The 09:14 Southern Cross - Bendigo service is among those affected, with delays of 28 minutes expected.

Services in both directions are impacted by the outage.

Powercor is expecting the power to be restored by 3.30pm, according to its website.

More to come.