06/29/2011

Narrow Gauge Industrial and Forestry Railways of Guangdong and Jiangxi Provinces, Southern China

In the mid 1980's I was fortunate enough to be assigned to work in Guangzhou in southern China. Before I arrived I knew there was lots of steam to be seen, but not being in the mainstream enthusiast I had not even given a thought to the possibility of narrow gauge steam. I knew about Datong and managed to swing a visit there on the back of a business trip. On the return trip to Beijing I met a group of enthusiast who gave me all the information I needed to make a two week trip around Heilongjang to see both standard and narrow gauge. This trip rekindled my enthusiasm for steam and It occurred to me that there might be other narrow gauge lines nearer to home in Guangdong Province and I set about locating them with the use of various maps a managed to acquire.

Altogether I located six lines each with active steam belonging to four classes. It was only later that I learned that some of these had previously been visited by "westerners". These were first documented by me in "The Narrow Gauge" volume 118. Subsequently, a number of articles have provided accounts of some of these lines and engines. This website gives me the opportunity to publish some of my photographs from 1986/87 in colour for the first time. I have also included information and pictures of several "non-steam" lines which I encountered on my travels in Guangdong Province.

The locomotives

At three locations I found C2 class engines. These 0-8-0's were domestic products of the Harbin and Shijiazhuang works in the early 1960's and are the same class familiar to those who have visited the forestry lines in Northeast China.

One line had two surviving Px48 class locos built at the Chrzanow works, Poland in 1952. Locally these are known as BL class (Bo Lan = pinyin transliteration of Poland in Mandarin). These locos were at one time thought to have been re-exported to Albania in 1957. For further information refer to an article by Keith Chester in "East European Narrow Gauge".

I found C4 class locos on two lines. These 0-8-0's were constructed during the early 1970's in Guangzhou and Sanshui in Guangdong Province. This class is reminiscent of the Px48's and its design is probably based on this class. For further information refer to an article by Keith Chester in "East European Narrow Gauge".

A few examples of class SY (not to be confused with the Standard gauge SY) were found lingering on two lines. SY (Shanyou) or "Aiming High" class 0-8-0TT locos were manufactured in Guangzhou in the late 1950's and early 1960's. These engines appear to be based on engines designed by Orenstein & Koppel, four of which were reportedly exported to China in 1937.

               (Table of trains at John Athersuch

The lines

The lines I visited were all functioning when I visited in 1986 and 1987 although with the exception of the Meixian Coal line they all appeared to be on their last legs with engines in poor condition and cannibalism much in evidence.

Map

Read (see fabulous photos - engines) more at John Athersuch

Jun 29, 2011 3:41:44 PM | Technology, Transportation

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