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Motor cars type Desio

Desio 48 is posing for photographers at the entrance of the Deposito Desio. This unit is the only surviving Desio that can run at 60 km/h. October 7th 2001.

The Desio motor cars are the oldest Milano trams still in regular service, as they were built in 1926 in five units by Carminati e Toselli with CGE electric equipment for Società Trazione Elettrica Lombarda (STEL) that in that period ran most of Milano interurban tramways. Cars 44-47 had a maximum speed of 35 km/h, while the two remaining units (48 and 49) could run at 60 km/h. In origin these trams had an BCC device hosted on two small boxes on the roof to allow them to run under 600 V or 1200 V. This device was never used and was moved on other interurban motor cars, as the lines that Desio served (the Brianza and Monza lines) remained with 600 V voltage. In 1937 STEL was absorbed by ATM and the original white lovery was replaced by the classic light and dark green.

The traditional trolley pole was replaced in 1986 with the pantograph; in the same years all the cars but 45 and 49 lost the classic ATM light and dark green livery as they were repainted in orange. After the scrapping of the tram 49 on December 11th 2000 the present situation (November 2003) of Desio cars is:

• 44: used as a shunter in the Officine Generali Teodosio, painted in orange;
• 45: set aside in the Deposio Desio, painted in light and dark green;
• 46: in service on Limbiate line, painted in orange;
• 47 and 48: in service on Desio line, painted in orange.

Cars 44, 45, 47, 48 in the '70s	Cars 46 and 49 in the '70s	Car 49 before scrapping	Cars 44, 46-48 today	Car 45 today

Services of cars 46, 47 and 48 are very limited, as they are used mostly as shunters in their depots (46 in Varedo, 47 and 48 in Desio): the probability to see these cars out of the depots is very little.

© 2003 Ivan Furlanis
Last changes: December 2003