Association of Tourist Railways Inc.

The Railway has been working on providing a new male toilet and refurbishing the female toilet. While these are mundane they involve lots of cash and you can not operate without adequate toilet facilities. The builder has completed the new toilet and much additional work has been done by volunteers including electrical, painting fencing and landscaping.

An application has been made for funding for the construction of under cover storage for the rolling stock.

Out on the track, the track work has returned to basics and all the planned sleeper replacements including the yard at Daylesford for 2008 has been completed. Major sleeper replacement works are planned for 2009 and it is hoped that the crane will be operational by then to assist in the picking up of the old sleepers. At present the gang is involved in slashing, brush cutting, etc to keep the line clear for bush fire precautions.

Rolling Stock

63RM (a Diesel Electric Rail Motor) is running well and had a new set of brake blocks fitted during the year The brake blocks last 1.5 years in regular service. A new resistor was fitted to the drivers main voltmeter as the old resistor failed. A radiator leak was repaired with the fitting of a new grommet and core.

91 RM: (a Walker 280 hp rail Car) Has suffered a number of generator voltage regulator failures recently. In all cases it was the main generator field transistor that has failed. These have now been replaced with higher capacity components. Another interesting problem was the failure of the No. I generator to "self excite" on engine start and thus produce a subsequent charging current. This was eventually solved with the fitment of a resistor providing a small amount of battery feed current to the generator field. 91 has also come in for some bodywork attention. The guard's external entrance sliding doors had become increasingly difficult to open over the years.

DRC40: (a 600hp air-conditioned diesel rail car) Still merrily running away on its monthly Silver Streak commitments with no real issues. Some of the batteries need replacement (making it difficult to start in the cold weather). The DRC has also had its annual B exam recently, with no issues.

32RM: (a Walker 153 hp rail Car) Despite the limited work force lots of progress has still occurred on the rebuild of 32. Totally new masonite quarter panels have been made, fully painted and fitted (these panels sit along the walls under the windows). The ash trays which mount to these panels have been repaired and cleaned, their bases painted and fitted. Above the windows the luggage racks had their brackets and spreader bars re-chromed. New stainless steel tube was also purchased to replace the corroded tubes. This allowed the luggage rack framing to be refitted. More metal polishing has also occurred in the interior of the pass car, along with more painting. The window blind guides have also been cleaned and re-fitted.

The fall arrest system in the railmotor shed has recently been extended to allow for roof work to re-commence. This will basically involve the removal of more paint along the roof edges and sanding and priming in preparation for eventual painting. The roof itself is in excellent condition, unlike most other Walkers. Work has continued on the repair/manufacture of the front window wooden framing. This has now been completed and once repairs are finished on the front window panels the new framing and panels will be re-fitted. Another activity has been repair and (where required) re-wiring of the heater control panel.

Diamond Valley Railway

The railway has been working on the re-railing of four major curves at Diamond Valley Station to target the excess wear on wheels at these locations. The main gate and driveway into the East Yard has been reconstructed to provide wider vehicle access and separate pedestrian access as well.

Recycled plastic walkway panels are being installed as pedestrian crossings around the system. A diamond crossing is being constructed and all the necessary points and track panels are being made.

A new loop at Fork Tree/Rocla is being also made and new panels assembled for this work. Approximately 250 trees and shrubs have been planted to replace those lost in the drought, track work and old age, to beautify the site.

The railway was the place for the annual Banyule City Council Children's Week run and 77 trains were run with 2464 passengers.

The railway has been working with the Marketing Department of NMIT to assist students in their Marketing Course. and this has resulted in many ideas on how to market the railway to the public.

The railway has a small picnic centre in the grounds and it is proposed to build an 8 metre gazebo.

Work is still continuing on the new signal box which is huge and controls the operation at the main station Diamond Valley. The railway was the host to the ATR for its December Meeting.

Friends of Hawthorn Tram Depot

Lecture

Recently a public lecture was held at the depot on the History of Melbourne's Cable Tramways. The talk was given by Mr Robert Green and started with an illustration of newly discovered cable tram tracks still in the road at North Melbourne. The community had forgotten their existence and recent road works had rediscovered them. It was appropriate that the tracks found were immediately in front of the former Cable tram Depot and where the present electric trams pass.

