Historically, the average speeds of Australian trains are slow by international standards. Even today, the North Coast XPT barely nudges an average speed of 70km/h on its journey from Sydney to Brisbane even though it is capable of 160km/h. This is because the NSW railways are effectively laid on 19^th century track alignments.

Unlike our highway, which have received an unprecedented level of support to transform them into dual-carriageways, our railways have never attracted anywhere near this level of energy.

Whenever the subject of high-speed rail is raised, it becomes the topic of satirists and it is rarely taken seriously even though we have a higher GDP than nations like Morocco and Turkey, where HSR does exist.

In my opinion, the only way that we can make it a reality in Australia is by giving commuters a flavour of fast rail travel by realigning some of the most notorious sections of Northern Line, such as Cowan Bank and Hawkmount. It may not put Newcastle trains into the record books, but it would certainly make running times more attractive.

WITH all the debate about high-speed rail, it reminded me that many years ago I travelled from Tokyo to Nagoya in Japan by bullet train.

The trip was very fast and very expensive, I still have a photo of me in the dining car drinking a beer with the speedometer on the wall above my head recording 212km/h and I didn't spill a drop of beer.

The track, however, was mostly elevated and had no crossings or for that matter many stops. However, the track required constant maintenance and the system closed at 10pm every night until 6am the next morning for maintenance.

So, a very fast system but very expensive to run, requiring a maintenance crew of about 3000 workers every night to keep the trains on the tracks so to speak. Given that about 25 per cent of Japanese people commute to work daily, the system makes some sense.

So, it's time that Albo took the advice of organisations like the Grattan Institute who in May 2020 published a report identifying fast trains as totally unviable in Australia as it is in Canada and the USA, but they did suggest that better maintenance on the existing track could allow trains to operate at higher speeds at a far reduced cost.

IT'S just over seven years since the last train headed out of Newcastle station.

The question still needs to be asked, what has been achieved by the closure of the railway? We were told the line would have to go in order to revitalise the city centre. I wonder what they meant by that. The city centre is not the vibrant and bustling place I remember when I was growing up or when I was a teenager.

Since then we have been told by the Premier and the Transport Minister that the city was booming, humming and buzzing. I wonder how many believed that? I didn't and I don't know too many people who did. Before COVID came along, it was difficult to see much evidence of revitalisation as there were still many empty shops.

I'm told that the city centre is now referred to as a suburb. Such being the case and if what I have seen is anything to go by, I can't help but wonder what our corporate and political masters were really trying to achieve with the closure of the railway because the revitalisation that was promised doesn't seem to have taken place.

JOAN Lambert, (Short Takes, 5/1), I too have noticed changes to the way our city is described.

In the past few years, some Novocastrians have incorrectly referred to Newcastle as a "suburb" rather than a city. As well as this, some have even sworn black and blue that the areas The Queen's Wharf Hotel and The Delany are located in are "residential", despite the fact that they are both located in areas zoned as B4 mixed use.

I guess this all comes down to some people having misunderstandings of how a city is sectioned off, what actually constitutes a city, and what defines an area as residential.

IT'S thought by some that Australia should be responsible for the carbon emission coming from our coal after it has been exported.

This is like saying auto manufacturers should be responsible for the carbon emission coming from their cars after they export them. Without the export of coal, iron ore and other commodities, Australia would not have survived the GFC, nor pay the cost of COVID-19. We are lucky to have sufficient coal for export and the thousands of jobs it provides.

Australia is a very large country to manage, with a very small population, without our exports life would not be so simple. The tax required to provide what we now take for granted would be devastating. Be thankful we have coal and appreciate the benefits it provides.

CONGRATULATIONS to the Newcastle Herald on the great series of articles on diabetes.

The take-home message for me is that to live longer we all need to exercise and to watch how much sugar and carbohydrates we eat. I can attest that I have gone from 86kg to 74kg just by cutting carbohydrates and sugar from my diet, and through the motivation from recording my weight before hopping into the shower each morning.

Of course, golf, walking, Pilates and now lifting weights must have contributed significantly to my weight loss also. My plan for 2022 is to keep off the carbs and to keep on with the exercise, as well as to encourage more people my age (76) and older to eat better, eat less, and to exercise.

The medical literature is full of studies that support the health benefits of walking, dancing, jogging, golfing, swimming, running, and jumping, and the Hunter offers us such a wonderful environment to participate in these activities.

I knew that weight training was pivotal to keeping strong bones but finding a place to do this where I felt comfortable and where I could get the proper guidance was the quest last year. I am pleased to report that lifting weights regularly under Karl's watchful eye has made me stronger, my sleep has improved, and my golf handicap has come down. In my opinion, achieving a healthy Body Mass Index is one of the most important goals we should all have.

AS a life member and former federal secretary of the Rail Tram and Bus Union I should be welcoming the announcement regarding a fast train between Sydney and Newcastle, however, the announcement is a bitter disappointment like our light rail which only served to ruin inner-city Newcastle! I have not boarded the trams out of disgust! European countries have been operating fast trains at 400km/h for decades! As usual we have to settle for less!

DON Fraser, (Short Takes, 5/1), I have to agree that Albo's plan for a very fast train to Sydney is off the mark, but a fast train is feasible. Albo was Shadow Minister for Infrastructure and at least he has a plan. Had Scotty from marketing committed some of the taxpayers' billions he gave to his cronies for JobKeeper, to such a venture, we'd be much better off. He's not worried about that though, he'll get a lot of it back in political donations for his election campaign. There's no first prize for guessing who has the economics degree! I do know who I won't be voting for.

WOULD anyone like some old chestnuts? Good on ya, Albo. First stop Killingsworth - 'tickets please'.

COMING on the heels of many promises for our esteemed city: If I remember many years ago there was talk of Newcastle becoming a separate state. If it's too late may I please join?

CRAIG Helpdew, (Short Takes, 6/1), surely you jest in suggesting that vaccinated people don't accept unvaccinated people into their lives. The reality is that unvaccinated people are more susceptible to infection than responsible and informed people. Whilst viewing the anti vaxxers as a lost cause, most of us do value the well-being of the anti vaxxers' children. The anti vaxxers have made themselves off limits.

AFTER reading Amanda Vanstone's article, ("Be grateful for our vaccine rollout", Opinion, 6/1), it's plain to see you are still on ScoMo's payroll!

WHY has this Premier not learnt from the previous premier and not locked down the eastern suburbs and contained the virus instead of letting it spread like wildfire and affected the state. Also why did the state politicians not do anything about it? Oh, I know it was political points and money, don't upset the voters.

THE PM doesn't believe that the health system should undercut the price gougers, but perhaps a compromise is possible. Hand out free RAT kits, but only in Coalition seats. That should be consistent with his principles.

NO more NBN for me. The sacking of Paul Lobb was not warranted. Bad decision; sack the decision-makers.