NSB El 17

The NSB El 17 is a class of electric locomotive which was built for NSB express trains. The twelve locomotives which were built came in two batches, one in 1981, the other in 1987. They were built by Norsk Elektrisk & Brown Boveri. The engines were numbered 17 2221 to 17 2232.

The El 17 was never a particularly successful engine for NSB. The first batch of engines was plagued with several problems making the locomotive unreliable, and for a time the trains were pulled with two engines to ensure that one was available should the other fail. The engine also proved too weak to pull the heavy trains on the steep Bergen railway, and so NSB El 16 locomotives were put to that duty. The retirement of the El 17 started in 1996 with the delivery of the NSB El 18.

A few El 17s are used as shunters in Oslo. The six El 17s from the second batch are used on Flåmsbana with a locomotive in each end of the train.

Specifications

• Length: 16.3 m
• Weight: 64 tons
• Wheel arrangement: Bo-Bo
• Maximum speed: 150 km/h

External link

• Jernbane.net article on the El 17 (in Norwegian)