It is hoped that this talk will become the start of more talks on tramway history.

Hawthorn Depot featured on VicTrack 2009 calendar

The VicTrack promotional calendar for 2009 focuses on the Melbourne Tram Museum @ Hawthorn Depot and heritage tram NMETL No 13. The calendar is a large poster suitable for wall mounting or framing.

Principal photography for the calendar was taken on Wednesday 19 November 2008.

Hawthorn Depot was built in 1916 for the Hawthorn Tramways Trust, and designed by noted Melbourne architect Leonard Flannagan. It became the location for the Melbourne Tram Museum in 2003, after a major redevelopment project, and is now home to twenty historic trams.

Previous issues of the calendar have featured other key Victorian heritage rail assets under the management of VicTrack. The 2008 calendar focused on the historic Maryborough railway station, once described by American author Mark Twain as a railway station with town attached.

A limited number of copies of the calendar will be available from the Melbourne Tram Museum on our next open day on 10 January 2009, free to visitors on a first-come, first-served basis.

Melbourne tramcar Preservation Association

SW5 849

The Association has decided not to restore tram SW5 843 but to fully restore SW5 849 in place of the former tram. After corrosion was found in the panels and frame of 843 an assessment was made of both vehicles and it was found that 849 was in better condition than 843. The original proposal was to scrap 849 for parts but this has been reversed and as 849 received frame repairs and new panels in the 1980's after receiving the agreement of VicTrack this is now the tram to be restored. 849 is now in the car barn and 843 has been placed outside to be dismantled. 849 has been cleaned and serviced prior to running and damaged parts removed for restoration. Other parts have been replaced. Insulation tests have been conducted on the traction motors and the axle boxes bearings checked with No 4 axle box brass requiring renewal. A risk assessment , checklist of fit for service and a change of validation were collated and submitted to he Committee and the PTSV. The car ran for the first time under power at Haddon on the 22 November 2008.

W3 663

With the demise of 843 work has again recommenced on assessing the material needed for this tram The tram is stored in No 1 road and need considerable attention to its roof. A quotation was obtained from Bendigo for this work but the cost of having this done outside is beyond the means of the association at the present time..

Spare Parts Trams

The remains of SW5 809 went to the recyclers The dismantling of 947 continues and work has started on 843 to get the parts to repair 849 Some of the parts have gone to the Ballarat Tramway Museum to help them in rebuilding ESCO tram No 12.

Other Site Works

Remedial repairs were needed to correct the footing to Container No. 2 which started to subside slightly after some heavy rain softened the soil under it. Once the ground dried out sufficiently, the container was jacked back level and footings were dug under the container and concreted in.

The opportunity was taken while having the concreter and concrete truck on site to also install a new pole 7 beside the Tower Wagon Shed to replace the existing pole 7 which will be removed to open up clearances between the Tower Wagon Shed and the Mainline. Some ongoing overhead maintenance was also carried out during October, with KymSmith carrying out some adjustments to the span between poles 6 and 6i, and some initial re-tensioning of the contact wire at the Upper Terminus

The tower wagon shed has been extended and shelving installed with the spare overhead material sorted and catalogued. In the main storeroom the sorting and stacking of parts is almost completed and work is concentrating on the provision of a test room where it is proposed to relocate all the air equipment.

W4 670 and L 103 in the sunshine at Haddon

Photo Bob Wilson

Puffing Billy - Emerald Tourist Railway Board

The annual run for the children with Thomas was held in November. The railway has extensive archives and is in the process of placing movie film onto DVD and then transferring this onto what ever medium is the norm for the current generation in the future.

Carriage 8NBH has been restored to "as built" condition with canvas blinds, leather straps to hold them in place, full length running boards and hard uncomfortable seating. No modern upholstered seats for this carriage. It was built in 1919 and in its 90 years was modified by both the railways and Puffing Billy to make the carriage more comfortable. The railway needed to keep one vehicle as a reminder of the way passengers were accommodated early last century.

