Puffing Billy Railway

For the world's oldest surviving steam locomotive, built in the UK, see Puffing Billy (locomotive).

For other uses, see Puffing Billy (disambiguation).

Puffing Billy Railway
Victorian Railways NA class 6A at Belgrave station in 2002
Overview
Locale	Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Termini	Belgrave (Puffing Billy) Gembrook
Connecting lines	Belgrave line
Former connections	Upper Ferntree Gully line
Stations	11
Website	puffingbilly.com.au
Service
Type	Heritage Railway
System	Puffing Billy Railway
Services	3 to 6 services daily (except Christmas Day)
Rolling stock	Victorian Railways narrow gauge
History
Commenced	1899
Opened	1900
Completed	1900
Closed	1954
Reopened	from 1962 in stages
Technical
Line length	25.1 km (15.6 mi)
Number of tracks	Single track
Track gauge	2 ft 6 in (762 mm)
Operating speed	24 km/h (15 mph)

The Puffing Billy Railway is a 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) narrow gauge heritage railway in the southern foothills of the Dandenong Ranges in Melbourne, Australia. The railway was one of the five narrow gauge lines of the Victorian Railways which opened around the beginning of the 20th century. It is close to the city of Melbourne and is one of the most popular steam heritage railways in the world, attracting tourists from Australia and overseas. The railway aims to preserve and restore the line and its operation as closely as possible to the way it was in the first three decades of its existence, but with particular emphasis on the early 1920s.

The starting point of the railway is Belgrave station which houses the railway's operations and administration centre. The line runs through Lakeside Station where a visitor information centre provides catering and an indoor interpretive space, and terminates at Gembrook railway station.

In 2022, passengers were allowed to resume the popular practice of sitting on the window ledges of carriages with their legs dangling outside, which had become a core part of the charm of the railway.

History

Excursion train about to leave Upper Ferntree Gully c. 1908

The original line was opened in 1900 to serve the local farming and timber community. It ran to Gembrook from Upper Ferntree Gully station, which was the terminus of the broad gauge line from Melbourne. The section of the line from Upper Ferntree Gully to Belgrave was rebuilt to 5 ft 3 in (1,600 mm) gauge between 1958 and 1962 and is now operated by Metro Trains Melbourne suburban electric trains.

The railway had attracted a number of colloquial names locally before Puffing Billy became the dominant one. Services stopped in 1953 after a landslide blocked the line between Selby and Menzies Creek, and it was formally closed in 1954. At the end of 1954, the Victorian Railways sought to minimise their financial risks if the railway was to reopen. Harold L. Hewett, a teacher at Melbourne Grammar School, organised a rally attended by 400 people at Upper Ferntree Gully station on 4 January 1955 to try to save the railway.

Preservation

Following closure, a few farewell specials operated on the remaining usable section to Belgrave, and these proved very popular. On 1 October 1955, the Puffing Billy Preservation Society was formed to keep the railway running indefinitely. They operated trains to Belgrave until 1958 when services again ceased for conversion to a broad-gauge, electrified suburban line. The society started work on restoring the Belgrave to Lakeside section. Rover Scouts attending the 7th World Rover Moot held at Wonga Park assisted in the clearing of the line between Belgrave and Menzies Creek as part of the event's community service component. On 28 July 1962 trains resumed running between Belgrave and Menzies Creek.

Operations were extended over the remainder of the original line, opening to Emerald on 31 July 1965 and Lakeside on 18 October 1975 before reaching Gembrook, which was opened on 18 October 1998. The first trains to Gembrook carried children from the primary schools along the Belgrave–Gembrook corridor, two of which directly adjoin the railway and the remainder not more than a street away.

The railway operates daily (except for Christmas day) between Belgrave and Lakeside, with services to Gembrook on Sundays. Its infrastructure is restored and recreated to reflect the heyday of the line between 1900 and 1930, and is operated with some of the railway practices from the Victorian Railways of that era, such as using the "Staff and Ticket" safeworking system. In the 2016/17 financial year, Puffing Billy carried 487,237 passengers, up more than 60,000 from the previous financial year.

Structure

Victorian Railways NA class 6A at Lakeside station

The Monbulk Creek trestle bridge

When the Puffing Billy Preservation Society was formed in 1955, the line was still under the control and ownership of the Victorian Railways (V.R.). The society arranged for the V.R. to run the train on weekends and holidays, with the Society guaranteeing the V.R. against losses from insufficient ticket sales. Society volunteers took the role of conductors, checking tickets on the train, and fund-raising. This arrangement continued until the Upper Ferntree Gully to Belgrave section was closed in 1958.

