British Rail Class 172

Last updated

British Rail Class 172
Turbostar
WMT Class 172 Pair at Birmingham Moor Street.jpg
West Midlands Railway Class 172/3s at Birmingham Moor Street
WMR Class 172 Interior.jpg
West Midlands Railway Class 172 saloon
In service10 July 2010 –present
Manufacturer Bombardier Transportation
Built at Derby Litchurch Lane Works
Family name Turbostar
Replaced
Constructed2010–2011
Number built39
Successor
Formation
  • 2 cars per 172/0, /1, /2 unit: [1]
    DMOS-DMOSLW
  • 3 cars per 172/3 unit: [1]
    DMOS-MOS-DMOSLW
Fleet numbers
  • 172/0: 172001–172008
  • 172/1: 172101–172104
  • 172/2: 172211–172222
  • 172/3: 172331–172345
Capacity
  • 172/0: 124 seats
  • 172/1: 140 seats + 5 tip-up
  • 172/2: 120 seats + 19 tip-up
  • 172/3: 192 seats + 27 tip-up [2]
Owners
Operators West Midlands Railway
Depots Tyseley [4]
Lines served
Specifications
Car body construction Welded aluminium with steel ends [5]
Car length
  • DM. vehs.: 23.62 m (77 ft 6 in) [1]
  • MOS vehs.: 23.00 m (75 ft 6 in) [1]
Width2.69 m (8 ft 10 in) [1]
Height3.77 m (12 ft 4 in) [1]
DoorsDouble-leaf sliding plug (2 per side per car)
Maximum speed
  • 172/0 units: 75 mph (121 km/h) [5]
  • Others: 100 mph (160 km/h) [6] [1]
Weight(see § Vehicle weights)
Axle load Route Availability 1 [1]
Prime mover(s) 2 or 3 × MTU 6H 1800 R83
(one per car) [5] [6] [1]
Engine type Inline-6 four-stroke turbo-diesel [7]
Displacement 12.8 L (782 cu in) per engine [7]
Power output360 kW (480 hp) per engine [7]
Transmission ZF Ecomat HP 902 R
(6-speed mechanical) [5] [6]
UIC classification
  • 2-car: 2′B′+B′2′
  • 3-car: 2′B′+2′B′+B′2′
Bogies Bombardier B5006 [5] [6]
Braking system(s) Electro-pneumatic (disc)
(Westinghouse 3-step) [1]
Safety system(s)
Coupling system BSI [1]
Multiple working Within class, and with Classes 14x, 15x, and 170 [5] [6]
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge

The British Rail Class 172 is a British diesel multiple unit (DMU) passenger train from the Turbostar family, built by Bombardier Transportation's Derby Litchurch Lane Works for use on inner-suburban passenger services. The class is currently operated by West Midlands Railway.

Contents

The Class 172 is part of the Turbostar range, similar to the Class 168, Class 170 and Class 171.

Technical details and variants

There are four sub-classes, all with West Midlands Railway for use on the Snow Hill Lines and Leamington Spa - Nuneaton:

The 172/0s and 172/1s resemble the existing Turbostar trains in not having end gangways. These trains have a maximum speed of 100 mph (160 km/h).

The Class 172/2s and 172/3s used by West Midlands Trains resemble the Class 375, Class 377, Class 379 and Class 387 Electrostars by having end gangways to allow access between units. [8] These also resemble the Class 378 by having more of a 'Capitalstar' style front design rather than the typical 'Electrostar' front design. These trains have a maximum speed of 100 mph (160 km/h). [9]

The 172/0 were built without any onboard toilets, in common with other London Overground stock. Toilets were retrofitted when transferred to WMT.

The Class 172s feature BSI (Bergische Stahl Industrie - Autocoupler) couplers which allow them to work in multiple with Class 168, Class 170 units and most other units with the same coupler.

