Newsrail’s October 2025 edition features a blue Harris train on the cover, a perfect choice for our main feature article by Grraham Bishop on his career as a suburban train driver from the mid 1960s to early 1990s.

We went back through the files to see when we last had a Harris on the cover of Newsrail. Can you believe that prior to this month’s edition, they’ve only made the cover twice? The last was our September 1987 edition, when we featured a colour image of a refurbished grey Harris train on the Port Melbourne Line, just prior its closure and conversion to light rail. Prior to that, our November 1975 edition featured a black and white photo of a Harris passing Melbourne Underground Rail Loop works near Princes Bridge Station.

Our feature article author Graham had the most remarkable career on Victorian Railways, starting as a track repairer before becoming a locomotive fireman, then a driver, and finally a suburban electric train driver. This latest article by Graham picks up where his last article on his time as a locomotive driver left off, and as with Graham’s previous articles, it is a window back in time to a very different age. It is superbly illustrated with a range of high quality photographs from the era. Many of these images, including the striking cover photo, were taken by Graham’s fellow train driver colleague, the late Des Jowett.

Our News column leads with some analysis by our editorial team of recent boarding statistics from regional stations that suggest V/Line will probably report another reccord year for patronage when it releases its annual report later this year. While some lines have seen only modest growth, the Shepparton Line in particular has had ridership increases in the order of 50% over last finanical year.

Our popular Tourist and hertiage rail column calls in to Bellarine Railway for another update on the project to restore ASG steam locomotive G33 to operation, as well as updates on Car 19 restoration, Steam Crane 30, and a new project to restore the Malcolm Moore diesel engine originally used in the regauging and reopening of the former VR Queenscliff Line as the Bellarine Railway.

And our usual other columns are there: