In search of broadgauge Alcos/MLWs in Portugal - Report on a
one-week trip



On Tuesday April 23rd I left Karlsruhe at 1 am by train (D 263
"Orient Express", power was Karlsruhe - Stuttgart 181 216,
Stuttgart - Mnchen/Munich 103 149) to Munich airport. 10 hours
later I arrived in Lisboa, the principal of Portugal. After
getting my rental car I headed downtown, parked the car near the
St. Apolonia station (Norte line, electrified, no Alcos...) and
started off exploring Lisboa's old quarters and ancient trams
whilst getting to the Rossio station, where the public relations
office is in an adjacent building. Here the railfan can obtain a
(free) photo permit and if necessary a passenger train timetable
for the CP system (also free!). Taking photos of Portugal's
railways is really no problem but you'll need the permit to get
access to the shops. (Adress: Caminhos de Ferro Portugueses,
Service de Relacoes Publicas, Calcado du Duque 20-1, P-1294
Lisboa. You may speak english there). Service is very friendly,
it took me only 10 minutes to get all the things I needed.

At 4 pm I entered the realm of the RSCs of the CP: Barreiro.
Barreiro can be reached from Lisboa by car and by ferry. There's
no direct rail connection to Lisboa which is on the other side
of the Rio Tejo. You can imagine the width of the Tejo
considering the ferry travel time of 30 minutes... Nevertheless
works for a railway link of Lisboa with Portugal's south are in
progress, the Tejo will be crossed west of the highway bridge
(Lisboa's Golden Gate Bridge...). Barreiro will be bypassed yet.

Barreiro is home of 17 Alco RSCs (series 1500 and 1520) and 18
DL535s (series 1320), the latter were bought secondhand from the
Spanish RENFE, which once had 50 of them (series 313), they were
built by ALCo and on license in Spain. Additional you can find
in Barreiro four other diesel series of French (1200s and 1900s)
and British (1400s and 1800s/Class 50) origin plus some ancient
NOHAB railcars. Adjacent to the loco yard with turntable and
roundhouse are the diesel shops. Major overhauls on the
Portuguese Alcos and MLWs are made there. But more on the shops
later.

Barreiro is very busy, about 90 train movements per day can be
observed, most of them in daylight but you can travel deep in
the night, too... The bulk of trains are regionals to the
Setubal area. These are worked by the RSCs and English Electrics
(EE) of the series 1400. The EEs look/sound also nice, but the
48 year-old Alcos can be hardly beaten! I watched the parade of
trains for a while before I started looking for an
accommodation. I wasn't successful in Barreiro, which isn't a
tourist resort by means... So I headed to Setubal on the Baia
(Bay) Setubal, there you have the choice, but no rooms near the
station! I took the Mar e Sol for 4800 escudos, breakfast and
Satellite TV included. Easy parking in front. Not a real bargain
but something to accomodate in a foreign land.

After a quick dinner I took a look to the Setubal station, 1501
was parked waiting for the next morning. 1511 pulled in with an
interregional train (IR) to the Algarve. Standard power for the
IR on the Barreiro - Setubal - Algarve line is the French series
1900, that night I was lucky to see ye olde Alco being in long
distance service (344 km, 5 1/2 hours). The two regionals I saw
had an EE of the series 1400 on the point.



2nd day, April 24th

The next morning saw me watching the parade in Barreiro again,
this time expecting the trains and loco movements next to the
shops. They give an excellent backdrop, and there's plenty of
switching. Arriving trains are handled as follows: a French
series 1200 loco does the switching/shunting job in Barreiro.
This unit pulls the coaches out of the deadend station and sets
them aside for cleaning or to the station again for the next
turn. Meanwhile the loco of the arrived train pulls to the yard
and gets fueled and serviced. Watching this you learn about the
different horns and typhons of the CP locomotives, the RSC
having one that sounds like an ocean liner... Oh yes, the colors
of the diesels seem to be inspired by another railroad that is
known as CP: orange with white warning strips on the front
sides. But cab sides of the hood units are brown. The locos of
Canadian Pacific have a touch more of red in the color.

