[7] The Australian Standard Garratt was developed in Australia during the Second World War, when the Commonwealth Land Transport Board (CLTB) commissioned Chief Mechanical Engineer Frederick Mills of the Western Australian Government Railways (WAGR) to design the locomotive as an emergency measure.

[8][9][10] Thirty BG class locomotives were built for the Queensland Railways in 1951, ten by Beyer, Peacock & Company and twenty by Société Franco-Belge.

The 59 class had the reputation of being amongst the largest and most powerful steam locomotives in the world, with a 7 feet 6 inches (2,286 millimetres) diameter boiler and a tractive effort of 83,350 pounds-force (371 kilonewtons).

Although Garratt locomotives operated in all three territories, the 59 Class only worked in Kenya and latterly solely on the line between Nairobi and Mombasa.

[7][11] Five classes of Double Mountain locomotives, three of which were tank-and-tender Garratts, were acquired by the South African Railways (SAR) between 1929 and 1954.

During 1929 and 1930, the SAR placed eight Class GL Garratt locomotives in service, built by Beyer, Peacock & Company to specifications prepared by Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) Colonel F.R.

Their tractive effort of 78,650 pounds-force (350 kilonewtons) at 75% boiler pressure made them the most powerful steam locomotives in service anywhere in the Southern Hemisphere at the time.

[3][4] During 1938 and 1939, the SAR placed sixteen Class GM Garratts, built by Beyer, Peacock, in goods train service on the line from Johannesburg via Krugersdorp and Zeerust to Mafeking.

Loubser as a development of the Class GE 2-8-2+2-8-2 locomotive, it was the first SAR Garratt to have streamlined water tanks and coal bunkers.

Meant for goods traffic on light 60 pounds per yard (30 kilograms per metre) rail on branch lines, the GEA was superheated and had Walschaerts valve gear.

The one-piece cast steel frame and engine units were identical to that of the Class GMA, except that the cylinders had been lined and sleeved to reduce the bore from 20+1⁄2 to 18+1⁄2 inches (521 to 470 millimetres) to suit the smaller boiler.

[3][4][5] A 4-8-2+2-8-4 Garratt was built for the 5 ft (1,524 mm) gauge Soviet Railways by Beyer, Peacock and Company in 1932.

It weighed 262.5 tons in working order and produced 90,000 pounds-force (400 kilonewtons) of tractive effort at 95% boiler pressure.