I’ve loved tiny locomotives ever since seeing a little 4-wheel center cab diesel near Amsterdam NY on the now defunct NYC that used to grace the south shores of the Mohawk River.
During my trip to Switzerland 2 wks ago, I spotted tiny locomotives everywhere in the Zurich area. Here’s a sampling, all from the Glottsbrugg district of Zurich, conveniently 2 minutes walk from my hotel.
Electric loco (looks like a tinplater)
Small diesel night and day shots.
There’s no bathroom on the locomotive so here’s the WC
There are so many passenger moves in daytime, seems most freight is shuttled around at night between 12 and 5 when passenger traffic is absent. Here’s typical 4 wheel rolling stock. Very heavy loads such as cement, have trucks more similar to U.S. 8 wheelers.
Yes, the Swiss do seem quite keen on the old/small switchers.
When I first went there 25 years ago there were still a few ‘crocodile’ style electric locos around on freight dating from the 1920s/1930s - large centre cabs with long hoods on either side and side rod drive (probably all long retired now).
Apart from the obvious scenic attractions (and the best integrated train/bus/streetcar/trolley bus system I’ve ever used), the Swiss transport museum in Lucern has a reasonable amount of railway exhibits, and a vintage steam powered ferry operates on Lake Lucern in the summer - beautifully maintained and the crew wear period uniforms too.
How much travelling did you manage to do around Switzerland ?
I only had 3 days so instead of trying to see the whole country, I concentrated instead on Zurich. Maybe later I’ll try to hit the other parts, where my relatives live.
The Swiss rail system is tops. I was depressed upon returning to the US. The people there, btw, are very very fit & obesity is rare; but smoking in public places is one of their bad habits.
It’s very difficult not to like Switzerland - the scenery alone in the Alpine areas would be enough, but add the people and the public transport system to it and you have a ‘don’t want to go home’ country for anyone who likes riding on trains.
(The only real downside is that you need reasonably deep pockets for some of the touristy stuff or if you want to sleep and dine in style - but walking around the mountains listening to the cowbells in the summer is free!)
Germany and Denmark also use 0-6-0 switchers with side cranks. Although Denmark has phased them out in faver of a very dull looking two axle unit with anti wheel slip control wich they say can pull ALMOST as much but are newer etc, although often seen in pairs now hehehe. Denmark being a small country can phase equipement out very fast, not like Germany wich takes forever to phase stuff out, like the semaphore signals.
Switzerland has alot of trains for its size of country.
Guys, you need to get to the Continental part of Europe more often, The 0-6-0 shunters (switchers) are disappearing fast, None left on Railion Netherlands and only a small handful in the Netherlands at all, disppearing very fast in Germany and
Denmark too. Switzerland’s freight service is in serious flux right now. Since the Swiss Government allowed 44 tonne trucks in return for stiff taxes. There has been a significant drop in domestic Swiss Railfreight. Transit and Export/Import are booming so it isn’t noticeable. SBB Cargo wants to close nearly 200 small freight handling stations as the heavier trucks combined with the reduction in Goverment subsidy for shorthaul railfreight put them into the Red when they expected to be in the Black this year. The small Shunting Tractors are being retired quickly, but aren’t going to disappear for awhile. SBB Cargo runs a first class operation able to move a carload from anywhere in Switzerland to anywhere else by early afternoon of the following day, for major points by mid-morning. Expect significant railfreight changes in Switzerland by early May.
A friend of mine from Holland gave me some insights into the photos (I quote):
“David, the small electric locomotives are also known as “Halbschuë” or in proper english, a Shoe. They are for shunting only.
Both the diesel and electric locomotives are made in different railsizes, so the diesel you’ll also see in the FO-bahn, with a smaller width between the wheels, sometimes even with a sprocket for rack tracks.”