NZR ED class

Last updated

New Zealand ED class
NZR ED 103 at Ferrymead.jpg
ED 103 at Ferrymead
Type and origin
Power typeElectric
Builder English Electric, UK (1),
New Zealand Railways (Hutt Workshops - 7, Addington Workshops - 2)
Specifications
Configuration:
​
 •  UIC 1-Do-2 locomotives
Gauge 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Length14.1 m (46 ft 3 in)
Loco weight89 long tons (90 t; 100 short tons)
Electric system/s 1,500  V DC overhead lines
Current pickup(s) Pantograph
Performance figures
Maximum speed88 km/h (55 mph), restricted to 70 km/h (43 mph)
Power output1 hour: 925 kW (1,240 hp),
Continuous: 670 kW (898 hp)
Tractive effort 80 kN (18,000 lbf)
Career
Operators New Zealand Railways
Number in class10
Numbers101–110
TMS: 15, 21
LocaleWellington region
First run10 May 1938
Last runMarch 1981
Disposition8 scrapped
2 preserved

The NZR ED class locomotive [nb 1] was a type of electric locomotive used in Wellington, New Zealand. They were built by English Electric and the New Zealand Railways Department (NZR) between 1938 and 1940, and hauled mainly passenger trains on the Wellington region's 1500 V DC electrification, and banked freight trains on the steep section between Paekakariki and Pukerua Bay.

Contents

The locomotives featured a unique wheel arrangement, 1-Do-2 under the UIC classification system, and incorporated a quill drive (the only type of locomotive to do so in New Zealand) to the driving wheels. [1]

They were found to be hard on the tracks, leading to speed restrictions on these locomotives and their replacement by EW class locomotives on the Johnsonville Line after the introduction of the EW in 1952. [2] The EW class was considered more suited to passenger services than the ED and replaced them on most passenger services on other lines. [3]

Classification

Like all other electric locomotives in New Zealand, the leading letter of the locomotive's classification is E. There are two predominant theories about how the ED class acquired the second letter, D. The first is that it comes from the "Do" of its 1-Do-2 wheel arrangement. The second is from its original allocation to two locations, Wellington and Otira - Arthur's Pass, hence "duplicated". Official records provide no confirmation of either theory. [4]

Introduction

New Zealand Railways purchased one ED class locomotive in 1938 from English Electric, No. 101, for use on the newly opened Tawa Flat deviation, which incorporated two long tunnels. This locomotive was known as "The Sergeant" because of the three longitudinal stripes on each side of the body that were unique to this locomotive. [5]

The tender required the supply of locomotive components for the other locomotives required, as it was thought desirable to carry out manufacture in New Zealand in NZR workshops. A further seven locomotives were assembled at the Hutt Workshops, and two at Addington Workshops for use on the Otira - Arthur's Pass section of the Midland Line. The two South Island locomotives were later transferred north.

Renumbering

With the introduction of the Traffic Monitoring System (TMS) in 1979, the two remaining locomotives were renumbered ED15 and ED21. [6]

Steam boilers

Each locomotive (ED 101 to ED 108; not ED 109 and ED 110) originally had oil-fired water-tube boilers for passenger carriage steam heaters, supplied by the Sentinel Waggon Works. [2] The boiler could supply 1,250 pounds (570 kg) of steam per hour at a pressure of 40 pounds per square inch (280 kPa), and the water and oil tanks had capacities of 400 and 500 imperial gallons (1,800 and 2,300 L) respectively, so could steam for four hours before refilling. [7] They were shut down or removed in 1950 due to "on-going reliability problems"; air turbulence particularly in tunnels or when trains passed on double-track sections resulted in downdraughts affecting the boiler and in passenger discomfort in winter. In June 1951 the Deputy Mechanical Engineer said that the cost of fitting suitable boilers for the section from Paekakariki to Wellington was not warranted as the carriages leaving Paekakariki had residual heat, and a steam loco could pre-heat carriages before they left Wellington. In 1954-55 two boilers were installed in the Wellington station basement (and in 1958 one went to the NZR Road Services garage in Rotorua). The Chief Mechanical Engineer then wanted eight locos to have boilers for the 1955 winter, but parts were not available for the obsolete boilers and "refurbishing did not proceed". It was also found that the boilers were unreliable as the burners had been amended to be outside the normal operating specifications. [8]

