British Rail Class 150
The British Rail Class 150 "Sprinter" diesel multiple units (DMUs) were built by BREL from 1984-87. A total of 137 units were built in three main subclasses, replacing many of the earlier First-generation "Heritage" DMUs.
Description
At the beginning of the 1980s, British Rail (BR) had a large fleet of ageing "Heritage" DMUs built to many different designs in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Some of the more reliable types were retained and refurbished. However, BR decided to replaced many of the non-standard or unreliable types with new 2nd generation units, built to modern standards. Two different types were persued; low-cost "Pacers" built using bus parts and used on short-distance services; and "Sprinters" built for longer-distance services.
In 1984, BREL built two prototype 3-car Class 150/0 units, numbered 150001 and 150002. At the same time Metro-Cammell built two prototype Class 151 units at its Washwood Heath plant. The two types of unit were exhaustively tested, with the most successful leading to further orders for production units. In the event, the two Class 150 units proved to be the most reliable, and as a result, an order for 50 two-car units was placed with BREL.
This second batch of fifty units were classified as Class 150/1 and numbered in the range 150101-150. Like the prototype units they did not have front-end gangway connections. These units were mainly concentrated around Birmingham and Manchester, and in later years were restricted mainly to commuter services.
The final batch of 85 two-car units were built with front-end gangway connections, which allowed passengers to move between two units that were working in multiple. These units were classified as Class 150/2 and numbered in the range 150201-285. They had different interiors to the earlier units and were used on longer-distance services.
Some of the Class 150/2 units were later disbanded, and the vehicles used to make some of the Birmingham and Manchester-based Class 150/1 units into 3-car sets. The units in Manchester were later returned to their original configuration, but the Birmingham-based units were renumbered into the 1500xx range by subtracting 100 from the previous number (e.g. 150103 became 150003).
Current Operations
As one of the most widely used type of DMU, following privatisation, the Class 150 fleet was divided among many different franchises. These are described below.
Anglia Railways / 'One' Railway
Anglia Railways initially inherited a small fleet of nine Class 150/2 units, later supplemented with a tenth. The units were based at Norwich Crown Point depot, and put to use on rural services in Suffolk and Norfolk. Lines using the units included the Bittern Line, the East Suffolk Line, the Sudbury Branch Line and the Wherry Lines, as well as services from Ipswich to Cambridge and Peterborough.
Anglia Railways named most of its fleet after famous local figures.
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All units in the Anglia fleet received the company's turquoise and white livery, the last unit (no. 150217) being repainted in March 2004.
On 1 April 2004, Anglia Railways became part of the new 'One' Railway franchise, which was operated by the National Express Group. Some of the Class 150 units have now transferred to other operators, having been replaced by Class 156 units cascaded from Central Trains.
Arriva Trains Wales
Arriva Trains Wales (formerly Wales and Borders) use their fleet of Class 150 units on branch line services as well as commuter services around Cardiff. Their fleet is a mixture of former Wales and Borders units (with postcard vinyls) and some former ScotRail units, which are being repainted in Arriva turquoise and cream livery.
Central Trains
Central Trains operates the local services around the West Midlands, as well as longer distance Central Trains Citylink cross-country services. The operator has a large number of examples of class 150, including the two prototype units nos. 150001 and 150002, more than half of the 150/1 sub-class and a number of examples of 150/2, along with other sprinter designs and electric class 323 units.
The Central Trains class 150 units are based at Tyseley depot in south-east Birmingham and are concentrated on local stopping and semi-fast services on the Snow Hill lines - Great Malvern, Worcester, Kidderminster and Stourbridge, along the recently reopened Jewellery Line to Birmingham Snow Hill, then on to Shirley and Stratford-upon-Avon, or Solihull and Dorridge. In the rush hour they can also be seen working services to Hereford and Leamington Spa.
Class 150s are also employed on Birmingham New Street to Walsall, Hednesford and Stafford services (the Cannock Chase Line) and are occasionally used on Shrewsbury line services from Wolverhampton and also Birmingham to Nottingham services, although this is rare as these workings are timed for 90mph units (e.g. Class 158/Class 170) whereas the class 150s can only achieve 75mph.
Northern
The new Northern Rail franchise started operations on 12 December 2004, and incorporates the previous operators Arriva Trains Northern (ATN) and First North Western (FNW). Its fleet is a combination of Class 150/1 units, inherited from FNW, and Class 150/2 units inherited from FNW and ATN. The ATN units had previously been operated by Valley Lines but were exchanged for a similar number of Class 142 units. Another unit (no. 150228) was transferred to ATN from ScotRail.
The North Western units have all been refurbished by Hunslet-Barclay in Kilmarnock, and carry the now-obsolete North Western Trains blue livery with gold stars. However, the North Eastern units have not been refurbished and still carry Regional Railways livery.
As part of a general fleet shuffle in Northern, all Class 150/2 units are now allocated to Newton Heath depot in Manchester, in exchange for all the former First North Western Class 158 units.
ScotRail / First ScotRail
In May 2005 the Scotrail units were transfered to Arriva Trains Wales
Silverlink
Silverlink has a small fleet of seven Class 150/1 units, which are employed on Gospel Oak-Barking and Bletchley-Bedford services. The units were cascaded from Central Trains following delivery of new Turbostar units. They replaced the ageing fleet of Class 117 and Class 121 "First Generation" units.
All units carry Silverlink's purple and lime green livery. Most units have been named, three of which were transferred from the previously incumbent Class 121 units. The three units in question (marked with an asterisk) have the same last two digits as the "Bubblecars".
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Leslie Crabbe was a long-standing railway employee, who worked on the Bedford-Bletchley "Marston Vale" route. The "Bletchley Seven" name refers to the fleet of seven Class 150/1 units in the Silverlink fleet.
Wessex Trains
Wessex Trains inherited a large fleet of 25 Class 150/2 units for regional services in South-West England. The units saw use on a wide variety of local services, including Bristol-Southampton, Bristol-Weymouth, Cheltenham-Swindon, Exeter-Barnstaple, Exeter-Exmouth, Exeter-Paignton, Liskeard-Looe, Par-Newquay, Penzance-St Ives, Plymouth-Gunnislake and Truro-Falmouth. They also work some longer distance services over the Great Western Main Line and South Wales Main Line between Cardiff, Bristol, Exeter, Plymouth and Penzance.
In recent years, many of the units in the Wessex Trains fleet have been named after local attractions. These are listed below.
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All units have been refurbished and repainted in a new maroon-based regional advertising livery, each featuring a different West Country postcard.
Fleet Details
| Class | Year Built | Cars per Unit | No. Units | Number Range | Operator | Current Units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Class 150/0 | 1984 | 3 | 2 | 150001-002 | Central Trains | 150001/002 |
| Class 150/1 | 1985-1986 | 2 3 |
50 18* |
150101-150 150003-022 |
Central Trains | 150003-019/022 150101/102/107/109/121/124-126/132 |
| Northern | 150133-150 | |||||
| Silverlink | 150120/123/127-131 | |||||
| Class 150/2 | 1986-1987 | 2 | 85 | 150201-285 | Arriva Trains Wales
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150208/245/250/252/256/258/259/260/262/264/267/278-285
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| Central Trains | 150213/217/229/231/235/237/255/257 | |||||
| First ScotRail | none since May 2005 | |||||
Northern
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150201/203/205/207/211/215/218/222-225/228/268-277/284
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| One Railway | None since June 2005 | |||||
| Wessex Trains | 150219/221/230/232-234/236/238-244/246-249/251/253/254/261/263/265/266 |
