tramcar trev said:Oh and check out the tram No 198, anyone know anything about it? Yet another example on my to build list. Its in Geelong approaching another marvel of the era a railway xing....
Engaging pedant mode......
The destination sign in the photo says Point Ormond, so there is 60km of water between that tram and Geelong as the seagull flies, though it is travelling vaguely in the right direction.......
I don't know the Melbourne system well, but the photo was taken somewhere in Glenhuntly Rd. in the mid '50s. The Point Ormond end of the line no longer exists and it now crosses the VR suburban system at Elsternwick on a bridge, rather than the level.
#198 was an MMTB Q class, one of the last 4wheel MMTB trams built in '23. They were rebuilt for use as night trams before the war and #198 was eventually converted to a welding car in '58, then finally to sleeper carrier car 15W in '59. It survived as a works car until the '80s. It still exists in it's final form at the TSLV museum out at Bylands, north of Melbourne. See www.tramway.org.au
The operation of the 'tramway square' as they were known was set out in the VR General Appendix, basically the DPDT switch that selected the voltage over the level crossing was mechanically interlocked with the gate mechanism when the VR still had manned signal boxes at those locations. These days, I guess it is built into the auto signalling system as the manned signal boxes have been closed and the gates replaced with boom barriers.
Geelong didn't (still doesn't) have electric suburbans, so there was no 'tramway square' on the Geelong system, or even a level crossing, as the trams went under the VR line where it crossed near Kardinia Park football ground.
Never been much of a fan of trams. Probably because I had to travel on them regularly as a kid and two trips a day to school in a Bendigo winter was not something to remember fondly..........
Regards,
Graeme
