The Hitachi (also known as Martin & King or Stainless Steel[1][2]) was an electric multiple unit that operated on the Melbourne suburban railway network between 1972 and 2014. Electrical equipment was supplied by Commonwealth Engineering to designs by Hitachi of Japan, leading to their official name today, though no actual Hitachi-supplied components were used in their construction. They were the last suburban trains in Melbourne with no air conditioning. A total of 355 carriages were built between 1972 and 1981, including a replacement carriage for one written off while the fleet was still being delivered.
Based on a successful trial of longer Harris trailer cars built between 1967 and 1971, the Hitachi used carriages 22.86m (75ft 0in) long, up from the standard 17.98m (59ft 0in) length of the earlier suburban cars.[3] The revised carriage design enabled a six car Hitachi to seat 560 passengers, up from 540 for a seven car Harris, and allowed a maximum load of 1,500 passengers, 300 more than a Harris.[2]
As delivered, Hitachi trains were composed of three types of carriage; driving motor, trailer and driving trailer; coded M, T and D respectively. These cars were arranged in sets of M-T-T-M and M-D, which could be arranged together to create a six car set. Early M and D carriages delivered were provided with nose doors at the front of the cab, which allowed passengers to move through them and between coupled units in a train. This feature did not last long, as instructions were soon issued to lock the doors to cabs to prevent unauthorised access. The nose doors also tended to leak and cause draughts, and so the feature was omitted from later carriages, and the door was covered over in sets containing them.
All but one of the 68 D carriages (353D, involved in a collision at Pakenham on 16 April 1980, that also resulted in the scrapping of guard's van Z286)[4] produced were converted into T carriages by the late 1970s, in order to form symmetrical M-T-M units for the opening of the City Loop. These units could be doubled to make six car sets, configured as M-T-M-M-T-M, which became the de facto unit configuration in the 1990s, due to refurbishments.
The 237 motor carriages that have been in service have been numbered 1M through 237M, and the 117 trailer carriages, 1901T through 2017T. On 15 August 2009, the remaining Hitachi carriages were renumbered in order to make way for the second order of X'Trapolis trains, which would also start from 1M. The remaining M cars were renumbered from 273M up to 300M, however the new numbering does not reflect the age of each car. The numbering reflects which T car is in each set, the lowest numbered T car receives the lowest numbered M cars, in order of which M car was already the lowest (for example, 2007T was the highest-numbered T car, so 23M was renumbered to 299M as it was lower than 233M, which was renumbered to 300M).
Trials, early use and adaptations
The first to operate in revenue service was the four-carriage set 1M-901T-902T-2M, on 24 December 1972 on the St Kilda line (since converted to light rail).[3]
Weekends in February and March 1973 saw the first four carriages being tested and advertised to the public on demonstration trips. On the afternoon of 6 March 1973 the set returned to the Workshops, where the consist was altered by swapping out 902T for 903T, and adding 301D-3M. Later, 301D was noted as having entered service with drawbars at both ends, forbidding its use as a leading driving trailer. The six-carriage set was then used for brake tests between Seaford and Frankston on 8 March 1973. Around this time, standard Victorian tail discs were added in lieu of using the marker lights in daytime.[5]
A seven-carriage silver train ran on Thursday 14 February 1974 from Newport Workshops to Jolimont Workshops, as in-service pair 4M-305D was used to transfer Block 15M-911T-910T-14M about to enter service, and additional carriage 902T was attached to the rear.[6]
As originally introduced the Silver fleet was expected to use marker lights as route indications at all times, contrasting the prior fleets which used destination discs in daytime and marker lights at night. Poor visibility led to this instruction being cancelled, so through 1973 the only daytime route indication was the destination rolls at each end, and staff were expected to memorise the relevant roster portions. Daylight use of the marker lamps was expected to be reintroduced from 7 February 1974, but as of 22 February 1974, the trains were gradually being fitted with route indication disc brackets; most of the fleet had been so-equipped by 7 March 1974.[6]
Shunters steps started to be fitted to the ends of carriages around March 1974, enabling division of 6-car sets into a 2- and 4-car set at Flinders Street.[6] Additionally, subject to special instructions regarding the locking of all doors, the Silver trains were permitted to stable at outstations "for a few months" prior to this time.[6]
An investigation by the Railways found a new, contoured type of seat was preferred over the original slab type, with 82.6% in favour of the new design.[6]
Trains originally wore a plain stainless silver livery, receiving green and gold side stripes with the introduction of the Metropolitan Transit Authority. Side logos were altered with their re-branding as The Met, and were again altered with the privatisation of The Met's metropolitan rail services as Hillside Trains (later Connex), and Bayside Trains (later M>Train), with the latter also applying branding to the front.[7] When the carriages were refurbished under Connex, the green and gold livery was removed, restoring the carriages to their original 'silver' colour, with the addition of Connex blue and gold striping on the front face of the leading cars, and two blue and gold side panels near the driver's cab. The seats in the passenger area also received new fabric, similar to that of an Alstom refurbished Comeng. With the takeover by Metro, the Connex logos were covered up with Metro stickers.
