The first coincidence

The story starts in 1977, when the Victorian Railways called tenders for 100 new air-conditioned trains for the Melbourne suburban network. Comeng Dandenong won the $108.5 million contract in 1979 with a stainless steel train with GEC traction equipment.

The first train of what are known as the ‘Comeng trains‘ was handed over in September 1981.

Weston Langford photo

A follow-on order for 90 additional trains followed in 1982, the last of which entered service in June 1989, with around half of the fleet still in service today.

Meanwhile over in South Australia, in 1983 tenders were called for 20 suburban diesel railcars for Adelaide. Both Comeng Granville and Comeng Dandenong submitted bids for various combinations of single and double-deck trains with diesel-electric and diesel-hydraulic transmissions.

In 1985 it was announced that the Comeng Dandenong design was the winner, marrying a Victorian Railways derived stainless steel bodyshell with a Stromberg diesel-electric traction package. The body shells were assembled at Dandenong and then transported by rail to Dry Creek in Adelaide for final fitout.

The first of the ‘3000/3100 class‘ railcars entered service in November 1987.

Image via Wikipedia

An additional 50 railcars being completed by Clyde Engineering between 1992 and 1996, with the fleet still being in service today.

And lighting strikes twice

In 2001 the Victorian Government called tenders for 29 2-car diesel railcars for V/Line. The $206.8 million contract was awarded to Bombardier Transportation, who had taken over the Comeng Dandenong plant through a series of corporate takeovers. The train was designed at their Brisbane offices, and was intended to follow on from their previous XPlorer train designed for NSW, but used a new bodyshell mated with a cab designed by the team behind the Transperth B-series electric multiple unit.

Dubbed ‘VLocity‘, the first train entered service in 2005.

And in the decades since, over 100 trains to the same design have joined the V/Line fleet thanks to dozens of follow-on orders.

And in 2011, the South Australia approved the electrification of the Adelaide suburban network, and needed some new electric trains to run on it. Bombardier con the contract, based on their bid combining the VLocity railcar bodyshell with the underfloor design of the Transperth B-series electric multiple unit.

Classified as the ‘4000 class‘, the first train entered service in February 2014.

Like the previous Adelaide order the Dandenong plant was involved in the contract, but this time they were responsible for completion of the entire train, which was then transported carriage-by-carriage by road for the thanks 700 kilometre section of standard gauge between the broad gauge rail networks of Adelaide and Melbourne.

An interior related footnote

As delivered the Comeng trains in Melbourne had 2-by-3 seating with tartan cushions on white fibreglass bases.

John Dunn photo

A design also applied to the Adelaide version.

In the 2000s the Melbourne trains were refurbished, with the seats replaced with a more spartan design with less padding.

An idea also copied by Adelaide.

But Victoria’s VLocity trains designed for country services received 2-by-2 high back seats with comfortable padding.

A seating layout that the Adelaide 4000 class trains also received, but with a more suburban style seat.

Sources

The book series “Comeng: A History of Commonwealth Engineering” by John Dunn covers the history of all four classes of train mention in this piece, across Volume 4 (1977-1985) and Volume 5 (1985-1990 plus ABB, Adtranz and Bombardier to 2012).

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Railfan specials

On 1 March 1997 newly restored heritage diesel locomotive GM36 went for a trip through the City Loop with a railfan special.

Weston Langford photo

And followed it up a few weeks later on a trip to Echuca.

27 March 1999 – An ARHS & ARE combined special ran from Spencer Street to Echuca via Seymour and return via Bendigo with 1BE, 14BE, 5ABE, 2AE & Yarra. A highlight of the tour was departing Melbourne via the underground City Loop, normally electric suburban sets only.

With ‘Rail Tales’ capturing it on video through Melbourne Central station.

From Trains in Victoria Volume 2 by Rail Tales

By accident

In 2001 a V/Line train from Gippsland was accidentally sent through the City Loop.

On Friday 22nd June 2001, 8406 (0603 from Traralgon), N457+FN Set, was sent through the City Loop, after its stop at Richmond station.

M>Train were short a bloke at Metrol and a Connex employee helped out with the M>Train signalling, so he obviously assumed that 8406 was a spark, rather than a VLP train, and set it up to go through the loop. The train stopped at each of the loop stations, before arriving into Spencer Street.

I would imagine that a Y Class or something would have came along, picked up the reversed order train, took it through the reversing loop, and continued using the loco from their (N Class was No.1 end facing Traralgon [meant to be the other way], and the FN Set’s carriages ‘West’ ends would actually have been ‘East’ ends).

Again in 2008.