Withdrawal

With the introduction of DA class diesel locomotives on the Paekakariki via Pukerua Bay to Wellington electrified section in 1967, eight of the class were withdrawn from service in 1969 and scrapped. [9] The remaining two were kept in sporadic service until March 1981, when both locomotives were sold into preservation. There were plans to send them back to the Otira - Arthurs Pass section but nothing came of this. ED 101 is preserved by the Silver Stream Railway, while ED 103 is preserved by the Canterbury Railway Society.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Island Main Trunk</span> Railway line in New Zealand running between Auckland and Wellington

The North Island Main Trunk (NIMT) is the main railway line in the North Island of New Zealand, connecting the capital city Wellington with the country's largest city, Auckland. The line is 682 kilometres (424 mi) long, built to the New Zealand rail gauge of 1,067 mm and serves the large cities of Palmerston North and Hamilton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wellington and Manawatu Railway Trust</span>

The Wellington and Manawatu Railway Trust is a charitable trust based in Wellington, New Zealand, and is actively restoring former Wellington and Manawatu Railway locomotive No.9, to full working order.

This is a list of jargon commonly used by railfans and railway employees in New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Zealand EW class locomotive</span>

The New Zealand EW class locomotive was a type of electric locomotive used in Wellington, New Zealand. The classification "EW" was due to their being electric locomotives allocated to Wellington. For two decades until the advent of the DX class they were the most powerful locomotives in New Zealand.

NZR K<sup>A</sup> class

The NZR KA class of 1939 was a class of mixed traffic 4-8-4 steam locomotives that operated on New Zealand's railway network. They were built after the success of the K class to meet the increasing traffic demands of the New Zealand Railways Department. The locomotives first appeared with distinctive streamlining, mainly to hide their ACFI feedwater heater systems.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Midland Line, New Zealand</span>

The Midland line is a 212 km section of railway between Rolleston and Greymouth in the South Island of New Zealand. The line features five major bridges, five viaducts and 17 tunnels, the longest of which is the Otira tunnel. It is the route of the popular TranzAlpine passenger train.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NZR EO class (1923)</span>

The NZR EO class of 1923 were electric locomotives used on the steep Otira to Arthurs Pass section of the Midland Line in New Zealand. They were primarily needed for pulling trains through the 1 in 33 grade 8.5 km (5.3 mi) Otira Tunnel which was too long and steep to allow steam locomotives to be used.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Zealand DM class electric multiple unit</span>

The New Zealand DM/D class electric multiple unit were a type of electric multiple units used on the suburban rail network of Wellington, New Zealand. Formed of DM power cars and D trailer cars, the first units were ordered from English Electric in 1936 and introduced on 2 July 1938 operating the electrified Johnsonville Line service. Additional units were ordered in 1942 for the line, and in 1946 as the other Wellington suburban lines were to be electrified.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tawa Flat deviation</span> Section of railway line in Wellington, New Zealand

The 8.38 miles (13.49 km) Tawa Flat deviation is a double-track section of the Kapiti Line just north of Wellington, New Zealand with two tunnels; the southernmost section of the North Island Main Trunk railway (NIMT) between Wellington and Auckland. It was built to bypass a limited capacity single track section of the original Wellington and Manawatu Railway (WMR) line which ascended from Wellington to Johnsonville and then descended to Tawa Flat. The original name of Tawa Flat was changed to Tawa in 1959.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Zealand EA class locomotive</span>

The New Zealand EA class of electric locomotives were used on the New Zealand rail network between 1968 and 1997 on the Otira – Arthur's Pass section of the Midland line in the South Island, through the Otira Tunnel. Following reconditioning, three were used by KiwiRail's Tranz Metro in Wellington from 2008 to 2011 to top and tail Metlink suburban passenger trains as an interim measure before new rolling stock arrived. Four of the five locomotives were scrapped in 2013 with one being set aside for preservation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kapiti Line</span> Wellington commuter rail line

Metlink's Kapiti Line is the electrified southern portion of the North Island Main Trunk railway between New Zealand's capital city, Wellington, and Waikanae on the Kapiti Coast, operated by Transdev Wellington on behalf of Greater Wellington Regional Council. Trains run frequently every day, with stops at 16 stations. Until 20 February 2011 it was known as the Paraparaumu Line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johnsonville Branch</span> Railway line in New Zealand

The Johnsonville Branch, also known as the Johnsonville Line, is a commuter branch line railway from the main Railway Station of Wellington, New Zealand to the northern suburb of Johnsonville via Ngaio and Khandallah.

