An old ex-DDR type V100.1 diesel, the Augsburger Lokalbahn no.42 is crossing a street close to the headquarters of AL. This locomotive was built in the old communist DDr as the Deutsche Reichsbahn 110 884-4 in 1978. It was renamed after the German reunification in 1992 as 201 884-4 and became part of the Deutsche Bahn AG DB 1.1.1994, but it was "z-gestellt", put out of use already in October 1994. In the summer of 1995 DB took it off its books, but it wasn't immediately scrapped, but renovated by Regental Fahrzeugwerkstätten GmbH, Reichenbach (Vogtland) and finally sold to Augsburger Lokalbahn AG in April 1998 as their no.42. AL has five of these ex-DDR V100 locomotives in use. Picture close to the headquaters of AL in Augsburg 19.7.2007 by Ilkka Siissalo.

Another picture of the same AL no.42 ex-DDR V100, ex-DB 201 884. Picture in Augsburg 19.7.2007 by Ilkka Siissalo.

The locomotive 221.134, formerly V200 134, was built for DB in 1965. It was sold to the Greek state railways OSE in 1989 and bought back to Germany in 2002. Since then it has been serving at least four different private rail operators. The orange and grey livery is from the company RTS (Rail Transport Service Germany GmbH, München), but since the summer of 2020 the machine has belonged to Bahnlogistik 24 GmbH of Dresden.
Picture from Dresden Friedrichstadt 25.11.2020 by Michal Makalouš.

221 135-7 is a former DB V200 locomotive. It was delivered in 1965 to DB and served as V200 135 until 1968 and then as 221 135-7 until 1992. It was bought in 1992 by Mrs Barbara Pirch, who is a famous lady who has privately owned many old DB locomotives. The machine was owned by Mrs Pirch until 2008, when Bocholter Eisenbahn bought it and kept until 2017. Since then it is owned by Bahnlogistik 24, a company from Dresden.
Picture from Dinslaken station 9.5.2009 by Ilkka Siissalo.

The same 221 135-7 seen from behind.
Picture from Dinslaken station 9.5.2009 by Ilkka Siissalo.

A new three-axle shunter locomotive owned by BBL Logistik. This is a Br 1002 machine built by Alstom. It operates by batteries and has just a tiny diesel engine only for loading its batteries. Alstom calls this type Prima H3.
Picture from Würzburg 10.7.2023 by Ilkka Siissalo.

The same Prima H3 as above, but now seen from the other direction.
Picture from Würzburg 10.7.2023 by Ilkka Siissalo.

This locomotive seen here hauling a track repair machine is a leased machine from the famous lessor company Northrail, but here used by Bocholter Eisenbahn GmbH. It's a Vossloh G1206 which is registered as 1275 105-0, owner Northrail.
This picture is from Darmstadt 9.4.2022, taken by Peter Nowt.

boxXpress.de is a small operator which specialises on container train traffic from the North Sea harbours to inland destinations. boxXpress operates in 2019 with 24 locomotives. This one is a Siemens Vectron AC, class Br193, rented from the locomotive rental company MRCE Dispolok.
Picture from Hamburg harbour Hamburg-Süderelbe 1.7.2019 by Ilkka Siissalo.

An old Br 212 locomotive (former DB V100) of EGP, Eisebahngesellschaft Potsdam. DB got rid of these old machines already a long time ago, but some have gotten a second life at small private railway companies, mostly after receiving a new engine.
Picture from between München Heimeranplatz and München Mittersendling 19.7.2023 by Petr Štefek.

A somewhat boxlike and odd looking Vossloh G2000BB of EGP. In the background a dual diesel+electric six axle locomotive Br 159 of LTE.
Picture from Hamburg 23.6.2024 by Petteri Holopainen.

