Working on the Railway - Sydney style

hey all,

first off nice pics Paul, I don't know too much about Qld stuff so can't add any info for everyone.
anyways, as some may be aware I left train crewing to go work as a Signaller, was posted to Enfield for training purposes. This must be the only job where being interested in trains actually helped, as I knew by the trip designations where they were going and so forth which gave the trainer alot more confidence and I was able to operate the panel independantly. anyways the pic was taken on Tuesday night on a backshift (this is all freight and at night you get about 40 movements in a 8hr period)

 

Vastly different today! I started my railway career at Enfield South box on December 17, 1974 (32 years this December, all in signal boxes) It had a 46 lever manual frame. During my 3 years there as telephone boy, I worked at Enfield North (70+ levers) and Chullora boxes.mg: :cup:

 

doesn't progress suck, all those boxes and now one person with a route-set panel.
training is over finished on Monday and am now at Sutherland as a glorified indicator operator (PICs Operator)

 

Yep. The RTM was still in the roundhouses then. I still remember old 7a trip to Botany (before the container terminal was built) with 2 or 3 old steam locos destined for Sims Metal scrappers, old 50 and 32 classes. They had no funnels on 'em, they were taken off as they were cast iron and were remelted in the Eveligh foundry to make cast iron brake shoes for the diesels.

 

The old workstation, covers from Drayton Jct. to Werris Creek and Ulan.



The chap next to me (where I'm standing) controlled from Newdell Jct. to Branxton (north of Maitland).

The new building and temporary panel. This is filling up with ARTC control boards

 

Hey Sten,i found your 86 class loco's.Two of them hiding waayyy up the back at Chullora,

And can any of you give up this loco's heritage?


Another pic of the point laying machine.

 

505 is an ex-V-Line C class (I think).

 

May have passed you at some point, Paul. We were scoping locations from Mt Victoria to Edgecombe for ELD installations. Heard there were some signal engineers looking around the place today.

Is the Garrett an ex-QR 3'-6" job? QR has one as part of their heritage fleet though it's been sidelined due to the costs involved with overhauling the boiler.
And did you see the Silverton mobile ALCo museum rattle past around midday?

 

Bulldog

Charlie: That's a "Bulldog," my favorite Australian railroad engine. Although very old now, they operate regularly in many different variations. While they appear EMD head-on, the body exhausts and vents appear much differently than an E-8, for example. Some are even double cab ended. Here are some models.

Note the GM Export information. "Clyde-GM"

I will look for more pictures. I have a great book on these. (Thanks to Australian friends. :thumbs_up

[edit] If I could add..the Bulldogs in Australia are like steam in the USA around 1950. Not so unusual that you would notice, so everyone is watching the new USA diesels. Yet, by 1960, steam was very rare in the US. That may be the Bulldog situation in Australia today.