SNCF Class BB 8500

what is it?

The SNCF Class BB 8500 class are part of a series of electric locomotives built by Alsthom for SNCF. They are the direct current version of the 25 kV alternating current SNCF BB 17000 and dual system SNCF BB 25500. The locomotives are fitted with monomotor bogies with two different gear ratios. This allows them to increase their tractive effort in exchange for a reduction in their top speed.

who runs it

Société nationale des chemins de fer français

base stats

• power 2.9 MWpower output
• weight 78 tin working order
• built 146made in total

Bars compare against all trains: 600 km/h (maglev), 1,700 seats; power, weight and number built on a log scale up to 20 MW, 1,000 t and 20,000 built.

fun facts

• 🎂First built 62 years ago, in 1964.
• 🚗2.9 MW is about 35 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
• 🐘Weighs about as much as 13 African elephants (~6 t each).
• 📏14.7 m long: about 3 cars parked nose to tail.

electric locomotive: Draws power from overhead wires or a third rail and pulls separate carriages.

spec sheet

built

1964–1974

number built

146

kind

Electric

traction

electric

origin

🇫🇷 France

builders

Alstom

operators

Société nationale des chemins de fer français

top speed

—

power

2.9 MW

gauge

1,435 mm standard gauge

electric system

1.5 kV DC Catenary

wheel arrangement

B'B'

length

14.7 m

weight

78 t

nicknames

Danseuses (Dancers)

From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.