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British Rail Class 153 Super Sprinter
Transport for Wales 153333 at Ty Glas in 2019
The refurbished interior of an East Midlands Trains Class 153
In service	1991 – present
Manufacturer	Leyland Bus as Class 155s Converted to Class 153s by Hunslet-Barclay
Order no.	31026
Built at	Kilmarnock (conversion)
Family name	Sprinter
Replaced	First generation DMUs
Constructed	1987–1988 Converted 1991–1992
Entered service	1991
Number built	70
Number in service	39
Number scrapped	2
Formation	Single car (DMSL)
Diagram	DX203 (From DP248 and DP249)
Fleet numbers	Units: 153301–153335 153351–153385 Vehicles: 52301–52335 57351–57385
Capacity	66, 72 or 75 seated (PRM modified: 59 seated)
Operators	Current: Network Rail ScotRail Transport for Wales Rail Former: Abellio ScotRail Anglia Railways Arriva Rail North Arriva Trains Northern Arriva Trains Wales Central Trains East Midlands Railway East Midlands Trains First North Western Great Western Railway Greater Anglia London Midland National Express East Anglia Northern Rail Northern Trains Regional Railways Transport for Wales Wales & West Wessex Trains West Midlands Trains
Depots	Corkerhill Cardiff Canton Newton Heath(former)
Specifications
Car body construction	Steel
Car length	23.208 m (76 ft 1+3⁄4 in)
Width	2.700 m (8 ft 10+1⁄4 in) (over body)
Height	3.746 m (12 ft 3+1⁄2 in) (over body)
Doors	Single-leaf sliding plug
Wheelbase	16.000 m (52 ft 5+7⁄8 in) (bogie centres) 2.600 m (8 ft 6+3⁄8 in) (bogies)
Maximum speed	75 mph (120 km/h)
Weight	41.2 t (40.5 long tons; 45.4 short tons)
Prime mover(s)	1 × Cummins NT855R5
Engine type	14-litre 6-cylinder turbo-diesel
Power output	285 hp (213 kW)
Transmission	Voith Hydraulic T211r 1 bogie driven
HVAC	Warm air, hot water radiators
UIC classification	Bo'2'
Bogies	BREL P3-10 (powered) BREL BT38 (unpowered)
Braking system(s)	Air/EP
Safety system(s)	AWS TPWS
Coupling system	BSI
Multiple working	Classes 14x, 15x, 170
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Notes/references
Converted from 35 × Class 155 sets

The British Rail Class 153 Super Sprinters are single-coach railcars converted from two-coach Class 155 diesel multiple units in the early 1990s. The class was intended for service on rural branch lines where passenger numbers do not justify longer trains, or to boost the capacity on trains with high passenger volume.

Description

In 1987 and 1988 Regional Railways took delivery of 35 two-coach Class 155 units built by Leyland Bus at its Workington factory to replace older DMUs. After the Class 155s entered service, there emerged a further requirement for the replacement of ageing railcars (mostly of Class 121 and 122) used on quieter lines. British Rail decided to meet this need by dividing each unit in the Regional Railways Class 155 fleet into two separate railcars that could then be converted for use independently, which would create a fleet of 70 vehicles. The seven further Class 155 units that had been delivered to the West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (WYPTE) in 1989 were not included in this plan.

In 1990, British Rail awarded a contract for the work to Hunslet-Barclay, and it was undertaken at the firm's Kilmarnock plant in 1991 and 1992. The Class 155 units had been numbered from 155301 to 155335 and consisted of DMSL(A) vehicles 52301 to 52335 and DMSL(B) vehicles 57301 to 57335. After separation, the DMSL(A) vehicles were given new 'unit' numbers from 153301 to 153335, while the DMSL(B) vehicles were renumbered 57351 to 57385 (incrementing each by 50) and given matching 'unit' numbers from 153351 to 153385.

Because the vehicles were originally designed to have a driver's cab at one end only, it was necessary to retrofit one to the other end of each vehicle. This new cab is smaller than the original one but still encroaches into the vestibule area, as the original positions of the exterior doors were not changed during the conversion and the original space between the vestibule and the non-cab end of the vehicle was not sufficient for a cab. The difference in cab sizes is visible from the outside of the vehicle, which is distinctly unsymmetrical. The arrangement of headlights on the new cab end is also different to that on the original cab end.

