German Old Electric Locomotives

The Bavarian state railways wanted to test electric locomotives over the newly electrified Salzburg - Freilassing - Berchtesgaden route. On 20th October 1912, 12 locomotives were ordered, four of which were manufactured by Krauss of Munich with electricals supplied by SSW. The locomotives were supplied with Krauss Helmholtz frames and a Lotter rotary stand. This wheel arrangement produced impact and roll problems due to the lack of a firm wheel base, exacerbating performance on the rolling hills of the track. The asymmetrical arrangement of the pantographs was due to the installation of a train heating steam boiler. The boilers were removed a short time after introduction to service.

The locomotives were not yet available for duty in April 1914. EP3/6 20101 was only accepted on the 27th May of the same year. The three further locomotives came on line between 14th April to 29th October 1915 at the behest of the German Federal Armed Forces. Between 3rd August 1914 to 23rd April 1916 test runs were done over the track past Berchtesgaden. A historical moment for EP3/6 20101 on 15th September 1916 was the first transit of the royal yard track by electrical traction. From 1926 the locomotives were re-numbered E36 01 to 04.

Until 1927 the locomotives were almost exclusively used on passenger trains. On 1st May 1927 they were displaced from their original route and seconded to the German Federal Armed Forces at Munich Main Station (HBf). This became necessary as they were not capable of moving the increased loads on the line. They remained with the German Federal Armed Forces until the end of the thirties. Together with the E62 the four locomotives were placed on the Garmisch route up to the cessation of passenger service.

E36 01 and 02 were retired from commercial service in the autumn of 1941; E36 03 followed on 4th May 1942 and E36 04 on 24th September 1943. E36 02 and 04 were converted by Henschel to snow ploughs with the numbers Mue 6453 and 6452. Mue 6453 was renumbered as 974 3032 in 1979 at Muehldorf. At this time the Mue 6452 (974 3027) was in Ingolstadt. Both snow ploughs were disposed of in the Munich area. 974 3027 (E36 04) was scrapped in 1983. The second snow plough was sold in 1986 to the Bavarian railway museum in Noerdlingen.