V&SAR Intercolonial Express Carriages
| 1-4, 29, 30O, Willochra, 117, Broughton, ViceRegal Car 3, Sleeper No.6, Avon, Mildura, Kiewa, Latrobe, Hindmarsh | |
|---|---|
| Constructed | 1886 |
| Scrapped | 1929-1932 |
| Capacity | 20 berths |
| Operator(s) | Victorian and South Australian Railways |
| Specifications | |
| Car body construction | Timber |
| Car length | 61 ft 2 in (18.64 m) over body, 70 ft 8 1⁄2 in (21.55 m) over coupling points |
| Width | 9 ft 8 in (2.95 m) |
| Height | 13 ft 3 in (4.04 m) |
| Weight | 35 LT 7 cwt 3 qtr (35.96 t) |
| Bogies | 46 ft 0 in (14.02 m) apart |
| 5-12O, 233-238, 77-82ABAB, 75-80AB, later conversions | |
|---|---|
| Constructed | 1887-1891 |
| Scrapped | 1936-1976 |
| Capacity | 32 1st, 20 2nd sitting (later 60 2nd for SAR) |
| Operator(s) | Victorian and South Australian Railways |
| Specifications | |
| Car body construction | Timber |
| Car length | 39 ft 6 in (12.04 m) over body, 42 ft 10 1⁄2 in (13.07 m) over coupling points |
| Width | 8 ft 6 in (2.59 m) |
| Height | 12 ft 2 in (3.71 m) |
| Weight | 18 LT 10 cwt 0 qtr (18.80 t) |
| Bogies | 27 ft 6 in (8.38 m) apart |
| 13O, 14O | |
|---|---|
| Constructed | 1887 |
| Scrapped | 1983 |
| Capacity | 16 tons |
| Operator(s) | Victorian and South Australian Railways |
| Specifications | |
| Car body construction | Timber |
| Car length | 39 ft 6 in (12.04 m) over body, 43 ft 3 1⁄2 in (13.20 m) over coupling points |
| Width | 8 ft 3 in (2.51 m) |
| Height | 12 ft 7 3⁄4 in (3.85 m) |
| Weight | 16 LT 15 cwt 0 qtr (17.02 t) |
| Bogies | 27 ft 7 in (8.41 m) |
| 15, 16, 23, 24O | |
|---|---|
| Constructed | 1887 |
| Scrapped | 1938-1953 |
| Capacity | 15 LT 0 cwt 0 qtr (15.24 t) |
| Operator(s) | Victorian and South Australian Railways |
| Specifications | |
| Car body construction | 32 ft 1 in (9.78 m) |
| Car length | 35 ft 4 1⁄2 in (10.78 m) |
| Width | 8 ft 3 in (2.51 m) |
| Height | 23 ft 7 3⁄4 in (7.21 m) |
| Weight | 15 LT 1 cwt 1 qtr (15.30 t) |
| Bogies | 20 ft 0 in (6.10 m) apart |
| 17-22O, EES3, 258, 259 | |
|---|---|
| Operator(s) | Victorian and South Australian Railways |
| Specifications | |
| Car body construction | 12 ft 1 in (3.68 m) |
| Car length | 35 ft 4 1⁄2 in (10.78 m) |
| Width | 7 ft 10 in (2.39 m) |
| Weight | 13 LT 15 cwt 2 qtr (14.00 t) |
| Bogies | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) between axles, 20 ft 0 in (6.10 m) apart |
On Wednesday 19 January 1887, the Victorian Railways' Western Line to Dimboola, and the South Australian Railways' Wolseley line, met at Serviceton. Since both sides shared the broad gauge of 5'3", an agreement was made between the two railways allowing a pool of carriages, classed O, to be specifically allocated to interstate trains linking the capitals of Melbourne and Adelaide.
The new train was called the Intercolonial Express. The operating and maintenance cost would be funded by both railways, roughly 60% paid for by the Victorian Railways and 40% by the South Australian Railways.
A new fleet of carriages was built for the train and classed O. Four sleeping cars were imported from the United States and delivered in 1886 (as 1O-4O); they were joined by eight composite sitting cars (5O-12O) and a variety of guards and mail vans (13O-22O) built by both the Victorian and South Australian Railway's workshops, and all delivered for service in 1887.
As patronage grew additional carriages were added to the fleet, replicating earlier designs for fleet interchangeability. Vans 23O and 24O were built in 1890 to the same design as 15O and 16O; sitting cars 25-28O matched 5O-12O and entered service between 1897 and 1891; and 29O and 30O matched the designs of the initial sleeping cars, 1O-4O.
The sitting cars became the most worn of the fleet, so in 1900 Victoria and South Australia each provided six sitting passenger carriages from their newest fleets, and the O cars 5-12 and 25-28 were removed from interstate service and split half each way, becoming the Victorian Railways' 77-82ABAB and the South Australian Railways' no.233-238.
A new custom fleet was constructed from 1907, using the design of the E type carriage of the Victorian Railways. When that was completed the remaining O type carriages were withdrawn and split equally.
The O cars were generally built to the existing most up-to-date designs of the respective railways, aside from the custom-ordered sleeping carriages.
Most of the O type carriages were built at either Newport or Islington workshops, to pre-agreed designs. The initial sleeping cars were imported complete, and the final pair were imported as kits and constructed locally.
The initial fleet provided four sleeping cars, eight sitting cars, four guard's vans, three post office vans and three baggage/mail vans, so it is reasonable to assume that the typical Intercolonial Express consist would have included one sleeping, two sitting, one post office car, one baggage/mail car and one guard's van, providing one consist for each direction. A spare of each type would be rostered in maintenance, and the fourth sleeping, fourth guard's van and seventh and eighth sitting cars would be kept spare, available for swapping out of a consist on short notice. In the event of a post office or baggage/mail car being unavailable one from the standard VR or SAR fleet could be substituted as a temporary replacement.
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Wikipedia