The 1250 class were a class of diesel locomotive built by

English Electric The English Electric Company Limited (EE) was a British industrial manufacturer formed after World War I by amalgamating five businesses which, during the war, made munitions, armaments and aeroplanes. It initially specialised in industrial el ...

, Rocklea for

Queensland Rail Queensland Rail (QR) is a railway operator in Queensland, Australia. Queensland Rail is owned by the Queensland Government, and operates both Commuter rail, suburban and Regional rail, interurban rail services in South East Queensland, as well ...

ways between 1959 and 1963.

History

The design of the 1250 class was unusual being a

cab unit In North American railroad terminology, a cab unit is a railroad locomotive with its own cab and controls. "Carbody unit" is a related term, which may be either a cabless booster unit controlled from a linked cab unit, or a cab unit that con ...

with a cab similar to the 1200 class but with a narrow

long hood The long hood of a hood unit-style diesel locomotive is, as the name implies, the longer of the two hoods (narrower sections of the locomotive body in front and behind of the cab) on a locomotive, particularly American-type freight locomotives. ...

.Electric 1250 Class
Queensland's Railway Interest Group They were based on a

design A design is the concept or proposal for an object, process, or system. The word ''design'' refers to something that is or has been intentionally created by a thinking agent, and is sometimes used to refer to the inherent nature of something ...

built for use in Brazil five years prior. A derivative was also built for

Rhodesia Railways The National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ), formerly Rhodesia Railways (RR), is a Bulawayo headquartered state-owned enterprise that operates the country's national railway system. It was established in 1893 and is governed by an Act of Parliament ...

in 1962. The first five units had a engine and screw couplers. The subsequent units fitted with a engine, auto couplers and were wired for

multiple unit A multiple-unit train (or multiple unit (MU)) is a self-propelled train composed of one or more Coach (rail), carriages joined, and where one or more of the carriages have the means of propulsion built in. By contrast, a locomotive-hauled ...

operation. They were used on ore traffic on the Great Northern line, and on general freight on the North Coast and Southern lines. A characteristic addition to the 1250 class in 1961 was a sun visor to help reduce glare.

Withdrawal & disposal

Two were withdrawn in the early 1980s, donating parts to the rebuild of the single 1225 class locomotive. The remainder were withdrawn in 1987. Two units have been preserved:Diesel Locomotives
Association of Tourist Railways Queensland 13 March 2011 *1262 was retained by the

Heritage Division and is on static display as a cutaway at the Workshops Rail Museum, North Ipswich *1263 is owned by the

Australian Railway Historical Society The Australian Railway Historical Society (ARHS) has been a railway organisation concerned with history and preservation of railway heritage at a national level. It has had divisions in every state and the Australian Capital Territory, althou ...

and stored in

Townsville The City of Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 201,313 as of 2024, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland and Northern Australia (specifically, the parts of Australia north of ...

Status table

References

{{QueenslandLocos, state=collapsed Co-Co locomotives Diesel locomotives of Queensland English Electric locomotives Queensland Rail locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1959 Diesel–electric locomotives of Australia 3 ft 6 in gauge locomotives of Australia Streamlined diesel locomotives