DB purchased 384 class E10 locos for express passenger work between 1956 and 1969. The survivors now find use on secondary services and in this view 110-365 is propelling a regional stopping service from Mönchengladbach to Münster out of Krefeld on 6 December 2005

Another member of class 110, in this case 110-396 enters Krefeld on 6 December 2005 with a stopping service for Mönchengladbach

One of the newest designs for the former DR administration are class 112 built from 1990 onwards, and into the new unified regime by LEW Hennigsdorf. They are now found throughout Germany and this example, 112-155 was spotted at Mönchengladbach working on a regional express service on 14 June 2005

The old DB turquoise livery took several years to disappear, and this shot shows 140-705 at Mainz on 18 August 1998 operating one of the the newly introduced double deck sets in push-pull mode. The new DB logo looked slightly out of place when applied to this livery scheme

The majority of S-Bahn services in the Rhein-Ruhr conurbation are formed of three coach push-pull sets semi-permanently coupled to a former DR class 143 electric loco. This is 143-214 seen at Dortmund on 14 June 2005

This former DR loco, 143-350 was looking extremely smart in the new DBAG livery when seen at Bingen on 18 August 1998 operating a stopping service on the west bank of the Rhein

This class 143 was on its home territory. 143-610 is waiting to depart from Nordhausen with a push-pull train of modern double deck stock for Halle (Saale) on 12 June 2003

The former DR class 143 make regular appearances at Mönchengladbach being the main motive power for the S-Bahn service to Düsseldorf, Wuppertal, Hagen and Witten, a journey of over 2 hours in fairly basic accommodation, but still the quickest way to get from one end to the other. 143-833 had just arrived at Mönchengladbach Hauptbahnhof on 18 August 2003

An example of the latest generation of electric locos now operated by DBAG is 146-024 seen at Düsseldorf Flughafen on 20 August 2003 propelling a regional express service formed of modern double deck stock

In 2000 Inter-city services on the Saxon main line from Dresden to Hof, thence to Nürnberg, were loco hauled, and in this view former DR 219-121 is at the head of a eastbound train at Plauen Oberer Bahnhof on 7 August 2000. Class 219 were built at the 23rd August loco works in Romania in the period 1976 to 1985, but were subsequently rebuilt with Mercedes power plants

This the first of three views of the scenic Elstertalbahn in Saxony, which runs between Gera and Plauen Unterer Bahnhof, with Romanian built 219-159 still wearing DR livery pausing at Barthmühle on 4 August 1996. The first coach is a former DB vehicle in turquoise and cream, whilst the remainder of the train appears to be made up of ex-DR stock in green and ivory livery

This view of the same train was taken as it passes over the road crossing as it leaves the station, and shows the unusual side profile of these locomotives

In the third of these three shots the train is accelerating away along the banks of the fast flowing Elster river, and will shortly pass under the famous Elstertal viaduct which carries the Saxon main line from Plauen east to Reichenbach, Zwickau, Chemnitz and Dresden

The survivors of DBAG's class 232 find plenty of work throughout the network on both freight and some passenger duties. They were built between 1973 and 1982 by the Voroshilovgrad Loco Works in the Soviet Union for the Reichsbahn administration in the DDR. 232-189 was at the head of an InterCity working from Nürnberg to Dresden at Plauen on 11 December 2005. Their use on these trains has been brought about by the continued unavailability of the tilting dmu's built for the steeply graded and curved Saxon main line

DBAG have purchased 192 of these Adtranz Regio Swinger tilting diesel multiple units for use on medium to long distance services. 612-534 was seen at Hof on 7 August 2000 having just arrived with a working from Leipzig. Units of this type were repainted into ICE livery for use on the Nürnberg to Dresden service but this service has since reverted to loco haulage

DBAG's 642-068 is a Siemens Desiro unit seen at Nordhausen on 12 June 2003 on a local working to Erfurt

The Siemens Desiro units are spread far and wide and have replaced loco hauled trains on many regional services. This unit was at Magdeburg on 10 June 2004 with a service destined for Thale in the Harz region

The new double deck stock appears in several images in this collection. For the sake of completion this is the driving end of one of these sets seen at Bingen on 18 August 1998. The motive power at the other end was a former DR class 143 electric

This was my last ever shot of a class 103, taken at Lichtenfels on 13 August 1992, where the loco had just taken over a train which had arrived from Hof via the famous Schiefe Ebene route

The indisputed stars of the show for virtually three decades were the class 103 locos used the length and breadth of the country on top link inter-city and international trains. Four prototypes were built in 1965 and these were followed by a further 145 production locos from 1970 onwards. 103-131 enters Karlsruhe on 30 March 1978 on one of its normal duties

Another member of the fine class 103, this one is 103-152 seen at Krefeld on 12 August 1978

DB's class 104 consisted of only six members out of a class of 23 locomotives built between 1933 and 1936 with the unusual 1Co1 wheel arrangement. It was surprising that such a small class survived so long but here is the evidence with 104-019 at Rheine on 12 April 1977

Still is the old blue express passenger livery, 110-334 approached Braubach with a stopping service along the east bank of the Rhein on 15 August 1977

The class E18 locos of the 1Do1wheel arrangement were built from 1935 onwards for express passenger work on the expanding electrified network. 41 of the 45 built became part of the DB fleet in the west, and all were still in service well into the 1970s. This example, 118-036, was at Passau on the Austrian border at the head of a stopping train to Munich on 14 August 1979