They are fitted with BSI automatic couplers and are able to work in tandem with other multiple units with BSI couplers and compatible coupler electrical wiring (Classes 142, 143, 144, 150, 155, 156, 158, 159, 170 and 172). Gangway connections are provided at either end to allow passengers and staff to walk between units working in multiple (in-class as well as 150/2, 155, 156, 158 and 159). The maximum speed of 75 mph (121 km/h) was unchanged.

Operations

Current operations

Wales

Transport for Wales Rail has a fleet of 26 Class 153s. They are normally used on rural branch lines – such as the Heart of Wales Line from Shrewsbury to Swansea and on local stopping services from Crewe to Shrewsbury via Nantwich – but are also used on some mainline services. One is used daily on the short Cardiff Queen Street to Cardiff Bay shuttle.

Following a timetable change in December 2006, Arriva Trains Wales had lost three of its then-11 Class 153 units, leaving it with eight. Two were transferred to East Midlands Trains with the other going to First Great Western. In October 2018 all eight passed with the franchise to Transport for Wales (KeolisAmey Wales), who acquired a further five from Great Western Railway in April 2019, five from Abellio Greater Anglia in December 2019, four from East Midlands Railway in January 2020 and another two from EMR in November 2020, which brought the total number up to 24 until a further two units were acquired.

As at February 2020, Transport for Wales was the only train operating company to have modified 153s to comply with the Equality Act 2010 which came into effect on 1 January 2020. In June 2021, the new state-owned Transport for Wales Rail purchased eight outright for continued use on the Heart of Wales line after plans to replace them with Class 170s were cancelled with the 170s to move to East Midlands Railway. In July 2022, the refurbishment of the 26 units was completed.

Scotland

In 2019/2020, five former GWR 153s moved from Northern to Abellio ScotRail for use on the West Highland Line attached to Class 156s. The first refurbished carriage was unveiled in late 2020. The trains have also been refurbished inside providing free wifi, Plug and USB sockets and maps of the West Highland Line on the tables. The carriage also has ScotRail's Highland Explorer offer where a £10 upgrade is paid to sit in it. Due to a local agreement with driver union ASLEF, ScotRail's 153s can only be driven from the A cab and not the B cab due to the rather cramped space in the B Cab which would be unsutible for driving long distances. The 153s operate between Glasgow and Oban on the West Highland line.

The first unit began service on 19 July 2021.

Network Rail

In May 2021, Network Rail purchased three for use on infrastructure monitoring services.

Former operations

Regional Railways

Regional Railways operated Class 153s on many branch lines throughout the Midlands, Wales and Northern England. They were initially allocated to Heaton (15), Cardiff Canton (9), Plymouth Laira (10), Crown Point (16) and Tyseley (20). Due to their multiple working ability, Class 153s were often seen with other classes of Sprinter units such as Class 150 and Class 156s. Class 153s were often found working services from;

• Newcastle to Carlisle
• Peterborough to Lincoln
• Nottingham to Birmingham New Street via Leicester
• Crewe to Derby
• Ipswich to Lowestoft and Felixstowe
• Norwich to Great Yarmouth and Sheringham

The class was a common sight in Regional Railways areas.

Post privatisation

In the lead up to privatisation of British Rail, ownership of the fleet passed to Angel Trains (30) and Porterbrook (40) in April 1994. Upon privatisation, they were initially operated by Anglia Railways, Central Trains, First North Western, North Spirit and Wales & West.

South West England

First Great Western took over the Wessex Trains fleet upon the merger of the two franchises. Wessex Trains had, in turn, inherited its fleet of 13 units from its predecessor, Wales & West.

Units were used on local services in Cornwall, Devon, and around Bristol. They were also used on Bristol Temple Meads to Weymouth, Southampton Central, and Worcester Foregate Street services, and the Swindon via Melksham to Southampton Central service.

In mid-2004, Wessex Trains received a further two units from Central Trains to allow it to lengthen some services.

Following the introduction of a new timetable in December 2006, four units were taken off lease and stored at Eastleigh Works. After a period in storage these four units were pressed into service with East Midlands Trains.

In December 2007, First Great Western received an additional Class 153 from Arriva Trains Wales, bringing its total to 12. This unit arrived in the blue with gold star livery of former operator First North Western.

