Councillors have voted to support the reinstatement of the Ballarat heritage railway gates on Lydiard Street if it is safe to do so.
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The two gates on the south-side of the track were destroyed when a late-night train smashed into them on May 30.
They formed half of the four rare, historic interlocking swing gates. The north to south road has been closed since the incident, in which the train driver, conductor and a passenger received minor injuries. Meanwhile, the future of the gates remains uncertain, pending an Australian Transport Safety Bureau report.
A leaked incident report suggested the train was travelling at 97 km/hr, and collided with the gates.
The incident and the response to it has been the subject of lively discussion since, with several councillors calling for the urgent restoration of the gates and reopening of the road.
Councillors again considered an earlier motion, which had prompted debate about balancing heritage with safety. That was deferred from June this year.
Filed by Cr Samantha McIntosh, it initially referenced a 1997 decision by council to refuse an application to install replacement boom gates. It was subsequently revised, but still rejected with a majority of councillors saying they wished to strengthen the wording on safety.
Cr Daniel Moloney, a former V/Line communications manager, said the emphasis on safety was implied but not fully expressed.
He put forward an alternative motion registering council's "strong preference" for the gates to be reinstated if investigators found it would not compromise safety.
Discussion proved contentious with Cr McIntosh saying there was game-playing, and that her original motion clearly referenced mitigating risks. However, she said she would support Cr Moloney's motion as written.
Cr Moloney said there was no intention to play games and his alternative motion was aimed as a common-sense compromise that everyone could agree upon.
That motion, which also called for the road to be reopened as soon as possible, was passed unanimously. Ministers and relevant authorities will be advised of council's position.
During the initial discussion, acting director Natalie Robertson clarified that V/Line was the relevant authority rather than VicTrack. Ms Robertson also said Heritage Victoria was the responsible planning authority, not the City of Ballarat - although officers could respond to any proposed changes.
The gates are part of the heritage-listed Ballarat Railway Station Complex.
There remains no definite date for the release of the accident report, which is being compiled by Chief Investigator, Transport Safety Victoria on behalf of the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB).
On the ATSB website it outlines the details of the incident as follows: "A VLocity passenger train travelling from Southern Cross Station to Wendouree Station failed to stop at the platform at Ballarat Station and collided with the level crossing gates which were closed against rail traffic".
It says the final report is likely to be in the fourth quarter of 2021. The release of a preliminary report has also been mooted.
An ATSB report on a previous incident in Ballarat, published in April 2018, noted that the Lydiard Street gates were not automatic, and were controlled from Centrol, the Melbourne-based control centre for the regional broad-gauge rail network.
The gates have long been a feature of Lydiard Street. A previous move to put boom gates in their place stalled after strong community resistance.
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