The English Electric Type 3 aka Class 37 has been a venerable example of British Rail engineering for over half a century, continuing to prove their worth and adaptability to a ever evolving industry.

With several examples still in revenue earning service and others representing their classmates in preservation, a time capsule of Class 37 703’s international career joins the Rail Tags fleet.

1: Pre History

As part of the British Rail Modernisation Plan in the 1950s Dieselisation was bought about to start withdrawing Steam for Diesel traction. 

With The English Electric Company’s success producing electric and diesel traction for both home and export markets (East Africa) and the requirement for a true “Type 3” locomotive the British Transport Commission awarded a tender to English Electric during 1959 for 42 locomotives based off their successful export range but adapted to the national market needs.

Such adaptations included the de-rating of engine horsepower from 2,024 to 1,750hp.  Internal components were largely based on the same designs as the pre-existing Type 4 locomotives for quicker production and minimal costs.

As with many locomotives of the British Rail era construction was initially based at Vulcan Foundry in Newton-le-Willows however British Railways was eager to replace Steam with Diesel traction at the earliest opportunity placed multiple additional orders for the EE Type 3 which ended up totalling near 309 locomotives. The massive increase in the demand had the detrimental potential to overwhelm Vulcan Foundry as they had orders to fulfil for the export market as well as the EE Type 4 (later known as the Class 40), Type 5 (Class 55), Type 2 (Baby Deltics) and Type 1 (Class 20)

To avoid straining the supply chain at Vulcan Foundry work on the Type 3 was sub contracted to Robert Stephenson & Hawthorns in Darlington.

On December 2nd 1960 the first loco D6700 came off the production line and was allocated to Stratford Depot in East London with initial allocations being between Stratford, March (Cambridge), Norwich, Ipswich, Sheffield / Tinsley, Thornaby, Gateshead, Cardiff and Landore.

Above Image:

Class 37 408 “Loch Rannoch” in the stunning EWS Livery sitting at Carlisle with a rake of MK2 coaches to cover for a DMU shortage at Arriva Trains Northern.

(CC BY 2.0) – Phil Richards

3: Going Continental With 37703. 

In 2.1 we intentionally missed out a variant of the Class 37 to save for chapter 3, this is the Class 37/7.

The /7 variant like the other subclasses were refurbished and rewired with their English Electric generator replaced with GEC G564AZ or Brush alternators with ballast added to increase the weight and therefore pull power.

This subclass was intended for heavy freight work and were frequently found in South Wales operating heavy coal and metal hauls, eventually their duties were taken over by Class 56 and Class 60 locomotives and with the introduction of Class 66s the 37/7s found themselves out of work. This was until Spain came calling. 

37703 was stood down from service in 2000 but allocated to EWS’ special projects department where it was initially designated as L023 and departed for Spain along with 37714 in 2001. 

Both locomotives along with sisters of the Class were assigned to assist with the building of the Madrid to Barcelona High Speed line for Renfe’s Alta Velocidad Española services which opened in 2008.

 

 

The post The Class 37: A Venerable Icon appeared first on Rail Tags.

 

The Class 153 has been and still continues to be a formidable backbone of rural branchlines and has helped boost capacity on our railways since the 1990s.

In partnership with the Llanelli and Mynydd Mawr Railway, we introduce 153 374 to the Rail Tags fleet. Our first rail car and the first line of tags to debut a revised design.

1: Pre History & Conversion:

Initially built as two carriage Class 155 Super Sprinters for Regional Railways by Leyland Bus, the Class 153 is a railcar which was converted for use on rural branch lines to replace the Class 121 and 122 `Bubble Car` units of the late 50s and 1960s.

Our unit, Class 153 374 was built as a part of 155 324 based on the West Of England Line in 1988 prior to conversion works which the unit went through in 1992. 

Conversion work was undertaken by British Rail in Kilmarnock, Scotland between 1991 & 1992 which yielded x70 Class 153 units from x35 Class 155s for use in different parts of the country. Out of the original 42 units built, only x7 remain in their original Class 155 unmodified configuration. 

Work saw the retrofit of a narrow drivers cab in the B-end of the vehicle which housed luggage racks with a reduction in the size of the vestibule area.

Unit 155 324 emerged from Kilmarnock Works split into Class 153 324 & 374.

Post conversion 153 374 served on services in Cornwall and Devon leading all the way up until circa 2006-2008 during the First Great Western era when the unit was later transferred to East Midlands Trains.  

The post The Class 153: Bitesized But Super! appeared first on Rail Tags.

Foreword:

First thing first, we don’t have any cake to send out to anyone… it would probably go off by the time you get it… Sorry!

Jokes aside welcome to this very special blogpost as Rail Tags has been kicking around for three years now, we’re just as old as the Elizabeth Line and Class 197s.

Our evolution since our One Year Of Rail Tags Blogpost has been significant.

In this blogpost we will be talking about the improvements we have made towards Rail Tags, our achievements since year 1 and what you can expect going forward plus our giveaway winner for a Class 91 Rail Tag in LNER white vinyl.

A lot has changed since October 2023 and in the next two years I expect things to keep getting better and better. What we have accomplished would not have been anywhere near possible without YOUR support. Every tag you purchase, piece of feedback you give, follow on social media and blogpost you read has gone towards understanding what it is you want and better supporting the rail industry including our partners which we have made tags for to help fund restoration and preservation efforts. (Such as the Class 423/9 supporting the 400 Series Preservation Group and the Clacton Express Preservation Group – Now the A.C.M.U. Society.)

And that is only our publicly available releases, we still have 3+ partnerships to announce. One you will find out with Edition 11 and more will unravel throughout 2026…

Our identity and values have solidified greatly since our first year anniversary bringing you and the rail industry to the forefront of what we do, this isn’t just a fun passion project anymore.

Improving Rail Tags:

A lot of the money we have made since we started has gone back into the project.

When we started back in 2022 we used to outsource the laser engraving process (up to the Class 313) which we now do in house. In January 2024 with demand for tags growing, the requirement to cut costs and speed up the production cycle we scrambled enough money together to invest into our own fibre laser engraver. I would engrave hundreds of tags a day in my own bedroom, sand them over a sink and cut the backing cards to insert the tag rings into. (yes, I used to make Rail Tags in my bedroom for a short time)

The most recent way we have improved our efficiency and productivity was to move all production into our own little office in my garden.

After finishing the Class 309 Tags in March 2025 a decision was made to put our focus on giving Rail Tags a proper home to work from. This columnated in our “Project Depot” which contains everything we need to produce the highest quality tags.

Starting after the 309 tags were handed over to the Clacton Express Preservation Group in March, we spent the rest of the month decommissioning a derelict shed that rotting an sitting on land that was planned to facilitate our new home.

Then in April it all came together as the new shed was constructed.

A significant upgrade on the rotting pile of wood and spiderwebs that came before it.

Being able to move the business into it’s own enclosed space has been key to our improved consistency and timeframes, optimising storage space and capacity at the same time.

A belt sander was introduced to remove rough edges from the tags as well as give the bare metal sides a shiny finish.

The laser engraver was also moved into the new shed with a custom dust and fume filter extraction unit fitted to keep the nasties of producing tags out.

My favourite part of the project has been making use out of old D78 Stock seats which I have had in storage since Christmas 2016 (nearly nine years!) and turn them into furniture for visitors and friends. You can find some photos of this work on our Instagram and Facebook pages.

As well as other additions that I haven’t touched on, all Editions ever produced have been proudly preserved on a corkboard by our desk space, a reminder of how far we continue to push. (You may also notice a reference to our Class 313 tags in the image)

We called it Project Depot as every train calls one home and hopefully should explain our long absence from Edition 8’s release to the release of Edition 9&10 back to back.

On that note, let’s talk further in detail about Edition 9, what we call our definitive release of 2025.

Edition 9: The Class 507 – Our Defining Moment Of 2025.

It is something I didn’t think would happen despite your requests but it somehow it did… and it has bought us to a whole new level and given us a reputation we have to stand by for as long as we continue.

I’m speaking with big words over what looks to be a simple release from us but it was an immense project behind the scenes.

The story of how Edition 9 came to be started back in October last year when we came in contact with ROSCO Angel Trains through our work on the Class 309 tags.

Angel Trains asked us if we could produce tags as a commemorative gift for those at Angel, Merseyrail, Rail Operations Group and Unimetals and in return use the rest of the metal to make tags for all of you.

Work on the Class 507s started all the way back in February when we first received the metal from Newport. With Project Depot starting a month later and the requirement to process multiple giant sections of bodyside the process took longer then our usual production cycle.

• Flat panels had to be cut out of the skeletons
• The skeletons were also cut into what we call “Bones” which are basically structure cuts
• Bitumen and fibreglass insulation on the inner side had to be processed & removed

Priority was given to Angel Trains’ requirements with engraving work being finished by the end of May and handed over to their London office.

The tags were welcomed by all who received them as part of the Class 507 Disposal and the Class 777 Introduction programmes and featured a bespoke backing card in inverse colours to our public release, their own numbering and the first ever “Staff Edition” Rail Tags (and not the last, we want to make more for our colleagues in the industry).

After work had finished work commenced on the public line of tags which first debuted at The Greatest Gathering alongside the Class 91 Rail Tags.

We expect to have Class 507 Livery Skin Sections available for purchase sometime soon as we expand our range. We have also identified the Class 507 line of tags for a re-release should demand be high enough but that will be held to a vote and decided by you. A Class 507 Wave 2 is facing competition from the 91 and 313 which are also shortlisted.

The Greatest Gathering – Our Most Important Moment So Far.

Undoubtedly the flagship event of this years Railway 200 festival, being able to participate by bringing Rail Tags to The Greatest Gathering has been such an honour and a moment we’ll never forget… being able to stand alongside great rolling stock and people alike was special.

Attending was a total shot in the dark for us, we had no idea if they would accept our approach and we had never attended a physical event before which required a lot of planning and time.

Our plan was to sell remaining stock from the Class 86, 423 and Class 309 lines whilst double debuting the Class 91 and 507 Rail Tags prior to an online release.

We also sold other railway related items such as number panels, Class 507 livery panels, Class 313 205 cab flaps and more.

On Thursday the 31st of July, we packed the car and drove all the way from our base in West London straight to Litchurch Lane for set up.

We were joined at The Greatest Gathering by our friends at https://www.transportbadges.co.uk selling their diverse range of rail and bus related badges which you can see on the right.

The Greatest Gathering was an amazing experience overall. It was amazing to meet many of you in person and share our passion for the railways with others who had just discovered us. If you are one of these people that had a chat with us or simply came up to our stall hello!

With a small recap of our year out of the way, let’s talk about the future.

Looking Down The Line:

When I started Rail Tags back in 2022 it was nothing but a small passion project with a big risk attached to it.

Would this work? Would I be wasting my time and money into making something people wouldn’t want?

As time went on the answer to those questions became clearer and clearer as more and more of you started to spread the word and people continued to approach us about working with Rail Tags.

