...
I also have unconfirmed information that set 11 also has Metro/PTV livery but I cannot confirm as I have not seen a picture for verification.
...

Vicsig has #11 as being in PTV livery, which I assume would be reliable

Neil

I can answer my own question and confirm to everyone that set 11 is in Metro/PTV Livery. I have seen a video on a private Facebook Group of it testing at Beaconsfield station that was posted just around an hour ago.

So the sets known to be in Metro/PTV livery that are assembled are: 1, 8, 9, 11, 20 and 21 with every other set in between 1 and 20 not listed being considered plain until otherwise confirmed and sets 22 onwards being incomplete or not even manufactured at all at the time of my posting.

Does set 17 also have the full livery? I saw it the other day and it looked pretty complete.

Does set 17 also have the full livery? I saw it the other day and it looked pretty complete.

Vicsig would agree with you and I'm sure Youtube has videos of it in full livery

Neil

Yes set 17 also has the full livery, I realised I omitted it in my post, I had previously shared someone's YouTube video on the previous page that shows set 17 testing wearing full livery.

Set 18 also now has the full livery as seen in this YouTube video - not mine (Note: it provides better verification on what I said last night about set 11 having full livery as well):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oiz714GW44k

Son, when approaching the Queens Pde underbridge in Caulfield, "That's a new livery".

Me... "No! That's the new HCMT," as it passed over the bridge.

Son... "Mum will be excited when we tell her we've seen the new HCMT."

Son, when approaching the Queens Pde underbridge in Caulfield, "That's a new livery". Me... "No! That's the new HCMT," as it passed over the bridge. Son... "Mum will be excited when we tell her we've seen the new HCMT."

We need a wholesome react button for that one!

Son, when approaching the Queens Pde underbridge in Caulfield, "That's a new livery". Me... "No! That's the new HCMT," as it passed over the bridge. Son... "Mum will be excited when we tell her we've seen the new HCMT."

We need a wholesome react button for that one!

I'll add to that. We need more wholesome content

The Melbourne Trains Reddit thread has photos of set 024 with the PTV livery being applied, prior to coupling it all together.
With set 021 definitely transferred to Pakenham East does anyone know if set 022 has also been transferred and 023 is being coupled now or both are still at Newport? The https://modelrail.otenko.com/ website shows two P class led trains on Friday 16th and 23rd going over the viaduct at 2246 and 2256 respectively. There is no guarantee that these are HCMT transfers as the relevant train numbers are used by all sorts of traffic.

E024

Neil

The Melbourne Trains Reddit thread has photos of set 024 with the PTV livery being applied, prior to coupling it all together.
With set 021 definitely transferred to Pakenham East does anyone know if set 022 has also been transferred and 023 is being coupled now or both are still at Newport? The https://modelrail.otenko.com/ website shows two P class led trains on Friday 16th and 23rd going over the viaduct at 2246 and 2256 respectively. There is no guarantee that these are HCMT transfers as the relevant train numbers are used by all sorts of traffic.

E024

Neil

I myself have no information on set 22's whereabouts nor could I find any.

However here is a source of information (not mine):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ix_DUEceLE

Here is what information I got out of it:

• Set 24 is still incomplete as individual carriages with one carriage (9324?/9224?) being seen in the first 4 or so seconds behind a plastic wrapped Tc (Trailer Control) carriage.
• There is a liveried carriage (unknown type) is seen as the shed located closest to the mainline that obscures the view with more carriages possibly being behind said shed (and more than likely other carriages in the main workshops as well).
• Set 23 is complete and has had livery applied to it and looks ready to head down to Pakenham East behind T381? and an unidentified P class plus the usual generator van BVDY51.
• There are 4 unliveried and unnumbered carriages on the track closest to the mainline (0:30-0:45)
• From 1:07 onwards you can see another unliveried set in the background behind the Siemens sets that appear. This set has been there since at most the 2nd of this month according to satellite images from Nearmap. The way it is behind the Siemens and its' distance makes it hard to determine which set it is. I am guessing that it could be set 2 as there are no reports (that I know) of it returning to Pakenham East after doing testing on the Werribee Line.