From an embankment I could look into the shops, two 1500 noses
looked out of the shed and a DL500 (Alco World Locomotive) of
Spanish heritage (RENFE) was also around. Some ex RENFE World
Locomotives were acquired/leased for track work trains, because
there is an upgrading program enforced for the southern part of
Portugal, the two main lines will eventually be electrified, at
least the mentioned connection to the Algarve via Setubal. A
1500 was on the testbed in the shops, I thought it would
eventually lift off! Yes, they do a good piece of work in
Barreiro, the 1500/1520s were upgraded in the seventies by
replacement of the troublesome 244 prime movers by 251C and are
now rated at 2000 HP.

I saw also some DL535 hood units, they seem to be plain freight
units in Portugal. Freights don't reach the deadend station of
Barreiro, they terminate a couple of miles before where the
industry is.

Another splendid train watching spot is Pinhal Novo, 16 km far
from Barreiro. In this area I spent the whole afternoon till
darkness. All trains from and to Barreiro have to go through
this station. Here the doubletracked line splits into two
separate ones, which both go south. Both lines meet again in
Funcheira. The first one is already mentioned (single track),
the second leads to the Algarve via Beja, turning south after
Vendas Novas, the double tracks end there. Vendas Novas is the
still the only connection with the rest of the CP system to the
north. A new piece of track for the link with Lisboa is already
finished, it reaches Pinhal Novo coming from the west. The Ford
and Volkswagen factories at the temporary end of the line near
Penalva bring some traffic on this high speed line (concrete
ties, 60kg rails, 160 kph), I saw some RSCs working hard with
(new) car trains.

Pinhal Novo has a neat tower and like a lot of other CP stations
still equipped with semaphore signals. A signal bridge puts
additional spice to the scenery. A water tower and two stand
pipes (yet only one of them complete) are compulsory. Not to
mention the footwalk across the five tracks. Enjoy, enjoy!

The red and white NOHAB railcars work the line to Vendas Novas,
I couldn't find them in the timetable, but I know they're
there... 



3rd day, April 25th

The 25th of April is the national holiday in Portugal, this date
marks the end of dictatorship in Portugal which lasted from 1926
to 1974. 

I left my hotel in Setubal and drove south, to look after Alco
services there. Until the last months the freight line from
Ermidas-Sado to Sines was supposed to be a good spot for
watching heavy freights with Alcos and MLWs on the point. But
traffic is rather low, and the french 1900s have mostly replaced
them. The MLWs moved north due to this, I'll tell about them
later on. Passenger service is discontinued on the Sines line,
freights are serving the harbour and the petrochemical factories.

As it was national holiday there was nothing to expect on this
line and I commenced driving further south. Eventually I arrived
at the coast. A railway line connects the west of the Algarve
with the east. I found a series 1400 waiting in the station of
Lagos on the western terminus of the Algarve line, soon a 1200
arrived with a regional from Faro, the tourist center of the
Algarve with a big charter line airport. Twenty minutes later I
awaited the IR from Vila Real de St. Antonio (eastern end of the
Algarve line at the border to Spain). It was a Budd-design
railcar, no trace of Alco here! Quite disappointed I drove to
Tunes station, where the Algarve line connects with the north.
Bingo! 1502 was sitting in the corner awaiting freight duties on
the next day. I talked awhile to the station master who wasn't
happy at all with the old Alcos and the slow 1200s (80 kph,
built in the early 60s) in the far south. To Funcheira there are
two difficult grades, the 1500s can only take about 450 tons on
the draw bar to the north. The 1900s can pull 700+ tons uphill.
I saw one of them with an Intercity (IC) from Barreiro to Vila
Real, dieselpowered ICs are handled by nothing else than 1900s.

