Railways and Tramways of Australia

15 September

Single-deck interurban Sets U1B and U1A at Sydney Terminal Station waiting to depart on their first run on The Fish, 15 September 1958. Photo: NSW State Archives, NRS-22469-1-5-H581309.

U-boats

Single-deck electric interurban trains began operating on The Fish passenger train in New South Wales on 15 September 1958.

The single deck interurban carriages were built by Commonwealth Engineering in Sydney. They featured stainless steel exteriors, and electrical equipment was supplied by Metropolitan-Vickers of Britain. A total of 80 cars were delivered between June 1958 and March 1960. They consisted of 40 Second Class motor cars, 20 Second Class trailer cars and 20 First Class trailer cars. Seating capacity was 52 in the motor cars and 64 in the trailer cars.

At the time of their introduction, single deck interurbans were modern trains providing a fast and comfortable journey for passengers. The interior of the First Class carriages contained blue upholstery while the Second Class cars had green upholstery. Although it had been intended that the new trains would include buffet facilities, these plans were dropped during the construction phase. They were not air-conditioned but included electric fans and heaters. In service, the new trains were referred to as U Sets and became fondly known as U-boats.

The rostering of the new interurban U Sets on The Fish between Sydney and the Blue Mountains represented the first regular operation of these new trains. As more cars were delivered, they eventually became the dominant rolling stock serving the Blue Mountains. They also began to service the Central Coast Line with completion of electric operation to Gosford in 1960.

Eventually newer air-conditioned double-deck V Set trains dominated interurban runs. U Sets were withdrawn from The Fish but continued on sister Blue Mountains train The Chips, which they had formed since December 1958. The last U Set run in revenue service was from Newcastle to Sydney in November 1996.

Numerous U-boat carriages are in the care of preservation groups and private owners.

Bibliography

‘Budd Co. styling enhances “new look” of NSW interurbans’, Railway Transportation, vol. 7, no. 5, May 1958, pp 36–38.

D Burke, 30 days on Australia’s railways: a diary of September journeys, Rosenberg, Sydney, 2014.

D Cooke, D Estell, K Seckold, S Halgren & D Bennett, Coaching stock of the NSW Railways, vol. 3, Eveleigh Press, Sydney, 2012, pp 224–7.

J Dunn, Comeng: a history of Commonwealth Engineering, volume 2: 1955–1966, Rosenberg, Sydney, 2008.

J Horne, ‘U-boat variations’, Under the Wires, vol. 12, no. 4, August 2002, pp 88–93.

C Walters, Diesel and electric trains, trams and railcars of NSW, Australian Railway Historical Society (NSW Division), Sydney, 2024.

Single-deck interurban train near Mount Victoria, 17 August 1977. Photo: NSW State Archives, NRS-22489-1-10-CN005031.