Adam Wilson, chief executive of metallurgical coal miner Bens Creek, explains to Proactive, that one train in one go can take 11,000 tons, whereas a truck can only take 40 tons.
"That equates to thousands of truck movements for one train and all of that pollution - so for us it's better for the company to send it via train but also so much better environmentally."
Without the rail link, it would not be economic to transport that amount of coal with fuel prices where they are, he says, adding that the aim is to be running 7 to 8 train journeys a month by August.