A Mancunian class 142 Pacer ( Alternative picture)

A Westcountry based Class 143

A Yorkshire based Class 144

Pacer is the operational name of the British class 140, 141, 142, 143 and 144 railbuses, built between 1984 and 1987. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1000x643, 241 KB)A Class 142 Pacer seen here at Manchester Victoria station. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1000x643, 241 KB)A Class 142 Pacer seen here at Manchester Victoria station. ... Image File history File links A Class 142 Pacer, this one is on the Manchester Victoria to Huddersfield local service, seen here at Ashton-under-Lyne station in Greater Manchester. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1280x960, 549 KB) Wessex Trains Class 143 DMU 143611 pulls into Bristol Temple Meads station with a service for Taunton. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1280x960, 549 KB) Wessex Trains Class 143 DMU 143611 pulls into Bristol Temple Meads station with a service for Taunton. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (2048x1536, 723 KB)BR Class 144, no. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (2048x1536, 723 KB)BR Class 144, no. ... A Class 142 at Manchester Victoria station Another view of a 142 The British Rail Class 142 is a class of pacer diesel multiple units used in the United Kingdom. ... A Class 143 Unit The Class 143 is a diesel multiple unit used on railways in the UK. They are part of the pacer family of trains. ... Class 144, no. ... Not to be confused with Railroad car A railcar is a self-propelled rail vehicle designed to transport passengers. ...

The Pacer series was the result of an experiment to see whether the possibility of using bus parts to create a train was viable. The original two-car prototype class 140 was built in 1984 at the British Rail Engineering (BREL) Derby works using a BREL underframe and a Leyland Motors bus body. The initial prototype was joined by another 18 cars to form the class 141 fleet. The units were used mainly in the North East of England, operating mainly suburban services. They had a capacity of 94 passengers per two-car set and the two Leyland T11 motors gave a total of 410bhp - resulting in a top speed of 75mph (121km/h). The entire class underwent a technical upgrade in 1988 at the Barclay works in Kilmarnock, and were withdrawn from use in the mid-1990's. 1984 (MCMLXXXIV) is a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... for the singer see Jacques Brel BREL stands for British Rail Engineering Limited, which was the engineering division of British Rail Categories: Stub | British Rail(ways) ... Derby (pronounced dar-bee ) is a city in the East Midlands of England. ... Leyland Motors is a British vehicle manufacturer of lorries and buses. ... Wikimedia Commons has media related to: England Travel guide to England from Wikitravel English language English law English (people) List of monarchs of England – Kings of England family tree List of English people Angeln (region in northern Germany, presumably the origin of the Angles for whom England is named) UK... View from Kilmarnock train station onto John Finnie Street. ...

The next and largest pacer class was class 142. Again built by Leyland and BREL in 1985. The train chassis was based on that of Leyland's National bus and many fixtures and fittings of the bus could be found on the train. The new improved class had a greater capacity of 106 passengers per two-car set, but the same motors were used as per class 141 so the speed of the train did not increase. The first sets were used initially on the Devon and Cornwall branch lines and on suburban commuter services around the Manchester PTE area. The units from Cornwall were eventually moved to Manchester and the class 142 has become a common sight on services around the North West of England. The class was upgraded in the early 1990s to include more powerful motors - 460bhp per two-car set - and a number of trains were modified for use on the Merseyside PTE City Lines around Liverpool which included dot-matrix route indicators, improved seating and Mersey PTE paintwork. The class moved into the control of First North Western at privatisation and subsequently Northern Rail. The majority of the units are still in use. This article is about the year. ... The inner harbour, Brixham, south Devon, at low tide Devon is a large county in South West England, bordering on Cornwall to the west, Dorset and Somerset to the east. ... Motto: Onan hag oll (Cornish: One and all) Cornwall, England Geography Status Ceremonial and (smaller) Non-metropolitan county Region South West England Area - Total - Admin. ... The Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive (GMPTE) is the public body (Passenger Transport Executive) responsible for co-ordinating public transport services thoughout Greater Manchester in England. ... The Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive (MPTE, or Merseytravel, as it is more commonly known) is the Passenger Transport Executive responsible for the coordination of public transport on Merseyside. ... Liverpools skyline, as seen from the River Mersey. ... First North Western was a train operating company in the United Kingdom serving North West England. ... Privatization (sometimes privatisation, denationalization, or — especially in India — disinvestment) is the process of transferring property, from public ownership to private ownership. ... Northern Rail is a train operating company that has operated local services in the north of England since 2004. ...

Around the same time, a Pacer railbus was being developed by the Kilmarnock-based Barclay works, using a Walter Alexander bus body. The first of the new class, class 143, was first used in 1985. Again with 2x205bhp motors and a top speed of 75mph the class originally had a capacity of 122 passengers. The class was used in the North East of England, before transferring to the Welsh lines and was moved over to Wales & West Trains' control at privatisation. The interior was completely changed in 2000 when the Valley Line service was introduced, with full back, coach-type seating installed throughout along with improved fittings. This reduced capacity down to 106 per set, but improved comfort on the trains. A similar class 144 train, this time a Walter Alexander body on BREL underframe, was introduced in 1987 which as well as the standard two-car sets of 122 seats also saw five three-car sets with a total capacity of 195 passengers and 690bhp of motor force (It could still only do 75mph though!). The 144 class were used in the North East lines, passing over to MTL Trains (now Arriva Northern) at privatisation. Walter Alexander Coachbuilders is a Scottish bus bodybuilder based in Falkirk. ... Lira is the name of the monetary unit of a number of countries, as well as the former currency of Italy, San Marino and the Vatican City. ... An Arriva bus arriving at Telford Central An Arriva train in North Wales An Arriva train in Denmark Arriva plc is a British based public transport operator headquartered in Sunderland. ...

The Pacer railbuses are still in use today and are considered successful by the railway companies. However, there were some limitations to using bus parts for railway use. Instead of the more-usual bogies, the Pacers used basic four wheel wagon axles which, along with the basic bus bench seating lead to an uncomfortable ride. The drivers cab is a lot smaller on Pacers than other multiple units and they lack an area for guards, who usually end up sharing the cab. The inward-opening doors and the two-step entrance makes loading slower especially for the elderly and those in wheelchairs. No more Pacer railbuses have since been produced. A bogie is a wheeled wagon or trolley. ...