They use generator vans for transfers?

They use generator vans for transfers?

Yes they do.

They can also be called a power van. They have a generator inside to produce power.
(See: https://railgallery.wongm.com/xtrapolis-transfer-29-november-2019/F138_1270.jpg.html).

This power is provided to the HCMT to ensure that the necessary components such as brakes are functional as the train itself is not receiving any power from the overhead and its batteries will not last that long/provide enough power for the entire journey and those components especially the brakes need electricity to be released as well as potentially activated (I think).
(Source: http://wagonfreak.blogspot.com/2018/11/post-1000-ssr-power-vans.html)

These power/generator vans have been used for X'trapolis transfers in the past as well for the very reason I mentioned above. However, the one used for X'trapolis transfers is different from the one used for HCMT transfers i.e. BVDY51 is used for HCMT transfers and BVDY52 is used for X'trapolis transfers.

What's the difference?

Found the same video independently to you, Op Kronos. In paused HD, the carriage behind the, still wrapped, Tc can be confirmed to be 9324, which suggests that coupling of set E024 is now underway. The unknown carriage is probably another from E024.
T381 is the lead loco and the P is one of those with the all red long hood upper half of the cab and short end is yellow, which probably makes it P17 but its number can't be confirmed via the video.
Those four un-liveried carriages near the running line are a Tc, 2x Mp & a DT; one of the Mp's has had attention from some graffiti "artists". It could be from E022, as, like you, I've not seen any confirmation of its transfer yet.

Neil

At least two Youtube clips of the transfer, on the evening of the 18th, are now up, confirming the second loco to be P17

Neil

Okay, I can officially say that set 22 is in fact at Pakenham East according to a photo I have seen that was said to have been taken towards the end of October. That still does not answer the question as to which set's carriages were seen in the video that I shared further up and located a bit further away from set 23.

Thanks Op Kronos

Interesting that, with 23 delivered, Evolution Rail are getting close to the target of having 37 units available for provisional acceptance by August 2nd next year. With set 24 not far off delivery, that would leave 14 (since I think we can exclude set 1 for now) to be delivered in roughly 8 months. They have been delivering at roughly that rate since April this year, even allowing for Covid issues. If they can meet that then they should be able to deliver as per the contract, which is surprising, considering the delays after the stuff up with set 1.


Neil

Anthony Albanese was tweeting out about Australian trains being made in Australia the other day - I helpfully pointed out to him that we have Labor state governments in VIC and QLD that bought their new trains from China and India respectively but I didn't hear back from him.

Anthony Albanese was tweeting out about Australian trains being made in Australia the other day - I helpfully pointed out to him that we have Labor state governments in VIC and QLD that bought their new trains from China and India respectively but I didn't hear back from him.

Very helpful Don. Did you also advise that the QLD trains that were ordered by the LNP from the Chinese and have been debacle ever since?

Did you also advise that the current QLD government has an election commitment to build new trains at Maryborough in QLD?

https://www.railexpress.com.au/queensland-labor-promises-1bn-pipeline-of-local-train-manufacturing/

It appears that you omitted to advise that NSW is currently buying its trains from China.

Its OK that all of this must have slipped your memory. You are a prolific writer and so busy correcting everyone, that you are entitled to omit facts.

Also I can understand why Anthony Albanese may not have replied to you, as it seems that you have so much time corresponding with everyone, that you forget that he might actually have other things to do. He might have more important things to do, like take the wheelie bin out onto the footpath, put more toilet paper in the bathroom or wipe the table.

Also he might have a view, to make time available to debate a person that believes that they are always correct, that has the habit of having the last word and believes that another person that has an alternative view is the devil incarnate, is a waste of time to respond to.

I like that you do care about our country and that you make time to change things, but the funny thing is that you are only one of 17 million people in this country that are entitled to vote and are also entitled to an opinion.  

Thankyou for your ongoing correspondence, as I know that you will reply, but please don't take offence if I do not reply, as I prefer to post about rail activities at rail fan website, instead of being involved in a Year 8 debate about politics.

