The first 6x RBe 4/4 prototypes (series 1401-1406) proved
themselves and after only 3 years the production series started. 76
units were ordered. The production version had some modifications
(mainly changes regarding the ventilation grills moved from the top
of the doors in the middle of the railcar) and other structural
reinforcements that led to a 4 tonnes heavier vehicle (68
tonnes).
The design of the RBe 4/4 proved that a 20 tonnes axle load was
possible and this led to the construction of a new locomotive: Re
4/4 II with a 140 km/h max. speed. The Re 4/4 II was built to be
able to be controlled together with the RBe 4/4 (for the first
time, two vehicles of different design, speed and power should be
able to operate together remotely).
The first series railcars are delivered.
A large number of railcars is delivered just in time for the Expo
'64.
Special trains for the exposition were formed, long pendelum trains
with up to 15 coaches and capable to carry over 1000 passengers to
Lausanne (some also contained a dining car).
The last rail car is delivered (RBe 4/4 1471) bringing the total
number of available railcars to 82. Together with the delivery of
20 new DZt control cars (derived from the EW II passenger coaches),
regular service trains were scheduled all across Switzerland with
urban express trains in Genève, Basel or Zurich. They were even
used on international trains to Domodossola, on the Simplon
line.
The only route without a RBe 4/4 in regular service was the
Gotthard line, covered by Ae 6/6 and Re 4/4 I locomotives.
The railcar number 1426 transported 300 members of the Agricultural
Cooperative to Valais. Among them were many farmers with their
families. The journey ended tragically near the station of St.
Léonard: the special train pulled by the RBe 4/4 collided at full
speed with an oncoming freight train.
The RBe 4/4 was heavily damaged and was barely recognisable. The
rescuers found in the almost completely destroyed vehicles 13
fatalities and 103 injured. Among the victims were also the two
train drivers. Despite the heavy damage and the fact that Re 4/4 II
locomotives were already replacing RBe 4/4 railcars for fast
intercity trains, the unit is repaired and put back into service.
Due to an error in the positioning of the turnouts, RBe 4/4 1419
crashed into a composition of parked cisterns in St. Triphon. The
impact occurred at low speed so the damage was quite limited and
there were no serious victims. But some of the cisterns were torn
open and the fuel ignited. The fire completely destroyed the
railcar and only the bogies could be recovered. The cost of
rebuilding the unit were much to high so the RBe 4/4 1419 is the
first discarded vehicle.
By 1976, 76 railcars out of the remaining 81 were used in pendulum
trains. The other 5 units, due to the lack of control units, were
used as locomotives or reserves.
The RBe 4/4 railcars were by now used mainly in regional traffic
being replaced on fast intercity trains by the Re 4/4 II
locomotives.
The RBe 4/4 1480 crashed into a shunting tractor in Frenkendorf.
The shunting tractor was completely destroyed and the railcar
suffered extensive damage. Transferred to the main workshop in
Zurich, it is repaired and put back into regular service.
Damaged back in 1979, RBe 4/4 1461 is repaired in the Zurich main
workshop and put back into service. It receives a new paint coat
and the new SBB logo on both sides.
After a tragic collision of 2 railcars on the Martigny - Orsières
line, RBe 4/4 1418 is rented from the SBB as a replacement vehicle.
Despite the extremely steep sections on this route, they were no
challenge for the power of the RBe 4/4. The unit is returned to the
SBB after the 2 railcars involved in the collision were repaired.
All 81 remaining RBe 4/4 units are used in regular service. Most
run as four-units pendulum trains: one railcar, two intermediate
cars and a control car.
In the Zurich area, they were used as six-units commuter trains:
one railcar, four intermediate cars and a control car. They were
even used on the Zurich S-Bahn: during rush hour, 2 six-units were
combined to form 300 meters long trains (this way the trains were
able to accelerate faster).
The six prototypes were mainly used on the Seetal line and they
were the first to receive a red painted front followed by a special
yellow paint applied on top to make them more visible on the line.
The first railcars of the series start to receive red fronts ton
ensure better visibility (RBe 4/4 1437 was the first painted this
way).
Across Switzerland, most units are replaced by the newer RBDe 4/4
and transferred to Zurich for the S-Bahn. Here they form commuter
trains with a control car or a second RBe 4/4 unit.
On the Seetal line, the prototypes are still used and proved
themselves quite well. There are some issues though with the
passenger coaches: as the speed of the line is relatively low, the
axle generators were not always able to reliably charge the
batteries of the coach and it was not unusual to see dark
compartments in the passenger coaches.
RBe 4/4 1454 between Uster and Aathal caught fire. Until the driver
noticed the incident and could stop the train, the fire was so
intense that only the local fire department
was able to extinguish it. The unit was permanently damaged and was
discarded.
After examination, it seemed the fire was started by a passenger.
Starting in 1991, the 74 remaining units with the exception of the
prototypes were modernised to fit the needs of the S-Bahn
operations. This included cloth seats instead of the plastic ones
and some other interior modifications, NPZ livery, automatic swing
doors as well as the installation of an additional thyristor
controller, for which a passenger compartment (4 seats) had to be
given up. The latter improved running smoothness considerably,
especially when using the regenerative brake. At the same time,
they were renumbered to the UIC scheme, which led to some
inconsistencies due to vehicles already retired from service:
The railcars of the series were named RBe 540 and received the
following numbers:
RBe 540 006-4 to 540 017-1: Former units 1407 - 1418
RBe 540 018-9 to 540 051-0: Former units 1420 - 1453
RBe 540 052-8 to 540 079-1: Former units 1455 - 1482
RBe 540 000 to 005 remained reserved for the prototypes but were
never used (the prototypes retained their old numbers and continued
to be listed as RBe 4/4 number 1401-1406).
