Waggon- und Maschinenbau GmbH Donauwörth rail bus
| Waggon- und Maschinenbau GmbH Donauwörth rail bus | |
|---|---|
 Railbus No. 79964 at the York Railfest exhibition in June 2004
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| Numbering: | E79960 / 1/3/4 (M79961) |
| Number: | 5 |
| Manufacturer: | Waggonbau Donauwörth |
| Year of construction (s): | 1958 |
| Retirement: | 1967 |
| Gauge : | 1435 ( standard gauge ) |
| Length over buffers: | 13,964 m |
| Height: | 3.58 m |
| Service mass: | 15 t |
| Top speed: | 89 km / h |
| Installed capacity: | 110 kW |
| Brake: | Compressed air |
| Seats: | 56 |
| Classes : | 1 |
The British Rail Waggon- und Maschinenbau GmbH Donauwörth rail bus was delivered in April 1958. The five delivered copies were stationed in Cambridge until 1964. Between 1966 and 1967 they were taken out of regular service.
history
The rail buses were five of a total of 22 delivered by five manufacturers in 1958. All other models came from British manufacturers. Like the others, they were to be tested extensively and were shipped on the Harwich-Zeebrugge ferry .
It was hoped that the rail buses would reduce the loss of income on rural branches or convert them into profits. Although they brought savings, the losses were still unacceptable. Therefore, the routes on which they drove were closed.
Construction
Unlike most diesel engines used by British Rail, they had an accelerator pedal. The doors were motorized and there were air brakes. Their substructure, engine, transmission and braking system were similar to the Uerdingen rail bus used by the German Federal Railroad .
business
Originally, the rail buses were used on the branches of the Witham – Maldon Line , Braintree Line and Saffron Walden Railway . They had too few seats for the route at Braintree. From July 1958 they were used on the Cambridge-Mildenhall Railway . This route was closed in 1962.
Since the procurement of spare parts from Germany was too expensive, in 1962/63 the Büssing engines in the E79961 / 3/4 units were replaced by AEC -A220X engines with 150 hp.
In 1964 the remaining routes were shut down and the rail buses spent most of their time in the Cambridge depot.
In 1965 the units E79963 and E79964 were used for trial on the Alston Line . Since they had heating problems in winter and could not pull freight wagons, the mission was ended. Units E79961 and E79964 were moved to Millers Dale in 1966 , but this branch also closed in 1967.
The last unit to be taken out of service when the E79961 was relocated to the M79961 was in August 1967.
Whereabouts
Four of the five units have been preserved and are used on various museum railways.
Web links
- youtube at the Llangollen Railway
- E79960 on the Ribble Steam Railway
- E79962 in the Museum of Rail Travel
- History and photos of E79963 in the East Anglian Railway Museum
- History and photos of M79964 on the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway
- Railcar website with photo