When the line reopened in 1962 (between Belgrave and Menzies Creek), society volunteers took a larger role, manning stations, selling and checking tickets, and doing non-safety-critical maintenance on the train, and track maintenance under the supervision of a V.R. ganger. Ticket revenue went into an account on which the V.R. drew to pay for their staff involved in running the line.

The Victorian Railways were not in the preservation or tourism business, and the arrangement was less than ideal, so the Victorian Government passed the Emerald Tourist Railway Act 1977 (No. 9020), which set up the Emerald Tourist Railway Board as a statutory authority to take over ownership and operation of the railway from the V.R. from 1 October 1977. The act required that the Board have between five and ten members, four of whom were to be nominated by the Puffing Billy Preservation Society. The ETRB was defined as the operator of the Railway, with the Puffing Billy Preservation Society providing the volunteer support.

All volunteers on the railway were directly engaged by the ETRB and were required to register and complete a range of induction processes. The railway still relied heavily on the volunteers that welcome guests from all parts of the world and are highly trained to supply the safe and successful operation of the Railway.

There are many roles required to operate a heritage steam railway in a modern compliance world. These include signalmen, guards, firemen, engine cleaners, drivers, track patrollers, fire patrollers, safeworkers, Station-masters, conductors, booking clerks, refreshment staff, gardeners, maintenance workers, researchers, and administration. Staff also operate across management, finance, HR, OH&S, Child Safety, workshops, way and works, and operational staff to support the volunteer roles.

In 2022, the Emerald Tourist Railway Act 1977 was replaced by a new Act called the Puffing Billy Railway Act 2022. That move was partly influenced by the recommendations of the 2018 Ombudsman Report into the activities of Robert Whitehead at Puffing Billy Railway and other Victorian heritage railway groups. The new act replaced the ETRB with the Puffing Billy Railway Board, the role of which was "to operate, manage and maintain the infrastructure and assets of the Puffing Billy Railway". The running of trains services remained largely in the hands of volunteers organised by the Puffing Billy Preservation Society, and they continue to be at the core of the day-to-day operation of the railway.

Operation

Victorian Railways NA class 7A at Menzies Creek on 12 April 1971 with fireman clearing ash from the smokebox

The main offices of the railway are at Belgrave, along with the locomotive running shed and locomotive workshops, and track maintenance operations. Other offices are located at Emerald). Trains from Belgrave generally travel to Lakeside, with some services extended to Gembrook. The railway operates every day of the year except Christmas Day.

The train has a maximum operating speed of 24 km/h (15 mph), with its average speed being 16 km/h (10 mph).

A popular feature of a ride on Puffing Billy was sitting on the ledge of the open-sided carriages. After a crash between a train and a minibus at the Menzies Creek level crossing on 5 March 2018, this practice was suspended. The suspension was permanently lifted on 4 February 2022.

There is a narrow-gauge railway museum at Menzies Creek station, which reopened in March 2022 after re-development. It is open on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Scandal

In 2014, Robert Whitehead, a long-serving volunteer on the railway, was convicted of multiple sexual offences against young boys. He died in prison in 2015 while serving a sentence of more than 8 years. Whitehead had been convicted and jailed in 1959 for molesting a boy scout, but he returned to his job on the railways at the request of Murray Porter, a state government minister. He joined the Puffing Billy Railway as a volunteer in 1961 and rose to become Secretary of the Puffing Billy Preservation Society. He used his position to meet and molest boys into the 1990s. In 2018, the ombudsman's report on the case found that the board of the railway had known about Whitehead's activities and had actively protected him. Significant changes have occurred at the railway since the Ombudsman Report that includes implementing the recommendations and supporting an open and transparent complaints and feedback process. In 2022, a new Victorian Parliament Act was passed that replaced the Emerald Tourist Railway Board with the Puffing Billy Railway Board. The Act modernised the governance of the railway which was noted by the Ombudsman to have failed.

Locomotives and rolling stock

Locomotives

NA7 crossing the Monbulk trestle bridge

Puffing Billy Garratt G42 01

The railway owns all the surviving Victorian Railways narrow-gauge locomotives and has restored all but one to operating condition, although not all are running at any one time. This includes 2-6-2T NA class locomotives 3A (unrestored), 6A, 7A, 8A, 12A and 14A, and G class Garratt locomotive G42.

In December 2019 NG G16 Garratt locomotive 129 imported from South Africa entered service. It had been purchased in 1996, and was rebuilt and re-gauged for the Puffing Billy. It complements the operational capabilities of G42. The NA class locomotives are limited to pulling a maximum of 12 carriages, while the Garratts can haul up to 18.

