Goodman Battery-Electric Locomotives in New Zealand
To serve its factories in Hamilton, the New Zealand Co-Operative Dairy Company Ltd acquired a battery-electric locomotive designed by the Goodman Manufacturing Company in 1922. It remained in use until the early 1980s, at which point it was acquired by the Bush Tramway Club where it remains today. New Zealand Railways (NZR), inspired by the humble locomotive, purchased one for its sawmill and house factory at Frankton Junction in 1924. Four more were ordered in 1928 for use in NZR's workshops. These five locomotives comprised the Eb class. The batteries were proving problematic by the late 1940s, so Eb class was rebuilt into diesel-electric locomotives. Four were written off by the end of 1980, but Eb 28 remained on the books until 1997 (as TR 1003). A couple survive in preservation.