As I mentioned previously, we have a few collaborative releases planned down the line with the next one being Edition 11 and then Edition 13 in 2026. Edition 12 is internally planned to be a “home” release. At the moment we want to strike a balance between working with the industry and making solo tag projects which we want to do by having a partnership followed by a home release then back to partnership, home and so on if we can.

The pattern of releases has currently been 2022: x1, 2023: x2, 2024: x 3 and 2025 with x4. We’ve demonstrated the ability to continuously do more year by year whilst achieving a balance with my own personal life and career.

I can’t promise 2026 will have x4 or x5 releases. One of the most important things I have learnt from Rail Tags is to miss our announced windows for a blogpost or new release which I no longer will do to ensure your expectations aren’t laid to waste and taking pressure off my shoulders.

A big factor in this decision was moving up a step in my career. I used to work part time as a train dispatcher which I am now a full time guard. Regardless of the fact there is a good balance of days working and days off which provides me with sufficient time to progress Rail Tags’ goals every week or two.

Our next release will come as early as possible in 2026 which we recently teased to our social media pages in partnership with a heritage railway. That’s all you’ll hear and see of Edition 12 until we’re ready to reveal it but all design work has been completed and as of November 4th we are ready to get the tags cut before engraving.

Announcing Our Newsletter: Right On Track.

It is something that we got asked about at The Greatest Gathering. “Do you have a newsletter?” and it is something I have planned to implement when the time was right. With a considerable amount of people discovering us and not having access to social media or preferring having updates sent directly to their inbox I am glad to announce our newsletter.

Introducing Right On Track:

To keep things short and sweet Right On Track will contain:

• Announcements on new Editions and release dates
• Edition release announcements
• New Blogpost entries
• General Updates on Rail Tags like what we’re working on and more.

That is what you can expect to hear from us if you decide to subscribe to Right On Track and if you do, thank you!

If you wish to subscribe, it is available on our Home page.

Thank You For Contributing To This Blogpost!

I’m very grateful for all of you have who have submitted photos of your fleet to us via social media for this blogpost. Here’s to all of you, thank you for being a part of our journey, it really means a lot.

Here are the entries for our contest to win a Class 91 Rail Tag in LNER White with the winner being chose at random using Wheel Decide.

What amazing photos, and a spin of the wheel we can confirm our winner is Mr Oliver Jones from Facebook who’s photo is in the top middle row. Congratulations Oliver! please contact us to arrange your tags delivery.

For those of you who were unlucky not to win or unable to participate do not worry. We will have more giveaways coming. (I might decide to make it an annual event on our birthday who knows?)

Thank you for reading, see you in 2026.

Yours truly, Aryan.

The post Rail Tags Turns Three Years Old! – Looking Ahead Into 2026. appeared first on Rail Tags.

I am absolutely delighted to announce that Rail Tags will be attending The Greatest Gathering alongside our friends at Transport Badges and Merchandise UK.

The Greatest Gathering is a three day festival being hosted at Alstom’s Derby Litchurch Lane Works from Friday 1st of August to Sunday 3rd which will see the largest assembly of rolling stock and other railway related exhibits in a generation. This event is being hosted to commemorate Railway 200, a nationwide year long event which celebrates 200 years of what we know now as the modern railway.

Over 30,000 people are expected to attend The Greatest Gathering over the three days. We are absolutely honoured to be attending the event and I consider this an absolute landmark occasion for Rail Tags.

Those who are familiar with what we stand for know this passion project is about commemorating generations of rolling stock and bringing them closer to you whilst supporting the rail industry.

If you haven’t I highly recommend reading https://railtags.co.uk/about/ to get a better insight into who we are.

We’ll be selling our Class 86, ??, 309, 423 and ??? tags at the event.

This is the Reading, Leeds and Glastonbury Music Festival for you and me as rail enthusiasts and we are counting down the days in excitement.

See you there!

Aryan – Founder of Rail Tags.

The post Rail Tags is going to The Greatest Gathering. appeared first on Rail Tags.

These trains are also heavily ingrained into our DNA at Rail Tags from a personal point & an excellent story of industry upcycling.

With their unique shape, single leaf doors and sounding identical to their Piccadilly Line cousins, With their iconic shape and striking a balance between a retro and modern look this is the D Stock and they deserve to be remembered.

Prepare for a bumper packed blogpost.

D78 Stock 7007 + 7032 sit at Upminster preparing for the FINAL service ever to Ealing Broadway on 21/04/17 (CC BY-SA 4.0 Elshad)

1. Pre History & Entry Into Service:

During the early 1970s we saw the arrival of the much loved C Stock onto the Circle & Hammersmith and City Line (Batch One: C69 Stock). The arrival of these new C69 Stock trains saw the pre war built CO/CP Stock trains cascaded onto the District Line from the Circle and H&C. This allowed the withdrawal of even older 1923 built Q Stock trains and the CO/CP Stock joined operating alongside the R Stock on the District. This was always meant to be an interim solution, maintaining the two different generations of fleet made maintenance a challenge. In response to this The London Transport Executive GLC drew up designs for a uniform fleet of trains which became to be known as the D78 Stock (D Standing for District and 78 standing for the year they aimed to enter service)

In 1976 The London Transport Executive GLC placed an order with Metro-Cammell for 77 six car trains but was later amended to 75 trains at a cost of £67.8 million. The design of the D78 Stock was thanks to German industrial designer Jurgan Greubel with Sir Misha Black taking helm of interior colour scheme.

Production started two years later in 1978 at Metro-Cammell’s Washwood Heath factory. The trains were built to feature LT118 traction motors built by BRUSH and pneumatically driven camshafts built by GEC Traction in similarity to the pre existing 1973 Stock on the Piccadilly Line. The D78s were also built with large single leaf doors with door operation buttons in contrast to previous units featuring double leaf doors, transverse & longitudinal seating was also included, the D78s also had head and tail lights positioned under the driving cabs which was a change from having the headlight built into the front facing body of previous tube stock. Another commonality these trains shared with the Piccadilly Line 1973 Stock was the bogies, being the same but slightly modified.

D78 Stock trains would operate in a six car formation as previously opposed to seven cars with the CO/CP and R Stock with the trains being built with carriages measuring at 18 meters each.

Many innovations were made with the production of the D78s such as Metalastik Chevron primary springs and Diabolo shaped secondary springs allowing for a smoother ride for passengers which gave the D78s their signature “croaking” sound at low speeds. The drivers cab were ergonomically designed with a drivers seat that could swivel forward and back, up and down. The deadmans handle was replaced by a joystick style combined traction and braking controller, the D78s were also the first to be built with a Train Management System replacing the previously designed Train Equipment Panel which would simply highlight faults to the driver. The trains were also built with a “POGO” switch standing for Passenger Open / Guard Open that switched the role of releasing the doors from the passenger door buttons to direct control of the guard, they would operate the doors from the rear cab.

An unknown D78 Stock waits at Ealing Common whilst on test in 1979 next to the pre war CO/CP Stock side by side, showing their differences in design. (CC-BY SA 2.0: Eddie Leslie)

The first D78 Stock entered service on the District Line on the 28th of January 1980, a common problem with the newly introduced trains was overheating caused by the windows which caused them to be modified.

2. Operational Legacy On The Underground:

The final D78 Stock was delivered and put into service during 1983 and they would operationally cover the entire District Line apart from the Edgware Road branch which starts at High Street Kensington, this was due to the trains being too long to be accommodated in the platforms and with a lack of SDO this saw more C Stock trains ordered around the same time as their production, the second batch being known as the C77 Stock.

During the mid 1980s, several three car D78 units were sent to operate on the East London Line to cover for A Stock units that went for One Person Operation conversion. (Modern day we know this method of operation as DOO) the A Stock trains returned to the ELL in 1987.

Thames News: D78 Stock on the ELL Video

On the 18th of September 1987 unit 7100 crashed into the buffers at Richmond Station and overran into the concourse glass in West London causing minor injuries to sixteen people.

Despite the crash at Richmond and another two or so derailments during their career, the D78s had a relatively quiet working life but this isn’t stated in any negative way. The trains were hailed for their excellent reliability amongst District Line Train Operators, further discussed below.

Reliability: 

The D78 Stock is often hailed as the most reliable fleet that London Underground has ever operated, sometimes reaching 35,000km but on average 19,000km between failures. This can be attributed to the design of the units which had a lot of it’s components tested previously on the 1973 Stock but modified for use with the D78s, we will get to the commonality between the stocks later in the blogpost.

D78 Stock 7062 is seen berthed at Kensington Olympia. CC BY-SA 2.0 – Joshua Brown)

3/1. Refurbishment:

Most London Underground Stock had their refurbishments during the 1990s as a part of a modernisation programme however the D78 Stock was not shortlisted in this programme due to their relatively new age compared to other rolling stock, being around a decade old by the time the programme was started. However in the late 1990s they were close to turning 20 years old in the new millennium which saw refurbishment plans finally take effect.

In 1999 unit 7008 was selected for a trial refurbishment of the fleet and was done at Acton Works funded by Metronet Rail and lasted until 2003.

In July 2003 it was announced refurbishment would take place at Bombardier’s Ilford works, however due to the scale of the project this was not the case. In August 2003 the first D78 Stock left the District Line via Acton Depot for a design finalisation programme at Wakefield Works.

Through the rest of 2003 two more units moved to Wakefield for the refurbishment programme with later units being moved to Derby Litchurch Lane.

The refurbishment contained: the new London Underground Corporate Livery being applied with anti vandal paint, a completely restyled interior featuring car end windows and PIS scrolling displays, rubber flooring replaced the maple wood flooring, the addition of opening and closing hustle alarms, covering up the door open buttons, grab bars replaced hanging straps, CCTV, a disabled multi purpose area, air condition added to the driving cabs and a new audible passenger information system voiced by Emma Clarke.

Unit 7002 was the first to return in October 2004 for extensive testing which first started at the South Ealing Test Track on the Piccadilly Line, a lot of rumours floated about regarding their entry to service and understandably a lot of excitement was fostered over the units.

Eventually in June 2005 the first unit entered passenger service with the other D78 Units following until 2008, the D78 Stock would continue to plough their trade into the 2010s. But something inevitable marked from the refurbishment programme was creeping closer and had already claimed their spot on the Metropolitan Line from the A Stock…

The first London Underground S7 Stock to run on the District Line sits at Kensington Olympia preparing to work train 753 to West Ham.

3/2. Enter The S7:

Back in 2003 the Metronet consortium became responsible for managing the sub surface lines on the Underground as part of the London Underground Public Private Partnership. In the consortium was a plan to standardise the fleet across the four lines with 190 trains to be built by Bombardier with designs being revealed in 2006. However in 2007 Metronet had collapsed due to financial difficulties leaving London Underground / TfL to take on the responsibility of delivering the programme.

In 2009 the S8 variant entered service on the Metropolitan Line, with the much beloved A Stock being withdrawn by 2012 with one unit being kept for Rail Adhesion duties and a carriage preserved at Acton Depot, the rest were scrapped at CF Booth in Rotherham. Next on the chopping block was the C Stock which was replaced by the S7 variant. The first C Stock left our rails in 2012 and the final one going in 2014.

