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Specifications

Introduced: 1958
Original number group: E5000 - E5023 (Total = 24 units)
Manufacturer: British Railways, Doncaster Works, Yorkshire, England
Configuration: Bo-Bo
Total power: 2552 hp, 1903 kW (1 hour); OR 3000 hp at 59.3 mph
Power source: Third rail, 660 - 750 V dc. Pantograph for current collection in yard use
Equipment: Motor generator EE836 booster set
Four English Electric EE532 638 hp spring-borne traction motors driving through Brown Boveri flexible drive
Max. tractive effort: 43000lb when starting at 25% adhesion (at 675V)
Continous tractive effort: 12400lb at 69.6 mph and 3000A traction current (at 675V)
Weight: 77 tons
Driving Wheels: 4'0", 1.22m
Gear ratio: 76:22
Max. speed: 90 mph, 140 km/h (15 mph, 24 km/h with pantograph)
Braking: Straight air and automatic air (loco), automatic air and air controlled vacuum (train)
Brake force: 41 tons
Train heat: electric, 300kW (at 675V) (Night Ferry stock only)
Auxiliary power: 9.2kW, 110V

Design and introduction

The 1955 British Railways modernisation plan included plans to electrify the lines from Dover to the Kent Coast, with a need for new electric locomotives from June 1959. It was chosen to develop these from the principles of three earlier locomotives built by the Southern Railway in 1941 and 1948, with a requirement to be able to handle freight trains of up to 900 tons in the South Eastern Division, or trains of up to 30 ferry vehicles at express passenger speeds, on trains to the Channel ferry ports.

While ordered by Southern Region, the locomotives were built by Doncaster Works in the middle of Eastern Region territory.

During design there was a strong emphasis upon achieving a good power/ weight ratio, and current Swiss and French practice was studied. This design was the first electric locomotive application in the UK of fully springborne traction motors. The bogie design was also based upon Swiss practice, and was manufactured at Doncaster under license from SLM, making extensive use of rubber mountings. Roller bearings were fitted

The initial order E03 was for 3 locomotives, followed by orders E04 for 10, and E015 for 11.

The body design was built to the requirements of the British Transport Commission Design Panel, with the same side profile as the Mk1 coach stock then in production, a feature also seen on Class 52 diesel hydraulics, which also showed similarity in frontal design. The bodywork was a hood over an underframe rather than a stressed skin design.

There was a driving cab at each end, between which was a central equipment compartment. The cabs were built from a mild-steel welded shell, which was rivetted to the underframe. The inner skin was made from hardboard and plywood, the latter lined with plastic panels, and the outer skin was lined with asbestos sheets.

The main body was built of three independent sections, with removable roof sections.

The underframe was a fabricated structure, based upon two longitudinal members, spaced closely together about the centreline.

The design used a motor generator "booster" set, comprised of a booster motor, booster generator and the auxiliary generator. The booster and the stored kinetic energy in its armature and fly-wheel allowed the locomotive to continue to supply power while crossing gaps in the conductor rail. In practice, it was eventually considered that inertia alone was adequate to keep a train moving. At 1750 rpm, the rated power of the booster was 1250 hp. An electro-pnuematic rim brake could be used to stop the booster set.

Power pick-up was via third-rail shoes, mounted adjacent to each wheelset, and also via a central roof-mounted pantograph for yard usage. At the time of introduction, the class were the highest powered single-unit locomotives in the country.

E5000 was first seen on test trips in January 1959, working from Victoria to Newhaven and Brighton, then to Gillingham and Maidstone. Some members of the class were delivered via Eastleigh where third-rail pickup shoes were fitted.

A new running shed was built at Stewarts Lane for the 1959 electrification and this was the original home of the class, responsibility later moving to Ashford.

Service with BR

Following completion of the Kent Coast electrification, the class was used on freight and passenger duties, including the prestige Night Ferry from 8 June 1959 and Golden Arrow from 12th June 1961.

In 1964, the class was introduced to the Newhaven boat trains.

The majority of work, however, was on freight, newspapers and parcels trains, traffic now lost to the railways over such relatively short distances.

In service, the original green paint scheme was firstly altered in the early 60's by the deletion of the body stripe, before being painted in the corporate blue scheme with yellow ends.

All Class 71 members were stored in September 1976, with a planned strorage period of 2 years. Their work was absorbed by the diesel Class 33, and electro-diesel class 73. The locomotives were held in storage at Stewarts Lane, Hither Green and Ashford, but the storage period was brought to an end by withdrawal in November 1977.

Class 74

Following a decline in freight traffic from 1959 to 1965, it was clear that 10 of the class were surplus to requirements in their original assignments. With the electrification of the Bournemouth line, there was a requirement for 3000 hp electro-diesels, and 10 Class 71 were rebuilt extensively with the addition of a small diesel engine and multiple working equipment to form Class 74. The locomotive histories below also cover the Class 74 rebuilds and withdrawals, although this class will form the basis of a future paper.

The booster flywheel was removed in these rebuilds.

Dates and Fates

Preserved