WAGR ADE/ADT class

WAGR ADE class

Company type	Railcar class
Industry	Rail transport
Founded	1937
Headquarters	Western Australia , Australia
Products	Diesel railcars

Template:Use Australian English Template:Infobox train

The WAGR ADE class, also referred to as the Governor class, consisted of six diesel railcars operated by the Western Australian Government Railways from 1937 until 1962.

History

The inaugural ADE railcar was delivered by Armstrong Whitworth of Newcastle upon Tyne in December 1937. This marked the introduction of Australia's first diesel-electric rail vehicle into active service. Following this, five additional units arrived in 1938 as knock-down kits, which were assembled locally at the Midland Railway Workshops. Each unit was named after a former Governor of Western Australia, inspiring the class designation.

ADE446||Governor Stirling ADE447||Governor Lawley ADE448||Governor Hutt ADE449||Governor Weld ADE450||Governor Hampton ADE451||Governor Bedford } Soon after entering service, it became clear that these railcars lacked sufficient passenger capacity. As a temporary measure, five AG "Gilbert" carriages were converted to function as trailers. This arrangement was later replaced when six ADT trailer cars were produced by the Midland Railway Workshops and introduced in late 1939. These railcars operated on multiple routes, including services from Perth railway station to Merredin railway station via Wyalkatchem, as well as along the Perth to Merredin corridor through the York-Bruce Rock railway line. Other lines served encompassed Perth to Katanning, from Old Bunbury railway station to Northcliffe, Western Australia, and routes connecting Busselton, Donnybrook, Western Australia, and between Geraldton railway station, Mullewa, and Yuna, Western Australia. In July 1943, an additional route commenced operation between Geraldton and Ajana. During the period of 1949 to 1950, the arrival of the "Wildflower" class diesel railcars resulted in the redeployment of the ADE units to less frequented regional lines. The withdrawal process began in 1957, culminating with the last unit being retired in April 1962. After storage at Midland Railway Workshops, most units were dismantled by 1974. Two ADT trailers remain extant; ADT 9 was repurposed as an office at the Mary Springs lead mine located north of the Murchison River (Western Australia) near the North West Coastal Highway. It changed ownership in 2002 and was relocated to a farm near Northampton, Western Australia. On October 27, 2014, it was transferred to the former Northampton railway station site. The other surviving unit, ADT 12, is situated on private land near Quairading but is missing its bogies.

External links

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Number	Name