Some historical information and background of the AK cars "track recording train", what they are and what they do...
History:
The New South Wales Government Railways have operated a number of loco hauled
Track Recording Cars continuously since 1926. The code "AK" can be related to
the passenger car coding as used by the New South Government railways since
inception. The two letter code was derived from:
Today:
Based in Sydney, the AK cars role is to electronically record track geometry (using a non-contact system on standard gauge track), ride quality, rail corrugation and the location of the overhead wire (contact wire) where electric CityRail services operate. Three cars form the consist - AK2382, AK2383 and AK2384. Each of the cars were former FAM sleeping cars (retaining their original numbers) and all have been modified to some degree from their original construction. They have been track-recording in their current state since 2001. In January 2002, ownership moved to the NSW Rail Infrastructure Corporation (RIC) after RSA was dissolved. Then in 2004, RIC merged with the NSW State Rail Authority to become RailCorp (NSW Government owned corporation). As RailCorp was not to be involved in any commercial work, a solution was required to allow the cars to continue to work for other track owners, mainly ARTC. So in 2006, a 50/50 joint venture operation was created. RailCorp and the Australian Rail Track Corporation - ARTC (Federal Government owned corporation) became joint owners. The JV operates the cars throughout RailCorp, ARTC and some privately owned lines (eg. Some Hunter Valley coal loops, WestNet Rail, Queensland Rail standard gauge track) on the National Standard Gauge network.
The recording system:
The recording system comprises a slightly modified bogie on the Sydney end of car AK2383, a number of accelerometers and a special pantograph. The recording bogie has one axle "unbraked" - it measures rail corrugation and is also used for measuring distance and location. This is done by a device that outputs pulses as the wheel turns (about 3000 pulses for each wheel revolution), which is calibrated to calculate accurate speed and location. In some areas, GPS also assists in automatic location input. A heavy duty aluminium box is mounted on the recording bogie that contains 4 cameras, 4 lasers and gyros. It looks at the rails, and also measures movement in the vertical and horizontal planes. A number of computers process the camera and transducer outputs to give usable information such as gauge (distance between the rails), superelevation (the high difference of the rails), rail cant (tilt of the rails) at intervals, in real-time, between 10km/h and 110km/h. The pantograph is raised in electrified areas of RailCorp and records the location of the contact wire in relation to the track. (The pantograph was removed on 1 April 2011, after it was damaged in the early hours of the morning during an incident. It was subsequently reinstalled on Monday 28 November 2011 after major repairs.). A loco-mounted video camera provides operating staff with image of the track ahead, as used for recording line-side events (bridges, culverts, platforms, turnouts/diamonds, and tunnels) which include these features into the recording.
The cars record all RailCorp, NSW Country Regional Network, ARTC and some privately owned lines at various frequencies. Generally main lines, very heavy tonnage lines or lines that carry passenger services in NSW are recorded every 4 months. Less trafficked mainlines are recorded 6 monthly, while branch lines and most crossing loops on single line areas are recorded annually. From 2007, ARTC's interstate track is recorded every 4 months, while privately owned track is recorded as required by the owner to the same standards as ARTC and RailCorp.
Local track maintenance staff ride the train through their territory and receive immediate reports of problems that exceed defined limits in the track. They also inspect visually from the viewing area on the trailing car for other things like vegetation and drainage problems.
Our travels:
The cars have traversed all NSW operational lines, all ARTC interstate lines including:
In addition, they have worked over the Leigh Creek coal line and power station at Port Augusta, SA, and WestNet Rail's network in Western Australia from Kalgoorlie to Perth, Leonora and Esperance, East Perth terminal, and the freight-only lines to Fremantle and Kwinana. As of Sepetember 2009, the only operational standard gauge line not yet traversed by the AK cars is the Portland line in Victoria (Maroona to Portland). On Tuesday 22 March 2011, locomotive 2210 hauled the AK cars from Benalla to Oaklands and return for the first time. This former Victorian broad gauge branch line was regauged to standard gauge in 2009/10.