NZR E<sup>C</sup> class

The NZR EC class was a class of electric locomotive used in Christchurch, New Zealand. They replaced steam locomotives on trains through the Lyttelton rail tunnel between Lyttelton and Christchurch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lyttelton Line</span> Railway line between Lyttelton and Christchurch, New Zealand

Lyttelton Line is a name sometimes used to refer to the section of the Main South Line in New Zealand's South Island between Lyttelton and Christchurch, and can also be used to refer to the operations on this section. As it has always been part of the Main South Line, this name has never been officially used to refer to the track itself.

NZR U<sup>D</sup> class

The NZR UD class was a class of two 4-6-0 steam locomotives built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1904 for the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company. When that company was nationalised in 1908, they passed into the ownership of the New Zealand Railways and received the designation UD.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paekakariki railway station</span> Railway station in New Zealand

Paekakariki railway station in Paekākāriki on the Kapiti Coast, New Zealand is an intermediate station on the Kapiti Line for Metlink's electric multiple unit commuter trains from Wellington. Paekākāriki was the terminal station of the commuter service from 1940 to 1983, when the service was extended to Paraparaumu, and to Waikanae in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company</span>

The Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company was a private railway company that built, owned and operated the Wellington-Manawatu railway line between Thorndon in Wellington, the capital of New Zealand, and Longburn, near Palmerston North in the Manawatu, between 1881 and 1908, when it was acquired by the New Zealand Government Railways. Its successful operation in private ownership was unusual for early railways in New Zealand.

The Haywards–Plimmerton Line was a railway development proposed several times between 1879 and the 1960s to connect the Hutt Valley and Porirua areas of Wellington via Haywards.

Railway electrification in New Zealand consists of three separate electric systems, all in the North Island. Electrification was initially adopted by the New Zealand Railways for long tunnels; the Otira Tunnel, the Lyttelton Rail Tunnel and the two Tawa Tunnels of the Tawa Flat Deviation. Electrification of Wellington suburban services started with the Johnsonville Line and Kapiti Line out of Wellington from the 1930s. Auckland suburban services were electrified in 2014–2015. Electrification of long-distance services on the North Island Main Trunk (NIMT) dates from 1986. New long tunnels, for example the Rimutaka Tunnel and the Kaimai Tunnel, were operated by diesels, and the Otira and Lyttelton Tunnels have converted to diesel operation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North–South Junction</span>

The North–South Junction is a section of single-track rail line about 7 km long, north of Wellington, New Zealand between the closed (2011) Muri railway station and the (lower) Paekakariki railway station to the north. It is part of the Kapiti Line section of the North Island Main Trunk line between Wellington and Auckland, and part of the Wellington–Manawatu Line, built by the Wellington & Manawatu Railway Company (WMR).

References

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Following the introduction of Traffic Monitoring System (TMS) in 1979, the class classification was capitalised, whereas previously the second letter was a smaller capital letter, that is ED

Citations

  1. ↑ Redward 1974, p. 10.
  2. 1 2 Redward 1974, p. 11.
  3. ↑ "ED class of 1938". English Electric Railway Traction in New Zealand. Retrieved 14 April 2017.
  4. ↑ Sean Millar (2001). From A to Y Avoiding I: 125 Years of Railway Motive Power Classification in New Zealand. New Zealand. p. 31.
  5. ↑ Palmer & Stewart 1965, p. 130.
  6. ↑ "Renumbering Electric Locomotives". New Zealand Railway Observer. Vol. 36, no. 4. New Zealand Railway and Locomotive Society. Summer 1979–80. p. 146. ISSN   0028-8624.
  7. ↑ Hoy, D.G. Rails out of the Capital p. 64 (NZRLS, 1970)
  8. ↑ Shake, Rattle and Roll: The ED electric locomotives by David Parsons: "New Zealand Railfan", March 2017 page 51: Volume 23 No 2
  9. ↑ Redward 1974, p. 8.

Bibliography

  • Palmer, A. N.; Stewart, W. W. (1965). Cavalcade of New Zealand Locomotives. Wellington: A H. & A W. Reed. ISBN   978-0-207-94500-7.
  • Redward, Roger (1974). Railway Electrification in New Zealand: An illustrated survey. Wellington: Southern Press.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.