South African Class 12E

The South African Railways Class 12E of 1983 was an electric locomotive.

On 11 January 1984, the South African Railways inaugurated the MetroBlitz high speed interurban train service between Pretoria and Johannesburg. Five Class 12E electric locomotives with a Bo-Bo wheel arrangement, which entered service in 1983, were designed and built specifically for the MetroBlitz.^[1][2]

Manufacturer

The 3 kV DC Class 12E electric passenger locomotive was designed and built for the South African Railways (SAR) by Union Carriage & Wagon (UCW) in Nigel, Transvaal, with the electrical equipment supplied by General Electric Company (GEC). It is a modified single-cab version of the Class 6E1, Series 10 locomotive and was specially designed and built for use with the MetroBlitz, a high speed passenger commuter train which, with effect from 16 January 1984, ran daily between Pretoria and Johannesburg.^[3]

Five locomotives were delivered by UCW in 1983, numbered in the range from 12-001 to 12-005. UCW did not allocate builder's numbers to the locomotives which it built for the SAR, but used the SAR unit numbers for their record keeping.^[1]

Characteristics

Appearance

Based on the dual cab Class 6E1 locomotive, the Class 12E is a single-cab locomotive with a conductor's cabin at the rear end. They were used with specially designed suburban passenger coaches, which rode on air-sprung disk-braked high speed bogies. The MetroBlitz operated with two locomotives per train, one locomotive at each end, which made dual cabs unnecessary.^[1][4]

Bogies

Like the Class 6E1, the Class 12E was built with sophisticated traction linkages on their bogies. Together with the locomotive's electronic wheel-slip detection system, these traction struts, mounted between the linkages on the bogies and the locomotive body and colloquially referred to as grasshopper legs, ensure the maximum transfer of power to the rails without causing wheel-slip, by reducing the adhesion of the leading bogie and increasing that of the trailing bogie by as much as 15% upon starting. This feature is controlled by electronic wheel-slip detection devices and an electric weight transfer relay, which reduce the anchor current to the leading bogie by as much as 50A in notches 2 to 16.^[4]

Traction

The Class 12E has the same power output as a Class 6E1, but with a higher gear ratio of 23:66, compared to the 18:67 of the Class 6E1. This enabled it to run at a safe maximum speed of 150 kilometres per hour (93 miles per hour). Since it was designed for suburban service, sanding gear was deemed unnecessary and was not installed on the Class 12E. This turned out to be a disadvantage, when they were eventually allocated to mainline service to haul the Blue Train.^[1][4]

Service

When the MetroBlitz was introduced, it was planned to implement similar high speed services at other major centres and also to expand the Pretoria-Johannesburg service, to run through to other centres like Bloemfontein in the Free State, a trip which was calculated to be possible in as little as three and a half hours at high speed.^[2]

The MetroBlitz service was discontinued after a few years, however, with its demise being blamed on poor cost recovery. Other major factors in the failure of the high speed service, was the disruption which was caused to other train traffic which shared the same line and which had to have their schedules adapted to accommodate the MetroBlitz, as well as the inability to operate at its full potential speed as a result of having to share the line.^[5]

Liveries

MetroBlitz

The Class 12E was delivered in a special livery for the Metroblitz, gray all over with a red pilot and lower sides, in line with the red lower sides on the passenger coaches. It had yellow and red whiskers wrapped around to the sides and tapering off towards the rear, and two tapered yellow lines on the sides in line with the yellow lines above and beneath the windows on the coaches.^[2]

The Blue Train

In the SAR and Spoornet eras, when the official liveries were Gulf Red and yellow whiskers for the SAR, and initially orange and later maroon for Spoornet, many selected electric locomotives and some diesel-electrics were painted blue for use with the Blue Train, but without altering the layout of the various paint schemes. Blue Train locomotives were therefore blue with yellow whiskers in the SAR era, blue with the Spoornet logo and the name "SPOORNET" in Spoornet's orange era, and blue with the Spoornet logo, but without the name "SPOORNET", in Spoornet's maroon era. Later, in Spoornet's blue era, there was no need for a separate Blue Train livery, while in the Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) era one Class 14E and the surviving Class 14E1 electric locomotives were eventually repainted in blue during 2012 for use with the Blue Train.^[5][6][7]