For summer 2011, two London Midland Class 153s were allocated to the South West for strengthening purposes, based at Exeter TMD for the duration. This allocation was eventually made permanent as a result of London Midland keeping three Class 150 units after the new Class 172s entered service. This brought First Great Western's number of Class 153 units up to 14.

Nine of those 14 units later left the fleet, with the remaining five moving to Transport for Wales in April 2019 after being displaced by internal cascading.

East Anglia

Anglia Railways inherited a small fleet of seven units, for local services in Suffolk and Norfolk. Services operated by these units included Ipswich to Cambridge, Peterborough, Felixstowe and Lowestoft, and Norwich to Lowestoft, Great Yarmouth and Cromer. One set was also hired to First Great Eastern for use on the Gainsborough line.

In 2004, Anglia Railways became part of the Greater Anglia franchise operated by One which was subsequently renamed National Express East Anglia. Two units left the franchise to East Midlands Trains. During 2012, Porterbrook began refurbishing the body and interiors and repainting them in base white with red doors and Greater Anglia logos.

In 2014, a rolling refurbishment of Abellio Greater Anglia's Class 153s commenced, which included new interior panels, tables, carpets and lighting. All were replaced by Class 755s in late 2019. These then moved to Transport for Wales in December 2019 to cover for delays with its new rolling stock.

West Midlands

West Midlands Trains used eight Class 153 DMUs on commuter lines in the West Midlands including the Leamington Spa to Nuneaton line and the Marston Vale line between Bedford and Bletchley. After Class 172 from London Overground and Class 230s' deployment on those two lines, they were used with Class 170s and Class 172s on Birmingham-Hereford and Snow Hill Lines.

All eight were inherited from Central Trains in their livery. All were repainted into London Midland city lines livery upon refurbishment at Eastleigh Works. The Class 153s that were used on the Stourbridge Town branch line have been replaced by new built lightweight Class 139 railcars. This was due to take place in December 2008, but the delivery of the new units was delayed, and after several months of bustitution London Midland reintroduced diesel services from 15 March pending the completion of Class 139 testing. The Class 139 received passenger certification from Network Rail in March 2009 and the service finally began three months later. In December 2020 the final Class 153s were withdrawn from service and put into long-term storage. Before withdrawal, they mostly operated on the Birmingham-Hereford line.

East Midlands

East Midlands Trains inherited many examples of Class 153 units, receiving six from Central Trains, three from National Express East Anglia and four former First Great Western units that had been stored at Eastleigh Works. In December 2007, East Midlands Trains received two from Arriva Trains Wales and two from Northern Rail. All passed with the East Midlands franchise to East Midlands Railway in August 2019. In January 2020, four were transferred to Transport for Wales. At one point in April 2020, only 3 EMR Class 153s were in service, following the implementation of an emergency timetable due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with all others being stored out of use as surplus to requirement, with 5 going off-lease on the 1 July 2020, those being 153302, 318, 368, 372, 374 and 382. As of July 2020, 5 were in service.

All of the East Midlands Trains Class 153 units were repainted into the local lines livery of the company.

In July 2010, the first unit 153319 entered Neville Hill TMD for a C6 refresh programme. The work included corrosion repair, internal refresh and a cab refurbishment programme.

East Midlands Railway's fleet of Class 153s were used on rural routes:

• Nottingham to Worksop (one diagram used two units)
• Nottingham to Matlock via Derby
• Nottingham to Skegness
• Leicester to Lincoln
• Peterborough to Lincoln and Doncaster
• Newark North Gate to Grimsby Town (to Cleethorpes after 1900 and during summer)
• Derby to Crewe via Stoke-on-Trent
• Cleethorpes to Barton-on-Humber

The last of the East Midlands Railway Class 153s were withdrawn in December 2021, as they were not compliant with PRM (Persons with Reduced Mobility) regulations, with Class 156s replacing them on the Barton-on-Humber route from 13 December.

Northern England

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The Northern Rail franchise started operations in December 2004. It inherited the fleets previously operated by Arriva Trains Northern (ATN) and First North Western (FNW), whose routes the new franchise incorporated. Northern Rail's successor Arriva Rail North at one point operated the largest fleet of Class 153 units.

