Between 1952 and 1954 the South African Railways placed forty Class 4E electric locomotives with a 1Co+Co1 wheel arrangement in service, numbered in the range from E219 to E258. It was designed by the General Electric Company (GEC) and built by North British Locomotive Company. The Class 4E was amongst the most powerful electric locomotives in the world at the time and was specifically built for use on the main line from Cape Town through the proposed new Hex River tunnels to Touws River, but by the time the tunnel system was eventually opened in 1989, the Class 4Es were already retired after spending their entire careers double heading trains up the old Hex River rail pass.
See also the Wikipedia article on the South African Class 4E. |