The Australian Society of Section Car operators is on track for a major milestone in 2026. With 25th anniversary of access to the national rail network cementing the group as one of the long-term players in rail preservation.
To celebrate the amazing milestone ASSCO will be celebrating 25 years of rail operations at Mareeba Railway Station on Thursday August 20th at 10:15am. The ASSCO convoy will be parked at the station with a BBQ and cake to be had!
It all started in the 1990s as a group of South Australian enthusiasts visiting disposal auctions held by the various government railway agencies, picking up surplus section cars. With these they would go help other preservation groups with their track maintenance, in exchange for being able to use their car along the line.
Section cars are a type of motorised rail maintenance vehicle. They were mainly used by track maintenance gangs to travel to site with hand tools and a lot of elbow grease, to maintain their section of track (hence a ‘section’ car). These motorised cars, largely built under licence from the prolific Fairmont Railway Motors of Fairmont, Minnesota, replaced the infamous pump car of old. The Fairmont motor is a distinct application of a stationary 2-stroke engine with a flywheel that drives an axle by a belt. The sound by these motors certainly is a unique one, especially for many who may not see these types of flywheel engine working anywhere else in the modern day.
In 1999 ASSCO Inc was formed to progress the goal of being able to operate on other active railway lines. This was enabled by an ongoing change in how rail networks were operated, under which private companies could apply for access to the old government railways. In fact, in Queensland ASSCO, by about a week, gained accreditation and access to the QR network before any commercial operator. As such, there has always been a number of first’s following the organisation.
ASSCO’s first run was over the Easter long weekend in 2001 from Port Augusta to Leigh Creek. But this year ASSCO so far has completed 1953km of operation, and will have completed an astonishing 500,000km of aggregate section car operation since 2001 by time of publication. They operate a number of lines across Queensland, including Toowoomba – Thallon, Warwick – Stanthorpe, Dalby – Charleville and Emerald – Winton.
This month also marks the 125th anniversary of the Chillagoe Railway opening between Lappa and Mungana in August 1901. The railway was privately built by the Chillagoe Railway & Mining Co. to open up copper deposits in the Mungana area for smelting and transport to the government railhead at Mareeba.
Additionally, to open up additional deposits further in the Etheridge region, the company built an extension to their rail network. This was done in the most economical manner possible. The line uses steep grades, light rail and low timber bridges that give it a unique pioneering feel, one which is unparalleled to be seen as an operating railway anywhere else in todays world. As such, the Etheridge Railway operation is always a big ticket item on the ASSCO operations calendar.
Although reduced track km’s are available this year due to closure of the Einasleigh – Forsayth and Mareeba – Kuranda sections, ASSCO has negotiated access to the famous Gulflander line between Croydon and Normanton over the weekend of 22nd/23rd August.
The organisation hopes that the next 25 years will bring even more opportunities for section car owners around the country, with further negotiations to other railway lines always being discussed.
Media Contact:
https://assco.com.au/contact/