Locos make final journey
What made the journey a first from Gauteng was that the locomotives were moved by road, using nine lowbed abnormal load vehicles including a 152 wheel multi-axle trailer.
In a historical first for preservation rail in Gauteng, several 3”6’ steam locomotives said their final goodbye to Reefsteamers last week.
Their destination was Sandstone Heritage Trust outside Ficksburg in the Eastern Free State.
The locomotive engines are assets of Sandstone Heritage Trust, which were leased to Reefsteamers.
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Dave Richardson from Sandstone told the NEWS that there had been growing concerns about the safety of the locomotives.
He said the decision to relocate the locomotives was taken following the liquidation of the Germiston-based club.
“The pandemic killed off many things and running preservation rail is expensive. For nearly two years since the liquidation of the club, Sandstone has paid for security to protect the assets.
“The rail infrastructure around the depot was being stolen at an alarming rate and we were worried about the safety of the assets,” Dave said.
What made the journey a first from Gauteng was that the locomotives were moved by road, using nine lowbed abnormal load vehicles including a 152 wheel multi-axle trailer.
“The moving of these giants was carefully planned and needed massive resources to make it happen,” Dave said.
This is only the second time in South African rail history such a move has been undertaken.
The first, also undertaken by Sandstone, took place in August when the heritage trust relocated its assets from Bloemfontein.
The mammoth task will ensure that the engines, tankers and a crane are preserved at the Sandstone farm, which has become a hub for preservation rail in South Africa.
The team behind the move planned to hit the roads by Thursday last week but permit delays meant most of the engines would only reach the farm, some 400km away, on Tuesday this week.
Among those moved was Lyndie Lou, the first locomotive acquired by Sandstone’s Wilfred Mole.
After the acquisition from Randfontein, the engine was fully restored and lovingly named after his wife.
Weighing in at over 150 tonnes, the massive Garratt engine was used by Rovos Rail as well as Reefsteamers for regular trips.
Class 15F 3052 “Avril” NBL 25591/1944, a Rhodesia Railways DE2 Diesel Electric RR No. 1207 English Electric 2238/1955, Cowans and Sheldon steam crane 355/1965 SAR No. 578 also formed part of the move.
Avril was gifted to artist David Shepherd in 1991 and according to Wilfred, was entrusted to Sandstone as one of Shepherd’s dying wishes.
“Sandstone is a safe place for the steam locomotive giants but it is unlikely that they will be used again once they arrive at the farm,” Dave said.
He explained that all the locomotives moved ran 3’6” gauge and that the farm featured a private 2-ft narrow gauge.
Wilfred said that while it was sad to see the locomotives leave Germiston, the risk of leaving them behind was just too high.
“I’ve been coming here for 25 years but I don’t think I’ll ever come back now. I have no reason.”
He added that the stolen rail infrastructure around the depot was deplorable.
“Preservation rail has become all but obsolete and the engines we’re taking to the farm are valuable and rare.”
Extensive planning
The 400km trip from Germiston to Sandstone would not be without its challenges.
To get the trains on the trucks, specially made tracks were assembled before each train was loaded.
Additionally, a section of the road, which leads to the Reefsteamers Depot snakes through a narrow tunnel.
The gravel road through the tunnel had to be dug out to allow for the loaded trucks to pass underneath without damaging the large engines.
The travelling route was meticulously planned and would take the N3 to Villiers.
From there, the trucks would need to connect to old travel routes to avoid bridges on the N3, which are too low for the vehicles and cargo to pass under.
The route then passed Warden towards Bethlehem and finally Ficksburg.
Road vs rail
Dave said that to move the locomotives by rail would have been nearly impossible.
“The cost to do it is exorbitant and there are sections of the railway, which has become impassable due to a lack of maintenance and theft.”
Adding to this, the rail lines do not pass the farm directly, which would have meant the use of trucks to move them to the farm anyway.
The assets, which remain at Reefsteamers, are the property of Transnet.
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