British Rail produced a variety of Railbuses as a means both of building new rolling stock cheaply, and to provide services on lightly-used lines economically. Logo of British Rail British Railways (BR), later rebranded as British Rail, ran the British railway system from the nationalisation of the Big Four British railway companies in 1948 until its privatisation in stages between 1994 and 1997. ...

Terminology

Railbuses are a very lightweight type of Diesel multiple unit Railcar designed for use specifically on little-used railway lines, and as the name suggests share many aspects of their construction with a bus, usually having a bus, or modified bus body, and having four wheels on a fixed base, instead of on bogies. A diesel multiple unit can be: a multiple unit powered by a diesel engine; one or more of these form a passenger train; a combination of diesel powered locomotives operating under the control of one engine-driver, coupled together consecutively, usually at the head end of the train, which further... Not to be confused with Railroad car. ...

First Generation BR Railbuses

Railbus no. 79964 at York Railfest exhibition on 3rd June 2004. This vehicle is preserved on the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway.

In the late 1950s, British Rail tested a series of small Railbuses, produced by a variety of manufacturers. These proved to be very economical, but also somewhat unreliable. The lines they worked on were mainly closed by during the 'Beeching Cuts' and, being non-standard, they were all withdrawn in the mid-1960s, before being allocated TOPS classifications. Download high resolution version (2048x1536, 644 KB)BR Railbus no. ... Download high resolution version (2048x1536, 644 KB)BR Railbus no. ... Locomotives arranged around the turntable in the Great Hall. ... Ivatt 2MT 2-6-2T 41241 at Haworth station The Keighley and Worth Valley Railway is a five-mile (eight-km) long heritage railway line in West Yorkshire, England, that runs from Keighley to Oxenhope. ... Logo of British Rail British Railways (BR), later rebranded as British Rail, ran the British railway system from the nationalisation of the Big Four British railway companies in 1948 until its privatisation in stages between 1994 and 1997. ... This article is about the railroad stock management system TOPS. For the DEC PDP-10 operating systems, see TOPS-10 and TOPS-20 The Total Operations Processing System, better known by its initials TOPS, is a computer system for managing the locomotives and rolling stock (railroad cars) owned by a...

In addition to these Railbuses, BR ordered three for departmental (non-revenue earning) service. The full list of passenger and departmental units is set out below.

Second Generation BR Railbuses

British Rail returned to the idea of railbuses from the mid-1970s, and a number of prototype single and two-car Railbuses were built and tested, in co-operation with Leyland (hence the generic term for these vehicles as LEV (Leyland Experimental Vehicle) Railbuses). The prototype two-car Railbus was allocated Class 140 and is dealt with on that page, but the prototype single car Railbuses were not classified and are set out in the table below: Logo of British Rail British Railways (BR), later rebranded as British Rail, ran the British railway system from the nationalisation of the Big Four British railway companies in 1948 until its privatisation in stages between 1994 and 1997. ...

In addition, there was an experiment with a hauled stock railbus vehicle, when a bus body was placed on the underframe from BCK coach number 21234. This was numbered RDB 977091 and is now preserved at the East Kent Railway. Also, in 1978, before the first powered vehicle (LEV1) was produced, tests were carried out with a bus body placed on a wagon. It was unpowered and didn't leave the Railway Technical Centre in Derby, but could be considered as 'LEV0'! Description The East Kent Railway is a short heritage railway in Kent, England. ... The Railway Technical Centre was built by the British Railways Board in the early 1960s in Derby to be its technical headquarters. ...

It should be noted that even though some of these vehicles carried numbers in the departmental coach series, they were actually used in ordinary passenger service. LEV1 was tested in passenger service at first in East Anglia, and then elsewhere, before being exported to the USA, which was also the destination for LEV2. Similarly, R3 was exported to Canada after its testing phase. These Railbuses were sent abroad in the hope of gathering export orders, but they never transpired. The hauled railbus coach was tested on various lines in the London Midland region.

The result of these tests was that British Rail ordered a series of two- and three-car Railbuses, which became known as Pacers (or Skippers on the Western Region) and were allocated TOPS Classes 141-144. However, no further hauled railbus vehicles were produced; locomotive haulage itself being phased out. Logo of British Rail British Railways (BR), later rebranded as British Rail, ran the British railway system from the nationalisation of the Big Four British railway companies in 1948 until its privatisation in stages between 1994 and 1997. ... A class 142 Pacer Pacer is the operational name of the British class 140, 141, 142, 143 and 144 railbuses, built between 1984 and 1987. ... This article is about the railroad stock management system TOPS. For the DEC PDP-10 operating systems, see TOPS-10 and TOPS-20 The Total Operations Processing System, better known by its initials TOPS, is a computer system for managing the locomotives and rolling stock (railroad cars) owned by a... A wide variety of Locomotives and Multiple units have been operated on Great Britains railway network. ...

Preservation

A number of the BR Railbuses, both first and second generation examples have survived into preservation, as follows:

The North Norfolk Railway -- also known as the Poppy Line -- is a heritage railway in Norfolk, England running between the coastal town of Sheringham and Holt which is further inland. ... Ivatt 2MT 2-6-2T 41241 at Haworth station The Keighley and Worth Valley Railway is a five-mile (eight-km) long heritage railway line in West Yorkshire, England, that runs from Keighley to Oxenhope. ... The North Norfolk Railway -- also known as the Poppy Line -- is a heritage railway in Norfolk, England running between the coastal town of Sheringham and Holt which is further inland. ... Ivatt 2MT 2-6-2T 41241 at Haworth station The Keighley and Worth Valley Railway is a five-mile (eight-km) long heritage railway line in West Yorkshire, England, that runs from Keighley to Oxenhope. ... Description The Colne Valley Railway is a heritage railway based at Castle Hedingham station, near Halstead in Essex, United Kingdom. ... Description The Colne Valley Railway is a heritage railway based at Castle Hedingham station, near Halstead in Essex, United Kingdom. ... The Middleton Railway is the worlds oldest working railway. ... The Middleton Railway is the worlds oldest working railway. ... The North Norfolk Railway -- also known as the Poppy Line -- is a heritage railway in Norfolk, England running between the coastal town of Sheringham and Holt which is further inland. ... Founded in 1940, the Connecticut Trolley Museum is the oldest incorporated museum dedicated to electric railroading in the United States. ... The Downpatrick & Co Down Railway is a heritage railway in County Down, Northern Ireland. ... Royal motto: Quis separabit (Latin: Who will separate?) Northern Irelands location within the UK Official languages English, Irish, Ulster Scots Capital and largest city Belfast First Minister Office suspended Area  - Total Ranked 4th 13,843 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 4th 1,685,267 122/km² NUTS 1... Map sources for Telford Steam Railway at grid reference SJ676075 The Telford Steam Railway is a heritage railway located at Dawley, near Telford in Shropshire. ...

External links

• EM2 Locomotive Society - owners of Drewry railcar DB998901.
• Wicham Railbus Group - owners of Wickham railbus DB999507.
• Preserved Carriage Database