User:Steamtostay/Victoria Railways motor car transport

The Victorian Railways and successors used a variety of railway wagons for the transport motor cars.

History
When the need arose for a form of motor car body transportation between Melbourne and Adelaide in 1958, a new vehicle class was created. A single wagon was built using the underframe of a scrapped Swing Door suburban train, with skeletal truss sides and appropriate tie downs. AA 1 was built using the underframe of a scrapped swingdoor suburban train, with skeletal sides and appropriate mountings.

This vehicle was interesting because it had steam engine tender bogies and was built on a carriage underframe, swingdoor B 144, built in 1902 as the second AA 4. The frame of this carriage was extended in 1909, and the car was renumbered and recoded to A 3 in the 1910 recoding.

Short wagons
In 1960 the wagon was modified to permit roll-on roll-off loading and unloading. By 1961, the class had expanded to 22 in two extra batches (2-14, 15-22).

These wagons, which were 58 ft in length, were built at Newport Workshops and received the code 'AA'. Closed in sides were later added to the wagons. Subsequent bogie modifications saw these wagons recoded to 'AF' in 1961 and then to 'AX' between 1963 and 1965.

Between 1969 and 1972 the underframes were strengthened. Some records mention 'new underframe' in the modifications but observation of the same vehicles much later still showed the extensions that took place when the underframes were used for swingdoors. The modifications appear to have been new end sills and strengthened centre beams.

In the early 1970's, six wagons were allocated to 'Motorail' service between Melbourne and Mildura on the overnight passenger train. These were numbers 2, 8, 9, 11, 17 and 20. They were painted dark blue with white lettering, to suit the livery of the vinelander train. The other 16 vehicles were on standard gauge in motor car traffic between Melbourne and Sydney.

With the introduction of Railways of Australia four letter codes in 1979, all the vehicles except AX 8 and AX 17 were recoded to VMAX, and in 1981 these wagons were painted in V/Line's tangerine livery. The remaining wagons were coded as VMAY 8 and 17.

In 1980, the Motorail wagons were reclassed to VMAY, bringing this class up to six wagons. These were VMAX 2, 9, 11 and 20, relettered to VMAY's 2, 8, 9, 11, 17 and 20.

In early to mid 1985, VMAY's 2, 8, 9 and 17 were reclassed and renumbered to VMPY 5, 6, 7 and 9 respectively. In July and August of the same year, VMAY's 11 and 20 were reclassed and renumbered to VMAP's 8 and 9.

In 1991 the remaining 16 wagons were in storage, and VMAX 7 and VMAX 15 were scrapped in 1993.

In mid 1985, the Railways decided to recode the Mildura Motorail vehicles for the last time.

Cars VMPY 5, 6, 7 and 9, and VMAY 11 and 20, were grouped together as VMAP's 5-10.

VMAP's 5 - 10 were relettered from VMPY's 5 - 7, 11, 9 and 20 respectively.

Long wagons
The 75 ft long motorail wagons were built at either the Newport Workshops or Bendigo Workshops, starting in 1962. Again with the roll-on and roll-off ramps and skeletal truss sides, but fitted this time with sheet metal over the sides. They were known as the ALF class. They were to be numbered 1 through 8. Between 1963 and 1965 the cars were modified for bogie-exchange, and reclassed ALX. From 1963, another batch were built, this time ALX 9 to ALX 22.

The main traffic was between the car manufacturing plants in capital cities; for example, from the 'Ford' plant in Melbourne to Sydney where cars were then distributed to dealers.

Twenty more motor car transports were built in 1964, and these were known as the MLX, nos. 1-20. They were bogie vehicles with skeletal sides. The class was used to transport General Motors (Holden) cars between Melbourne and Adelaide. In 1967 the class was renumbered to ALX 23 to 42. However, the cars retained their skeletal sides, and so they stood out in trains.

The final batch of ALX's was built in 1969/70, and these completed the number group from ALX 43 to ALX 58.

For a fortnight in 1978, trials were conducted using wagon ALX 46, which was recoded to ALF during the two-week testing (since the ALF code was not being used). The tests were for a new type of high-speed bogie, for use on passenger services. After the testing was completed the wagon was again relettered to ALP 46. On the 29th of March 1979, ALX 58 was reclassed to ALP 58, with the same modifications.

In the 1979 recoding, the ALP class became the VMPY class. The 'PY' showed that passenger speed bogies were fitted, but that the cars were not gauge convertible.

ALP 58 became VMPY 58 in 1979 and ALP 46 became VMPY 46 in 1982. In 1985, the class temporarily was joined with four additions, VMPY 5, 6, 7 and 9 relettered from VMAY numbers 2, 8, 9 and 17. Later the same year, the codes for these wagons were altered yet again. The new additions were reclassed to VMAP with the same numbers, while the longer car transporters, numbers 46 and 58, were reclassed to VMBP 1 and 2 respectively. The 1979 recoding altered the ALX class to VMBX. Numbers were: 1 - 57, excluding numbers 26, 35 and 46 (and 58).

In 1982, VMBX 51 was destroyed at Enfield, NSW and written off in 1983.

Between 1988 and 1990 the class was recoded to VMBY. The class has seen very little use since because most of the traffic is transported by road. As a result, some of the class were sold interstate, for use between Adelaide and Perth. The remaining wagons were reclassed to RMBX in 1994/95.