Was informed by a friend today who was onboard 8404 (0605 Traralgon – Southern Cross) that due to a point failure at Richmond Junction, the train, consisting of VL17, was sent through the Caulfield Loop with a pilot man, arriving into Platform 12 at Southern Cross around 08:20 (13 late).

He said that the train continued on to Flinders Street from there (not really anywhere else for it to go!)

Then again in 2017 – which thanks to the proliferation of smartphones, was captured on video.

Vline going through city loop @CraigDButt @vline_gippsland @VLine @abcnews pic.twitter.com/Q9fSpQmUj2

— Sierra Rasten (@SierraRasten) April 20, 2017

The reason for the ‘pilot‘ guiding the train – drivers need to be qualified for the routes they travel on, and since V/Line trains don’t normally use the City Loop, drivers are not qualified to use it.

And on purpose

Metro has a special carriage fitted out to inspect the condition of the overhead wires that power trains.

Sneaking around the suburban network without warning every few months, occasionally railfans have captured it heading through the City Loop – like I did back in 2023.

So what about the diesel exhaust?

So how do the City Loop tunnels deal with exhaust fumes from diesel trains?

Exhaust fans and ventilation structures!

Metro Trains Melbourne detail their use in a document titled “Underground Loop Operating Instructions”.

Locomotive

(a) Diesel Locomotives
Diesel locomotives must not be routed though the underground loop tunnels. The only exception is when the Driver is authorised to assist a disabled train or as otherwise instructed.

(b) Locomotive to Assist
If an electric train becomes disabled, it should be assisted by another electric train. If another electric train is not readily available and it is necessary for a diesel locomotive to assist, the following classes of locomotive are not to be used; ‘A’, ‘C’, ‘G’, BL & ‘N’.

(c) Locomotive Exhaust Test
When a diesel locomotive is to be used as the relief locomotive it must be held outside the tunnel entrance until the disabled train is ready to be moved. Before entering the tunnel, the Driver of the relief locomotive must conduct an exhaust test.

(d) Ventilation System
Before a diesel locomotive enters the tunnel:
1. the tunnel ventilation system must be operated in high exhaust mode,
2. the doors and windows of the disabled train must be closed, and
3. the air-conditioning system on the disabled train must be shut down.

(e) Coupling Locomotive
Both Drivers must ensure the brakes apply and release on the disabled train, before departure they must conduct a continuity test.

(f) Low Revolutions
The Driver of the relief locomotive must keep the throttle in low revs, whilst charging the air brake system on the disabled train.

(g) Ventilation to be Kept On
The Tunnel ventilation system must be kept operating for at least 30 minutes after the locomotive has left the tunnel.

And how do V/Line trains ‘accidentally’ end up in the City Loop?

The City Loop isn’t a single tunnel, but four parallel tunnels, with nine portals, scattered across five locations – and only two of them are passed by V/Line services.

Victorian Railways diagram

The first – the pair of portals for the ‘Northern Loop’ at the city end of North Melbourne station.

And the other – the pair of portals for the ‘Caulfield Loop’ at Richmond.

Before the completion of Regional Rail Link in 2014 every single Ballarat, Bendigo and Geelong service used to stop at North Melbourne station.

But there was a special tool to prevent V/Line drivers taking a ‘wrong turn’ into the City Loop – the ‘route indicator‘ arrow on the signal at the end of the platform.

That way if the route is incorrectly set into the City Loop, the V/Line driver can call up the signaller, and have the route changed to the correct one.

But at Richmond, the junction to the City Loop is located beyond the station platforms, where trains are moving at speed.

Which increases the chance of a V/Line train being caught unaware by an incorrectly set route – hence it’s mostly Traralgon trains that get accidentally sent through the City Loop.

Footnote: a new solution to ‘wrong turns’

In 2021 Metro Trains made another change to the signalling system at North Melbourne to prevent V/Line train accidentally entering the City Loop – the Train Protection & Warning System was modified so that any V/Line train trying to take the route towards the City Loop will have the emergency brakes applied.

A similar system but in reverse is used to prevent suburban electric trains continuing past the end of the overhead wires.

And another footnote: not quite a diesel

In 1998 a V/Line locomotive was sent through the City Loop on another railfan special, but it wasn’t diesel powered – but an L class electric locomotive.

Rail Tourist Association photo

No exhaust fumes to worry about there!

Footnote: another inspection train

Metro also once operated inspection carriage IEV102.

A 2014 run through the City Loop was captured at Flagstaff by Ian Green, and this 2021 run was snapped at Parliament by Blake Cogley.

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