Indian Railways operates India's railway system and comes under the purview of the Ministry of Railways of Government of India. As of 2023, it maintains over 108,706 km (67,547 mi) of tracks and operates over 13,000 trains daily with a fleet of 14,800 locomotives. The railways primarily operates a fleet of electric and diesel locomotives along with a few compressed natural gas (CNG) locomotives. Steam locomotives are operated on mountain railways and on heritage trains.
B-B and Bo-Bo are the Association of American Railroads (AAR) and British classifications of wheel arrangement for railway locomotives with four axles in two individual bogies. They are equivalent to the B′B′ and Bo′Bo′ classifications in the UIC system. The arrangement of two, two-axled, bogies is a common wheel arrangement for modern electric and diesel locomotives.
The Buchli drive is a transmission system used in electric locomotives. It was named after its inventor, Swiss engineer Jakob Buchli. The drive is a fully spring-loaded drive, in which each floating axle has an individual motor, that is placed in the spring mounted locomotive frame. The weight of the driving motors is completely disconnected from the driving wheels, which are exposed to movement of the rails.
The Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS) Class 1000 was a set of ten electric locomotives used in the Netherlands during the latter half of the 20th century. The electrical systems and three completed units were ordered from the Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works in 1942, but the war blocked delivery until 1948. Despite high failure rates the locomotives remained in service until 1982, and locomotive 1010—built by Werkspoor—is now preserved in the Dutch National Railway Museum.
Jakob Buchli was a Swiss design engineer in the field of locomotive construction.
The Swiss Class A 3/5 locomotives were built between 1902 and 1922 for the Jura–Simplon Railway, and the Gotthard Railway. These railways were absorbed into Swiss Federal Railways in 1903. In total 111 4-6-0 locomotives of this type were built by Schweizerische Lokomotiv- und Maschinenfabrik in Winterthur, Switzerland.
The Ce 6/8 I 14201 was one of four test locomotives ordered by the Schweizerischen Bundesbahnen (SBB) in June 1917. For gaining experience for ordering electrical locomotives this locomotive should – as its three siblings Be 3/5 12201, Be 4/6 12301 and Be 4/6 12302 – have been used for services on the Gotthardbahn. The development of freight locomotives subsequently took a completely different way which was not conceivable at the ordering date. The Ce 6/8I came into service only after the first Ce 6/8II.
SNCF 232.P.1 was an experimental prototype high-pressure steam locomotive ordered by the Chemins de fer du Nord, but delivered to the Société nationale des chemins de fer français (SNCF) in 1939. It was the first and only member of SNCF's first class of 4-6-4 or Hudson type of locomotives.
The Winterthur universal drive or SLM universal drive was a drive for electric locomotives invented by Swiss engineer Jakob Buchli at Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works (SLM) in the 1920s.
The Swiss locomotive class Ae 4/6 was a class of electric locomotives. They were intended as a powerful locomotive for the steep gradients of the Gotthard Railway, but smaller than the huge 'double locomotives' which had previously been tested there. They were built from 1941, during World War II, and although Switzerland remained neutral through this, material shortages led to some quality problems with these locomotives.
Midi E 3301 was a prototype electric locomotive of Class E 3300 designed for the Chemins de fer du Midi, France. Because of poor performance, it was refused by the Compagnie du Midi and was re-deployed to Swiss railways. On 1 May 1919, it was classified Fb 2/5 11001 and, in 1920, it became experimental locomotive Be 2/5 11001 of the Swiss Federal Railways (SBB).
The Tschanz drive or Oerlikon single-axle drive is a fully sprung single-axle drive for electric locomotives named after its inventor Otto Tschanz or after Maschinenfabrik Oerlikon. The drive was not widely used because its competitor, the Buchli drive, was cheaper and lighter.
The BTB E2E, also known as F 2/2 and De 2/2, were a pair of Swiss electric locomotives operated by Burgdorf Thun Bahn (BTB) in the early twentieth century. They are the oldest three phase locomotives designed for full service operation that have been preserved. The locomotives were built by Brown, Boveri & Cie (BBC) and Schweizerische Lokomotiv- und Maschinenfabrik (SLM) and entered service in 1899. They were powered by two 110 kW (150 hp) 750V AC electric motors which drove two axles. A two speed gearbox enabled the locomotives to travel at 18 km/h (11 mph) and 36 km/h (22 mph), the latter for passenger transport. The gearbox was later upgraded, raising the speed to 50 km/h (31 mph). Relegated to secondary duties when more powerful designs were introduced, the locomotives provided valuable service until 1930.
Rigid-framed electric locomotives were some of the first generations of electric locomotive design. When these began the traction motors of these early locomotives, particularly with AC motors, were too large and heavy to be mounted directly to the axles and so were carried on the frame. One of the initial simplest wheel arrangements for a mainline electric locomotive, from around 1900, was the 1′C1′ arrangement, in UIC classification.
The Java bogie, was a bogie for electric locomotives manufactured by the Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works (SLM). It contained a driving wheel and a trailing wheel. It got its name because it was first installed in the 3000 series express train locomotives delivered to the Electrische Staats Spoorwegen (ESS) on Java in 1925.
The Indian locomotive class WCG-2 is a class of 1.5 kV DC electric locomotives that was developed in the late 1960s by Research Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) and Chittaranjan Locomotive Works (CLW) for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), DC Current (C), Goods traffic (G) engine, 2nd generation (2). They entered service in February 1971. A total of 57 WCG-2 were built at CLW between 1978 and 1983, which made them the most numerous class of DC electric locomotive.
The Indian locomotive class WCG-1 is a class of 1.5 kV DC electric locomotives that was developed in the late 1920s by Vulcan Foundry and Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works (SLM for Indian Railways. Its class designation stands for broad gauge, Direct Current, Freight traffic engine, 1st generation. They entered service in 1930. A total of 41 WCG-1 locomotives were built in England between 1928 and 1929.
The Indian locomotive class WCP-1 is a class of 1.5 kV DC electric locomotives that was developed in late 1920s by Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works (SLM) for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), Direct Current (C), Passenger traffic (P) engine, 1st generation (1). They entered service in 1930. A total of 22 WCP-1s were built in England between 1928 and 1929.
The Indian locomotive class WCP-4 was a single-member class of 1.5 kV DC electric locomotive that was developed in late 1920s by Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works (SLM) for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), Direct Current (C), Passenger traffic (P) engine, 4th generation (4). The locomotive was built at England between 1928 and 1929, and entering service in 1930.
The Indian locomotive class WCP-3 was a single-member class of 1.5 kV DC electric locomotive that was developed in late 1920s by Hawthorn Leslie for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), Direct Current (C), Passenger traffic (P) engine, 3rd generation (3). The locomotive was built at England between 1928 and 1929, and entering service in 1930.