Whilst the S Stock’s have proved their place on the London Underground being all around great units, seeing these trains replace the C Stock left a bitter taste in my mouth. They were my number one favourite train at the time, I remember getting World of Subways Volume 3 and driving them for countless hours as well as on OpenBVE which had a really impressive model. Driving them on simulators and games at the time led my curiosity to ride them in person and I ended up really appreciating their sleek New York-esque style.

After the grim scrapper had claimed the A and C Stock trains, the D Stocks were next and last on the chopping block. (Well, kind of)

In 2014 Vivarail, a relatively new rolling stock manufacturer had signed a deal to purchase 156 driving motor and 70 trailer cars off London Underground for conversion into units fit to run on the UK mainlines. This was done with the intention of filling in a gap in the market for affordable new rolling stock.

Withdrawals of the D78 Stock commenced in January 2015 with the first units 7510 and 7058 being hauled by road to Long Marston for conversion works to the mainline classification of “Class 230”. One of my only favourite memories of secondary school funnily enough involves these road moves. I remember starting Year 7 back in 2015 and being on break a couple of times, my school field overlooked a dual carriage way and sometimes I would see D78 Stock trains get hauled past on their way to Long Marston. I was not expecting to see that at the time so you can probably expect I had a very “surprised” reaction to tell you the truth.

Unfortunately though, it signified another important era of my childhood was coming to an end being the D78 Stock (More on that later). The majority of carriages would end up being sent to Long Marston for conversion with only a handful going to scrap.

Another memory I have from seeing them be withdrawn comes from a school trip to Acton Depot in February 2017 towards the end of the rollout period.

It was lunch time and most of us on the trip was sat in a room having lunch whilst the Depot Logistics Supervisor invited me to come tour the depot which was arguably way better then having lunch… I got to see an A Stock and C Stock up close for the first time in years, as well as check out the D78s short lived twin the 1983 Stock.

I got to head outside the main shed where I was stood behind D78 Driving Motor 7508 which was probably be stripped for spare parts (I don’t remember the reason why) but it was the first time I was at foot level staring up at these massive carriages and realising I won’t get to look at them the same I had done since I was a kid.

Standing in front of D78 Stock Driving Motor 7508 at Acton Depot. A very special and nostalgic photo to me.

4. #CatchTheD:

Only two months later on April 21st 2017 units 7007 + 7032 operated the last day of service for the D78s, marking the end of a bespoke and nostalgia era of the District Line to amazing fanfare.

London Underground helped to promote the occasion and #CatchTheD trended online with the units schedule posted for people to track. Hundreds of enthusiasts turned up to catch one final trip with multiple services throughout the day being fairly packed with both commuters and enthusiasts alike.

7007 and 7032 adorned special vinyls on the front ends.

The first service of the day was the 0624 service from Upminster to Richmond, with the last ever being the 1635 service from Upminster to Ealing Broadway. Many turned up for the final service and to see the train off to Ealing Common Depot from Ealing Broadway station.

At the time of withdrawal the D78 Stock was 37 years old which was considered “young” by normal withdrawal standards with many considering they could have had a longer life.

Two weeks later on May 7th, a farewell rail tour was hosted for the D78 Stock which would cover the entire District Line (except the Edgware Road branch), Northfields branch of the Piccadilly Line and West Ham Sidings.

This was the first rail tour I ever went on and made sure I went, not managing to get a ride on a D78 since late 2016. It was one last chance to say goodbye, and a proper chance to say farewell. Everyone on board got a special brochure filled with the history of the D78 including details of the Vivarail D-Train project.

Here are a few photos captured on the day:

The only D78 Stocks left on the London Underground Network is the DM from 7012 which resides at the London Transport Museum’s Acton Depot, and units 7010-8123-17010-8010-7123 / 7040-8107-17040-8040-7107 as Rail Adhesion Trains based at Neasden Depot.

5. Upcycling:

The D78 Stock story did not end with the Farewell Railtour in 2017. Since then there has been multiple uses for some trains.

Back in 2016 Driving Motor 7027 was donated to Coopers Lane Primary School to act as a library which is quite the remarkable story, similar to C77 Stock Driving Motor 5720 which now resides at Plumcroft Primary School.

7027 was taken out of service and transferred to Acton Works. Trailer 17027 and UNDM 8027 were scrapped whilst Driving Motor 7027 was cleaned, repainted and had it’s traction motors and other underbody gear removed before being transported by road through London to Coopers Lane where it was craned into the playground where a mock station was built around the carriage.

The carriage still resides at the school today and excellent care has been taken of the carriage to keep it looking as sparkling as when the D78s came back from refurbishment. According to Luke Agbaimoni aka Tube Mapper the carriage is now used as a play area hopefully inspiring the younger generations to take up a career in rail one day.

D78 Stock 7027 at Coopers Lane (photo credited to Amazing Space Locations)

5/1 Vivarail: 

Coming back to the topic of Vivarail, after purchasing a great portion of the D78 Stock fleet from London Underground the carriages were all transferred to Long Marston for conversion into mainline capable units.

They thrived off innovation, and at the time they had ambition towards a massive achievement but how did they fare?

Vivarail was the brainchild of the late Adrian Shooter, a man well respected within the rail industry who had a strong passion for it too. He carries a strong everlasting legacy revolutionising wherever he went. Shooter joined the railways in 1970 as a management trainee before going to multiple different roles.

He launched Vivarail in 2012 with the intention of filling a large gap in the rail industry market for new and cheap rolling stock, the premise was to take the basic bodyshell of the D78 and outfit them with brand new equipment and bring them up to modern standards indicating the large amount of life the D78s still had left. Through Vivarail the D78s were upcycled into Class 230 and Class 484 units.

The 230s being capable of Diesel Electrical, Diesel Battery or sole Battery operation which was thoroughly tested and proved to work.

Unfortunately multiple hitches along the way meant the programme struggled to gain traction with London Northwestern Railway, Transport for Wales and South Western Railway’s Island Line being the only sole operators of the units.

The LNWR units were the first to enter service in 2018 and operated on the Marston Vale Line until 2022 when Vivarail went to administration withdrawing the fleet without a designated maintainer, the TfW units came about 5 years later then scheduled due to multiple faults during testing and the CoVID-19 pandemic whilst the Island Line Class 484s would have the smoothest introduction and still operate to this day with one unit being out of service due to water damage.

In late 2022 Vivarail went into administration after failing to achieve funding after the American Railroad Development Corporation, their main shareholder at the time pulled the plug.

Sadly, not long after Adrian Shooter passed away at the age of 74 after battling motor neuron disease.

Regardless of what you think of Vivarail as a company and how well they have done, you always have to appreciate the attempts people make to better the industry. GWR have picked up the rights to the Vivarail fast charge system and Class 230 001 is currently testing on the Greenford – West Ealing Branch, my fingers are tightly crossed it’ll enter passenger service…. oh to ride a D78 again.

Vivarail D-Train Class 230 001 on the test track at Long Marston.

6. Personal Thoughts On The D78 & The 73 Stock Connection:

Phew… I’ve finally got through all the facts and details regarding the life of the D78 Stock, to round things off I want to take a more autobiographic approach on the influence these trains have had including their close relationship to the 1973 Stock which I openly express my fondness on.

As previously stated in the blogpost, the D78 Stock has taken a lot of it’s technical inspiration from the 1973 Stock including their motors and how they’re propelled. Despite the clear contrast in design choice the familiarities are very easy to identify if you have ridden on both these trains.

They sound identical throughout from the air brake pressure release to the wind up and down of the traction motors.

The D78 Stock was the second type of train I remember coming into contact with during my infancy. Living on the Heathrow branch of the Piccadilly Line for a good 1-3 years they were the only railway territory I had explored until one day we ventured East towards London (by this time, I was already very into trains). Like cavemen discovering fire or Newton discovering gravity I realised other types of trains existed outside of the Piccadilly Line and the D78s were the first glimpse I had into the world wide railways.

The image is still in my mind and the thoughts when I first saw one. Me and my grandad were on a 73 Stock speeding up towards Hammersmith on the Eastbound and as we passed Chiswick Park I looked out the window and saw a train way taller then ours with a completely new shape. This was around the time the refurbishment programme was ongoing and it was striking seeing one in a shiny new LU corporate livery matching the 73 Stock we were on.

Completely unlike the 73 Stock trains I had been so used to, it was mind-blowing knowing there was so much more to explore. This was a time before the internet so going out to London blind not knowing what to expect it was all about seeing what trains each line had. To my grandad it was “take the young lad out and show him the world”, to me it was “what does the trains on the pink line look like if the green line has these type of trains?”

As I grew older I felt more indifferent to the D78 Stock due to being so used to seeing them on frequent trips out, apart from having fun racing one out on the Eastbound at Acton Town. When the S Stocks came in and replaced the C Stock, I realised how much borrowed time the D78s were running on which is when I started to truly appreciate their trade. Their unique and simple design would soon fade forever out of my life further signifying how the railways change with the time.

For Christmas 2016 I was surprised with a pair of seats taken from a unit which is where I really started to collect railway memorabilia, that was when I started to discover the hidden art of railway upcycling.

Those seats sat in our garage for 9 years, until three days ago (21/04/25) when the perfect opportunity came to use them being our new workspace which is still currently being furnished. I’m happy I’ve managed to give a pair of seats continued life for personal use, retired from the career of being sat on by too many commuters over MANY years… when the time came to pull them out the shed and prepare them for a new lease of life in our studio I ended up on YouTube watching videos of D78 Stocks, it feels like a lifetime has gone by since they left the District Line and that is where the memories pooled in from.

Long Live The D78 Stock!
Forever a part of who we are at Rail Tags.

A sight now lost to time, but not in my mind. The two musketeers of the LU Metro Cammell Generation: Two 1973 Stock units meet two D78 Stock units at Ravenscourt Park in 2014. (CC BY-SA 2.0 mattbuck)

Closing Remarks:

Despite the obvious nostalgia trip I have just gone down, the D78 Stock has cemented it’s legacy on the District Line as underappreciated workhorses for their continued reliable service which became sadly outmoded a little bit too soon by more modern S Stock trains which are proving to stand the test of time themselves now. Their story is fortunately not over, with some Class 230 and 484 unit seeing continued revenue service on the national rail network, further honouring the late Adrian Shooter who’s idea it was to save some of these great trains from the scrapyard and being forgot to time. Thankfully you can still see a D78 on the Underground Network for one season each year when the Rail Adhesion Train wakes up from it’s hibernation and helps keeps the track clean from leaves. Who knows what the future holds for those two RAT units, but for now it’s great to still see some kicking about on their truest home, the London Underground.

Long Live the D78 Stock.

(psssst! there are still tons of carriages scattered around the UK all in varying condition, two in Barry Island a few in Long Marston Unimetals… we know what needs to happen but can we pull it off?!) 

London Underground District Line D78 Stock 7129 arriving at Barking. (CC BY-SA 2.0 TheJRB)

The post A Look Back In Time: Remembering The D78 Stock appeared first on Rail Tags.

Preserved Class 309 624 at the East Anglia Railway Museum sporting the Iconic Network SouthEast livery.

