Table Of ContentThe colour of trains
Most people interested in trains use colour as a means of identifying locomotives
and rolling stock and the operators that run them. But how many of us think about
what the colours really mean? In this article, George Kamensky explores the
meanings of the colours used to identify our Australian trains. Images as credited.
I
n kindergarten painting lessons about 40 years ago, all my my son Timothy. But now the days of the ‘real’ steam trains are
small colleagues were painting houses under sunshine, finished. Diesel- and electrically-powered rail vehicles now rule
green forests, rivers, flowers, smiling mums and dads. I was the tracks. But some things remain the same: questions such as
interested in trains. what colours should these trains be?
It was probably because my father was a train driver and in Painters of the 1920s and 1930s were rapidly discovering the
all the bedtime stories that he told me, my heroes were scientific vision of the world where everything around them was
locomotives, railcars, signal lights and crossovers. Maybe it was described and explained by the laws of physics and mathematics.
because of these magic, black steam engines, which were still Suprematism. Black Square No 2 (1913) – a painting by Kazimir
used in those days manoeuvring the old, dirty and deadly tired Malevich was the philosophical understanding of the ‘first’ and
coal wagons on a small railway attached to the seaport not far the ‘last’’ steps in our lives, an impression of a painter’s vision
from our home. I was three years old and sure that the best- of our small world in the endlessness of space. It is only a black
coloured pencil was black. square from frame to frame. When I saw this painting for the first
Steam locomotives should be black, I thought, for important time, I thought this is an artificially declared death of Art.
reasons: they are hot and powerful, they are big and heavy, Nothing is left behind.
and they are dirty, steamy and very fast. Particularly at night, However, Art has survived. The young and energetic brother
when a train rolls through the darkness and the unknown of the centuries old art of painting was born on the waves of
towards something good and bright which will surely happen Scientific and Industrial Revolutions: Industrial Design. This
tomorrow morning. young fellow was able to answer some quite difficult questions:
About two thousand years ago the Greek architect Vitruvius • Which colour should the sporty, two-seater cabriolet be
said there are three main criteria that should be used to judge painted to increase the impression of speed?
the quality of buildings: usefulness, strength and beauty. • Which colour should the walls in the office be painted to let
Therefore, beauty should be based on usefulness and strength. people’s eyes relax from the strain of computer monitors?
This is why steam locomotives are mostly painted black. Only • Which colour of umbrella is the best to go “singing in the rain”
black will keep the same colour under the combined attack of with?
smoke, oil and dirt. Isn’t black a useful, strong and beautifully If your answers to the above questions were red, green and
distinctive colour? yellow, then we are ready to discuss the main question of this
Time, however, is faster than trains. Today, a tank engine ala rainbow-coloured article: What colour should our Australian
Thomas tootles on the parquetry floor of my house – great fun for trains be painted?
Why is it that steam locomotives are mostly painted black? Is it because black is the only colour that wears well under the combined attack of smoke, oil and dirt.
Black certainly appears to be a good colour choice for R707 as it makes plenty of smoke at Lethbridge (northwest of Geelong) in August 2003. Steve Munro
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Above: CityRail ‘S’ and ‘T’ sets cross the viaduct spanning Long Cove, near Below: Most Australians live in and around our coastal cities, those jungles made
Lewisham in December 2002. Do the grey and silver colourings of these electric of concrete, steel and glass. Life in big cities is fast, but trains (and cars) are faster
multiple units (EMUs) provide an impression of power, strength and practicality, and we don’t want them to hunt us down. High visibility of rail vehicles seems to
or are they drab, soul-less machines? Dominik Giemza be one way giving people an even chance: the rest is up to them. Stuart Turnbull
I presume there are a couple of places to start looking for
answers. First of all, we are so fussy with the colours of our cars.
My car is white because it is a practical colour for the hot climate
of sunny Australia. My wife doesn’t like the white coloured car
because “it doesn’t look solid enough”. So, white is not solid, not
reliable, and not personal enough for my wife’s family car.
But what about trains? Let’s ask ourselves more questions.
Do you really believe in white elephants, pink hippopotami or
orange whales? Why did Nature see fit to colour them all grey?
It could be that it is practical to be grey in the jungles and oceans.
Grey is probably a good indication of strength and power too.
Grey is also an elegant colour that looks good on objects
regardless of their size. What could be a more impressive example
of practicality, strength, power and elegance than a ‘stainless
steel’ or ‘wet asphalt’ grey coloured train?
Let’s wake up from this dream. We live mostly in cities, those
grey concrete, steel and glass jungles. Our life in big cities is fast,
but trains are faster and we don’t want them to hunt us down.
That means we should be audibly and visually warned about
oncoming danger. Therefore trains need to be clearly visible,
Visibility in the language of a rolling stock engineer means: “The
physical characteristics of an approaching train which enable
it to be seen at a pre-determined distance by a person whose
vision and colour perception when assessed are found to be
normal.” Not too boring?
This is why we need to think again about the colours of
trains. They can kill us if we ignore them. Many years ago
someone said: “If you would like to predict the future – learn the
past.” For thousands of years we, as human beings, accumulate
knowledge. This is done for many reasons, but the simplest is
that through knowledge we hope to provide a happier, better and
safer life for us, and our children, in the future.
Engineering standards are concerned with the application of
the knowledge of colours, visibility and aesthetics. Let’s go over
the page and consult these standards and see what they
recommend as to the significance of colours in industry.
