Ferrovie del Sud-Est  

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The origins

THE FIRST STEPS

The secondary railroad network of the peninsula Salentina established on the first of July 1931, represents the organic grouping of some rails already administered by Ferrovie Salentine (km 276.709) and the Ferrovie Sussidiate company (km 114.738),  with two sections run by Ferrovie dello Stato (km 82.049) ; all these lines were standard gauge.

The railway network crosses the four southern counties of Puglia, linking Bari, Taranto and Lecce,  as well as 85 communes which cover an area of 4600 squared km and have a population of 945,122 inhabitants (1931).

With a law (n. 459 - 25/04/1932) regarding the concession of railways, the administration of the railway network established as seen before, is given to the Ferrovie del Sud-Est company. The network that is divided into seven linked sections is included into the Italian and international rail services by using four station shared with the FS : Bari Centrale, Taranto Centrale, Francavilla Fontana (BR) and Lecce :

The marquis dr. Carlo Bombrini is called at the presidency of the company and he immediately has to solve some important and urgent functionality problems. The lines which form the new unified  network have been built in a period of time of 60 years that goes from 1868 (Lecce - Zollino - Maglie) to 1931 (Martina F. Taranto) following criteria that resulted appropriate only for the local necessities. On the other hand for other lines as those already part of FS, there were larger criteria considering that they would have been used nationally.

Therefore after having provided the unification of fares, the new company starts a big program of investments.

Eight sheds for engines and railcars are built in Putignano, Martina Franca, Taranto, Francavilla F. , Maglie, Gallipoli, Gagliano Leuca e Otranto ; It follows with urgent priority the protection of 22 level crossings.

In 1937 to fulfil the obligations of the concession, 2 steam-engines, 18 trolleys and 2 luggage coaches are bought taking into consideration also the growing transportation demand which goes over the million and half passengers in this year.

Forecasting the increase of traffic, the company’s attention concentrates on  Diesel traction that had already had quite a big development abroad.  At the Officina Meccanica della Stanga in Padua in 1939, 6 diesel railcars are being built under the German MAN license.

THE WAR

At the outbreak of the Second World war the Ferrovie del Sud-Est are ready to sustain the number of people,  goods and vehicles that use the rail during the whole period. Although the growing supply difficulties, the service continues without interruptions, it eventually ensures the relations between Bari and Lecce (Martina - Francavilla F. route) ; the FS use this line for civil and military transports since the Adriatic line Bari - Brindisi - Lecce is used for military purposes only.  In the period that goes from 1940 to 1943 15,142,296 passengers are moved, half of them are soldiers ; in the same period 3,6 million tons of goods are transported.

Though the severe limitations in the usage of fuel, the service increases its frequency.  With the opening of the greek-albanian front the military transport towards the harbours of Taranto and Brindisi reaches remarkable levels and so since the trains’ compositions are four times bigger and then being the company railroads supplied with light superstructure and having small curving radii of 200 metres minimum on which rent FS steam engines of the groups 740, 625 and 880 were used the railway is forced to exceptional jobs.

Since the increase of traffic at Bari Centrale increases and makes the stationing of the company trains more difficult, it becomes necessary to transform the movement cabin of Bari Garage into a new station : Bari Sud-Est. Important works for the yard of the new station seem to be evident and so 10000 squared metres are dispossessed from a nearby land.

 THE REBUILDING

At the end of the war a great part of the vehicles appears to be destroyed or useless and the whole superstructure damaged. To break the isolation of the so many towns it arrives in 1945, the help of the Allied Military Command of Bari which gives in concession 117 military cars (Ford and Dodge). In 1946 one-axle railcars are built by the social machine shop and then used with tractors.  Using this temporary trolleys, circulating with difficulties, the Ferrovie del Sud-Est restore the connections across the peninsula Salentina moving passengers and necessary materials.