The Class 309 Clacton Express 1: Pre History & Production:

The Class 309’s earliest history originates from the 1955 British Railways Modernisation Plan which intended to electrify the majority of mainline routes in and out of London with 25kv AC OLE. Due to intervention by the British Transport Commission the plan was drastically cut down to just three lines being the East Coast Mainline to Cambridge and Leeds, South Eastern Mainline to Dover & Folkestone (done to the standard of 750v DC third rail) and the West Coast Mainline to Manchester and Liverpool via Birmingham.

For electrification of the East Coast Mainline, British Rail intended to produce a standard multiple unit capable of 100mph to work semi fast and express services between London Kings Cross, Cambridge and Peterborough.

Designated as the Class AM9 these at the time revolutionary multiple units were built at Holgate Works in York in three subclasses: the /1s (601-608) which were two coaches long, 2/s (611-618) which consisted of four coaches one of them containing a “griddle car”, and the /3s (621-627) which were standard four car units. These units were built with the intention to be used in tandem increasing peak time capacity to ten coach services during the peak.

The AM9s featured a pullman gangway on the front of driving coaches to allow passenger access to the “griddle car” from anywhere in a consist. The design of the AM9s was derived from the AM3 (Class 303) with a key difference being the inclusion of said pullman gangway. Rather stunningly these new units were fitted with wrap around cab windows which was unfortunately modified to have an additional pillar placed between the front and side of the cab window due to the costs involved in replacing the glass. (This design choice was later seen again on the Class 442 Wessex Electrics which you can read about here) The AM9s would receive a “British Rail Maroon” livery which was standard at the time for coaching stock. Unlike other vehicles of the same generation, the AM9s were built to use Commonwealth Bogies in contrast to the BR1 model due to problems encountered with these bogies which were already used on MK1 coaching stock.

BR(ER) Class “309/3” (originally Class “AM9/3”) 25k v ac overhead “Liverpool St. – Clacton/Walton” Inter City 4-car emu No.621 (later No.309 621) in Rail Blue & Grey livery with all yellow front end passing Bethnal Green on a Liverpool St. – Clacton/Walton service, 09/82. Scanned slide taken with an Exacta.
(CC BY-SA 2.0 Hugh Llewelyn)

2: New Fleet Without A Home:

As previously mentioned the original intention was to deploy the AM9 fleet onto the East Coast Mainline on semi fast and express services to Peterborough and Cambridge in 1962. Now we’re pretty good at coming up with good projects before abandoning them and restarting them later and that is exactly the case of what happened on the East Coast Mainline. The electrification project was abandoned due to the cost of modernising the roof at Kings Cross Station to accommodate overhead line equipment, leaving this strong fleet of brand new multiple units without a suitable home which at the time was a shock to commuters and the taxpayers who funded the development of the AM9s with all of this occurring before one could carry a single fare paying passenger…

Thankfully this period of redundancy was short lived as previously in 1959 the Great Eastern Mainline and it’s respective Sunshine Coast Line was electrified to 25kv OLE. With electrification required the need to boost service capacity and operate summer resort trains, both which the AM9s perfectly catered to.

In 1962 twenty four sets entered service on the Great Eastern Mainline (seven /1s, seven /2s and ten /3s) with the inaugural service commencing in August on a London Liverpool Street to Clacton-On-Sea / Walton-On-The-Naze service. These services would start in a 10 car formation running fast to Colchester before diverging off the GEML and onto the Sunshine Coast Line where an intermediate stop would be made at Thorpe-Le-Soken where the front four carriages split down to Walton-On-The-Naze and the rear eight heading towards Clacton.

The introduction of the AM9 fleet on the Great Eastern Mainline was revolutionary replacing the BR Standard Class 7 Britannia steam locomotives on the Sunshine Coast Line which were seen at the time as the flagship traction. The efficiency of drawing power from overhead line equipment paired with their boost in capacity led to quicker journey times and increased customer satisfaction levels. The top speed of the Britannia Locomotives was 90mph whilst the AM9s were capable of 100mph operation, achieving that top speed way faster then it took steam traction to reach their line speed thanks to the sheer horsepower of these units.

2.1: The TOPs Transfer of the 1970s:

We’ve touched on the introduction of the TOPs system in our Class 423 Blogpost and also our Class 86 Blogpost and how the introduction saw the reclassifications take effect. In the same timeframe as the 4VEPs were reclassified to Class 423 and AL6 becoming the Class 86, the AM9s were reclassed to the Class 309.

Train from the Clacton branch arrives at Colchester on route to London. The units of this type were built specifically for the Clacton and Walton services and were made up of either 2 or 4 coaches allowing the formation of 10 coach sets. All are now retired. The buffers in the foreground are there to slow and stop any trains that accidentally overrun the platform loop. The cross bracings are bolted to the rails and the flat bars between them are designed to collapse like accordion bellows with friction helping to halt the train. CC-BY SA 2.0 – Martin Addison

3: Setting Their Reputation & Modifications / The Network SouthEast era: 

The Class 309s very quickly gained a very positive reputation amongst commuters and holiday makers on the Sunshine Coast and Great Eastern Mainline into London Liverpool Street due to their fabulous comfort levels and high performance also being well liked by traincrew who operated them on a near day to day basis. From 1971 further tweaks were made to Class 309 operations extending services to twelve carriages through an additional 309/1 unit being added to the ten car formation.

This formation did not last long however as from 1973 the two car formed Class 309/1s were extended to four coaches per unit through the modification of redundant Mk1 coaches previously used in loco hauled formations.

In 1982, the British Rail brand was replaced by the iconic Network SouthEast sector. Three years later starting in 1985 and finishing in 1987, the Class 309 fleet saw a midlife refurbishment take place at Wolverton Works.

This comprised of being repainted into the Network SouthEast toothpaste livery, single-glazed wooden framed windows being replaced by aluminium-framed glazed windows with the addition of hopper ventilation, open 2+2 seating in standard class replacing the old style compartments leading to an increase in capacity and the unfortunate removal of the “griddle cars” with justification being the requirement to boost capacity as much as possible for peak time services.

Additionally the wrap around glazed units were replaced completely on all units for reasons mentioned previously in this blogpost.

In 1986, British Rail had invested in extending electrification beyond Colchester towards Ipswich and Norwich which saw the Class 309 serve beyond the Sunshine Coast and continuously up the Great Eastern Mainline including services to Harwich International for connection to ferry services.

Some units also featured the London and South Eastern “Jaffa Cake” Express livery. Both new livery examples seen in this photo taken at London Liverpool Street.

4: A Premature Goodbye?:

Despite major investment in the Class 309s and extended services deeper into Essex, Network SouthEast had earmarked the Class 309 units and other first generation rolling stock for withdrawal and replacement by completely modern rolling stock. This saw the introduction of the Class 321 in 1989 (nicknamed Dusty Bins) which rapidly withdrew operations of Class 305, 307, 308s, notably operating high capacity commuter and express diagrams to Clacton, Ipswich and Norwich. In 1992 Class 321 units started replacing diagrams operated by Class 309s and by May 1993 the Class 309s were withdrawn from their flagship Clacton-On-Sea operations, a premature end at only 31 years of passenger service.

Some units were retained to work specifically on peak time diagrams whilst other units were completely withdrawn and sent to scrap. (location unknown)

On January 22nd 1994, three units comprised the 1800 London Liverpool Street to Clacton-On-Sea being the final Class 309 diagram to run fare paying passengers on the Great Eastern Mainline after 33 years of service closing the chapter on the Essex Electric revolution seen in the 60s, poetically giving them one last run on the route that cemented their legacy.

After final withdrawal from “home” operations seven units were retained for use in the Manchester area under Regional Railways’ North West division and were subsequently transferred to Blackpool Carriage Sidings. This occurred a year later in 1995 to act as an interim solution due to ongoing delays and problems with the newly built Hunslet Class 323s. These 309s would operate services between Manchester Piccadilly, Manchester Airport, Stockport, Stoke-On-Trent and Crewe.

A year later in 1998, 309 624 (our unit, and now yours) was repainted in a promotional Regional Railways Manchester Airport Express livery to commemorate the new service.

After privatisation these transferred units would operate services for North Western Trains which became First North Western shortly after.

Despite the trains now being 35 years old at the time the operating area served by the 309s would expand to serve Birmingham International as well as a short lived stint on express services from London Euston to Manchester Airport subbing in for Class 322s. In May 2000 the seven transferred units would be finally stood down after being replaced by Class 175 and Class 323 units and put into storage at MoD Pigs Bay in Shoeburyness.

Class 309 624 coach 75965 at Eastleigh Works in March 2001 a year after being stood down before transfer to Pigs Bay (CC-BY SA 2.0 – The Basingstoker)

5: Post Revenue Departmental Operations And Swansong:

Pre service withdrawal the Class 309 would operate a number of rail tours to commemorate the legacy left on the iron road most notably The Pudsey Express between Colchester & York in October 1990 which treaded the rails they were originally intended for, achieving a top speed of 108mph in the Hitchin area.

An attempt to preserve a Class 309 was first attempted in 2000 when a special service ran between Liverpool Street and Clacton-On-Sea where plans never materialised before the Class 309 was officially retired to all passengers.

However the story of Class 309 history continues… as three out of seven units were saved for departmental use and converted at Eastleigh Works into the Class 960 for in cab signalling tests at Old Dalby prior to a refurbishment plan for the West Coast Mainline which never materialised.

The 960 units were withdrawn in 2004 and stored at Pigs Bay MoD. This opened the window for preservation, where ex 309616 and 306624 were transferred for static exhibition at the Electric Railway Museum in Coventry., 309616 was repainted into the post NSE refurb Jaffa Cake Essex Express livery.

Unfortunately the Electric Railway Museum was closed in 2017 as part of a planned regeneration of the local area. This saw 309616 transferred to the Tantat Light Valley Railway in Oswestry where it still resides today, soon to be accompanied by recently preserved Class 507 001.

309624 was sold to the Lavender Line and arrived in 2018 where some conservation work was carried out but nothing more, eventually being put up for sale in 2021 due to a change in priorities, thus making it surplus to requirements. A serious but possible risk was the scrapping of the unit being broken up for spare parts..

During the same year, a new preservation group was founded called the Clacton Express Preservation Group which had one aim and one aim only: preserve 30624 (classed as 960102 at the time)

Fighting through a lot of fundraising, campaigns to save the unit and doubts about the viability from the public by March 2022 it was formally announced that the money had been secured via a benefactor to purchase 960102 saving it from scrap and ensuring a preserved future awaits.

Initial restoration works took place on the Lavender Line after an 18th month deal to keep the unit there was agreed, during this time the unit suffered a vandalism attack damaging several internal and external windows which were costly to replace.

Despite the setbacks, in May 2024 it was officially announced the Class 309 was to return back onto Anglian soil finding a suitable home at the East Anglia Railway Museum in Chapel and Wakes Colne where coaches 75965 and 61928 now reside, whilst 75972 is currently located at the Rushden, Higham and Wellingborough Railway awaiting it’s own solo restoration.

