NZR RM class (Edison battery-electric)

Last updated

Edison battery-electric railcar
Edison storage battery New Zealand Railways railcar RM-6 in 1926.jpg
NZR RM 6, Edison battery-electric railcar in 1926. AP Godber Collection, Alexander Turnbull Library.
Type and origin
Power typeBattery-electric
BuilderBoon & Stevens
Build date1926
Specifications
Configuration:
​
 •  UIC Bo-Bo
Gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm)
Length55 ft 4 in over headstocks [1]
Performance figures
Maximum speed45 mph (72 km/h)
Career
Number in class1
NumbersRM 6
First run17 June 1926 [2]
Last runMay 1934 [3]
ScrappedDecember 1942 [3]

The NZR RM class Edison battery-electric railcar was a railcar that ran in Canterbury, New Zealand for eight years. It was built for New Zealand Railways (NZR) as a prototype for battery-electric railcars. While the railcar, classified "RM 6", was considered the first successful railcar in New Zealand, [4] it was later destroyed in a fire, and battery-electric traction for railcars was not developed further in New Zealand. Two other classes of battery-electric locomotives were introduced about the same time as RM 6, the E class of 1922 and the EB class of 1925.

Contents

Background

In the 1920s, NZR began experimenting with railcars as a way of replacing mixed trains that carried both passengers and goods and ran too slow schedules as they had to load and unload freight regularly. [5] In December 1923 a former NZR employee, Ambrose Reeves Harris, who was a personal assistant to Thomas Edison and was working for the Edison company, wrote to Minister of Railways Gordon Coates suggesting battery-electric traction for a railcar similar to Electric Car & Locomotive Corporation's railcars in the United States. [6]

The proposal did not meet with favour from NZR's Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME), who pointed out that the estimated cost of such a railcar was 3.6 times that of the Sentinel-Cammell railcar that was on order. [6]

Design

The railcar had a wheel arrangement of Bo-Bo under the UIC classification system, weighed 32 tonnes (31 long tons; 35 short tons), had driving controls at each end, and with an engine output of 90 kW (120 hp), it travelled comfortably at 60 km/h (37 mph). In appearance, it looked like a cross between a regular railway passenger carriage and a tram; side-on, it looked like a passenger carriage, but each end resembled the front of a tram from that era. The body was built by Boon & Stevens, the noted tram-car builders of Christchurch, in 1926, and equipped with Edison battery-electric equipment.

Capable of carrying about 70 passengers, with 60 seated, and a separate smoking compartment, the railcar had a range of about 100 miles (160 km) on one battery charge. A layover of about 4 hours was needed to recharge the battery. When introduced the railcar was billed as capable of being used on the Christchurch-Little River and Christchurch-Rangiora runs as well as being available for charters to other North Canterbury destinations. Being electrically powered and running on a storage battery, the railcar was very quiet, with the only wheel noise being noticeable when in motion.

The New Zealand Railways claimed it could cover the 36 miles (58 km), 12 stops, journey between Christchurch and Little River in 1 hour and 7 minutes at an "average throughout speed" of 30 miles per hour (48 km/h). They also claimed that passengers could board in 8 seconds or less stating "the stop at one of the smaller outlying stations to pick up a passenger was so brief as to be barely perceptible." [7] Timed through 2.7 km (1.7 mi) Lyttelton tunnel with a heavy load of passengers, it took 3 min 45 sec, an average speed of 43 km/h (27 mph).

In service

The railcar was initially built in 1926 to operate services through the lengthy Lyttelton rail tunnel on the Lyttelton Line. While performing well on the service, the railcar lacked seating capacity, especially for peak-hour services. [2] The Lyttelton Tunnel was electrified in 1929 and the railcar was instead assigned to the Little River Branch, commencing services in early 1927. [8] Previously, the Little River Branch's passenger services had been provided by mixed trains, and the Edison battery-electric railcar was introduced as a faster and more desirable alternative. It ran between Little River and Christchurch twice each way each day, completing the journey in 69 minutes. [9]

The railcar was popular with both passengers and crews; it was fast for its time for a rural train on New Zealand's railway network and ran cleanly and efficiently.

