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Diesel Loco Engine Hauled Passenger Trains in Western Europe

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Oscar46016

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Are there any left - I know there used to be some great diesel engines in germany with Maybach engines similar to Westerns - are there any left or any others of note?
 
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ricohallo

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Still quite a lot of diesel hauled services in Austria (and Slovakia) too: https://www.vagonweb.cz/razeni/razeni.php?rok=2021&lok=ÖBB+2016*&najit=Hledat

Denmark also still has local services with DSB ME locos with double deck coaches. However, they will soon be replaced by new (electric) Vectron locos. The diesel hauled trains can mostly be found on services from Østerport to Holbæk, Nykøbing and Kalundborg. They also run during the weekend, but noticably less services than on weekdays.

The long-distance trains from Trondheim to Bodø in Norway are hauled by diesel locos too: https://www.vagonweb.cz/razeni/razeni.php?rok=2021&lok=NOR+Di4*&najit=Hledat
 
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D6130

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As well as the aforementioned Reggio Calabria - Taranto two coach inter-cities, Italy has diesel loco-hauled (push-pull) regional trains on the following lines (but not all trains):

Padova/Treviso - Montebelluna

Torino - Cuneo -Breil sur Roya (France) - Ventimiglia

Firenze SMN - Borgo San Lorenzo (via Pontassieve)

Firenze SMN - Empoli - Siena

Siena - Grosseto

Siena - Chiusi C T (one train each way on weekdays only)

There are also still a few diesel loco-hauled trains in France - mainly overnight services:

Paris - Briancon (between Valence and Briancon)

Paris - Rodez (between Brive and Rodez)

Daytime sevices between Bourges and Montlucon were also diesel-hauled until quite recently, but may now have gone over to bi-mode units.
 

JonasB

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Denmark also still has local services with DSB ME locos with double deck coaches. However, they will soon be replaced by new (electric) Vectron locos. The diesel hauled trains can mostly be found on services from Østerport to Holbæk, Nykøbing and Kalundborg. They also run during the weekend, but noticably less services than on weekdays.

There should still be a year or two of ME haules trains in Denmark before they are fully replaced by the new EBs. If I'm not mistaken the prepandemic plan was to phase out the last ME in 2023.

I guess it depends on how you define many, but there are some loco hauled trains Trondheim-Bodø (other trains on the line are DMUs). Loco hauled passenger trains south of Trondheim are electric.

In addition, there are some diesel hauled trains in Finland.
 

LSWR Cavalier

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ICs are diesel hauled between Hamburg and Westerland/Sylt, just read a report from 2020 about noisy 218s being used because the new diesel locomotive engines just do not work.

218s with double-deckers do several trips a day between Kiel and Luebeck, partly continuing to/from Hamburg, but not much longer, battery electric trains have been ordered.
 
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ricohallo

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I guess it depends on how you define many, but there are some loco hauled trains Trondheim-Bodø (other trains on the line are DMUs). Loco hauled passenger trains south of Trondheim are electric.
Whoops, the El18 locos are electric of course! I changed my post accordingly, thanks for pointing it out.
 

43096

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I think there are still some CD 754 workings in Czech Republic, if that counts.
And in Slovakia.

Both ČD and ZSSK also have some re-engined "Goggles" (of Class 750.7 and 757 respectively) for passenger work.

In Germany there are also the Alex workings to Hof and Prague from Munich that use Siemens built diesel locos of class 223 beyond Regensburg (Munich-Regensburg is electrically hauled by Class 183 locos).
 

Gloster

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There should still be a year or two of ME haules trains in Denmark before they are fully replaced by the new EBs. If I'm not mistaken the prepandemic plan was to phase out the last ME in 2023.


I guess it depends on how you define many, but there are some loco hauled trains Trondheim-Bodø (other trains on the line are DMUs). Loco hauled passenger trains south of Trondheim are electric.

In addition, there are some diesel hauled trains in Finland.
The last EB is supposed to be delivered in the summer of 2022, so there is unlikely to be much work for the ME after that. However, it is likely that DSB will not be too quick to completely withdraw them: the IC4 saga has left deep scars. A fourth ME has just been sold to Nordic Re-Finance in Sweden and four more are to follow in the second quarter of this year. Four more will follow in the third quarter and the company is looking at buying all twenty remaining locos.

