Скачать или смотреть Rare Footage of Zimbabwe Electrics Speeding Up The Mainline Towards Chegutu From Dabuka

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Finally, real footage of Zimbabwe's electric locomotives in action. I have searched high and low for a video of ELs and one recently surfaced. A big thank you to C Shields for this one. I added my extra renditions of the train at the end. This was filmed along the straight portion between Kadoma and Chegutu. My guess is the train was approaching Chigwell siding. Here is why you don't see these machines plying the Dabuka - Harare line anymore:

WHEN the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) launched the electric train more than two decades ago, the long dreary journey between Harare and Dabuka, south of Gweru, became an enjoyable one.

Although long overdue considering that the first electric train was launched more than a century earlier in 1879 in Germany, it was a step in the right direction.

While the electric train would not travel the entire journey linking the country’s two largest cities, Harare and Bulawayo, the effort was commendable.

However, the electric locomotives have all been suspended after the overhead wires which are used to transmit power were vandalised.

Fanuel Masikati, NRZ public relations manager at the time, confirmed that they had suspended the electric locomotives as a result of extensive vandalism.

“Between six and eight of the electric automotives have been suspended as a result of vandalism and this means that we have to use locomotives which were meant for other routes to service the Harare-Dabuka route,” he said.

Masikati said apart from the massive vandalism of the overhead cables, the thieves were also targeting the poles supporting the wires as well as the machines that are used for control.

This is straining NRZ which is the backbone of the country’s transport sector as it is the most cost-effective mode when it is fully operational.

Replacing the vandalised infrastructure would cost an estimated US$10 million, Masikati said.

However, before the country looks at replacing the vandalised infrastructure, NRZ and other companies which have been hit by vandalism should put in place measures to curb cases of cable theft.

“We need to address the issue of theft and vandalism before we replace the equipment because once someone is used to vandalism, then they would do the same to the installed wires,” Masikati said.

One of the major problems is that there is a ready market for the wire, in Zimbabwe and in the region.

Zesa spokesperson Fullard Gwasira said the vandalised equipment was usually used by the informal sector with “some contraband being targeted for the export market”.

One way of curbing cable theft is to heavily guard the infrastructure; this could be done by either private security guards or the security forces. An increase in security could deter cable thieves who have become daring to the extent of vandalising electrical cables within the high-density areas of Harare.

The other option is to have deterrent sentences for vandalising, buying or selling copper cables.

Masikati said NRZ, together with TelOne and Zesa, were lobbying for a total ban on trade in scrap copper as well as stiffer penalties for those found guilty.

Convicted cable thieves now serve a minimum of five years in prison and this is a result of lobbying by companies which have been hit by vandalism.

Gwasira said they were holding various anti-vandalism and anti-theft campaigns.

“We have also lobbied for the ban on trade in copper and aluminium trading as the only copper producing mine, Mhangura Copper Mines, closed down in 1999 and it defies logic where the vandals and thieves are sourcing their scrap copper,” said Gwasira.
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LOCOMOTIVE GENERAL PARTICULARS - EL1

Actual Starting Tractive Effort 356,83 kN
Actual Continuous Tractive Effort at 34 km/h 258 kN
Design Continuous Tractive Effort at 32 km/h 258 kN
Max Running Speed 100 km/h
Cont Power Rating at Wheel 2,434 kw
Gross HP 2,490 kw
Total Mass of Locomotive 114.0 tonnes
Max Axle Load 19 tonnes
Sand boxes (4 per Loco) Total Capacity 0.32m3
Bogies 2 x 3 Axled; All Axles Driven
Wheel Diameter 1,050 mm (New) 974 mm (Worn)
Axle Boxes Roller bearings FAG Cyl Types 547521
& NUZ 2230Em1C4 F2
Gear Ratio 89:19
Max No. in Multiple Unit Operation 4 Locomotives
Loco Numbers: 4101 ~ 4130
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