Northern Rail inherited a fleet of eight units from FNW, which were used on local services around Manchester and Chester and on Lancaster and Barrow-in-Furness to Carlisle and Preston to Ormskirk services. The fleet was repainted in the now obsolete North Western Trains blue and gold livery. Prior to becoming part of Northern Rail, four former FNW units were transferred to the Arriva Trains Wales franchise, since the lines operated by FNW in Wales were transferred to this new company.

A larger fleet of 12 units was inherited from ATN. They are used on various local services around Leeds, Doncaster and Sheffield. One regular job is the Cleethorpes to Barton-on-Humber services, which see a unit stabled at Cleethorpes overnight and Sunday. Other jobs are the Lincoln to Scunthorpe via Retford and Sheffield, and the Saturday-only Sheffield to Cleethorpes via Retford.

In December 2007, two units were taken off lease from Northern Rail and transferred to East Midlands Trains.

In the first half of 2018, five units were transferred from Great Western Railway on a temporary basis to boost capacity until the new Class 195 units entered service; three of these then moved to Abellio ScotRail in 2019, with the remainder to follow in 2020. On 1 March 2020, Arriva Rail North's Class 153 units transferred to new operator Northern Trains.

All Northern Trains Class 153s were sent to storage by December 2021.

Fleet details

Liveries

Operating company	Current liveries
Transport for Wales

Operating company	Past liveries
London Midland
Northern Rail

Named units

Some units have received names:

• 153306 – Edith Cavell
• 153309 – Gerard Fiennes
• 153311 – John Constable
• 153314 – Delia Smith
• 153316 – John "Longitude" Harrison - inventor of the Marine Chronometer
• 153322 – Benjamin Britten
• 153326 – Ted Ellis
• 153335 – Michael Palin
• 153362 – Dylan Thomas 1915–1953 (denamed)
• 153369 – Pamela Anderson
• 153376 – X24 – Expeditious (denamed)
• 153383 – Ecclesbourne Valley Railway 150 Years

Models

When the units were first introduced, Hurst models produced a detailing kit to convert a Dapol model of a 155 into a 153.

The Class 153 has been produced in OO gauge by Hornby in Central Trains, First Northern Star, Abellio Greater Anglia, Northern Rail, Regional Railways, East Midlands Trains, London Midland City, Arriva Trains Wales and Great Scenic Railways of Devon and Cornwall (Wessex Trains) liveries. These models have been praised for their detail.

Dapol have also released an N gauge version of the 153.

Several 153s have also been produced for rail simulators. Making Tracks have a digital model available for the PC railway simulator Microsoft Train Simulator, whilst Just Trains had released the model for Railworks.

