This week in Australia, I experienced an exciting new first in rail travel

In many ways, it was like late-life sex

(Janet Street-Porter)

As a massive fan of train travel, this week I completed something exciting: a journey on the world’s first solar train. To be honest, it was a bit like late-life sex – a lot of build-up, some gentle action and a very short period of activity, before sliding to a halt.

All the same, the 3km journey from Belongil to Byron Bay in New South Wales was fantastically memorable. A mining magnate who owns the Elements resort nearby coughed up the A$4m to fund the restoration of the line. The Lithgow railway workshop constructed curved solar panels fitted to the roof of the two “Red Rattler” carriages, built in 1949 and made of aluminium.

The journey costs just A$3 each way, lasts under 10 minutes and deposits passengers right at the heart of the congested shopping strip at the centre of Byron Bay.

The railways once linked coastal towns and rural centres like Lismore and Mullumbimby – surely they could be regenerated to cut down on car use? Needless to say, some eco-conscious locals have found it within themselves to object to the “noise” of the train – which seems a bit rich, as it only operates once an hour and at a very sedate speed. With fibre-optic cabling and recharging points, it could easily be extended.

Sadly, I don’t see solar power helping to regenerate the railways in the UK – not at this time of year, anyway.