Active Garratt Locomotives 2024/5
At any time, the number of active Garratt locomotives will be quite small. Trevor Heath tries to keep track of them and this is his assessment of the situation for 2025 (27th January 2025,).
The 2 FCAF Garratt's in Ushuaia are in daily service with record numbers of passengers arriving off cruise ships.
ASG G33 at Queenscliff in Victoria continues to make solid progress towards a first steaming with a successful boiler hydro in late 2024.
AD60 6029 now part of the NSWGR collection based at Thirlmere only operates in the Australian winter months as during the Australian summers due to it being coal fired, there is a line-side fire setting risk. It is expected to operate for about 10 days per year for the foreseeable future.
NG/G16 129 had been in regular use on the Puffing Billy Railway, usually on the heavily loaded Saturday lunch time train. Recent news of it being used has not been seen.
G42 is in the Menzies Creek Museum.
NG/G16 127 the last steam locomotive to operate on the Alfred County Railway in South Africa and delivered to the Puffing Billy Railway in March 2012, is currently displayed inside the same Menzies Creek Museum awaiting a decision on funding for a rebuild to operate on 2’6” gauge. It has however received a recent coat of original color black paint to replace the sun faded green applied in South Africa.
The prototype Garratt K1 is now based at the Statfold Barn Railway near Tamworth in central England. It can be found here or, on the Welsh Highland Railway when moved there for special events. As of January 25th 2025, it is to be found stored on the WHR.
Broad gauge N class 81, restored in 2006 and again in 2018, was last recorded in steam on September 22nd 2019 at the Kharagpur locomotive works in Bengal. Operating authority now rests with the catering arm of India Railways. There are no plans and no current funding for it to operate.
The 59th 5918 remains stored in the main works in Nairobi. Kenya Railways has from time to time received enquiries for its operation. Kenya Railways now charges a fee to quote the cost of repairs and operation to discourage the “dreamers”. The 5930 was moved from the museum to the Uhuru Gardens for display leaving the museum without a 59th class. There are however, three other Garratt’s in the museum including the modern 60th 6006.
RR 14A 509, is looking very tidy, stored under cover in grey primer and basically complete, no major work has been done to for over three years in Plimmerton save fitting of all the number and builders’ plates plus a few other smaller items. This is due to other projects but mainly involving the refurbishment and official inspection of a passenger car fleet for main line operation which has become a ten-year project in itself. It is unlikely after the news that the regulators are calling for more inspections, that 509 will be made ready for main line operation. There is still the remote possibility that it will be steamed in the yard at Plimmerton if the air brake and oil firing conversion work is completed.
The GMA/M 4083 has been moved to Mercer south of Auckland where the trackwork has been modified to give main line access while site clearance, filling and leveling continues for a new museum proceeds. Last steamed in an Auckland yard in 1997, there is no possibility of 4083 operating on the main lines of New Zealand due to its size.
RR 15A 398 based with Steam Incorporated at Paekakariki is being slowly worked on after the decision was made to return it to steam for use only in the yard at their depot. There is no published scope or timeline for this work, enquiries drew a hostile response. The locomotive was, in theory, in operating condition when it arrived in New Zealand in 2011. A full boiler exam and overhaul will be the minimum requirement from any insurance company, even for yard operation.
Creighton is now under new management. GMA/M 4126, the only Cape Gauge Garratt in operating condition in the entire country has been cosmetically refurbished and a new boiler ticket issued but no notice of use has been seen.
Paton's Country Railway at Ixopo under the same new management as Creighton. The privately owned NG/G16 116 has not operated since completion of its boiler overhaul in March 2017. The NG/G11 52, the boiler is off the cradle in pieces.
Sandstone which has operated on just two long weekends a year in recent times - unless a private charter was booked - Easter and November. NG16 113 and 153 will be the modern Garratt power with 88 now withdrawn after a boiler inspection. Sandstone has also consolidated its Cape Gauge locomotive collection at the estate with GMA/M’s 4079 and 4114 on display (only) at the farm.
At Humewood Road, Port Elizabeth, the death of Apple Express director, Nerina Skuy from Covid 19 caused a huge setback to the operation. The overhaul of NG/G16 131 still owned by the THF will be a decision for the winners of the perpetually open public tender to operate the railway to decide upon.