The AK cars have also recorded a number of lines in NSW that are now "closed" or "service suspended" to be more politically correct. These include (with locomotives and dates the AK cars last traversed these sections):
*The AK cars were amongst the last 3 or 4 trains to travel these lines, if not the very last train.
Motive power:
Any suitable locomotive/s can haul the train. Before heading out though, a coaxial cable is run along the side of the loco/s, (and any additional vehicles marshaled in the consist like crew cars for relay working in remote areas) used to transmit the loco mounted video camera image back to the cars. The camera is a weather-proof CCTV type camera, with a 12V battery installed in a weather-proof box. Rare-earth magnets are also included in the box for secure mounting. It enables the camera to be quickly positioned and adjusted on the loco. A connection is available at each end of the AK car consist to connect the coaxial cable.
The cars have been hauled by almost every type of mail line loco in use at present, by almost every operator. Even electric locomotives of the 46 and 86 class have also been used, but are not likely to be used in the future.
An interesting trial occurred on Sunday 19 August 2012. 2 x 4 car CityRail "S" sets were used to provide motive power for the AK cars. The sleeping car was omitted for the trial, which ran as 4 car S set/2 AK cars/4 car S set. Two return trips from Central to Hornsby were undertaken. CityRail sets S96 and S68 were used. The aim of the trial was to prove that the S sets can haul the AK cars, with future night runs in the Sydney metropolitan area expected to run in a similar formation.
Some of my S set trial photos here
November 2012: The earlier trial of the S sets being used as "motive power" to haul the AK cars (push/pull) has been fine-tuned and will be used for the 4 night time runs around Sydney. These cover all the underground lines at least once. The electrics are much cleaner than the 48 class diesels used over the last 11 years on the AK metro workings.
Photos of the November 2012 AK cars/CityRail S set runs here.
April/May 2013: A second production run of the AK cars using S sets occurred in April/May 2013. This train was created on Sunday 28 April 2013. This time, the jumper cables were connected through the AK cars with a specially manufactured adaptor cable. The unique combination had 2 motor cars marshalled "elephant style", 2 AK cars, 1 x trailer car and 2 more motor cars. The final consist was C3753, C3875, AK2382, AK2383, T4104, C3985, C3007. Of note, C3007 appeared to be fresh out of the workshops after an overhaul. Some of the other cars are believed to have been withdrawn from service after the AK runs to be scrapped. After testing of the multiple unit wiring, the train ran from Flemington Maintenance Centre to Auburn Maintenance Centre. The sleeping car was stabled at 3801Ltd's site at Eveleigh for the duration of the work. At the conclusion of the recording runs (the ESR during the early hours of Friday 3 May 2013), the train ran to FMC for the shunt to detach the electrics and re-form the AK cars. Some of the electric cars were to be scrapped at the conclusion of the AK workings - they had been taken out of passenger service and were previously set aside for the AK runs. I believe T4711 was at least one of the cars - it was in a poor internal condition and missing some seats.
Photos of the April/May 2013 AK cars/CityRail S set consist can be found here.
Consist:
Loco(s)/AK2382/AK2384/AK2383 or loco(s)/AK2383/AK2384/AK2382. The recording can be carried out in either orientation in either direction. AK2384 can be omitted if necessary, and has on only 2 occasions (during some non-recording test runs) between Goulburn and Tarago, NSW during 2009.
The observation (country) ends of AK2382 and AK2383 are always marshaled at the extremities, while the Sydney end of AK2384 always butts up to the Sydney end of AK 2382.
Recording runs:
The cars can operate for up to about 10 days before requiring fuel. Water is required more frequently, and the waste-water tanks can hold up to around 2 weeks worth of running. NSW trips generally commence out of Sydney's XPT maintenance depot on a Monday morning, and return on a Friday afternoon. Where runs encounter remote areas - like the Central Australian Railway, enough food and drink supplies need to be carried for the entire time, plus a contingency for any possible delays en-route. Up to 9 people can comfortably be accommodated on any overnight run.
Historic moments:
Apart from having the dubious honor of being the last train to traverse some lines, there are some more glamorous moments including:
Published articles:
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