There are only five Di.4, which are similar to and contemporary with the earliest DSB ME. They normally only work the day and night through trains between Trondheim and Bodø.
 

43096

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The last EB is supposed to be delivered in the summer of 2022, so there is unlikely to be much work for the ME after that. However, it is likely that DSB will not be too quick to completely withdraw them: the IC4 saga has left deep scars.
There’s a bit of a difference between a new, unique design that the IC4s were and buying locos of a design that is a standard product which has been in production for several years and that there are the best part of 1,000 already built.
 

JonasB

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The last EB is supposed to be delivered in the summer of 2022, so there is unlikely to be much work for the ME after that. However, it is likely that DSB will not be too quick to completely withdraw them: the IC4 saga has left deep scars. A fourth ME has just been sold to Nordic Re-Finance in Sweden and four more are to follow in the second quarter of this year. Four more will follow in the third quarter and the company is looking at buying all twenty remaining locos.

It seems like I was mistaken, 2022 it is then! It also seems like the MEs will continue their life in Sweden, but that will probably just involve hauling freight trains.

I also remembered that there are few loco hauled diesel trains in Sweden. Snälltåget have been running trains to a couple of ski resorts in the Swedish mountains the last few winters, using diesel locos for the last part of the trip on the non-electrified Inlandsbanan. And it is not impossible that an (T)ME will show up in one of those trains in the future.
 

Gloster

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There’s a bit of a difference between a new, unique design that the IC4s were and buying locos of a design that is a standard product which has been in production for several years and that there are the best part of 1,000 already built.
Quite so, but the reputational damage to DSB of the IC4 was enormous. Even with a proven product, something might just, just go wrong and they cannot afford even the tiniest chance of that.
 

class ep-09

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I think RENFE may still have quite few of their trains hauled by diesel locos or electric power cars, with coaches containing diesel generators coupled together and used on unnelectrified routes , served by Talgo sets :



Trains to / from Murcia , Carthagena and also trains to Cantabria / Asturias from other parts of Spain .

 
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GNERman

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And in Slovakia.

Both ČD and ZSSK also have some re-engined "Goggles" (of Class 750.7 and 757 respectively) for passenger work.

In Germany there are also the Alex workings to Hof and Prague from Munich that use Siemens built diesel locos of class 223 beyond Regensburg (Munich-Regensburg is electrically hauled by Class 183 locos).
Good shout re the Alex 223's.

Also the Leipzig-Chemnitz MRB service runs with 223's, and I think the Hamburg-Cuxhaven service is still loco-hauled also with diesel Traxx locos.

There's also the DB 245's replacing / working alongside the 218's.
 

Richard Scott

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Portugal is still using 1400s, think Porto may be the area in which they run. France still has a couple of 67400 turns around Strasbourg. Slovenia has a 644/664 turn on the Autovlak, Croatia still uses 2044s on turns to Osijek and overnight trains to Split. If happy to venture into more Eastern countries then Hungary still uses 418s in reasonable numbers, Bulgaria has a few diagrams, Levski a reasonable bet and the narrow gauge line from Septemvri, Romania also has many diesel hauled trains.
 

MarcVD

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What about the night train between Irun and Lisbon ? It was diesel hauled for the whole spanish part of the trip when I used it but that was many years ago. Is it wholly under wires now ?
 

StephenHunter

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Portugal is still using 1400s, think Porto may be the area in which they run. France still has a couple of 67400 turns around Strasbourg. Slovenia has a 644/664 turn on the Autovlak, Croatia still uses 2044s on turns to Osijek and overnight trains to Split. If happy to venture into more Eastern countries then Hungary still uses 418s in reasonable numbers, Bulgaria has a few diagrams, Levski a reasonable bet and the narrow gauge line from Septemvri, Romania also has many diesel hauled trains.

I personally call Hungary 'Central Europe' myself.

I believe there's still the Wien-Marchegg-Bratislava route run by diesels, but that line is currently being wired.
 

