History
AEC (Associated Equipment Company Limited) of Southall, London were a well known bus chassis, engine and body builders responsible for many types of London's famous red buses. They also provided engines for many diesel railcars built for, or by, the Great Western Railway and later British Railways. In the early 1950s, with dieselisation being undertaken on the GNR(I) and the UTA systems, their products were supplied to both companies.
In August 1951 UTA's York Road works outshopped two new power cars which, following on the first diesel acquisitions, were numbered 6 and 7. They lasted well, 15 July 1966 seeing their last recorded working, after which they were not used again, although not officially withdrawn. On the formation of NIR they were included in the stock transferred over, to be officially withdrawn in December 1968. To increase capacity the unit ran with coach 279, as a centre trailer car, which was converted to work with this set. It became 528 in 1958.
At the same time, (1950/1), AEC were also responsible for power cars supplied to the GNR(I) and on the division of stock of that company in 1958 ten of these entered the UTA lists. Numbered from 111 to 120 inclusive they were, in order, originally GNR(I) No's. 603/602/607/606/611/610/615/614/619/618. Trailers from these railcars were converted from existing GNR steam coaches and retained their GNR numbers (Except vehicles 8 and 9, later UTA 585+586, which were built new as AEC driving trailers). Those that were acquired by UTA became 554 555 580 581 582 585 586 593 (The gaps being due to their numbering in the same series as BUT trailers). Kitchen Car 166 was converted to an AEC trailer in 1967 and retained its number
A railbus is a lightweight passenger railcar that shares many aspects of its construction with a bus, typically having a bus body and four wheels on a fixed base, instead of on bogies. Originally designed and developed during the 1930s, railbuses have evolved into larger dimensions, with characteristics similar in appearance to a light railcar, with the terms railcar and railbus often used interchangeably. Railbuses designed for use specifically on little-used railway lines were commonly employed in countries such as Germany, Italy, France, the United Kingdom and Sweden.
The Downpatrick and County Down Railway (DCDR) is a five-foot, three-inch gauge heritage railway in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is operated by volunteers and runs passenger trains using steam and diesel locomotives, diesel railcars, and vintage carriages. The railway has approximately three miles (4.8 km) of track in a triangular-shaped layout, which connects the town of Downpatrick with the historical sites of Inch Abbey to the north and King Magnus’ Grave to the south. It also houses a museum of railway artefacts and rolling stock originating from both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, dating from the 1860s to the 1980s.
In 1933, the Great Western Railway introduced the first of what was to become a very successful series of diesel railcars, which survived in regular use into the 1960s, when they were replaced with the new British Rail "first generation" type diesel multiple units.
A wide variety of diesel and electric multiple units have been used on Ireland's railways. This page lists all those that have been used. Except with the NIR Class 3000, the numbers given by each class in the lists below are those allocated to the coaches that make up the units in that class, otherwise, unit numbers are not used in Ireland.
A wide variety of hauled coaches have been used on the railways of Ireland. This page lists all those since 1945.
Sentinel Waggon Works Ltd was a British company based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire that made steam-powered lorries, railway locomotives, and later, diesel engined lorries, buses and locomotives.
The Ulster Transport Authority Multi-Engined Diesel was an early diesel powered railcar, used in Northern Ireland. The 12-mile Belfast-Bangor railway line had a well used passenger service and, being devoid of goods traffic, was chosen as the testing ground for the diesel railcar era. Before deciding to build its own railcars the UTA conducted an experiment by borrowing from the GNR(I). This was considered such a success that the UTA constructed its own experimental three-coach diesel railcar set at its Duncrue Street works, this being outshopped in late Spring 1951, ready for testing and driver training.
The Ulster Transport Authority Multi-Purpose Diesel was a diesel powered railcar, used in Northern Ireland. It was developed by the Ulster Transport Authority (UTA) as a progression of the earlier Multi-engined Diesel (MED). The MED concept, while suitable for short commuter links, was not considered so for the Northern Counties Committee section, with its main line from Belfast to Derry where speeds of up to 110 km/h (70 mph) were required. A new railcar development was needed, and the MED was superseded by the MPD.
UTA 70 class was a diesel multiple unit train built for service on the Ulster Transport Authority's railway network. The MED’s and MPD’s, which made use of readily available power and transmission units, were cheap to operate but noisier and not as comfortable as locomotive-hauled rolling stock, a fact which made them unsuitable for Inter-City journeys. The decision was made to develop a new generation of multiple unit and in July 1966 the first of the new DEMU sets entered service.
The 80 Class is a type of diesel electric multiple unit formerly used by Northern Ireland Railways. They were affectionately nicknamed 'Thumpers' by rail enthusiasts due to the thumping noise their engines produced.
The Great Northern Railway of Ireland (GNRI) AEC Class were Associated Equipment Company (AEC)–engined diesel multiple units that operated InterCity and suburban services on the GNRI and later Ulster Transport Authority (UTA) systems between 1950 and 1975. They were finally withdrawn in 1972. They were the inspiration for the CIÉ 2600 Class.
Chemins de fer de la Corse (CFC) is the name of the regional rail network serving the French island of Corsica. It is centred on the town of Ponte Leccia, from which three main lines radiate to Ajaccio, Bastia, and Calvi. The section following the northwest coastline between L'Île-Rousse and Calvi, known as the Balagne line, gives access to many beaches and is very popular with tourists.
The railways of New South Wales, Australia, use a large variety of passenger and freight rolling stock. The first railway in Sydney was opened in 1855 between Sydney and Granville, now a suburb of Sydney but then a major agricultural centre. The railway formed the basis of the New South Wales Government Railways. Passenger and freight services were operated from the beginning. By 1880, there was a half hourly service to Homebush.
The Córas Iompair Éireann (CIÉ) 2600 Class were Associated Equipment Company (AEC)–engined diesel multiple units that operated InterCity and suburban services on the CIÉ system between 1952 and 1975. Many were later converted for push–pull operation with diesel locomotives, finally being withdrawn when displaced by the electric Dublin Area Rapid Transit service in the mid-1980s.
The South Australian Railways Model Brill railcar were two types of railcars operated by the South Australian Railways between 1925 and 1971. Introduced to run on country rail services, the "Barwell Bulls" serviced most of the state's railway lines until they were eventually replaced by both the Bluebird and Redhen railcars, with the last units withdrawn in 1971.
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.
A steam railcar is a rail vehicle that does not require a locomotive as it contains its own steam engine. The first steam railcar was an experimental unit designed and built in 1847 by James Samuel and William Bridges Adams. In 1848 they made the Fairfield steam carriage that they sold to the Bristol & Exeter Railway, who used it for two years on a branch line.
The 1100 class railcar or Budd railcar were a type of diesel railcar built by Commonwealth Engineering for the New South Wales railways department in 1961. They primarily operated on the South Coast Daylight Express until withdrawn in 1993.
The BUT Class was a fleet of diesel-powered railcars operated by the Great Northern Railway Board and its successors between 1957 and 1980. They were an evolution of the earlier AEC railcars, which had entered service in 1951.
The Londonderry & Coleraine Railway is a railway line between the cities of Derry and Coleraine in County Londonderry, built by the Londonderry & Coleraine Railway Company (L&CR). The company operated the line independently for seven years before being absorbed into the Belfast & Northern Counties Railway. The line is still in use today by NI Railways and forms part of the Belfast to Derry-Londonderry rail line.
