Enclosed: the cover photo of Oct.58 'Railway Transportation' showing a
modern interurban passing a modern suburb of the 1950s.
IIRC while searching for the diagrams which I posted yesterday, the first
run of these on the Fish had been in September.

Many have commented on their smart appearance. I had looked forward for
years to my first ride on one: Jan.68, when they were only 10 years old.
Never have I been so disappointed: rough, noisy, uncomfortable seats: just a
suburban train with toilets. Their best feature was their speed.
In a later holiday, I was on the first down Lithgow on many occasions, at
the reduced speeds (and frequent stops) on that run they were quieter and
smoother. I even travelled through snow aboard one on a January morning.

IIRC, electrically they were identical with the contemporary suburban
trains, and were capable of operating in multiple. Perhaps a test run was
done, but I can't recall any instance of this happening.

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor