FERROVIE DEL SUD EST

Oh no. Thanks, Benny. I much prefer the orange and cream to the green!

NorthWest wrote: I much prefer the orange and cream to the green!

I'm with you but unfortunately that livery was used only on Breda railcars and on some normal coaches. With the coming of the 668 model cars, their colors were adopted for all the remaining fleet, not always with good effect.

Ciao

In the same plan of modernization that bring in the Breda railcars, FSE ordered at Officine Meccaniche Italiane of Reggio Emilia (known as Reggiane) 13 diesel locomotives to complete the elimination of the expensive steam traction.
The new locos, classified BB 151-163, resulted as minor sisters of the FS first series D 341s (Reggiane had built the unfortunate prototype D 341.5001) with a similar body, a MAN prime mover and Marelli electrical equipment. The power was 605 kw and the maximum speed 80 km/h, enough for a network with tracks in no perfect condition and a low axleload.
From 1960 they took in charge all the freight services (and in those times, during harvest, there was plenty of trains to northern Italy and the rest of Europe, Puglia is a great producer of vegetables, grain, tobacco, fruits and wine) as well as the busiest passenger trains at the head of four or five 1930 built coaches, until 1987 when came new locos.
In the last fifteen years they were gradually phased out because of the down of freight traffic, the ageing (not helped by a non perfect maintenance) and difficulties in finding spare parts and now remain on duty only one unit, BB 162, that is used for the FSE historic train and in some freight services because of the bad condition of other locos. BB 159, theoretically the historic locomotive, has been stopped by control authority because of wheels problems and is now preserved at Museo Ferroviario della Puglia; some other units are dumped and the rest has been scrapped.

Still in green livery, BB 161 with the four 1930s coaches of a students train in tow, was caught by S. Paolini arriving at Locorotondo in may 1995. In 1990, when there was still a good amount of freight traffic, F. Capezza took this nice shot of BB 160 at the head of a heavy freight train (another unit was pushing) with the town of Casarano in the background. This light blue and white livery, similar to the one of FS E 656,was introduced at the end of the 70s to match with the new railcars. The two images courtesy of Photorail

Ciao

Interesting units. Did the livery change occur at the same time as the government commission took control or did it precede that?

NorthWest wrote:Interesting units. Did the livery change occur at the same time as the government commission took control or did it precede that?

No, the light blue and white livery appeared for the first time in 1978, when FSE received a batch of railcars strictly derived from the FS ALn 668.1900 series, of which maintained the colours, and then gradually extended to other stock. The state management started in 1985. But for many years there has been not uniformity of the corporate identity, when I was there in 1989 I saw vehicles in the three liveries.

Ciao

I wonder what prompted the change then, whether it was cheaper to just stick with the FS paint on the railcars or what.

Paint is pricey, and so often it is easier to let things be...

NorthWest wrote:Paint is pricey, and so often it is easier to let things be...

Definitely true back in 1978, but I think these days railways do a lot of it with vinyl stickers. Most of the UK passenger rolling stock is owned by leasing companies not train operating companies and therefore often gets transferred from one train operating company to another, and has to change its livery anyway every few years when franchises expire, so it is painted fairly neutrally and the train operating company's livery is added on huge vinyl panels. Likewise "special" liveries commemorating certain people or events, or advertising. I assume that producing and fitting the vinyl panels is much cheaper than doing a proper paint job on a whole train or a whole vehicle. I've seen videos showing a couple of blokes covering a whole vehicle with a new vinyl livery in just a few hours, whereas repainting a vehicle with multiple coats of specialised paint takes far longer.

Well, in Italy, from the 70s, there has been a mania for new liveries and the "rejuvenating of the image" with continuous changes: on FNM I saw four liveries at the same time.
But vinyls began to be used only in the second half of the 90s, if I well remember. Generally the new painting was applied in occasion of overhauls or repairings, when the vehicle was anyhow painted.

Ciao

Having good relationship with German industries, in 1959 Reggiane built a prototype diesel locomotive inspired to the V 80 (then 280) class of DB.
It was a central cab unit on two two-axles trucks moved by a MAN 680 kW engine through an hidro-mechanical transmission and it was ceded to CCFR (then ACT and now part of FER), a private operator of Reggio Emilia where received # 920.
After some years of troubled life, in 1973 it was sold to FSE that was in need of traction (at the time the two companies were collaborating) and classified as BB 170, but things worsened with continuous problems in transmission and engine, also because of the scarce knowledge of hidro-mechanical technology by the Bari workshop. It became sorrowfully famous because of its unreliability and detested by drivers and mechanics, passing more time waiting repairs than working until 1985, when FSE decided the retirement from service. The unfortunate BB 170 remained some years outside the workshop in the Mungivacca depot donating some spare parts to maintain the other locos (the engine was similar to the one of BB 151-163) and in 1990 it has been scrapped.

In 1974, during a tour in southern Italy, Swiss railways photographer B. Studer encountered BB 170 in the premises of Mungivacca depot. At the end of the decade the unit has been repainted in light blue and white.
Image courtesy of Photorail. Ciao

That machine has a no-nonsense business-like look to it. I like the livery, too. It actually looks very much like BR's early green diesel livery.

johnthefireman wrote:That machine has a no-nonsense business-like look to it. I like the livery, too. It actually looks very much like BR's early green diesel livery.

Sorry John, but I don't understand what you wrote. What is a no-nonsense business-like look?

Ciao

Sounds like how the wife looks when you've done something wrong!

Benny wrote:What is a no-nonsense business-like look?

Sorry, I suppose that is a very British-English idiom! It means it is not fancy, pretty, beautiful, ornamental, delicate, graceful, etc, but looks like it is built for hard work, solid, heavy-duty, functional, etc. I use it as a compliment - I like the look of this machine.

Okay, now I understand, thanks. Really the aesthetics of the loco is not bad; this kind of loco was very common in other countries, especially Germany, but in Italy, apart the big shunters, never has been very popular.

Ciao

Yes, I actually like the aesthetics, because I don't think working locomotives should look too graceful!