75965 and 61928 arrived at the East Anglia Railway Museum in the same month as the announcement, suffering another vandalism attack days before the move occurred where they now reside.

How we met the CEPG and 309624:

Our involvement with the CEPG and 624 started in September 2024 when I met Chairman Brad Wright on the Class 323 WMR Farewell Tour at their sales stall where I decided to introduce myself and tell him about Rail Tags. We immediately started talking about the preservation sector as a whole and asking him a few questions on what it takes and how he managed to get where he did today. It was suggested that the CEPG and Rail Tags could work together to help generate funds for the restoration of the vehicles at the EARM. That led to a few discussions where we could help fund 309624s restoration through the production of tags from metal that needed to be removed from a vehicle during restoration works.

It all came ahead in November 2024 when BDTC 75965 underwent extensive restoration and fabrication works to the exterior.

The removed section of metal BDTC 75965 that made Rail Tags Edition 8: Class 309 624

After taking delivery of the metal and finishing the 4VOP tags we have worked very close with the CEPG to ensure they were equally as happy with the tags as we were. In March 2025 we visited the CEPG and 309624 at the East Anglia Railway Museum to see the unit close up and use every part of the unit we could for a photoshoot for the tags. Since November 2024 BDTC 75965 has been repainted into the Network SouthEast toothpaste livery and work on the interior progressing with 61928 next in line for restoration work after 75965 has been completed.

Working with the Clacton Express Preservation Group we managed to use every nook and cranny on both vehicles to take some stunning photos of the tags and prepare for the release.

We worked together with the intention to have these tags ready for the Essex Electrics Exhibition being hosted at the museum on April 12th as a part of their plan to celebrate Railway 200 where the tags will debut.

From start to finish this has been a really enjoyable Edition to produce with some good friends made along the way and all of possible thanks to a casual approach and introduction on a railtour a few months ago for units which funnily enough played a part in the history of the Class 309.

I personally have learnt a lot about the story of 309624s journey from the Lavender Line to the East Anglia Railway Museum. It shows the art of preservation in it’s rawest form: anyone from anywhere can achieve anything but it takes a LOT of determination, effort and coordination to pull it off. There are risks involved and it can be very time consuming and financially draining, but with the right mindset you can make it work. All aspiring railway preservations should learn from Brad & the CEPGs story.

I highly encourage all to read about the success behind the Clacton Express Preservation group at this BBC News article.

Let’s Talk Tags:

Rail Tags Edition 8: Class 309 624 will be an exclusive release to the Clacton Express Preservation Group, first being made available at The Essex Electrics Exhibition on April 12th and will be made available for wider purchase on the Clacton Express Preservation Group Online Shop shortly after the event (SUBJECT TO STOCK AND AVAILABILITY POST EVENT). I highly encourage as many of you to attend the event not only for the tags but to learn the important history the Class 309 has played a part in, it wasn’t until I started working on this release that I realised the sheer value these workhorses has provided to the Anglian region. As always every release is a learning experience understanding the value old units provide for our society and regions as well as their unique charm as rolling stock. I hope this release will be able to provide some financial support towards the preservation of this fantastic unit.

It has been a true joy to work on this lot of tags, make new friends and learn something new especially about the value these trains have provided to their respected regions. We’re proud to consider the Clacton Express Preservation Group our partners and friends of Rail Tags.

I would like to thank Brad Wright & Teddy Leport for their enthusiasm towards working on the tags and for their warm hospitality showing me around the East Anglia Railway Museum, 309624 as well as explaining the intentions for 309624s future. The preservation story behind 309624 is a humble story about fighting to help preserve history and teach future generations the importance of an era lost to time.

Welcome to our fleet, Class 309 624. 

The post The Class 309: Legend Of The Clacton Express appeared first on Rail Tags.

The Class 423, along with familiar classes like the Class 411 and 421 have been a staple of Southern Electric Traction along the London and Coastal corridors from the 1960s up to the early 2000s. As a local and railwayman of the region, I’m proud to welcome 423 905 to the Rail Tags fleet in partnership with our friends at the 400 Series Preservation Group.

Class 423 4VOP 3905 stands still at the East Kent Railway in September 2024 awaiting a one way trip to Unimetals Newport.

The Class 423: Pre History & Production:

1: The need to to replace steam traction in the Southern Region.

In September 1964 British Rail placed an order for twenty electric multiple units to coincide with greenlighting of electrification of the South Western Mainline from Southampton Central to Bournemouth which would also see withdrawal of steam traction on semi fast services out of London Waterloo. The units would be built on the profile of the BR MK1 coach which had been introduced back in 1951, this was as deemed the most economically viable option and would follow the design of the 4CEP / 4BEP and 4CIG / 4BIG unit built between 1956 and 1963.

Due to Eastleigh Works ending all carriage building in 1963 and the adoption of the British Rail MK2 coach design in other regions it was decided to split the twenty unit order between the works at Derby Litchurch Lane and Holgate Works in York.

The Driving Trailer Composites were built by Holgate Works whilst the Trailer Second Open and Motor Brake Second Open coaches were built at Derby Litchurch Lane, the units would be numbered from 7701 to 7720. The new units would be designated as the 4VEP which stands for 4 carriages, Vestibule Electro Pneumatic. Whilst cosmetically being similar to the design of the 4CEP / BEP units the carriage windows differed, being smaller and having more per carriage which was tailored to the internal suburban seating layout. The 4VEPs were given EE507 traction motors which were mounted onto each MK6 motor bogie on the MBSO carriages, the traction package was standard across the Southern Electric Slammers at the time. All 4VEPs were geared for a max operating speed limit of 90mph.

The modern electrification works across the SWML saw the fitting of the new Westinghouse Automatic Warning System (AWS) which the new VEPs would also have built.

The first day of fully electric operation on the SWML was set for the 10th of June 1967, however due to slow delivery of the new stock this was set back a month to the 10th of July.

A unique modification was made to 4VEP unit 7711 which saw it carry an experimental Southern Region Advanced Warning System for use in between Southampton and Bournemouth. The previous and next aspect would be displayed in the cab to test it’s viability on the Southern Region’s inner suburban lines where trains we’re frequently chasing yellows due to route capacity. This experiment ended in 1975 after it was agreed to standardise the AWS system across the entire British Rail network.

4VEP 7713 stands at Petersfield Station on the 10:33 Portsmouth & Southsea to London Waterloo service on July 7th 1984 (CC BY-SA 4.0 Lamberhurst)

1.1: The Second to Fifth Batch and further unit allocations.

In April 1967 prior to the rollout of the electric services on the South Western Mainline a second batch of 4VEPs numbered 7721 to 7755 had entered production solely at York Holgate Works with a few modifications made to the design. This included painting the entire cab front yellow to comply with new safety standards for visibility reasons. The second batch was ordered for the Southern Central Division of British Rail to facilitate the withdrawal of 4-LAV, 2-BIL and 2-HAL units on the Brighton Mainline out of London Victoria. Oddly these South Central based units were not built with AWS and units 7739, 7741 and 7742 never made it into operational service.

Later in 1970 a third batch of 4VEP units were constructed which would be split between the South Western and South Central divisions to further allow the withdrawal of other 2-BIL and 2-HAL sets, this saw the 4VEP fleet expand to sixty 4 car EMUs.

A further fourth batch of thirty eight units was constructed starting in May 1972 and would be numbered from 7186 to 7853 which saw the second batch eventually split between the South Western and South Central regions.

Production of the 4VEP line of rolling stock ended in March 1974 after the completion of units 7584 to 7894 for the South Eastern division which displaced a number of 2-HAP units which was cascaded to the South Western Region to allow the withdrawal of 4-SUB rolling stock. Units 7816 onwards was painted in a new corporate blue and grey livery.

4VEP 3025 stands at Upper Warlingham Station in October 1987 (CC BY-SA 4.0 Lamberhurst)

2: The Network SouthEast Era.

From the period of production up to the Network SouthEast era, the 4-VEPs would act as stop gap measure for the failed 4-REP units and also come into to act as Gatwick Express Units.

Coming back to the time period of the 1980s multiple developments happened for the 4-VEPs. Most notably was the introduction of the TOPS rolling stock management system which saw the 4-VEPs given the designation of Class 423.

In June 1986 the British Rail London & SouthEast sector was rebranded to the now iconic Network SouthEast, this rebrand saw 4VEP 7850 repainted into the stunning and iconic Network SouthEast “toothpaste” livery.

Further in 1987 the first batch of 4VEPs (7701 – 7720) were sent to Eastleigh Works for asbestos removal with earlier 4-CEP / BEPs following suit. In the same year a major renumbering of the entire fleet took place which was satisfyingly done in order of units numbered lowered to highest with a refurbishment commencing a year later.

It started with 7701 – 7720 becoming 3001 – 3194, the renumbered units were refurbished in 1988 at Eastleigh Works which saw additional seating added to the MBSOs. Unlike the renumbering, the refurbishments did not take place in numerical order with 3168 being the first, this unit became 3421.

Class 423/2 4-VOP 3907 “Brighton Royal Pavilion” at Hurst Green on 07/04/01 (CC BY-SA 2.0 Steve Jones)

3: Connex South Central, VOP Facelift and 3905.

Now we will bring our attention towards the South Central Region post privatisation, the VOP facelift of the late 1990s and the withdrawal of these units.

Railway privatisation saw Connex take over the South Central and South Eastern franchises in 1996, three years later in 1999 Connex would send nineteen Class 423/1s to ADtrans Chart Leacon Depot for a facelift to enhance operations of suburban services in and out of London.

The facelift saw the removal of internal compartments and the declassification of first class on the nineteen sets. The DTCs were converted into DTSOLs in a similar way as the CEP to COP conversions.

The facelifted units were renumbered 3901 – 3919.

The first 4VOP returned to passenger service on May 20th 1999.

Unit 3463 was sent to Chart Leacon on July 12th 1999. As seen here on the rear of DTCL 76398 the facelift for 4VOP 3905 is dated 16th of August 1999, with the unit returning to service afterwards.

3.1: Southern & Withdrawal.

After 3905 returned from Chart Leacon, she would continue to operate South Central services in and out of London.

In October 2000 the Shadow Strategic Rail Authority announced that Connex would be stripped of the South Central franchise and Govia would operate the franchise from 2003. The new franchise would be known as Southern which ordered brand new Class 377 Electrostar units which would allow for the withdrawal of all slam door rolling stock by the mid 2000s.

First introduced in 2002, the new Electrostar fleet would replace the Class 421 4CIG units first due to their fleet and lower capacity. However due to their higher power consumption this led to a troubled entry to service with upgrades being required to the power supply. This was easier said then done after Railtrack collapsed due to the consequences of the Hatfield Rail Crash which claimed four lives and injured over seventy.

Eventually, the first Class 377 entered revenue service in 2003.

As time moved forward, more 377s entered service and the first Class 423 units had started to be withdrawn from service. The first units to be withdrawn were selected due to high mileage or poor condition.

4VOP 3905 was one of the later units to be withdrawn from passenger service in April 2005. The final working of the unit was the 23:17 London Victoria – Worthing Service on April 18th 2005. The next day 3905 was moved to Brighton Lovers Walk Depot officially retiring from revenue service after 37 years of service.

