Main Trunk electrification to start next year

Press, 21 December 1981, Page 10

Main Trunk electrification to start next year

PA Wellington The electrification of the Main Trunk line between Palmerston North and Hamilton will start early next year. The Railways. Department plans a quick' start- to the |lBB million project, after approval given by the Government to call tenders. The Assistant General Manager of Railways (engineering and development), Mr Robert Henare, said it was vital that an early start was made. “We will start curve easements and earthworks in the earthworks season, because we must make use of the season. Otherwise we could lose a year without difficulty,” he said. Mr Henare plotted the electrification programme highlights as: • Detailed design and tender documents for overhead electric lines, poles, and locomo-. tives finished by about June next year. • Evaluation and the placings or orders completed by the end of next year.

• Commissioning of the test section of track between Palmerston North and Marton by August-September, 1984.

• Commissioning of the first fully operational section of' track, between Palmerston North and Taihape, by MayJune, 1985.

• Commissioning of the Taihape-National Park section by April, 1986. • Commissioning of the, National Park-Taumarunui section by November, 1986.

• Commissioning the final section, between Taumarunui and Hamilton, by early 1988.

At the same time as earthworks start early next year, the department will start its detailed design specifications for overhead lines and poles. “We have had Japanese experts doing work for us on the traction needs, overhead and sub-station work and we will extend their work to include design specifications,” Mr Henare said. Work on the erection of poles w°uld probably start on the Palmerston North-

Marton test section late in 1983.

“We have to have that section working in 1984 for tests by two locomotives,” Mr Henare said. The Railways’ plans include buying 22 electric locomotives, which will release 28 diesel-electric locomotives for use elsewhere on the railway network.

“We have already made initial approaches with the big manufacturers to get an idea of their capability to work to our specification, which is for a 3000 kW loco on a 3ft 6in gauge. We thought we may have had to work with twin locos more or less permanently coupled, but we are now convinced that it is possible to get that performance out of one loco,” Mr Henare said.

The department would take advice from manufacturers on when to go to tender, but it would probably be towards the end of next year.

Two electric locomotives would be needed for the test section, and for this the

department could either b» ' row them, get two early from the main ord«e or make a temporary ccrversion from two diesel-el( Metric locomotives. To male permanent conversions on (ft'.' big scale would not be ecor »•' mical. -fj Asked about job prosper IsL Mr Henare said most of 260 extra jobs would among contractors employed' for the duration of the project. There could be some permanent jobs within the Railways for maintenance crews once the project was , completed. | Although no research has | been done on the potential I effect of the project on pro- I vincial towns, Mr Henare said there was no doubt it would give those areas an economic boost. “Most of the work will be managed from Palmerston North. That is where we will set up our office and that is . .where the loco depot will be constructed. I think it will have a measure of impact right up the Main Trunk, but we cannot say precisely how much,” he said.