NR45 + NR10 + Ghan Alice Springs, 2015 (03)

In July 1965,

Commonwealth Railways The Commonwealth Railways were established in 1917 by the Government of Australia with the Commonwealth Railways Act to administer the Trans-Australia and Port Augusta to Darwin railways. It was absorbed into Australian National in 1975. Op ...

placed an order with

Commonwealth Engineering Commonwealth Engineering (often shortened to Com-Eng, later Comeng was an Australian engineering company that designed and built railway locomotives, rolling stock and trams. History Smith and Waddington, the predecessor to Commonwealth Engi ...

, Granville for eight air-conditioned stainless steel

sleeping car The sleeping car or sleeper (often ) is a railway passenger car that can accommodate all passengers in beds of one kind or another, for the purpose of sleeping. George Pullman was the American innovator of the sleeper car. The first such cars ...

riages and one

dining car A dining car (American English) or a restaurant car (British English), also a diner, is a railroad passenger car that serves meals in the manner of a full-service, sit-down restaurant. It is distinct from other railroad food service cars that d ...

riage for use on the '' Trans Australian''. The first was delivered in July 1966. The carriages were built to a slightly narrower

loading gauge A loading gauge is a diagram or physical structure that defines the maximum height and width dimensions in railway vehicles and their loads. Their purpose is to ensure that rail vehicles can pass safely through tunnels and under bridges, and ke ...

than existing stock to allow their operation on other systems as a precursor to the commencement of transcontinental services. In May 1967, Commonwealth Railways placed an order for a further 59 carriages in various configurations for use on the ''

Indian Pacific The ''Indian Pacific'' is a weekly experiential tourism passenger train service that runs in Australia's east–west rail corridor between Sydney, on the shore of the Pacific Ocean, and Perth, on the shore of the Indian Ocean – thus, lik ...

''. Further orders saw the fleet total 124."Carriage Review" ''Railway Digest'' November 1986 page 351 Of these 60 were jointly owned by the

New South Wales Government Railways The New South Wales Government Railways (NSWGR) was the agency of the Government of New South Wales that administered rail transport in New South Wales, Australia, between 1855 and 1932. Management The agency was managed by a range of diffe ...

, Commonwealth Railways and the

Western Australian Government Railways Western Australian Government Railways (WAGR) was the operator of railway services in the state of Western Australia between October 1890 and June 2003. Owned by the state government, it was renamed a number of times to reflect extra responsi ...

for the ''Indian Pacific'' and the balance by the Commonwealth Railways for the ''Trans-Australian''. In practice they were used interchangeably. Since 1980, the stock has been used on ''

The Ghan ''The Ghan'' is an experiential tourism oriented passenger train service that operates between the northern and southern coasts of Australia, through the cities of Adelaide, Alice Springs and Darwin on the Adelaide–Darwin rail corridor. O ...

'' from

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

Alice Springs Alice Springs ( aer, Mparntwe) is the third-largest town in the Northern Territory of Australia. Known as Stuart until 31 August 1933, the name Alice Springs was given by surveyor William Whitfield Mills after Alice, Lady Todd (''née'' Al ...

. From November 1983 until November 1987, they were used on '' The Alice'' from

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountains ...

to Alice Springs. More recently they have been used on ''

The Overland ''The Overland'' is an Australian passenger train service between the state capitals of Melbourne and Adelaide, a distance of 828 km (515 mi). It first ran in 1887 as the ''Adelaide Express'', known by South Australians as the ''Melb ...

'' from Adelaide to

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metrop ...

and '' The Southern Spirit''. In July 1975, all were included in the transfer of Commonwealth Railways to Australian National and in October 1997 to Great Southern Rail.

Construction

Between 1966 and 1975, the following carriages were built by

at Granville for the

, Trans Australian and Ghan services: * 8x BRG Second Class Twin berth sleeping cars (36 berths in 18 compartments) numbered 168 to 175. * 1x DE Dining car (48 seats) numbered 176. * 9x HGM Power and guards vans numbered 202 to 205, 296 to 298, 316 and 317. * 7x ER Dormitory staff cars numbered 206 to 211 and 313. * 22x BRJ Second Class Twin berth sleeping cars (36 berths in 18 compartments) numbered 212 to 223, 267 to 271 and 299 to 303. * 8x CDF Second Class Club/Dining cars numbered 224 to 229 and 265 to 266. * 11x DF First Class Dining cars (48 seats) numbered 230 to 235, 264, 294 to 295, 304 and 327. * 7x AFC First Class Lounge cars numbered 236 to 239 and 305 to 307. * 13x ARJ First Class Roomette sleeping cars (20 berths in 20 compartments) numbered 240 to 245, 272 to 273 and 282 to 286. * 23x ARL First Class Twinette sleeping cars (18 berths in 9 compartments + conductor's compartment) numbered 246 to 250, 261 to 263, 289 to 293, 308 to 310 and 320 to 326. * 6x ARM First Class Deluxe Twinette sleeping cars numbered 251 to 254 and 287 to 288. * 9x HM Baggage and mail vans numbered 255 to 259, 311 to 312 and 318 to 319. * 1x SSA Governor General's special car numbered 260.

Construction

Fleet details

Individual carriage details

Gallery

References