2014Locomotives - Sheetlets

Steam locomotive of the series MÁV 375/JDŽ/HDŽ/ JŽ 51 The period of steam locomotives in Croatia lasted for 126 years, between 1860 – when through Croatian territory railway traffic was established between Kotoriba and Čakovec, as part of the railway track Budapest - Nagykanizsa– Pragersko – and 1988 when the last steam locomotive was withdrawn from traffic. In that period railway traffic in Croatia was operated with the total of 83 series of steam locomotives, built throughout the world. This is due to the fact that throughout history the jurisdiction over building railway tracks and managing the railway system were in hands of different railway managements that procured tow vehicles in accordance with their own traffic policies. In the beginning, on first Croatian railway track built between 1860 and1865 between Kotoriba and Čakovec, Zidani Most and Zagreb and Zagreb and Karlovac, passenger trains were towed by three axle locomotives marked SüdB 18 and SüdB 19, built by Austrian engineers. Steam locomotives of Hungarian State Railway (MÁV) were introduced in 1870 when the railway Zákány – Zagreb South Railway Station (today's Zagreb Western Railway Station) was built. Among first locomotives was the one marked MÁV 441, which in 1873 towed the first train from Budapest to Rijeka. On the first railway track built by Austrians in 1877 in Dalmatia between Split and Siverić with the extension toward Šibenik, which was in 1888 further extended to Knin, the Association of South Railways performed the service with six locomotives from the series kkStB 37/JŽ 121. The service on the vicinity Zagorje Railway between Zaprešić, Varaždin and Čakovec with the extension toward Krapina, was operated by Hungarian locomotives marked MÁV 373 and MÁV 374. The locomotives of both series were built with open cab without side glass windows and could develop maximum speed of 45 km/h. Later development in locomotive building was aimed at producing more powerful and faster engines that could satisfy always more demanding transport needs in passenger and freight traffic. Accordingly, the locomotive vehicle fleet in Croatia was systematically renewed and modernised. However, in spite of that, the development of electric and diesel tow vehicles with whose technical and exploitation features the steam locomotives could not compete, brought an end to further use of steam towing. In Croatia the substitution of steam towing was gradually introduced since the middle of the 20th century. By 1980 the steam towing was abolished on main railways, and on secondary railways steam locomotives were sporadically used until 1988. Steam locomotive of the series MÁV 375/JDŽ/HDŽ/ JŽ 51 Tender locomotives of the mentioned series were built between 1907 and 1929 in the locomotive factory of Hungarian State Railways (MÁV Gépgyár) in Budapest. They were aimed for towing of cargo and passenger trains on local railways. 596 locomotives from the series were built and the former Yugoslav State Railways bought 166 of them. During construction on several occasions construction changes were done in order to achieve better quality and higher efficiency in traffic. From 1942 to 1943 sixteen locomotives of the series were produced also in Croatia, in the First Wagon, Engine and Bridges Factory in Slavonski Brod (today’s factory Đuro Đaković). In Croatian territory the locomotives were used in passenger and cargo traffic for more than 70 years, until 23 September 1988, when from the railway station Pakrac the locomotive JŽ 51-144 towed the last train and so marked the end of steam towing in Croatia.