SAR & H SATS

This Miscellany opens with a World Speed Record in South Africa of 245 km/h for the 3ft 6in gauge, achieved on the 31st of October 1978! 

While this record run, between Westonaria and Midway, was exceptional on the 3ft 6in gauge, it was regarded by the test engineers – especially Dr. Herbert Scheffel – the designer of the ‘Scheffel’ high-speed bogie – as a test-bed for high-speed trains to be designed for future regular service. On the strength of this test and as an interim arrangement, five new electric locomotives to be classified 12E for 150 km/h service and modified suburban coaches, were built in the SATS Workshops for running a fast inter-city service between Pretoria and Johannesburg on the existing main line via Germiston. In actual service, a daily speed on sections of the run was 160 km/h. It became evident that this new high-speed train, known as the ‘Metroblitz’, was disrupting the other services on the shared main line between Germiston and Pretoria, as it didn't enjoy the luxury of a dedicated line between Johannesburg and Pretoria. A diagram of the class 12E is shown below.

The photos below, show the class 12Es under construction and in an alternative livery of white, red and yellow which I think was rather more attractive than the livery of grey, red and yellow which was adopted.

A couple of photos  show the 'Metroblitz' in actual regular service at Pretoria Station.

Going back to the 1960s, I was always hoping to get a photo E1, the SAR's first electric loco - class 1E No.1 and totally unexpected, I got my wish when 1E No.E1 dropped her load in old Durban Station and set off for stabling at Umbilo.

C.1976, the Pivnic family visited Alec Watson, the Loco Foreman, at the Loco Depot in De Aar. My elder daughter Alice took a few photographs for me because I was working with a cine camera at the time. A few of her fine photos are shown below. The 2nd photo is class 5R No.781 earmarked for the planned Museum and the last photo is class 15A No.1970 named 'Milly'.

In 1969, the Historic Transport Association with the assistance of the SAR’s Deputy General Manager, Mr. R.H. Tarpey and the Publicity & Travel Department, arranged for a special commemorative 30th Anniversary trip of the Blue Train from Johannesburg to Cape Town and return - steam-hauled all the way! 

In Cape Town at Paarden Eiland Loco Depot, a group of the passengers from the train, gatherd next to the class 23 no.2567 which had worked the train from Touws River, for a group photo. The driver was F.P. Theron and fireman D. Mills. In the caption below, the passengers whose names are remembered are listed – those not remembered shown as a question mark.

A full list of passengers and staff on the 1969 special Blue Train is followed by another list of those who can be identified in the photo above.

While on the topic of the special steam-hauled Blue Train in 1969, here are some of the engines that hauled the train, starting with class 16E No.855 – named ‘Johannesburg’ for the section from her namesake City to Klerksdorp. She was specially transferred for the job from her home Shed in Bloemfontein.

This magnificent machine deserves a second photo!  Excuse the young cleaner busy under 855's firebox!

On the next section - Klerksdorp to Kimberley we had class 23 No.2559 'City of Durban' at the head-end.

Going on down the Cape Main Line, we had class 25NC 3444 to De Aar and a condensing 25 No.3500 on to Beaufort West, where we were greeted with the locomotive that would claim the prize for the most immaculate engine on the whole trip. This class 25 condenser No.3496 would haul us from there to Touws River. The last leg was worked by class 23 No.2567 as seen in the earlier photo with the passenger group.

Class 25 No.3496 is shown in the photo below at Touws River on the return leg of the journey to Beafort West.

Three years later, in 1972, the old Blue Train sets were finally replaced by new modern sets of coaches which incorporated new technologies etc. During the testing stages of the new trains, we in the Publicity & Travel Department, were invited on a couple of test trips on the line to Potchefstroom.  The photographs were taken on these trips.

On the 28th of April 1990, senior staff at the Electric Running Shed at Braamfontein got special permission to work the Blue Train from Johannesburg to Pretoria with 25NC No.3476. This loco under their care at the ERS, was also allowed the special concession to work the Trans Karoo on Fridays from Johannesburg to Klerksdorp. In the photo below, 3476 is rushing past Geldenhuis on her way to Pretoria with the pride of the SAR.

On the 5th of May, the special concession was granted again for 25NC 3476 to work the Blue Train from Johannesburg to Pretoria. The two photos below, show her approaching Cleveland and passing through Olifantsfontein.

