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British Rail Class 141
The British Rail Class 141 was the first production model of the ''Pacer'' diesel multiple unit (DMU) railbus. During the 1980s, British Rail (BR) was interested in replacing its first generation diesel multiple units, particularly in the use of railbuses to service its lightly used branch lines. It was decided to develop such a vehicle with a high level of commonality with the widely used Leyland National bus, leading to its modular design serving as the basis for the design. Several single and two-car prototypes were constructed and evaluated, before an order was placed with British Leyland for twenty two-car Class 141 units during 1984. During their operating lives, the units were tasked with various passenger services across the UK for 13 years. Following withdrawal, a large portion of the units were exported to Iran where they operated for a further eight years, giving the Class 141 a total lifespan of 21 years. Background By the beginning of the 1980s, British Rail (BR ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pontefract Tanshelf
Pontefract Tanshelf railway station is the most central station in the town of Pontefract, West Yorkshire, England, and serves Pontefract Races, the racecourse located just down the street from the station. It lies on the Pontefract Line operated by Northern and is east of Wakefield Kirkgate. In the days of coal mining in the Pontefract area, the station served the needs of the local workforce with regular and frequent services timed for the beginning and the end of mining shifts. The station is the closest to the former Prince of Wales Colliery which closed in 2002. The station serves Beechnut Lane, the home ground of Pontefract Collieries F.C. The first station on the site was opened in July 1871 as ''Tanshelf'', being renamed ''Pontefract Tanshelf'' in 1936. It was closed in January 1967, when the passenger services were diverted away from the direct line to Wakefield Kirkgate (via , to serve Leeds via Castleford. The present station was opened by West Yorkshire Met ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tightlock Coupling
Type H Tightlock couplers are a variety of Janney coupler, typically used on North American mainline passenger rail cars. They are designed with mechanical features which reduce slack in normal operation and prevent telescoping in derailments, yet remain compatible with other Janney types used by North American freight railroads. Like all Janney couplers, the Tightlock is "semi-automatic" with the couplers on cars or locomotives automatically locking when cars are pushed together. However, most tightlock couplers are not fully automatic, as workers still need to go between cars to hook up the air lines for the pneumatic brakes, and connect cables for head-end power and other communications. Also, to separate cars, a worker needs to use a lever to move the locking pin that keeps the coupler closed. In Europe, some operators experimented with making fully automatic tightlock couplers by adding integral pneumatic and electric connectors, but these connections experienced reliabi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Composite Material
A composite material (also called a composition material or shortened to composite, which is the common name) is a material which is produced from two or more constituent materials. These constituent materials have notably dissimilar chemical or physical properties and are merged to create a material with properties unlike the individual elements. Within the finished structure, the individual elements remain separate and distinct, distinguishing composites from mixtures and solid solutions. Typical engineered composite materials include: * Reinforced concrete and masonry *Composite wood such as plywood * Reinforced plastics, such as fibre-reinforced polymer or fiberglass * Ceramic matrix composites ( composite ceramic and metal matrices) *Metal matrix composites *and other advanced composite materials There are various reasons where new material can be favoured. Typical examples include materials which are less expensive, lighter, stronger or more durable when compared with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Track Circuit
A track circuit is an electrical device used to prove the absence of a train on rail tracks to signallers and control relevant signals. An alternative to track circuits are axle counters. Principles and operation The basic principle behind the track circuit lies in the connection of the two rails by the wheels and axle of locomotives and rolling stock to short an electrical circuit. This circuit is monitored by electrical equipment to detect the absence of the trains. Since this is a safety appliance, fail-safe operation is crucial. Hence the circuit is designed to indicate the presence of a train when failures occur. On the other hand, false occupancy readings are disruptive to railway operations and must be minimized. Track circuits allow railway signalling systems to operate semi-automatically, by displaying signals for trains to slow or stop in the presence of occupied track ahead of them. They help prevent dispatchers and operators from causing accidents, both by info ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
British Rail Class 140
The British Rail Class 140 was the prototype of the ''Pacer'' diesel multiple unit. It was constructed between 1979 and 1981 in response to a desire within British Rail to develop a capable railbus for its smaller branch line services. Much of the bodywork was constructed using Leyland National bus components, with the exception of the cabs. Based on the single car railbus prototypes, the Class 140 was built to BR's then stringent regulations regarding crashworthiness and resistance to end loading; as such, much of its intention lightweight 'bus on a wagon' look was lost, becoming a more substantial vehicle. Throughout the 1980s, the sole member of the class functioned as a trials and demonstration unit, acting as a herald to the closely-related Class 141. Since its withdrawal, the unit has been preserved at the Keith and Dufftown Railway. Background By the beginning of the 1980s, British Rail (BR) operated a large fleet of first generation DMUs, which had been construc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
British Rail Sprinter
