With the construction of a new line from Launceston to Bell Bay, Tasmanian Government Railways placed an order for four 1752 kW locomotives with English Electric. However, with the locomotive still under development, it was decided to purchase four 1380 kW locomotives that were an evolution of the Western Australian RA class locomotives with a low nose profile and vacuum brakes. At 96 tons, they were considerably heavier than the previous heaviest locomotives on the network, the Y class at 58 tons, requiring significant upgrades to infrastructure.[1][2]
In March 1978 the Z class were included in the transfer of the Tasmanian Government Railways to Australian National. In 1984-1985 all had their vacuum brakes replaced with air brakes.[3]
In June 1998 all were renumbered as the 2110 class.[4] All four locomotives were modified for driver-only operation between 1998 and 2001, by having their noses lowered further and the size of the front cab windows increased.
All remained in service with TasRail until stored in May 2014 with the entry into service of the new TR class, new drivers having ceased training on these locos 8 months prior.
In 2022, after being awarded a grant, Bellarine Railway was able to purchase two of the class, this being Z1&4. Z1 was delivered in March and Z4 in May. Z3 was also donated and delivered in May to Don River Railway.
^"Tasrail Loco Renumbering" Railway Digest October 1998 page 36
January 07, 2023
tasmanian, government, railways, class, class, class, diesel, locomotives, built, english, electric, rocklea, tasmanian, government, railways, 1973, they, were, development, wagr, class, were, last, line, very, successful, locomotives, fitted, with, english, e. The Z class are a class of diesel locomotives built by English Electric Rocklea for the Tasmanian Government Railways in 1973 They were a development of the WAGR RA class and were the last of a line of very successful locomotives fitted with the English Electric 12CSVT Mk II engine Tasmanian Government Railways Z classType and originPower typeDiesel electricBuilderEnglish Electric RockleaSerial numberA 249 to A 252Build date1973Total produced4SpecificationsConfiguration UICCo CoGauge1 067 mm 3 ft 6 in Wheel diameter3 ft 1 1 2 in 0 953 m Wheelbase42 ft 5 in 12 929 m total 11 ft 3 in 3 429 m bogieLength55 ft 16 764 m over headstocksWidth9 ft 4 in 2 845 m Height12 ft 4 1 2 in 3 772 m Axle load16 long tons 16 3 t 17 9 short tons Loco weight96 long tons 97 5 t 107 5 short tons Fuel typeDieselFuel capacity1 200 imp gal 5 500 L Prime moverEnglish Electric 12CSVT Mk IIRPM range450 850 rpmEngine typefour stroke four valves per cylinderAspirationturbocharged intercooledGeneratorEE822 16JTraction motorsSix EE558Cylinders12 VeeCylinder size10 in 12 in 254 mm 305 mm MU working110V stepless electro pneumatic throttleLoco brakeAir straight and proportional control dynamicTrain brakesVacuum converted to air 1984 1985 Performance figuresMaximum speed60 miles per hour 97 km h Power output2 025 hp 1 510 kW gross 1 850 hp 1 380 kW netTractive effort Continuous54 000 lbf 240 2 kN at 10 5 mph 20 km h CareerOperatorsTasmanian Government RailwaysNumber in class4NumbersZ1 Z4First runJune 1973Current ownerTasRail Don River Railway amp Bellarine RailwayDisposition1 stored 3 preserved Contents 1 History 2 Status table 3 See also 4 ReferencesHistory EditWith the construction of a new line from Launceston to Bell Bay Tasmanian Government Railways placed an order for four 1752 kW locomotives with English Electric However with the locomotive still under development it was decided to purchase four 1380 kW locomotives that were an evolution of the Western Australian RA class locomotives with a low nose profile and vacuum brakes At 96 tons they were considerably heavier than the previous heaviest locomotives on the network the Y class at 58 tons requiring significant upgrades to infrastructure 1 2 In March 1978 the Z class were included in the transfer of the Tasmanian Government Railways to Australian National In 1984 1985 all had their vacuum brakes replaced with air brakes 3 In June 1998 all were renumbered as the 2110 class 4 All four locomotives were modified for driver only operation between 1998 and 2001 by having their noses lowered further and the size of the front cab windows increased All remained in service with TasRail until stored in May 2014 with the entry into service of the new TR class new drivers having ceased training on these locos 8 months prior In 2022 after being awarded a grant Bellarine Railway was able to purchase two of the class this being Z1 amp 4 Z1 was delivered in March and Z4 in May Z3 was also donated and delivered in May to Don River Railway Status table EditName Original no Current no Owner StatusNorthern Progress Z1 2110 Bellarine Railway PreservedBell Bay Pioneer Z2 2111 TasRail StoredZ3 2112 Don River Railway PreservedZ4 2113 Bellarine Railway PreservedSee also EditFormer Tasmanian Government Railways locomotives Locomotives of the Tasmanian Government Railways 1950References Edit Oberg Leon 1984 Locomotives of Australia 1850s 1980s Frenchs Forest Reed Books pp 284 285 ISBN 0 730100 05 7 Z Class Railpage Z Class Rail Tasmania Tasrail Loco Renumbering Railway Digest October 1998 page 36 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Tasmanian Government Railways Z class amp oldid 1093839806, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
