![BR Mk1 Brake Suburban E43190](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/91/BR_Mk1_Brake_Suburban_E43190.jpg)
British Railways Mark 1 is the family designation for the first standardised designs of
railway carriage
A railroad car, railcar (American and Canadian English), railway wagon, railway carriage, railway truck, railwagon, railcarriage or railtruck (British English and UIC), also called a train car, train wagon, train carriage or train truck, is a ...
s built by
British Rail
British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most of the overground rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the Big Four British rai ...
ways (BR) from 1951 until 1974, now used only for charter services on the main lines or on preserved railways.
Following nationalisation in 1948, BR had continued to build carriages to the designs of the "Big Four" companies (the
Great Western,
Southern,
London, Midland and Scottish
The London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMSIt has been argued that the initials LMSR should be used to be consistent with LNER, GWR and SR. The London, Midland and Scottish Railway's corporate image used LMS, and this is what is generally ...
and
London and North Eastern railways), and the Mark 1 was intended to be the standard carriage design for use across all lines, incorporating the best features of each of the former companies' designs. It was also designed to be much stronger than previous designs, to provide better protection for passengers in the event of a collision or derailment.
The Mark 1 coaches were built in two distinct tranches: the early vehicles (1951–1960) and the 'Commonwealth' stock (named from the type of bogie used) from 1961 onwards.
Construction
![Mark 1 coach 6313 at Bristol Temple Meads 2006-03-01 03](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/96/Mark_1_coach_6313_at_Bristol_Temple_Meads_2006-03-01_03.jpg)
The design was used for hauled passenger stock,
multiple unit
A multiple-unit train or simply multiple unit (MU) is a self-propelled train composed of one or more carriages joined together, which when coupled to another multiple unit can be controlled by a single driver, with multiple-unit train contr ...
carriages and non-passenger carrying stock. For passenger stock, construction continued from 1951 to 1963, while multiple units and non-passenger carrying stock continued to be built until 1974. Developed by
Derby Carriage & Wagon Works, they were built at Derby,
Doncaster
Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...
,
Eastleigh
Eastleigh is a town in Hampshire, England, between Southampton and Winchester. It is the largest town and the administrative seat of the Borough of Eastleigh, with a population of 24,011 at the 2011 census.
The town lies on the River Itchen, o ...
,
Swindon
Swindon () is a town and unitary authority with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Wiltshire, England. As of the 2021 Census, the population of Swindon was 201,669, making it the largest town in the county. The Swindon un ...
,
Wolverton
Wolverton is a constituent town of Milton Keynes, England. It is located at the northern edge of Milton Keynes, beside the West Coast Main Line, the Grand Union Canal and the river Great Ouse. It is the administrative seat of Wolverton and Gre ...
and
York
York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
works.
These were constructed in two lengths. Most had
underframe
An underframe is a framework of wood or metal carrying the main body structure of a railway vehicle, such as a locomotive, carriage or wagon.
See also
* Chassis
* Headstock
* Locomotive bed
* Locomotive frame
* Undercarriage
Undercarriage is t ...
s long, with
bogie
A bogie ( ) (in some senses called a truck in North American English) is a chassis or framework that carries a wheelset, attached to a vehicle—a modular subassembly of wheels and axles. Bogies take various forms in various modes of transp ...
s at centres; the body was long if the coach was
gangwayed, or if non-gangwayed. A smaller number had underframes long, with bogies at centres; the body was long if the carriage was gangwayed, or if non-gangwayed. The shorter vehicles were intended for use where the
track curvature was too tight to accommodate the longer vehicles, due to excessive overhang.
These lengths allowed for compartments or seating bays wide, plus space for toilets and entrance vestibules; a typical design of Mark 1 vehicle, the TO (Open Third class), had eight seating bays, three entrance vestibules and a pair of toilets at one end. This provided reasonable space. Care was taken to ensure that passengers could enjoy an unobstructed view out of the train from all seats. Seats were aligned to windows and on the long-distance design of Mark 1, the windows had a low sill, just above the floor.
An unusual feature of the design was the bodyside
tumblehome
Tumblehome is a term describing a hull which grows narrower above the waterline than its beam. The opposite of tumblehome is flare.
