R type carriage

R type carriage
Specifications
Track gauge	5 ft 3 in (1,600 mm)

The R type carriages were a series of locomotive-hauled carriages proposed to be built for the Victorian country rail network in the mid 1980's.

Early plans indicated a plan to build at least six four-carriage sets for long distance services.^[1]

Intent to build

Melbourne had submitted a bid for the 1996 Olympics, and V/Line planned to add to their existing country rail fleet to allow for the increased patronage. This was around the same time that locomotive A66 was repainted from its 1988 Bicentennial livery to its 1996 Olympics variant of the then-standard V/Line orange with grey.

When the New Deal of 1981 was finalised, the intent was to purchase N Set carriages, originally 10 sets of 3 carriages each in the ACN-BN-BN configuration for the Geelong commuter run. This order was extended to 36 carriages (12 sets) owing to a by-election in the Ballarat area. At the time, it was intended to purchase a separate opening fleet of ACR-BRR-BR-BR carriages for the regional network.

Design

These six sets of carriages would have owed their basic design principles to the then-under-construction XPT body type. Socimi bogies were to be fitted allowing the R sets to operate at 160 km/h. In 1986 three sets of Socimi bogies were imported from Italy and fitted under set LH33, with locomotive A85 regeared to operate at 160 km/h and trials were conducted beyond Stawell on the Western Line towards Adelaide.

It is thought that the carriages would have had a similar general body profile to the H cars then under refurbishment, and that is the reason set LH33 was selected for the Socimi trials.^[2] From this it is safe to assume that the cars would have been around 75 ft over body, like the longer H carriages.

The R sets would have been fitted with 2+2 seating, rather than only in the first class portion of the N sets.^[3]

Promotional material from the era indicated that the cars would have had a lower floor level than was normal for passenger stock at the time.^[4]

A partial mock-up of the proposed interior of the R type carriages was built at Newport, but this was demolished in the mid 1990's cleanup of the workshops area.^[5]

Plans cancelled

The design of the R cars was undertaken by Commonwealth Engineering. The State Transport Authority, later known as the Public Transport Cooperation, ended up purchasing the complete set of construction drawings, and attempts were made over about a ten-year period to obtain funding for construction, but with the loss of the Olympics bid, the economic downturn in the early 1990's and the later delivery of the Sprinter fleet, the drawings ended up unused.^[6]

The Socimi bogies were removed from set LH33 and they were last sighted at Newport Workshops.

From late 1982 the N set plans changed; where previously sets were released to service in the ACN-BN-BN format, the new plans taking into account delays to the R type carriages called for ACN-BRN-BN, with the onboard buffet module allowing sets to be used on longer-distance runs. The ACN cars were finished as originally intended, but the existing BN cars were shuffled into new sets and the remaining BN cars not yet built were fitted with buffet modules.

Instead of the R type carriages, V/Line ended up rebuilding the AZ fleet to ACZ and a number of BS cars as BRS, forming sets of ACZ-BRS-BZ-BS for the longer-distance runs.

References

Comeng History volume 4
Railway House Journal 1983
Newsrail September 1986

Locomotives and rolling stock of the Victorian Railways, predecessors and successors

Melbourne & Hobsons Bay Railway Company	First Engine (1854) 2-4-0WT (1854) 0-4-0WT (1857) 2-4-0WT (1858), later N Class

Geelong & Melbourne Railway Company	2-2-2WT (1855) 2-4-0T (1855) 0-6-0WT (1855) 0-6-0T Ariel (1855)

Melbourne & Suburban Railway Company	2-4-0T (1860)

Melbourne Railway Company	2-4-0T (1863)

Melbourne & Essendon Railway Company	2-4-0T (1858)

Melbourne & Hobson's Bay United Railway Company	2-4-0T (1866) 4-4-0WT (1871), later C Class 0-4-0WT Pier Donkey (1876)

Victorian Railways steam locomotives, F.C. Christy period (1858-1870)	No.1 2-2-2 'Old' V class (1859) 0-6-0 P class 0-6-0 J class 2-2-2, later 2-4-0 L class 2-4-0ST B class 2-4-0 O class 0-6-0

Victorian Railways steam locomotives, W. Meikle period (1871-1877)	C Class 4-4-0WT No.100 2-4-0 Q class 0-6-0 U class 0-6-0 T class 0-6-0 F class 2-4-0, later 2-4-2T K class 2-4-0 Pier locomotives 0-4-0WT G class 4-4-0 H class 4-4-0 No.162 & No.164 4-4-0

Victorian Railways steam locomotives, S. Mirls period (1878-1890)	W & S class 4-6-0) G&MRC engines 19, 21, 34-44 evens only N class 2-4-0WT M class 4-4-0T, later ME class 4-4-2T 'Old' R class 0-6-0 'Belgian' R class 0-6-0 'Old' A class 4-4-0 X class 0-6-0 Motor Cars - Rowan 0-4-0T, Z 0-6-0T, C 4-4-0WT, H/J/N/Z 2-4-0T, F 2-4-2T Crane locomotives D class 4-4-0 Y class 0-6-0 'New' A class 4-4-0 'New' R class 0-6-0 E class 2-4-2T, later E^E 0-6-2T

Victorian Railways steam locomotives, T.H. Woodroffe period (1893-1912)	A^A class 4-4-0 V class 2-8-0 Dd class 4-6-0, Dde 4-6-2 A2 class 4-6-0

Victorian Railways steam locomotives, W.M. Shannon period (1912-1919)	C class 2-8-0

Victorian Railways steam locomotives, A.E. Smith period (1919-1928)	K class 2-8-0 N class 2-8-2 S class 4-6-2

Victorian Railways steam locomotives, N.C. Harris period (1928-1933)	X class 2-8-2

Victorian Railways steam locomotives, A.C. Ahlston period (1933-1955)	H class 4-8-4 R class 4-6-4 J class 2-8-0

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