The railway has prepared a new Business Plan in an endeavour to source funding required to keep the railway up to the mark. As with all heritage railways the finding of capital is always a problem.

The Museum group has restored the George and George boiler to service and the Malcolm Moore exhibit has also been restored.

Work on the Climax engine is steadily proceeding and the boiler will be ready shortly for its hydraulic testing prior to its first steam test. G 42 is to undergo a D examination and will be out of service for several months.

The railway has completed a platform and buffer stop at Sorrento and has repaired the Newport Workshops Garden Platform. This platform at Newport was regularly used by passenger trains in the past providing a service for the thousand or so workers at the railway workshops. It is now in the Steamrail precinct.

Seven - O - Seven Operations

The railway's website has been revised and is most attractive.

Discussions are taking place to prepare 2009's itinerary and this will be placed in our events page when they are advised. The Association is repainting their carriages. A project is underway to re-paint the carriages red with a grey roof. The shade of red is that used by Victorian Railways in the 1940s on the "AS" and "BS" carriages that were not used on the Spirit of Progress.

R 707

In 2008 engine R707 m has seen the overhaul of its Westinghouse brake components, and the replacement of the front bogie rocker pins.

T 413

T413 was built in 1955 for use by the Portland Cement Company at Fyansford. It was numbered D1 and differed from the other 1st series locomotives in being equipped with dynamic braking and 3'6" (1,067mm) gauge bogies.

It was purchased by Victorian Railways in 1967, re-gauged to 5' 3" (1,600 mm) and re-numbered to T413. The locomotive was based in Wodonga and used mainly on the Cudgewa line where the dynamic braking was helpful on the low speed line with continuous gradients of 1 in 30 for 1 in 40.

T413 was acquired by 707 Operations in 2003. It has been upgraded to maintain its mainline certification and is periodically used by El Zorro for rail infrastructure work

(The above material is a precis from the 707 web site)

Steamrail

Work is continuing by the contractors to VicTrack to scrap unrepairable rolling stock. 32D a swing door driving trailer, 64BW a country carriage, 31ZD a van and GY 4346 and GY 16165 have all been cut up. The area which is near the old tarp shop is to be redeveloped for electric train stabling.

All operational steam engines have been stripped for their annual boiler inspections. Diesel T364 is receiving general body preparation for repainting in VR blue. Additional sound proofing is being added to the cab and air-conditioning is being fitted for the comfort of the crew. T395 also has had an air conditioner fitted.

ELECRAIL DIVISION
The focus of the Elecrail crew over the past few months has been obtaining parts (including good timber, screws, and electrical parts) from vehicles to be scrapped as part of the shift from the Tarp Shop area to West Block.
Time has also been spent reorganising spare equipment that was brought across. Whilst this has proved a major distraction from ongoing restoration work it should prove to be time well spent. Many of the spare parts retrieved from 32D can be utilised on 24D should it be restored in the future. There has also been a follow up workshop to review and refine the first cut of the Elecrail Risk Register. As a result of this workshop a second draft of this document has been prepared. Input shall be sought on this draft from a number of parties before it is presented to the Steamrail Safety Committee in early January. After several months of major project based distractions we are pleased to report that things have finally settled down again and restoration work has resumed.

To recap on 2008, the biggest achievements for Elecrail are:
- Completing the finishing touches on double ender 470M
- Securing funding which enabled safety film to be installed on the windows of the electric cars.
- Developing the Elecrail component of the risk register (which is now in its final stages of review/refinement) - Relocating equipment from the Tarp Shop area to West Block (including the salvage of spare parts from vehicles to be scrapped).
- Making good progress with the restoration of Tait car 341 T.
- Advancing the restoration of swing door car 12BT.

After a number of years of feeling as though the group has been treading water (through being unable to operate) perhaps the biggest highlight for 2008 is the feeling that Government are supportive of Heritage electric operations resuming under Steamrail accreditation and that they are prepared to help us through this process. This has provided a major boost to our volunteers and we hope there shall continue to be good progress during 2009 as we celebrate 90 years of electric train operations in Melbourne.

