European Railroad Discussion > Denmark: Generations

As we know, Denmark is at a brink of rebuilding its railroads from diesel lines to electric lines, and mostly their own specific diesel traction to generic European electric traction (this is at least what I believe their strategies will lead to).

Ilkka caught this nice twilight setting from Odense DMU yard + works. It shows most of the types except the ever present rubber headed IC3s we are accustomed to see and regular ICE-TD visitors from Germany. 

Can you tell / guess what these four DMUs types are? Maybe you can also tell some stories around these MUs, as railroading in Denmark seems to be anything but dull...



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/17/15 03:47 by McKey.

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Those things in the middle are the lamentable Ansaldo Breda IC4s I think. Back in 2007 I had an afternoon meeting in Aarhus, arriving mid morning I had a couple of hours free and came across a line of the useless units, stored in the old freight station and badly vandalised.

You are absolutely right Nick! These are the last DMUs to enter production fleet and will be first to be retired of it...I think not much further explanation is needed for description. Just that the fact they run at all is due to Bombardier working on substantial changes to DMUs. Sounds like 50% of everything you see (or use) is built again to enable this much of running - last in first out. I wonder if they've managed to control the rusting issue at least to some extent. Danish climate (as all Nordic climates) is cold and humid in the winter, and these Italian DMUs don't seem to be able to handle it.

I find it interesting that you saw these units vandalized (and in nonusable condition) in _2007_ in Århus! For my part I spotted these units vandalized (and in nonusable condition) in Odense in early 2013. Ilkka picked them to camera again in much the same state in 2013, and finally in 2014 Bombardier had done so much work that some of these could be actually used for production traffic, not just sitting idle and doing test drives. Talk about clash of easy going Danish culture and Southern Italian culture in buying something... 

86235 Wrote:
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> Those things in the middle are the lamentable
> Ansaldo Breda IC4s I think. Back in 2007 I had an
> afternoon meeting in Aarhus, arriving mid morning
> I had a couple of hours free and came across a
> line of the useless units, stored in the old
> freight station and badly vandalised.

Here are three pics of slightly vandalized IC4 type EMUs of AnsaldoBreda. As is customary to Danish railroading, _everything_ is covered with graffiti. They must enjoy these paintings since very little washing seems to occur?

For dozens more pics, please see: http://www.4rail.net/reference_denmark_gallery2_dmus.php#dsb_mg
 

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Finally, in 2014 some running was observed. And the units had clearly taken morning bath too! As you can still see from the bogie and machinery nearby , any ice or snow can be dangerous to these DMUs. 

 

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IC4 also has a little brother, visible in the background of the first picture (two IC4s followed by one IC2). Where IC4 has 4 modules, IC2 has two (take the midsections away). It is also plagued by severe problems and might never be taken into use in large scale. 

Below two pictures of IC2 unit parked for testing in Odense.

 

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Class MR / MRD DMUs should have been retired years ago, but since the situation with AnsaldoBreda rolling stock has been quite desperate for DSB, these are still running to Odense.
 

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McKey Wrote:
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> Class MR / MRD DMUs should have been retired years
> ago, but since the situation with AnsaldoBreda
> rolling stock has been quite desperate for DSB,
> these are still running to Odense.

I remember when they were new :-)

Great series, very informative, and well photographed.

Nick, where did they run then? What were they like then?

I should have somewhere a series of pictures of these DMUs pulling into Odense (for some reason Ilkka, Sanna and I seem to take most of our pics at Odense / Ringsted / Cph Central). Today the MRD are incredibly noisy, with smoke billowing from a diesel engine that has been run a million miles too long. Yet, this is considered much better than usein the AnsaldoBreda ever failing new DMUs.  

86235 Wrote:
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> McKey Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Class MR / MRD DMUs should have been retired
> years
> > ago, but since the situation with AnsaldoBreda
> > rolling stock has been quite desperate for DSB,
> > these are still running to Odense.
>
> I remember when they were new :-)

In the picture MRD unit 4225 in twilight.
 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/17/15 22:36 by McKey.

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Thank you very much for encouragement on developing this! It is indeed a lot of work to try to dig all the facts right and finding a proper set of pics. I will post some more newly developed pics today to this thread.

dendavis Wrote:
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> Great series, very informative, and well
> photographed.