A 25NC working the 1972 Blue Train was something not to be missed, so a chase to Pretoria was called for and I was rewarded with two more shots of her – one alongside the platform in Pretoria Station and a final shot of her pulling away with the Blue Train headboard still mounted on her smokebox door.

The ‘Metroblitz’ express service between Pretoria and Johannesburg referred to earlier in this issue of ‘SoAR Miscellany’, needs further clarification. The run between the two Cities was an amazing accomplishment as it had to use the existing main line via Germiston, a dog's leg, in 43 minutes!! 

Unfortunately, this amazing service could not be maintained because it negatively affecting the standard speed services on the shared main line. For this reason, the ‘Metroblitz’ service was discontinued and the class 12E electric locomotives were adapted for service on the Blue Train. In the photograph below, we see a pair of them working the Blue Train heading west near Frederickstad.

On another day in September 1992, I photographed a pair of 12Es working the inbound Blue Train from Cape Town passing Westgate.

In 1989, the Senior Staff at the Braamfontein Electric Running Shed got permission to stable one or two class 25NC locos at their Depot to work (as a special concession) the ‘Trans Karoo’ express on a Friday from Johannesburg to Klerksdorp.  Initially, it involved engine 3476 but as time passed, several other engines were used as well.  Then other Loco Depots at Germiston and Springs said they would also like the opportunity to work some passenger trains over limited sections of electrified main line.  This resulted in a ‘guest engine’ occasionally making an appearance on the Friday ‘Trans Karoo’ to Klerksdorp and they were also granted permission to work the ‘Amatola’ passenger train to East London from Johannesburg to Kroonstad on a Friday.  On the 15th of December 1989, Springs Shed prepared 15F 3135 to work the ‘Trans Karoo’ to Klerksdorp. She looked absolutely splendid! The two photos of her working the 'Trans Karoo' were taken at Potchefstroom.

Before moving on to other topics, I feel it is necessary to pay homage to the men at Braamfontein ERS who pioneered the idea of working the ‘Trans Karoo’ express from Johannesburg to Klerksdorp behind steam on a Friday and return on a Saturday. Here are a few photos of their 3476 doing the job. In the first of three photos, we see ‘Griet’ 3476’s name, racing through Boskop with the Station Foreman holding the tablet-holder ready for the driver to grab.

In the next photo, 3476 is racing through the cutting near ‘Crescent Bank’ with the ‘TK’.

A study of 25NC 3476 at rest in Klerksdorp brings this brief but wonderful memory of exciting times, to a close.

In the latter half of March 1990, the S A Railway Museum featured a celebration of the NZASM’s centenary of railways between Johannesburg and Boksburg.  This took the form of running trains with historic locomotives over this section. Three locomotives drew particular attention. The first noteworthy engine was the NZASM ‘14 Tonner’ – a tiny little 0-4-0 known as the ‘Rand Tram’ - that was previously displayed on Pretoria Station and later in the Museum in Johannesburg. The second engine was a NZASM 46-Tonner 0-6-4 tank engine. The 3rd noteworthy engine was previously a Natal Government Railways class C 4-6-0 Kitson and later taken over by ESCOM and named ‘Kitty’.  The little NZASM 0-4-0 was restored to working order by the Steam Locomotive Depot in Springs.  I decided to photograph these trips from the lineside as presented below, showing the little engines in action.

The NZASM ‘14 Tonner’ heading her bigger sister – the NZASM ‘46-tonner, are seen approaching George Goch station on the line to Germiston.

‘Kitty’ the NGR Kitson class C, was seen approaching Riebeeckpark with her Centenary special on 22 March 1990.

The two NZASM engines fancied a race with a local EMU near Denver on their way back to Johannesburg on 24th of March 1990. Here are two shots of the 'race'.

One more shot of ‘Kitty’ doing a fine job hauling her rake of fine suburban coaches in the near-original ‘Orange Express’ livery.

The final photo to illustrate the Museum's NZASM Centenary celebrations shows a fine-looking class 12AR hauling the special rake of coaches near Boksburg East.

The men at Krugersdorp Running Sheds also deserve recognition for what they were doing with some of their steeds in 1990. Driver Don Pretorius was one of them and he had 15F No.3153 as his regular engine at that time.  There was a second 15F No.3016 painted blue which was also very smartly turned out.  Willie Jansen was her driver - thanks to Warick Falconer for helping me out with Willie's name. A class 14AR No.1909 also enjoyed the attention of the Krugersdorp Shed staff – so she is included in this segment.

