{{Short description|Former railway operator in Victoria, Australia}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2020}} {{Infobox company |name = Great Northern Rail Services |logo = |logo_size = |logo_caption = |image = Great-northern-t-class-melbourne.jpg |image_size = |image_caption = [[Victorian Railways T class|T373]] in [[Melbourne]] in September 2005 |industry = Railway operator |fate = Ceased operations |predecessor = |successor = |foundation = {{start date|1993|07}} |founder = |defunct = {{end date|2003|12}} |location_city = [[Melbourne]] |location_country = Australia |locations = |area_served = Victoria |key_people = Geoff Tighe (CEO) |services = Personnel, maintenance, and train engine services }}
'''Great Northern Rail Services''' was a railway operator in [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]], Australia. Great Northern Rail Services was incorporated in July 1993 and provided locomotives and train crews to other rail operators, ran general train operations (freight and passenger) and rail vehicle maintenance services in Victoria. The company was the first fully accredited and operational private rail operator in Victoria.<ref name=ProductivityCommissionOct98>[http://www.pc.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0016/35053/sub046.pdf Australian Productivity Commission: Inquiry into Progress in Rail Reform - Submission by Great Northern Rail Services Pty Ltd October 1998] Australian Productivity Commission</ref> The company ceased operations in November 2002 due to the increased public liability insurance costs.<ref name=BTRE>[http://www.btre.gov.au/publications/61/Files/btre_r109.pdf Department of Transport and Regional Services - Bureau of Transport and Regional Economics - "Rail Infrastructure Pricing: Principles and Practice"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011215115/http://www.btre.gov.au/publications/61/Files/btre_r109.pdf |date=11 October 2007 }} ''The level of public liability insurance required to run over rail lines in Victoria is reported to have led Great Northern Rail to cease operations in November 2002.''The Australian'' 18 November 2002 page 29)''</ref>
==History== Great Northern Rail Services had its start in the leasing of locomotives, in particular to the [[National Rail Corporation|National Rail]], but later expanded into other rail and rail related areas. The main areas of operation were:<ref name=ProductivityCommissionOct98/> *Infrastructure maintenance (ballast spreading, rail recovery, sleeper distribution etc.) *Maintenance of locomotives and freight wagons *Locomotive leasing (with own crew, or pure leasing) *General train operations (provision of locomotives, crews and crew hire) *Hook & pull operations *Terminal shunt and transfer *Intermodal terminal operation
In November 1997 the company was the first private company to sign an Enterprise Agreement with the Public Transport Union - Locomotives Division and became the first private company to operate locomotives with its own crews on the Victorian rail network.<ref name=ProductivityCommissionOct98/>
==Timeline== A timeline of the company:<ref name=ProductivityCommissionOct98/> *July 1993 **Great Northern Rail Services incorporated *July 1994 **First locomotives hired to [[National Rail Corporation|National Rail]] *November 1994 **First privately owned and operated locomotives on [[Public Transport Corporation]] network **Operation of the first private commercial diesel hauled train in Victoria **[[Victorian Railways T class|T373]] and T381 converted to standard gauge for operation on the [[Melbourne-Adelaide railway|Melbourne to Adelaide]] standard gauge conversion project **Great Northern undertake in-field maintenance of the Melbourne to Adelaide ballast wagon fleet *June 1995 **Contract with [[Australian National Railways Commission|Australian National]] commences for the shunt, cleaning, train examination and full servicing of [[The Overland]] in [[Melbourne]] **Four [[Westrail]] [[WAGR J class (diesel)|J class]] locomotives acquired, and extensive modifications undertaken for Driver Only shunt duties *December 1997 **The first ever track access agreement signed with [[VicTrack]] for access to the Victorian Network *January 1998 **First private locomotive and crew operated *September 1998 **Leasing of former [[TNT N.V.|TNT Contrans]] intermodal Terminal at [[Freight railways in Melbourne#Dynon|Dynon]], [[Melbourne]] *August 1999 **Leases [[Bendigo Workshops]]<ref name=DigestOct99>"Ballarat Workshops Sale" ''[[Railway Digest]]'' October 1999 page 16</ref> **Forms joint venture with [[John Holland Group|John Holland]] to operate the [[Public Transport Corporation]]'s mechanised track maintenance and track audit functions<ref name=DigestOct99/> *September 2000 **[[Commonwealth Railways GM class|GM22]] and GM27 hired to [[Independent Rail of Australia|Lachlan Valley Rail Freight]] to operate services in [[New South Wales]] from [[Cooks River]] Container Terminal to [[Sandgate railway station|Sandgate]], the locomotives also operating a charter to [[Mudgee]]<ref>"GNR Power in Sydney" ''Railway Digest'' October 2000 page 33</ref><ref>"Mudgee Line Workings" ''Railway Digest'' November 2000 page 47</ref> *November 2002 **Public liability insurance costs force the operator to cease operations<ref name=BTRE/>
