Hamburg S-Bahn - Rolling Stock

Rolling Stock

The Hamburg S-Bahn uses three-car electrical multiple units (EMUs). They are driven by direct current supplied via third rail. The rolling stock consists of 447 vehicles of the following types:

• Type 470, built from 1959 until 1970, in service until 2002 (central carriage of type 870)
• Type 471, built from 1939 until 1958, in service until 2001 (central carriage of type 871)
• Type 472, built from 1974 until 1984 (central carriage of type 473)
• Type 474, built from 1996 (central carriage of type 874)

Single three-carriage trains are designated short trains in service. Several units can be combined to form a so-called full train with six carriages or a long train with nine carriages.

Until 2001, Hamburg's S-Bahn system used to be one of very few suburban railway systems to offer two classes of service. A quieter and cushier first class was available to passengers willing to pay a 50% supplement on the traditional (2nd) class fare.

Of the different train types, only type 472 and type 474 trains are found in current regular service. The last remaining type 470 and type 471 trains were permanently removed from service in 2002 and 2001 respectively. The new type 474 trains primarily serve the lines S1, S11, S3 and S31, whereas type 472 trains are generally used for lines S2 and S21.

With the extension of the S-Bahn network to Stade, new dual-system trains have been deployed. These are identical to the type 474 units, with an additional pantograph on top of the central carriage to collect 15 kV alternate current from overhead lines.

With the introduction of type 474 trains, the colour scheme of beige and marine blue, which had been used previously on Hamburg's S-Bahn, has been replaced by a colour called "Transport Red" (RAL 3020). External advertising covering the entire bodies of trains was also abandoned at this time.

The implementation of a consistent corporate design led to type 472 trains also being updated with the new colour scheme. This has left the Berlin S-Bahn as the only German S-Bahn train types with an individual design.

Type 474 trains were initially provided with the very same colour scheme as the type DT4 trains of the Hamburg U-Bahn (white, grey, red). This early experiment was quickly given up, and all of Hamburg's S-Bahn trains now appear in the shiny "Transport Red".