Withdrawal

It lasted a mere eight years, as it was destroyed in a depot fire in Christchurch on 25 May 1934. [10] Conditions created by the Great Depression meant it simply was not possible to build a replacement, [9] and the Edison battery-electric railcar's legacy was left as that of a promising and unique experiment that may have achieved its full potential in more prosperous times. The railcar's remains were not scrapped until the end of 1942. [3]

Remnants

The bogies of the car were dumped on the Oamaru foreshore with other old locomotive remains to prevent erosion of the Oamaru railway yards. In 2009, the bogies of RM 6 and the locomotive remnants were removed from the foreshore. The locomotive remnants were placed in the care of the Oamaru Steam and Rail Restoration Society while the bogies were donated to the National Railway Museum of New Zealand, and placed in storage at Ferrymead Heritage Park, awaiting refurbishment. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rail transport in New Zealand</span> Conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks in New Zealand

Rail transport in New Zealand is an integral part of New Zealand's transport network, with a nationwide network of 4,375.5 km (2,718.8 mi) of track linking most major cities in the North and South Islands, connected by inter-island rail and road ferries. Rail transport in New Zealand has a particular focus on bulk freight exports and imports, with 19 million net tonnes moved by rail annually, with 99.5% of New Zealand's exports and imports being transported through the country's seaports.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Plains Vintage Railway & Historical Museum</span>

The Plains Vintage Railway & Historical Museum is a heritage railway and recreated historic village in the Tinwald Domain, Tinwald, New Zealand. The railway runs on approximately three kilometres of rural railway line that was once part of the Mount Somers Branch. The village and railway are open regularly to the public. The railway utilises preserved and restored locomotives and rolling stock once used on New Zealand's national railway network, while the village shows visitors how life was lived in New Zealand's pioneering past.

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

The New Zealand DJ class locomotive is a type of diesel-electric locomotive in service on the New Zealand rail network. The class were built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and introduced from 1968 to 1969 for the New Zealand Railways Department (NZR) with a modernisation loan from the World Bank to replace steam locomotives in the South Island, where all of the class members worked most of their lives. Nine of the locomotives remain in use, mainly with Dunedin Railways.

The Southerner was a passenger express train in New Zealand's South Island between Christchurch and Invercargill along the South Island Main Trunk, that ran from 1970 to 2002. It was one of the premier passenger trains in New Zealand and its existence made Invercargill the southernmost passenger station in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NZR RM class (Clayton)</span>

The NZR RM class Clayton steam rail motor was a unique railcar that was operated by New Zealand Railways (NZR) for New Zealand's national rail network and one of only two steam railcars to operate in New Zealand - the other being 1925's RM class Sentinel-Cammell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NZR RM class (Leyland petrol)</span>

The NZR RM class Leyland petrol railcar was an experimental railcar built and trialled in New Zealand in 1925 by New Zealand Railways (NZR). It should not be confused with the two much smaller Leyland diesel railbuses of 1936.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NZR RM class (Midland)</span>

The NZR RM class Midland railcar was the first successful railcar, and first diesel-powered vehicle, to enter revenue service in New Zealand. Two were built, RM 20 and RM 21, and they ran for five years from 1936 to 1941 before being replaced by larger Vulcan railcars. They operated primarily on the Midland Line and the Greymouth-Hokitika portion of the Ross Branch

The New Zealand Railways Department, NZR or NZGR and often known as the "Railways", was a government department charged with owning and maintaining New Zealand's railway infrastructure and operating the railway system. The Department was created in 1880 and was corporatised on 1 April 1982 into the New Zealand Railways Corporation. Originally, railway construction and operation took place under the auspices of the former provincial governments and some private railways, before all of the provincial operations came under the central Public Works Department. The role of operating the rail network was subsequently separated from that of the network's construction. From 1895 to 1993 there was a responsible Minister, the Minister of Railways. He was often also the Minister of Public Works.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NZR RM class (88 seater)</span>

The NZR RM class 88-seaters were a class of railcar used in New Zealand. New Zealand Government Railways (NZR) classified them as RM , the notation used for all railcars, numbering the 35 sets from RM100 to RM134. They were the most numerous railcars in NZR service. Their purchase and introduction saw the demise of steam-hauled provincial passenger trains and mixed trains, and was part of a deliberate effort to modernise NZR passenger services at a time of increasing competition from private motor vehicles. Being diesel powered and lighter the railcars were less expensive to operate and able to maintain quicker timetables, although became plagued with mechanical and electrical problems, with a number of the class eventually being turned into depowered locomotive-hauled carriages and reclassified as the AC class "Grassgrubs".