There is a major survey of all THF owned locomotives in progress and all those not leased to third parties for preservation (with new rules on the condition they must be kept in) or not on the official preserved list such as those at George Museum or stored in Blomfontain yard are expected to be auctioned off, potentially for scrap. This includes many Garratts and may total 100 steam locomotives albeit mostly hulks today after theft of all non-ferrous metals including journal boxes which prevents movement from where they stand.
At Paddock, the last two NG16, 139 and 151 that were saved from the mass scrapping in 2017 have now themselves been scrapped.
Garratt locomotives 282F-0421 and 462F-0401 were stored out of use for many years then evicted from their base in Lleida. They have now been transferred by rail about an hour south to the museum at Mora La Nova where it is hoped at least one will be put back into operating condition.
At the Welsh Highland Railway NG/G16 87, 130 and 143 were in service all season in 2024. 138 requires a full overhaul and is not expected back in service for several years due to a desire to spread out the ten-year boiler ticket expiration dates. 140 the boiler and power units in particular, are a source of rotable spare parts. The railway is in need of replacement power unit frames for 87 and may overhaul a later set for the purpose. Freshly overhauled NG15 134 will enter service in 2025 and will of course, while providing variety, eliminate the certainty of finding a Garratt at the head of a regular passenger train.
At the Vale of Rheidol Railway NG/G13 60 is in regular service
NG/G13 50 remains in operating condition and is used occasionally at Hempstead in Texas.
The Bushtracks dinner train operation is based in Livingstone. They maintain a train on both sides of the border. The operational locomotive RR14A 523 has always been based in Livingstone and commutes to Victora Falls when needed. This meant 523 was in operation year-round up to five days a week.
On December 28th 2024 after working a Victoria Falls dinner train, the locomotive worked light engine back to Livingstone. When crossing the facing point at the Bushtracks dinner train siding about 1 km north of the Victoria Falls bridge, the locomotive’s rear power unit split the point, the locomotive rear power unit derailed and the locomotive stopped. After stopping, the entire locomotive toppled over to the left.
Zambia Railways slewed the track around the incident and sent their crew to help with recovery. It then transpired that there was no working crane on the ZR network. Therefore, the two tanks were craned off to the nearby road and returned to the yard on a truck. The two power units were re-railed and towed back to the yard by a third-party diesel. The boiler unit was stripped of all fittings, superheaters and the superheater header. All were returned to the yard by road.
As of January 15th, there was no workable solution to lifting the 523-boiler unit from where it lay although several ideas were under discussion with ZR, NRZ and third parties. These ideas included bringing the NRZ crane up from Bulawayo, building a road up to the boiler unit and lifting it with a road crane.
At the yard, all hands turned to making RR14A 520 operational using all the parts salvaged from 523. This work is in progress as of January 25th 2025 against significant upcoming train reservations.
Enquiries were made to rent a ZR diesel in the short term only to discover ZR diesels are now a very rare item with up to 50 third party diesels now in use in country.
Over the years there have been on off discussions with Mrs. Bell said to be the owner of RR14A 512 and 516. There was already a handshake agreement that Bushtracks could use parts off 512 still stored in Victora Falls with a condemned boiler. After the 523 incident the discussion became very urgent if Bushtracks is to salvage their dinner train business with available resources. This discussion was getting close to an agreement by January 15th 2025 but it was held up with the discovery that Mrs. Bell was not the sole owner of the two locomotives. 516 has been stored in the Bulawayo Museum for close on 30 years.
The Bulawayo steam shed is now officially closed. All staff dismissed. Security is employed around the P15 shop where RR15A 395 is kept and said to be serviceable if there was anyone to work on and operate it.
The Bulawayo Museum exhibits are now in dire condition.
A mass scrapping of the more than 50 hulks laying around the old steam shed can be expected.
At Hwange a boiler survey was conducted in late 2024 on RR15A 392 (Hwange 10) and the positive results passed to mine management with a view to receiving funding to put the locomotive back into operation. As of late January 2025, this approval had not been received. The reason for this activity is the increasing daily rental cost of a NRZ diesel to assemble trains and deliver them to Thomson Junction - which is now said to be $500 USD a day (which some would say is a bargain).
Activity in the Victoria Falls area is listed under Zambia.