BVG Class E

In East Berlin, the vehicle situation was poor. Because the C-trains had been transported to Moscow in 1945, there were no Großprofil trains left for the Line E. So, just like in the beginning years of the Großprofil, Kleinprofil vehicles with boards attached to the sides were used. These trains had the designation AI K. 40 trains were being re-deployed to the Line E after the war. These "Blumenbratter" trains were also deployed on Line D on the Workers' Uprising and the Berlin strike in 1953.

Therefore, BVG had to commission an E-type for Berlin U-Bahn after temporarily reassigning the Kleinprofil trains with boards. So far only the EI and EIII trains were built. Most of the trains were converted from DR Class ET 165, DR Class ET 168 and DR Class ET 169, as they were originally from certain critical parts of the Berlin S-Bahn.

EI trains

In 1958, the VEB Waggonbau Ammendorf built two prototypes of the new EI train. Because it was made of steel its weight was enormous, and it would have required too great an amount of energy to be used regularly. No production models of those trains were built.

EII trains

Plans for an EII type train were dropped in 1962 because of political problems. Finally, those responsible in the GDR ministry of transport had the idea of converting S-Bahn trains, which had become surplus because of the boycott of the S-Bahn in the west.

EIII trains

Batch 1

103 084 (right) Baureihe D in Wuhletal, 1990

101 034 in Biesdorf-Süd, 1990

The project began in the summer of 1962. Six trains of the S-Bahn type 168 were converted in the Reichsbahnausbesserungswerk Schöneweide (RAW) until the end of 1962. All in all, five batches of this new U-Bahn train type, called EIII, were delivered.

Batch 2

The Kleinprofil trains could finally be moved back from the E line to the A line, which sorely needed the trains due to a very large number of passengers on the segment between Schönhauser Allee and Alexanderplatz.

The fleet numbering system was changed from 14xx to 10x (Triebwagen) and 15x (Beiwagen) series for the trains.

Batch 3

102 052 (left), 1991

Construction began for the extension of Line E from Friedrichsfelde to Tierpark, to serve the Tierpark Zoo there. In order to increase the capacity for the extension, BVB had to get 4 trains from the DR Class 275. These trains were converted between 9 September 1972 and 25 January 1973.

Batch 4

After the opening of Tierpark station, there was a need to increase capacity on the Line E. Therefore, BVB had to convert five more trains which is from the DR Clsas 275. These trains were delivered between 1975 and 1982.

Batch 5

BVB had the need to order new trains because of the extension of Line E from Tierpark to the Hellersdorf area and Hönow. BVB had contracted several trains from the Berlin S-Bahn and those selected D57/D60 units from the BVG which was originally destined to be scrapped. The first two prototypes started delivery in May 1986 before the subsequent delivery in September 1986. The condition was later reversed. For safety reasons, the ceilings of the manufacturer plate was given after the trains were burnt out at Klosterstraße station. 25 double-end cars were also added into the fleet for the D class trains, whereas the remainder of 41 were Line E. The last of these trains were delivered before September 1990, just before Die Wende.

EIV trains

The GDR or the BVB planned already further: Although it has developed 50 since the mid-years useful subway trains, but the technique of these traits came mostly from S-Bahn trains, which were built in the 1920s and the 1930s, and thus very was old, where it was cleared by the BVB. On the other hand, enormous efforts have been made by the industry to develop a modern S-Bahn train. This then succeeded so well with the series 270 (now 485), which were produced in the years 1987-92 for the German Reichsbahn in series (model already arisen in 1979/80). In LEW in Hennigsdorf since the 80s there were already filed for a new subway train for large profile line E as the successor to the E-III trains. They had dimensioned the timeframe so that the mid-90s should be started with the delivery of this thoroughly modern trains. You should get an AC drive, among other things, what would have been a novelty for local trains in the GDR. Design studies for this new type of train has never existed since the turn of 1989/90 the works were set on this type of train.

After reunification

In 1992, when the BVB was re-unified with the BVG (West) to form BVG, the trains were progressively renumbered from 10x and 15x series, into the 18xx and 19xx. Most of the trains were also serviced in the Wannsee depot in the meantime before transferring to the reunified Deutsche Bahn on 1 January 1994. The management board of the BVG decided to replace the EIII cars into a new millennium with the new F cars.

This allowed phasing out of the trains to target those beyond EIII.4 cars. According to some sources, some trains will be sold to Warsaw Metro after the retirement, but it did not materialise. This would also be a modernisation of the trains such that trains will have BOStrab. The vehicles had received no major studies, the last unit 1818/1819 left on 11 January 1993 from the Raw in this state.

Originally the BVG wanted to keep the EIII trains until 1999, but because of enormous operating and maintenance costs after the reunification of Germany, the EIII trains were retired as early as 1994. There were plans to use up the EIII/4 of the lifespan until 1995, and the EIII/5 and EIII/5U until 2000. Since the necessary spare vehicles for the Class F were not ready, the BVG proceeded to redeploy more trains to the U8 and reduce the number of trains of U5, until the H class trains were delivered.

The trains were not designed for use in magnetically secured routes. Some of the aspects include relatively sedate driving techniques. There have been attempts to test the EIII trains on other lines, however this was failed. The actual last day is on 16 July 1994. The last trains were 1830/1831+1810/1811+1842/1843 and 1916/1917+1914/1915+1908/1909, running from Alexanderplatz to Hönow.

References