The Avontuur Railway is a closed railway line between
Port Elizabeth
Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, Sou ...
and the town of
Avontuur
Avontuur is a town situated in the Garden Route District Municipality in the Western Cape province of South Africa. The town is located 13km south-east of Uniondale on an intersection of the R339 and R62 regional routes.
History
The name is Af ...
in the
Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
and
Eastern Cape
The Eastern Cape is one of the provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are East London and Gqeberha.
The second largest province in the country (at 168,966 km2) after Northern Cape, it was formed in ...
provinces of
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
. It is the longest
narrow gauge
A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and .
Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...
route in the world at a length of .
"Avontuur" is the Afrikaans and Dutch word for "adventure".
History
![Kabeljous-Avontuur Railway-bridge-001](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/Kabeljous-Avontuur_Railway-bridge-001.jpg)
The railway was built by the government of the
Cape Colony
The Cape Colony ( nl, Kaapkolonie), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British Empire, British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope, which existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when i ...
between 1890 and 1906, to connect the
Langkloof
The Langkloof is a 160 km long valley in South Africa, lying between Herold, a small village northeast of George, and The Heights - just beyond Twee Riviere.
History
The kloof was given its name by Isaq Schrijver in 1689, and more thorough ...
fruit growing industry with the new port at Port Elizabeth.
The section of line between
Humewood Road and
Humansdorp
Humansdorp is a small town and surrounding district in the Eastern Cape of South Africa, with a population of around 29,000 during the census of 2011. It is part of the Kouga Local Municipality of the Sarah Baartman District.
The town is th ...
was opened for public traffic on 1 November 1905.
In 1903 a request was laid before the then government in order to add a branch line to Patensie. This branch was commissioned on 3 April 1914.
In 1906 a branch line was opened to the Port Elizabeth's suburb Walmer and in 1928 a twelve mile long private branch was constructed to the
Eastern Province Cement Company (EPCC).
Passenger traffic
Scheduled trains
Scheduled passenger trains were discontinued in the 1940s, although limited space was available on scheduled freight trains until the mid-1970s.
Walmer Branch
From 1906 to 1928 a passenger only branch line, from Valley junction near Port Elizabeth, to the suburb of Walmer, serviced up to 22 trains a day between Port Elizabeth and the terminus at 14th Avenue in Walmer. It was closed as a result from competition from a bus service.
Apple Express
The line was best known for its tourist train, the Apple Express, which commenced operations in 1965 to Loerie, later to Thornhill or Van Stadens River, the highest two-foot narrow-gauge railway bridge in the world. The motive power for the Apple Express was retained as steam, normally a
SAR NGG16 Class Garratt
A Garratt (often referred to as a Beyer Garratt) is a type of steam locomotive invented by British engineer Herbert William Garratt that is articulated into three parts. Its boiler, firebox, and cab are mounted on a centre frame or "bridge ...
. The Apple Express ceased operations in 2011.
Today, there is a new effort to restore a partial, limited, service in 2016 / 2017 from Port Elizabeth to Van Stadens Station – if not Thornhill - with two NG/G15 and one NG/G16 Garratt along with a fleet of passenger cars under restoration inside the former Humewood Road narrow Gauge diesel depot in Port Elizabeth.
From 2011 onward a volunteer team undertook the restoration of the
NG15 NG119 steam locomotive, returning the locomotive to running order during 2017. Restoration of the
NG15 NG124 steam locomotive was started in 2016.
After running a test Apple Express train on 24 December 2017, using the restored
NG15 NG119 locomotive, the Apple Express started running a summer holiday special service between King's Beach halt and a point near the
Airport
An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...
.
Freight traffic
Fruit and agriculture
The presence of the railway contributed significantly to the development of agriculture in the Lankloof and Gamtoos Valley, enabling farmers to transport their produce conveniently to the warehouses and harbour at Port Elizabeth.
Unfortunately, agricultural transport was lost due to competition from road haulage.
Limestone
In the 1920s a
limestone
Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
quarry was opened near Loerie to serve the
Eastern Province Cement Company (EPCC) in New Brighton near Port Elizabeth via the EPCC owned private line branching off at Chelsea. The limestone traffic ceased in 2001 when the quarries were closed.
Operations
The railway was operated by the South African national railway company
Spoornet
Transnet Freight Rail is a South African rail transport company, formerly known as Spoornet. It was part of the South African Railways and Harbours Administration, a state-controlled organisation that employed hundreds of thousands of people ...
