Withdrawal
In the mid-1980s, demand for export coal necessitated the introduction of the C class bogie hoppers on Ngakawau-Lyttelton coal trains. These hoppers were heavier than the dedicated LC highsiders previously used, and this led to a reduction in the amount that three EO's could haul through the tunnel. Initial trials with diesel locomotives on their own had failed, and this requiring the retention of the EO's to help the train locomotives pull the trains through the tunnel.
In the early 1990s, rail operator Tranz Rail began experimenting with the use of diesel traction through the Otira Tunnel, using modified DX class locomotives with low-level intakes and modified drawgear (locomotives modified in this manner were later reclassified DXC). It was decided that the use of an extraction fan and tunnel doors would be sufficient to allow diesel operation, and so the decision was made to decommission the Otira electrification which was no longer capable of meeting modern requirements, and was also largely worn out after 74 years of heavy use.
The Otira – Arthur's Pass electrification was decommissioned in 1997 in favour of dieselisation with modified DX locomotives and an upgraded Otira Tunnel ventilation to cope with the hot exhaust gases produced by the locomotives. As a result, the EO class was withdrawn and placed into storage. EO 45 and EO 74 were moved to the Ferrymead Railway in 1998 while EO 39, 51, and 68 were stored at Linwood Locomotive Depot in Christchurch. Unfortunately, the trio at Linwood were stored outside, and became targets for local vandals, prompting Tranz Rail to move them to Ferrymead in 1999.
Unfortunately Ferrymead could not store the locomotives either - they were kept out in the open on the main line connection beside the electric depot at Moorhouse station. With an eye to possibly restoring them for use in Wellington, Tranz Rail had EO's 45, 51 and 74 moved to the Picton locomotive depot for storage in 2004. EO 39 and EO 68 remained at Ferrymead, where Electric Traction Group volunteers repainted EO 39. The ETG had also operated EO 45, 68, and 74 on several notable occasions while they were there.
Read more about this topic: NZR EA Class
Famous quotes containing the word withdrawal:
“A separation situation is different for adults than it is for children. When we were very young children, a physical separation was interpreted as a violation of our inalienable rights....As we grew older, the withdrawal of love, whether that meant being misunderstood, mislabeled or slighted, became the separation situation we responded to.”
—Roger Gould (20th century)
“A bizarre sensation pervades a relationship of pretense. No truth seems true. A simple morning’s greeting and response appear loaded with innuendo and fraught with implications.... Each nicety becomes more sterile and each withdrawal more permanent.”
—Maya Angelou (b. 1928)