Differences from other Turbostars

The Class 172 trains are lighter than other Turbostars, due to use of the Bombardier FLEXX-ECO bogies - a development of the B5000 bogies used on the Class 220 Voyager DEMU trains, rather than the previous 'Series 3' bogies. [10] Another difference is that they have half-height airdams as opposed to the more standard full height airdams. They also differ from earlier Turbostars in having mechanical transmission rather than hydraulic - gear changes can be distinctly heard as the trains accelerate and decelerate.

Differences from Class 150

Class 172s have fewer seats than the Class 150s they replaced, [9] but greater overall capacity due to the increased room for standing passengers as well as wider aisles intended to speed boarding and alighting and reduce waiting time in stations. The trains are air-conditioned and have no opening windows, unlike the Class 150s.

The Class 172 is designed to a 23 m (75 ft 6 in) body length, as opposed to the 20 m (65 ft 7 in) length used on previous Class 150 Sprinter DMUs, to increase capacity.

Operators

West Midlands Railway

172006 at Leamington Spa in 2020 Leamington Spa - WMT 172006 Nuneaton service.JPG
172006 at Leamington Spa in 2020

West Midlands Trains operate a total of 39 two-car and three-car units, 27 of which had been ordered by predecessor London Midland; it had originally planned for them to enter service by the end of 2010 on services to and from Birmingham Snow Hill, replacing Class 150s. [11] The original West Midlands Trains sets have revised front ends with end gangways which make the trains look like the Electrostar family of units.

From 1 September 2011, the units started operating on the Snow Hill Lines with some weekend work from Birmingham - Hereford. When first used in service, the units suffered a fault with engine vibration in the passenger cabin, which has since been rectified.

The units were originally meant to replace all of the Class 150s, however three were retained. [12] Between late 2018 and early 2019 the London Overground 172/0s moved to West Midlands Railway, operated by West Midlands Trains, to replace the remaining Class 150s for transfer to Arriva Rail North and Class 153s operating on the Coventry–Leamington line and the Coventry to Nuneaton line as well as providing extra capacity on the Snow Hill Lines.

Former operators

London Overground

London Overground Class 172/0 No. 172005 at Walthamstow Queen's Road Unit 172005 at Walthamstow Queen's Road.JPG
London Overground Class 172/0 No. 172005 at Walthamstow Queen's Road
The interior of a London Overground Class 172/0 Gospel Oak railway station MMB 01 172005.jpg
The interior of a London Overground Class 172/0

London Overground operated eight two-car Class 172s on the Gospel Oak to Barking line, replacing the old Class 150 stock. The units were originally meant to be in service from February 2010, [13] but due to production issues and then what were thought to be exhaust problems (which proved to be a false alarm), [14] the trains entered service only in July 2010, and at reduced capacity due to staff training problems. By December 2010, the whole fleet was in service, allowing the Class 150s to be cascaded to First Great Western and other operators. The units were leased by Angel Trains. [15]

The success of London Overground's operation of the Gospel Oak to Barking Line meant that the two-car Class 172s eventually proved insufficient in terms of capacity. Initially, there were plans to replace them with 3- or 4-car DMUs. [16] Later, the government announced plans to electrify the line, with the intention that TfL would procure a new fleet of 4-car EMUs (Class 710) for use on both this route and the inner-suburban routes from Liverpool Street, taken over by London Overground from 2015. [17]

Electrification was completed in February 2018 (later than the original target of June 2017) and as of June 2018 the Class 172 units were set to be replaced by Class 710 EMUs from November 2018, although this did not happen as planned. [18] They were temporarily replaced by Class 378s redeployed from other parts of the London Overground network and moved to West Midlands Trains in March 2019. By May 2019, Class 710s started to be introduced into service.

Chiltern Railways

A pair of Chiltern Railways Class 172/1 nos. 172104 and 172102 at London Marylebone 172104 and 172102 London Marylebone.jpg
A pair of Chiltern Railways Class 172/1 nos. 172104 and 172102 at London Marylebone
The interior of a Chiltern Railways Class 172/1 172104 Internal.jpg
The interior of a Chiltern Railways Class 172/1

Chiltern Railways obtained four two-car trains in the same order as that of London Overground to supplement the Class 168 on its routes from London Marylebone, originally due to be delivered from late 2010. [19] They did not have the tripcock safety system installed—unlike the rest of the Chiltern Railways fleet—as the design of the bogie being used (based on the B5005 found on Class 220 Voyager and Class 222 Meridian trains) meant there was no place for the brackets to be mounted. Thus, they were not able to operate on the Aylesbury via Amersham line whilst the current signalling system was in place unless running in multiple with other units on both the front and rear ends, which were fitted with a tripcock.

