Overseas railways worth modelling

[009 micro modeller]

Watching a bit of Heroes of Telemark earlier reminded me of this: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rjukan_Line

 

Some videos:

 

 

Weirdly in the Heroes of Telemark film, all the railway scenes seem to feature a steam train, despite the fact that it was electrified in 1911, although maybe that’s not so inaccurate as they latterly (also slightly oddly) seem to have had a pair of diesel locos which similarly carried out shunting on entirely electrified lines, in addition to the electric locos for hauling trains along the line. There’s also a ferry linking to a similar line on the other side of the lake, which then physically connected to the main Norwegian railway network. It’s now used as a heritage railway - in videos the wires still seem to be up but I’m not sure if any electric locos are in use now. There’s a few other interesting electric railways in Norway in addition to this.

[009 micro modeller]

We’ve probably done the Soller Railway in Mallorca already, but for contemporary-era modelling there is an interesting bit of it at Son Sardina:

 

 

 

Palma Metro line 1 surfaces on one side of the line, curves to run parallel to the Soller and interchange with it, then the Metro curves away again to cross over the Soller on a bridge, before going underground again for a short run to its own terminus (UIB). Both lines are narrow gauge - 3ft for the Soller and metre for the Metro (nowadays the same as the main network on the island, which used to be 3ft), the Soller is single track and the Metro is double (although on the aerial view the Soller seems to have a loop of some sort in the station area). Although I’ve been to Mallorca I was in the wrong part of the island so didn’t get to visit the railways on that occasion - can anyone confirm whether the Soller trains actually regularly stop at Son Sardina, and whether the loop there is used as a passing loop?

 

In some ways it’s not really my sort of layout as it’s a bit large with not much operational interest, but I quite like the idea of the trains passing and the contrast between old and new rolling stock.

[009 micro modeller]

Actually while looking at some more old electric railways after my Mallorca post earlier I got distracted and found this (apparently since extended back into Sintra):

 

 

It’s actually a slightly wider gauge than the better-known Lisbon system (1000 rather than 900mm).

[whart57]

On 26/12/2022 at 18:02, 009 micro modeller said:

Weirdly in the Heroes of Telemark film, all the railway scenes seem to feature a steam train, despite the fact that it was electrified in 1911,

 

Electrified railways are extra vulnerable in wartime, particularly if they employ overhead power supply. I suppose it is possible that the Nazi occupiers brought in steam locos, a more robust form of motive power, during the occupation. WW2 saw a resurgence of steam traction in many European countries as petrol and diesel became in short supply and electrical generation was cut back. By 1944 for example many electric tram systems operated for an hour or two in the morning and then an hour or two in the evening to save of electricity.

[009 micro modeller]

2 hours ago, whart57 said:

 

Electrified railways are extra vulnerable in wartime, particularly if they employ overhead power supply. I suppose it is possible that the Nazi occupiers brought in steam locos, a more robust form of motive power, during the occupation. WW2 saw a resurgence of steam traction in many European countries as petrol and diesel became in short supply and electrical generation was cut back. By 1944 for example many electric tram systems operated for an hour or two in the morning and then an hour or two in the evening to save of electricity.

I realise that, it’s just odd in a location with hydroelectric power close by and hardly any coal easily available (the original steam locomotives on the line had apparently cost too much to operate).

[whart57]

Well we're speculating. The answer is out there somewhere though if we go looking for it we'd probably be carrying out more detailed research than the film makers

[EddieB]

There is a full account of the line and listing of its locomotives (in Norwegian) in the book "Glemte Spor" (= "forgotten tracks").  Electrification was present from the beginning (1913) and such steam locomotives as were present in the pre-war period were small tank locos or fireless types.  During the war years there were times that it wasn't possible to run the electric locomotives over the line - which implies that they continued to operate for most of that period.  There is no reference to importation of steam locomotives at that time.

 

I have no link (the newspaper report is behind a paywall), but a news item appeared on the NJK website last October that nine tank wagons had been lifted from their watery grave.  ("Ni tankvogner har i løpet av sist uke blitt heist opp fra sin våte grav").

Edited December 28, 2022 by EddieB

[whart57]

As this topic seems to have resurrected itself I will add another metre gauge electric tramway, this time in Holland (accurate description as I mean the province North Holland). It's the line from Amsterdam to Edam and Volendam. Yep that town that gives its name to the round red cheeses. While looking around on the internet for supporting material I found this YouTube video.

 

 

Most of the video was shot in the 1950s, as you might deduce from the cars and the clothing. For me it's a shame the clips aren't credited as my uncle was a newsreel cameraman working out of Amsterdam at the time so I'm wondering if any of his work appears in it.

 

The line was initially opened as a steam tram line and extended as far as Alkmaar. The most northern part of the line (Purmerend - Alkmaar) was closed in 1932 but the rest was electrified. These were the lines from Amsterdam (a station near the present day Adelaarsweg ferry jetty) to Purmerend and Volendam. In fact there was even an extension as the steam line only went as far as Edam. Nearly thirty electric motorcars were brought over from the Amsterdam-Zandvoort and Haarlem city tram system but the old steam tramway passenger carriages were retained, hence the curious height difference between the motor car and the trailers. However nothing was less than thirty years old when the electrified service started.

