A Belated 'Gong' Acknowledgement

Tony received his award for service to railway preservation and to pipe band music.

(Happened to be chatting to Tony’s sister, Carmelita, who drew the event to my attention – GR)

The following story by Blair Richards concerning Tony’s achievement appeared in the Hobart Mercury on 9 June 2024.

Tasmania will need passenger trains again one day, predicts OAM recipient and rail preservation volunteer Tony Coen.

Tony Coen’s obsession with trains and steam-powered things began in childhood.

As a young boy in Bellerive he remembers a fascination with the steam ferry across the Derwent.

“Dad used to always get me interested in things that were run by steam,” Mr Coen said.

This fascination grew into a career with the Tasmanian Government Railways and a life of volunteering in railway heritage.

The 75-year-old from Austins Ferry has received an OAM for service to railway preservation and to pipe band music.

A former train driver, Mr Coen is the President of the Tasmanian Association of Tourist Railways, a founding member of the Derwent Valley Railway and has volunteered on the Don River Railway.

Mr Coen became involved in preserving trains and trams when the last Hobart tram stopped in 1960.

However, Mr Coen believes trains won’t be relics in Tasmania forever and he is a strong supporter of the proposed light rail service between Hobart and the Northern Suburbs.

“We should have it, if we think of Hobart another 80 to 100 years time there will probably be a quarter of a million people in Hobart. You can’t move all them on one highway,” he said.

Mr Coen has also been honoured for his other passion as a member of the Tasmania Police and City of Hobart pipe bands and his vice-chair of the Tasmanian Branch of Pipe Bands Australia.