References

1. "Class 153 – Arriva Trains Wales, Great Western Railway, East Midlands Trains, Arriva Rail North". Angel Trains. Archived from the original on 25 January 2018. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
2. Barclay, Kenny (November 2017). British Rail in the 1980s and 1990s: Diesel Locomotives and DMUs. Stroud: Amberley Publishing. ISBN 978-1445670058.
3. Thomson, Gordon (July 2016). Railways of Ayrshire. Marlborough: Crowood Press. ISBN 978-1785001482.
4. ^ Fox & Hughes 1994, pp. 31–32
5. ^ Vehicle Diagram Book No. 220 for Diesel Multiple Unit Trains (Railcars) (PDF). Derby: British Railways Board. 1982. DP248, DP249. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 January 2015. Retrieved 19 February 2016. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
6. ^ Marsden 2011, p. 115
7. ^ "Class 153". The Railway Centre. Archived from the original on 9 March 2005.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
8. "Our Fleet". Arriva Trains Wales. Archived from the original on 17 March 2014. Retrieved 2 March 2014.
9. "Mechanical And Electrical Coupling Index". Rail Safety and Standards Board. Archived from the original on 21 December 2013. Retrieved 20 December 2010.
10. Bus builder hands over DMU Railway Gazette International June 1987 page 353
11. ^ Leyland's final rail vehicles Today's Railways UK issue 107 November 2010 pages 44–51
12. Market Railway Gazette International February 1989 page 73
13. Regional Railways class 155 fleet eliminated The Railway Magazine issue 1097 September 1992 page 5
14. Intelligence Railway Gazette International September 1990 page 660
15. First class 153 on BR The Railway Magazine issue 1084 August 1991 page 529
16. Rural Railbus Launched The Railway Magazine issue 1085 September 1991 page 611
17. One acquires 153s Rail issue 563 11 April 2007 page 67
18. ^ Stock Update Track Record The Railway Magazine issue 1418 May 2019 page 107
19. ^ Extra Class 153s cover for late bi-modes in Wales Rail issue 890 23 October 2019 page 30
20. Protests over PPM-TSI Exemptions Modern Railways issue 857 February 2020 page 28
21. 153s acquired Modern Railways issue 874 July 2021 page 13
22. Holden, Emma (14 July 2022). "Transport for Wales celebrates completion of Class 153 refurbishment". RailAdvent. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
23. "Cycle coaches to be hitched to trains to ease bike crush". The Scotsman. 15 June 2018. Archived from the original on 24 June 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
24. "ScotRail bike train plans take shape". Rail. 17 December 2018. Archived from the original on 30 November 2020. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
25. "Cycle carriages for Scotland's scenic railway". ScotRail. Archived from the original on 3 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
26. "ScotRail picks up the pace on 'active travel' Class 153s". www.railmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 3 November 2020. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
27. "ScotRail Highland Explorer service launches". Rail. No. 936. 28 July 2021. p. 24.
28. 153s for NR infrastructure fleet] Modern Railways issue 873 June 2021 page 85
29. ^ DMU Railway Express issue 302 July 2021 page 28
30. 25 Years of ROSCOs Rail Express issue 281 October 2019 pages 19, 21
31. Newly refurbished Class 156 train re-enters service Archived 10 August 2017 at the Wayback Machine Abellio Greater Anglia 3 December 2012
32. Stadler and Bombardier to supply trains for Abellio East Anglia franchise Archived 5 August 2017 at the Wayback Machine Railway Gazette International 10 August 2016
33. "Stourbridge railcar receives its passenger licence". London Midland. 2 April 2009. Archived from the original on 26 November 2010. Retrieved 11 April 2009.
34. "Latest News". Parry People Movers. 19 June 2009. Archived from the original on 5 June 2009. Retrieved 24 June 2009.
35. "Saying goodbye to our Class 153s | West Midlands Railway". www.westmidlandsrailway.co.uk. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
36. 153s for EMT Rail issue 583 16 January 2008 page 69
37. "The News in Pictures" (PDF). Railway Herald. No. 241. 4 October 2010. p. 2. Archived (PDF) from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
38. "EMR introduce Class 156 fleet and own traincrew on Barton-on-Humber route". www.eastmidlandsrailway.co.uk. Retrieved 15 December 2021.
39. "East Midlands Railway introduces Class 156 trains on Barton-on-Humber route". RailAdvent. Retrieved 15 December 2021.
40. "Northern and East Midlands Railway Class 153 fleets stood down". Rail Express. No. February 2022. p. 26.
41. "Northern begins '153' withdrawal". Rail. No. 929. 21 April 2021. p. 28.
42. "Stock Update". The Railway Magazine. No. 1445. August 2021. p. 105.
43. "Stock Update". The Railway Magazine. No. 1454. May 2022. p. 85.
44. "DMU FORMATIONS". AbRail. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
45. "Shed Talk". Rail Express. No. August 2021. p. 32.
46. Class 153 named Railways Illustrated issue 173 July 2017 page 9
47. "DKU103 Pair of Class 153 Conversion Kits". Hurst Models. Archived from the original on 17 January 2016. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
48. "Hornby BR Class 153". Hornby Railways Collector Guide. Archived from the original on 11 January 2020. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
49. "HORNBY CLASS 153". Intertrains. Archived from the original on 11 April 2009.
50. "Class 153 released". Dapol. Archived from the original on 25 July 2011.
51. "BMUC 6 :: Leyland Class 153 / Class 155 Stock Pack". Making Tracks. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 2 December 2015.

Sources

• Fox, Peter; Hughes, Barry (1994). DMUs & Channel Tunnel Stock. British Railways Pocket Book No.3 (7th ed.). Platform 5. ISBN 978-1-872524-59-7.
• Marsden, Colin J. (2011). Traction Recognition (2nd ed.). Ian Allan Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7110-3494-5.
• Marsden, Colin J. (2014). Traction Recognition (3rd ed.). Surrey: Ian Allan Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7110-3792-2.

• British Rail diesel multiple units
• Leyland vehicles
• Train-related introductions in 1991