#3511
South African Class 5E1, Series 1
🇿🇦 South Africa ·built by Metropolitan-Vickers· from 1959· type of electric locomotive
7 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. SAR Class 5E1 Series 1 E464: Col André Kritzinger· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 2. Class 5E1 no. E496 B: Col André Kritzinger· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 3. SAR Class 5E1 Series 1 E397: Col André Kritzinger· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 4. SAR Class 5E1 Series 1 E445: Col André Kritzinger· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 5. SAR Class 5E1 Series 1 E461: Col André Kritzinger· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 6. Class 5E1 no. E496 L: Col André Kritzinger· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 7. Class 5E1 no. E496 R: Col André Kritzinger· CC BY-SA 3.0
what is it?
The South African Railways Class 5E1, Series 1 of 1959 was an electric locomotive. Between 1959 and 1961, the South African Railways placed 135 Class 5E1, Series 1 electric locomotives with a Bo-Bo wheel arrangement in mainline service.
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 67 years ago, in 1959.
- Weighs about as much as 14 African elephants (~6 t each).
electric locomotive: Draws power from overhead wires or a third rail and pulls separate carriages.
spec sheet
- built
- 1959–1961
- in service from
- 1959
- number built
- 135
- kind
- Electric
- traction
- electric
- origin
- 🇿🇦 South Africa
- builders
- Metropolitan-Vickers
- designer
- Metropolitan-Vickers
- operators
- Transnet Freight Rail
- top speed
- 97 km/h
- power
- —
- gauge
- 1,067 mm Cape gauge
- electric system
- 3 kV DC catenary
- wheel arrangement
- Bo′Bo′
- weight
- 86.4 t
From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q7565539, Wikipedia: South African Class 5E1, Series 1 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.