| Queensland Railways 1600 class | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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1603 &1634 climb the Razorback Range on the 'Last Train toMount Morgan' tour in August 1987 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The1600 class was a class of diesel locomotives built byEnglish Electric,Rocklea forQueensland Railways between 1962 and 1964.
The 1600 class were built as branch line locomotives. Two contracts were let of which the first was for twelve with a follow on contract for another six. The first batch were delivered between December 1962 and June 1963, with the others arriving between October 1963 and January 1964. A lengthy delay occurred before delivery owing to the first four being over the design weight. This resulted in numbers 1604 and 1605 being the first to enter service. All others were delivered after the weight problem had been overcome.
They were initially based atAlpha inCentral West Queensland[1][2][3] and atRoma inSouth west Queensland. They were also used for shunting at yards around the state. Soon afterwards, all the 1600s were based at Alpha. The1620 Class followed on from the success of the 1600s, and were used in the central and northern areas of Qld.
The class was withdrawn in 1991.
Five have been preserved:[2]
| Number | In service | Withdrawn | Owner | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1603 | 02/1963 | 1991 | Bundaberg Railway Historical Society | Bundaberg Railway Museum | Static display. Relocated from CQ University (Bundaberg Campus) in July 2023. |
| 1604 | 12/1962 | 1991 | Bellarine Railway | Queenscliff, Victoria | Operational. Previously preserved by ARHS-Qld Division at Rosewood Railway Museum. |
| 1613 | 11/1963 | 1991 | Longreach Powerhouse Museum | Longreach | On static display. |
| 1614 | 11/1963 | 1991 | ARHS-Qld Division | Archer Park Museum, Rockhampton | Operational. On loan from ARHS-Qld Division. |
| 1616 | 12/1963 | 1991 | Queensland Pioneer Steam Railway | Box Flat (Swanbank) | Operational. Used to supplement their flagship PB15. |