In 2021, all of Chiltern Railways Class 172s were leased to West Midlands Trains for use with their existing Class 172 fleet pending the delivery of Class 196 Civity trains. [20] It was later announced that the Class 172/1 fleet will not be returning to Chiltern once the Class 196s entered service with WMT. [21]

Introduction into service

In late 2007 and early 2008, orders were placed with Bombardier by two rolling-stock leasing companies to purchase a number of Class 172 Turbostar trains. In December 2007, Porterbrook ordered 15 three-car and 12 two-car trains for London Midland for delivery in 2010. In January 2008, Angel Trains, on behalf of London Overground and Chiltern Railways, ordered 12 two-car trains for delivery, which would have been delivered during 2009. [22] But difficulties over deliveries by Bombardier's suppliers led to delays in filling the Class 377/378 Electrostar orders, with subsequent knock-on delays for building the Class 172 sets. Work began at the end of 2009 after the freeing-up of one of Bombardier's production lines following completion of the Class 377 order for First Capital Connect. [23]

Eight 172/0 units were built for London Overground. Testing of the first batch of new units, the 172/0 sets for London Overground, commenced in March 2010 on the Old Dalby Test Track. [24] All units were subsequently delivered to Willesden Traction Maintenance Depot (TMD).

All eight 172/0 units entered service for London Overground. These were originally restricted to a top speed of 40 miles per hour (64 km/h) as opposed to their intended design speed of 100 mph (160 km/h), [25] as it was thought there was a fault with the exhaust system requiring modifications to the original design and the already procured units. It was expected that units for London Midland and Chiltern would be delayed by a further 6–12 months. [26] [ full citation needed ] However, it transpired that the exhaust emission testing had been flawed and that there were no major problems with the units or the original design. Production therefore continued as planned with a slight delay. [14]

The four Chiltern Railways units entered service during summer 2011 and left for West Midlands Railway in spring 2021.

Further potential orders

In 2008, First Great Western applied to the Department for Transport to re-equip its Cardiff to Portsmouth via Bristol services with 11 new four-car DMUs which would potentially allow the existing Class 158 Express Sprinter trains to be transferred to other services. According to the West of England Partnership, these were likely to be "similar to Class 170s", suggesting that they might be Class 172 Turbostars. [27]

The Government announced in December 2008 that Bombardier, with its Turbostar design, was one of the pre-qualified bidders for the first 200 DMU vehicles of its planned 1300 new carriages. [28] These new trains were intended for services operated by First Great Western, First TransPennine Express and Northern Rail. However, with the announcement of the electrification schemes in the North West and on the Great Western Main Line, the DMU order was cancelled, with the needs of the train operating companies planned to be met by transfers of existing stock.

Arriva Rail North and TransPennine Express (First Group) did subsequently obtain new DMU and bi-mode rolling stock, although this was produced by CAF and Hitachi and also in higher quantities - 58 CAF DMUs were allocated to Arriva Rail North alone, whereas the 61 cancelled 172s (42x 3-car and 19x 4-car) would have been split up into allocations for three operators.