The railway has a number of smaller steam locomotives at museum at Menzies Creek, either on static display or in operating condition. These include a Peckett 0-4-0ST, 2 Decauvilles (one is a 0-4-0T, and the other a 2-4-2ST) both from the West Melbourne Gasworks, and a Climax geared locomotive from the Tyers Valley Tramway. They occasionally operate special trains and at events such as Thomas the Tank Engine days.

Puffing Billy Railway also offers driver experience days on the smaller steam engines. The Climax engine has been restored for this purpose as it has a large driving cab and is unique in Australia.

The railway operates three diesel locomotives which are used on days of total fire ban, plant or works trains, or when too few steam locomotives are available, including in emergencies. D21 is former Tasmanian Government Railways V class V12, while DH5 and DH59 are ex Queensland Railways DH class. All were regauged and rebuilt for the railway. Diesel Rail Tractor (NRT 1) is mainly used for shunting rolling stock at the carriage workshops.

VR Original

Image	Number	Type	Builder	Serial number	Year built	Status	Notes
	3A	NA class 2-6-2T	Newport Workshops		1900	Display	The first of the VR-built NA class locomotives, built at the Victorian Railways Newport Workshops, utilising spare parts supplied with Baldwin-built 1A. Stored disassembled for future restoration. In 2015 it was placed on static display at the Menzies Creek Museum. In June 2020 it was moved to Lakeside for Display in the new Discovery Centre.
	6A				1901	Operational	Has been restored as near as practicable to "as new" condition (1901–1906) of two-tone green with white lining, low-height bunker, extended side tanks, etc. It was fitted with a Lempor Exhaust System between 2002 and 2017, now taken out of traffic in March 2019 for a D exam and Overhaul and as of January 2021 is awaiting new boiler tubes prior to reassembly, but will return to service in December of 2023.
	7A				1905		Has been restored as near as practicable to as new condition (1905–1910) of Canadian Pacific red & brown with white lining, low-height bunker, small head lamps, etc.
	8A				1908		Has been restored as near as practicable to its 1923–1937 era of all-over black, modified front end with tapered smoke stack, large head lamps, extended bunker, etc.
	12A				1912		Has been restored as near as practicable to its 1911–1921 era of Canadian Pacific red & brown with white lining and low-height bunker, however has been given the large-style headlamps rather than the small head lamps, plus a full-width ash chute rather than the narrow ash chute.
	14A				1914		Has been restored as near as practicable to its later era (1938–1946) of all-over black, extended bunker, large head lamp, guard irons instead of cow-catchers, etc. It underwent conversion to oil firing during 2017 and testing in early 2018 before full return to service.
	G 42	G class 2-6-0+0-6-2	Beyer, Peacock & Company	6268	1926		The last remaining G class Garratt locomotive from the Victorian Railways. Restored to steam in 2004 as near as practicable to its 1946–1954 era of all-over black with extended cab roof, original style smoke stack, kerosene-style lamps, cow-catcher, mid-height marker lamps, etc. G42 was withdrawn in 2021 for a major overhaul, And is currently stored in the Menzies Creek Museum on display until the time comes for it to enter the workshops at Belgrave.

