Eilzugwagen
Encyclopedia
The Eilzugwagen was a type of railway passenger coach (US: passenger car) specially developed for German semi-fast (or fast stopping) trains, known as Eilzüge. These coaches were first built in the 1930s and continued to be produced until the 1950s. Today all coaches of this type have been retired. A number still run on museum railways.
in 1907. These were express train
s (Schnellzüge
), that did not switch to hauling the new through coaches, but stayed with the conventional, eight-wheeled compartment coach
es common at that time. Not until the end of the 1920s did the Deutsche Reichsbahn
consider developing special wagons as eight-wheeled open coach
es for the semi-fast train class
.
These coaches were of rivetted construction in accordance with the standards of the time. They had an open 3rd class section with a centre aisle and 2+3 seating arrangement, and four 2nd class compartments each with six seats. As on express coaches, the entrances were inset, but the roof was of basket arch design at the coach ends, as on the Class 28 Rheingold Express
coaches. The entrances at the ends of each coach had double doors for 3rd class and a single swing door for 2nd class. By each of the entrance ways was a toilet with a wash basin. The windows were 800 mm wide in 3rd class and one metre wide in 2nd class.
The coaches had Görlitz Type II (light) bogies. The gangways were open and only secured with folding lattice gates (Scherengitter), so there was no protection from the elements.
, variant was developed. In important details it was the same as the previous class, the E 36. However the coach body was now streamlined (by tapering the ends) and had panels or 'skirts' covering the sole bars. These even covered the new Reichsbahn-standard bogies which were very similar to the Minden-Deutz bogies later used by the DB. For the first time in the Deutsche Reichsbahn
, Eilzugwagen were given gangways protected by folding bellows (Faltenbalge). As a result they could be used, if need be, in express trains because from now on passengers could pass from one coach to another. Nevertheless the open layout was retained, as on the E 30 and E 36 coaches - as were the inset double doors at the ends of the coaches of what was now the 2nd class section. The 1st class section just had a simple swing door at the end of the coach. However the half-compartment in the centre of the wagon was omitted.
Two prototypes with 2nd and 3rd class seating were delivered by LHW
to the Reichsbahn at Breslau in 1939: the BC4üp-39 (later the AByse 631) built to a very light structural design. This meant that they were particularly suitable for use on hilly routes. The interior of the 3rd class area was—as was de rigueur at that time—fitted with wooden seats; 2nd class sections were given soft, fabric-covered seats. In all, according to plans at that time, 8,550 coaches of this type were to be bought in order to finally get rid of the old, eight-wheeled, compartment coaches. 650 were to be built as ABüp, the rest as C4üp.
To achieve this, head office drew up a four year plan. However, due to the shortage of raw materials during the Second World War, only 125 composite (AB) coaches were ordered, of which by 1944 only 45 could be delivered: the BC4üp-42a (later Abyse 633). 17 units ended up in the Deutsche Bundesbahn
(DB). Of the 3rd class coaches, the C4üp-42a, 100 units were delivered. The 40 that were left to the DB were later classed as Bye 669. Another 250 Eilzügwagen of type C4üp-43a were delivered, but they were used as ambulance coaches until the end of the war. These were later classified as Bye 670 where they ended up in the DB fleet.
Before their interior could be fitted out, several of these coaches were used as so-called Stehwagen (static coaches) until the founding of the Bundesbahn.
From 1955 to 1960 all pre-war Eilzugwagen in the DB were refurbished and modernised. Instead of wooden seats, they were fitted with cushioned seats with imitation leather covers and the seats were arranged in a 2+2 configuration. The light bulbs were largely replaced by fluorescent strip lights. The coaches so converted were eventually classed as Ayse, AByse and Bye with code numbers in the 600 series.
Almost all these semi-fast coaches were used until the 1970s in their designated role; only then did many end up on local passenger services. Whilst the DB coaches remained in service until 1984, those left in the DR were rebuilt in the 1960s, like the other DR Schürzenwagen, into the so-called 'modernised coaches' (Modernisierungswagen).
Minden-Deutz bogies were fitted. On these coaches the 2nd class (1st class after the 1956 reform) areas were open plan. By the entrance ways at each end of the coach was a toilet. The coaches were fitted for both steam and electric heating and were rated at up to 120 km/h.
The following variants were procured: C4ymg-51 (later Bylb 421), BC4yg (later ABylb 411), CPwymg-51, a large number of which were fitted with driver's cabs for push-pull
operations and designated as CPwygmf (later BDylbf 456). The driver's cab end of the coach had an inset entrance located one compartment-length from the end to make room for the cab.