As I had some other places still on my list, I drove north again
stopping in Beja for the night. Finding an accomodation was of
secondary importance, the station had to be found first, as
there still was some sunlight left... Recently outshopped (Feb
96) 1501 waited for departure with IR 894 to Barreiro, the unit
was shut down. This was my chance to make some sound recordings
as wind was asleep. Five minutes before departure the spotless
1501 was reanimated again, blowing a plume of thick black smoke
into the air. Portuguese Alcos are rather clean burners though,
I've seen no environmental threats like in Greece for example.
(soundfile 1501beja.wav in library II gives the departure)

A room for the night was finally found, after that I enjoyed my
first warm dinner since I left home! Like on any trip I was low
on money so I preferred getting my food and drinks in
supermarkets... After seeing an active Alco at last after a long
day of driving around I was starved and hit the next restaurant.



4th day, April 26th

No more holiday, let's get working! Beja has a neat station so I
awaited some trains there, for the next "supposed-to-be-Alco"
train I went trackside. A village named "Cuba" was reason enough
to give that place a try. Alcos in Cuba! But I think this is
another story... I found an old steel watertower as an elevated
point of view north of the village, soon I heard the ship's horn
of an RSC and again immaculate 1501 was heading for Beja with
another IR. Then I realized I had forgotten to leave the key of
my room. This was reason enough to return to Beja, make some
further photos of 1501, drop the key and turn northwards again.
By chance I saw another of those nice NOHABs on it's trip north
to Evora. That was my way, too. Evora was some time ago a busy
station with some railway lines going in different directions,
but today passengers have to change vehicles (i.e. bus) if they
want to travel further. The remaining lines are freight only.
The Evora line connects with the main in Casa Branca, each train
on the main line has a direct train connection to Evora, so I
found the regional train 2892 relating to the IR 892. After the
arrival of the NOHAB railcar from Funcheira, 1214  left with
train 2892 the station. The inevitable 1449 sat next to the
water tower near the shed sleeping in the sun. Those 1400s are
virtually everywhere!

For IR 892 with my favorite 1501 I waited trackside, but I had
little luck, dark clouds were hiding the sun (for the first time
in four days...). On my way further north to Entroncamento I
made a short stop in Vendas Novas. Ex RENFE 1330 was inviting
for making roster shots in bright sun, no action else left alone
the photographer on the platform.

In Entroncamento I should see the MLW series 1550 (MX620, kind
of lightweight M420, resulting axleload 15,1 tons!). I saw only
some series 1320 idling or doing something else, no sign of the
1550s from the platform. For a visit in the yard and shop area
it was too late. Those two idling 1320s weren't likely to jump
up and look for some freight cars to deliver, their crews stood
around smoking and presumably having a good time. To steam
engines are on display in Entroncamento, a tiny Cockerill 0-4-0T
and Hartmann (Chemnitz) 0-6-0. I left for Abrantes where the
mountain line to Guarda starts. This area was recently covered
by caternary, but 1558 pulled in with regional 5608 from
Covilha. In Abrantes is changing point from diesel to electric
power, most trains from Guarda/Covilha go further to
Entroncamento or Lisboa. 1558 was refuelled and took a nap till
the next duty. Sun was already low, I waited for a (electric)
railcar to Alferrarede at the Tejo-Bridge, after this I looked
for a sleeping place. Not far from the station I found a
reasonable room with view to the Guarda line. Though this line
isn't quite crowded with trains, the (long) freights seem to
rumble through the night instead of pleasing the railfan at
daylight...