Bombardier offered the Class 172 Turbostar to NI Railways for its "New Trains Two" specification, eventually losing out to CAF and a variation of NIR's existing Class 3000. [29]

Fleet details

ClassOperatorQty.Year builtCars per unitUnit nos. [30]
172/0 West Midlands Railway 820102172001–172008
172/142011172101–172104
172/212172211–172222
172/3153172331–172345

Vehicle weights

ClassDMOS vehiclesMOS vehiclesDMOSLW vehicles
172/0 [6] 41.85 t (41.19 long tons; 46.13 short tons)—42.40 t (41.73 long tons; 46.74 short tons)
172/1 [6]
172/2 [1] 41.87 t (41.21 long tons; 46.15 short tons)—42.49 t (41.82 long tons; 46.84 short tons)
172/3 [1] 38.75 t (38.14 long tons; 42.71 short tons)

Illustrations

West Midlands Trains Class 172/0 and Class 172/1 West Midlands Trains Class 172-0.png
West Midlands Trains Class 172/0 and Class 172/1
West Midlands Trains Class 172/3 West Midlands Trains Class 172-3.png
West Midlands Trains Class 172/3

Named unit

One unit has received a name:

172342: Roger Sumner - in honour of a driver at Worcester who retired in late 2022 after almost 60 years of service. He was the last employee at West Midlands Trains to have previously worked on steam locomotives for British Rail. [31] [32]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chiltern Railways</span> British train operating company owned by Arriva UK Trains

Chiltern Railways is a British train operating company that has operated the Chiltern Railways franchise since July 1996. Since 2009, it has been a subsidiary of Arriva UK Trains.

Porterbrook is a British rolling stock company (ROSCO), created as part of the privatisation of British Rail. Together with Angel Trains and Eversholt Rail Group, it is one of the three original ROSCOs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 357</span> Class of electric multiple unit built by Adtranz

The British Rail Class 357Electrostar is a class of alternating current (AC) electric multiple unit (EMU) passenger train built by Adtranz at its Derby Litchurch Lane Works, England, in two batches from 1999 to 2002 at a cost of approximately £292 million.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 170</span> British diesel multiple-unit train by Bombardier

The British Rail Class 170 Turbostar is a British diesel-hydraulic multiple unit passenger train designed and built by Adtranz, and later by Bombardier Transportation, at Derby Litchurch Lane Works.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 153</span> British single-carriage diesel railcars

The British Rail Class 153 Super Sprinter are single-coach diesel-hydraulic railcars which were converted from two-coach Class 155 diesel multiple units in the early 1990s. The class was intended for service on rural branch lines, either where passenger numbers do not justify longer trains or to boost the capacity on services with high passenger volume.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombardier Turbostar</span> Family of British diesel multiple unit passenger trains

The Bombardier Turbostar is a family of diesel multiple unit (DMU) passenger trains that was built by ADtranz and later Bombardier Transportation at Derby Litchurch Lane Works in the United Kingdom between 1997 and 2011. The Turbostar was the first new train type to be introduced after the privatisation of British Rail. The first units were ordered by Chiltern Railways in 1996 and were designated Class 168. Since then the family has grown with the addition of the Class 170, Class 171, and the Class 172.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 150</span> British Rail diesel multiple unit

The British Rail Class 150 Sprinter is a class of diesel-hydraulic multiple unit passenger trains, developed and built by British Rail Engineering Limited at York Carriage Works between 1984 and 1987 for use on regional services across Great Britain. The type is a second-generation design, built to more modern standards and based on BR's Mark 3 body design for longer-distance services. It was developed alongside the lower-cost Pacers, which were built using bus parts, for use on short-distance services. Two prototype units were built, followed by 135 production units in two batches. Subsequently, further members of the Sprinter family were developed and introduced to service, including the Class 155, Class 156, Class 158 and Class 159.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 171</span> British diesel multiple unit train

The British Rail Class 171 Turbostar is a type of diesel multiple unit (DMU) passenger train built by Bombardier Transportation at Derby Litchurch Lane Works in England. It is identical to the Class 170, except for the replacement of the BSI coupler with a Dellner coupler. This provision was made to allow emergency joining with Class 377 DC third-rail electric units, which Southern runs extensively on most lines. The units work on the southern regions of the British railway system, operating services from London Bridge to Uckfield and from Eastbourne to Ashford International, these routes being unelectrified between Hurst Green Junction and Uckfield and between Ore and Ashford International, respectively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 168</span> British diesel multiple-unit passenger train

