DRG Class ET 169

Last updated
DR Class 169
Triebwagenhalle Erkner 08.jpg
A preserved ET 169 train in 2014
ManufacturerWegmann (Kassel), Linke-Hofmann (Breslau), WUMAG, electric: AEG, SSW, BEW, MSW
Constructed1925
Scrapped1969
Number built17 power cars,
17 trailer cars
Specifications
Train length36.2 m (118 ft 9 in)
Maximum speed90 km/h (56 mph)
Weight59 t (58 long tons; 65 short tons)
Electric system(s) 750 V DC third rail
Current collector(s) Contact shoe
UIC classification Bo′Bo′+2′2′
Safety system(s)Mechanical train stop
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+12 in) standard gauge

The DR Class ET 169 (until 1941: Type "Bernau") was the first class of electric multiple units for use on the Berlin S-Bahn commuter lines. 17 five car units were ordered by the Deutsche Reichsbahn in 1925, each comprising two motor cars with bogies and three short four-wheelers. They were intended for service on the northern lines from Stettiner Station to the rural towns Bernau, Oranienburg and Velten.

Contents

History

Already before the electrified S-Bahn came about, there was a trial for the electrified commuter trains running from Potsdamer Wannseebahnhof to Zehlendorf in 1902 and from Potsdamer Ringbahnhof to Lichterfelde Ost from 1903. Also in 1903, the AEG company ran an overhead wire test track from Niederschöneweide to Spindlersfeld. Electrification has also came about to the solutions to increase capacity along the Hamburg-Altonaer Stadt- und Vorortbahn .

World War I interrupted the electrification plans from 1914 to 1918, which, however, were revived just afterwards. In 1920 the Prussian state railways ordered six test trains, which were first pulled by steam locomotives until electrification commenced in 1923. One year later, on 8 August 1924, the first section from Stettiner Vorortbahnhof to Bernau was inaugurated; the two other northern railway lines to Oranienburg and Velten (Kremmen Railway) followed until 1927. To service all electrified connections, Deutsche Reichsbahn purchased 34 power cars and 51 trailers in total.

In everyday operation, however, the engines soon proved to be too weak and already in 1925 upgraded versions (the later DR Class ET 168 and ET 165) were ordered in large numbers. Moreover, the ET 169 railcars were too large to pass the Berlin Nord-Süd Tunnel opened in 1936, and had to be deployed on the Ringbahn line. Plans for a withdrawal from service were not carried out due to the wagon shortage during World War II.

After the war, the East German Deutsche Reichsbahn had planned to use modernized ET 169 trains on branch lines from Wannsee to Stahnsdorf and from Zehlendorf to Düppel, or as additional trains on the northern Ringbahn and on the Siemensbahn branch from Jungfernheide. However, when the Berlin S-Bahn was divided due to the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961, they were all again allocated to the Oranienburg, Bernau and Velten stretches of the line.

The trainsets were phased out from 1962 and most trains were withdrawn in 1969. Some components were re-used for the rolling stock of the East Berlin U-Bahn line E.

Surviving carriages

Remains of EMU motor car ET 169 005b being shunted within the premises of the German Museum of Technology EMU motor unit ET 169 005b.jpg
Remains of EMU motor car ET 169 005b being shunted within the premises of the German Museum of Technology

Motor unit ET 169 005b, withdrawn as early as 1943, survived as a grounded body. Its remains were acquired by the German Museum of Technology in 2019. [1] The museum also owns trailing coach EB 169 005a while two more of these four-wheelers (EB 169 002b and EB 169 006c) are privately owned. Berlin S-Bahn and the Technology Museum are considering their restoration for S-Bahn centennial celebrations due in 2024.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berlin S-Bahn</span> Rapid transit railway system in and around Berlin

The Berlin S-Bahn is a rapid transit railway system in and around Berlin, the capital city of Germany. It has been in operation under this name since December 1930, having been previously called the special tariff area Berliner Stadt-, Ring- und Vorortbahnen. It complements the Berlin U-Bahn and is the link to many outer-Berlin areas, such as Berlin Brandenburg Airport. As such, the Berlin S-Bahn blends elements of a commuter rail service and a rapid transit system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">S1 (Berlin)</span> Railway line in Berlin, Germany

The S1 is a line on the Berlin S-Bahn. It operates over:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berlin Potsdamer Bahnhof</span> Railway station in Mitte, Germany

The Potsdamer Bahnhof is a former railway terminus in Berlin, Germany. It was the first railway station in Berlin, opening in 1838. It was located at Potsdamer Platz, about 1 km south of the Brandenburg Gate, and kick-started the transformation of Potsdamer Platz from an area of quiet villas near the south-east corner of the Tiergarten park into the bustling focal point that it eventually became. For more than a century it was the terminus for long-distance and suburban trains. Also located at this spot were underground stations on the Berlin U-Bahn and S-Bahn, and today's new underground Regionalbahnhof, known as Bahnhof Potsdamer Platz, while the short-lived M-Bahn crossed the site of the former terminus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berlin-Lichtenberg station</span> Railway station in Berlin, Germany

Berlin-Lichtenberg is a railway station in Berlin, Germany. It is located on the Eastern Railway, Wriezen Railway and Berlin Frankfurter Allee–Berlin-Rummelsburg railway lines in the Lichtenberg district. The station is also part of the Berlin S-Bahn and U-Bahn network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deutsche Reichsbahn (East Germany)</span> State railway of the German Democratic Republic (1945–1993)

The Deutsche Reichsbahn or DR(German Reich Railways) was the operating name of state owned railways in the German Democratic Republic, and after German reunification until 1 January 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berlin Stadtbahn</span> Railway line in Germany

