NEXT STOP, TARANA: Greg Standen holds a photograph of Tarana station as part of his silent protest in front of the Bathurst Bullet on Sunday morning. Photo: ZENIO LAPKA 10211zbullit3
BATHURST man Greg Standen is hopping mad about Tarana being left off the schedule for the Bathurst Bullet – particularly because the people of Oberon and district helped lobby for the daily commuter rail service to Sydney.
Mr Standen, who was one of 12 guards on the daily train that ran from Bathurst to Sydney in the 1980s, staged a silent protest at Sunday’s launch of the Bathurst Bullet.
He stood at the railway station holding a photograph of the Tarana station – though he emphasised he had no intention of being a troublemaker.
He said if people asked, he showed them the photo and asked why the train wasn’t stopping there.
“The service is good, but we’ve got to get it right,” Mr Standen said.
Member for Bathurst Paul Toole said he understood Mr Standen’s concerns.
“However, having spoken with Mr [John] Hollis from Rail Action Bathurst during the formatting of the timetable it was agreed the aim of the exercise was to have an express rail service, and that meant the Bathurst Bullet physically didn’t have time to stop at every station along the way to Sydney,” Mr Toole said.
“If people from Tarana, for example, want to access the service they can go to Lithgow or Bathurst, but you have to realise this is 2012 and timetables from a bygone era just aren’t feasible any more.”
Mr Standen says he is frustrated because the train stops, on demand, at Bell, which has a population of fewer than 100 people and 14 services a day already.
He says Mount Victoria gets 22 services on a weekday on the way to Sydney and 23 on the way home.
He felt both could be dropped in favour of Tarana.
Mr Standen said a lot of people had bought small acreage in the Oberon area and could use the train to commute to Sydney.