Jon Searles' photos with the keyword: Hbf

This shot came out better than I was expecting. I bumped the contrast up by 10% in Gimp, and removed some dust, but ultimately that's all I had to do to it. The thumbnail actually made it look worse. This might be my best photo of Koln Hbf, at least at night.

This photo, taken with my cameraphone, was largely a matter of waking up at the right time and place. We took the CityNightLine service to Prague overnight, and I woke up when the train stopped in Freiburg. I took this photo mainly because I was interested in how people had no problem with leaving their bikes chained up overnight. The station management don't seem to have a problem with it either, but most of all it seems like an illogical place to keep your bike. Wouldn't you want it to go to the station? I eventually concluded that these bikes must be owned by people from out of town who commute to Freiburg by train and then take their bike to work.

Like most railway stations constructed between the 1940's and the 1980's, many people would consider Munchen Hbf to be ugly. I would argue, however, that since it has been fairly well-maintained, and has fairly clean lines, it isn't as ugly as some stations of its era and style.

Strangely, I've had trouble getting information on these. I've seen them before, but I can't find information on them on the internet.

This is another classic that I spotted, a Class 218 diesel. Although it resembles the old (and even more classic) V200 diesel of the late 1950's, the Class 218 was introduced in 1966, and was initially classified as the V164 before DB changed their numbering and classification system in 1968. It was part of the V160 series of diesel classes intended to replace the V200, which was the first mainline express passenger diesel used extensively by DB. Today, very few diesel locomotives are used in express service in Germany due to extensive electrification, so most work locals on branchlines. We had actually spent much of our trip behind diesels because of diversions and construction work, but this wasn't the usual situation for our train. Getting back to the Class 218, the Class 2,467 horsepower in prototype form (the first 12 in service 1966-1968), but this was upgraded to 2,763 from 1968 onwards, putting it close to American diesels, which at the time were some of the more powerful diesels in the world. Maximum operating speed was and still is 140Km/h, just as fast as all of the electrics of the day except for the 103 (which was allowed a maximum of either 160 or 200 depending on the service, making it the fastest in the world at the time). The 218 was more interesting than is obvious, though. Firstly, it isn't a diesel-electric but a diesel-hydraulic, and in spite of the terrible reputation of this technology, the 218 has been in continuous service for 44 years. In addition, because it's a mixed traffic locomotive, it has both a high and a low gear, the low one limiting the top speed to 100Km/h, doubling the tractive effort. Some locomotives originally had a third gear that tripled the tractive effort, although I don't know how many still do. At least one source cites the low-gear top speed as 90Km/h, so this may refer to these units. In 1996-1998, 10 units were re-geared in the opposite way for 160Km/h express services, interestingly out of Munich, being classified during that time as Class 210. Finally, while modern diesel-electric locomotives have dynamic brakes, using the traction motors for braking, the 218 has hydraulic braking that accomplishes the same goal.

I was very happy when we arrived in Munchen Hbf to see several classic German locomotives, in addition to some original Class 401 ICE sets. This is a Class 111, introduced in 1974, and so well-known that it made it into the strategy computer game "Railroad Tycoon II," one of my all-time favorite games. In real life, these locomotives were so successful that 227 were built by various contractors until 1984, and the only ones scrapped to date (two of them) were totalled in accidents. These locomotives have 4990 horsepower, and can reach a maximum operating speed of 160Km/h (99 m.p.h.), although they don't generally work too many express trains anymore. Originally, they weren't used in express service, and weren't even rated for 160, but from 1980 onwards they were upgraded to support the even-faster (and older) Class 103 express locomotives, although both the 111 and the 103 have now been mostly replaced in this role by the 101 and similar newer classes.

Here are some DB EMU's outside of Munchen Hbf as we approached the station (I was shooting back). I don't know the classes since I can't read the numbers (they're blurred), but they would be either Class 422, 423, 424, 425, or 426, as they have very similar carbodies to each other.

This Class 183 is the standard electric locomotive used by ALEX, as well as the Vogtlandbahn before they switched over to EMU's (This is from WIkipedia, I don't know if it's accurate since in 2005 I noticed they were already all-EMU). This is #183001, although I don't know if it's genuinely the first of the class. The Class 183 is a variant of the ES 64 U "Eurosprinter" electric used by the OBB and DB, designated internally in Seimens as the ES 64 U4. On the OBB, the ES 64 U is classified as Rh 1016, and on the DB as Class 182. SZ, the Slovenian railway, although has a few, classifying them as Class 541. In spite of looking quite brutal and heavy, these locomotives, while indeed powerful with 8,600 horsepower, can operate at 230Km/h (143 m.p.h.), and reach a top speed of 357Km/h (222 m.p.h.), making them one of the fastest electric locomotive classes in history. Actually, given that most German and Austrian coaching stock is only rated for 200Km/h (124 m.p.h.) this is overengineering in the extreme.

This looks, at a glance, like a Class 440 EMU, although from this angle I can't read the number.

Here's a better view of Regensburg Hauptbahnhof. Again note the bikes.

Regensburg is an old Romanl city dating to about 90 A.D. Most of what's left is medieval in nature, although not so much in the vicinity of the station (that building behind the station on the right looks Baroque). These historic buildings were better preserved than most German buildings in World War II partly because Allied commanders spared it on purpose for its historic value. To me as a modern American living in Europe, though, I was impressed by the extensive use of bicycles in Regensburg, as you can see in the racks on the platform.

I don't know if this interlocking (or possibly more modern) signal box is still used for its original purpose, but it's still standing and manned.

The first stop in Germany on the route is at Landshut, which is a combination passenger and freight station.

The freight handled at Landshut was mixed, but I spotted a number of interesting things, like these hopper cars from Poland.

This is, as far as I know, one of the long Bombardier trams in Dresden, making its stop at Hauptbahnhof. I don't know of hand whether this is an 8-axle or 12-axle unit, however, as the photo doesn't show the length or the number.

I decided to have a Weissbier in one of the pubs in Berlin Hbf while I waited for train #NZ242. From Berlin, it would be on to Brussels, then to London St. Pancras on the Eurostar, the London Underground to Paddington, and finally the Intercity 125 for Cardiff.

Here's another, wider shot of Hamburg Hbf's trainshed.

This was the scene when I got to Hamburg. That beautiful Class 101 electric, #101 019-8, was regrettably not on my train, but another Class 101 was, so I got my railfan's treat of the trip. I love those 101s. :-)