The Baureihe ET 91 was a series of
electric multiple units
An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number ...
built for the
Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft
The ''Deutsche Reichsbahn'' (), also known as the German National Railway, the German State Railway, German Reich Railway, and the German Imperial Railway, was the German national railway system created after the end of World War I from the re ...
of
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. The units colloquially known as Gläserner Zug (''Glass Train'') were equipped with large panorama windows, providing an excellent outside view to the passengers. The vehicles were used for recreational trips only, especially in southern Germany and
Austria
Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
.
History
Two units with the
wheel arrangement
In rail transport, a wheel arrangement or wheel configuration is a system of classifying the way in which wheels are distributed under a locomotive. Several notations exist to describe the wheel assemblies of a locomotive by type, position, and c ...
Bo'2' were built in 1935 by
Waggonfabrik Fuchs in
Heidelberg
Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...
and
AEG The initials AEG are used for or may refer to:
Common meanings
* AEG (German company)
; AEG) was a German producer of electrical equipment. It was established in 1883 by Emil Rathenau as the ''Deutsche Edison-Gesellschaft für angewandte El ...
. They were numbered elT 1998 (cream with red underside) and 1999 (dark green with yellow (lower) and grey (upper) window wrap).
ET 91 02 was destroyed on March 9, 1943, in a bomb attack on the
Munich
Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
shunting yard Shunting yard may refer to:
* Classification yard
* Shunting yard algorithm
* British term for rail yard
A rail yard, railway yard, railroad yard (US) or simply yard, is a series of Track (rail transport), tracks in a rail network for storing, ...
. ET 91 01 survived
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
without major damage and was taken over by the
Deutsche Bundesbahn
Deutsche Bundesbahn (, ) or DB () was formed as the state railway of the newly established West Germany (FRG) on 7 September 1949 as a successor of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft (DRG). The DB remained the state railway of West Germany u ...
From 1968 on, it was listed as Baureihe 491 in the
DB numbering scheme, being assigned the number 491 001-4.
The train had been refurbished 5 times during its lifetime (1949, 1953, 1961, 1972, 1985), and suffered a number of changes to its livery. Between 1949 and 1953 it wore the Rheingold livery, that was grey underside, purple bodywork and cream wrap. Between 1953 and 1971 it had a black underside (standard underside paint still used today), maroon bodywork and custard window wrap. Between 1972 and 1985 this livery is changed to light blue bodywork and silver wrap. The last livery was applied from 1985 to 1995 (technically speaking it is still used today) and featured a marine dark bodywork and white window wrap.
On December 12, 1995, the remaining unit
suffered extensive damage in a frontal crash at
Garmisch-Partenkirchen
Garmisch-Partenkirchen (; ) is an Northern Limestone Alps, Alpine mountain resort, ski town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the seat of government of the Garmisch-Partenkirchen (district), district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen (abbreviated ...
with
1044 235 of the Austrian Federal Railways and was subsequently taken out of service. The unit has been stationed at the
Bahnpark Augsburg in
Augsburg
Augsburg ( , ; ; ) is a city in the Bavaria, Bavarian part of Swabia, Germany, around west of the Bavarian capital Munich. It is a College town, university town and the regional seat of the Swabia (administrative region), Swabia with a well ...
since May 2005.
The unit is currently being renovated, however, due to economical reasons it will not be put into a usable state again, the power
bogie
A bogie ( ) (or truck in North American English) comprises two or more Wheelset (rail transport), wheelsets (two Railroad wheel, wheels on an axle), in a frame, attached under a vehicle by a pivot. Bogies take various forms in various modes ...
having been destroyed in the 1995 accident.
Literature
* Horst Troche: ''60 Jahre im Betriebseinsatz: Der "Gläserne Zug"''. In: ''Eisenbahn-Kurier''. No. 281/30/1996. EK-Verlag GmbH, , pp. 24–29.
* Horst Troche: ''Die elektrischen Aussichtstriebwagen der Deutschen Bundesbahn''
References
External links
*
*
{{Authority control
Electric multiple units of Germany
ET 91
15 kV AC multiple units
Train-related introductions in 1935