A small amount of tumblehome is normal in many naval architecture designs in order to allow any small projection ...
curvature, of radius and just noticeable; the windows had flat glass and consequently the upper quarter was separate and in a different plane from the lower glazing, with an intervening transom, and the steel panels were recessed on either side of each window opening to accommodate the difference between the flat glass and the curved sides. The opening portion of the windows were provided with sliding ventilators, with an external aerofoil for draught-free ventilation, the correct opening position being marked by a pair of arrows. Doors were provided with frameless droplights manufactured by Beclawat; these were supported by a spring-loaded lazytongs mechanism inside the lower part of the door, and the top of the window had a sprung metal clip engaging in slots on either side of the window opening.
The original vehicles had timber veneer interior finishes, and on the main line vehicles small plastic labels were fixed to the panels, giving the type of wood and its country of origin e.g. "Crown Elm Great Britain"; "Lacewood Great Britain", etc. In 1955, an order was placed for 14 vehicles, with manufacturers being invited to incorporate innovative features; perhaps the most striking of these prototypes, which were completed in 1957, were those constructed by
Cravens
Cravens Railway Carriage and Wagon Company Limited was a railway rolling stock builder in the Darnall district of Sheffield, England. Founded by brothers named Craven and known as Craven Brothers, later Cravens Limited, it remained a family busi ...
. Following evaluation, and with the increasing influence of the British Transport Design Panel, Mark 1 vehicles built from the later 1950s onwards were to modified designs. Laminates were used instead of timber panelling, and in the last of the Mark 1 hauled vehicles, fluorescent lighting was fitted instead of tungsten bulbs. An important variant on the Mark 1 design were the 44
Pullman vehicles built by
Metro-Cammell
Metro-Cammell, formally the Metropolitan Cammell Carriage and Wagon Company (MCCW), was an English manufacturer of railway carriages, locomotives and railway wagons, based in Saltley, and subsequently Washwood Heath, in Birmingham. Purchased ...
in 1960. A further change introduced in the late 1950s was the use of aluminium window frames instead of direct glazing into the steel panelling.
The underframes consisted of a heavy assembly of steel sections, with angle used to form bracing trusses. These were placed close to the centre line of the vehicle rather than beneath the solebars, as was characteristic of previous vehicles. The original
bogie
A bogie ( ) (in some senses called a truck in North American English) is a chassis or framework that carries a wheelset, attached to a vehicle—a modular subassembly of wheels and axles. Bogies take various forms in various modes of transp ...
s were a double bolster type, which like the carriages mounted upon them, were designated "BR Mark 1" (BR1 for short). These proved unsatisfactory and a new cast-steel design was introduced from 1958 (often referred to as the Commonwealth type). This gave a superb ride with minimal tyre wear, but was heavy. The final batches of locomotive hauled Mark 1s, and many Mark 1 EMU vehicles, were built with the Swindon-designed B4 bogie. Later on, many BR1 bogie vehicles were retrofitted with the B4 bogie, and a comfortable ride could then be relied on, as was evident in the later EMU vehicles.
An important factor was the compressive coupling, which provided excellent inter-vehicular damping through the
gangway
Broadly speaking, a gangway is a passageway through which to enter or leave. Gangway may refer specifically refer to:
Passageways
* Gangway (nautical), a passage between the quarterdeck and the forecastle of a ship, and by extension, a passage th ...
end-plates, which quickly became highly polished, indicating that they were performing this task.
A device known as a ''tell-tale'' connects the emergency (communication) cord or chain to the train line to facilitate an emergency stop.
Sleeping cars
![BR Mk1 SLC](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/46/BR_Mk1_SLC.jpg)
British Railways and outside contractors built the British Railways Mark 1 sleeping car between 1957 and 1964. Three hundred and eighty cars of three different types were built, with a fourth type created later by conversion. None remain in front-line service and very few are preserved (this was due to asbestos insulation in most carriages).
Three types were designed, based on the BR Mark 1 underframe and profile. All featured 11 compartments with side corridor, an attendants' pantry at one end, and two toilets at the other. There was one fixed berth in first class compartments and two fixed berths in second class. Thus the Sleeper First (SLF) slept 11 and the Sleeper Second (SLSTP) 22. The Sleeper Composite (SLC) had five first class and 6 second class compartments.
Early examples were fitted with BR1 bogies which were later replaced with B5 bogies. Later examples were fitted with Commonwealth bogies from new. The cars weighed 39 to 42 tonnes, with the First-class cars weighing one tonne less than the others, and cars with the fabricated B5 bogies also weighing one tonne less than those with the heavy cast steel Commonwealth bogies.