The years after the conflict are characterised by the will and the enthusiasm to restart from ruins those works left before the outbreak of the war . The new machine shop of Lecce is built ; the stations of Triggiano, Capurso, Adelfia, Putignano, Noci e Casamassima which had an increase in traffic, are enlarged. The central wire apparatus in the stations of the section Mungivacca - Casamassima  -Putignano (terminal stations excluded) is set while the communication system is boosted by a new telegraphic circuit between Putignano and Martina Franca.

On December 1947 the Officine Breda deliver 12 trolleys as those used in 1937: this allows the demolition of 17 old railcars with two axles. The maiden voyage for this new trolleys takes place on 12^th January 1948. Meanwhile with four supplies of bogies obtained by the Benevento - Cancello railway, which borrowed a steam engine and two two-axles vehicles, starts the building of four diesel railcars at the Officine Reggiane and Officine Stanga. The building of this vehicles, similar to those already used, goes to increase the number of the company stock.

The ten railcars stock creates new maintenance problems : so it’s enlarged the deposit of the old Bari-Locorotondo railway at Bari Sud-Est. It is changed in a whole room 15 metres high and 70 metres long, with a vaulted roof and a 5 tons loading bridge used in the engines area. There were also built a testing apparatus for injection pumps and engines. To improve the trains’ running it is experimented the alluminothermic welding of rails on the 62 km long section between Lecce and Francavilla F.. Before executing the work everything is well studied ; eventually taking into consideration the attachment (direct), the number of screw spikes it is thought to divide the welding into two parts avoiding a long section of 24 metres.

Finally, the freight material is given Breda and Westinghouse continuous brakes and has the traction organs reinforced ; metallic roofs substitute the old wooden ones on the covered vehicles on international service and on all the trolleys.

THE FIRST MODERNIZATION

In the earliest 50’s the FSE were subject to the law n°1221 of the 2^nd of August 1952, whose aim was to renew and update the rail networks given into concession to private enterprises. At the end of the long preliminary procedure -which confirmed the validity of the 1931 decisions that constituted the rail group of the peninsula Salentina - the modernization, however, was not good enough to provide for the whole needs of the Sud-Est network, since the governative decisions were mainly pointed on the supplies of new rolling stock to eliminate the steam traction, which was considered to be the first responsible in the decay of the railway and the consolidation of the road transport.

The adverse consequences of these decisions clearly appeared with the first Diesel railcars and Diesel-electric locomotives because of the worrying inadequacies both of the superstructure and of the signals that were an obstacle for the complete use of the new rolling stock. The necessity to continue the modernization of the system was always clearer. The supply of new rolling stock included : 30 Breda-Aerfer diesel railcars (Aln 664 classified Ad 51/80) ; 22 Stanga trailer cars (classified R551/572) ; 13 Reggiane diesel-electric locomotives (classified BB151/163) ; 5 Deutz-Greco diesel-hydraulic shunt locomotives (classified B101/105). The company would have preferred a whole stock of railcars with a power of not more than 350 hp, that could have been coupled when traffic was greater. Having no possibility to renew all of their rail network due to the lack of economical support, the FSE were forced to defend their traffic with the same means of the competition : therefore, above all, they improved the motor services that up to then had been everything but marginal. In 1950 the motor net was made up of 47 bus-lines for a total of 1700 km and 4.7 million passengers per year. Meanwhile, to respond to the necessities of the rolling stock, the old depot of the Bari-Locorotondo railway is enlarged and it changes into a huge shed of 1050 squared metres ; this building will result to be perfect for the new diesel stock that the network is going to have during the modernization.

 THE TOUGH SEVENTIES

At the end of the seventies the rolling stock results to be so insufficient that the regional and state organizations ask for a new project of renewal of the stock and the structures. The FSE  needs are taken into consideration only after a few years, so during the revision of the service subsidies, a new amount of money is estimated to increment the renewal finances. With the new funds 15 Fiat Aln 668 (class 1900) railcars and 7 Ln 882 trailer cars are ordered.