Richard Scott

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I personally call Hungary 'Central Europe' myself.

I believe there's still the Wien-Marchegg-Bratislava route run by diesels, but that line is currently being wired.
Ok, the post said Western Europe so as the former Communist countries generally were referred to as Eastern Europe irrespective of actual geographical location I used that term. I believe Wien to Bratislava is still OEBB 2016s.
 

30907

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What about the night train between Irun and Lisbon ? It was diesel hauled for the whole spanish part of the trip when I used it but that was many years ago. Is it wholly under wires now ?
AFAIK still diesel for the first bit from the Portugese border on the Spanish side - that is, if and when it resumes.
 

D6130

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I think RENFE may still have quite few of their trains hauled by diesel locos or electric power cars, with coaches containing diesel generators coupled together and used on unnelectrified routes , served by Talgo sets :



Trains to / from Murcia , Carthagena and also trains to Cantabria / Asturias from other parts of Spain .

Yes...very true. RENFE class 334s (class 67 lookalikes with Co-Co bogies) work the Madrid-Algeciras Talgo services from/to Antequera Santa Ana.
 

LNW-GW Joint

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Madrid-Zamora-Ourense-Santiago de Compostela-Ferrol is still the Renfe 730 hybrid (diesel generator car for the non-wired section behind an electric power car, usually double sets).
But by year-end it will have gone fully electric when the last scenic mountain section is by-passed by the new high-speed line (mostly in tunnel).

Romania has quite a number of cross-border diesel routes, as only the route via Arad from Hungary is electrified.
Bucharest-Sofia (summer) is also diesel worked across the Danube to Ruse.
 

Richard Scott

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Yes...very true. RENFE class 334s (class 67 lookalikes with Co-Co bogies) work the Madrid-Algeciras Talgo services from/to Antequera Santa Ana.
I had look for these, are they currently not running or do they run under IR banner? Looking at DB site this is all that came up?
 

D6130

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I had look for these, are they currently not running or do they run under IR banner? Looking at DB site this is all that came up?
Just had a quick look for tomorrow....one direct ATR train each way:

15 03 Algeciras-Madrid Atocha 20 35 and 15 05 Madrid Atocha-Algeciras 20 38. Should be electric-hauled over the high speed line by a standard gauge loco (252 class?) to Antequera and then through the gauge changer and on to Ronda and Algeciras behind a 334 (and vice-versa).
 

Richard Scott

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Just had a quick look for tomorrow....one direct ATR train each way:

15 03 Algeciras-Madrid Atocha 20 35 and 15 05 Madrid Atocha-Algeciras 20 38. Should be electric-hauled over the high speed line by a standard gauge loco (252 class?) to Antequera and then through the gauge changer and on to Ronda and Algeciras behind a 334 (and vice-versa).
Ok, thanks. Did see that train but thought it would have been one of the bi-mode high speed trains. Nice to be wrong. Not sure be going out there soon with current restrictions but is one to do. How long these expected to last? Any other routes with diesel traction in Spain, is Cartagena still diesel?
 

D6130

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Ok, thanks. Did see that train but thought it would have been one of the bi-mode high speed trains. Nice to be wrong. Not sure be going out there soon with current restrictions but is one to do. How long these expected to last? Any other routes with diesel traction in Spain, is Cartagena still diesel?
TBH, it may be now. Last time we went to Ronda on it was four years ago. I thought the ATR designation meant a hauled TALGO train. Our friends in Ronda have now moved back to the UK in the wake of Brexit. Can the bi-mode high speed trains change gauge? Perhpas someone with more knowledge than me of Spanish railways could elucidate?
 

Richard Scott

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TBH, it may be now. Last time we went to Ronda on it was four years ago. I thought the ATR designation meant a hauled TALGO train. Our friends in Ronda have now moved back to the UK in the wake of Brexit. Can the bi-mode high speed trains change gauge? Perhpas someone with more knowledge than me of Spanish railways could elucidate?
Ok, thanks for info anyway. Spain is one country I've where I've never had a train. Not easiest place to get around with all the mandatory reservations. Was just a potential idea for a summer visit if we're allowed to go!!!
 
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