The Avontuur Railway is a 2ft (610mm)-wide, narrow gauge railway line running 285km (177mi) between Port Elizabeth and Avontuur in the Eastern Cape.
The Avontuur Railway is a 2ft (610mm) narrow gauge railway line running 285km (177mi) between Port Elizabeth and Avontuur in the Eastern Cape, the longest such narrow gauge route in the world.
"Avontuur" is the Afrikaans and Dutch word for "adventure".
History
The railway was built by the government of the Cape Colony between 1890 and 1906, to connect the Langkloof fruit growing industry with the new port at Port Elizabeth. The section of line between Humewood Road and Humansdorp was opened for public traffic on 1 November 1905.
In 1903 a request was laid before the then government in order to add a branch line to Patensie. This branch was commissioned on 3 April 1914.
In 1906 a branch line was opened to the Port Elizabeth's suburb Walmer and in 1928 a twelve mile long private branch was constructed to the Eastern Province Cement Company (EPCC).
Passenger traffic
Scheduled trains
Scheduled passenger trains were discontinued in the 1940s, although limited space was available on scheduled freight trains until the mid-1970s.
Walmer Branch
From 1906 to 1928 a passenger only branch line, from Valley junction near Port Elisabeth, to the suburb of Walmer, serviced up to 22 trains a day between Port Elizabeth and the terminus at 14th Avenue in Walmer. It was closed as a result from competition from a bus service.
Apple Express
The line was best known for its tourist train, the Apple Express, which commenced operations in 1965 to Loerie, later to Thornhill or Van Stadens River, the highest two foot narrow-gauge railway bridge in the world. The motive power for the Apple Express was retained as steam, normally an SAR NGG16 Class Garratt. The Apple Express ceased operations in 2011.
Freight traffic
Fruit and agriculture
The presence of the railway contributed significantly to the development of agriculture in the Langkloof and Gamtoos Valley, enabling farmers to transport their produce conveniently to the warehouses and harbour at Port Elizabeth. Unfortunately, agricultural transport was lost due to competition from road haulage.
Limestone
A limestone quarry was opened near Loerie in the 1920s to serve the Eastern Province Cement Company (EPCC) in New Brighton, near Port Elizabeth, via the EPCC-owned private line branching off at Chelsea. The limestone traffic ceased when the quarries were closed in 2001.
Operations
The railway was operated by the South African national railway company Spoornet.
As the South African Government has deregulated the road transport industry, a large amount of traffic has moved from the railway to the roads. Spoornet has hence designated the line as "low density," and it has always had the threat of closure hanging over it.
After all major freight traffic ceased, only the Apple Express tourist train continued operations, and these finally ceased in 2011.
Motive power
Tender locomotives
The first locomotives entering service on the Langkloof line were the NG8 class from 1903 to 1931.
The NG6 class were used from 1915 to 1935 , the NG9 worked on the line from 1915 to 1939 and from 1916 to 1948 the NG10 class was used.
The final and largest class to be employed on the Avontuur Railway were 21 NG15s from 1960 to the mid-1980s.
Tank locomotive
Class NG3 performed yard duties around Humewood Road Station in Port Elizabeth from 1939 to 1946.
Garratt locomotives
The first Garratt locomotive to be introduced was the NGG11 class, soon to be followed by the NGG13 class in 1927, the latter setting the standard for motive power on the Avontuur Railway for the following decades, and being succeeded by the the very similar NGG16 class.
The smaller Garratt classes NGG12 and NGG14 performed yard duties at Humewood Road Rail Station in Port Elizabeth until the 1950s.
Diesel locomotives
From 1973, the South African Class 91-000 General Electric diesels, the most powerful 2-foot gauge diesels in the world, were introduced.