Two locomotives of the class Br143, formerly East German Br243, now owned by Erfurter Bahnservice. The very first Br243 machine ever built in what then was communist DDR was painted in these colours, white with red stripes. That machine, called the 243.001, later 143.001 got a name Weisse Lady. It served many years as the factory locomotive in Hennigsdorf where it was built. It also served as a platform for testing out various new technologies. The Weisse Lady became kind of a "cult" locomotive and it was followed by photographers whereever it went. This one here, although it looks almost exactly like the Weisse Lady 143.001 used to look like, is still just a copy. This is actually Br143 no.822. Nevertheless, it catches still a lot of attention. The other Br143 machine in the picture has also been painted in its old communist time DR colours and carries its old number plate 243.848 from those times.
Picture from Göttingen 30.5.2022 by Ilkka Siissalo.

A closer look at the "Weisse Lady" copy Br 143 no.822.
Picture from Göttingen 30.5.2022 by Ilkka Siissalo.

Still a bit closer look at the "Weisse Lady". Note the original looking DR logos of communist DDR's state railways DR. And the number plate at the front doesn't say 143 but 243 as the original Weisse Lady was called in communist East Germany.
Picture from Göttingen 30.5.2022 by Ilkka Siissalo.

The "comrade" of the "Weisse Lady". This 143.848 was painted in the last livery of communist DDR's DR before the German reunification.
Picture from Göttingen 30.5.2022 by Ilkka Siissalo.

A multiple electric system, second generation Bombardier TRAXX of Hamburger Rail Service hrs. This is a former SBB Cargo International machine. It still carries the designation as class Re482 according to the Swiss naming system. SBB has sold several of its TRAXX machines as they have had much less Freight to deliver especially in the German market lately. hrs is a small German operator based in Ahrensburg.
Picture from Hamburg harbour Hamburg-Süderelbe 1.7.2019 by Ilkka Siissalo.

Hector Rail is a private Swedish train operator which has lately grown rapidly. Among other things, Hector Rail bought from DB old, used electric cargo locomotives of the class Br151 and also used large diesel machines of the Siemens tye ME2600 (former Norwegian Di6). This is an ex-DB Br151 machine, which Hector internally calls class 162. 16 indicates that this is an electric machine with six axles and the last "2" indicates that this is the second six axle electric locomotive type of Hector Rail. Hector runs heavy trains for Shell running between Nossen and Schwedt. Between Nossen and Coswig heavy diesels of the type ME2600 are used and then these Br151 machines take the trains forward to Schwedt.
Picture from Coswig 16.7.2018 by Ilkka Siissalo.

Three former DB class Br151 cargo locomotives, now in Hector Rails' colours.
Picture from Coswig 16.7.2018 by Ilkka Siissalo.

An old Br 218 diesel machine (former DB V160) in the colours of Heros Rail, a small locomotive rental and sales company.
Picture from München Mittersendling 19.7.2023 by Petr Štefek.

Germany is a country full of small private rail operators which keep leasing, loaning and returning locomotives and wagons often without bothering to change the tapings by the sides of the trains. This is an example of a small operator. This is a Siemens ER20 "Hercules" heavy diesel engine, owned by the locomotive leasing company Beacon rail and according to the stickers leased by Hessische Güterbahn AG. Picture at Mainz Hauptbahnhof 18.12.2016 by Ilkka Siissalo.

This Br151 cargo locomotive was built by Henschel in 1975. In 2017 DB sold all of its Br 151 machines in western parts of Germany to Railpool and leased back most of them. Railpool put also this machine in a thorough revision and repainted it in the current blue and creme colours but in 2020 this machine was sidetracked "because of lack of need". Since October 2020 it has now belonged to Leipziger Dampf KulTour LDK which rents it to whoever needs a locomotive.
Picture from Dresden Friedrichstadt 25.11.2020 by Michal Makalouš.

Locon is a train operator based in northern Germany. They have two main business areas: Construction site logistics and trains and secondly freight with container trains. This locomotive was for the latter. It has been leased from the locomotive leasing company Northrail.
This is a new Siemens Vectron Dual Mode Br 248. It's like an electric locomotive and a diesel locomotive in the same package. And the diesel part is not just some small auxiliary diesel machine but is powerful enough to run heavy cargo trains over long distances. This new locomotive type has been quite a success for Siemens. And also the competing Stadler Rail is selling well with their similar model Br159.
Picture from Hamburg Süderelbe 9.7.2023 by Ilkka Siissalo.

