Interurban Passenger Seating

The passenger seating in one of the interurban cars at the Eveleigh Paint Shop runs along both sides of a central aisle in pairs of facing seats. Each seat is upholstered in a heavy moquette fabric, the standard NSW Government Railways pattern, with hardwood armrests at the aisle end and the window edge. The seat backs are taller than the suburban-stock arrangement, with adjustable head rests. Brass luggage racks run above the seats, with reading lamps fitted into the underside of the rack at each pair. The floor is laid in patterned linoleum, the timber bulkheads above are stained darker than the cream paint of the upper ceiling panels.

Interurban cars handled the longer-distance commuter services on the NSW Government Railways network, with seating sized for journeys of one to three hours rather than the inner-suburban stopping pattern. The facing-seat arrangement gave room for the leg space the longer trips required, and the moquette and timber finishes were specified for the more sustained wear of the interurban service. Carriages of this type ran from Sydney to Newcastle, Wollongong, the Blue Mountains, and the south coast for several decades through the mid-twentieth century. The example in this photograph is held by Historic Electric Traction as part of the heritage carriage collection at the Eveleigh Paint Shop.