The InterCity Express was a class of electric multiple units manufactured by Walkers, Maryborough for

Queensland Rail Queensland Rail (QR) is a railway operator in Queensland, Australia. Owned by the Queensland Government, it operates local and long-distance passenger services, as well as owning and maintaining approximately 6,600 kilometres of track and relate ...

in 1988/89. They were built to operate the ''

Spirit of Capricorn The Spirit of Capricorn was a long distance passenger rail service in Queensland, Australia, Operated by Queensland Rail between 1988 and 24 May 2003. It operated between Rockhampton, Queensland and the Capital of the state, Brisbane at its sta ...

'' service on the North Coast line service between

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

and Rockhampton. Since being superseded on this service, they were used on Sunshine Coast line services from Brisbane to Gympie North until mid-2021. As of November 2021, all units have been retired from service.

History

To operate the ''

'' between

and Rockhampton on the North Coast line that was in the process of being

electrified Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source. The broad meaning of the term, such as in the history of technology, economic history ...

, in 1987

ordered 16 electric multiple unit carriages from Walkers. They were to be eight semi-permanently coupled pairs of a driving motor car (EMD) and a non-driving motor car (EMM) that were planned to operate as four-carriage sets. Electrical equipment was provided by

ASEA ''Allmänna Svenska Elektriska Aktiebolaget'' (English translation: General Swedish Electrical Limited Company; Swedish abbreviation: ASEA) was a Swedish industrial company. History ASEA was founded in 1883 by Ludvig Fredholm in Västerås a ...

(later

ABB ABB Ltd. is a Swedish- Swiss multinational corporation headquartered in Zürich, Switzerland. The company was formed in 1988 when Sweden's Allmänna Svenska Elektriska Aktiebolaget (ASEA) and Switzerland's Brown, Boveri & Cie merged to crea ...

). In 1988 an additional four trailer cars (EMT) were ordered to allow the sets to be built up to five or six carriages. The first trials were conducted in May 1988, before the first entered service on Sunshine Coast line services from Brisbane to

Nambour Nambour is a rural town and locality in the Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Nambour had a population of 11,187 people. Geography Nambour is north of the state capital, Brisbane. The town lies in the sub ...

, operating in multiple with

Electric Multiple Units An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number ...

. On 5 February 1989, they began to operate through to Gympie North. On 3 July 1989, they began to operate ''Spirit of Capricorn'' services to Rockhampton. In 1998, the faster

Electric Tilt Train The Electric Tilt Train is the name for two identical high-speed tilting trains operated by Queensland Rail on the North Coast line from Brisbane to Bundaberg and Rockhampton which entered service in November 1998. History In March 1993, Qu ...

replaced most ''Spirit of Capricorn'' services, with a Saturdays only service continuing. They briefly operated on the Gold Coast line following its extension to

Nerang Nerang is a town and suburb in the City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. In the , Nerang had a population of 16,864 people. Geography The Nerang River flows through the locality from south to east, passing through the town. The river u ...

in May 1998 and Robina in November 1998. They were used on the Corinda-Yeerongpilly line from January 2000 after the withdrawal of the

Queensland Railways 2000 class rail motor The 2000 class railcars are a class of self-propelled railcars built by Commonwealth Engineering, Rocklea for the Queensland Railways between 1956 and 1971. History In 1956, two 2000 class railmotor prototypes were constructed by Queensland ...

. In 2001, all were fitted with power operated equipment to close the doors. With the withdrawal of the remaining ''Spirit of Capricorn'' service from May 2003, they ceased operating north of Gympie North. All were to be eventually replaced by the

New Generation Rollingstock The New Generation Rollingstock (NGR) is a class of individually-propelled carriages ("electric multiple units") manufactured by Bombardier Transportation in Savli, India for the Queensland Rail City network that entered service between Decembe ...

with the first withdrawn in January 2019. By February 2020, only units 153 and 157 were at

North Ipswich Railway Workshops North Ipswich Railway Workshops is a heritage-listed former Australian railway workshop at North Street, North Ipswich, Queensland. It was built from 1878 to 1980s. It is also known as the Workshops Rail Museum. It was added to the Queensland He ...

in storage. As of November 2021, all ICE units have been retired from operations. The future of these units is currently unknown.

Fleet details

Each half-set numbered 151-158, comprised a semi-permanently coupled driving motor car (EMD) and a non-driving motor car (EMM) that could be built up to five or six carriages with the addition of trailer cars (EMT). In their latter years they generally operated as five car sets. In November 1990 an eight car set was operated.

Named carriages

Driving motor cars 5155 and 5156 were named ''

City of Brisbane The City of Brisbane is a local government area (LGA) which comprises the inner portion of the metropolitan area of Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, Australia. Its governing body is the Brisbane City Council. Unlike LGAs in the other mainlan ...

'' and ''

City of Rockhampton The City of Rockhampton was a local government area in the Central Queensland region of Queensland, Australia, encompassing most of the suburban area of the regional city of Rockhampton. The city covered an area of , and existed as a local go ...

'' to mark the commencement of the ''Spirit of Capricorn'' service in July 1989.ICE Cars named ''Transit Australia'' September 1989 page 203

References

External links

Specifications
{{QueenslandLocos, state=collapsed Electric multiple units of Queensland Queensland Rail City network Train-related introductions in 1988 25 kV AC multiple units