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

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NZR RM class (Vulcan)</span>

The NZR RM class Vulcan railcars were operated by the New Zealand Government Railways (NZR) in the South Island of New Zealand. All New Zealand railcars are classified as RM , and this class derived their nomenclature from the name of the manufacturer, the Vulcan Foundry of Britain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NZR RM class (Standard)</span>

The NZR RM class Standard railcars were a class of railcar operated by the New Zealand Railways Department (NZR) in the North Island of New Zealand. Officially classified as RM like all other railcar classes in New Zealand, they acquired the designation of "Standard" to differentiate them from other railcar classes. They were introduced in 1938 and withdrawn in 1972.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NZR RM class</span> Classification given to railcars

The RM class was the classification used by the New Zealand Railways Department (NZR) and its successors gave to most railcars and railbuses that have operated on New Zealand's national rail network. "RM" stands for Rail Motor which was the common name at the turn of the 20th century for what became known in New Zealand as railcars. As many types of railcars are operated, class names have been given to each railcar type to differentiate them from others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NZR RM class (Sentinel-Cammell)</span>

The NZR RM class Sentinel-Cammell was a steam-powered railcar operated by the New Zealand Railways Department (NZR). It was the only one of its type to operate in New Zealand, and one of only two steam railcars trialled in the country; the other was the Clayton steam railcar.

The Picton Express was a passenger express train operated by the New Zealand Railways Department (NZR) between Christchurch and Picton. It ran from December 1945 until February 1956, and was thus the shortest-lived provincial express in New Zealand. Following the end of railcar services in 1976, a new carriage train between Christchurch and Picton began, under the same name as the earlier service, until it was replaced in 1988 by the Coastal Pacific Express.

Rail transport in Christchurch, the largest city on New Zealand's South Island, consists of two main trunk railway lines intersecting in the suburb of Addington, carrying mainly long-haul freight traffic but also two long distance tourist-oriented passenger trains. The two lines are the Main North Line and Main South Line, collectively but unofficially known as the South Island Main Trunk Railway. There is a heritage line at the Ferrymead Historic Park that is operated with steam, electric, and diesel motive power hauling tourist-oriented services.

The NZR RM class Westinghouse railcar was an experimental railcar built by the New Zealand Railways Department (NZR) in 1914. Although not the first railcar to operate in New Zealand, it was the first to enter revenue service.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NZR RM class (Thomas Transmission)</span>

The NZR RM class Thomas Transmission railcar was an experimental electro-mechanical railcar operated by the New Zealand Railways Department (NZR). It was introduced to service in 1916 and therefore was one of the earliest railcars to operate in New Zealand.

<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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Vogel Era</span> History of New Zealand between 1873 and 1876

The Vogel Era describes the history of New Zealand between 1873 and 1876, when the country adopted an immigration and public works scheme inaugurated by the colonial treasurer, then premier, Julius Vogel to develop the country and to relieve the slump of the late 1860s; to be financed by borrowing overseas. His "Great Public Works Policy" resulted in a large increase in migrants and provision of many new railways, roads and telegraph lines. The railway system developed from a few lines in three gauges to the start of a national network including the main line from Christchurch to Dunedin, though the narrow "Cape gauge" required later upgrading to increase the restricted height and weight limits.

References

Citations

  1. ↑ Crosado & June 2006, p. 13.
  2. 1 2 Crosado & June 2006, p. 11.
  3. 1 2 3 Crosado & August 2006, p. 21.
  4. ↑ Bromby 2003, p. 123.
  5. ↑ Bromby 2003, p. 122.
  6. 1 2 Crosado & June 2006, p. 9.
  7. ↑ NZR 1928, p. 10.
  8. ↑ Bromby 2003, p. 82.
  9. 1 2 Leitch & Scott 1995, p. 65.
  10. ↑ "Rail car damaged". The Press. Vol. LXX, no. 21174. 26 May 1934. p. 21.
  11. ↑ "New Zealand Railways Rolling Stock Register" . Retrieved 10 May 2020.

Bibliography

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.