4-VOP units 3918 & 3905 and 375713 at Ashford Chart Leacon Depot 21/08/10.
(CC BY-SA 2.0 – The Basingstoker)

4: Chart Leacon & The Preservation Years.

Post withdrawal, 4VOP 3905 was moved from Brighton Lovers Walk Depot to Chart Leacon Depot on May 5th 2005 for coupler modifications, this saw the unit sold to Bombardier Transportation UK as a “tractor unit” to shunt Class 375 and 465 units around Chart Leacon Depot.

Not a lot of information regarding 3905s time at Chart Leacon exists. In August 2011 the unit was put up for sale by Bombardier Transportation UK, which was eventually snapped up by the 5-BEL trust to act as a parts donor for the 5-BEL restoration project.

3905 was moved from Chart Leacon to Tonbridge West Yard on the 25th of March 2013 and further onto Barrow Hill the next day.

Years later in 2017 the unit (bar the MBSO) was donated to the 400 Series Preservation Group and moved by road to the East Kent Railway. MBSO 62266 still exists today and is located at Peak Rail in Matlock.

Class 423 4-VOP 3905 stands at the East Kent Railway undergoing restoration in July 2020. (CC BY-SA 4.0 kentrailwayobserver37)

Fast forward to September 2024 and the units condition has unfortunately decayed, coaches 70904 and 76398 were deemed beyond economical repair and the hard decision was made to let go of these coaches.

We had been contacted by the 400 Series Preservation Group earlier in the year after a trip to Arlington Eastleigh Works where we were kindly given permission to use preserved Class 313 201 for our Class 313 tag photoshoot. We were informed of the decision to scrap the unit and that panels could be made available to us which we agreed to without hesitation.

Back to September 2024, we were invited to the East Kent Railway to remove panels from 76398 and to assist with removing parts from 70904 which could be used on other units.

The removed section of bodywork from 76398 which was used to produce Edition 7.

As seen above, the removed section has allowed for some great tag variation, with some Connex Yellow & White Stripe, Standard Connex Yellow and Blue & Yellow tags from 3905.

Whilst these carriages may now be confined to history, we are happy that we got given the opportunity to help save what we can ensuring the legacy of these two scrapped vehicles live on through Rail Tags. Vehicle 76397 remains with MBSO 62385 being used as a substitute for 62266.

I’d like to thank Peter Spokes from the 400 Series Preservation Group for the opportunity to make tags from 3905, since starting Rail Tags I had always dreamed of doing a Southern Region Slammer, and thanks to him this is a reality.

To assist the group, a portion from each tag sale will go directly to the 400 Series Preservation Group to support their growing ambitions, recently acquiring a carriage from 508 201.

A sample of two Class 423 905 Rail Tags in Connex Blue / Blue Yellow Skirt using an Initial Fault Finding Checklist cut from 3905 as a backdrop.

Rail Tags Edition 7 is now available. We will see you again soon with Edition 8 & 9.

This Edition proudly supports our friends at the:

400series Preservation Group Website

The post The Class 423: A Southern Slam Door Icon. appeared first on Rail Tags.

Over the past 49 years, the 1973 Stock has graced the rails of the Piccadilly Line. They are a symbol of the achievement that was connecting the London Underground to Heathrow Airport, however their time in the spotlight is fast approaching the end.

1. Pre History:

In January 1972, 52 years ago the Greater London Council granted authority to London Transport for a £39m order to Metro-Cammell for 87 and a half brand new trains for the Piccadilly Line.

The purpose of this order was to withdraw pre-war 1938 Stock trains and reallocate newer 1959 Stock trains to the Northern Line. but there was a bigger purpose behind this order.

Previously in July 1967, royal assent approved the London Transport Act 1967 which laid tracks for one of the most important rail infrastructure projects in London’s history. Three years later in December 1970, the £15m Piccadilly Line extension to Heathrow Central was approved. This was it, the London Underground was coming to Heathrow. Marking the first time an underground railway would reach any airport in the world, this unlocked a tremendous amount of potential for the local borough of Hounslow, cementing the Piccadilly Line’s legacy as our most important tube line to date.

The concept design for the 1973 Tube Stock: Circa 1967, Credit Unknown.

2. The Trains:

The new trains would be based off the fairly new Victoria Line 1967 Stock, incorporating features such as wrap-around windscreens, double-glazed windows and higher windows in the doors. The bogies would also be based on the 67 Stock trains but featuring a new system of load weighing for traction and braking purposes. Newer features for these trains included sliding cab doors with pneumatic seals and thermostatically controlled ceiling mounted fans to improve ventilation, provisions were also in place for ATO. Construction started in 1974 at Metro-Cammell’s Washwood Heath works, resulting what we know as the 1973 Tube Stock.

Two double ender units 892 – 692 – 893 and 894 – 694 – 895 were delivered with solid state traction equipment and electronic control systems and were known as the Experimental Tube Train, 892 being equipped by Westinghouse and 894 by GEC. These units were later reverted to standard systems to allow the trains to enter service in the late 1980s to provide additional capacity for the opening of the T4 Loop.

Unknown unrefurbished 1973 Stock entering Arnos Grove on a service to Heathrow (CC BY-SA 2.0 Malc McDonald)

3. The Gateway To London Since 1977:

On the 19th of July 1975 the first 1973 Stock train entered service on the Piccadilly Line on the same day as the extension of the Piccadilly Line from Hounslow West to Hatton Cross, with the last units rolling into service in 1979. This allowed the 13 year old 1959 tube stock to start transferring onto the Northern Line to replace oldest 1938 Stock units.

Until 1977 Hatton Cross would serve as the Hounslow Branch terminus of the Piccadilly Line before the extension to Heathrow Central was officially opened by Queen Elizabeth the second on the 16th of December of the same year. This was hailed monumental achievement for both London and Heathrow Airport being able to connect Heathrow to all corners of London by rail after many failed attempts which never made it past the concept stage, and the 1973 Stock was the glue to help stick this together. Unit 244 was the train to mark such a generational achievement, however this wouldn’t be the last of the Heathrow extension.

Earlier in 1976 plans were rejected to build a third London airport at either Maplin or Stanstead which led the British Aviation Authority to decide an expansion of Heathrow Airport would be critical to handle the increased demand of air travel by the mid 1980s. Their attention turned to a spot of land occupied by sewage disposal works at Perry Oaks near the southern perimeter of Heathrow, about 2km away from Hatton Cross station. They estimated the Perry Oaks site could be an operational Terminal 4 by 1990. However Terminal 4 arrived on the 1st of April 1986, along with the new terminal came a £23m extension of the Piccadilly Line which was opened on the same day by The Prince & Princess of Wales with Unit 864 leading the celebrations.

It was decided the best way to build the Piccadilly Line to Terminal 4 would to be a loop diverging off at Hatton Cross to Terminal 4 before passing around to Heathrow Central and eventually back to Hatton Cross. Provisions were put in place for another station which were never used for a previous Terminal 5 proposal.

Unit 864 leads into the newly built Heathrow Terminal 4 on the 1st of April 1986.

4. Celebrity Units In The Spotlight:

Not only has the 1973 Stock played a pivotal part in connecting London to Heathrow Airport since the late 70s, they have also played their fair share in front of the cameras for a few movies and tv shows such as:

Unit 865 was used in the filming of british drama programme London’s Burning Season 4 Episode 7 which depicted a drunk city yuppie who drops the contents of his briefcase onto the track at the fictional Blackwall Tube Station before jumping on the track to retrieve them then being struck by an oncoming train before fire rescue attend the station to save the man from under the train.

Unit 891 was used in the filming of Superman IV which depicted a subway driver passing out at the controls of a train before coming into the services final stop 4th Avenue before superman steps on the fourth and running rail to short the electricity? bringing it to a halt. (yeah this one was a bit weird)

Above: a screenshot from both London’s Burning and Superman IV with the 1973 Stock playing an acting role.

5. Lost Vehicles & Scrapped Units:

Here is a list of scrapped and lost vehicles over the years.

DM 888 was scrapped after a fire between Wood Green & Bounds Green in the early 1980s and was replaced with DM 114 in it’s 3 car set.

Unit 204 – 604 – 404 was scrapped after a collision at Northfields Depot in 1990. The damage reported was fairly minor however the unit became a spares donor.

UNDM 134 was scrapped at the same time as unit 204 – 604 – 404 which was reported to have never entered service. It became redundant after DM 114 replaced DM 888 with T514 modified and placed into the Track Recording Train with two 1960 Stock driving cars which can still be seen today.

Unit 166 – 566 – 366 was the unit which was involved in the 7/7 Terrorist Attacks on the Piccadilly Line between Kings Cross and Russel Square. Tragically, 52 people lost their lives on that day which shook the fabric of London and the western world.

6. The Connection To Rail Tags. A Personal Story:

This chapter aims to provide a more autobiographic approach and how these trains helped shaped Rail Tags today.

It’s safe to say these trains shaped my childhood, my now career and Rail Tags. It all started when I was a toddler in the early 2000s. I come from a family with a huge background in aviation. My father, uncle and grandfather once worked at British Airways Cargo at Terminal 4 and there is a general passion for aviation that runs through my family because of it. I’m pretty proud to say my uncle also helped deliver the British Airways Y2K project and was a project manager for Concorde following the tragic crash of Air France Flight 4590, helping shape the future service of Concorde which never came to vision.

This family interest in aviation led to me being taken into the depths of the London Underground by my grandfather from my local station to Heathrow Airport as a child to watch airplanes take off and land. In a funny turn of events, these trips ended with me becoming heavily interested in trains well before I had any interest in aviation. I have vivid memories of being at my local station, it was quiet and dull. Then all of a sudden you’d hear the magic rattling of shoe gear through the tunnels and turbulence pick up before seeing the dark tunnels light up from headlights coming around the corner before a colourful train would thunder into the platform and fill the atmosphere.

With their equally vibrant interiors, it was always so exciting to jump onboard a train and head to the airport (undoubtedly the highlight of the trips.) From that point onwards those trips to the airport became more about exploring the wider London Underground network and discovering other types of trains such as the C Stock and D78s which I also hold quite close from a nostalgia standpoint.

It was always fun standing at Acton Town and racing a D78 out towards Chiswick Park. Of course we would win that race as the District Line would stop at all stations towards Hammersmith whether as the Piccadilly Line would pace up towards Hammersmith.

This is where my personal love and interest in trains came from, those old memories down the line. If it wasn’t for those trips to Heathrow on the 1973 Stock, would I have even gained an interest in trains in the first place? would Rail Tags exist? would I be doing my current job? and what would my life ambitions have been hadn’t I been shown the world of the railways from my grandfather?

An unknown 1973 Stock thunders into Hounslow West station on a Heathrow bound service.
Just like how I remember.

7. Midlife Refurbishment & The Future:

From 1996 to July 2001, the 1973 Stock was given a complete refurbishment by Eurorail at Horbury works, Yorkshire. This saw the whole interior being modified with the removal of traversal bench style seating to boost capacity, interior scrolling matrix displays were fitted for passengers, the wooden flooring was removed and replaced with vinyl, straphangers were replaced with standard grab poles, new ceiling covers for the ventilation fans, improved lighting, installation of car end windows which had become standard on LU refurbs and perch seats by the double leaf doors to allow for luggage space for Heathrow travellers.