The Victorian Goldfields Railway

The railway reports that the area in which they run is extremely dry and fire patrol have started early. The patrols are conducted using a hi-rail vehicle. A proposal to build new toilets at Maldon is being considered and is to be re-instated on the site of the old toilets demolished in 1950. Toilets have long been the bane of all heritage groups.

Work has been carried out to the slate roof of the Maldon Station and a long term solution is being examined.

Following on from last year, the line is closing during February 2009 to allow essential maintenance to be carried out. The railway has revised its timetable to allow visitors starting at Castlemaine to have a shorter time in Maldon with the option of staying longer and returning on a later train. In addition a bus service has started on weekends as a trial.

2009 is the 125th anniversary of the railway and this will be celebrated in June.

Tramway Museum Society

Owing to the few volunteers that are available to regularly open the museum, commencing on the 1 January 2009 it has been decided to only open the museum on the 1st and 3rd Sundays in the month from 11.00am to 4.30pm.

Mitchell Shire Open Day

Earlier this year, members of the local Kilmore Historical Society paid a special afternoon visit to the Bylands museum. During the course of that visit, mention was made that over the years, with the change and increase in the population in Kilmore and the surrounding area, many locals were not aware of the museum or what it had to offer. Over ten years ago, the Society held a publicised open day for residents of the local Shire, however the response was not as expected.

However, in light of recent events and publicity in the local press, regarding the Society's operational difficulties and other activities, and the problems with the rail reserve to Kilmore, it was decided that the time is right to once again attempt to gain support from within the local community.

The Board has agreed to hold an open day at Bylands for residents of Mitchell Shire. The day selected is Saturday 17th January 2009, commencing from 1.30pm. Admittance will be by gold coin donation, and as well as tram rides, there will be a free sausage sizzle.
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Museum Works

One long-standing task was to improve the internal appearance of the visitor's section of the kiosk. First impressions count, and in recent years, the interior of the kiosk has become "very tired" indeed. Following repainting and with the relocation of some furniture the area has been improved.

Other around-the-site changes include filling potholes in the entrance roadway (using old spoil and ballast from the main-line rehabilitation), and the burning off of more of the former Cyprus trees in the eastern paddock with sheep keeping the grass under control.

A major effort has been made to get the pit shed available for use. The Bendigo Tramways have been contracted to undertake several tasks, including welding up all the remaining joints in and on the pit shed track, including installing the bonding. This was completed over several days during late September and several joints in the depot fan welded as well. They will return again soon to install additional bonding along the main-line.

At the start of October we were advised that we were required to remove our remaining items stored at the former North Fitzroy depot which had been left over from our restoration projects several years ago. This included two large and heavy wooden workbenches, a tram compressor, side doors of 19W, a large tool box and other incidentals. These were transported to Bylands.

Tram maintenance continues with a number of trams receiving their yearly services. An air leak in a union on tram 612 proved so successful, that it caused another one elsewhere. This is now under repair. One of the controllers on 644 is still causing concern. Adelaide H 373 has developed an electrical problem, and this is now being investigated by the Bendigo Tramways. We have experienced the theft of several items out of this car of late, and consideration is now being given to placing locks on all doors to restrict entry.

Yarra Valley Railway

Return of Walker RM 22 to Service

On the 15th November 2008 RM 22 returned to service being officially launched by Ben Hardman MLA and Member for Seymour. The occasion was the opening of the Watts River Bridge and the handing over of the ATHRA award to the railway for the bridge's restoration. The railmotor is on loan from the ARHS Museum at Newport and took two years at Healesville to restore the motor to trafficable condition. The rail Motor has been fully restored into VR blue and gold. The vehicle is the only 153hp unit presently in service until the Daylesford Spa Country Railway returns its motor to service.

Other Works

The 38 Mile bridge at Watts Point Farm has been restored and can again carry trains over it. This has been one of the major stumbling points on the railway. Work has been going on and off since 1995 and is finally finished.

RM22 at Healesville Station

Photo John Frost

Updated December 2008