The Berlin Stadtbahn is a major railway thoroughfare in the German capital Berlin, which runs through Berlin from east to west. It connects the eastern district of Friedrichshain with Charlottenburg in the west via 11 intermediate stations including Hauptbahnhof. The Berlin Stadtbahn is often also defined as the slightly longer route between Ostkreuz and Westkreuz, although this is not technically correct.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berlin Ringbahn</span> Railway line in Germany

The Ringbahn is a 37.5 km (23.3 mi) long circle route around Berlin's inner city area, on the Berlin S-Bahn network. Its course is made up of a pair of tracks used by S-Bahn trains and another parallel pair of tracks used by various regional, long distance and freight trains. The S-Bahn lines S41 and S42 provide a closed-loop continuous service without termini. Lines S45, S46 and S47 use a section of the southern and western ring, while lines S8 and S85 use sections of the eastern ring. The combined number of passengers is about 400,000 passengers a day. Due to its distinctive shape, the line is often referred to as the Hundekopf.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berlin Gesundbrunnen station</span> Railway station in Berlin

Berlin Gesundbrunnen station is a railway station in Berlin, Germany. It is situated in the Gesundbrunnen district, part of the central Mitte borough, as an interconnection point between the northern Ringbahn and Nord-Süd Tunnel lines of the Berlin S-Bahn, as well as a regional and long distance station of the Deutsche Bahn network. The station is operated by the DB Station&Service subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn AG and is classified as a Category 1 station, one of 21 in Germany and four in Berlin, the others being Berlin Hauptbahnhof, Berlin Südkreuz and Berlin Ostbahnhof.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berlin-Spandau station</span>

Berlin-Spandau station is a Deutsche Bahn station in the Berlin district of Spandau on the south-western edge of the old town of Spandau. The railway junction station is one of the 80 stations classified by Deutsche Bahn as a category 2 station. It has the longest train shed in Germany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oranienburg station</span> Railway station in Oranienburg, Germany

Oranienburg is a railway station located in Oranienburg, Germany. The station was opened in 1877 is located on the Berlin Northern Railway and the now closed Nauen–Oranienburg railway and Oranienburg–Velten railway. The train services are operated by Deutsche Bahn and Niederbarnimer Eisenbahn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berlin Nordbahnhof</span> Railway station in Berlin, Germany

Berlin Nordbahnhof is a railway station in the Mitte district of Berlin, Germany. It is served by the Berlin S-Bahn and local bus and tram lines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berlin-Halensee station</span> Railway station in the Halensee (former Wilmersdorf) district of Berlin

Halensee is a station on the Berlin Ringbahn in the Halensee district of Berlin. It is served by the S-Bahn lines S41, S42 and S46.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hennigsdorf station</span>

Hennigsdorf is a railway station in the Oberhavel district of Brandenburg, located in the town of Hennigsdorf. It is the northern terminus of the S-Bahn line S25 as well as a station for regional passenger trains and freight services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berlin Nord-Süd Tunnel</span> Berlin metropolitan railway line

The North–South S-Bahn Tunnel is the central section of the North–South transversal Berlin S-Bahn connection crossing the city centre. It is not to be confused with the Tunnel Nord-Süd-Fernbahn, the central tunnel part of the North–South main line used by intercity and regional trains. The S-Bahn North–South line encompasses the route from Bornholmer Straße and Gesundbrunnen via Friedrichstraße and Anhalter Bahnhof to Papestraße and Schöneberg.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berlin–Szczecin railway</span>

The Berlin–Szczecin railway, also known in German as the Stettiner Bahn is a mainline railway built by the Berlin-Stettin Railway Company between the German capital of Berlin and the now Polish city of Szczecin, then part of Prussia and known as Stettin. It is one of the oldest lines in Germany, built in 1842 and 1843 and was the company's trunk line. The line was duplicated between Berlin and Angermünde in 1863 and between Angermünde and Szczecin in 1873.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wannsee Railway</span>

The Wannsee Railway is a suburban railway in Berlin running from Potsdamer Platz via the Ring line station of Schöneberg to Wannsee station on Großer Wannsee, a lake after which it is named. Today it is a section of the Berlin S-Bahn line S1.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">S15 (Berlin)</span>

S15 is a planned second north-south route for the Berlin S-Bahn, which will connect Berlin Hauptbahnhof to the Berlin Ringbahn to both north and south. The first section is under construction and is expected to go into operation in 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of the Berlin S-Bahn</span>

The Berlin S-Bahn began on 8 August 1924 with the first section from Stettiner Vorortbahnhof to Bernau using steam locomotives. On 13 August 1961 it was broken up when the Berlin Wall was built, resulting in two sections: the eastern part and the western part. The western part experienced a massive strike which resulted in closure of several stations, after declining use. Attempts were made to reopen at various times but in the end, only three lines were finally opened after the strike. Since 9 November 1989, when the Berlin Wall was opened, the Berlin S-Bahn began to expand rapidly with their budgetary costs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DRG Class ET 168</span>

The DR Class ET 168 was the second electric multiple unit that operated on the newly electrified Berlin S-Bahn lines. 17 trainsets in total were ordered by the Deutsche Reichsbahn in 1925 for delivery into the northern suburbs of Berlin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siemensbahn</span>

Siemensbahn is an abandoned 4.5 km rapid transit line of the Berlin S-Bahn in Berlin. It was opened in 1929 as a modern, grade separated, third rail electrified, double track, heavy rail branch line serving three new train stations, and closed in 1980.

References

  1. Hasselmann, Jörn (2019-09-30). "Berliner Museum rettet 95 Jahre alten S-Bahn-Waggon vor Verfall". Der Tagesspiegel. Retrieved 2020-11-09.