The 900 class were a class of diesel locomotives built by

Islington Railway Workshops The Islington Railway Workshops are railway workshops in the northern suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia. They were the chief railway workshops of the South Australian Railways, and are still in operation today.South Australian Railways South Australian Railways (SAR) was the organisation through which the Government of South Australia built and operated railways in South Australia from 1854 until March 1978, when its non-urban railways were incorporated into Australian Natio ...

between 1951 and 1953.

History

The 900 class were the first mainline diesels operated by the

South Australian Railways South Australian Railways (SAR) was the organisation through which the Government of South Australia built and operated railways in South Australia from 1854 until March 1978, when its non-urban railways were incorporated into Australian Natio ...

. Ten were built at

Islington Railway Workshops The Islington Railway Workshops are railway workshops in the northern suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia. They were the chief railway workshops of the South Australian Railways, and are still in operation today.Mount Lofty Ranges The Mount Lofty Ranges are a range of mountains in the Australian state of South Australia which for a small part of its length borders the east of Adelaide. The part of the range in the vicinity of Adelaide is called the Adelaide Hills and d ...

. They operated both heavy freight trains and passenger services including ''

The Overland ''The Overland'' is an interstate passenger train service in Australia, travelling between the state capitals of Melbourne and Adelaide, a distance of 828 km (515 mi). It first ran in 1887 as the ''Adelaide Express'', known by Sout ...

''. After the arrival of more powerful diesel, they were concentrated on the easier-graded lines from

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

Port Pirie Port Pirie is a small city on the east coast of the Spencer Gulf in South Australia, north of the state capital, Adelaide. Port Pirie is the largest city and the main retail centre of the Mid North region of South Australia. The city has an ex ...

and

Peterborough Peterborough ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in the City of Peterborough district in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The city is north of London, on the River Nene. A ...

. In March 1978, all were included in the transfer of the South Australian Railways to Australian National. Withdrawals commenced in May 1979 with the last two withdrawn on 18 June 1985 after operating a cement train from Angaston to Dry Creek. Three have been preserved with the other seven scrapped.

Preserved

Three units have been preserved: *900 Lady Norrie resides at the

National Railway Museum, Port Adelaide The National Railway Museum, Port Adelaide, South Australia is the largest under-cover railway museum in Australia. More than 100 major exhibits, mainly from the South Australian Railways (SAR) and Commonwealth Railways and their successor, ...

Lady Norrie
National Railway Museum *907 resides in

Tailem Bend Tailem Bend (locally, "Tailem") is a rural town in South Australia, south-east of the state capital of Adelaide. It is located on the lower reaches of the River Murray, near where the river flows into Lake Alexandrina (South Australia), Lake Al ...

under private ownership in derelict conditionThe Tailem Bend Train Graveyard
''Weekend Notes'' 10 February 2013 *909 resides in Tailem Bend under private ownership being standard gauge converted and soon to be restoredAustralian Trains , South Australian 909 Start Up
‘'YouTube'’ 30 August 2016

References

English Electric brochure TD120 https://www.flickr.com/photos/29903115@N06/6747430491 South Australia Railway - 900 class cab

{{South Australian Railways locos, state=collapsed A1A-A1A locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1951 Islington Railway Workshops locomotives

900 __NOTOC__ Year 900 ( CM) was a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Abbasid Caliphate * Spring – Forces under the Transoxianian emir Isma'il ibn Ahmad are victorious at Balkh (Northern Afghan ...

Broad gauge locomotives in Australia Diesel–electric locomotives of Australia English Electric locomotives Streamlined diesel locomotives