Ferrymead Railway Electric Locomotives

Eo (Ee) Class

EO Class No. 3

The original Eo class were New Zealand Railway's first electric locomotives and were also one of the early orders for the newly formed English Electric Co, This began a long association with that company which is still in force. They were purchased to operate trains over the steeply graded 1 in 33 section between Otira and Arthur's Pass which includes the 8 km Otira Tunnel.

Typically the Eo's operated in groups of three when hauling steam powered freight and passenger trains through the tunnel. Following dieselisation in the 60s, the Eo's continued on freight services until 1968 when the five new locomotives from Toshiba (originally known as the Ea class and later as Eo see below) took over the run.

Eo 3 arrived at Ferrymead in 1972 and was restored to operating order in 1977. The locomotive has had the (removed) cab restored to the original style and carries its original number E 3 on that end of the locomotive. Eo 3 received a Restoration Award from the National Federation of Railway Societies in 1996.

Ea/Eo Class

Ea Class No. 74

The Ea class were introduced in 1968 to replace the English Electric Eo class locomotives on the Otira to Arthur's Pass electrified section. They continued to haul mostly freight trains through the tunnel as passenger services were usually hauled by their own diesel locos and railcars ran under their own power. The Ea's were reclassified Eo as the "Ea" classification was used for wagons.

When heavier coal trains started to run from the West Coast to Christchurch in the 1980s the economics of upgrading the substation at Otira to allow more electric locomotives to be added to the head of each train was reviewed and trials began with specially modified diesel locomotives. For a time a number of withdrawn Dj class locos were based at Otira where they were used to load down these trial runs. Eventually in 1997 the electrification was dispensed with and a ventilation system allowed modified diesel locomotives to haul trains up the steep 1 in 33 grades of the 8 km Otira Tunnel.

After withdrawal, Eo 45 and 74 were transferred to Ferrymead for display and were operated in June 1998  Due to damage done to the other three locomotives on Tranz Rail property, they were also transferred to Ferrymead in November 1999 for storage.

Ec Class

EC Class No. 7

In 1929 the Christchurch to Lyttelton section was electrified in order to reduce smoke in the 2.6 km Heathcote Tunnel. The six Ec class locos were purchased from English Electric exclusively for this work. They worked for more than 40 years until the electric overhead was removed from the section in 1970.

Class leader Ec 7 was transported to Ferrymead in 1972 and stored until 1977 when it was shifted onto the railway tracks. In 1978 part of the Ferrymead line was fitted with overhead cabling (cantenary) and some test runs were done with Ec 7  using the tramway 600V power supply.

Construction of a substation able to supply the railway, tramway and trolley buses was commenced and in November 1988 it was officially opened with trains hauled by Ec 7 on the electrified section of the Railway. Current plans are to complete electrification of the entire main line between the Ferrymead and Moorhouse stations within the next year.

Ed Class

Ed Class No. 103

The prototype Ed class locomotive No. 101 was built by English Electric in the UK and was shipped to New Zealand. It is distinguished from the others of its class by three side stripes made of metal. The remaining nine were assembled by New Zealand Railways in their workshops.

The introduction of the locos allowed the then-new Tawa Deviation and the Wellington-Paekakariki section to be operated by electric locomotives to reduce smoke from steam engines. Two of the class, built at Addington, were initially deployed on the Otira to Arthur's Pass section but proved unsuitable for this work and were transferred north to join the others. The North Island locos were intended for passenger service and had train heating boilers fitted (which were later removed).

The Ed's were the first electric locos in NZ to have quill drive and were equipped for multiple unit operation although it was rare to see two on a train. They were found to be rather hard on the track and maximum speed was reduced in later years.

Diesel traction was introduced on the Wellington to Paekakariki section in 1967 resulted in eight of the class being withdrawn two years later. Ed 103 continued in use until March 1981 when it was put in storage for preservation on the Ferrymead Railway. 103 subsequently arrived at Ferrymead in September 1983. It was painted in 1988 for display purposes, but there are no plans at present to restore it to working order.

Ew Class

EW Class No. 1806

The EW class was introduced in 1952 and were the most powerful locomotive on New Zealand Railways. They were also noteworthy for their articulated bodies and Bo-Bo-Bo wheel arrangement. They were used mainly in the North Island although one or two came south about 1980 to substitute for EA class locomotives which were being rebuilt after an accident.

After tunnel floor lowering between Wellington and Paekakariki in 1967 allowed DAs to work this section, the EWs saw less and less service although occasionally they banked diesel trains over the section. Eventually they were confined to hauling peak hour suburban passenger services around Wellington, until the new EM class units were delivered.

By mid 1983 only one loco was nominally in service as one had been withdrawn and the other five were in storage. In the mid 1980s two locos stored in the South Island were sent to Addington Workshops at Christchurch. The plan was to overhaul them to work on the Otira-Arthur's Pass section but this was considered uneconomic and the locos were written off. EW 1806 was delivered to the Ferrymead Railway for preservation in 1987.

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