The train was en route to Orange when the man was struck at the Lloyds Road intersection on Wednesday morning.

Orange passenger Debbie Osborne said the crew were “fantastic” in calming passengers, providing hot drinks and ensuring the accident scene was protected from view from the train.

“My heart goes out to the family of the young person,” she said.

“I actually saw part of it.”

She said the crew came through offering free tea, coffee and hot chocolate.

“My phone had gone flat, so they offered up their phone so I could ring home and tell them I would be late,” she said.

“I got back to Orange at 25 past two, instead of being there at 12 o’clock.”

She said staff kept passengers informed about the incident and “I praise them to the highest”.

“Every 15 to 20 minutes they kept giving us commentary. Two elderly people were upset and they calmed them down.”

She said police and ambulance officers also came aboard the train to ensure everyone was okay.

Another passenger, Lisa Murphy, agreed with Mrs Osborne on Facebook.

“Staff were wonderful. Blessings to the poor family who have lost a loved one,” she said.

A spokesman for NSW Trainlink said there were a range of programs in place to ensure staff were trained to support “both colleagues and customers” when a traumatic incident occurred.

“Confronting situations are, unfortunately, one of the difficult parts of the job for our staff,” he said.

“Traumatic incidents impact individual staff in different ways. We work with each staff member to ensure they have appropriate care after an incident and support of a colleague when they are ready to return to work on board our trains.

“In a serious incident there are typically extended delays for customers while police conduct investigations and our staff play an important role in managing the welfare of customers and keeping them informed about what’s happening.

“We thank our customers for their understanding and patience as our staff worked to manage the situation following Wednesday’s tragic incident and help them continue their journey.”

A key part of the aid is to support the driver.

A local manager is sent to the scene of an incident to support the driver through the process of mandatory testing and interviews by police and to arrange transport and support for their journey home.

There is specific trauma support for crew involved in an incident, which includes access to specialist psychological care.

It is understood crew involved in traumatic situations are required to be off work for at least five days.

And when they return to work they work they have a colleague as their ‘buddy’ for support.

The train had just left Bathurst station when it hit the man shortly before 11am.

Chifley Police District commander Superintendent Paul McDonald said it was a distressing scene that confronted officers who attended.

“It’s traumatic for all responders and the people on the train,” he said.

The man’s body remained on the tracks while the XPT came to a stop about 100 metres further along.