EU41
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Poor, but interesting photo of a mysterious electric locomotive –
probably EU41. Assignment to the
Gdynia depot is not helpful in identification.
Another
picture, possibly taken on the same occasion. Both photos courtesy Robert
Prusakowski. |
After
WWII Polish state railways PKP took
over two small electric locomotives of German origin. One of them was E401
(later re-designated EU40, but probably only formally) from the Wüstewaltersdorfer Kleinbahn in Lower Silesia. This locomotive has
miraculously survived until today and is plinthed in Warsaw. The other was
less lucky: not only it hasn’t been preserved, but very little is known about
it – even its PKP designation is only a matter of
conjecture.
This
mysterious locomotive appeared about 1954 in Wąbrzeźno (formerly Briesen
Westpreussen) in northern Poland. Local railway, initially known as Stadtbahn
Briesen, operated a single line just 3.28 km in length between two
stations, Briesen Stadt and Briesen Bahnhof. It was opened in April 1898 as
the first electrified local railway in Prussia (470 V DC, supplied from a
local power station). Initially there were three railcars, built by Beuchelt
& Co. and numbered 1, 2 and 3. After WWI this railway was not
incorporated into PKP and was operated by local authorities. After the
fall of Poland in September 1939 it was renamed Kreisbahn Briesen.
When WWII ended, Polish state railways were initially not eager to take over
this small local line, which somehow managed to keep all three old railcars
in service. They were, however, insufficient and a new locomotive arrived
about 1954. This
small, two-axle machine is known from just a few photographs, all of quality
which does not allow for a reliable identification. According to the
monograph by Robert Prusakowski, it was purchased (or leased) from PKP
and had been previously used in Gdynia. Possibly it was similar to (but
certainly not identical with) the above-mentioned E401, which suggests it had
been built by AEG, but this is just a conjecture. ‘New’ locomotive,
with service number 4, did not enjoy long service in Wąbrzeźno. In 1958 the
railway was finally taken over by PKP and ‘de-electrified’ in 1959.
Electric locomotive and railcars were replaced by SM30 and SM42 diesels, later
by a SN61 diesel railcar. Scheduled passenger traffic continued until 1991;
the line still exists, but serves as a factory siding only. The fate of No.4 is unknown, but
most probably it saw no service after 1959, due to untypical voltage and
obsolescence. It is almost certain that, together with the railcars, it was
scrapped soon afterwards; details are lacking. According to the new
designation system, which was introduced by PKP in July 1959, No.4
could become EU41: it is known that EU40 and EU41 designations had been
reserved for existing locomotives, and EU40 was assigned to the E401. There
is, however, no confirmation of this designation being actually given. Almost
no technical or historical data of this mysterious machine is available, so
any amendment or comment is most welcome. Number 41 was later given to a
heavy two-section freight locomotive from HCP (ET41). Main technical data
Note: other data not available. References and acknowledgments
Very
few data is available on this machine. Concise description can be found at www.bluefish.foxnet.pl. Historical
information on the Wąbrzeźno local railway has been taken from the monograph
‘Wąbrzeska Kolejka Powiatowa’ by Robert Prusakowski, published in 2008. Permission to use photos from this book is
gratefully acknowledged. |
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