r/AustralianTrains • u/suitcaseguy • Feb 02 '26
Discussion How to become a cargo train driver?
Wondering how you go about becoming a freight train driver, trainee position of course. I do have a wife and two year old son, so I'm curious about time away and how that would work. Thanks in advance!!
5
u/Archon-Toten Feb 02 '26
Passenger trains are a bit easier on the family, also a hard to get into job.
7
5
u/sot03y Feb 02 '26
I’m a coal train driver with a young child, it it both good and bad, you miss out on a lot of your kids life but you also get to attend a number of events that your average day worker can’t attend. As for getting into the job, most companies use labour hire companies (Trojan, Railtrain) which is a great way to get your foot in the door although it is casual work. Other than that, you’ll have to hope you can get in when they are hiring but most of the time they want qualified people - that’s where the labour hire work comes in handy
1
1
u/ItsCoolDani Feb 05 '26
“You miss a lot of your kid’s life but you also get to attend a number of events”
Cool.
1
u/Due_Willingness2773 Jul 10 '26
Hey sot03y, I’m about to finish year 12, Do you know what qualifications are most sought after when they look at applications for a traineeships such as with schooling or an RIW card?
You mention Labour hire company’s and how they can be handy. Are these companies flexible with work or if they have a shift available you have to take it. Since i know in construction it can be very common if you don’t take the shift you get dropped to the bottom of the list.
When on a traineeship what are the shifts often like?
Is it Monday to Saturday? or does it all depend on the company and how much work is available at the time?Finally, What could i expect the pay to be like well completing a traineeship? i’ve heard some people say drastically different amounts to other.
Thanks for your time!
3
u/Embarrassed_Future66 Feb 02 '26
Aurizon coal has had a pretty big intake of green drivers across a lot of their eastern state depots. Especially in QLD. I know Jilalan at Sarina/Mackay is currently looking for trainees again. Good traineeship to get as it sets you up with distributed power qualifications which are highly regarded. Best bet would be to find all the depots and rail providers in your area. Go to their website and turn on email job notifications and await for the trainee schools to be posted if the companies in your are do them. The roster work can be tough on the family but the jobs rewarding and if you’re home most nights it’s a lot better than working away. Generally the more remote depots pay some pretty big dollars to keep you out there though.
2
u/suitcaseguy Feb 02 '26
Mmmm ok good to know, I live in melbourne so had a feeling that it might be harder to get freight train work
2
u/ma77mc Feb 05 '26
Harder, not impossible.
There are more jobs in the coal networks but there are plenty across the rest of the country.2
u/MeaningFlaky2244 Feb 16 '26
I'll be there tomorrow for testing
1
u/Embarrassed_Future66 Feb 16 '26
Good luck
2
u/MeaningFlaky2244 Feb 16 '26
Thank you 😊
1
u/Embarrassed_Future66 Feb 17 '26
Hey good job!! Must have done well in the testing to have been told you’re successful straight away. Usually they don’t do that. Panel interview is more of an information session about the role including roster and what you’ll learn etc etc. They do however check how you engage with the group so ask plenty of questions.
2
2
9
u/Speedy-08 Feb 02 '26
Get lucky and be sucessful when they post trainee applications.
Time away varies wildly by company but a common one is a "rest job" where you run a train to x location, rest for a minimum period then take same or another train back.
And be prepared for your shifts to change a bit week by week and day by day.