The Endeavour railcar (coded N Set) is a class of diesel multiple unit (DMU) operated by NSW TrainLink. Built by Adtranz, they were designed to replace some of the ageing 600/700 railcars from 1994. The Endeavours were built in conjunction with the NSW TrainLink Xplorer. This means the two types of trains are very similar, the basic design was adjusted to be suitable for relatively short journeys in the Endeavours and for long distance journeys in the Xplorers.
History[]
The Endeavours entered service between 1994 and 1996, replacing 15 600/700 class trains. One was later converted into an Xplorer for the Broken Hill service.
In 2009-2010, the Endeavour railcars, along with the Xplorer railcars were refurbished by Bombardier Transportation at their plant in Dandenong, Victoria. The refurbishment includes:
- New reversible 3x2 seats, as found on newer 4th generation rolling stock. The seat covers are made of woollen moquette fabric which is more durable and vandal proof.
- Vinyl flooring, replacing the original carpet flooring
- Doors closing warning announcements
- Improved air-conditioning system
- Improved crew facilities
- The CityRail livery (Blue and yellow front, black window band and underskirts, and yellow doors)
From 2017 onwards, the Endeavours received another refurbishment. It includes:
- New lighting
- New flooring
- New NSW TrainLink livery (Only two sets have received this)
These trains are planned to be replaced as part of the New Regional Fleet program. Although most will probably remain in service due to an insufficient number of new trains.
Features[]
There are two carriage types, one having a wheelchair-accessible toilet (TE), and the other having luggage space and bicycles racks (LE). Both cars have crew compartments, but unlike other trains in the fleet, there are no exterior cab doors. Instead, the last passenger door can be controlled independently to serve as the guard's door. All cars are air-conditioned.
Endeavours usually run as 2 car sets with one TE coupled to a LE to seat 176 in total. Two of these sets can be coupled together to form a 4 car service for the peak period. There were 15 TE (numbered TE2801-2815) and 15 LE (numbered LE2851-2865) carriages built, however TE2815 and LE2865 were converted into Xplorer carriages. The remaining cars can form into 14 sets (numbered N1-14), with TE2801 coupled to LE2851, and so on, however like the rest of the diesel fleet, cars can be swapped between sets for various reasons and so they do not carry target plates or any other indication of the set number.
Each car is powered by a Cummins KTA-19R diesel engine rated at 383 kW at 1800rpm coupled to a Voith T311r hydraulic tranmission driving both axles on one bogie via Voith Turbo V15/19 final drives. The transmission incorporates a Voith KB260/r hydrodynamic brake. An auxiliary 135 kW Cummins LT10R(G) diesel engine drives a Newage Stamford UCI274F alternator to supply power for the air conditioning and lighting.
In Service[]
Endeavours operate on all unelectrified lines of the NSW TrainLink intercity network:
Newcastle to Maitland and Telarah, with some services extending to Scone and Dungog to Singleton- Bomaderry to Kiama
- Campbelltown to Moss Vale, sometimes extending to Goulburn and Central
- Bathurst to Central (Bathurst Bullet service)
Trivia[]
- During the 2019-2020 Black Summer bushfires, one Endeavour was trapped in Lithgow due to line closures and heavily vandalised. It was eventually taken to Eveleigh depot for cleaning, using the alternative route via Cootamundra.
- Set N13 appeared in the 2018 film, Peter Rabbit. Towards the beginning of the film, it can be seen at Thirlmere Station where Thomas McGregor gets off it and later towards the end when Peter and his cousin Benjamin chase after Thomas by surfing on the train.
- Services run by Endeavours have the second character of the run number set to 'N' to allow signallers to quickly identify the type of train.