After the MetroBlitz service came to an end in 1985, the five Class 12E locomotives were repainted blue with yellow whiskers and replaced Class 6E1 numbers E1341 to E1345 as Blue Train locomotives between Pretoria and Kimberley. Probably at the same time, their original solid pilots were replaced with pilots with a pattern of holes, similar to those used on the Class 5E and Class 6E families, but slanted back towards the front bogies.^[1][5]

They continued to work the Blue Train between Johannesburg and Kimberley until about 2005, when that function was taken over by the dual voltage Classes 14E and 14E1, which subsequently worked the Blue Train over the full distance between Johannesburg and Cape Town, as well as on other electrified routes. All five Class 12E locomotives were then staged at the Koedoespoort shops in Pretoria.^[5]

Disposal

During June 2012, all five locomotives were put up for auction in a single lot at a starting price of R424,000. They were apparently not sold, however, since they were observed to be still at Koedoespoort during 2014.^[8]

The Gautrain

The MetroBlitz linked Pretoria and Johannesburg with a travelling time of 42 minutes, reaching speeds of 160 kilometres per hour (99 miles per hour) while having to contend with other mixed traffic on 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Cape gauge track. This was a remarkable feat, considering that twenty-seven years later, the Gautrain, the dedicated high speed commuter train which was introduced two years later than planned in 2011, linked Pretoria and Johannesburg with a travelling time of 40 minutes, reaching speeds of 160 kilometres per hour (99 miles per hour) on dedicated 4 ft 8 ¹⁄₂ in (1,435 mm) broad gauge track.^[9]

Illustration

The main picture and those following, serve to illustrate the Class 12E locomotive from all sides, as well as some of the liveries which were applied to it.

• 
  The MetroBlitz at Johannesburg station, September 1984
• 
  No. 12-002 in SAR Blue Train livery at Koedoespoort, 2 October 2009
• 
  All five Class 12E locomotives, no. 12-001 front, Koedoespoort, 2 October 2009

References

External links

External video

High Speed on SA Transport Services & World Record on test A short video of the world record test run of 245 km/h on Cape gauge and the first high speed daily train service between Pretoria and Johannesburg, the MetroBlitz, which operated during 1984 (15 minutes 19 seconds)

Wikimedia Commons has media related to South African Class 12E.