Next and last in the upmost picture is DSB class MQ, which actually is Siemens Desiro (the normal one, not M/ML). Desiro is one of the most common European smaller line two module to four module DMUs. Reliable and available they were brought to Denmark too to solve the complications of nonavailable AnsaldoBreda rolling stock. Talks are these leased MUs will also be the first to be withdrawn once the electrification enables some electric multiple units to be taken into use and other DMUs can be cascaded here.

In Odense Desiros are a common sight on the northernmost platrforms. Three newly developed pictures to show what they look like in Denmark. Observe the step spanning the gap between a European smaller loading gauge and Danish loading gauge platform. 

 

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I think it might be fair to honour the Danish workmanship to show for closing the Danish built rubber headed IC3 DMUs. Here one double unit is pulling into the Odense station from Copenghagen, probably headed to Århus or one of the other bogger destination stations.

DSB is also using similar looking IR4 EMUs, which can be mixed and matched with IC3 diesel cousins. Where IC3 has three modules per unit, IR4 has four, which might be the easiest recognition aid here (provided you can see the MU connection which might not always be easy). Of course seeing the IR4 pantograph helps too. Mixing these two types to longer trains makes sense: the IR4s run as far as the electrifications reaches and IC3s can then easily be split and train will continue forward with these. As Denmark traditionally has relied much on diesel, running DMUs under catenary wires is not as extreme as it would seem elsewhere. Actually, for now, the biggest challenge for DSB is just providing enough _standing_room_ in MUs to be able to transport all the passengers that wish to board them. Future with all the new higher speed electric line building and to be acquired electric rolling stock will show when this will change. But this will be at least another 5 years before any real progress. Meanwhile the aging ICE3 and IR4 are the best DSB can throw in the game.

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Here's a story of mine of a few years ago, relating to the lamprey-like IC3s: http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?17,3437117

Tor in Eugene

The Danes have a long tradition of diesel MU stock;  here's three from the C'hagen area in '66

1)  The prewar Lyntog classes of MS and MB, which established the streamlined MU era for premier expresses on DSB;  one is seen here passing the Railfan Pavilion leaving town
2)  Not strictly a DMU, the postwar diesel power cars of class MO followed on the design concept of the prewar MP and MQ classes.  With a steam generator a pair could sandwich otherwise ordinary [ but control cable equipped ] stock, or they could run with a control trailer.  With almost 100 built in the early fifties, they were very common on branch or secondary trains.
3)  A pair of MA's, the DSB VT 11.5; they took over the top ranked expresses in the 60's.

Best, SZ

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Interesting thread! So I will throw in a couple of pictures as well:

Picture 1: The IC3 5001 at the International Traffic Exhibition (IVA) 1988 in Hamburg / Germany (and I think this exhibition was one of the few times where UK rolling stock was exhibited in larger numbers on the Continent)

Picture 2: The father of the DSB MR / MRD diesel-MU: The DB class 628. The picture of the 628 019 was thaken on March 2nd, 1981 at Garmisch-Partenkirchen. There have been two (three) more generations of that class on German rails: class 628.1, 628.2 (and 628.4)

Picture 3 actually leads to a question: What happened to that class of DSB MU's. As far as I now, they are all removed from revenue service, but are there some units preserved in museums?

E111

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Wonderful stories and pictures, thank you guys! How eye opening to see the current DMUs being in a long line of even more interesting predecessors!

I've been trying to find the one preserved MA / VT11.5, unfortunately it is still hiding somewhere. Looks like it is being used for little excursions every now and then. Anyone else seen it somewhere? It is owned by railroad museum of Odense, but is not located there as the museum track are so short.

1) Regarding the ML's [ and their privatbahn Lynette predecessors ]:  One three car set of ML's went to DSB Museum service in 2010.  I don't know the preserved status of any of the 75 or so private predecessors -- a pair of which  [ VM + VS, no VB ] was tried by DB as 791 001 +... .

2) I don't have a photo of any of the Danish MaK GDT's unfortunately -- but here's one of the matching VM's* that worked through to K. Central.

Best, SZ

*Edited to add:  I believe the two were later rebuilt to VS configuration.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/18/15 12:17 by Steinzeit.

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Just dug out the picture of the IC4 I took back in May 2007 in Aarhus

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Eh, looks as if it has been used for several decades without too much servicing...

Thanks for the picture!

86235 Wrote:
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> Just dug out the picture of the IC4 I took back in
> May 2007 in Aarhus