The aluminium unpainted exterior was replaced with a stunning LU corporate livery, as well as new emergency detrainment equipment being fitted to all driving motor car ends and paper destination boxes being replaced by LCD screens which were once again replaced with LED screens in 2015.

The final refurbished 1973 Stock entered service on the 10th of July 2001. Shortly before their 26th birthday.

The post refurbishment product of the 1973 Stock trains carried out by Eurorail at Horbury Works.CC BY-SA 4.0 – DiscoA340.

Original plans in 2007 wished to see the 1973 Stocks replaced in 2014 by the then called 2014 Stock with interest being shown by Stagecoach to use them on the Isle of Wight to replace the Class 483s but bidding on the 2014 Stock was suspended and this plan never came to light.

Later in June 2018 replacement plans became official with Siemens winning the bidding process to produce 94 nine car units for the Piccadilly then dubbed the New Tube for London and later being officially crowned as the 2024 Stock. However this new train order came with controversy as then Prime Minister Boris Johnson expressed a heavy desire to have the new trains be fully automated and driverless to save operating costs and prevent disruption during strikes which received a heavy fight back by the ASLEF and RMT unions under safety concerns for passengers.

Features of the new trains included a 10% increase in capacity per train, wider doorways, 20% decreased energy consumption due to a lighter aluminium construction, LED lighting and regenerative braking, air cooling and LED passenger information screens which is a feature commonly seen on new rolling stock.

The new 2024 Stock trains are 23ft longer then the current 1973 Stock being comprised of 9 cars instead of 6.

Initial deliveries were expected to start in 2023 with entry into service in 2024, however by March 2021 the delivery schedule had slipped behind by up to a year. Which has just seen the first 2024 Stock delivered to West Ruislip Depot with initial entry to service now expected in late 2025 with all 1973 Stocks withdrawn in by late 2027.

A London Underground 2024 Stock on test. Credit: Siemens.

What Do These New Trains Mean For The 1973 Stock?

Unfortunately, as the life cycle of our trains go. The 1973 Stock is expected to be withdrawn from service by 2027 and sent for scrap. However, optimistically this poses the potential for parts and seats to make their way into the hands of us enthusiasts and even more optimistically maybe a 1973 Stock Rail Tag down the line? but don’t get too excited.

TfL have a history for placing total destruction order on their previous fleets such as the much loved A & C Stock trains meaning this could be unlikely which worries me quite heavily. It would be pretty disappointing to see this happen, especially considering the growing trend of upcycling unwanted train carriages into something new and reusable. Personally? if I had the chance I would collect any and every last bit off a 1973 Stock that I could to hold on to my memories I have made thanks to these amazing trains. There are also rumours circulating they could be heading to Unimetals Newport via West Ruislip when the time for disposal occurs.

In some better news, recently made public documents show TfL are showing intention to keeping x2 three car sets for RAT duties beyond 2027 which would be a joy, considering the same has happened to the D78s.

This screenshot from a Piccadilly Line Upgrade meeting made public indicates plans to retain x2 1973 Stock trains for RAT duties.

What about preservation? we’re not sure what interest London Transport Museum or other preservation groups have towards the 1973 Stock however we believe a case for preservation should be made due to the undeniable role they have played in transporting millions of people to and from Heathrow Airport since the 1970s, often being one of the first tastes of London people have after arriving and being some of the most reliable trains the London Underground has had.

If anyone has any serious intentions to help save a 1973 Stock we’re ready to help in any way we can. Rail Tags has never been “just a business” but more of a passion project towards railway preservation and these trains hold strong roots to our DNA as previously mentioned in this blogpost. I hope there is some form of light in the tunnel for these hard grafting trains, and we hope to play any part necessary to see them get a well deserved retirement.

The First 2024 Stock is expected to enter service next year, and the last 1973 Stock is expected to leave our rails in 2027. They will have proudly served North London, The West End and Heathrow for over fifty years by the time they leave us.

1973 Stock Unit 111 leaves on the rear at Hatton Cross for a service to Heathrow Terminals 4, and 2&3

The post End Of The Line: An Ode To The 1973 Stock appeared first on Rail Tags.

BREL (Derby)/Leyland Class 142 “Pacer” 2-car DMU No.142 028 of BR Regional Railways.Manchester PTE in PTE-branded BR Provincial Sector livery at Manchester Piccadilly on a Marple service, 10/92.Scanned from one of my photographs taken on a Canon ES-1 Programme. The unit is a rare example of the short-lived Network NorthWest brand launched by Regional Railways in 1989. (CC BY 2.0 – Hugh Llewelyn)

Part One: Pre History and Production

In the early 1980s British Rail was operating a fleet of first generation DMUs across the network which were starting to feel outmoded by modern standards which lead to more competition from the automotive and aviation industries. Investigations took place in considering what the best options were with their fleet. One solution was the refurbishment of these trains which were deemed unfeasible due to high costs involved in any programme which contained the removal of asbestos. Another solution was to replace the aging units with a new generation of multiple units.

Two plans were brought forward, one being a lightweight and cheap to maintain and procure railbus. While a more robust and longer lasting DMU with better performance and more capable of longer distance operations which lead to the development of the Class 151 prototype and later the wider sprinter family.

Coming back to the railbus plan, BR recognised that the cheaper alternative would be best suited to rural branch lines that didn’t require a high performing unit design.

As per previous practical prototype testing this lead to the formation of the Class 140 which looked very identical cosmetically to the later Class 313, 314 and 315 designs. This prototype was deemed a success which advanced to the evolutionary design of the Class 141.

Prototype Pacer Unit Class 140 001 stabled at Landore MPD in 1982 CC BY-SA 2.0 – Phil Richards

Unfortunately for the Class 140 initial testing uncovered a series of issues with the stock type including the track circuits failing to identify the type of rolling stock due to the brake blocks being crafted with a composite which was later altered to iron brake blocks. Other issues includes the high levels of noise generated by the units which was the most notable on jointed rails. This was a general issue seen with the Pacers due to the relationship between the suspension, undercarriage and how the body reacted to the impact forces. Strengthening the class added significant costs to production which made the cost effectiveness of the unit redundant.

In 1984 this lead to the production of the Class 141 prototypes by British Leyland. Unfortunately again for the 141 several problems emerged such as ride quality and transmission performance. British Rail undertook several modifications to attempt to address some of these shortcomings, however a decision was made to not pull ahead with the Class 141 but to utilise what they had learnt with the previous prototypes and instead manufacture an evolved design among separate manufacturers. This lead to what we now know today as the Class 142 and Class 143 Pacers.

New Class 142 ‘Pacer’ DMU leaving Bodorgan for Llandudno, 1986 CC BY-SA 2.0 – Ben Brooksbank

The first Class 142 entered service in 1985 with the Regional Railways sector. The inspiration from the 141s can be seen with the 142 and 143 classes but with a few key differences such as a wider body to allow for higher capacity with 3+2 seating and a maximum passenger count of 121 passengers per two car unit.

The bodyshells and underframes were designed with interchangeability in mind to allow for cheaper maintenance and to allow for an easy swap bodies during a midlife refurb. To save costs British Leyland made use of bus equipment in several areas of the units unlike the Class 141 which used automotive standard wiring for the traction equipment which had been a factor in poor performance from the units.

Railway standard wiring was required for the production pacers which lead to higher reliability for the production units.

When first built the Class 142s featured the Leyland TL11 engine with a self changing gearbox which was also taken from the Leyland National bus. Also in contrast to the Class 141 the 142s featured a microprocessor for transmission to allow for previous issues on the 140 and 141 to be avoided.

Auto couplers and connectors allowed the 142s to be used in tandem with the wider Class 15x series of sprinter units which was commonly seen operating well into their life and up to retirement.

Northern Rail class 142 (142005) passing through Standish, Wigan. The rear two coaches comprising of a Class 150 unit. CC BY -SA 3.0 Dean SJ Ball

Part Two: Refurbishment and Later Years

In the early 1990s, the Class 142s saw a midlife refurbishment which saw the original Leyland TL11 and gearboxes displaced due to increasing faults and aging of the equipment. The 142s were retractioned with Cummins L10-engines and Voith T211 hydrokinetic transmission. All units received upgraded transmission by 1991 with all 142s being upgraded with the new Cummins engines by 1996.

This retractioning project was hailed widely as a success bringing the 142s into the twenty first century, despite a Northern Pacer derailing in June 2009 thanks to a Cardan Shaft failure.

Class 142s saw services with Northern Rail, Merseyrail, First Great Western and Arriva Trains Wales, later TfW.

Plans were long drawn out for the retirement of the Class 142 and 143 fleet due to their lack of popularity among train operators and passengers for their bouncy ride quality, ear piercing flange and brake squeals and generally not being up to standard with other units.

Things finally started moving in the late 2010s towards 2010 with all 94 Class 142s being withdrawn in 2020 due to not complying with the Persons of Restricted Mobility Technical Specification for Interoperability act.

The Northern Class 142s were superseded by the CAF Class 195 with the first scrapping of a unit taking place at CF Booth Rotherham in 2019 with 142005.

The final Class 142 pacers operated up to late 2020 with Northern and TfW with severeal units successfully making it into preservation thanks to wide campaigns by the industry to preserve the units for the role they helped play from the late 1980s into the late 2010s.

Northern Class 142 units 032 + 056 were withdrawn in early 2020 and placed into storage at Gascoigne Woods before being sent to Arlington Fleet Services in Eastleigh, South-West England for disposal. They would stay in storage for over a year before being scrapped.

Here are some photos of the two units in Eastleigh prior to disposal:

55573 (142032) Eastleigh Works 27th January 2022

55573 (142032) Eastleigh Works 3rd February 2022

142056 Eastleigh Works 8th June 2022

Cab of 55706 (142056) Eastleigh Works 14th June 2022

We were lucky enough to secure three panels, two from 032 and one from 056 for Rail Tags thanks to the requests of people asking for us to do a Pacer. To those people, thank you for the suggestion and I hope you enjoy these little vital pieces of our railway history.

The interior of a Class 142 Northern Pacer unit.

The Driving Side Cab of a Class 142 Unit.

With the story of the Class 142 Pacer wrapped up, we are excited to welcome such a divisive yet equally important multiple unit to the Rail Tags fleet. After 36 years of bouncy service we are proud to offer a home to 142 032 and 056.

It hopefully won’t be too long before we are back for Edition Seven, we are in the process of choosing which one to do next. For now, it’s time to dispatch these girls to their forever home.

Edition Six: The Class 142 Pacer is out now.

The post The Class 142 Pacer – Controversial But Pivotal appeared first on Rail Tags.

Leading the way for electric traction and an evolution from first generation prototypes, veteran AL6 86251 joins our fleet after more then twenty years in storage.

 

 86251 “The Birmingham Post” at Nuneaton on 16/06/02. (CC BY 2.0 – Steve Jones.)

