The 2024 Australasian Rail Industry (ARI) Awards saw almost 600 people come together in Sydney to honour achievements within the rail sector.
Australasian Railway Association (ARA) Chief Executive Officer and ARI Awards judging chair Caroline Wilkie said, “The degree of talent and innovation in the rail sector is incredibly impressive and the individuals and projects highlighted tonight are testament to the hard work and dedication at every level of the industry.
“The extraordinary contribution of this year’s nominees illustrates a very bright future for the rail industry as it delivers a once-in-a-generation $155 billion pipeline of construction to expand rail across our passenger and freight networks.
“I am incredibly impressed by the achievements showcased at this year’s ARI Awards, which highlight commitment to a high-quality rail network that is safe, efficient, innovative and sustainable.”
The 2024 awards featured 16 categories recognising individuals, organisations and rail projects in the areas of diversity and inclusion, sustainability, passenger, infrastructure, innovation, supply, customer experience, freight, signalling and systems engineering and safety.
Metro Trains Melbourne won the Customer Service Excellence Award for its transport management for the Taylor Swift concert series, with an additional 145 train services and more than 200 additional staff deployed to get more than 130,000 attendees to concerts over three nights.
Phil Ellingworth, Chief Engineer at Metro Trains Melbourne, won the Career Achievement Award in recognition of his significant contribution to the industry.
“With over 42 years of dedicated service in the rail industry, Phil’s leadership, technical expertise, innovation, mentorship and unwavering focus on safety has contributed significantly to the rail sector,” Ms Wilkie said.
The Awards also featured a range of individual awards for emerging leaders and young rail professionals.
“All of these deserving winners have leapt out of the starting blocks and proved their dedication to best practice and sustainable, innovative solutions, driving tangible improvements in the rail industry,” Ms Wilkie said.
The Awards are supported by the Australasian Railway Association, Institution of Railway Signal Engineers, Railway Technical Society of Australia, Rail Track Association Australia, the Rail Industry Safety and Standards Board and the Permanent Way Institution (NSW).
Award winners:
- Safety Excellence Award – Queensland Rail’s Mental Health Co-Deployment Trial
- Young Achiever Award – Samiha Najem, Associate Director of Operational Technology, Sydney Trains
- Signalling and Systems Engineering Excellence Award – Mohan Sankarasubbu, Principal Signalling Engineer, Hitachi Rail Australia
- Young Rail Professional Award – Dylan Jacobs, Associate Track and Civil Engineer, Jacobs
- Infrastructure Project Excellence Award – Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC)
- Emerging Rail Specialist Award – Curtiss Hood, Engineering Manager, Acciona Rail
- Career Achievement Award – Phil Ellingworth, Chief Engineer, Metro Trains Melbourne
- Customer Service Excellence Award Metro Trains Melbourne – Taylor Swift concerts
- Employee Engagement Excellence Award Metro Trains Sydney – One Business One Line
- Freight Rail Excellence Award NSW Ports and Patrick Terminals – Project SABRE
- Supplier Excellence Award – Kallipr
- Rail Innovation of the Year Award – Aurizon and Kallipr – Captis Recharge temperature monitoring system
- Sustainability & Environmental Excellence Award Western Program Alliance – Mt Derrimut Road Level Crossing Removal Project (Deer Park)
- Diversity & Inclusion Excellence Award – Queensland Rail – Engineering Pathways program
- Passenger Operations Excellence Award – V/Line – New Fairer Fares Policy
- Canberra Metro Operations – Student Accessibility Inclusion Liaison (SAIL) program
The full list of finalists can be found here.
Image: Australasian Railway Association
