BEL 2 / NSR 1 Battery Locomotive

Battery powered trains go back quite a bit further into railway history than many people imagine. BEL 1 and BEL 2 were two similar battery electric shunters built in the early 20th century for the LMS' predecessor railways. BEL 1 was built for the Midland Railway at it's Derby Works later working in British Railways colours at Poplar Dock in East London [1]. It was withdrawn and cut up in 1964.

Information
Number built:	2
Built:	1913, 1917
Builder:	Derby Works / NSR Stoke Works
Engine:	2 BTH traction motors (battery electric)
Power:	82 hp (61 kW)
Wheel arrangement:	Bo

BEL 2 was built as NSR 1 for the North Staffordshire Railway at Stoke during the First World War, originally working at a copper works. It was withdrawn and restored to its original livery at Crewe in the mid-1960s and joined the National Collection at York [2].

Two views of BEL 2 at NRM York

[1] Brian Haresnape, Electric Locomotives (Ian Allan, 1983) p. 20
[2] Paul Smith & Shirley Smith, British Rail Departmental Locomotives 1948-1968 (Ian Allan, 2014) p. 22

Class 45 (BR/Sulzer 2,500hp Type 4 Diesel-Electric)

The Class 45 was the largest of the 3 "Peak" classes (the others being the prototype Class 44 and the follow-on Class 46 with different equipment) [1]. The Class 45s were the motive power mainstays of the Midland Main Line from the 1960s into the early 1980s. Like the other Peak classes the Class 45s were powerful locomotives though this power came at a price of high weight. Weighing in at over 130 tons they had to have 1Co-Co1 bogies with extra non-powered wheels to help spread the weight on the rail.

Information
Number built:	127
Built:	1960-62
Builder:	BR Derby & Crewe
Engine:	Sulzer 12LD28B diesel
Power:	2, 500 hp (1, 864 kW)
Wheel arrangement:	1Co-Co1

Design wise the Peaks shared some of their appearance with the LMS 10000 prototype diesel-electrics and North American practice with their bonnet noses - though the bonnets were noticably shorter than the English Electric Class 40 and Class 37.  The large grills on the side of the locomotive were intended to try and produce a cleaner design and hide the many apertures that had appeared on earlier and contemporary locomotive designs [2].


The Class 45 consisted of 2 sub-types, the 45/0 with steam train heating and the 45/1 with electric train heating. The arrival of the High Speed Train in the 1980s displaced them from express work though they continued on secondary passenger services and freights into the late 1980s. They were finally withdrawn by 1989 outlasting the other Peaks by a few years. Eleven have been preserved though not all currently are in working order.

45 060 at Kidderminster SVR

45 041 at Chinnor

45 140 at Birmingham New Street (K Davies Collection)

Front view of 45 041

Side view of 45 041 at Princes Risborough showing the large bogie

[1] Brian Haresnape, Production Diesel-Electrics Types 4 and 5 (Ian Allan, 1984) p. 31
[2] David Lawrence, British Rail Designed 1948-97 (Ian Allan, 2016) p. 116

Class 401 2-BIL

The Class 401 2-BIL (2 Bi-Lavatory - signifying the trains were 2 cars with a lavatory in each car) were built by Southern Railway in the mid-1930s as a development of the 4-LAV. The first 10 motor cars built by Metro-Cammell & BRCW with the rest built by Southern Railway itself at its Eastleigh and Lancing Works.

Information
Number built:	304 (152 2-car sets)
Built:	1935-38
Builder:	(First batch) Birmingham Railway Carriage & Wagon Company, Metro-Cammell (Later batches) SR Eastleigh, Lancing Works
Engine:	2 MV/EE339 traction motors, some later replaced by EE507C (660-750v DC Third Rail)
Power:	550 hp (410 kW) (EE339) / 500hp (279kW) (EE507C)
Formation:	Driving Motor Brake Third class Lavatory (DMBTL)+ Driving Trailer Composite Lavatory (DTCL)

The 2-BILs were designed for long-distance semi-fast services on the newly electrified lines to Eastbourne, Portsmouth and Reading [1], later also being used on the Waterloo-Portsmouth route.

They had full-width bodies with a corridor and the aforementioned toilets [2] which were needed in both cars as there were no gangways between them [3]. The earliest were built with Metropolitan-Vickers power equipment with the rest built with English Electric.

The 2-BIL was a successful type and remained in service until 1971 with a number of sets receiving BR Blue livery [4]. A couple were also used as hauled coaching stock in surplus 4-SUB trailers as the 7-TC though it was not a true push-pull set [5]. One 2-BIL set has been preserved by the National Railway Museum.

Preserved 2090 at NRM Shildon

2067 at Farnham (K Davies Collection)

Another view of 2090

2034 in BR Blue, location unknown (K Davies Collection)

Cab side view of 2090

[1] Colin J Marden, DMU and EMU Recognition Guide (Ian Allan, 2013) p. 300
[2] David Brown, Southern Electric Vol 2 (Capital Transport, 2010) p. 104
[3] Alan Williams, Southern Electric Album (Ian Allan, 1977) p. 24
[4] Bruce Oliver, British Railway Southern Region Electrics in Colour (Ian Allan, 2008) p. 19
[5] Brown p. 112

London Underground Sleet Locomotives

The Central London Railway initially used electric locomotives hauling trailers but these were found to be causing problems with their large unsprung weights [1]. The locomotives were replaced in 1903 by electric multiple units, known as 1903 Stock. These in turn were replaced by Standard Stock in the 1930s, a number of 1903 Stock motor cars were then converted into Sleet locomotives to clear snow and ice from the track in 1939.