This one is an interesting machine. It was originally built for the Deutsche Bundesbahn as a V100.20 machine in 1963. In 1968 it received the number Br212 066. Then in November 2002 DB took it out of use, but it wasn't broken to pieces. Instead the train manufacturer Alstom's repair shop Alstom Lokomotiven Service GmbH in Stendal, scrapped its chassis but left the underparts, put in a new engine and built a completely new chassis on top of the old fuselage. The result is called Br214, but Locon simply calls this one now "Locon 213". If you want to see how this looked like when it was new in 1963, scroll down on this same page a couple of pictures until you reach the text "The former Mülheimer Verkehrsgesellschaft". That one is exactly like this one used to be.
Picture from Hamburg Süderelbe 9.7.2023 by Ilkka Siissalo.

Metrans used to be a rather small Czech train operator. Today it is a large international logistics company with major hubs in the ports of Hamburg, Rotterdam and Koper and also in Prag. This locomotive is advertising the site Česká Třebová in the Czech Republic where Metrans has a big container terminal. Today the whole Metrans is owned by HHLA, the Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG, the company which runs the operations of the huge harbour in Hamburg.
This locomotive is a former DB V90, Baureihe 295. Despite its very Czech looking advertisement tapings this machine has been working at the harbour of Hamburg all its operational life and it has no right to run in the Czech Republic. It's just a typical local shunter active at the harbour. But now that the Hamburg harbour owns its own railway company Metrans, they have been using less locomotives of other private players such as Sunrail, evb / Mittelweserbahn and others.
Please note below on this same page also the old V90 shunter operated by the company Sunrail. It's almost similar with this one and those photos were also taken at almost exactly at the same spot at the Hamburg harbour. Sunrail was also operating on behalf of Metrans.
Picture from the Hamburg harbour's Süderelbe rail yard 9.7.2023 by Ilkka Siissalo.

Metrans' third generation Bombardier TRAXX locomotive, Br 187. This machine has been rented from the locomotive rental company Akiem. That this one belongs to Akiem is revealed already from far away by the large red dots that Akiem wants to have in its machines.
Picture from the Hamburg harbour's Alte Süderelbe rail yard 9.7.2023 by Ilkka Siissalo.

MRCE Dispolok, former Siemens Dispolok, is a locomotive leasing company leasing a large number of machines to both big and small rail operators. Often - like here - especially when the lease agreement period is short, the locomotives do not at all receive any markings identifying the rail operator in question. This is a Siemens ES64 U2, also known as the German Br 182 or in Austria the first generation Taurus locomotive. In Austria these same machines are called Br1016.
Picture from Augsburg Hauptbahnhof 10.10.2015 by Ilkka Siissalo.

Two Siemens Vectron locomotives of MRCE Dispolok. For some reason MRCE prefers to call this locomotive type X4E instead of the usual Baureihe 193.
Picture from Hamburg Süderelbe 9.7.2023 by Ilkka Siissalo.

Mülheimer Verkehrsgesellschaft MVG (Not to be confused with the Münchner Verkehrsgesellschaft, also MVG) was a communal bus and tram operator company owned by the city of Mülheim. Today it is a part of the company Ruhrbahn. From 15.08.2003 to 31.12.2012 MVG rented this old V100 locomotive. The machine had been delivered to what then was Deutsche Bundesbahn as V100 2309 in 1966. DB scrapped the machine in August 2002, but it wasn't broken up, but instead renovated and made to look exactly as it had been when it was new. Since 2002 Alstom Lokomotiven Service has rented it to a number of different companies and the last known renter has been (as of 2018) UTL Umwelt- und Transportlogistik GmbH from Singen. Note the small sign of MVG at the side of the locomotive. It's only a magnetic sticker which can be removed in seconds.
Picture from Düsseldorf 18.9.2011 by Ilkka Siissalo.

