Chasing Trains

Since July last year I’ve chased the same train three times. The Tait Set, the Red Rattler, has recently been restored by Steamrail and has been doing trial and practice runs on the Belgrave line a lot. It’s rare to get an actual historic train up this way (aside from Puffing Billy of course) so I’ve been making the most of it.

The number of people doing the same thing, in areas I assumed only I would be aware of, is frankly astounding. Especially as they’ve been only giving a few hours notice publicly; possibly to outsmart the graffiti gangs who like to attack these trips.

But why do I chase this train? It’s not just from a fascination with it; because I’m mostly more interested in steam locomotives anyway. And it’s not just the convenience. I think it’s more from my fascination with the past generally. These electric Tait cars, named after the then Commissioner of Railways, were built from 1918. They are therefore a relic from over a century ago. When rail travel was arguably entering, or in the middle of, its golden age worldwide.

These trains were built in Melbourne, from when we used to build things, and are more than simply a functional piece of kit. These are works of art, of great craftsmanship - something that would not be imagined today. The new trains, still unimaginatively called the High Capacity Metro Train (HCMT for short), are good looking and do their job, but they are not art. Trains could still be artistic; you just need to look at the high speed trains of Europe or the Japanese Shinkansen. These are modern and functional but also artistic.

But Australian railways have long since given up on art, and in many cases given up on function too.

So that’s why I chase this electric dinosaur. The red of the train contrasting with the green bushland of the Dandenong foothills is simply a sight to behold. The human and natural in some kind of harmony. That’s an illusion of course, but it’s a nice illusion. And it’s only these old trains that give us this.

The next time it runs, I’ll be there beside the rails, with camera in hand looking for the art that this artifact gives me.