ESL 107 at LT Museum Acton

Information
Number built:	18
Built:	(Original tube stock) 1900-03, 1913 Sleet Locomotives converted 1939
Builder:	Birmingham Railway Carriage & Wagon Company Metropolitan Amalgamated Railway Carriage & Wagon Company
Engine:	GE66 traction motors (630v DC fourth rail)
Power:	960 hp (720 kW)

These were built by taking two driving ends to make a single locomotive [2]. Most sleet locomotives survived in service until the mid-1980s though as tube stock began to have its own de-icing equipment fitted their role reduced over the years, but they could also be used to clear leaves from the line. One locomotive ESL107 has been preserved, it is the only 1903 Stock to have survived.

Sleet locomotive ESL 107

Cab of ESL 107

1] J. Graeme Bruce & Desmond Croome, The Twopenny Tube (Capital Transport, 1996) p. 15
[2] John Glover, London Underground Rolling Stock in Colour (Ian Allan, 2009) p. 31

Advanced Passenger Train - Experimental (APT-E)

In the late 1960s British Rail began to look into high speed trains in order to compete with road and air transport for long intercity routes. Although BR would have loved to have been able to construct entirely new routes such as in France and Japan which were not constrained by the legacy of Victorian planning and loading gauge they knew there would not be the funding available for this and so instead looked into how to produce high speed trains that could run on existing BR rails. One way to increase speeds was thought to be a tilting train that could handle curves much faster and more comfortably than existing stock and the Advanced Passenger Train - Experimental (APT-E) was built to help develop and test tilting technology [1].

Information
Number built:	4 (1 4-car set)
Built:	1972
Builder:	Metro-Cammell / BR Derby
Engine:	8 Leyland 350 gas turbines
Power:	2, 384 hp (1, 778 kW)

Gas turbines were chosen for the APT-E in order to produce the desired power-to-weight ratio (it was decided not to produce an electric APT-E so it wouldn't be restricted as to the routes it could be tested on) [2]. The early design of the APT-E owned more to aeronautical than railway practice but in the end a faceted wedge was chosen for the shape of APT-E [3].

The bodies of APT-E, 2 power cars and 2 trailers were built by Metro-Cammell, a light weight construction from sheet aluminium. They were married to articulated bogies which were designed to improve ride at speed by "part-steering" the train through curves [4]. One trailer was filled with test equipment with the other having some seating to test passenger experience in a tilting train however it was never used in revenue earning service.

The APT-E began operations in 1973 (delayed by industrial action) and ran until 1976 which it was withdrawn from service (the high cost of gas turbines contributing to the decision) and preserved at the National Railway Museum. In its time it reached 152.3mp/h [5], then a new British railways speed record. It was followed by the Class 370 APT-P which was hoped to be the future of the British Rail intercity fleet but ultimately the project failed, however tilting technology was later used in trains that run down the WCML and ECML to this very day.

Interestingly the APT-E project grew out of the High Speed Freight Vehicle (HSFV 1) project in the early 1960s, the fruits of which included the underframe and suspension of the Class 140 Pacer railbus!

Preserved APT-E at NRM Shildon

Test gear laden trailer car 

View of the articulated bogie and body profile

APT-E

Front on view

[1] Colin J. Marsden, 25 Years of Railway Research (OPC, 1989) p. 30
[2] Ibid. p. 31
[3] David Lawrence, British Rail Designed 1948-97 (Ian Allan, 2016) p. 188
[4] Brian Haresnape, High Speed Trains (Ian Allan, 1983) p. 34
[5] Marsden, p. 33

Class 950 Track Recording Unit

Unlike most of the powered Network Rail fleet the Class 950 did not have an earlier life in revenue earning service. The Class 950 was built for the then-Research Division of British Rail in 1987 using the Sprinter Class 150/0 as a base. Following delivery the Class 950 was fitted out with specialist equipment for its role as a Track Recording Unit [1].

Information
Number built:	2 (1 2-car set)
Built:	1987
Builder:	BREL York
Motor:	Cummins NT855R5 diesel per vehicle
Power:	570 hp (426 kW)

The Class 950 began service in late 1987 and can be used where the track is not suitable or able to support locomotive hauled Network Rail trains.



Originally the unit was classified the Class 180 though was later reclassified 950. It is now in Network Rail service and in NR yellow livery [2]. One of the cars (999 601) looks very similar to a standard Sprinter power car though 999 600 has a very different window and grill arrangement along the side.

950 001 at Derby

999 601

999 600

[1] Colin J. Marsden, 25 Years of Railway Research (OPC, 1989) p. 50
[2] Colin J. Marsden, Rail Guide 2016 (Ian Allan, 2016) p. 203