DB Class 614
| DB Class 614/914 | |
|---|---|
Three-car 614+914+614 in Hersbruck, 28 July 2006
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| Manufacturer | |
| Constructed |
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| Number built |
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| Fleet numbers |
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| Specifications | |
| Train length | 3-car: 79,460 mm (260 ft 8 1⁄4 in) |
| Maximum speed | 140 km/h (87 mph) |
| Weight | 3-car: 141.8 tonnes (139.6 long tons; 156.3 short tons) |
| Prime mover(s) | MAN |
| Engine type | Diesel |
| Power output | 754 kW (1,025 PS; 1,011 hp) |
| Transmission | Hydraulic |
| UIC classification | 3-car: B′2′+2′2′+2′B′ |
| Braking system(s) | KE-R-A |
| Safety system(s) | Sifa / PZB |
The DB Class 614's are German diesel multiple units operated by the Deutsche Bundesbahn, comprising two Class 614 driving units and up to two Class 914 centre cars. On 1 January 1994 the ownership of these vehicles was transferred to the DB's legal successor Deutsche Bahn AG and its subsidiaries or business areas.
The Class 614 is a direct evolution of the Class 624 / 634 and only differs from them in a few points of detail. As a result, the technical section will only cover these differences.
In 1971 the prototypes, 614 001 + 914 001 + 614 002 and 614 003 + 914 002 + 614 004, were delivered. Testing was carried out from Trier along the Moselle valley and into the Eifel. Unlike the production vehicles the prototypes had a tilting systems.
Full production by MAN SE and the Uerdingen Waggonfabrik began in 1973. The first series of 25 three-coach units was delivered at the time when so-called "pop liveries" were in vogue and so they were painted in stone-grey and orange. Immediately following the first batch were the 15 units of the second series delivered in 1975 and stabled at Brunswick locomotive depot. These were already painted in the new ocean blue and beige livery.
There are a total of 42 Class 614 three-car units, which are stationed at Nuremberg and Brunswick. In the early years, Trier was also a base for these DMUs. The Brunswick 614's have mainly worked in the Harz and Weser Uplands since their introduction. In doing so they often ran on former East-West trunk lines, which lost their significance after the partition of Germany. The most important termini were Altenbeken, Bad Harzburg, Bad Lauterberg, Bielefeld, Brunswick, Bodenburg, Göttingen, Hamelin, Hildesheim, Kreiensen, Löhne, Northeim, Ottbergen, Paderborn, Salzgitter-Lebenstedt, and Walkenried. During some timetable periods they also called at Lemgo, Münster, Nordhausen, Osnabrück, Oldenburg, Rahden, Uelzen and Wilhelmshaven. Currently the units all operate in the standard configuration as three-car multiples, whereas in former years they were frequently run as just two-car units or sometimes in fours. Quite often they formed part of mixed multiples, for example: 614+914+934+634. Meanwhile, following the transfer of numerous lines to private firms as a result of competition, and the delivery of the Class 648.25 to DB Regio, the Brunswick DMUs have largely withdrawn from these classic routes. Instead they have been used on atypical routes, like e.g. Leer - Nieuweschans, Emden Hbf - Emden-Außenhafen, Minden - Rotenburg, Uelzen - Bremen and Hanover – Soltau - Buchholz, although currently only the last two routes are still worked by them. The Brunswick Class 628's freed up from other locations were expected to replace the remaining 614's during 2008. Several vehicles have already been set aside and scrapped, several were moved to Hamm Rbf and are hoping for a better future there.
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