At the same time it is carried on the renewal of the superstructure with UNI 50 rails and the ACEI systems are installed on the lines with greater traffic. At the end of the seventies the necessities of the commuters in the metropolitan area of Bari, which has three FSE stations,  impose two new solutions : the construction of an independent entry for the shared FS station of Bari Centrale and the double track between Bari Sud-Est and Mungivacca on the Bari - Taranto. In 1978 the supply of the new railcars and trailer cars by the O.ME.CA. of Reggio Calabria starts ; the vehicles are delivered to the Bari depot and they are used on the Bari - Martina.

Meanwhile, as the economical difficulties went on, having a total lack of money caused by the insufficient governative subsidies, which did not respond anymore to the real needs and were not enough to ensure the service that was carried on in unstable conditions and then being not able to pay its employees anymore, the company asked to stop the concession.

 UP TO NOW

From the 1^st of January 1986, the FSE are under the governative commissarial direction ; in the first months of the same year it is studied a new plan to reorganize the rail network in order to adapt it to the growing demand of the users ; the projects are : more suitable service programs, schedules variations, more security and regularity in the circulation of trains and the improvement of the bus-services to be integrated with the railway. On January 1987 the double track between Bari Sud-Est and Mungivacca is opened. The works started in 1982 to increase the potentialities of the line that was common for two lines : the Bari - Taranto (via Conversano) and the Bari - Putignano (via Casamassima), both used by so many people that they assume a subway’s characteristics in the peak hours.

To double the track 6000 squared metres of land were dispossessed, 20000 cubic metres of soil were excavated and 14000 metres of UNI 50 rails were placed.

Some important technical devices were taken for the first time ever in Italy, such as the installation of the optical fibres’ cables to control the Bari Sud-Est Mungivacca remotely. The renewal of the superstructure continues with the placing of  the UNI 50 rails and new “double-bulk” sleepers are set instead of the wooden ones on the Taranto - Novoli - Gagliano di Leuca.

In 1988 3 diesel locomotives DE 122 to use for freight and passengers trains were supplied by the IMPA of Catania. The FSE also bought off 3 FS locomotives D343 previously rent, while 3 locomotives D345 are still being rent nowadays.

 NOWADAYS

The works made until 1988 are part of history, a history which started in 1931 with puffs of smoke and a lot of faith for the future. With the aids of the 910/1986 law many projects were included in the renewal of the railways. In details :  

- the withdrawal of Bari Sud-Est with reorganization of its tracks, the building of a new station  and new platforms, the demolition of existing buildings and the suppression of level crossings in   Oberdan street ;

 - the doubling of the track (about 500 metres) for Bari Centrale ;

 - the setting of new Rail machine shops in Bari and Lecce with all the services and structures needed ;

 - the building of a loading yard for fruit and vegetables to be used by the municipalities of Racale, Taviano and Melissano ;

 - the opening of the Service Direction palace in Bari ;

 - new works in the stations of Noicattaro and Putignano ;

 - the building of 37 new iron platform-roofs in various stations, the construction of underpasses and many adjustments to the routes ;

 - the building of four hurricane decks by 80 tons each ;

 - the elimination of 210 level crossings ;

as well as the renewal of the superstructure with UNI50 rails on the Taranto - Martina and the Novoli - Nardò C.le - Casarano - Gallipoli (on the Nardò C.le - Gallipoli also with new sleepers and the replacing of the ballast), the installation of the ACEI system in 28 stations and of 39 remote controls.

Of the works above only some, in particular those on the rail structure, have been completed and some have to be finished. Other initiatives such as those for freight have been frustrated by the decay of goods and postal transport.

The powering of the rolling stock results to be luckier ; once destroyed the old wooden vehicles and all the luggage wagons, useless for the daily services, there’s been the use of previously-DB wagons reclassified in the middle eighties by Costamasnaga. Recently (beginning of 1999) it has started the use of new trains with  FS double deck semidriver coaches pulled by DE 122 locomotives, which have been given the shuttle trains’ control with 78 poles. In the last period there have been tests with the “binate” railcars Ad 80-88 to be used for the local (subway) service in Bari.

 (Some pictures are on the Italian version of this part: go and see them!)