Locomotives of South Africa
Steam	7' ¼" gauge East London 0-4-0VB Table Bay 0-4-0ST Table Bay 0-4-0T Table Bay 0-4-0WT 4' 8½" gauge Cape 0-4-0T Blackie Cape 0-4-2 Cape 2-4-0T CGR 0-4-0ST Aid Natal 0-4-0ST Durban Natal 0-4-0WT Natal Natal 4-4-0T Perseverance 3' 6" gauge Tank engines CGR 0-4-0ST 1873 CGR 0-4-0ST 1874 CGR 0-4-0ST 1881 CGR 0-4-0ST 1881 Coffee Pot CGR 0-6-0ST CGR 0-6-0T CGR 2-6-0ST 1900 CGR 2-6-0ST 1902 CGR 1st Class 0-4-0ST 1875 CGR 1st Class 0-4-0ST 1876 CGR 1st Class 2-6-0ST CGR 1st Class 4-4-0T CGR 2nd Class 4-4-0T CGR 3rd Class 2-6-0T CGR Railmotor CSAR Class C CSAR Class E CSAR Rack 4-6-4RT CSAR Railmotor Durban's Congella Durban's Edward Innes Durban's John Milne Durban's Sir Albert Port Elizabeth 0-4-0ST Kowie Railway 0-6-0T Kowie Railway 4-4-0T Metropolitan & Suburban 4-6-2T NGR 2-6-0T Durban & Pietermaritzburg NGR Class I 2-6-2T NGR Class K 0-4-0ST NGR Class K 0-6-0ST NGR Class K 2-6-0T NZASM 10 Tonner NZASM 13 Tonner NZASM 14 Tonner NZASM 18 Tonner NZASM 19 Tonner NZASM 32 Tonner NZASM 40 Tonner PPR 26 Tonner PPR 35 Tonner Portuguese SAR Class A SAR Class B SAR Class C SAR Class C1 SAR Class C2 SAR Class D SAR Class E SAR Class F SAR Class G SAR Class H SAR Class H1 SAR Class H2 SAR Class J SAR Class K SAR Railmotor SAR Dock 0-4-0ST SAR Dock 0-4-0T SWA 2-8-0T 3' 6" gauge Tender engines CGR 1st Class 2-6-0 1876 BP CGR 1st Class 2-6-0 1876 Kitson CGR 1st Class 2-6-0 1879 CGR 1st Class 2-6-0 1891 CGR 1st Class 4-4-0 CGR 1st Class 4-4-0TT CGR 2nd Class 2-6-2TT CGR 3rd Class 4-4-0 1883 CGR 3rd Class 4-4-0 1884 CGR 3rd Class 4-4-0 1889 CGR 3rd Class 4-4-0 1898 CGR 3rd Class 4-4-0 1901 CGR 3rd Class 4-4-0 1903 CGR 4th Class 4-4-2 CGR 4th Class 4-6-0TT 1880 CGR 4th Class 4-6-0TT 1882 CGR 4th Class 4-6-0TT 1882 Joy CGR 4th Class 4-6-0TT 1884 CGR 5th Class 4-6-0 1890 CGR 5th Class 4-6-0 1891 NGR Havelock NGR Class I SAR Class Exp 1 SAR Class Exp 2 SAR Class Exp 3 SAR Class Exp 4 SAR Class Exp 5 SAR Class Exp 6 SAR Class S SAR Class S1 SAR Class S2 SAR Class 1 SAR Class 1A SAR Class 1B SAR Class 2 SAR Class 2C SAR Class 3 SAR Class 3A SAR Class 3B SAR Class 4 SAR Class 4A SAR Class 5 SAR Class 5A SAR Class 5B SAR Class 6 SAR Class 6A SAR Class 6B SAR Class 6C SAR Class 6D SAR Class 6E SAR Class 6F SAR Class 6G SAR Class 6H SAR Class 6J SAR Class 6K SAR Class 6L SAR Class 6Y SAR Class 6Z SAR Class 7 SAR Class 7A SAR Class 7B SAR Class 7C SAR Class 7D SAR Class 7E SAR Class 7F SAR Class 8 SAR Class 8A SAR Class 8B SAR Class 8C SAR Class 8D SAR Class 8E SAR Class 8F SAR Class 8R SAR Class 8X SAR Class 8Y SAR Class 8Z SAR Class 9 SAR Class 10 SAR Class 10A SAR Class 10B SAR Class 10C SAR Class 10D SAR Class 11 SAR Class 12 SAR Class 12A SAR Class 12B SAR Class 13 SAR Class 14 SAR Class 14A SAR Class 14B SAR Class 14C 1st SAR Class 14C 2nd SAR Class 14C 3rd SAR Class 14C 4th SAR Class 15 SAR Class 15A SAR Class 15B SAR Class 15C SAR Class 15CA SAR Class 15E SAR Class 15F SAR Class 16 SAR Class 16A SAR Class 16B SAR Class 16C SAR Class 16D SAR Class 16DA 1928 SAR Class 16DA 1930 SAR