Silverton Tramway 48s class
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The Silverton Tramway 48s class are a class of diesel locomotives built by AE Goodwin, Auburn for the Silverton Tramway in 1960–1961. The State Rail Authority 48 class and South Australian Railways 830 class are of a very similar design.
History[edit]
Between December 1960 and September 1961, the Silverton Tramway Company took delivery of three Alco DL531 locomotives from AE Goodwin, Auburn painted red and white numbered 27 to 29. They were the same as the 48 class and 830 class locomotives. All were delivered for use on the 56 kilometre Silverton Tramway narrow gauge line from Broken Hill to Cockburn.[1][2]
After the Silverton Tramway was replaced by a new standard gauge line, 27 was sold to the South Australian Railways in February 1970 as 874 and after being rebuilt with a nose low cab, continues in service with Genesee & Wyoming Australia as 907.[1] The other two were fitted with standard gauge bogies, 28 at Silverton's workshop and 29 at Islington Railway Workshops and were relegated to trip working between the various mines in Broken Hill being repainted in Silverton's yellow and blue livery in May 1984.[2]
Second hand purchases[edit]
In 1990, Silverton Rail purchased two ex Australian National 830 class from AN Tasrail[3] followed in December 1994 by six ex State Rail Authority 48 class locomotives.[4] Initially numbered in the STxx series, all were renumbered as the 48s class.[5] Also purchased for parts were two 830s and three 48s.[3][6]
Mainline service[edit]
In 1995/96, Silverton Rail leased ST30 to ST35 to National Rail for use on Adelaide to Melbourne services as bankers to Tailem Bend.[7][8] Following Silverton Rail being awarded a contract by National Rail to haul iron ore trains from Cobar to Narromine, most of the STs were transferred to Parkes in August 1999.[9]
All ten were included in the sale of Silverton Rail to South Spur Rail Services in 2006 and later passed to Greentrains.[10][11] They primarily operate in New South Wales. In April 2016, five Greentrains units were sold to Southern Shorthaul Railroad.[12][13]
Status table[edit]
Purchased new[edit]
| Current No | Serial Number | Date | Owner | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 907 | 83826 | Dec 1960 | Genesee & Wyoming Australia | In service | ex Silverton 27, sold to South Australian Railways as 874, rebuilt as 907 |
| 4828 | 83827 | May 1961 | Southern Shorthaul Railroad | In service | ex 28, ex 48s28, renumbered to 4828 in early 2024. Currently the only one of the original batch still operating in original condition. Note that the original 4828, a member of the NSWGR 48 class, had been scrapped in 2014. |
| 48s29 | 83828 | Sep 1961 | Greentrains | Scrapped | ex 29 |
Purchased second hand[edit]
| Current No | Serial Number | Date | Owner | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 864 | 84710 | Jul 1963 | Greentrains | In service | ex 48s30 ex AN Tasrail 864 |
| 48s31 | 84703 | Apr 1963 | Greentrains | Scrapped | ex AN Tasrail 857 |
| 48s32 | 83820 | Feb 1961 | Greentrains | Scrapped | ex State Rail Authority 4825 |
| 48s33 | 83824 | May 1961 | Southern Shorthaul Railroad | In service | ex State Rail Authority 4829 |
| 48s34 | 83715 | Feb 1960 | Southern Shorthaul Railroad | In service | ex State Rail Authority 4815 |
| 48s35 | 84133 | Feb 1962 | Southern Shorthaul Railroad | In service | ex State Rail Authority 4843 |
| 48s36 | 83711 | Dec 1959 | Southern Shorthaul Railroad | In service | ex State Rail Authority 4811 |
| 48s37 | 84128 | Dec 1961 | Greentrains | Stored | ex State Rail Authority 4838 |
References[edit]
- ^ a b McNicol, Steve (1981). Silverton Tramway Locomotives. Elizabeth Downs: Railmac Publications. p. 22. ISBN 0-959415-30-0.
- ^ a b "Silverton" Railway Digest July 1985 page 189
- ^ a b "Silverton" Railway Digest August 1990 page 286
- ^ "State Rail's Locomotive Auction Results" Railway Digest January 1995 page 36
- ^ 48s Class Railpage
- ^ "Silverton Rail Loco Transfer" Railway Digest January 2000 page 36
- ^ "Rail Authorities Face Loco Shortage" Railway Digest December 1995 page 16
- ^ "South Australia" Railway Digest July 1996 page 37
- ^ "Silverton Rail Update" Railway Digest October 1999 page 14
- ^ History[permanent dead link] Engenco
- ^ 48s Class Vicsig
- ^ Disposal of Greentrains rollingstock Archived 18 February 2017 at the Wayback Machine Engenco 28 April 2016
- ^ "Greentrans rollingstock sold to Holdco Holdings" Railway Digest June 2016 page 6