Modifications
In order to overcome the lack of flexibility in the fleet of sleeping cars,
Wolverton works
Wolverton railway works, known locally as Wolverton Works or just The Works, was established in Wolverton, Buckinghamshire, by the London and Birmingham Railway Company in 1838 at the midpoint of the route from London to Birmingham. The line w ...
modified some of the SLSTP cars with a stowable top berth. The resulting Sleeper Either class with Pantry (SLEP) cars could then be used to better accommodate the fluctuations in passenger demand. The SLEPs were renumbered in the 2800-series.
Replacement
The Mark 1 sleeping cars fleet continued to serve British Rail for many years. With no
Mark 2
Mark 2 is the second chapter of the Gospel of Mark in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. In this chapter, the first arguments between Jesus and other Jewish religious teachers appear. Jesus heals a paralyzed man and forgives his sins, m ...
sleeping car design, the Mark 1s continued until the
British Rail Mark 3 sleeping cars entered service in the early 1980s.
1957 prototypes
In 1957 a dozen carriages were built: four by
Doncaster Works
Doncaster Railway Works is a railway workshop located in Doncaster, England.
Also referred to as The Plant''", it was established by the Great Northern Railway in 1853, replacing the previous works in Boston and Peterborough. Until 1867 it un ...
and two each by four outside contractors, in an attempt to improve on the existing design. While the passenger comfort level may have improved, the passenger capacity fell (except for the two built by the
Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company
Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company (GRC&W) was a railway rolling stock manufacturer based in Gloucester, England from 1860 until 1986. Products included goods wagons, passenger coaches, diesel multiple units, electric multiple units ...
), resulting in a lower passenger per ton-of-train figure and disdain from BR's operating departments. Further orders to these designs were not forthcoming.
Fibreglass bodied vehicles
In 1962,
Eastleigh Works
Eastleigh Works is a locomotive, carriage and wagon building and repair facility in the town of Eastleigh, in the county of Hampshire in England.
History
LSWR
The London and South Western Railway (LSWR) opened a carriage and wagon works at Eas ...
constructed a single
fibreglass
Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass clo ...
bodied Mark 1. The vehicle, numbered S1000S, was mounted on the underframe of Mark 1
Tourist Second Open
Tourist Second Open or Tourist Standard Open, abbreviated to TSO, is a type of British Railways coach. The designation "Tourist" was originally as opposed to a normal SO ( Second Open) coach. Both types have the same number of seating bays per ...
S4378, which was written off as a result of the
Lewisham rail crash
On the evening of 4 December 1957, two trains crashed in dense fog on the South Eastern Main Line near Lewisham in south-east London, causing the deaths of 90 people and injuring 173. An electric train to had stopped at a signal under the bri ...
in 1957. Only the one example was built due to the cost, making this the only fibreglass-bodied passenger carriage built by British Railways. S1000S was used on the
Hayling Island Branch Line
The Hayling Island branch was a short railway branch line in Hampshire, England, that connected a station on Hayling Island with the main line network at Havant. It was built by the Hayling Railway; at first the company planned to run it along ...
until closure in 1963.
[ After use as a generator van at ]Lancing Carriage Works
Lancing carriage and wagon works was a railway carriage and wagon building and maintenance facility in the village of Lancing near Shoreham-by-Sea in the county of West Sussex in England from 1911 until 1965.
History under the LB&SCR
The cramp ...
, it re-entered capital stock. Its final duties were on commuter trains between and .[ After withdrawal, it was stored at . It was purchased in 1973 by the ]East Somerset Railway
The East Somerset Railway is a heritage railway in Somerset, running between Cranmore and Mendip Vale. Prior to the Beeching Axe, the railway was once part of the former Cheddar Valley line that ran from Witham to Yatton, meeting the Some ...
.[ In 2010, the carriage was restored, and is in service on the East Somerset Railway. Repainted into maroon when work carried out in 2016.]
A single van, no. E85000, also had fibreglass body panels. This was converted from a normal passenger carriage (Mark 1 Corridor Composite no. Sc15170) at Derby Carriage & Wagon Works in 1970 to carry parcels conveyed in BRUTE trolleys; it was used until 1982. It weighed , even though it was longer than a normal parcels van weighing .
