Part of the 15 preseries SGM EMUs that Dutch railways ordered in the beginning of the 1970s, were two vehicles with chopper traction control. Easily recognisable by their distinctive 'buzz' sound, the two trainsets 2014 and 2015 were part of the 2-car SGM fleet that served the branch line from The Hague to Rotterdam Hofplein and the Zoetermeer city line.
Having always been the least reliable of the two prototypes, unit 2014 was taken out of service. Eventually it was decided to refurbish the two specials in generally the same way as was done with the 28 other 2-car SGM trainsets. In 1998 the two units were back in service, now equipped with a new chopper traction system developed by Traxxis.
This system was used for the modernisation of the entire SGM fleet - 30 2-car sets and 60 3-car sets - between 2003 and 2009. 2014 and 2015 were among the last trainsets to undergo this extensive overhaul at Bombardier in Randers, Denmark. In the course of the modernisation, they were renumbered 2124 and 2125.
The picture shows 2014 arriving in Rotterdam Hofplein station on 19 February 1994. In 2006, trains on this line were replaced by a metro/lightrail system, operated by Rotterdam public transport company RET. After four years, the isolated operation on the The Hague-Rotterdam Hofplein line was connected to the Rotterdam metro network via a tunnel, making the branch to Hofplein station superfluous.
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2027
31248 Rotterdam CS - Vlaardingen Centrum
Schiedam-Rotterdam West
17-06-1994
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Bk1 2027
Rotterdam CS
17-06-1994
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5758 Utrecht CS - Schiphol
Utrecht CS
22-07-1994
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with an SGM 2-car EMU and a sister vehicle and an ICM coming in from Amsterdam left to it, 22 July 1994
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