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An investigation has begun on how a freight train lost its load causing dozens of uncontrolled wagons to roll backwards. Along Sydney’s northern rail line. The freight company has blamed equipment failure for the runaway train which travelled several kilometres.

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00:00Early on Sunday morning a freight train stops dead in its tracks in Sydney's
00:06northwest. Its wagons carrying thousands of tons of steel had come loose and were
00:12sent traveling in the wrong direction. Sydney trains did put a stop signal on
00:17it as soon as that was advised that there was an issue. The freight company
00:20Cube says equipment failure led to a decoupling with the locomotive and the
00:25kilometre stretch of wagons rolled backwards along the T9 rail line. There
00:31was a 15 minute break or something between any passenger trains coming onto
00:34the network. The emergency brakes were triggered but the wagons travelled for
00:39three kilometres before finally coming to a stop. I couldn't get to work because
00:44the train didn't well come and go. On the day affected commuters were given little
00:51detail. We have had an issue with a freight train near Stratfield. The incident has
00:57been dealt with. Today many were surprised to learn that the cause of the delays was
01:02in fact a runaway train. Sorry it rolled backwards. That's concerning. The ABC has
01:08been told that freight paths are specifically designed to minimize
01:12proximity with passenger services. It's understood the network operator also has
01:17the ability to derail wagons in the event of a potential collision which wasn't
01:23necessary on this occasion. These things sometimes can be a matter of luck.
01:30The national and state-based rail safety regulators are now investigating what went wrong.

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