These coaches were joined by four luggage/buffet cars of class CRrymg-54 (later BRyl 446) and prototypes of 1st class open coaches, the Aymg-52, later reclassified as Ayl 401. The code letter b was only given to coaches with control wiring, their classification until 1975 being …ym(b).
. Later on, with the delivery of new Silberling
local train coaches from 1959, the driving car was used with those as well. In the 1980s the control equipment on all these coaches was removed.
In the 1970s and 80s the Städtewagen were also used in conventional local passenger trains, especially from 1892 on the conversion of many district Eilzüge to supplement-free express trains and on the retirement of pre-war coaches.
The last yl coaches were retired from the DB in 1990, because they wanted to avoid having to fit them for central locking which would have been expensive. Several coaches have ended up, however, via a third party in the DR and were employed in Berlin suburban services including Berlin-Lichtenberg to Nauen
and Falkensee
.
After their retirement, several yl coaches were used as centre cars in testing the new InterCityExpress
driving cars.
at Ettlingen
runs several pre-war Eilzugwagen. Others belong to the Traditions-Eilzug Zwickau.
Several post-war Eilzug coaches, including a driving car, also still exist. The BSW Lübeck looks after two coaches belonging to the Nuremberg Transport Museum
. Several yl coaches are also operational with the Bavarian Railway Museum
at Nördlingen
.
General
Eilzüge first ran in GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in 1907. These were express train
Express train
Express trains are a form of rail service. Express trains make only a small number of stops, instead of stopping at every single station...
s (Schnellzüge
Schnellzug
A Schnellzug is an express train in German-speaking countries, where it refers to trains that do not stop at all stations along a line. The term is used both generically and also as a specific train type...
), that did not switch to hauling the new through coaches, but stayed with the conventional, eight-wheeled compartment coach
Compartment coach
A compartment coach is a railway passenger coach divided into separate areas or compartments, with no means of moving between each compartment.- English origins :...
es common at that time. Not until the end of the 1920s did the Deutsche Reichsbahn
Deutsche Reichsbahn
Deutsche Reichsbahn was the name of the following two companies:* Deutsche Reichsbahn, the German Imperial Railways during the Weimar Republic, the Third Reich and the immediate aftermath...
consider developing special wagons as eight-wheeled open coach
Open coach
An open coach is a railway passenger coach that does not have compartments or other divisions within it and in which the seats are arranged in one or more open plan areas with a centre aisle. The first open coaches appeared in the first half of the 19th century in the USA. The prototype for their...
es for the semi-fast train class
Train categories in Europe
Railway companies in Europe assign their trains to different categories or train types depending on their role. Passenger trains may be broadly split into long-distance and local trains; the latter having average journey times of under an hour and a range of less than 50 kilometres. Goods trains...
.
Type E 30
Following the construction of trials coaches in 1928 and 1929, the full production of 150 Eilzugwagen began in 1930; 2nd and 2nd/3rd class variants being turned out. The full designation of these coaches was B4i-30 (later Ayse 604) and BC4i-30 (later Abyse 617). Other, 3rd class only, coaches entered service as C4i-30 (later Bye 655). They were classified as Type (Verwendungsgruppe) E 30.These coaches were of rivetted construction in accordance with the standards of the time. They had an open 3rd class section with a centre aisle and 2+3 seating arrangement, and four 2nd class compartments each with six seats. As on express coaches, the entrances were inset, but the roof was of basket arch design at the coach ends, as on the Class 28 Rheingold Express
Rheingold Express
The legendary Rheingold was a famous train riding between Hoek van Holland near Rotterdam and Basel, Switzerland, a distance of . It ran along the Rhine River via Arnhem, Netherlands and Cologne, Germany using special luxury coaches...
coaches. The entrances at the ends of each coach had double doors for 3rd class and a single swing door for 2nd class. By each of the entrance ways was a toilet with a wash basin. The windows were 800 mm wide in 3rd class and one metre wide in 2nd class.
The coaches had Görlitz Type II (light) bogies. The gangways were open and only secured with folding lattice gates (Scherengitter), so there was no protection from the elements.
Type E 36
In 1935 development started on a successor to the E 30. The main difference was the welded coach body. In addition an extra half-compartment was added because the coach, at 20 m long, had more space than its predecessor. To enable a better view the bottom edge of the windows was lowered and the panes enlarged. Other features, like the open gangways and Görlitz bogies, were identical to those of the E 30. Only C4i-36 and BC4i-37 coach variants were placed in service because, unlike its predecessor, the E 30, no more pure 2nd class coaches were ordered. Later these coaches were reclassified as Bye 667 and Abyse 630 by the DB.Type E 42
From the Schürzenwagen series of coaches, a semi-fast, EilzugEilzug
An Eilzug is a type of passenger train in German-speaking countries which roughly equates to a British 'fast-stopping train' or 'semi-fast train'.-Germany:...