XP64
Near the end of the production of hauled Mark 1 stock came a series of eight experimental carriages known as the XP64 set. Three Corridor Firsts, two Corridor Seconds, and three Tourist Second Open
Tourist Second Open or Tourist Standard Open, abbreviated to TSO, is a type of British Railways coach. The designation "Tourist" was originally as opposed to a normal SO ( Second Open) coach. Both types have the same number of seating bays per ...
s were built by Derby Carriage & Wagon Works in 1964. Externally they resembled Mark 1 stock with the addition of a cosmetic cover over the solebars of the standard Mark 1 underframes, but inside they included many new features, including pressure ventilation, new seating designs and wider bi-fold doors. Many of these features were later incorporated in the Mark 2
Mark 2 is the second chapter of the Gospel of Mark in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. In this chapter, the first arguments between Jesus and other Jewish religious teachers appear. Jesus heals a paralyzed man and forgives his sins, m ...
stock produced from 1964.
Safety
The British Rail Mark 1 was considerably stronger than most pre-nationalisation designs, and it was noticed as early as 1952 that the examples involved in the Harrow and Wealdstone rail crash
The Harrow and Wealdstone rail crash was a three-train collision at Harrow and Wealdstone station in Wealdstone, Middlesex (now Greater London) during the morning rush hour of 8 October 1952. The crash resulted in 112 deaths and 340 injuries, 88 ...
had withstood the impacts better than the older coaches around them. The improvement in safety the Mark 1 thus represented was praised by the Chief Inspecting Officer of Railways, Lt Col I.K.A. McNaughton (Chief Inspecting Officer of Railways, Department for Transport
The Department for Transport (DfT) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland that have not been devolved. The d ...
), in the Sir Seymour Biscoe Tritton Lecture to the Institution of Mechanical Engineers
The Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) is an independent professional association and learned society headquartered in London, United Kingdom, that represents mechanical engineers and the engineering profession. With over 120,000 member ...
in 1977. Speaking of the fall in fatalities since 1955, he put forward his opinion that a major factor in this improvement was "the introduction in 1951 of the BR standard Mark 1 passenger carriage, which, over a period of about ten years, replaced pre-war designed rolling stock on most principal routes. The damage-resistant qualities of this all-steel coach, mounted on a 200 ton end-load resistant underframe and fitted with buckeye couplings, have been evidenced time and time again. Only in a small number of very destructive accidents has serious body damage of the kind that inevitably leads to fatal accidents been observed and there have been several remarkable instances of high-speed derailments in which no personal injuries have occurred."
Although construction of Mark 1 passenger stock ended in 1963, multiple units and non-passenger carrying stock based on the Mark 1 design continued to be built until 1974.
The 1988 Clapham Junction rail accident highlighted that by the 1980s the Mark 1 coach was dated, and less able to withstand collisions than newer designs. Nevertheless, the Hidden Report into the disaster concluded that withdrawal of Mark 1 units was impractical and the design was not inherently unsafe: "The inventory of Mark I coaching stock is large, and much of it has not reached an end of economic life, nor will do so for another decade or more. Mark I vehicles have good riding qualities, and are not intrinsically lacking in collision resistance."[Hidden Inquiry Report (PDF), from The Railways Archive](_blank)
/ref> British Rail was still using some 4EPB and 2EPB (classes 415 and 416) multiple units with underframes that had been constructed before World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
and these were a priority for replacement.
During the late 1990s Mark 1 stock began to reach the end of its design life and concerns about its safety relative to newer rolling stock became more pressing. The Health and Safety Executive
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is a UK government agency responsible for the encouragement, regulation and enforcement of workplace health, safety and welfare, and for research into occupational risks in Great Britain. It is a non-depar ...
issued instructions in 1999 per the ''Railway Safety Regulations 1999'' to withdraw all Mark 1 carriages and multiple units based on that design by the end of 2002 unless rebodied or modified to reduce the potential for overriding in the event of a collision. A proposed modification to extend mainline use beyond 2002 at the time of the 1999 HSE instruction was 'cup and cone', however trials were inconclusive and deemed expensive in comparison with the safety benefits. In October 2002 the Health and Safety Executive extended the permitted use of Mark 1 based rolling stock until 31 December 2004 with the proviso they be fitted with a Train Protection & Warning System The Train Protection & Warning System (TPWS) is a train protection system used throughout the British passenger main-line railway network, and in Victoria, Australia.
The British Rail Safety and Standards Board's definition is:
The purpose of TPW ...
