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British Rail Class 202

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

British Rail Class 202
1016 at Enfield Town on a farewell railtour in 1986.
In service1957–1987
ManufacturerEastleigh and Ashford Works
Constructed1957–1958
Number built54 vehicles (9 units)
FormationDMBSO-TSOL-TSOL-TFK-TSOL-DMBSO
OperatorsBritish Rail
Specifications
Car length64 ft 6 in (19.66 m)[1]
Width9 ft 0 in (2.74 m)[1]
Height12 ft 3 in (3.73 m)[1]
Maximum speed75 mph (121 km/h)
Weight55 long tons (55.9 t; 61.6 short tons) (power car)
Prime mover(s)English Electric 4SRKT Mark II
Power output500 hp (370 kW)
TransmissionDiesel-electric
HVACElectric
Track gauge4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm)

The British Rail Class 202 (or 6L) diesel-electric multiple units were built from 1957-58 at Eastleigh and Ashford Works. These units were built to work the London Charing Cross to Hastings services. Several tunnels along the route had restricted clearance, meaning that these units were built with a narrow body profile. Similar to the Class 201 (or 6S) they were built to the longer (63ft 5in) British Rail Mark 1 standard and therefore had 288 seats (240 second class plus 48 first class) compared to the 242 (200+42) of the 6S units.

The last six-car units were withdrawn in 1986, when the Hastings line was electrified. The line through the tunnels was reduced to single track, allowing standard loading gauge Class 411 electrical multiple units to replace the diesel units on passenger services. One unit was subsequently reinstated to provide emergency cover, and was renumbered as 202001 to conform with the TOPS numbering system.

After the mass withdrawals of 1986, several units were reformed as four-car units, and subsequently renumbered into the Class 203 series. In addition, several vehicles saw further use as departmental vehicles.

Fleet details

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Key: Preserved Reformed Departmental Use Scrapped

Original 6L Units

Unit No. DMBSO TSOL TSOL TFK TSOL DMBSO Withdrawn Status
New Old
- 1011 60014 60521 60522 60707 60523 60015 1987 Reformed to 203001
- 1012 60016 60524 60525 60708 60526 60017 1986 Preserved
202001 1013 60018 60527 60528 60709 60529 60019 1987 Reformed as 203101
- 1014 60020 60530 60531 60710 60532 60021 ? Scrapped
- 1015 60022 60533 60534 60711 60535 60023 ? Scrapped
- 1016 60024 60536 60537 60712 60538 60025 ? Scrapped
- 1017 60026 60539 60540 60713 60541 60027 ? Scrapped
- 1018 60028 60542 60543 60714 60544 60029 ? Scrapped
- 1019 60030 60545 60546 60715 60547 60031 ? Scrapped

Reformed 4L Units

Unit No. DMBSO TSOL TSOL
DMBSO Withdrawn Status
New Old
203001 1011 60152
(ex-60014)
60522 60523 60153
(ex-60015)
1990 Sandite unit 1067
203101 202001 60018 60528 60709 60019 1988 Preserved

Departmental Units

Unit No. DM T DM (DT*) Withdrawn Status
New Old
1067 203001 977698 (ex-60152) 977697 (ex-60523) 977699 (ex-60153) 1996 Scrapped (1996)
1068 207014/203001 977700 (ex-60139) 977696 (ex-60522) 977701* (ex-60910) 1992 Scrapped (2005)

Preservation

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One complete unit has been preserved.

  • 1013 – by Hastings Diesels

Two vehicles from unit 1012 have also been preserved.

  • 1012 – DMBSO 60016 and TFK 60708 - by Hastings Diesels

Several of the vehicles from 1012 and 1013 now operate in preserved mainline registered unit 201001. To avoid conflict with Class 60 locomotives, motor vehicles 60016 and 60018 have been renumbered to 60116 and 60118 respectively. These two vehicles have also been named after towns along the routes which they previously worked.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Beecroft, Gregory (1986). The Hastings Diesels Story. Chessington: Southern Electric Group. p. 89. ISBN 0-906988-20-9.

Further reading

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