The Class 168 Clubman is a British diesel-hydraulic multiple unit passenger train used on Chiltern Line services between London Marylebone and the West Midlands. The trains were built by Adtranz at the Derby Litchurch Lane Works in several batches from 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombardier Electrostar</span> Family of British electric passenger trains

The Bombardier Electrostar is a family of electric multiple-unit (EMU) passenger trains manufactured by Bombardier Transportation at their Derby Litchurch Lane Works in England between 1999 and 2017. It has become the most common new EMU type in the United Kingdom since the privatisation of British Rail with a number of variants. Electrostar trains are most common on high-volume suburban commuter routes around London; and on mainline services from London south to Surrey and the south coast, east to Essex, and north to Cambridge and Stansted Airport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Derby Litchurch Lane Works</span> Railway rolling stock factory in Derby, England

Derby Litchurch Lane Works, formerly Derby Carriage and Wagon Works, is a railway rolling stock factory in Derby, England. It is presently owned by the multinational transportation manufacturer Alstom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 378</span> Fleet of electric multiple units in England

The British Rail Class 378 Capitalstar is an electric multiple unit passenger train specifically designed for the London Overground network. It is part of Bombardier Transportation's Electrostar family. A total of 57 five-car trains have been built, most of which were originally built as three- or four-car units.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Slam-door train</span>

A slam-door train or slammer is a set of diesel multiple units (DMUs) or electric multiple units (EMUs) that were designed before the introduction of automatic doors on railway carriages in the United Kingdom and other countries, which feature manually operated doors. The name came about because of the characteristic noise made by the passengers slamming the doors closed when the train was about to depart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 379</span> Class of British electric multiple unit

The British Rail Class 379 Electrostar is an electric multiple unit (EMU) passenger train which was designed and built by Bombardier Transportation. The trains are part of the company's extensive Electrostar family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alstom Aventra</span> Family of electric passenger trains

The Alstom Aventra is a family of electric multiple unit (EMU) passenger trains produced at Derby Litchurch Lane Works in the United Kingdom, originally by Bombardier Transportation and later by Alstom, as a successor to the Bombardier Electrostar. A large proportion of its design is based on the Electrostar, adding new technologies and achieving compliance with more stringent requirements and operator demands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British railcars and diesel multiple units</span> Network Rail

Diesel multiple units and railcars are trains, usually with passenger accommodation, that do not require a locomotive. Railcars can be single cars, while in multiple units cars are marshalled together with a driving position either end. As of December 2010, 23 percent of the rail passenger cars used on Network Rail are part of a diesel multiple unit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 710</span> Electric multiple unit built for London Overground by Bombardier Transportation

The British Rail Class 710 Aventra is a class of electric multiple unit passenger trains built by Bombardier Transportation for use on the London Overground network. The trains are part of Bombardier's Aventra family. The contract to provide 45 four-car trains was awarded in July 2015 and the trains were originally due to enter service in May 2018, although introduction was delayed until May 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 720</span> British EMU train from the Bombardier Aventra family

The British Rail Class 720 Aventra is a class of electric multiple unit (EMU) passenger train designed and produced by the rolling stock manufacturer Bombardier Transportation and its acquirer Alstom. The Class 720 is operated by both Greater Anglia and c2c.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Midlands Trains</span> Train operator based in West Midlands

West Midlands Trains (WMT) is a British train operating company. It operates passenger trains on the West Midlands franchise between London and the English Midlands under two trading names: within the West Midlands region as West Midlands Railway (WMR) and outside the region as London Northwestern Railway (LNR).

