NZR EC Class - Introduction

Introduction

Since its opening in 1867, the Christchurch to Lyttelton line had become extremely busy with both suburban and goods trains passing through the2.6 km (1.6 mi) Lyttelton Tunnel, which had been opened in 1867. However, smoke accumulating in the tunnel from each successive train became a nuisance for train crews and passengers travelling through the tunnel. Although trials were conducted in 1909 using steam locomotive WF 436 which had been converted to oil firing, the cost of oil alone meant that no further work was done.

In 1925, the English consultancy of Merz & McLellan was commissioned by then Minister of Railways, Gordon Coates, to report on electrfying the suburban networks in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin. The report, released in August 1925, recommended that of the Christchurch system, only the 10km Lyttelton line warranted electrification due to the volume of traffic and the Lyttelton tunnel. To operate the line, Merz & McLellan recommended purchasing five electric locomotives to haul all trains on this line, and that electric-multiple units would not be necessary. The new electrification should be the same 1.5kV DC as used at Otira and later in Wellington.

Accordingly, six EC class electric locomotives were purchased from English Electric exclusively for this work in 1928. They were similar in many respects to the earlier 1923 EO class as delivered by EE, but had longer bogies, higher gearing for a higher top speed of 85km/h, and more powerful motors. Initially classified in the E class, the later 'C' designation indicated these locomotives were to be allocated to Christchurch, as opposed to the EO class which was allocated to Otira.