The SNCF Class BB 8500 class are part of a series of

electric locomotive An electric locomotive is a locomotive powered by electricity from overhead lines, a third rail or on-board energy storage such as a battery or a supercapacitor. Locomotives with on-board fuelled prime movers, such as diesel engines or ga ...

s built by

Alsthom Alstom SA is a French multinational rolling stock manufacturer operating worldwide in rail transport markets, active in the fields of passenger transportation, signalling, and locomotives, with products including the AGV, TGV, Eurostar, Avelia ...

for SNCF. They are the

direct current Direct current (DC) is one-directional flow of electric charge. An electrochemical cell is a prime example of DC power. Direct current may flow through a conductor such as a wire, but can also flow through semiconductors, insulators, or eve ...

version of the 25 kV

alternating current Alternating current (AC) is an electric current which periodically reverses direction and changes its magnitude continuously with time in contrast to direct current (DC) which flows only in one direction. Alternating current is the form in which ...

SNCF BB 17000 and dual system SNCF BB 25500. The locomotives are fitted with

monomotor A monomotor is a train design where a single traction motor powers two or three axles in the same bogie. Conventional bogie design involves either having one motor for each axle, or having one or more axles unpowered. The monomotor design causes th ...

bogie A bogie ( ) (in some senses called a truck in North American English) is a chassis or framework that carries a wheelset, attached to a vehicle—a modular subassembly of wheels and axles. Bogies take various forms in various modes of tr ...

s with two different gear ratios. This allows them to increase their tractive effort in exchange for a reduction in their top speed. This makes them suitable for both

freight Cargo consists of bulk goods conveyed by water, air, or land. In economics, freight is cargo that is transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. ''Cargo'' was originally a shipload but now covers all types of freight, including trans ...

and

passenger train A passenger train is a train used to transport people along a railroad line. These trains may consist of unpowered passenger railroad cars (also known as coaches or carriages) hauled by one or more locomotives, or may be self-propelled; self p ...

s. They acquired the nickname ''Danseuses'' (dancers) due to their tendency to sway from side to side at speed, which led to them being ''blacked'' at a number of depots. They were built in three distinct batches, leading to detail differences. They remain in use as mixed traffic locomotives, mostly with TER and but with some remaining for special duties. Thirty locomotives, dedicated to empty stock moves, have been reclassified as BB 88500. Likewise in 2001, 20 of the class were rebuilt for freight

banking A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

workings on the Maurienne line. They were classified as BB 8700 for this period.

Names

Five members of the class were named.

Preservation

A single locomotive, BB 8616, is preserved at Mohon.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sncf Class Bb 8500 Alstom locomotives B-B locomotives 08500 Standard gauge electric locomotives of France 1500 V DC locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1964 Mixed traffic locomotives