VICTOR lA Report of the STATE TRANSPORT AUTHORITY for the Year ended 30 June 1985 Ordered by the Legislative Assembly to be printed MELBOURNE F D ATKINSON GOVERNMENT PRINTER 1985 No. 51 1985 VICTORIA REPORT OF THE STATE TRANSPORT AUTHORITY FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 1985 PRESENTED TO BOTH HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 8(6) OF THE ANNUAL REPORTING ACT 1983. 30th SEPTEMBER 1985 The Honourable Tom Raper M.P. Minister for Transport. Dear Minister, In accordance with Section 9 of the Annual Reporting Act 1983, the Report of the operations of the State Transport Authority for the year ended 30 June 1985 is submitted together with the financial statements for that year and of its financial position as at 30 June 1985. Yours truly, K.M. FITZMAURICE, Chairman and Managing Director. CONTENTS PAGE YEAR OF PROGRESS 5 BOARD MEMBERS 6 CORPORATE MANAGEMENT GROUP MEMBERS 6 WORKSHOPS MANAGEMENT BOARD MEMBERS 7 INTERIM STANDING COMMITTEE ON CONSULTATION PROCEDURES 7 REGIONAL MANAGERS 7 REGIONAL ADVISORY BOARDS 7 MAIN CORPORATE ADDRESSES 8 WORKSHOPS ADDRESSES 8 CHAIRMAN AI\JD MANAGING DIRECTOR'S REPORT 9 FINANCE 10 FREIGHT SERVICES 12 PASSENGER SERVICES 19 TRANSPORT OPERATIONS 22 PERSONNEL AND EMPLOYEE RELATIONS 27 CORPORATE SERVICES 28 CORPORATE PLAI\INING AND DEVELOPMENT 29 WORKSHOPS 30 METRAIL 31 V/LINE INDUSTRIES PTY. LIMITED 31 MT. BUFFALO CHALET 32 FINANCIAL STATEMENTS Page Profit and Loss Statement 34 Balance Sheet 35 Statement of Source and Application of Funds 36 Notes to and Forming part of the Accounts Note 1 Significant Accounting Policies (1) Basis of Accounting 37 (2) Fixed Assets 37 (3) Depreciation 37 (4) Vesting of Assets 37 (5) Capitalisation of Interest 37 (6) Stores 37 (7) Leasing 37 (8) Currency exchange variation 37 (9) Public Borrowings 37 (1 0) Employee leave entitlements 37 (11) Superannuation pensions 38 (12) Self Insurance 38 (13) Revenue recognition 38 (14) Provision of metropolitan rail service to MTA 38 Note 2 - Operating revenue 38 Note 3 - Operating expenses 39 Note 4 - Transactions with the Public Account 39 Note 5 - Finance charges 40 Note 6 - Extraordinary items 40 Note 7 - Debtors 40 Note 8 - Stores 40 Note 9 - Securities held in trust 41 Note 10 - Investment in Vfline Industries Pty. Ltd. 41 Note 11 - Short term deposits 41 Note 12 - Loans to employees 41 Note 13 - Fixed assets 41 2 Financial Statements (continued) Page Note 14 Leases 42 (1) Leased assets 42 (2) Deferred gains/losses on sale of assets 42 (3) Lease liabilities 42 (4) Currency exchange variations 43 (5) Lease commitments 43 Note 15 Deferred expenses 43 Note 16 - Employee leave entitlements 43 Note 17 Provision for claims and compensation 43 Note 18 Provision for superannuation pensions 44 Note 19 - Public Borrowings 44 (1) Liabilities 44 (2) Discount on loans 44 (3) Currency exchange variation 44 Note 20 - Loans from State Government 45 Note 21 - Inter-authority account- MTA 45 Note 22 - Advances from State Government 45 Note 23 - Contributed capital 45 Note 24 - Assets vested in MT A 46 Note 25 - Capital commitments 46 Certification of Financial Statements 47 Auditor-Generals Report 48 ADDITIONAL STATUTORY INFORMATION 49 3 4 A Year of Progress Some noteable events were: A 8.6 per cent increase in patronage by country passengers during the year. • A $3.3 million increase in country passenger revenue in the last twelve months without an increase in fares. • V/Line Travel Centre, a fully accredited travel centre, opened in Head Office. Speedlink, a rail/road coach service connecting Adelaide, Albury and Sydney and incorporating the XPT, introduced. • Introduction of a series of V/Line road coach services in the south-west, west and south-east of Victoria. Commencement of a series of regional transport studies to identify passenger transport needs within Victoria. Increase in freight revenue over last two years from $161 million to $190 million with freight tonnage rising from 10.5 to 11.9 million tonnes. • Freightgate operation streamlined resulting in a saving of more than $5 million a year so far. • Steel tonnage increased by 48 per cent over 1982-83. A $1.1 million, state-of-the-art, computerised track monitoring machine intro­ duced. • Freight fleet upgraded by the introduction of seventy-one new bogie wagons. • Thirteen locomotives upgraded and five new locomotives purchased. • Planning completed for the construction of an additional thirty-five new locomo­ tives. Workshops have become a commercial operation actively seeking customers in the private sector. • Decentralisation of management by the creation of five regions for V/Line country operations centred in Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, Wodonga and Traralgon. V/Line's sixth region Central- is located in Melbourne Signing of the Occupational Health and Safety Agreement between ST A and the trade unions in the railway industry in Victoria. • Complete fit-out and occupation of the New Head Office building at 589 Collins Street. The building incorporates the latest principles of ergonomic design. 