Other steam

Image	Number	Type	Builder	Serial number	Year built	Status	Notes
	129	NG/G16 2-6-2+2-6-2	Beyer, Peacock & Company	7430	1951	Operational	South African Railways 2 ft (610 mm) gauge NG/G16 Garratt locomotive, imported to Australia in 1996. Rebuilt and re-gauged to 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge as a backup for G 42. Entered service in December 2019.
	1694	Climax, Two-truck	Climax Locomotive Works	1694	1928	Operational	Climax geared steam locomotive, the last built and the only one ever built to 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge. Purchased by the Forests Commission Victoria and used on the Tyers Valley Tramway to haul timber trains until 1949. After decommissioning the locomotive in the 1950s it was stored (abandoned) at the State Sawmill site at Erica until it was transferred to Puffing Billy's museum for static display in 1965. Restored to steam by the PBR in the 1980s. A major overhaul has been finished and it returned to service in September 2013.
	861 Decauville	2-4-2ST	Couillet for Decauville		1886	Stored Operational	Previously owned by Melbourne Metropolitan Gas Company for use at the West Melbourne Gasworks. Extensively rebuilt in the 1970s as part of an attempt to restore a section of the Walhalla railway line. Privately owned and leased to the PBR. Used on Footplate Experience Trains. 861 is currently on display in Menzies Creek Museum pending a boiler inspection.
	986 Carbon	0-4-0T	Couillet for Decauville		1890	Undergoing Overhaul	Previously owned by Melbourne Metropolitan Gas Company for use at the West Melbourne Gasworks. Used at a park in Frankston in the 1970s. Privately owned and leased to the PBR. New Boiler fitted in 2013 and due to return to traffic once final works have been completed.
	Peckett 1711 "Sir John Grice"	0-4-0ST	Peckett & Sons	1711	1926	Under Overhaul	Previously owned by Melbourne Metropolitan Gas Company for use at the West Melbourne Gasworks. Often used at PBR decorated for Thomas the Tank Engine events. It has also run in an alternate guise as Peter Peckett from 1991 to 1999.
	127	NG G16 2-6-2+2-6-2	Beyer, Peacock & Company			Display	South African Railways 2 ft (610 mm) NG G16 Garratt locomotive previously used on the Banana Express, imported to Australia in 2012. Currently in storage as a source of spare parts for sister locomotive 129 and for possible future rebuild and regauging to 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge as a second backup for G 42. Currently on display in the Menzies Creek Museum.
	14 Shay	Shay Two-truck	Lima Locomotive Works		1912	Display	Shay geared locomotive formerly used on the Alishan Forest Railway in Taiwan, gifted by Taiwan Government in 1972. On Display in the Menzies Creek Museum.
	3 Sub Nigel	0-6-0WT	Orenstein & Koppel	12331	1931	Display	Formerly used by the Sub Nigel Gold Mining Company in South Africa. On Display in the Menzies Creek Museum.
	1 "Delta"	0-6-2T	Perry Engineering	7967.50.4	1950	Display	Ex-Qunaba Mill
	4	0-4-2ST	Hudswell Clarke	1559	1925	Display	Ex-Pleystowe Mill
	9	0-6-0	Hudswell Clarke	1863	1952	Operational (Light steam only)	Ex-Macknade Mill

Carriages

The mainstay of the carriage fleet are the 15 NBH open-sided carriages built specially for tourist traffic on the Gembrook line by the V.R. between 1918 and 1919, and a further 10 vehicles built to the same or similar design in the preservation era. However, there are also a number of enclosed carriages, both saloon and compartment cars. In addition, four carriages were obtained from the Mount Lyell Railway in Tasmania after its closure in 1963, and regauged and reclassified for Puffing Billy use, numbered 1 to 4 NBL. They are named Mt Lyell, Rinadeena, Teepookana, and Dubbil Barril respectively, reflecting their Tasmanian heritage. During the 1980s and 1990s they were all upgraded to first class carriages, recoded 1 to 4 NAL, and are now primarily used on the Luncheon train and Dinner trains.

Several carriages have been temporarily converted to include a guard's compartment. A number of NQR low-sided goods trucks have also been modified for passenger use, making them similar to the NBH carriages. Another three NQR trucks have been fitted with seats but no roof and are only used during the summer peak season.

Number	Image	Year built	Builder	Status	Notes
NB				Operational

Goods vehicles and brake vans

Representatives of all classes of goods vehicles and brake vans (including combined brake van and passenger carriage) used on the narrow gauge lines of the Victorian Railways are to be found on the Puffing Billy line, and are used for works trains, storage, and occasional heritage trains recreating the look of trains in the 1920s.

In popular culture

Solo One was a TV police drama series produced by Crawford Productions that screened in 1976, filmed and set in Emerald, Victoria, about a local (fictional) policeman dealing with crime in the town, however it was aimed at a younger audience than most Australian TV police dramas. It featured Puffing Billy in the opening credits scene as well as being part of most story-lines.

The ABC children's drama Come Midnight Monday was filmed in and around Belgrave, Emerald & Cockatoo and featuring Puffing Billy locomotive 12A—renamed "Wombat"—as the main character.

Filming of A Country Practice in the fictional town of Wandin Valley (the towns of Wandin, Wandin North and Wandin East are however 30 km north of Emerald) was moved to Emerald when the show moved to Network 10, and occasionally featured Puffing Billy.

The 1966 television special The Seekers at Home filmed a segment at Puffing Billy, where The Seekers sing "Morningtown Ride" to a group of children.

Filming of Round the Twist was in and around Belgrave to Lakeside.

In 1997, the soap opera Neighbours filmed scenes set on and around the train. The characters of Darren Stark and Libby Kennedy lost young Louise Carpenter and chased after the train en route to Belgrave on a motorbike to catch up with her after discovering she had boarded it.

Line guide

Regular Puffing Billy services usually only stop at stations shown in bold print at the right. Stops at other stations can be made by request. Distances are from Southern Cross station.

Bibliography

• Speed Limit 20— history of Victorian Government Narrow Gauge Lines, Edward A. Downes, ARHS(V), 1963

External links

• Official website
• Emerald Tourist Railway Act 1977 (No. 9020)