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The New Zealand Railways Magazine, Volume 9, Issue 3 (June 1, 1934.)

Electrification in Germany and Austria

Electrification in Germany and Austria.

Electrification work completed on the German and Austrian railways holds out possibilities for the ultimate through operation of electric trains between Vienna and Paris, a distance of approximately 860 miles. The tracks electrified are those of the German Railways between Stuttgart and Salzburg (245 miles), and the Salzburg-Augsburg section of the Austrian Federal Railways. The Stuttgart-Salzburg electrification forms part of a big conversion scheme covering the whole of Bavaria, and already in this corner of Germany about 450 miles of track have been electrified.

Single-phase alternating current is employed for the German electrifications, and main-line passenger and freight trains are hauled by powerful electric locomotives. The passenger locomotives have a maximum speed of 68 m.p.h., and are of the 2–8–2 wheel arrangement. The freight locomotives are of the 0–6–6–0 wheel arrangement, and have a maximum speed of approximately 35 m.p.h. For suburban service in the Stuttgart area, there are utilised trains composed of motor and trailer cars, operated on the familiar multiple-unit principle. The loaded motor cars weigh 70 metric tons, have four traction motors, and attain a maximum speed of 47 m.p.h. Their length over buffers is 66 ft. 6 in., and a train composed of six cars accommodates 278 passengers. As illustrating the utility of electrification, it may be noted that in the through run between Augsburg and Stuttgart, a saving of from 30 to 45 minutes has been effected in journey times of express trains as compared with the former steam timings, and of from 45 to 80 minutes in the case of stopping services.