Konstal N

Polish tram
4 ft 8+1⁄2 in), 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in)

Konstal N was a tram model based on the German Kriegsstraßenbahnwagen concept, manufactured between 1948 and 1956 by the companies Konstal in Chorzów, Gdańsk Shipyard no. 3 and Sanok Railcar Factory "Sanowag". The narrow-gauge version (Konstal 2N) was built from 1950 to 1956. Trailers (tram units with no engine) were marked ND or 2ND. The N was the first tram manufactured in Poland after the Second World War.[1]

Specifications

The N was a bidirectional motor tramcar, equipped with four sliding doors.

In post-war Poland, many cities struggled with significant shortages of rolling stock, and therefore it was necessary to develop a tram with simple construction and easy assembly. It was decided to copy the construction of the German tram Kriegsstraßenbahnwagen (KSW),[2] developed during the Second World War to satisfy the demand of local tram transport companies. Due to the lack of motors, initially the ND trailers for Upper Silesia were built.[1]

The successor of Konstal N was Konstal 4N.[3]

Usage

The N standard-gauge trams were supplied to: Gdańsk, Gorzów Wielkopolski, Sopot, the Upper silesian conurbation, Kraków, Poznań, Szczecin, Warsaw, and Wrocław, while narrow-gauge versions were used, among others, in Bielsko-Biała, Bydgoszcz, Grudziądz, Elbląg, Inowrocław, Jelenia Góra, Legnica, Łódź, Olsztyn, Słupsk, Toruń and Wałbrzych.

To this day, two units are operated in Bytom, where they are used on a single-track tram line no. 38. These are trams no. 954 from 1949, and no. 1118 from 1951.[4]

Photo gallery

  • Konstal N in Bytom, still in service in 2006
    Konstal N in Bytom, still in service in 2006
  • A historic N car with the 4ND1 trailer in tow in Katowice, 2008
    A historic N car with the 4ND1 trailer in tow in Katowice, 2008
  • A historic N in Kraków, 2011
    A historic N in Kraków, 2011
  • A type N car converted into a snowplow in Toruń
    A type N car converted into a snowplow in Toruń
  • Dashboard
    Dashboard

References

  1. ^ a b Lubka, Arkadiusz; Stiasny, Marcin (2004). Atlas tramwajów. Poznań: Poznański Klub Modelarzy Kolejowych. p. 157. ISBN 83-920757-0-6.
  2. ^ "Wagony typu N/ND i 4N/4ND". Tramwar. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  3. ^ Lubka, Arkadiusz; Stiasny, Marcin (2004). Atlas tramwajów. Poznań: Poznański Klub Modelarzy Kolejowych. p. 159. ISBN 83-920757-0-6.
  4. ^ Paweł Korcz: 38 Bytom kościół św. Trójcy - Bytom Powstańców Śl., "Świat Kolei" no. 2/2011, pp. 48-51

External links

Media related to Konstal N at Wikimedia Commons

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Trams produced by Mostowagon (1945 – 1948), Konstal (1948 – 1998) and Alstom Konstal (since 1998)
Standard
N (N1 • N2 • N3 • 2N • 2N1 • 2N2) • 4N (4N1 • 4NJ) • 13N • 13NS • 14N • 105N (105N1 • 105NW • 805N) • 105Na (105NaW • 805Na) • 105Nb • 105Nb • 805Nb • 105Nb/e • 105Ne • 105Nf • 105Ng • 105Nm • 105Np • 105NT • 105Nz • 105N1k • 105N2k • 105N2k/2000 • 106N • 106Na • 111N
Articulated
15N • 102N (102NW • 802N) • 102Na (102Nd • 102NaW • 803N)
Low-floor articulated
112N • 114Na • 116N • 116Na (116Na/1 • 116Na/2) • 100 • X-04
Trailers
ND (ND • ND1 • ND2 • ND3 • 2ND) • 4ND (4ND1 • 5N • 5N1 • 5ND • 5ND1) • 13NSD • 14ND