Yes Bazz, but remember most of modern technology was not even invented until the advent of the steam engine made much of it possible with it's labour saving energy supply.

We may have to revert to the old techniques to reinvent the industrial revolution, but if the society was stable enough, that could be done. My son has built a couple of Stirling engines just for fun, so water pumping & 12 & 24V power would not be a problem We already have a couple of solar pumping systems for small scale water supply.

It would not be rediscovering old technology that would be the problem, but controlling the hordes of city people with no food getting to them, spreading out like a plague of grass hoppers from the cities.

We could easily support a dozen or more here, with plenty of water, a couple of horses trained to pull, & fair growing land, but at only 80 Km from a major city, & 20 from some moderate population centers, would we get the chance.

Bazz,

There are 116 standard gauge steam locomotives in NSW of which 15 are fully operational plus at least one in private hands which is operational and is regularly used.

Not many, but it's a start!!

They can all do something that diesel electrics and electric locomotives can't do....continue to run through flood-waters that would put the others out of action.

OK Ismise, that is interesting, I had no idea so many were running.
I see and hear them where I live on their excursion days.
If enough power could be generated for the urban electric trains the steamers
could be used to bring food to the ends of the electric network.
These are the sort of things the state emergency management should
be planning. As it is now the Commonwealth Emergency Management is
supposed to handle a fuel emergency and decide which state gets how much.
The problem would be deciding who to allow access to available supply.
That can only be done on a state and local decision.