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Swedish museum makes way for iconic train

The Local Sweden
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Swedish museum makes way for iconic train
The iconic Swiss locomotive. Photo: SBB

Railway buffs in Sweden are on track for a treat as a rare Swiss locomotive is set to roll into a Swedish transport museum in the coming days to celebrate a century of electric trains in the Nordic country.

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One of Swiss Federal Railways' (SBB) emblematic locomotives headed out of the country on Monday for a final trip – to a transport museum in northern Sweden.

The 'Crocodile' electric locomotive, built in 1925 to haul freight through the Alps on the Gotthard Bahn, began its journey to the museum from Olten on Monday morning.

It was to be hauled to Germany where it will be pulled by another locomotive to Poland and then transferred to a cargo vessel to Sweden.

After a trip of eight days it will be transported to Sveriges Järnvägsmuseum (the Swedish Railway Museum) in Gävle, about 170 kilometres north of Stockholm.

Painted green, with yellow trim, the locomotive will go on display for a week as the museum celebrates 100 years of electric trains in Sweden.

“Generations of Swedish children grew up with a toy model of our 'Crocodile' and the model today in the bedrooms of many Swedish children and adults,” SBB said on its website.

The 20-metre-long train engine is particular for being composed of three sections hinged together to navigate the curving rail routes wending through mountain passes.

The 131-tonne locomotive is being accompanied by three dozen travel enthusiastists, 20 Minuten newspaper reported.

They are paying 2,900 francs for the one-way journey, which includes meals and stops in spa hotels.

The locomotive is set to arrive in Gävle on September 7th and is scheduled to be returned to Switzerland on September 22nd.

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