==Fleet== The fleet was obtained second hand from other operators, some being overhauled and returned to service, while others were acquired for spare parts. The corporate livery consisted of burgundy with a broad red stripe along the side of the unit, dropping into a 'V' at the front of the locomotive, and a yellow pinstripe separating the colours similar by the 1950s [[Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad]] scheme.<ref name=AMRMFeb05>{{cite journal|author=Peter Attenborough|date=February 2005|title=Great Northern Rail Services|journal=Australian Model Railway Magazine|pages= 22–25}}</ref><ref>"Great Northern Update" ''Railway Digest'' May 1996 page 19</ref>
Locomotives purchased were: *[[Victorian Railways T class|T373]], T376, T377 and T381 from [[V/Line]] *[[WAGR J class (diesel)|J102]], J103, J104, J105 from Westrail. J104 was sold during the second half of 1996 to Rail Technical Services. *[[Commonwealth Railways GM class|GM10]], 12, 14, 18, 19, 22, 25, 26, 27, 33, 35 and 41 from [[Genesee & Wyoming Australia|Great Southern Railroad]]<ref>"Great Northern Puts Faith in GM Chant" ''Railway Digest'' November 1998 page 16</ref> *[[Victorian Railways S class (diesel)|S317]] from the [[Seymour Railway Heritage Centre]]. *T345 from a preservation group *[[New South Wales 44 class locomotive|4468]], 4471, 4477, 4483, [[New South Wales 45 class locomotive|4501]], 4502, 4528 and 3532 from [[State Rail Authority|Rail Services Australia]] in mid 2000<ref>"44 Class Units on the Move" ''Railway Digest'' January 2001 page 38</ref> *[[Victorian Railways Y class (diesel)|Y145]], T372 and T386 from V/Line but scrapped
Of these locomotives, only T345, T373, T376, T377, T381, S317, GM10, GM22, GM27, J102, J103, J104, J105, 4468, 4471 and 4477 were returned to service.<ref name=AMRMFeb05/>
==Demise== Great Northern ceased operating trains under their own accreditation from 20 November 2002 but continued under the control of [[CFCL Australia|Chicago Freight Car Leasing Australia]] until 2 December 2003 when a management buyout was made.<ref name=AMRMFeb05/> The locomotives and operator accreditation of the company were acquired by Chicago Freight Car Leasing Australia who sold the operator accreditation to [[Southern Shorthaul Railroad]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.southernshorthaulrailroad.com.au/index.html/ |title=Southern Shorthaul Railroad homepage |access-date=10 October 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070901182546/http://www.southernshorthaulrailroad.com.au/index.html/ |archive-date=1 September 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Chief executive Geoff Tighe later became business manager for [[El Zorro (railway)|El Zorro]], another small rail freight operator.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://business.theage.com.au/el-zorro-aims-to-make-grain-longrunning-cereal/20080413-25ut.html|title=El Zorro aims to make grain long-running cereal|newspaper=The Age|date=14 April 2008|author=Philip Hopkins|accessdate=14 April 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080415163548/http://business.theage.com.au/el-zorro-aims-to-make-grain-longrunning-cereal/20080413-25ut.html|archive-date=15 April 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *[http://www.railpage.com.au/locos/browse/owner/4/ Railpage - El Zorro Locomotive Fleet] *[http://www.railpage.com.au/locos/browse/owner/25/ Railpage - Southern Shorthaul Railroad Locomotive Fleet] *[http://locopage.railpage.org.au/private.html#GNRS Locopage: Great Northern Rail Services locomotive fleet]
{{FormerVictorianRailCompanies|state=collapsed}}
[[Category:Defunct railway companies of Australia]] [[Category:1993 establishments in Australia]] [[Category:2002 disestablishments in Australia]] [[Category:Australian companies disestablished in 2002]] [[Category:Australian companies established in 1993]] [[Category:Railway companies established in 1993]] [[Category:Railway companies disestablished in 2002]]