Have a lovely day, I am going now, as I have a busy day planned and I need to retrieve the empty wheelie bin from the footpath.

Have a lovely day, I am going now, as I have a busy day planned and I need to retrieve the empty wheelie bin from the footpath.

I love it when the unstoppable force meets the unmoveable object.

Anyone who thinks highly of one major party over the other is a fool. Being a fan is just pathetic.

Live in a "safe" seat (both federally and state) and see how well your tax dollars get spent (hint: they don't get spent at all).

It doesn't matter where the trains are built if they only show up every 40minutes on the weekend. Some issues are more important to the general public than others.

I love it when the unstoppable force meets the unmoveable object. Anyone who thinks highly of one major party over the other is a fool. Being a fan is just pathetic. Live in a "safe" seat (both federally and state) and see how well your tax dollars get spent (hint: they don't get spent at all). It doesn't matter where the trains are built if they only show up every 40minutes on the weekend. Some issues are more important to the general public than others.

It's pretty difficult to not think highly of another party when you compare them to the incompetence that is the Liberal party.

smeg Im just here for trains man. I get politics has huge amount of relavence and I can understand discussions around policy/funding or choice of project but ffs that does not mean we need to dwell on every single throwaway polly post the second it metions trains, particularly when its almost guaranteed to immediately depart from any kind of policy discussion to partisan sniping.

Somehow I posted this question in the wrong thread the other day:

Is there any valid reason that these new high capacity trains could not enter service now albeit with a car or two removed to match current train lengths?

The same reason with most multiplet units in the world.

Anthony Albanese was tweeting out about Australian trains being made in Australia the other day - I helpfully pointed out to him that we have Labor state governments in VIC and QLD that bought their new trains from China and India respectively but I didn't hear back from him.

Very helpful Don. Did you also advise that the QLD trains that were ordered by the LNP from the Chinese and have been debacle ever since?

So Anastacia Palasczuck has had a whole five years to cancel the contract but didn't do a thing?

Did you also advise that the current QLD government has an election commitment to build new trains at Maryborough in QLD?

And yet they haven't signed any contracts or actually done anything about it?

It appears that you omitted to advise that NSW is currently buying its trains from China. Its OK that all of this must have slipped your memory.

Nah, that actually had nothing to do with what Anthony Albanese was tweeting about so it wasn't relevant. He needs to know that Labor governments are actually buying trains already made overseas (apparently he was ignorant of that fact) - after all, they're from the same party - aren't they?

Also we have Liberal government here in South Australia buying suburban trains made in Melbourne - but I guess Anthony isn't interested in anything good that the LNP is doing for this country.

You are a prolific writer and so busy correcting everyone, that you are entitled to omit facts. Also I can understand why Anthony Albanese may not have replied to you, as it seems that you have so much time corresponding with everyone, that you forget that he might actually have other things to do. He might have more important things to do, like take the wheelie bin out onto the footpath, put more toilet paper in the bathroom or wipe the table. Also he might have a view, to make time available to debate a person that believes that they are always correct, that has the habit of having the last word and believes that another person that has an alternative view is the devil incarnate, is a waste of time to respond to. I like that you do care about our country and that you make time to change things, but the funny thing is that you are only one of 17 million people in this country that are entitled to vote and are also entitled to an opinion. Thankyou for your ongoing correspondence, as I know that you will reply, but please don't take offence if I do not reply, as I prefer to post about rail activities at rail fan website, instead of being involved in a Year 8 debate about politics. Have a lovely day, I am going now, as I have a busy day planned and I need to retrieve the empty wheelie bin from the footpath.

Anthony Albanese clearly doesn't have a handle on the fact that there's state Labor governments undermining Federal Labor's policy... shouldn't he know about that?

Somehow I posted this question in the wrong thread the other day:

Is there any valid reason that these new high capacity trains could not enter service now albeit with a car or two removed to match current train lengths?

I believe they're ready to enter service right now - one of the doors on the seventh carriage needs to be de-activated to stop people from using it (slightly too long for existing platforms) but I think its all ready to go otherwise.