.[
]
Post-privatisation
During the 1990s, the few remaining Mark 1 loco-hauled vehicles on the main line were withdrawn, having been progressively replaced by Mark 2 and Mark 3 stock through the 1970s and 1980s. However, the extensive Network SouthEast
Network SouthEast (NSE) was one of the three passenger sectors of British Rail created in 1982. NSE mainly operated commuter rail trains within Greater London and inter-urban services in densely populated South East England, although the netwo ...
commuter network on the former Southern Region operated by the Network SouthCentral
Network SouthCentral (NSC) was a shadow franchise that existed from 4 February 1994 to 13 October 1996, when Connex South Central took over the running of the franchise. The franchise is now part of the Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern f ...
, Network SouthEastern and South West Trains
Stagecoach South Western Trains Limited, trading as South West Trains (SWT), was an English train operating company owned by Stagecoach Group, Stagecoach, which operated the South Western franchise between February 1996 and August 2017.
SWT op ...
shadow franchises was worked mainly by Mark 1 based multiple units of the 205
Year 205 ( CCV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aurelius and Geta (or, less frequently, year 958 '' Ab urbe condita' ...
, 207, 411, 412, 421, 422 and 423 classes.
When British Rail was privatised
Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...
in the mid-1990s, only Connex South Eastern
Connex South Eastern was a train operating company in the United Kingdom owned by Connex that operated the South Eastern franchise from October 1996 until November 2003.
History
On 13 October 1996 Connex commenced operating the South Eastern ...
was given an extended franchise (15 years) in return for ordering new trains. Connex South Central
Connex South Central was a train operating company in the United Kingdom owned by Connex that operated the South Central franchise from 26 May 1996 until 25 August 2001.
History
On 26 May 1996, Connex commenced operating the Network SouthCent ...
and South West Trains, the other major users of Mark 1 multiple units, were not required to order new trains. As a result, in 2000, Mark 1 units were still in use across most of the former Southern Region with no new trains having been ordered.
When the franchises were relet in the early 2000s, they were done with a requirement to replace the Mark 1s, thus hundreds of new multiple units of classes 171
Year 171 (Roman numerals, CLXXI) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severus and Herennianus (or, less frequently, year 92 ...
, 375
__NOTOC__
Year 375 (Roman numerals, CCCLXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year after the Consulship of Augustus and Equitius (or, less fre ...
, 376
__NOTOC__
Year 376 (Roman numerals, CCCLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Valens and Augustus (or, less frequently, ...
, 377
__NOTOC__
Year 377 ( CCCLXXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Augustus and Merobaudes (or, less frequently, year 11 ...
, 444, 450 and 458
__NOTOC__
Year 458 (Roman numerals, CDLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Maiorianus and Leo (or, less frequent ...
were introduced by Connex South Eastern, South West Trains and Southern between 2001 and 2005.
A similar story took place in Scotland, with the last of ScotRail's Mark 1 based Class 303 multiple units surviving until December 2002.
The use of Mark 1 stock on postal trains was curtailed when the Royal Mail
, kw, Postya Riel, ga, An Post Ríoga
, logo = Royal Mail.svg
, logo_size = 250px
, type = Public limited company
, traded_as =
, foundation =
, founder = Henry VIII
, location = London, England, UK
, key_people = * Keith Williams ...
partially replaced them in the early 1990s. The postal train services on the West Coast Main Line
The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the most important railway corridors in the United Kingdom, connecting the major cities of London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Edinburgh. It is one of the busiest ...
were worked using new Class 325 multiple units. However, these units proved to be extremely troublesome in service and due to technical failures were often loco-hauled instead of running under their own power , and therefore Mark 1 formations continued to be used here, and elsewhere on the network. However, in January 2004, the Royal Mail ceased using rail to transport mail traffic. Thus, the problem of how to replace the large numbers of Mark 1 carriages on these services was resolved.
Network Rail
Network Rail Limited is the owner (via its subsidiary Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, which was known as Railtrack plc before 2002) and infrastructure manager of most of the railway network in Great Britain. Network Rail is an "arm's leng ...
continue to use converted Mark 1 coaches for various departmental duties – test trains, sandite
Sandite is a substance used on railways in the UK, Ireland, US, the Netherlands and Belgium to combat leaves on the line, which can cause train wheels to slip and become damaged with flat spots. Sandite consists of a mixture of sand, antif ...
units, and accommodation units for worksite personnel are some examples.