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RED
YELLOW
• Danger, Stop
• Caution signs
• Fire fighting
equipment • Hazard markings
• Stop signs and
• High visibility
controls
markings
• Emergency signs
GREEN
BLUE
• Proceed, go
• Information signs
• Safe places
• Instructions to
• First aid equipment
be followed
• Start buttons
Just for fun, if we were to translate these colour
meanings from the world of engineering and
industry into the realm of Nature, we can see
that these fundamental colours have the
following meanings:
RED
• Danger from venomous creatures (the red back
spider for example) and poisonous plants
• Fire, heat – don’t touch or you’ll get burnt
• Blood, raw meat – the struggle for life
YELLOW
• Denotes the need for caution, especially with
venomous creatures (wasps, bees)
• High visibility and attractiveness. Yellow
flowers are highly visible in nature so as to
be noticed by pollinating insects.
GREEN
• The great forests of the world that can
quickly conceal anything that hides within
• Growth, life, healing. The first green buds on
the trees and plants tell us that spring has
arrived and winter has ended.
BLUE
• The ocean and the sky. Being able to read the
environmental information shown by the
clouds and the sea can indicate wind, rain
and storms, allowing animals and people to
take shelter. Not following these instructions
can be uncomfortable at least, and fatal in the
extreme.
Pacific National’s NR103 wears a winning combination of colours. It looks solid and The above associations suggest that in spite of
dangerous, convincing enough for a 130-tonne monster running across the countryside. our best efforts, we are still a part of Nature and
The two dominant colours state plainly: “I am dangerous” (Yellow) and “Follow me” (Blue). that we shall follow our instincts in regard to
The well-balanced size of the white letters makes the locomotive look busy and also aids colours, as laid down by Nature.
visibility, while the deep blue is another colour that can hide the grime and dirt found in Having come this far, it’s time to have a look
railway service every day of the year. Neill Farmer at the railway rolling stock that we find around
us, and see what message is encrypted for us in
the colours of the trains. As an old Russian
saying says: “Better to see it once instead of
hearing it ten times.”
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Yellow and Brown colours look
natural on the Robe CM40-8Ms
in the sunburned Pilbara (WA)
landscape. The solid, head down
look of these locomotives may also
be reminiscent of beasts of burden.
Can you imagine a long caravan
of tired, thirsty and sweating
camels doing hundreds of
kilometers a day with heavy loads
across the desert? Greg Travers
A convincing colour combination
between warning Yellow and hard-
wearing Green makes both a solid
and reliable impression on these
Freight Australia units, working
through Picton in the Southern
Highlands of NSW. A good use of
the ‘Australian’ colours of green and
gold symbolise the ‘Australia’ part
of Freight Australia. Mark Hardacre
The drabness of the Green in some
of the more temperate parts of
Australia aids the concealment of
the locomotives (counteracted to
some extent by the Yellow) and is
the curse of railway photographers.
However, when taken out of context
and placed in the dominant desert
landscape of South Australia, the
colours stand out, as anything green
would in the desert. Stuart Turnbull
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In a scheme reminiscent of the coastal
sunrise, L265 looks like it is in
tropical party mode, supported by the
complex combination of Yellow,
Orange, Blue and White For the
moment, work can wait! The colour
scheme of L265 looks a little too
optimistic and carefree for Hunter
Valley coal traffic. Chris Nuthall
The Orange Body and Black stripes
on ARG locomotive 3101 throw
down a clear challenge: ‘stay away’:
reminding us perhaps of a wasp or
another venomous creature? Do we
really need a clear and unambiguous
indication of the danger inherent in
the train? The number of road-rail
collisions at level crossings all over
Australia would make it seem as
though we do. Larry Zanker
Both the 2800 class and the trailing
2200 class unit are clad in QR’s
Maroon and Yellow livery. The
colour design of the QR scheme is
an organic composition of the two
elements of warning Yellow and
industrial Maroon. These colours
are not for entertainment - this is for
everyday work! Scott Jesser
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The author would like to agree with
James Bond. The Silver Aston-
Martin is the best-looking ‘macho’
car around. Remember too, that the
first Terminator was Silver as well,
once we discovered the real machine
underneath. It was majestically
coloured with the cold sheen of
stainless steel. Sterile, sharp, solid
and keen to perform. These
Hamersley Iron locomotives look
like alien machines placed in the
middle of the timeless Pilbara, never
pretending to fit in or blend with the
landscape. These locomotives are
here for a purpose. Greg Travers
CountryLink’s XPT livery of White and
Blue are reminiscent of aircraft and
ocean liner colour schemes and make
the train an organic part of the sky
and clouds in this picture. There
could, however be some inherent
problems with this colour scheme
through the essential conflict between
the form and content of the train.
White is a difficult colour to keep
clean with the XPT’s intense
operational tempo, with the trains
soon looking ‘tired’ without regular,
thorough cleaning. Also, can a colour
scheme designed to attractively
package the XPT also work to
maximise the train’s visibility? (This
colour scheme may blend in just a
little too well with the background.)
Steve Munro
Whether we like it or not, we instinctively try to see the natural However, as soon as the combination of colours around us
world in artificial machinery around us. Colour is a difficult makes our social and private lives comfortable, the gentle hand
subject. One scientist has said: “The elegant abstractions of of Her Majesty Harmony will rule our beautiful world!
physics and art analysis are complicated by the brain’s insistence
on interpreting the colour signal that reaches it from eye.” George Kamensky is an engineer working for Bombardier
Four and a half billion of us around the world have a different Transportation and lives in Brisbane, Queensland. This is his first
vision and different heritage, traditions and customs. In China, article for Railway Digest. This article contains the author’s own
white is the colour of death; in Europe it is black. In my native views on the subject and does not reflect the policy or opinions of
Russia, red signifies beauty; in Germany - the fire brigade. Bombardier Transportation.
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