Commonwealth Railways CB class railcar
| CB class railcar | |
|---|---|
|
CB1 at the National Railway Museum, Port Adelaide in April 2014 | |
| Manufacturer | Budd Company |
| Built at | Philadelphia, United States |
| Entered service | 1951 |
| Number built | 3 |
| Number scrapped | 1 |
| Fleet numbers | CB1-CB3 |
| Operator | Commonwealth Railways |
| Specifications | |
| Car length | 25.91 m (85 ft 0 in) |
| Traction system | Diesel mechanical |
| Prime mover(s) | General Motors 110 |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) |
The CB class railcar or Budd railcar are a type of diesel railcar built by Budd Company, Philadelphia, for the Commonwealth Railways, Australia in 1951.
History
In October 1950, Commonwealth Railways placed an order for three Budd RDC-1 railcars. They were the first stainless steel carriages in Australia. After being trialled on the Trans-Australian Railway between Port Augusta and Kalgoorlie they entered service in May 1951 between Port Pirie Junction and Pimba being extended to Woomera and Tarcoola in 1952.[1] In January 1961 the services was cut back to Woomera.[2]
Following the extension of the standard gauge line from Port Augusta to Marree in 1957 and Whyalla in 1972, the Budd cars began to operate to these destinations.[2]
All three passed to Australian National in July 1975 who withdrew them shortly after and placed them in store at Port Augusta. After refurbishment they returned to service to operate the Iron Triangle Limited between Adelaide, Port Pirie, Port Augusta and Whyalla from April 1986 and the Silver City Limited between Adelaide and Broken Hill from December 1986.[2][3]
In February 1988, CB3 was damaged in an accident and not repaired while the other two were withdrawn in December 1990 and placed in store at Port Pirie. CB1 was donated to the National Railway Museum, Port Adelaide in August 1996 while the other two were included in the sale of Australian National to Australian Southern Railroad in August 1997 being sold to Bluebird Engineering in 1999.[2]
CB2 is now privately owned and was transferred from Adelaide back to Port Augusta by road in October 2008. CB3 has been scrapped.
References
Notes
- ↑ Dunn, John (2006). Comeng: A History of Commonwealth Engineering Volume 1: 1921-1955. Kenthurst: Rosenberg Publishing. pp. 215–217. ISBN 1877058424.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 CB class Budd Railcars Chris' Commonwealth Railways Pages
- ↑ "Western Report" Railway Digest February 1987 page 52
Bibliography
- Fluck, Ronald E; Marshall, Barry; Wilson, John (1996). Locomotives and Railcars of the Commonwealth Railways. Welland, SA: Gresley Publishing. ISBN 1876216018.
External links
Media related to Commonwealth Railways CB class railcars at Wikimedia Commons
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