A small number of railtour companies have waivers to operate Mark 1 carriage stock on railtour duties. The conditions usually involve the fitting of central door locking and having either a non-passenger or non-Mark 1 carriage at the ends of the train. This is often achieved by running with a locomotive at each end of the train, instead of just at the front, which also reduces the need to run-round at minor terminus stations, many of which lost their run-round facilities when locomotive hauled trains of Mark 1 or Mark 2 coaches gave way to multiple unit operation on service trains.
The final withdrawal of Mark 1s from daily mainline use in 2005, some 54 years since the design entered service. South West Trains was granted a derogation to continue to operating two three-car 421s on the Lymington branch line until 2010.
Due to the lack of central door locking and Mark 1 stock not meeting the latest rolling stock safety expectations, various rules now govern their usage. In particular vehicles lacking central door locking require a steward to be present in each vehicle. Train companies are also recommended to run Mark 1 stock with more robust non-Mark 1 stock at either end to act as a barrier in the case of collisions. Mark 1s continue to be used on special charter trains with charter operators including North Yorkshire Moors Railway
The North Yorkshire Moors Railway (NYMR) is a heritage railway in North Yorkshire, England, that runs through the North York Moors National Park. First opened in 1836 as the Whitby and Pickering Railway, the railway was planned in 1831 by Georg ...
, Riviera Trains
Riviera Trains Limited is a railway spot-hire company based at Burton-on-Trent and Eastleigh in England.
History
Riviera Trains was founded in 1995, initially based at Cranmore on the East Somerset Railway. It later relocated to Crewe and ...
, Vintage Trains
Vintage Trains is an operator of heritage railtours in the United Kingdom. It is a subsidiary of Birmingham Railway Museum Trust, and is based at Tyseley Locomotive Works, the trust's other subsidiary.
Mainline locomotives
Vintage Trains opera ...
and West Coast Railways
West Coast Railways (WCR) is a railway spot-hire company and charter train operator based at Carnforth MPD in Lancashire. Using buildings and other facilities previously owned by the Steamtown Carnforth visitor attraction, in June 1998 the com ...
. The Office of Rail & Road
The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) is a non-ministerial government department responsible for the economic and safety regulation of Britain's railways, and the economic monitoring of National Highways.
ORR regulates Network Rail by setting it ...
has granted these operators an exemption to the ''Railway Safety Regulations 1999'' to continue to operate Mark 1s on the main line until 2023.Mark I and hinged door rolling stock exemptions
Office of Rail & Road
Preservation
Restored Mark 1 carriages have entered service on many of the UK's heritage railway
A heritage railway or heritage railroad (US usage) is a railway operated as living history to re-create or preserve railway scenes of the past. Heritage railways are often old railway lines preserved in a state depicting a period (or periods) i ...
s. Their ready availability has avoided the need for the railways to rely on the limited quantity of surviving pre-BR carriage stock – most examples of which had been scrapped before the railway preservation movement had properly started.
The long service life of Mark 1 carriages means that a heritage railway can (potentially) recreate an authentic period train of the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s or early 1990s, when painted in a suitable livery.
Sleeping cars
Several Mark 1 sleeping cars were bought by preservation societies for use as volunteer accommodation. When British Rail began to run down its overnight sleeper trains, many heritage railways replaced them with 'young' Mark 3 cars. Since most Mark 1 sleeping cars had been built with 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 b ...
insulation, which was expensive to have decontaminated professionally, most were sold for scrap.
Those Mark 1 sleeping cars that survive have been decontaminated and are kept for their value as museum exhibits, as much as for sleeping accommodation.
No Sleeper Either class with pantry (SLEP) has survived, 1 Sleeper Composite exists with 6 Sleeper Firsts and 1 Sleeper Second.
Liveries
British Railways Mark I carriages have been painted in a wide range of liveries. On introduction in 1951 the carriages were painted Crimson Lake (the official Railways Executive designation), usually referred to as Crimson (BS381C:540 Crimson being the British Standard colour reference) and Cream (the combination often referred to colloquially as "blood and custard") for corridor stock and Crimson for non-corridor stock. Corridor passenger stock was normally also lined out whereas non-corridor stock was not. The term 'Carmine' is often incorrectly used as a consequence of an error made by a contemporary railway journalist and has, unfortunately, been repeated ever since.
