LOCOMOTIVES, electric locomotive series HŽ 1061 / JŽ 362

LOCOMOTIVES (electric) series HŽ 1061/JŽ 362 The oldest electrified railway in the territory of the Republic of Croatia was put into service in 1936 between Šapjan and Rijeka. Up until 2013, the line had a voltage of 3 kV, which in the second half of the 20th century was also used on the line from Zagreb to Rijeka, until it was replaced with 25 kV voltage and 50 Hz alternating current, from Zagreb to Karlovac in 1986, then to Moravice in 1987 and finally to Rijeka in 2012. In that period, the JŽ 362 locomotive series left the deepest mark, that is, HŽ 1061 since the independence of the Republic of Croatia. Those locomotives were built from 1960 to 1969 as a replacement for the JŽ 361 series, with the purpose of hauling passenger and freight trains on electrified mountain railways. They were manufactured in the Italian Ansaldo factory in Genoa, in a total of 50 units with two subseries. The first subseries was manufactured in the period from 1960 to 1964 under the numbers 001 to 040, and the second from 1968 to 1969 under the numbers 101 to 110. The first subseries was later reconstructed at the Ansaldo factory, while the reconstruction of the second was managed by TŽV Gredelj. This locomotive featured three drive axles of the BoʾBoʾBoʾ layout with 6 traction motors of 3150 kW per hour and 2640 kW of continuous motor power, which could reach the maximum permitted speed of 120 km/h. The mass of the locomotive in the first subseries was 112 t, while in the second it was 116 t. The length over the bumper of the first subseries was 18.4 m, while in the second one it was 19.44 m. The locomotive had the ability to haul, and heat, up to 42 two-axle or 21 four-axle cars. With the independence of the Republic of Croatia, 32 locomotives came under the management of Croatian Railways (HŽ), and the series was renamed to HŽ 1061, while a total of 22 remained until the end of their use. In the original design, they were painted yellow, which is why, in addition to the nickname "Italian", they were known as "Žutka" ("Yellow Girl"). Under the management of Croatian Railways, they were later painted blue, but the moniker stuck. dr. sc. Josip Kajinić, Research Associate, Curator Croatian Railway Museum