The blue 15F No.3016.

Class 14AR No.1909.

Mention was made earlier about Germiston Loco Depot also being granted a concession to work the ‘Amatola’ passenger train to East London with steam on a Friday as far as Kroonstad. Here are two photos of the ‘Amatola’ being worked by Piet Steenkamp with 25NC No.3472 named 'Lilly' on 22 September 1990.

Four photo collages follow which give some idea of her amazing service over her working life.  Except for her final days in service on the 'Union Limited' tour train, no colour photos were available to illustrate her varied career in terms of livery colour either.

PROTEA's final days of glory on the 'Union Limited' tourist train.  She looked really resplendent in pre-War 'Union Limited' livery.

Compare the photo above with the images below - PROTEA deserved better!  

Three photos showing PROTEA's sad end courtesy Greg McClellan.

In this photo you can clearly see PROTEA's main underframe actually cut away! 

In the final photo of this blatant destruction, we take a look inside the saloon - I'm at a loss for words..........................

Part of my duties as Assistant Curator of the S A Railway Museum in Johannesburg, was to undertake regular ‘Platteland’ inspection trips, looking for Museum-worthy artifacts to add to our collections. On one such trip in November 1980, to the desolate North-Western Cape, I visited Kootjieskolk and Sakrivier.  At both places a feeling of being totally alone comes over one – not a soul in sight for miles around. I thought that I would share my photos with you, to give you some idea of the feeling of desolation in the area. There wasn’t even a class 19C to keep me company – they had been replaced by diesels already. From far-flung places, the sight of the railway track connected one in spirit at least to civilisation. If my SASSAR pool car (a trusty Toyota) refused to start at either of these places, I wouldn’t be here to tell you the tale. 

On my way back to civilisation, I stopped at Touwsrivier to check on the class 23 mounted on a plinth to celebrate their years of faithful service on the Cape Main Line up to Beaufort West. I was pleasantly surprised – she looked magnificent on her plinth. 

Here is a photo of the coaling plant at Touwsrivier back in the days when class 25s ruled the roost on the line up to Beaufort West.

Who remembers these little 16CRs on station platforms all over South Africa collecting money for the ‘Childrens Homes’.  On some stations we had very special models doing the same thing.  Cape Town comes to mind with a beautiful model of a class 23 in green livery. Pietermaritzburg had two models – a class 1E electric unit and a class 14 steamer.

Rail enthusiasts come in all shapes and sizes!

Would the author of this photo make himself known to me so that I can record the appropriate acknowledgement.

In July 1991, the renowned British artist and rail enthusiast, David Shepherd, visited South Africa and he was entertained on board the Museum’s ‘Union Limited’ special by Ian Pretorius. A few photos of the train on the line between Witbank and Germiston are included here.  The engine in charge of the train was 15F No.3040 and the dining car was non-other than ‘PROTEA’.

Doubling back to 1977, the Railway Society of Southern Africa, Reef Branch, arranged for a commemorative ‘Union Limited’ express to run from Johannesburg to Cape Town to bid farewell to the famed ‘Union Castle’ ships that provided wonderful voyages for 120 years between the UK and South Africa. I made a cine film of this very special trip – chasing the train all the way to Cape Town and for most of the return run as well. So my good wife, Carol handled the still photography and it is a selection of her photos that follow below. We will kick off at Orange River with 16E 858 at the head of the train. But before doing that, it was necessary to work the 16E 858 up to Kimberley from De Aar and in doing so, Alec Watson got 858 booked to work the Drakensberg Express up to Kimberley. Carol got two fine photos of this special working at Witput and again at Graspan en route to Kimberley.

A close-up of the 16E is always welcome!  The replica 'Union Limited' headboard was hand-made for the S A Railway Museum by a staff member of the SAR's  Mechanical Department. It would be displayed in the Museum after the trip.

15E 2878 of Henschel fame was the next engine in the line-up and she was booked to work the next two sections - on to Beaufort West and on again to Touwsrivier.

The next two shots of 2878 are south of Beaufort West heading for Touwsrivier.

Not far from Laingsburg.

The classic shot over the bridge at Laingsburg.

Departing Laingsburg, the 15E and her crew are feeling pretty weary - it was a long haul from De Aar.  Hats off to Alec Watson who had prepared the 'old girl' for this extended run.

GMAM Garratt 4139 was booked to work the special from Touwsrivier down the mountain to Worcester where a 15F 2959 was ready for the final leg to Duncan Dock in Cape Town.