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Class 172 Diesel Multiple Unit (PDF) (1A ed.). Derby: Porterbrook Leasing Company. January 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 December 2015. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  2. ↑ Pritchard, Robert; Hall, Peter (2018). British Railways Locomotives & Coaching Stock 2018. Sheffield: Platform 5 Publishing. p. 248. ISBN   978-1-909431-44-7.
  3. ↑ "Our Fleet - Class 172". London: Angel Trains. Archived from the original on 29 June 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  4. ↑ "New maintenance contract for 170s". News. Today's Railways UK . No. 268. June 2024. p. 10.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Regional Passenger Trains - Class 172/0 - London Overground". London: Angel Trains. Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Regional Passenger Trains - Class 172/1 - Chiltern Railways". London: Angel Trains. Archived from the original on 13 June 2020. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  7. 1 2 3 Powerpacks with 6H 1800 for Railcar Applications (PDF) (01/20 ed.). MTU Friedrichshafen GmbH. 20 April 2020. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 April 2021. Retrieved 30 November 2022.
  8. ↑ "London Midlands Class 172/3 DMU, 172331, 5Z72 Derby Litchurch Lane - Old Dalby". Published Railways Illustrated Issue March 2011.[ permanent dead link ]
  9. 1 2 "therailwaycentre.com". Archived from the original on 17 January 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  10. ↑ Gospel Oak to Barking improvement details.
  11. ↑ "Bombardier to supply 69 Turbostar cars to Porterbrook Leasing in 129 million euro contract for the UK" (Press release). Porterbrook. 13 December 2007. Archived from the original on 18 May 2011. Retrieved 5 July 2008.
  12. ↑ "London Midland launches £93m train fleet for Snow Hill line" (Press release). London Midland. 2 September 2011. Archived from the original on 24 September 2011.
  13. ↑ "New Plans". The Barking - Gospel Oak Line User Group. Archived from the original on 21 August 2007.
  14. 1 2 Ford, Roger (December 2010). "Bombardier recovering from multiple-unit hiccups". Modern Railways . pp. 32–33.
  15. ↑ "The Underground Roundel moves Overground". Today's Railways UK . No. 70. September 2007. pp. 24–30.
  16. ↑ "Diesel Multiple Units for London Overground". Government Online. 21 May 2012. Retrieved 25 June 2021.
  17. ↑ Ford, Roger (January 2014). "CP5 rolling stock market uncertain". Modern Railways. Vol. 71, no. 784. pp. 24–26.
  18. ↑ "New Overground Trains... Now With Wifi". Londonist. 20 June 2018.
  19. ↑ "Angel Trains orders 'green trains' for the UK rail market" (Press release). Angel Trains. 31 January 2008.[ permanent dead link ]
  20. ↑ "CHILTERN ‘172s’ MOVE TO WEST MIDLANDS". www.modernrailways.com. 20 May 2021. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
  21. ↑ @chilternrailway (23 September 2021). "The 172 style trains will not be coming back to us, the silver sets will be back in action as soon as repairs have been completed." (Tweet). Archived from the original on 24 September 2021. Retrieved 4 December 2021– via Twitter.
  22. ↑ "Class 172s ordered". Today's Railways UK. No. 74. Sheffield. January 2008. pp. 56–58.
  23. ↑ 377/5 delays and its impact - London's Transport
  24. ↑ Photos of the class 172s under test Archived 13 September 2009 at the Wayback Machine .
  25. ↑ Miles, Tony (August 2010). "Class 172 ready for introduction". Modern Railways. No. 743. London. p. 75.
  26. ↑ Modern Railways . No. 741. July 2010.{{cite magazine}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  27. ↑ Cardiff to Portsmouth New Trains Bid - West of England Partnership Archived 9 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  28. ↑ "Invitation to tender issued for 200 new diesel train carriages" (Press release). Department for Transport. 22 December 2008.[ dead link ]
  29. ↑ Flanagan, Colm (2010). "Optimism in Northern Ireland". Modern Railways. Vol. 67, no. 737. pp. 60–64.
  30. ↑ Clinnick, Richard (30 December 2009). "Britain's future-facing fleets". Rail Magazine . No. 643. pp. 66–73.
  31. ↑ Strevens, Sheena (December 2022). "Our last steam man" (PDF). ASLEF Journal. London: Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen. p. 17.
  32. ↑ "Depot Talk". Rail Express. No. 320. Horncastle: Mortons Media Group. January 2023. p. 29.

Commons-logo.svg Media related to British Rail Class 172 at Wikimedia Commons