5th day, April 27th

The alarm clock went off at 6 am, sky was blue, the sun not yet
awake. Close to seven I wanted to get the regional 5600 at
sunrise. Alferrarede station is roughly east-west oriented, I
could't find a better place within the limited time. 1558 was on
the point, I missed having my recorder ready, the departure was
impressing! Back in Abrantes station (placed amidst Rossio ao
Sul do Tejo, the bigger Abrantes is on a hill north of the Tejo)
1558 was getting diesel fuel out of two tankcars, which looked
quite Northamerican. This fuel station is an improvisation until
the Guardia line is completely electrified. 1560 and 1567 were
also around. Another inevitable 1448 waited with train 5500
bound for Entroncamento. A NOHAB railcar reached Abrantes from
Torre das Vargens in the East.

Driving along the Guarda line looking for good trackside
locations, I saw that caternary was at least as far as
Mouriscas. In Belver-Gaviao the posts stood only on the west
side of the station, not wired yet. Belver-Gaviao is an
excellent location, the station with water tower and other
buildings lies adjacent to the Rio Tejo, high above is the
Castle of Belver. Access to this view is easy from the road, no
climbing or extensive hiking necessary (not that I'm lazy...!).
First I saw 1938 with IC 540 thundering through Belver, then
from the other side of the Tejo, another 1900 with IC 541 to
Guarda, a 1550 running light to Abrantes and a second 1550 with
regional 5604 to Lisboa. I changed location for IR 841, the
Fratel dam is excellent, in short distance from this point the
line leaves the Tejo valley and climbs into the mountains. My
chance to chase the train! I managed to get the IR 841 twice.
There are so much locations, I hope they haven't finished the
electrification when I'll return...

In Castelo Branco, where I took the 3rd photo of the train, I
saw another MLW, the 1563. If road traffic wasn't that thick, I
could've catched the train a 4th time without driving at excess
speeds. But the Portuguese car drivers tend to stick at your
rear bumper so I could't stop at some neat locations and just
jump out of the car as I was only some half minutes ahead of the
train. Near Fundao (Alpedrinha) I found a real mountain
viewpoint, steep and curved grade with mountain backdrop. You
could look to the station on the opposite slope. The second time
on my trip the sun left the scene. The darkened sky told me it
would be raining soon. The parade: 1936 with IC 542 to Lisboa,
1556 with regional 5611 and finally 1558 with regional 5608
(soundfile 1550alpe.wav in library II gives the complete runby).

The hardest part of the day I still had before me. 150 km of
narrow mountain roads, yet the whole day my Opel Corsa didn't
see much of a straight road... I wanted to cross the Serra da
Estrela before complete darkness. I was lucky to drive into good
weather again, so it didn't rain in the mountains. My rental car
smelled strained when I left it after a demanding two and a half
hours drive in Coimbra on the west side. After some watercooled
beers in my Pensao I finally fell asleep like a stone.



6th day, April 28th

This day was dedicated to the (ugly) Bombardier MXS627s. After a
breakfast in a decent cafe, I started with a location I saw the
day before on the drive into Coimbra. No Bombardiers but old
Allan railcars. The line to Serpins crosses the Rio Mondego on a
nice steel bridge near Ceira.

As I didn't have much time to plan this trip (within 4 days...)
I had little idea where to go for the MXS627s/series 1960 . The
literature told something about Figueira da Foz, so I went there
first. No luck, the station was covered by caternary, and just
another *#@$%?ing 1400! Not that I hate them, but they're just
anywhere in Portugal. No sign of a 1960, and the place looked
too small for the home of 12 big diesels. Nevertheless the 1960s
had their home some time ago in Figueria. But this seemed to be
history.

Eventually I drove as far north as Porto. I spent some time at
the Sao Bento station in the heart of Porto, this was worth
while, yet again no 1960s. Guess what instead?

My last straw was driving to Ermesinde, where all trains from
Porto to the east and north must go through. Finally I gave it
up, got my car refuelled and drove back to Lisboa. Thoughts
about the planned visit of the Barreiro shops on the next day
brightened my mood.