The 15F 2959 had to drop her load in the Exchange Yard, so class S2s Nos.3745 and 3716 handled the 'Union Limited' on the quayside next to the 'SA Vaal'.

The SA Vaal made a fine picture in Duncan Dock - it was difficault to believe that the Mailship Service was drawing to a close.

On the return leg, 15F 2959 took the train out of Cape Town - here she is passing Goodwood.

Carol's next shot of the special was in Tulbagh Kloof - our last sighting of 2959.

The next day 17.9.77, we found 15E 2878 back on the job - in this shot passing Acacia just north of Beafort West.

Riemhoogte in the Karoo, was the next vantage point to photograph the north-bound 'Union Limited'.

The grand finale for us chasing the train,was just north of De Aar with 16E 858 back in charge of the special heading for Kimberley.

Turning to a totally different world we are now going to spend some time in Natal’s narrow gauge world – 2ft gauge around Esperanza and Umzinto. Engine NGG 16 No.85 is seen between shifts at Umzinto Shed.

NGG 16 No.112 is getting some attention from her driver before setting out for Highflats and Ixopo. 

A general scene of the NG Shed at Umzinto - as seen in January 1965.

A scene at Esperanza with an NGG Garratt working a goods load from Umzinto to Highflats and Ixopo.

An NG train winds its way off the dual gauge section from Umzinto to Esperanza, clearing the way for the GCA  with her goods load for Umzinto.

To end off this chapter of SoAR Miscellany, I’m going to wallow in nostalgia by looking at glimpses of what we had in railways in South Africa – sadly all gone

A table-setting in an SAR dining car in the 1970s opens the presentation.!

The Railway Administration had its own laundries for train bedding including this one at Braamfontein.

Corridor service for refreshments was standard on the top-link long-distance passenger trains on the SAR.

In the 1950s, the SAR added a fleet of steel-bodied main line coaches that were mounted on ‘Commonwealth’ torsion-bar bogies that provided an extremely comfortable ride.  Here below is the 2-passenger ‘coupe’ as they were commonly known. Both 1st and 2nd class versions were added to the passenger coach register. These fine coaches were initially provided on the top-link passenger trains.

Remember – ‘Mind the barrow! – mind the barrow’! on the main line platforms at major stations.

The men on the footplate were totally trustworthy – like Charles McLean seen here on his class 16C. Many more names come to mind from the days of the Braamfontein Loco Depot: Bill Thackeray, Joe White, Philip Boardman – yes, those were the days!  Who could not forget Piet Steenkamp from Germiston Loco!

Let us not forget the men on the electric locos and EMUs – in the earlier days they mostly came from the steam side and this applies to the men on the diesels as well. If any reader recognises the men in these photos, please forward their names to me for inclusion in the chapter. I recall Moré Watson - a dear and trustworthy man that was the Senior Driver at the ERS Braamfontein in the 1950s.

Let us not forget the Carriage & Wagon Examiners who kept us safe by regular checking of coach wheels etc., on long-distance rail trips. Who can remember the melodious ringing of the wheels as one’s train would draw slowly into a major station en route to one’s destination. That was the C&W man doing his thing!

Some railways around the globe had a poor reputation for the food served in their restaurant cars but the SAR was not one of them!  The standard of food offered in SAR dining cars was in my experience, generally very good.

The men who prepared the meals in the confines of a relatively small kitchen, produced under trying conditions, what I would call ‘miracle meals’! 

Having already mentioned my general satisfaction with railway food, I ordered a grilled steak for lunch on the 1969 Anniversary Blue Train trip to Cape Town and I can safely say that as a person who has had a fair number of steaks in a wide variety of restaurants in his lifetime, this was the finest grilled steak that I have ever eaten!!! See the actual menu below.

In the photo below, there is Chef Spiros Metaxis and his 2IC Chef Denner in the Royal Train kitchen car No.285. Chef Metaxis played a major role in standardising the food offered on SAR menus.

This is the actual menu served as lunch on the 30th Anniversary Blue Train on the 11th of April 1969. The very special grilled steak is underlined in yellow.

Next, a dinner menu offered on an ordinary main line train to East London in April 1957.

The Blue Train dinner menu served on the special Blue Train to Durban from Johannesburg for the 'Durban July Handicap' horse race on the 2nd of July, 1966.

Finally, my Blue Train dinner menu served on the 3rd of December, 1956 en route to Cape Town.