.
As the
South African Government
The Republic of South Africa is a parliamentary republic with three-tier system of government and an independent judiciary, operating in a parliamentary system. Legislative authority is held by the Parliament of South Africa.
Executive authority ...
has deregulated the road transport industry, a large amount of traffic has moved from the railway to the roads. Spoornet has hence designated the line as "low density," and always had the threat of closure hanging over it.
After all major freight traffic ceased, only the Apple Express continued operations but finally ceased in 2010.
In 2014 a team of volunteers started working to recommence the running of the Apple Express.
After running a test Apple Express train on 24 December 2017, with locomotive NG15 NG119, the Apple Express began running a summer holiday special service between King's Beach halt and Valley Junction near the Port Elizabeth Airport
Since then, negotiations have been on going to recommence the Apple Express in the near future, but until such a time the Apple Express remains closed.
Motive power
Tender locomotives
The first locomotives entering service on the
Langkloof
The Langkloof is a 160 km long valley in South Africa, lying between Herold, a small village northeast of George, and The Heights - just beyond Twee Riviere.
History
The kloof was given its name by Isaq Schrijver in 1689, and more thorough ...
line were the
NG8 class from 1903 to 1931.
From 1915 to 1935 the
NG6, from 1915 to 1939 the
NG9 and from 1916 to 1948 the
NG10.
The final and largest class to be employed on the Avontuur Railway were 21
NG15's from 1960 to the mid-1980s.
Tank locomotive
Class
NG3 performed yard duties around
Humewood Road Station in Port Elizabeth from 1939 to 1946
Garratt locomotives
The first Garratt locomotive to be introduced was the
NGG11 class, soon to be followed with the
NGG13 class in 1927, the latter setting the standard for motive power on the Avontuur railway for the next decades, to be followed with the
NGG16 class, very similar to the NGG13.
The smaller Garratt classes
NGG12 and
NGG14 performed yard duties at
Humewood Road railway station
Humewood Road railway station is a railway station located in Humewood, Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
A separate station to the main Port Elizabeth railway station, built in 1899, it is the southern terminus of the narrow gauge Avontuur Railway ...
in
Port Elizabeth
Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, Sou ...
until the 1950s.
Diesel locomotives
From 1973 the
South African Class 91-000
The South African Railways Class of 1973 was a narrow-gauge diesel–electric locomotive.
Between September and December 1973, the South African Railways placed 20 Class General Electric type UM6B diesel–electric locomotives in service on ...
General Electric
General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable energ ...
diesels were introduced, the most powerful 2 foot gauge diesel in the world.
See also
*
Alfred County Railway
Alfred County Railway is an abandoned narrow gauge railway in South Africa, which runs from the southern transport hub of Port Shepstone on the Indian Ocean, via Izotsha and Paddock for to Harding, KwaZulu-Natal.
Background
South Africa, ri ...
*
Sandstone Estates
Sandstone Estates (Pty) Ltd is a large commercial agricultural enterprise covering over , located on the border with Lesotho in South Africa's Eastern Free State province, close to the Maluti Mountains. The nearest town is Ficksburg, away on th ...
*
Welsh Highland Railway
The Welsh Highland Railway (WHR) or Rheilffordd Eryri is a long, restored narrow gauge heritage railway in the Welsh county of Gwynedd, operating from Caernarfon to Porthmadog, and passing through a number of popular tourist destinations in ...
*
South African Class 91-000
The South African Railways Class of 1973 was a narrow-gauge diesel–electric locomotive.
Between September and December 1973, the South African Railways placed 20 Class General Electric type UM6B diesel–electric locomotives in service on ...
*
Langkloof
The Langkloof is a 160 km long valley in South Africa, lying between Herold, a small village northeast of George, and The Heights - just beyond Twee Riviere.
History
The kloof was given its name by Isaq Schrijver in 1689, and more thorough ...
*
Two foot gauge railways in South Africa
In the early 1900s, narrow-gauge railway lines started playing a significant role in South Africa. They facilitated the transport of various agricultural and mineral produce from locations hardly accessible by road. They therefore enabled many ...
References
External links
*
Apple Express Official Site*
ttps://web.archive.org/web/20110904055329/http://www.apple-express.co.za/files/apple_express_history.pdf Apple Express HistorySoul of A Railway - System 3 Cape Midland, based in Port Elizabethpossible reopening of the line{{clear
2 ft gauge railways in South Africa
Railway lines in South Africa
Transport in the Eastern Cape