By Mikayla van Loon
Lilydale will experience the joys of steam rail once more as two steam locomotives roll into Lilydale train station on Saturday 10 July.
Steamrail Victoria has planned the event to bring some heritage back to Lilydale before the old station is gone for good.
“We try to operate our steam engines around Victoria and we decided it was a good opportunity to go down and use the station prior to it all being changed,” member of Steamrail Victoria’s operations team Edward White said.
The two locomotives being used are a Victorian Rail A2 Class number 986 and Victorian Rail K Class number 153.
“Now A2-986, its final day that it was used in the Victorian Railway Service, it actually ran down to Lilydale. So its final line prior to going into storage actually ran down to Lilydale,” Mr White said.
The A2-986 had its final day of operation on Sunday 1 December 1963 and was out of service for 50 years until Steamrail Victoria refurbished her and got her back on the tracks in 2015.
In what will be a poetic moment, the A2-986 locomotive and Lilydale train station will meet again, both in their original forms and hosting passengers of all ages.
Mr White said much of the time it’s the sound of the whistle that excites people but it’s also the physical features of the trains that intrigue them.
“The older carriages are a big draw card, the opening windows and the smell,” he said.
“It’s what a lot of parents and grandparents can recall going to school or going into the city in, all these older carriages and the steam engine.”
Although a lot of reminiscing will happen on the day, Mr White said it is also an eye opener for younger kids on what transport used to look like.
“It’s about preserving a bit of history, preserving the history of how it was done. We’re all volunteers, we’re all passionate about what we do and a lot of the staff love seeing the faces on the kids, the parents, grandparents and that’s why we do it.”
Around 1500 people could potentially travel on the train throughout the day, with each train ride capped at 250 passengers in line with Covid rules.
The first shuttle will start at Flinders Street station, ending up at Lilydale. Smaller shuttles between Lilydale and Ringwood will happen throughout the day, before a final shuttle leaves Lilydale for Flinders Street.
Even if you haven’t been able to book a ticket, watch on as the train pulls into Lilydale station in an historic moment.
For more information, head to https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing?eid=759089&.