 

Pre History & Production:

1. Electrification of the WCML

In the British Railways Modernisation Plan of 1955, proposals were developed to deliver an electrification scheme across the mainlines. The West Coast Mainline was the first to be selected.

The work would take place in stages from 1959 finishing in 1974. This modernisation plan would upgrade track and signalling to allow for higher line speed, electrification of the route with the installation of 25KV overhead line equipment and the rebuilding of several stations along the route.

The first phase was completed in September 1960 from Manchester to Crewe, before Crewe to Liverpool followed in January 1962. Three years later in 1965 electrification reached London Euston, the next year electric services commenced between London to Liverpool & Manchester.

Electrification of the routes to Birmingham and Manchester via Stoke On Trent was finished in 1967. With electrification reaching Glasgow via Weaver Junction in May 1974.

2. The Prototypes

With electrification, came the requirement for one hundred AC Electric locomotives for both passenger and freight services. The testing for AC traction equipment was completed by modifying gas turbine loco 18100. Testing took place on the section between Crewe and Manchester in 1959, with the locomotive being redesignated as E1000.

During this time British Railways had subcontracted various manufacturers to deliver a fleet of new AC Electric Locomotives for the newly electrified mainline with five being shortlisted. The companies selected were The Birmingham Railway Carriage & Wagon Company Ltd, Metropolitan Vickers, English Electric and the North British Locomotive Company.

The first locos to emerge was a fleet of twenty five AL1s (Class 81) built by The Birmingham Railway Carriage & Wagon Company Ltd with twenty type A mixed traffic locos, and five type B heavy freight locos.

Next up was the order for ten AL2s (Class 82) built by Metropolitan Vickers, which was the heaviest and most powerful design due to their underframe and body being built separately compared to the integral / semi integral construction of previous trains.

English Electric was third with fifteen AL3s (Class 83) with twelve being classified as type A, and three classified type B. These locos were built with a smaller body and a lightweight design. Despite them being the lowest powered out of the prototypes, they had no issue reaching the 100mph requirements for the WCML.

The final order was for AL4s (Class 84) which ten locomotives were produced by GEC in partnership with North British Locomotive Company. These locomotives were fitted with rectifiers which converted the AC current into DC.

This fleet of various prototypes were tested along the Manchester – Crewe leg from 1959 to 1960.

The first public service ran by the AC Electrics was ran by AL4 E3040 on September 12th 1960 as the 12:15 service from Manchester to Plymouth.

As the electrification programme continued from 1960 onwards, the fleet of locomotives were extensively tested for research which would help with the design and production of future models.

The AL3 was the first to be withdrawn and put into storage as the water cooled rectifiers proved to be heavily unreliable. The AL4s had suffered a notably poor ride quality as well as similar issues to the AL3 with their rectifiers which were exacerbated due to differences in their design which had them withdrawn in 1963 for modifications.

Out of the prototypes the AL2 and AL2 had come out on top due to their high availability and efficiency and was used as a testbed with the production of a fifth prototype designated as the AL5 or Class 85. Forty locomotives were built from 1961 to 1964. E3056 was the first loco built.

AL5 E3078 at London Euston in 1966 on 1D66 to Holyhead (CC BY-SA 2.0 Alan Murray Rust)

The impact on the new AC Electric services can’t be understated, with the success being reflected by the introduction of a new and grey livery and the birth of the Inter-City sector.

3. The Introduction of the 86s.

Through the knowledge and experience gained on the AL1-5 range a new standard for AC traction was born. An order for one hundred new locomotives was placed in 1963, with construction starting in 1965 to 1966. British Rail at Doncaster Works, along with English Electric at their Vulcan Foundry works would produce a standard production AC Locomotive which would be called the AL6.

The AL6 was very similar to the prototype locomotives taking design elements such as the general construction of the bodies and bogies and control systems. These locomotives would differ with their flat front ends, single pantographs and quieter cooling fans. The biggest noticeable different in construction was their traction motors now being axel hung instead of frame mounted like previous designs.

Down Inter City working passing Kenton hauled by class 86 electric locomotive No. 86 230 (formerly E3168 later named ‘The Duke Of Wellington) on 15/9/1979. CC BY 2.0 Barry Lewis

The new AL6s entered service in August 1965, however it wasn’t long until the Class had experienced a few troubles early into their career. They became infamous for their rough ride quality which caused track damage. The traction motors being axel hung also caused damage at speeds over 90mph due to the addition unsprung mass. Modifications occurred after E3173 was trialled with flexicoil springs which improved suspension and modifications were made to the first batch of locomotives.

in the very early eighties, British Railways started to use the TOPs classification system which saw the AL6s being reclassified as the Class 86s.

The locos were separated into two subclasses from 1971 onwards with 86001-86048 remaining in as built condition with top speed reduced to 80mph and restricted to slower passenger runs and freight services.  The second subclass would be the Class 86/2 (86204 – 86252) which was fitted with the improved suspension and retained 100mph top speed. A further batch of 86 040 to 86 048 was modified shortly after into the /2 subclass and became 86253 to 86261. Of the newly reclassified fleet was Class 86 251 which was given the nameplate “The Birmingham Post” named after the newspaper.

In 1970 three Class 86s were modified into a test bed for the development of the Class 87. Being numbered 86201 to 203 and being fitted with BP9 bogies however they were quickly renumbered to 86/1s. These locomotives were capable of reaching 110mph.

4. Further Modifications & Standardisation

By the late 1970s there was a requirement for more locomotives capable of reaching 100mph which paved the way for the Class 86/3s. This meant the modification of nineteen Class 86/0s by adding SAB resilient wheels which was a new design of wheel which allowed their top speed to be raised. 86011 to 86029 were renumbered to to 86311 to 86329. The SAB wheels were found to be insufficient at protecting track damage and a decision was made to standardise the rest of the fleet.

in 1984 British Rail decided to refit all of their remaining 86/0s and 86/3s with flexicoil suspension. All of the modified Class 86/0s and /3s were reclassified again as 86/4s to allow a standardised fleet capable of 100mph operations.

Originally numbered E3155, 86234 J.B. Priestly O.M. is seen here at Wolverhampton High Level on July 2nd 1987. Withdrawn from service in April 2005 and was exported to Bulgaria in April 2016. CC BY 2.0 – Peter Broster

In the mid to late 1980s, the Great Eastern Mainline was further electrified from Colchester through to Ipswich and Norwich, express services employed several Class 86s coupled with MK2s for these routes.

Also in the late 1980s, Class 86/2s and 86/4s were fitted with time-division multiplexing to allow them to operate push pull services with newly introduced Driving Van Trailers from 1988 on the WCML. DBSOs were transferred from the railways in Scotland to the Great Eastern Mainline to run with their 86s.

5. Sectorisation and into the 90s.

In the 1980s British Rail saw sectorisation which saw the fleet of Class 86s split up to multiple divisions. The Class 86/2s were allocated to the InterCity sector, whilst the majority of Class 86/4s were allocated to parcel and freight duties. As a result, these reallocated locomotives had their electric train heating isolated and were regeared for a lower max speed of 75mph. These Class 86/4s were reclassified again to Class 86/6s, they most recently saw service on Freightliner and was withdrawn in 2021 and exported.

Eight Class 86/2s somehow found their way on freight duties and were reclassified as Class 86/5s being renumbered to 86501 to 86508. This was before the InterCity sector decided at some point they may want them back at some stage, and was then turned back into 86/2s. In 1992 six Class 86/6s were returned to parcel use. 86405, 86411, 86414, 86415, 86428 and 86431 were renumbered back into their /4 variants.

86608 and another 86 double heading a freight train through Stafford railway station. CC BY-SA 2.0 train_photos

The 1990s was where sectorisation become privatisation and the wide fleet of Class 86s was split across multiple ROSCOs and routes. The Class 86/1s and /2s were sold to Eversholt Leasing Company and hired to InterCity West Coast and Cross Country. A fleet of seven Class 86/2s passed to Rail Express Systems, later EWS. Eight 86/4s and ten 86/6s moved to Freightliner with the remainder being sold to Porterbrook and leased back to Freightliner.

During the late 1990s, use of the Class 86s began to slowly trickle. With several write offs and units being placed into storage.

6. Privatisation, withdrawals and the end of 86 251.

In the late 1990s a number of locomotives began being put into storage as “Christmas Tree” locomotives for spare parts. In 1997 86239 L S Lowry was written off in a crash at Stafford.

Also in 1997, one of the most iconic and longest running TOCs took over the West Coast Mainline. Virgin Trains entered the industry inheriting the West Coast Fleet of Class 86s, 87s and 90s. One of Virgin’s franchise commitments was to replace the aging BR era locos and rolling stock with state of the art tilting express trains capable at running up to 140mph. In 1999 Virgin had signed a deal to lease forty-four eight and nine car express multiple units designated as the Class 390, to be built by Alstom. This new lease deal had confirmed the time of West Coast Class 86s was starting to come to an end.

In 2002, several Class 86/2s were withdrawn and placed into storage at Long Marston being displaced by new Class 220, 221 and Class 390 units. Other Class 86s would operate way past 2002 including the Anglia Class 86s, and Freightliner Class 86s.

Amongst those sent for storage was 86 251 “The Birmingham Post” which we’ll now follow from this point.

BR/EE Class 86/2 4,040 hp Bo-Bo No.86 212 (ex-3151) (ex-Preston Guild) in debranded Virgin livery at Long Marston 6/09.
CC BY-SA 2.0 – Hugh Llewelyn

Class 86 251 was one of several Class 86s, along with 87s moved to Long Marston for cold storage in 2002. It is during this time she lost her nameplate. It is currently unknown what has happened to it.

86 251 was purchased by Europhoenix for possible reactivation with operators in Bulgaria and Hungary however this locomotive was not selected and was further sold to Freightliner as a spares donor for their fleet of Class 86/6s and was moved to Crewe Basford Hall Yard. 251 was sold along with 86229 and 86247.

86 251 spent a considerable amount of time at Basford Hall Yard being left virtually untouched in terms of components before being hauled by road to CF Booth in Rotherham for disposal in late 2022, over twenty years after last seeing service. 86251 was stripped in December 2022 to support Europhoneix’s Class 86s in service overseas before being finally scrapped in January 2023.

In March 2023 after the release of the Class 442 tags. We received delivery of a large section of bodyside from 86 251 which was originally scheduled to be our Edition Three released before we realised that more time was needed spent on the Class 86 before release.

A section of the panel we received from Booths off 86251.

Despite 86251 being relatively unloved throughout the last 20 years, she holds significance being the first Electric Loco and the thickest tag we have produced being nearly 1cm thick. We are sure you are going to love these tags as much as we have seeing them come together.

The first batch of Class 86 tags are out now, with the full release out by mid August due to a planned holiday at the beginning of the month.

Bringing the Class 86 home: pictured is a single coloured red, and multicolour red & white vinyl Class 86 tag.

It has taken us a little while, but we are proud to introduce Class 86 251 “The Birmingham Post” to the Rail Tags fleet.

 

We will be back soon with Rail Tags Edition Six.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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