The Sprinter is a family of diesel multiple unit trains in use on the British railway system. They were built in the 1980s and early-1990s by British Rail Engineering Limited (BREL), Metro-Cammell and Leyland. Most have Cummins engines with Voith hydraulic transmissions, although 47 Class 158 units have Perkins engines instead. Sprinters can be seen operating in almost every part of Great Britain, from rural branch lines to commuter expresses into major cities. Originally British Rail coined the "Sprinter" name for the units, mainly to promote the superior acceleration capabilities of the units compared with the first-generation DMUs they replaced. Advertisements such as "The Sprinters are coming" were locally advertised in newspapers when these trains were scheduled to be introduced. Great play was also made of, in many cases, reduced journey times. Background By the beginning of the 1980s, British Rail (BR) operated a large fleet of first generation DMUs, which had bee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
British Rail Class 150
The British Rail Class 150 ''Sprinter'' is a class of diesel multiple unit passenger trains; they were developed and constructed by BREL York between 1984 and 1987 for use on regional services across the UK. The type is a second-generation design, built to more modern standards and based on BR's Mark 3 body design for longer-distance services. It was developed alongside the lower-cost ''Pacers'', which were built using bus parts, for use on short-distance services. Two prototype units were built, followed by 135 production units in two batches. Subsequently, further members of the Sprinter family were also developed and introduced to service, including the Class 155, Class 156, Class 158 and Class 159. Background By the beginning of the 1980s, British Rail (BR) was operating a large fleet of first-generation DMUs of various designs. While formulating its long-term strategy for this sector of its operations, BR planners recognised that there would be considerable costs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Asbestos
Asbestos () is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous crystals, each fibre being composed of many microscopic "fibrils" that can be released into the atmosphere by abrasion and other processes. Inhalation of asbestos fibres can lead to various dangerous lung conditions, including mesothelioma, asbestosis, and lung cancer, so it is now notorious as a serious health and safety hazard. Archaeological studies have found evidence of asbestos being used as far back as the Stone Age to strengthen ceramic pots, but large-scale mining began at the end of the 19th century when manufacturers and builders began using asbestos for its desirable physical properties. Asbestos is an excellent electrical insulator and is highly fire-resistant, so for much of the 20th century it was very commonly used across the world as a building material, until its adverse effects on human health were more widely acknowledg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of British Rail Diesel Multiple Unit Classes
This is a list of British Rail diesel multiple-unit train classes. For a historical overview of diesel multiple unit train development in Great Britain, see British railcars and diesel multiple units. Pre-nationalisation designs * GWR railcars * LMS railcars First Generation Early BR DMUs (79xxx series) TOPS classes Second generation Lightweight railcars Pacers Sprinters Turbos Networker Turbostar Coradias Desiro Civity Diesel-electric multiple units (DEMUs) Southern Region DEMUs Second Generation Voyager-style express DEMUs High-speed trains See also * List of British Rail electric multiple unit classes * British Rail locomotive and multiple unit numbering and classification * British Rail coach type codes British Railways coach designations were a series of letter-codes used to identify different types of coaches, both passenger carrying and non-passenger carrying stock (NPCS). The code was generally painted on the end of the coach but n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmenistan to the north, by Afghanistan and Pakistan to the east, and by the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf to the south. It covers an area of , making it the 17th-largest country. Iran has a population of 86 million, making it the 17th-most populous country in the world, and the second-largest in the Middle East. Its largest cities, in descending order, are the capital Tehran, Mashhad, Isfahan, Karaj, Shiraz, and Tabriz. The country is home to one of the world's oldest civilizations, beginning with the formation of the Elamite kingdoms in the fourth millennium BC. It was first unified by the Medes, an ancient Iranian people, in the seventh century BC, and reached its territorial height in the sixth century BC, when Cyrus the Great f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leyland National
The Leyland National is an integrally-constructed United Kingdom, British high-floor, step-floor single-decker bus manufactured in large quantities between 1972 and 1985. It was developed as a joint project between two UK nationalised industries – the National Bus Company (UK), National Bus Company and British Leyland. Buses were constructed at a specially built factory at the Lillyhall Industrial Estate, Workington. Styling was carried out by the Italian vehicle stylist Giovanni Michelotti, previously commissioned by both Triumph Motor Company, Triumph (Triumph Herald, Herald, Triumph TR4, TR4, Triumph GT6, GT6, Triumph 2000, 2000/2500, Triumph 1300, 1300, Triumph Dolomite, Dolomite and Triumph Stag, Stag) and Scammell lorries (Routeman GRP cab). It was intended to replace all the rear-engine design, rear-engined single-decker buses offered by British Leyland, including the AEC Swift, Bristol RE, single-deck Daimler Fleetline, Daimler Roadliner and Leyland Panther. Design ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Railbus
A railbus is a lightweight passenger railcar that shares many aspects of its construction with a bus, typically having a bus (original or modified) body and four wheels on a fixed base, instead of on bogies. Originally designed and developed during the 1930s, railbuses have evolved into larger dimensions, with characteristics similar in appearance to a light railcar, with the terms ''railcar'' and ''railbus'' often used interchangeably. Railbuses designed for use specifically on little-used railway lines were commonly employed in countries such as Germany, Italy, France, the United Kingdom and Sweden. Today, railbuses are being replaced by modern light DMU railcar designs. Modern diesel-electric railcars, which can be run coupled as multiple units, like the Stadler RS1, the RegioSprinter of Siemens or the successor Siemens Desiro share role and specifications with railbuses (albeit with improvements in noise, low floor design, fuel efficiency, speed and other measures) but ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
