childwallblues
Established Member
I shall be in this area for two days next month and wonder were are the best places to see both freight and passengers.
MTIA
Dave
MTIA
Dave
You can find the departures and routes quickly via Googlemaps - they don't appear to go anywhere useful to enthusiasts apart from one random trip to Welkenraedt. No doubt there is a local journey planner as well.There's a bus stop in Moresnet village, almost underneath the viaduct, but I went by bike, so I don't know what the timetable's like or where it goes to/from:
View attachment 64950
I'll throw in Verviers Central for passenger trains, especially for the classic belgish EMUs on the stopping services.
The services between Aachen and Spa are all formed of type 66 EMUs with camshaft control gear dating from the 1960s.
Reference photo of a classic EMU at Verviers Central: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bahnhof_Verviers-Central#/media/Datei:NMBS-MS963.JPG
They are fun. Got one from Welkenraedt to Aachen last week. Bit like a Belgian pacer.
Expect more graffiti than the stock photo and many seem to be wearing an eye patch now !
The locals to Aachen (and thus to Spa) are completely worked by JH ones, arguably because of electro-magnetic interference with the German signalling.Very few with JH camshaft traction control gear survive today, if any. The seats (benches, actually) are a bit rough, but their ride is surprisingly smooth, thanks to their Schlieren bogies.
The locals to Aachen (and thus to Spa) are completely worked by JH ones, arguably because of electro-magnetic interference with the German signalling.
I also think that the thyristors start at 685, with 660ff being MS70JH.
From what I know from the German side, the idea is to extend the ICs terminating at Welkenrath (/-raedt) to Aachen, the 18s and the I11s (correction from yesterday, the M6 don't fit through the "Buschtunnel", it seems like some reshuffling would be required) shuold already be permitted over to Aachen. It's always planned "from next December" and always quietly disappears, mostly due to the Belgians not liking the proposal (the Welkenrath terminators only run during the week and the service to Eupen can not be changed due to political reasons).Now that you say it, I remember having read that info somewhere else already. I think it was also
the case for the Visé to Maastricht workings, but now there the problem seems over. Also, as far as I remember, SNCB started the process of qualifying the Desiro EMUs to Aachen, so the doubles on
that service will also disappear soon.
I rode 643 from Wellkendraet to Aachen on Tuesday and 649 return. 697 was on the Spa branch at Pepinster. 649 was again on the Aachen service on Wednesday whilst 663 was on the 0819 all stations from Liege to Verviers Central.They are fun. Got one from Welkenraedt to Aachen last week. Bit like a Belgian pacer.
Expect more graffiti than the stock photo and many seem to be wearing an eye patch now !
Anything else of interest from your visit? I'm heading out that way again fairly soon.I rode 643 from Wellkendraet to Aachen on Tuesday and 649 return. 697 was on the Spa branch at Pepinster. 649 was again on the Aachen service on Wednesday whilst 663 was on the 0819 all stations from Liege to Verviers Central.
Not really too much of interest in Liege. Loco wise 2115 was in the station sidings on a rake of coaches. Otherwise it was all Class 18Anything else of interest from your visit? I'm heading out that way again fairly soon.
I did wonder why 12 car trains with Class 18 locos run up the 5km branch to Eupen. Presumably political refers to the area being part of Germany until the Treaty of Versailles ceded the area to Belgium in 1922.From what I know from the German side, the idea is to extend the ICs terminating at Welkenrath (/-raedt) to Aachen, the 18s and the I11s (correction from yesterday, the M6 don't fit through the "Buschtunnel", it seems like some reshuffling would be required) shuold already be permitted over to Aachen. It's always planned "from next December" and always quietly disappears, mostly due to the Belgians not liking the proposal (the Welkenrath terminators only run during the week and the service to Eupen can not be changed due to political reasons).
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I did wonder why 12 car trains with Class 18 locos run up the 5km branch to Eupen. Presumably political refers to the area being part of Germany until the Treaty of Versailles ceded the area to Belgium in 1922.
Pretty much spot on.I did wonder why 12 car trains with Class 18 locos run up the 5km branch to Eupen. Presumably political refers to the area being part of Germany until the Treaty of Versailles ceded the area to Belgium in 1922.
You mean a DB unit? So you know If it terminated at Wrlkenraedt or did it continue to Spa?646 was on the Welkenraedt to Aachen service on both Tuesday and Wednesday this week.
No a Belgian unit.You mean a DB unit? So you know If it terminated at Wrlkenraedt or did it continue to Spa?