 

Pre-war the line from Edam to Volendam was dual-gauge, the metre gauge of the electric tram being mixed with the standard gauge freight line from Kwadijk on the Amsterdam-Hoorn line. (Kwadijk is now closed though frequent trains still run to Hoorn and Enkhuizen). So a bit of modellers' licence would allow both electric tram and mainline freight to run side by side. Before WW2 the freightline would have been steam operated. Sadly the freight line stopped operating in 1944, when all the Dutch railway workers went on strike to disrupt the German response to the parachute drops at Arnhem, a strike that lasted until the liberation in May 1945, and the line did not re-open after the war. However, that modellers' license again, if it had returned then it is likely that a class 200 "sik" - Roco do a model - would have provided the motive power.

 

As can be seen from the fact that there was nearly always another tram waiting at the crossing places, the service was quite intensive. And then there were the tourist specials. English language signage is now common in the Netherlands and the joke is now that you hear better English spoken there than in England, but in the 1950s it was rare. However a day trip using tram and boat from Amsterdam to Monnikendam (ferry to Marken) and then from Marken the ferry to Volendam and back to Amsterdam on the tram was a standard for American tourists. Of which there were surprisingly many in the 1950s as WW2 veterans would make a once in a lifetime trip with their families and soldiers stationed in Germany would come up the Rhine.

[whart57]

Just an observation on the video clips. The guy who's climbed the overhead pylon to take pictures is probably Luud Albers (L.J.P. Albers), a prolific writer of photo-journals on Dutch railways and tramways, and a regular snapper for Dutch model railway magazines. Holland doesn't have many overbridges or cuttings that allow a photographer to get a shot at cab level so Albers had to resort to more desperate measures. Another quirk of his was to include his Lambretta scooter in shot if possible.

 

Buses replaced the trams in December 1956 and a year later a causeway was completed as part of the Zuiderzeewerken from the mainland to the island of Marken allowing buses to reach that as well.

 

 

Today there is a frequent service to Edam, Volendam and Marken from the bus station on the north side of Amsterdam CS.

 

Edited April 20 by whart57

[Roadrails]

So I started a thread on the Kreka System in Bosnia

Taking coal from several mines in beautiful wooded steep valleys to a power station , also powering steel and a coke plant and cement works .Modern image LEDs light up the Kriegsloks, and the Kennedy EMD G16 are pretty old now. A fascinating Bosnian gauge line with hydraulic locos, and occassional steam, and a USA tank shunting when the aging 0-6-0DH is OOU Recently seen a V100, and hydraulics on the NG, 7 types of steam loco. Quite something. . 

[Roadrails]

[GrumpyPenguin]

12 hours ago, Roadrails said:

Excellent image - all the better for being in monochrome.

Be worth a trip to Bosnia just to see these in action (I've heard that the crews are very friendly too).

[Nick_Burman]

On 28/11/2022 at 08:43, 009 micro modeller said:

Honduras used both 3ft and 3ft 6in and I’m not sure which gauges are shown in the videos.

 

The top video is in Costa Rica, so 3'6".  The bottom one is shows what remains the Standard Fruit RR which was the system centered on La Ceiba and which was 3' gauge.

 

Cheers NB

[009 micro modeller]

59 minutes ago, Nick_Burman said:

 

The top video is in Costa Rica, so 3'6". 

Going back to the original post I’m not sure why the YouTube video describes itself as being in Honduras.

[doctor quinn]

On 28/12/2022 at 14:09, 009 micro modeller said:

I realise that, it’s just odd in a location with hydroelectric power close by and hardly any coal easily available (the original steam locomotives on the line had apparently cost too much to operate).

I'd always assumed artistic licence by the filmmakers - steam locos going into the lake are more spectacular 

[IceDuke]

Brazilian modelling is worth a shout. Particularly as there is a manufacturer of Brazilian models frateshi

 

 https://www.frateschi.com.br/site/?lang=en

 

And a nascent modelling community over there.

[009 micro modeller]

48 minutes ago, IceDuke said:

Brazilian modelling is worth a shout. Particularly as there is a manufacturer of Brazilian models frateshi

 

 https://www.frateschi.com.br/site/?lang=en

 

And a nascent modelling community over there.

Are they reasonably good quality? I thought they did a few New Zealand locos as well.

[GrumpyPenguin]

2 hours ago, IceDuke said:

Brazilian modelling is worth a shout. Particularly as there is a manufacturer of Brazilian models frateshi

 

 https://www.frateschi.com.br/site/?lang=en

 

And a nascent modelling community over there.

Maybe it's me - what scale are they please ?

 

Prices seem really reasonable.

[DavidB-AU]

6 hours ago, GrumpyPenguin said:

Maybe it's me - what scale are they please ?

 

Frateschi is nominally HO but there are some individual models closer to 1:80. The 2-8-0 is a common donor mech for On30.

[sir douglas]

ive been watching some of these in the last few days, lots of steam in Colombia, Cuba, Guatemala and Ecuador in the 2000's

https://www.youtube.com/@trianghornby/videos

 

it really makes me want to model it