, variant was developed. In important details it was the same as the previous class, the E 36. However the coach body was now streamlined (by tapering the ends) and had panels or 'skirts' covering the sole bars. These even covered the new Reichsbahn-standard bogies which were very similar to the Minden-Deutz bogies later used by the DB. For the first time in the Deutsche Reichsbahn
Deutsche Reichsbahn
Deutsche Reichsbahn was the name of the following two companies:* Deutsche Reichsbahn, the German Imperial Railways during the Weimar Republic, the Third Reich and the immediate aftermath...
, Eilzugwagen were given gangways protected by folding bellows (Faltenbalge). As a result they could be used, if need be, in express trains because from now on passengers could pass from one coach to another. Nevertheless the open layout was retained, as on the E 30 and E 36 coaches - as were the inset double doors at the ends of the coaches of what was now the 2nd class section. The 1st class section just had a simple swing door at the end of the coach. However the half-compartment in the centre of the wagon was omitted.
Two prototypes with 2nd and 3rd class seating were delivered by LHW
Linke-Hofmann
Linke-Hofmann was a German manufacturing company established in Breslau to produce locomotives and rolling stock. Its origins lay in the wheelwright business of Gottfried Linke, begun in 1834...
to the Reichsbahn at Breslau in 1939: the BC4üp-39 (later the AByse 631) built to a very light structural design. This meant that they were particularly suitable for use on hilly routes. The interior of the 3rd class area was—as was de rigueur at that time—fitted with wooden seats; 2nd class sections were given soft, fabric-covered seats. In all, according to plans at that time, 8,550 coaches of this type were to be bought in order to finally get rid of the old, eight-wheeled, compartment coaches. 650 were to be built as ABüp, the rest as C4üp.
To achieve this, head office drew up a four year plan. However, due to the shortage of raw materials during the Second World War, only 125 composite (AB) coaches were ordered, of which by 1944 only 45 could be delivered: the BC4üp-42a (later Abyse 633). 17 units ended up in the Deutsche Bundesbahn
Deutsche Bundesbahn
The Deutsche Bundesbahn or DB was formed as the state railway of the newly established Federal Republic of Germany on September 7, 1949 as a successor of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft '...
(DB). Of the 3rd class coaches, the C4üp-42a, 100 units were delivered. The 40 that were left to the DB were later classed as Bye 669. Another 250 Eilzügwagen of type C4üp-43a were delivered, but they were used as ambulance coaches until the end of the war. These were later classified as Bye 670 where they ended up in the DB fleet.
Before their interior could be fitted out, several of these coaches were used as so-called Stehwagen (static coaches) until the founding of the Bundesbahn.
Modernisation
When the passenger classes were restructured in 1956, BC coaches became ABs and C coaches became Bs. In 2nd class the same soft seats were fitted as in the E-30 and E-36 types. Coaches left behind in Austria after the war were, like all pre-war Reichsbahn coaches, upgraded and modernised during the 1960s with UIC sliding windows and new cushioned seats.From 1955 to 1960 all pre-war Eilzugwagen in the DB were refurbished and modernised. Instead of wooden seats, they were fitted with cushioned seats with imitation leather covers and the seats were arranged in a 2+2 configuration. The light bulbs were largely replaced by fluorescent strip lights. The coaches so converted were eventually classed as Ayse, AByse and Bye with code numbers in the 600 series.
Almost all these semi-fast coaches were used until the 1970s in their designated role; only then did many end up on local passenger services. Whilst the DB coaches remained in service until 1984, those left in the DR were rebuilt in the 1960s, like the other DR Schürzenwagen, into the so-called 'modernised coaches' (Modernisierungswagen).
Classes
From 1951 the DB acquired new coaches for semi-fast services called Städtewagen or city coaches. These were the first coaches in the DB to be built to the new UIC template for X class coaches and had a standard length of 26.4 m. These coaches had, in addition to the end doors, a double door in the middle. The doors were of the swing door type. Like the UIC express coaches they were of welded, all-steel construction and were equipped with the rubber corridor connectors commonly used today.Minden-Deutz bogies were fitted. On these coaches the 2nd class (1st class after the 1956 reform) areas were open plan. By the entrance ways at each end of the coach was a toilet. The coaches were fitted for both steam and electric heating and were rated at up to 120 km/h.