A tank train of chemical wagons being pulled by a third generation Bombardier TRAXX locomotive of class Br187 has also three other locomotives in tow. The second and third locomotive with their pantographs down are second generation TRAXX machines, Br 185 or Br 186, and judging by the grey livery with a blue band, they also belong to Railpool. The fourth black locomotive is a Siemens ER20 Hercules diesel and the black painting is typical of the locomotive leasing company MRCE Dispolok. It's difficult to guess which railway operator these machines are working for. Railpool as well as MRCE Dispolok are both locomotive leasing companies and their machines change from operator to operator quite often. What we do know for sure is that this TRAXX 3 machine, Br187 313, is one of the newest locomotives of Railpool. It has also one of the so called "last mile" auxiliary diesel engines, so it can operate even without overhead wires. It is a multiple electric system machine accepted for use in DE-AT-HU-RO and it was received by Railpool in 2017. It is further known that at least in 3/2017 Railpool rented it to the Hamburg based operator HSL, Hamburg Schienen Logistik and that HSL used it then for hauling similar chemical wagons as here. This may well be an HSL train.
Picture from Braunschweig main station 17.7.2018 by Ilkka Siissalo.

Same train as shown above as it was rolling past the Braunschweig main station. From this side it is possible to read some of the texts of the black Siemens ER20 diesel locomotive and now it is obvious that also it is registered to Railpool, although it carries the black livery of Railpool's competitor MRCE Dispolok.
Picture from Braunschweig main station 17.7.2018 by Ilkka Siissalo.

Two of Railpool's new Bombardier TRAXX machines Br187 being towed past the station München Ostbahnhof. The pulling locomotive was a rented Siemens Vectron owned by MRCE Lokpool, another locomotive rental company.
Picture from München Ostbahnhof 14.10.2022 by Ilkka Siissalo.

A Siemens Vectron of class Br193 (=Br6193) owned by Railpool but rented to SETG, Salzburger Eisenbahntransportlogistik AG of Austria. SETG has painted or taped it in its own colours.
Picture from Hamburger Süderelbe harbour 1.7.2019 by Ilkka Siissalo.

One of Railpool's Br 185 TRAXX locomotives, this time one that was rented to Rurtalbahn.
Picture from Weil am Rhein 11.7.2010 by Ilkka Siissalo.

The same TRAXX locomotive as above, here seen more from its side.
Picture from Weil am Rhein 11.7.2010 by Ilkka Siissalo.

An almost empty container train with two rented locomotives. The first loco is a second generation Bombardier TRAXX rented from Railpool. The green front parts of the second machine tell us that it has been rented from the locomotive leasing company Alpha trains,
The picture is from between the stations München Süd and München Friedenheimer Brücke 19.7.2023 by Petr Štefek.

Rheincargo is a fairly new company, founded in 2012. It has its headquarters in Neuss. It is 50:50 owned by Häfen und Güterverkehr Köln AG, HGK and Neuss-Düsseldorfer Häfen GmbH & Co. KG, NDH. Rheincargo is not exactly a very small cargo operator, since they have about 100 locomotives.
This one is a new third generation Bombardier TRAXX of Br187.
Picture from Ulm 3.7.2019 by Ilkka Siissalo.

Another one of Rheincargo's Br 187 third generation Bombardier TRAXX machines between two Vectrons owned by MRCE Dispolok.
Picture from Hamburg-Süderelbe 9.7.2023 by Ilkka Siissalo.

Schweerbau GmbH is one of the numerous companies specialising in track renewal and repair works. This diesel is the 4185 023-3, registered as "92 80 4185 023-3 D-SBAU" of the Baureihe 4185. It's a Vossloh DE 18 type machine. DE18 is a BoBo diesel electric machine, which is designed based on the earlier MaK 1002. It´s a part of a diesel engine family which was introduced in 2010. It's a 120 km/h fast diesel intended mainly for industrial companies with their own railyards and it has a 1800 kW power rating.
Picture from Darmstadt 9.4.2022 by Peter Nowt.

