Southern Railway GE Motor Car
A brief description of the gas electric motor cars recently purchased
by the Southern
Railway Company from the General Electric
Company and now under construction may prove of interest to the
many steam railroads which operate similar service. These cars have
been designed with special reference to traffic conditions in the south
The car is divided by a center entrance The seating capacity forward of
this is 14 and to the rear is 38 making a total of 52. A rear entrance
is also provided thus completely dividing the forward and rear
passenger compartments.
Motor car plans from a 1910
magazine, in the
public domain
The car body is 55 ft long over bumpers of this space the engine
compartment will take up 10 ft 9 in leaving the balance for passengers
and platforms. It will have a steel frame will be sheathed with steel
plates the interior trim being of mahogany. The truck under the engine
compartment will have a wheel base of 6 ft 6 in and will be equipped
with MCB 33 in steel wheels On each axle will be mounted a loo hp 6oo
volt box frame commutating pole railway motor type GE 2OS thus giving
the car a motor capacity of 200 hp. The rear truck will have a wheel
base of 5 ft 6 in. In the engine compartment will be a direct driven
gas generator set the engine being of the 8 cylinder V type cylinder,
being 8 in in diameter and having an 8 in stroke. Direct coupled to the
engine will be an 8 pole 6oo volt provided with commutating poles