Queensland Railways 2170 class

The 2100 class family

The Queensland Railways 2100 class first entered service in 1970. The class family consists of the 2100, 2130, 2150 and 2170 classes. It formed the mainstay of Queensland Rail's coal haulage from the opening of the Goonyella line until electrification in the late 1980s.

A new batch of locomotives was ordered with the opening of each new mine and the 2170 class entered service when the German Creek, Oaky Creek and Blair Athol coal mines came into operation. Eleven were built with Locotrol equipment.

Manufacturer

The 2170 class was an evolution of the 2150 class. It differed from the earlier class mainly by having modified traction motors, Dash 2 modular electrical cabinets and air-conditioned cabs.

The locomotives were built by Clyde Engineering at Comeng's Rocklea plant between 1982 and 1984.

Modifications

Since the late 1980s, the locomotives have been modified. Modified locomotives had a letter suffix added to their engine numbers. These modifications include:

In 1992/93, all except 2202 to 2210 were fitted with Automatic Train Protection (ATP). Between 1995 and 1999, eleven received extended cabs to relieve cramping caused by the ATP equipment.

In 2000, an overhaul program commenced which included the fitting of maxi-cabs, similar to that of the 2300 class, to all 43 remaining examples. After this, 30 were in ‘D’ configuration, with the other 13 in ‘F’. Some were fitted with ZTR Nexsys II traction control systems.

Service

The 2170 class entered service on coal haulage on the Goonyella line. After electrification, all except 2202 to 2210 were placed into general traffic between Brisbane and the South West, and on the North Coast line between Rockhampton and Townsville. Meanwhile, 2202 to 2210 were relocated to Townsville in 1988 to haul Greenvale mineral trains and, from 1993, trains on the Mount Isa line. In the late 1990s, they were reallocated to Gladstone to operate Moura line coal trains.

When the 4100 class entered service, the 2170 class began to be withdrawn from service. All passed to QR National in July 2010, with Queensland Rail's freight operations.

In August 2013, three were placed on consignment with Apex Industrial and exported to South Africa. They were shipped from Brisbane to Durban on the ship BBC Carolina on 22 August 2013. Two were sold to African Rail & Traction Services (AR&TS), while the third went to RRL Grindrod Locomotives. In July 2014, three were sold by Aurizon back to Queensland Rail to haul its passenger trains. In 2014 fourteen more were purchased by South Africa's Transnet.

Transnet Freight Rail

The fourteen 2170 class locomotives which were purchased by Transnet, were designated Class 35-800 and allocated to Transnet Freight Rail and Transnet Engineering. They will be employed as shunting engines at various locomotive depots around South Africa.

With the addition of the 35-800s, the South African Class 35 locomotive group now consists of five series, the General Electric (GE) Classes 35-000 and 35-400 and the GM-EMD Classes 35-200, 35-600 and 35-800.

Status table

The builder’s works numbers, dates in service and disposition are listed in the table.

Illustration

The main picture shows no. 2174D on a northbound goods train at Rockhampton in Queensland. The following pictures were all taken in South Africa after the locomotives entered service with Transnet Freight Rail, and serve to illustrate the locomotive from all sides.