Beginning in 1992, the Hitachi fleet received internal, external and cab upgrades at the PTC's Ballarat North and Bendigo Workshops.[8] The refurbishment included the replacement of the steel flooring in each car where it has reached the end of its service life, replacing existing rubber or carpet flooring with vinyl, replacing interior panels above the seats with a new anti-vandal material, replacing the woodgrain upper panels and bone-coloured roof with off-white panels, new seat pads and repainting and strengthening the seat modules, removal of the luggage racks and advertising boards, overhaul of windows and doors including the motors that were worked by air and a general clean of the exterior and new green and gold stripes applied.[8] The refurbishment of over half of the Hitachi M cars also included improved air-conditioning in the driver's cab and double-thickness windscreens, with aluminium replacing the original rubber surrounds. These M car works were completed by early 1994.[8] After these upgrades were made, the non-upgraded M cars were no longer allowed to lead a train in revenue service, effectively making them B units. Two M cars have been preserved in their original unmodified form, while a third M car (187M) as modified by the PTC is on static display at the AHRS Museum in Williamstown.
In late 2007, Hitachi set 37M-1979T-36M-110M-1910T-42M was modified to meet driver union requirements (including cab air conditioning) and also re-stickered into Connex livery. All remaining sets have since received the same treatment, as well as a refurbished interior. In 2008, the remaining seven 6-car trains were again modified, mainly with a more powerful driver's air-conditioning system replacing the small vents on the roof, however three other 'leading' cars (9M, 89M and 225M, now 277M, 281M and 296M respectively) were not modified and relegated to being in the centre of the trains indefinitely.
Retirement
New X'Trapolis 100 and Siemens Nexas trains were progressively introduced from 2002 to replace the ageing Hitachi fleet.[9] The X'Trapolis and Siemens trains have features such as push button operated doors and air conditioning, the lack of the latter feature making the Hitachis unpopular with Melbourne commuters.[10] A majority of the sets were withdrawn between 2002 and 2005, with withdrawn carriages having been either scrapped, sold to private buyers across Australia, stored, or acquired by railway museums and preservation groups. Three Hitachi motor carriages were lifted and fixed to the roof of Easey's Restaurant in Collingwood.
The final six 6-carriage trains were to be withdrawn after the 2006 Commonwealth Games,[11] but instead received a minor refurbishment and remained in revenue service until December 2013, due to a high increase in patronage. A report in February 2007,[12] by which time 31 trains in the Siemens fleet were out of service due to safety concerns, said the Victorian Government was negotiating to lease one 6-carriage set from rail preservation group Elecrail, and repurchase another 3 carriages from a private seller to supplement the fleet. An additional three 3-car Hitachi trains were purchased back from Australian businessman Mr Horne in April 2007 to provide spare parts for the fleet. The Elecrail set re-entered service in December 2007.[13]
In September 2008, Transport Safety Victoria withdrew the remaining trains from service due to concerns over corrosion around the doors and floor. A series of tests were to be carried out before the trains were sent to Ballarat North Workshops for repair work.[14] It was decided to proceed with the repairs as the trains were required under a new timetable for November 2008, costing approximately $2 million.[15]
In April 2014, a farewell tour for the Hitachi was held, organised by Elecrail and in cooperation with Metro. The tour encompassed the Craigieburn, South Morang and Sunbury lines. During this event, Public Transport Victoria confirmed that the Hitachi had seen the last of revenue service in Melbourne. One 3 car set has been preserved by 707 Operations with the carriage numbers being 3M, 304D and 178M.[16] the remaining carriages have progressively been sold off or scrapped.[17]
Preserved Hitachi carriages on the rooftop of Easey's in Collingwood in February 2024
Interior of a preserved Hitachi carriage at Easey's in February 2024
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