Series 54, (originally Type 204) were diesel locomotives used by the National Railway Company of Belgium (NMBS/SNCB). Along with Series 52, 53 and 59, they were the first generation of Belgian diesel locomotives, built in the 1950s. All three types were ultimately derived from the earlier Series 52 locos, representing a faster version of the design, allowing for 140km/h usage instead of 120km/h.
After the Second World War, the National Railway Company of Belgium resumed railway operations using mostly steam locomotives that had survived the conflict as their primary means of transport, mostly locomotives built during the war (Types 25 and 26, based on the German "kriegslok") or others that were built in Canada (Type 29). However, it was quickly becoming apparent that diesel traction offered serious savings and the railway then decided to purchase units from where such locomotives were at their most mature: in the United States and specifically units from General Motors - EMD (Electro-Motive Division).
After a series of tests (most notably with an MRS-1 locomotive number 1818 borrowed from the US Army) an order for 40 units was placed in the mid 1950s, split into two sub-series: 22 Serie 52 locomotives (known at the time as Type 202), fitted with steam heating for passenger coaches and 18 Serie 53 locomotives (known as Type 203 at the time), without steam heating apparatus.
The units used diesel engines from the USA, generators and electric motors coming from the Netherlands. These diesel engines had a power output of 1265kW (1700hp).[1]
A few years later, the order was completed using a lighter locomotive design which was a product of local industry: the Series 59 locomotives with a Bo'Bo' wheel arrangement. Also, an improved series of "Big Nose" units were built: Serie 55 locomotives which incorporated the trucks and the General Motors engine placed in a different locomotive body.
Delivery of the last four motive power units was amended to include a different set of gears; upon delivery in 1957, they allowed for speeds of 140km/h for the Trans-Europ-Express trains between Paris and Cologne, pending electrification of the Belgian railway line 125 between Namur and Liège. These units were placed and numbered in the Type 204 series, becoming the future Series 54 after a general renumbering on January 1, 1971.
Simultaneously, the NMBS/SNCB ceded 4 Series 52 locomotives to the CFL. In return, an additional order for four Series 54 locomotives was placed, bringing the total number to 8 units.
By the end of the 1970s, NMBS/SNCB responded to the complaints of their locomotive engineers over various inconveniences with the driving position of these locomotives: they were very uncomfortable and their prominent hoods along with the position of the controls on the right side of the units while driving in the left lane hampered visibility of the track-level signals along the line that were flush with the ground. By the start of the 1980s, replacement of the round cabins with so-called "floating cabins" (so named due to the presence of a rubber damping layer) in which the driver, now placed on the left side, was in a better position to see the track. Only unit number 5404 was not modified, for reasons of historical preservation.
As it had been many years since these 8 units had not hauled "prestige trains", their trucks were modified in 1980 to return them to a maximum speed of 120km/h (as their sister Series 52 and Series 53 units were so equipped). The modified locomotives were used to haul heavy cargo trains through the Ardennes, on lines 165 and 166 (from Athus to Meuse) and the few passenger trains that were not served by Series 43railcars.
By 2002, the opening of the electrified Athus-Meuse line eliminated their main purpose, after 45 years of service. They were still allocated for some time to the Stockem depot, used for local services to the Burgo Ardennes paper mill in Harnoncourt or the Valvert factory in Etalle in particular[citation needed]. The arrival of Series 77 locomotives in Stockem sounded the death knell for the "Big Noses" and led to them being parked. Units not needing major maintenance work would end up as workhorses on the LGV2 or GEN/RER construction sites.
In 2009, TUC-Rail used the locomotives still in working order to haul works trains. They were mainly used out of Braine l'Alleud, home base for the construction of the GEN/RER along Line 124.
Unit 5404 has been preserved at Train World since retirement in 1999. It wears a dark green livery with yellow stripes and is decorated with a winged wheel at the front.[1]
Unit History
These units helped launch the Trans Europ Express between Paris and Brussels after the Second World War when the line was not completely electrified, due to their higher speed compared to other available units.
They hauled various prestige passenger trains, before rejoining their sister units in freight service between Athus and Meuse (along Lines 165 et 166), on various branch lines (Lines 155, 163, 167 and as backup traction along the trans-border Line 162.
All units were parked at Stockem by the end of 2009, hoping for an eventual sale. By 2013, due to a lack of buyers and as their storage space was sought for Series 11 and 12, most were sold for scrap. Those left at Schaerbeek followed suit in 2016.
A diesel multiple unit or DMU is a multiple-unit train powered by on-board diesel engines. A DMU requires no separate locomotive, as the engines are incorporated into one or more of the carriages. Diesel-powered single-unit railcars are also generally classed as DMUs. Diesel-powered units may be further classified by their transmission type: diesel–mechanical DMMU, diesel–hydraulic DHMU, or diesel–electric DEMU.