Together with their modernisation, the EW I/II and control cars
were also modernised to match the new "Hummingbird" ("Colibri")
livery.
With the timetable change, the Sihltal - Zurich - Uetliberg (SZU)
line urgently required a railcar to be rented at short notice.
Thus, the RBe 4/4 1425 was temporarily loaned by the SBB.
RBe 4/4 1439 caught fire. The prompt intervention of the staff
limited the damage to the vehicle and it was saved, being sent
prematurely for modernisation.
Again, the cause is either deliberate or gross negligence from a
passenger. One thing is clear though: the danger of a burning
cigarette that can cause serious incidents so the SBB banned
smoking in local traffic.
The first RBe 540 in its final colours was presented to the press
in the main workshop in Zurich. It was the first unit able for
operations without needing a conductor, the outside smooth doors
provides suitable. Shortly before the end of the year, the RBe
540'062 was completed and completed its first test drives in the
S-Bahn Zurich area.
After a fire, RBe 540 023 is discarded.
The timetable change in the spring and the introduction of
no-conductor operations on the entire network ment the use of the
prototypes on the Seetal line was no longer possible as they were
not modernised. 5 prototypes were sent in the Basel area at the RBL
where they replaced the previously used Be 4/6 old-style railcars
to transport personnel. One unit is sent to Rorschach.
Since the personnel transport was repealed or replaced by buses,
the prototypes lost their main job and were employed for special
tasks like driving measuring carriages or as a shunting locomotive
for the washing system for passenger coaches in the depot.
Prototype RBe 4/4 1401 was transfered to Zurich at the G depot and
was mainly used as a "Heizlok" ("Heating locomotive").
By April of 2004, 13 defective units needed urgent repairs (mainly
repairs after cracks were discovered in the wheel set) and were
waiting in Limmattal.
Modern Thurbo GTW start replacing RBDe 560 units that are now used
for the S-Bahn in the Zurich area. The RBe 540 are again more and
more used for long-distance traffic and for the first time are even
used on the Gotthard line to Ticino.
It also happens during wintertime that RBe 540 have to replace the
newer RBDe 560 multiple units, often due to issues with the doors;
then one can see RBe 540 multiple units together with NPZ control
cars, living up to the joke about the name NPZ (NPZ = Nichts Passt
Zusammen = "nothing fits together").
RBe 540 019 was sold together with an intermediate car and a
control car to the Oensingen - Balsthal (OeBB) line, as well as the
540 074.
During the summer, RBe 540 are used for a seasonal intercity
between Zurich and Chur. After 46 years, the railcars are again
used for the same services they were used for at the beginning.
Despite this, the low decline is unavoidable: the delivery of new
RABe 521 and 523 (FLIRT) units and RABe 520 (GTW) units released
more and more RBDe 560 units. These in turn invaded RBe 540
services and replaced more and more the old and heavy railcar.
Although they were still considered modern and very powerful (two
RBDe 560 units were needed to replace one RBe 540), the old
technology and the intense maintenance needed sealed the faith of
the RBe 540.
56 railcars are still in regular service and used among other
routes on the Gotthard line to Chiasso and Ticino. But most of them
are still used on the S-Bahn in Zurich. Here more and more trains
use 2 RBe 540 units (one at each end) to release control cars for
use with the Re 4/4 II locomotives.
RBe 540 041 and 049 collided in Zurich Vorbahnhof. The 2 railcars
were only slightly damaged but again the decision is taken to
discard the 2 units.
RBe 4/4 1405 is handed over to Verein Depot und Schienenfahrzeuge
in Koblenz to be restored to its original state (it has since
received the TSI number 94 85 7540 005-6). There is only one
prototype in Basel used for shunting services.
More and more RBe 540 units are removed from regional traffic and
are used on longer routes in the Zurich area or even the Lausanne
area (here 4 railcars RBe 540 006, 007, 009 and 011 are used for 2
pendulum trains in an eight units configuration).
There were still 18 services with double RBe 540 and two services
with only one RBe 540 on the S-Bahn in Zurich.
More and more RBe 540 railcars are replaced on the S-Bahn in Zurich
but they are used elsewhere on the SBB network. 49 RBe 540 units
are still in use due to their flexibility as there is no real
replacement.
RBe 540 069 is transferred to the SBB Historic Foundation for
preservation. Later on 2 more railcars are taken over by the
foundation (RBe 540 020 and 052). From the total, 2 are used as
driving historic vehicles and the third is intended as a spare
parts donor.
The OeBB RBe 4/4 railcars are removed from service by the end of
the year. RBe 540 074 is taken over by the DSF and is intended as a
working railcar.
RBe 540 033 suffers a fire in Hendschiken resulting in 50.000
francs of damages. Despite the low amount, it was clear there so no
long term futur for the RBe 540 units so the unit was discarded.
The last SBB units are officially discarded.