Class 16E SAR Class 17 SAR Class 18 SAR Class 19 SAR Class 19A SAR Class 19B SAR Class 19C SAR Class 19D SAR Class 20 SAR Class 21 SAR Class 23 SAR Class 24 SAR Class 25 SAR Class 25NC SAR Class 26 SAR Katanga SWA 2-8-0 3' 6" gauge Articulated engines CGR Fairlie CGR Kitson-Meyer SAR Class FC SAR Class FD SAR Class GA SAR Class GB SAR Class GC SAR Class GCA SAR Class GD SAR Class GDA SAR Class GE SAR Class GEA SAR Class GF SAR Class GG SAR Class GH SAR Class GK SAR Class GL SAR Class GM SAR Class GMA SAR Class GO SAR Class HF SAR Class KM SAR Class MA SAR Class MB SAR Class MC SAR Class MC1 SAR Class MD SAR Class ME SAR Class MF SAR Class MG SAR Class MH SAR Class MJ SAR Class MJ1 SAR Class U 2' 6" gauge Cape Copper John King & Miner Cape Copper Britannia Cape Copper Caledonia Cape Copper Clara Cape Copper Condenser Cape Copper Scotia Namaqua Copper Pioneer Walvis Bay 2-4-2T Hope 2' & 600mm gauges ACR Class NG-G16A CGR NG 0-4-0T CGR NG 0-6-0T CGR NG 4-6-2T CGR Type A 2-6-4T CGR Type C 0-4-0T NGR Class N 4-6-2T SAR Dutton SAR NG 0-4-0T SAR Class NG1 SAR Class NG2 SAR Class NG3 SAR Class NG4 SAR Class NG5 SAR Class NG6 SAR Class NG7 SAR Class NG8 SAR Class NG9 SAR Class NG10 SAR Class NG-G11 SAR Class NG-G12 SAR Class NG-G13 SAR Class NG-G14 SAR Class NG15 SAR Class NG-G16 SWA Class Ha SWA Class Hb SWA Class Hc SWA Class Hd SWA Jung SWA Zwillinge
Electric	Amcoal Class E38 SAR Class ES SAR Class ES1 SAR Class Exp-AC SAR Class 1E SAR Class 2E SAR Class 3E SAR Class 4E SAR Class 5E s1 SAR Class 5E s2 SAR Class 5E s3 SAR Class 5E1 s1 SAR Class 5E1 s2 SAR Class 5E1 s3 SAR Class 5E1 s4 SAR Class 5E1 s5 SAR Class 6E SAR Class 6E1 s1 SAR Class 6E1 s2 SAR Class 6E1 s3 SAR Class 6E1 s4 SAR Class 6E1 s5 SAR Class 6E1 s6 SAR Class 6E1 s7 SAR Class 6E1 s8 SAR Class 6E1 s9 SAR Class 6E1 s10 SAR Class 6E1 s11 SAR Class 7E SAR Class 7E1 SAR Class 7E2 s1 SAR Class 7E2 s2 SAR Class 7E3 s1 SAR Class 7E3 s2 Spoornet Class 7E4 SAR Class 8E SAR Class 9E s1 SAR Class 9E s2 SAR Class 10E SAR Class 10E1 s1 Spoornet Class 10E1 s2 SAR Class 10E2 SAR Class 11E SAR Class 12E Spoornet Class 14E Spoornet Class 14E1 TFR Class 15E Spoornet Class 16E Spoornet Class 17E Spoornet Class 18E s1 TFR Class 18E s2 TFR Class 19E TFR Class 20E TFR Class 21E TFR Class 22E
Gas-electric	SAR Gas-electric
Diesel	3' 6" gauge Diesel-electric PRASA Class Afro 4000 SAR Class DS SAR Class DS1 SAR Class 31-000 SAR Class 32-000 SAR Class 32-200 SAR Class 33-000 SAR Class 33-200 SAR Class 33-400 SAR Class 34-000 SAR Class 34-200 SAR Class 34-400 SAR Class 34-500 SAR Class 34-600 SAR Class 34-800 SAR Class 34-900 SAR Class 35-000 SAR Class 35-200 SAR Class 35-400 SAR Class 35-600 TFR Class 35-800 SAR Class 36-000 SAR Class 36-200 SAR Class 37-000 Spoornet Class 39-000 TFR Class 39-200 TFR Class 43-000 TFR Class 44-000 2' gauge Diesel-electric SAR Class 91-000 3' 6" gauge Diesel-hydraulic SAR Class 61-000 3' 6" gauge Electro-diesel Spoornet Class 38-000
List of South African locomotive classes South African locomotive numbering and classification