Back in Lisboa in the evening I searched for a room near the
ferry station, because I had the desire to leave the car in the
parking lot until the last drive the airport. I can only but
recommend the Pensao de Caminhos de Ferro. I paid 4000 escudos
for two nights (without breakfast). Prices are a bit higher
during season but still cheap. My room (#7) was quiet, the
bathroom (to share with others) was very clean. This place lies
between the CP station St. Apolonia and the ferry terminal.
Banks to change money are next to the Pensao and the Alfama
quarters with the tramway just around the corner (i.e.
upstairs...).



7th day, April 29th

After a quite long and pleasant sleep, I went to the ferry
terminal and bought a 2nd class return ticket to Barreiro (320
esc.). On the 30 minutes ferry ride you have a nice view on the
Lisboa "skyline". With a first class ticket you can sit also
outside and enjoy the possibly fresh air. Like other big cities
around the world Lisboa has smog problems, too.

I went directly to the shops entrance (the big green door facing
to the station) and produced my photo permit. The safety officer
at the reception signalled me "no problem" and grabbed for the
phone. Some minutes later a worker appeared who should be my
personal guide. He understood I wanted to see mostly the Alco
stuff and took my around holy halls of Barreiro for about 20
minutes. Barreiro works shops all units which are allocated in
the south of Portugal, i.e. Barreiro... and it seems that all
ALCo/MLW/Bombardier units also receive their heavy maintenance
there. Traffic between the yard and shop is very lively. I
wasn't quite surprised finding 1568 freshly outshopped getting
the last color finish. 1550s were some time active in the south
but they were in recent times concentrated in Entroncamento. A
real surprise was the ex RENFE 1616 (Alco World Locomotive)
which stood in yellow livery on the outer shed track. I already
saw it on the first day but couldn't identify it.

Visiting the yard with roundhouse/turntable was easy, I asked
the yard master before taking photos, and he just smiled and
waved which meant "just do it and take care...". Among the
stored units I found Whitbomb #1311 (already cannibalized) and
GE 40 ton #1111 (not good looking either). At least seven 1900s
were stored serviceable, freight traffic is probably low at the
moment. Additional the ex RENFE 1320s were hardly seen active. I
got several RSCs on the turntable, they were going strong that
day.

Finally I left with a regional train to Pinhal Novo. There I
watched trains mostly without getting excited, I relaxed and
enjoyed the traffic from inside the station bar, where cold beer
awaited me. I bought a return ticket to Beja and before IR 893
arrived I photographed 1505 with an empty car train to the
Ford/Volkswagen factory, saw 1568 returning from a test run to
Vendas Novas with its cab crowded with officials and finally
1505 returned light from its freight duty and left for Barreiro
(soundfile 1505ph.wav in library II).

1512 took me to Beja and back. It's about 150 kms each way, so
the 1512 made altogether at least 600 kms that day, because
there is a morning return IR to Beja, too. Fares are cheap, I
paid 2000 esc. (about 13 US$) for the ride in the Zephyrettes
(stainless steel, built under licence from Budd!). I really
enjoyed that sound and smoke of an Alco after driving about 2200
kms with the rental car and just taking photos of them... In
Beja I had a quick dinner before I boarded again the
Budd/Sorefame coach for the ride back to Barreiro. This time I
could sit in the first car behind the 1512. Baggage and first
class car were in the rear. The Portuguese passengers had
difficulties to continue chatting when the venerable RSC2 hit a
grade or just accelerated from a halt in a station. In Casa
Branca two coaches coming from Evora were added ot the front of
the train, so I sat in the third then. I was too tired to change
to the first.

I spotted another ex RENFE series 1600 before the stop in Vendas
Novas. It was already dark, and as I had to leave the following
day I felt a bit sorry I could't get a photo of this unit. From
Lisboa it would've been a 150 km trip for just one loco. It was
a hard fight with myself, but in the end the serious half of my
brain won... 



You have finally reached the report's end, I would be happy to
receive some comments, so I'll possibly write reports on
upcoming tours, too.



Rolf Stumpf, CIS 101713,213