The following variants were procured: C4ymg-51 (later Bylb 421), BC4yg (later ABylb 411), CPwymg-51, a large number of which were fitted with driver's cabs for push-pull
Push-pull
Push–pull may refer to:In electronic technology:*Push–pull output, type of electronic circuit*Push–pull converter, in electronics, is a type of DC to DC converter that uses a transformer*Push–pull connector, an electronic cable connector...
operations and designated as CPwygmf (later BDylbf 456). The driver's cab end of the coach had an inset entrance located one compartment-length from the end to make room for the cab.
These coaches were joined by four luggage/buffet cars of class CRrymg-54 (later BRyl 446) and prototypes of 1st class open coaches, the Aymg-52, later reclassified as Ayl 401. The code letter b was only given to coaches with control wiring, their classification until 1975 being …ym(b).
Employment
Following their delivery the new coaches were initially used in light express trains. Only after the 1956 class reform, when 3rd class was upgraded to 2nd class and 2nd to 1st were the Städtewagen placed in their intended role. In their early years, the driving cars had been used with six-wheeled Umbauwagen (rebuild coaches) on suburban services in conurbations like HamburgHamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
. Later on, with the delivery of new Silberling
Silberling
Silberling is the colloquial name for the n-coaches of the Deutsche Bundesbahn, a type of regional passenger coach of which more than 7,000 units were built from 1958 to 1981...
local train coaches from 1959, the driving car was used with those as well. In the 1980s the control equipment on all these coaches was removed.
In the 1970s and 80s the Städtewagen were also used in conventional local passenger trains, especially from 1892 on the conversion of many district Eilzüge to supplement-free express trains and on the retirement of pre-war coaches.
The last yl coaches were retired from the DB in 1990, because they wanted to avoid having to fit them for central locking which would have been expensive. Several coaches have ended up, however, via a third party in the DR and were employed in Berlin suburban services including Berlin-Lichtenberg to Nauen
Nauen
Nauen is a town in the Havelland district, in Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated 38 km west of Berlin and 26 km northwest of Potsdam.-History:...
and Falkensee
Falkensee
Falkensee is a town in the Havelland district, Brandenburg, Germany. It is the most populated municipality of its district and it is situated at the western border of Berlin.-History:...
.
After their retirement, several yl coaches were used as centre cars in testing the new InterCityExpress
InterCityExpress
The Intercity-Express or ICE is a system of high-speed trains predominantly running in Germany and neighbouring countries. It is the highest service category offered by DB Fernverkehr and is the flagship of Deutsche Bahn...
driving cars.
Preserved
Many pre-war and post-war semi-fast coaches have been preserved. For example, the Ulm Railway SocietyUlm Railway Society
The Ulm Railway Society is a German society for encouraging the preservation of historically valuable railway stock. It is based in the vicinity of Ulm, a city in the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany...
at Ettlingen
Ettlingen
Ettlingen is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, about south of the city of Karlsruhe. Ettlingen is the second largest town in the district of Karlsruhe, after Bruchsal.-Geography:...
runs several pre-war Eilzugwagen. Others belong to the Traditions-Eilzug Zwickau.
Several post-war Eilzug coaches, including a driving car, also still exist. The BSW Lübeck looks after two coaches belonging to the Nuremberg Transport Museum
Nuremberg Transport Museum
The Nuremberg Transport Museum is based in Nuremberg, Germany, and consists of the Deutsche Bahn's own DB Museum and the Museum of Communications . It also has two satellite museums at Koblenz-Lützel and Halle...
. Several yl coaches are also operational with the Bavarian Railway Museum
Bavarian Railway Museum
The Bavarian Railway Museum is a railway museum based in the old locomotive sheds at Nördlingen station in Bavaria, Germany. It is home to more than 100 original railway vehicles and has been located in the depot at Nördlingen since 1985.- History of the locomotive shed :The shed, itself, has a...
at Nördlingen
Nördlingen
Nördlingen is a town in the Donau-Ries district, in Bavaria, Germany, with a population of 20,000. It is located in the middle of a complex meteorite crater, called the Nördlinger Ries. The town was also the place of two battles during the Thirty Years' War...
.
Technical data for yl coaches
- Length over buffers: 26.40 m.
- Width of coach body: 2,82 m.
- Overall height: 4.05 m.
- Bogie pivot pitch: 19.00 m.
- Bogie wheelbaseWheelbaseIn both road and rail vehicles, the wheelbase is the distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels.- Road :In automobiles, the wheelbase is the horizontal distance between the center of the front wheel and the center of the rear wheel...
: 2.50 m. - Total weight: 35 to 39 t.
- Bogie type: Minden-Deutz.
- Top speed: 120 km/h.
- Heating: electrical and steam.