_at_Manchester_Museum_of_Science_and_Industry.jpg)
_(28838246198).jpg)
2 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. NS 1505 (1500 Class) at Manchester Museum of Science and Industry: No machine-readable author provided. Chowells~commonswiki assumed (based on copyright claims).· CC BY 2.5
- 2. Ex NS 1501 'Diana' (Class EM2 Class 77) (28838246198): Nicky Boogaard from Hardinxveld-Giessendam, Netherlands· CC BY 2.0
what is it?
The NS Class 1500 electric locomotives were acquired by Nederlandse Spoorwegen in 1969, following a locomotive shortage, and operated until 1986. They were built by Gorton Works in Manchester, England, between 1953 and 1955. The locomotives were first operated by British Railways (BR) as Class EM2 (later Class 77), hauling passenger services on the Woodhead line between Manchester London Road and Sheffield Victoria until 1968.
who runs it
base stats
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 73 years ago, in 1953.
- Weighs about as much as 17 African elephants (~6 t each).
- Served for 16 years (1970–1986).
electric locomotive: Draws power from overhead wires or a third rail and pulls separate carriages.
spec sheet
- built
- 1953–1954
- in service from
- 1970
- retired
- 1986
- status
- preserved
- number built
- 7
- kind
- Electric 1500 V DC OHL
- traction
- electric
- origin
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- builders
- Gorton Works
- operators
- Nederlandse Spoorwegen
- top speed
- —
- power
- —
- gauge
- 1,435 mm standard gauge
- electric system
- 1.5 kV DC OHL
- weight
- 102 t
- Dutch name
- 1500
From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q1213795, Wikipedia: NS Class 1500 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.