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| Preserved DTBS 75023 |
| Information | |
|---|---|
| Number built: | 128 (32 4-car sets) |
| Built: | 1954-56 (PCV conversion) 1994-96 |
| Builder: | BR Ashford/Eastleigh (PCV conversion) Hunslet-Barclay |
| Engine: | 4 GEC WT44 traction motors (1500V DC OLHE later 6.25/25kV AC OLHE) |
| Power: | 700 hp (520 kW) |
| Formation: | (original) Driving Trailer Standard Open (DTSO)+ Motor Brake Standard (MBS)+Trailer Composite (TC)+ Driving Trailer Standard (DTS) (AC conversion) Driving Trailer Brake Standard (DTBS)+ Motor Standard (MS)+TC+DTS (refurbished) DTBS+MS+Trailer Standard (TS)+ Driving Trailer Composite (DTC) |
The Class 307s were refurbished in the 1980s, which introduced gangways between the vehicles, improved interiors and new bogies. They continued to be used on Great Eastern routes throughout the 1980s, some also working on the Wakefield Line for a time. All were withdrawn from passenger service in the early 1990s.
Originally it was planned to rebuild the Class 307s for parcel traffic as the Class 300 but the Class 325 was built instead for this work. However forty-two were rebuilt as Propelling Control Vehicles (PCV) for use on the end of locomotive hauled mail trains (the other end from the locomotive obviously) with the cab allowing for the train to be controlled at slow speeds [2], the PCV itself is unpowered. All but two were withdrawn from use in the early 2000s and many scrapped though some remain in storage. One PCV has also been preserved as well as an unconverted driving trailer as shown below.
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| Front view of the preserved car |
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| Another view, at the time the car was at the Electric Railway Museum (now closed) |
[1] Alec Swain, Overhead Line Electric Multiple Units (Ian Allan, 1990) p. 28
[2] Colin J Marsden, DMU and EMU Recognition Guide (Ian Allan, 2013) p. 221