Bluebird railcars, built at Islington workshops in 1950s, set national comfort level on South Australian rural lines
The Bluebird railcars were headed to Thailand to be turned into scrap metal at one stage.
Image courtesy National Railways Museum, Port Adelaide
Bluebird railcars, built in Adelaide at the Islington railways workshops 1954-59, brought modern airconditioned comfort to South Australian Railways' country services that didn't have the patronage to warrant locomotive-hauled passenger trains. The Bluebrd and their trailers were built to replace the Brill railcars used for that role on country services in 1924.
In 1948, South Australian Railways awarded a contract for 30 sets of engines, gearboxes, electrical assemblies and compressors to the Cummins coportaion in the United States of America and for the eight-speed gearboxes to Cotal of France. All engines were received by May 1952, but problems with the gearboxes meant the first didn't arrive until 1954. Cotal ceased trading in April 1954 with only six gearboxes having been delivered, so an alternative source was found.
Twenty-one Bluebirds were manufactured by Islington workshops. The fleet comprised 11 second-class passenger power cars (250 class), three baggage power cars (280 class) and seven first-class passenger trailer cars (100 class). The Bluebirds' excellent ride, quietness and airconditioning set a new standard in Australian railcars.
The 100 and 250 class were named after birds; the unnamed 280 class baggage cars only carried road numbers. They operated services on the broad-gauge network from Adelaide to Burra, Gladstone, Moonta, Morgan, Mount Gambier, Nuriootpa, Port Pirie, Tailem Bend (extended to Peterbough in 1970) and Victor Harbor.
Each Bluebird was powered initially by a pair of Cummins NHHS-600 engines, e replaced between 1959 and 1965 by Cummins NHHRS engines and again by Cummins NT 855 engines 1975-77. Auxiliary power was provided by a General Motors 3-71 engine, later replaced by a Deutz unit. In 1971–72, cars 101, 105, 106, 250-253 and 257-259 were fitted out as buffets.
In 1978, all Bluebirds were included in the transfer of the assets of South Australian Railways to Australian National. In 1986, a new computer system required the class leaders to be renumbered as the last member of the class: hence 100 became 107, 250 became 261 and 280 became 283.
By 1985, 10 Bluebirds had been fitted with standard-gauge bogies for use on services to Port Pirie, Whyall and Broken Hill. One had 210 poker machines operating on tours to Broken Hill 1988-93.
In 1989, shortly before all South Australian country passenger services were withdrawn, the 100 class trailers began to be used as sitting carriages on the Indian Pacific and The Overland. Some also were converted as crew carriages on Trans-Australia services.
The Bluebirds were headed for the scrapheap in the 1980s when the federal government took over the South Australian Railways tracks that were onsold to an American company and passenger rolling stock was passed to Australian National Railways.
The last Bluebirds were withdrawn from service in January 1993 and placed in store at Mile End and later Islington railway workshops. In 1995, No.257 was donated to the National Railway Museum, Port Adelaide. The Bluebirds, mothballed at Islington workshops, were bought by a group in Thailand who aimed to turn them into scrap metal. That company went broke before it happened.
In 1997, Australian National Railways approached South Australian businessman Barry Martin, whose father was Bluebird driver, to see if he wanted to buy the Bluebirds. With a few other partners, Martin bought the railcars and formed Bluebird Rail Operations that began running the Barossa wine train from Adelaide to Tanunda through the Barossa Valley. The success of the business allowed other Bluebird services to Peterborough, Broken Hill and Bordertown.
Another syndicate took over in 2003 but high insurance costs forced them to shut down two years later. John Geber, owner of Chateau Tanunda, tried to revive the Bluebird service to the Barossa Valley but was frustrated in his efforts to get any political party to give the venture government support.