This is a quite famous machine, a former DB V200. This model was the first dieselhydraulic large locomotive type in Germany and the first machines of this type were built already in 1953-54. DB got rid of all of these machines already a long time ago and many were sold to Greece, Italy and even Switzerland. After a long service life there, many ended in scrapyards, but 20 rusty and ill-maintained machines were bought back from Greece to Germany by the Prignizer Eisenbahn. They were refitted and remotorised one by one and then ended up at various small cargo operators. This is one of them, nicely painted in its original Deutsche Bundesbahn livery of the 1950s.
For another similar machine in orange and grey livery, see higher up on this same page.
Picture from Kranichstein 11.3.2023 by Peter Nowt.

Inside the driver's cab.
Picture from Kranichstein 11.3.2023 by Peter Nowt.

A view through the driver's window. In the 1950s the windscreens were not that large.
Picture from Kranichstein 11.3.2023 by Peter Nowt.

The engine room.
Picture from Kranichstein 11.3.2023 by Peter Nowt.

A former DB V200 seen from its front. The current owner SGL wants to call this machine V270 rather than V200 (= Br221) because the machine is remotorised and therefore stronger than the original V200 was. Nevertheless, this machine is still registered as a Br221.
Picture from Kranichstein 11.3.2023 by Peter Nowt.

Still another closeup picture of the old, mighty DB Br221.
Picture from Kranichstein 11.3.2023 by Peter Nowt.

The train driver of this Sunrail shunter engine is happily wawing his hand at the photographer as he is passing by with his container train. Sunrail is a very small rail operator based in Bruchhausen-Vilsen, south of Bremen. Here this old Br291 diesel named "Der Grüne Engel" (the green angel) is doing shunting of behalf of the company Metrans. Metrans on the other hand is mostly owned by the Hamburg harbour.
Picture from Hamburg harbour Süderelbe 1.7.2019 by Ilkka Siissalo.

The same Sunrail Br291 "green angel" as above, but seen from the other side.
Picture from Hamburg harbour Süderelbe 1.7.2019 by Ilkka Siissalo.

Renovated ex-DDR diesel machines have been popular especially among small private rail companies involved in rail maintenance works. This one is an ex-DDR V100 machine of the DB class 203 owned by the Dutch Spitzke Spoorbouw BV. Picture by the Düsseldorf Hauptbahnhof 26.2.2010 by Ilkka Siissalo.

A quick shot from the window of a passing train. This is an old ex-DDR locomotive of the class V22 owned by Spitzke. Nowadays an absolute rarity. Picture close to Eidelstedt station in Hamburg 9.7.2013 by Ilkka Siissalo.

Another shot of the same V22, again through a window of a moving train. Picture close to Eidelstedt station in Hamburg, this time on 8.7.2013, by Ilkka Siissalo.

Talgo is a famous locomotive and coach manufacturer of Spain. The fact that this small cute locomotive sports the large stickers of Talgo on its sides doesn't however mean that it would have been made by Talgo. This picture is from the Warschauerstrasse works in Berlin, which is a passenger coach modernisation plant owned by Talgo. This new hybrid switcher engine is a Niteq 6000-U and it has a calling name of "Hummel", meaning a bee.
Picture from Warschauerstrasse, Berlin by Markku Salo 20.6.2023.

A container train and a foggy night in Augsburg. From the picture it is almost - but not quite - impossible to recognise the locomotive amongst the darkness and fog, but it is a Br185 TRAXX AC1 machine of the company TX Logistik. When one knows what the TXL logo looks like it is possible to see it on the locomotive front from the full size picture (click to enlarge !)
Picture from Augsburg Hauptbahnhof at late night of 10.10.2015 by Ilkka Siissalo.

WLE is an old and traditional company already, founded in 1881 as Warstein-Lippstadter Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft. The present name Westfälische Landes-Eisenbahn is from the year 1896. It has 119 km of its own rail network, but today it operates mostly outside its own net. As of 2019 WLE has 19 locomotives. Passenger traffic was given up in the 1970s. Their main customers are some concrete works and the Warstein brewery. This locomotive no.82 is their newest machine. It is a Bombardier TRAXX 3rd generation machine which DB calls Br187, but WLE prefers to call it Br6187.
Picture from Hamburg Süderelbe harbour 1.7.2019 by Ilkka Siissalo.