Rail transport in Belgium benefits from an extensive rail network. The country is a member of the International Union of Railways (UIC). The UIC Country Code for Belgium is 88.
The Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer Luxembourgeois is the national railway company of Luxembourg. In 2023, it carried approximately 28.7 million passengers. As of 2023, the company employs around 5,000 people, making CFL the country's largest corporate employer.
NSB Di 3 is a class of 35 diesel–electric locomotives built by NOHAB for the Norwegian State Railways (NSB). The class was built between 1954 and 1969, and delivered in two series, Di 3a and Di 3b. They are based on the Electro-Motive Division F7 and are equipped with EMD 567 engines. They have a distinct bulldog nose and were numbered 602–633 (a-series) and 641–643 (b-series). The locomotives had a prime mover that gives a power output of 1,305 kilowatts (1,750 hp). The a-series has a Co′Co′ wheel arrangement, while the b-series has (A1A)(A1A). The b-series has higher top speed, but lower tractive effort.
Class 11 is part of the large 1980s family of 144 electric locomotives. The family was made up of Classes 11 (12), 12 (12), 21 (60) and 27 (60). Classes 11, 12 and 21 were nearly twice as powerful as Classes 22, 23 and 25 while Class 27 was more than twice as powerful as these 1950s locomotives. This family was heavily influenced by the Class 20² from the mid-1970s. They were very reliable because of the trial and error development of their predecessor. This family came into service with M4 and M5 coaching stock and the AM 80 and AM 86 series of EMUs. This generation was a major modernization of the NMBS/SNCB even if the older M2 coaching stock remained active for more than a decade before being replaced. The only real difference between a Class 11 and a Class 21 was the Class 11 had a transformer inside to allow working under both 3000 V DC in Belgium and 1500 V DC plus Dutch signalling and train protection for working in Holland. Externally they were identical to Classes 12 and 21 aside from the livery and a few minor details.
Class 15 is a type of electric locomotive operated by SNCB/NMBS. The locomotives were originally used for cross-border services TEE services between France, Belgium and the Netherlands, and, like the class 16, they became surplus after the introduction of Thalys and Class 11s. They earned their keep in their last years of service by pulling commuter "P" trains in the Liège area.
The Class 13 are a type of mixed use 200 km/h (124 mph) multivoltage electric locomotive of type Traxis designed by Alstom in the late 1990s for the Belgian and Luxembourgish railways.
The NMBS-SNCB HLD 50 locomotive was a high-powered testbed locomotive, converted from HLD 201.001 in 1969.
The NMBS/SNCB Class 51 is a class of Co′Co′ diesel locomotive formerly used in Belgium.
The NMBS/SNCB Class 77 is a class of 4 axle B'B' road switcher diesel hydraulic locomotive designed for shunting and freight work manufactured at the beginning of the 2000s by Vossloh Schienentechnik/Vossloh Locomotives at the Maschinenbau Kiel plant in Kiel, Germany for the National Railway Company of Belgium (SNCB/NMBS).
Line 80 is a Luxembourgian railway line connecting Rodange to Belgium. It is designated Chemins de Fer Luxembourgeois, but predominantly operated by NMBS/SNCB. The services overlap with those designated as Line 70. On the Belgian side of the border the routes are numbered in the NMBS/SNCB series.
Steam Train Maldegem-Eeklo, formerly Steam Centre Maldegem, is a heritage railway association based at the former NMBS station of Maldegem in northern Belgium. Standard gauge steam and diesel trains run on the line to Eeklo. A 600 mm narrow gauge line runs from Maldegem to Donk on the former line to Bruges; this was supplemented by the standard gauge line in 1989.
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The Belgian State Railways Type 10, later known as the NMBS/SNCB Type 10, was a class of 4-6-2 steam locomotives built between 1910 and 1914.
The class 96 is an electric multiple unit constructed in 1996 for the National Railway Company of Belgium.
The Class 59 is a diesel locomotive of the National Railway Company of Belgium.
Herbesthal railway station was the Prussian/German frontier station on the main railway from Germany into Belgium between 1843 and 1920. It opened to rail traffic on 15 October 1843, and was thereby the oldest railway station frontier crossing in the world. It lost its border status on 10 January 1920, however, as a result of changes mandated in the Treaty of Versailles, which left Herbesthal more than 10 km (6.2 mi) inside Belgium.
The NMBS/SNCB Type 64 was a class of 4-6-0 steam locomotives built as Prussian P 8s for German railways, delivered as war reparations to Belgium at the end of World War I. 168 locomotives of this type were delivered to Belgium, working mostly on light passenger trains operated by the National Railway Company of Belgium (NMBS/SNCB). The final locomotives of this type were withdrawn in 1967, marking the end of steam service in the country.
The NMBS/SNCB Type 36 was a class of 2-10-0 Decapod steam locomotives built from 1909 to 1914 for heavy freight service in Belgium operated by the National Railway Company of Belgium.
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