5 STATE TRANSPORT AUTHORITY BOARD K.M. FITZMAURICE CHAIRMAN A.S. REIHER DEPUTY CHAIRMAN J.E. FARAGO MEMBER J.A. HEARSCH MEMBER K. IRVIN MEMBER C.L. JORDAN MEMBER K.T. MATTHEWS MEMBER L.T. MILES MEMBER S.J. PICKERING MEMBER L.A. STROUSE MEMBER CORPORATE MANAGEMENT GROUP K.M. FITZMAURICE MANAGING DIRECTOR G.C. GLINSKI CHIEF GENERAL MANAGER, FINANCE AI\ID ACCOUNTING J.A. HEARSCH CHIEF GENERAL MANAGER, TRANSPORT OPERATIONS R.D. TERRELL CHIEF GENERAL MANAGER, WORKSHOPS * D.R. MLIRPHY GENERAL MANAGER, FREIGHT SERVICES J.C. BRENAN GENERAL MANAGER, CORPORATE PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT L.J. HARPER GENERAL MANAGER, PASSENGER SERVICES I.J. REIHER GENERAL MANAGER, CORPORATE SERVICES D.R. WATT GENERAL MANAGER, PERSONNEL AND EMPLOYEE RELATIONS A.M. HURSE GROUP l\t1AI\lAGER, OPERATIONS CO-ORDINATION t G.P. DEUTSCH GROUP MANAGER, ENGINEERING AND DEVELOPMENT * P.M. FIELDS GROUP MANAGER, CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS *ACTING t APPOINTED SEPTEMBER 1985 6 WORKSHOPS MANAGEMENT BOARD K.M. FITZMAURICE CHAIRMAN J.BARRY MEMBER W. EDDY MEMBER J. GARRO MEMBER J.L. GRIGG MEMBER J.P. HALL MEMBER J.A. HEARSCH MEMBER R.D. TERRELL MEMBER D.V. VANDERHYDE MEMBER INTERIM STANDING COMMITTEE ON CONSULTATION PROCEDURES D.R. WATT CHAIRMAN A.COLE MEMBER P.DYER MEMBER G.C. GLINSKI MEMBER L.J. HARPER MEMBER A.M. HURSE MEMBER B. KLEMM MEMBER K.T. MATTHEWS MEMBER G. NICHOLSON MEMBER B.G. SHAW MEMBER REGIONAL MANAGERS D. WATSON CENTRAL REGION S.RODGERS SOUTH - WESTERN S. COLLINS WESTERN M. HOUSTON NORTHERN F. MORTON NORTH EASTERN R. CANNON EASTERN REGIONAL ADVISORY BOARDS (Not yet appointed) 7 MAIN CORPORATE ADDRESSES HEAD OFFICE:- 589 Collins Street, Melbourne. Vie. 3000. Telephone: (03) 619 1111 REGIONAL OFFICES:­ Central - 67 Spencer Street, Melbourne. 3000. Telephone: (03) 6 1001 South Western · - Geelong State Offices, Cnr Little Malop and Fenwick Streets, Geelong. 3220 Telephone: (052) 22 1833 Western - Ballarat Railway Station, Lydiard Street, Ballarat. 3350 Telephone: (053) 31 2400 Northern - Bendigo Railway Station, Railway Place, Bendigo. 3550 Telephone: (054) 43 9766 North Eastern - Astra House, Hovel! Street, Wodonga 3690 Telephone: (060) 24 7100 Eastern - Cnr Livingston and Hotham Streets, Traralgon 3844 Telephone: (051) 74 9277 WORKSHOPS:­ NEWPORT - Champion Road, Newport 3015 Telephone: (03) 397 2358 BALLARAT - Creswick Road, Ballarat 3350 Telephone: (053) 32 1744 BENDIGO Bob Street, Bendigo 3550 Telephone: (054) 43 0864 ELECTRICAL WORKSHOPS 'A' - 263-315 Spencer Street, Melbourne 3000 ELECTRICAL WORKSHOPS 'B' Telephone: (03) 654 2822 8 CHAIRMAN AND MANAGING DIRECTOR'S REPORT lt is with much pleasure that I am able to report to you a year of progress for the State Transport Authority. This report for the 1984-85 financial year, the second annual report of the Authority, comes at a time when many of the changes foreshadowed in our first report are coming to fruition. The year under review saw the reorganisation of the Authority virtually completed. We have been able to build on the solid foundation laid in our first year of operation. Our trading name Vfline- is now firmly established in the Victorian community. We are receiving increasing recognition as a provider of a comprehensive range of country and interstate passenger travel packages as well as a major carrier of Victorian and interstate freight. Our upgraded pass~nger services continue to attract more travellers each year with passenger numbers up by 8.6 per cent in 1984-85. This builds on the increase of the previous year giving a growth over two years of 18 per cent. Freight revenue for the year rose by 18 per cent over our 1983-84 performance. This represents a 13 per cent increase in tonnage carried. With a harvest of approximately 3.5 million tonnes and a carryover from the previous year Vjline hauled more than four million tonnes of grain. Improvements to operational effi­ ciencies such as the greater use of block trains and central receival points contributed to this movement being achieved without fuss. Further plans in the coming year to build more grain wagons and the procurement of new locomotives will enhance our capacity. The Louis Alien system of corporate management adopted by the Authority continues to be developed through the various levels of management with position charters now pre­ pared for many officers down to the middle levels of the organisation. The move by Vjline's Head Office staff to new headquarters at Transport House, 589 Collins Street, Melbourne is now almost completed. The modern functional surroundings have provided a further boost to the morale of our personnel and to our public image as a modern transport operation. Vjline's draft five-year Corporate Plan, the first prepared by the organisation. was rel­ eased to the public in May. Consultations on the Plan with all interested parties ar· continuing into the new financial year.