1956 saw the first big changes, with the end of 'third class' and the return of regional colour schemes. The Western Region promptly adopted Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
chocolate and cream livery for vehicles used on its named express trains and maroon for other stock. The Southern Region reverted to green and the other regions adopted maroon. 1962 saw Southern Region adopt the now familiar yellow cantrail above first class and red above dining cars. By the end of the 1960s this was found on all carriages. In 1962 the Western Region abandoned the use of chocolate and cream.
With the introduction of spray painting in 1964, the coach ends became the same colour as the bodywork. A year later the ubiquitous British Rail blue and grey was introduced with the Mark 2s, and by 1968 most non-suburban Mark I stock was blue and grey; however it wasn't until 1974 that the last maroon Mark 1 was repainted into blue and grey livery. The use of blue and grey continued until 1982 when the first experiments in new liveries occurred. During the BR blue period other changes took place - notably the last 'Ladies Only' compartments vanished in 1977.
1982 saw a proliferation of new liveries, including yellow and grey for stock that was requisitioned for engineering and maintenance work. In 1985 some carriages reappeared in chocolate and cream for the GWR 150th anniversary celebrations, along with a brief Scottish experiment in green and cream. Then around 1988 reclassification of 'second class' as 'standard class' took place.
1983 was the year that the InterCity livery was first seen, 1986 the introduction of Network SouthEast
Network SouthEast (NSE) was one of the three passenger sectors of British Rail created in 1982. NSE mainly operated commuter rail trains within Greater London and inter-urban services in densely populated South East England, although the netwo ...
and the end of the Searail livery.
During the 1980s a complete rake of 1950s built corridor compartment second class Mark 1s (including a BSK) which operated exclusively on the Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
- Stranraer
Stranraer ( , in Scotland also ; gd, An t-Sròn Reamhar ), also known as The Toon, is a town in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It is located in the historical parish of Inch in the historic county of Wigtownshire. It lies on the shores of L ...
route and connected with the Irish Sea ferries, were painted into a very striking Sealink
Sealink was a ferry company based in the United Kingdom from 1970 to 1984, operating services to France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Isle of Man, Channel Islands, Isle of Wight and Ireland.
Ports served by the company included: Dover, Folkesto ...
livery of red, blue, and white, and internally the vestibules (but not the main side corridors) were painted bright yellow to match the refurbished EMUs of the period. Being early 1950s coaches these had all-timber interiors which lent themselves to painting. Following withdrawal from the Stranraer line towards the end of the 1980s this rake was used by ScotRail
ScotRail Trains Limited, trading as ScotRail ( gd, Rèile na h-Alba), is a Scottish train operating company that is publicly owned by Scottish Rail Holdings on behalf of the Scottish Government. It has been operating the ScotRail franchise a ...
on "Merrymaker" charter services, including long-distance trips on the West Coast Main Line, before eventually being withdrawn completely at the very end of the 1980s.
1988 saw the first Regional Railways
Regional Railways was one of the three passenger sectors of British Rail created in 1982 that existed until 1997, two years after privatisation. The sector was originally called ''Provincial''.
Regional Railways was the most subsidised (per pas ...
livery (as well as postal trains and parcels trains turning Royal Mail
, kw, Postya Riel, ga, An Post Ríoga
, logo = Royal Mail.svg
, logo_size = 250px
, type = Public limited company
, traded_as =
, foundation =
, founder = Henry VIII
, location = London, England, UK
, key_people = * Keith Williams ...
red).
From 1995/96 private operators began to paint their stock their own colours.
See also
* Mainline steam trains in Great Britain
Although steam locomotives were withdrawn from normal railway service in Great Britain in 1968, due to sustained public interest including a locomotive preservation movement, steam hauled passenger trains can still be seen on the mainline railw ...
* Rolling stock of the Watercress Line - User of Mark 1 coaches for preservation/heritage railway
* Taunton sleeping car fire
References
*
*G. M. Kichenside ''British Railways Coaches'', Ian Allan ABC
Further reading
*
External links
Southern e-group page
Photographs of Mark 1 coaches in use on British Railways
{{British Rail Coaches
Mark 1
Mark 1 is the first chapter of the Gospel of Mark in the New Testament of the Christian Bible.
Text
The original text was written in Koine Greek. This chapter is divided into 45 verses.
Textual witnesses
Some early manuscripts conta ...
Train-related introductions in 1951