The London Underground Q Stock were trains used on the

District line The District line is a London Underground line running from in the east and Edgware Road in the west to in west London, where it splits into multiple branches. One branch runs to in south-west London and a short branch, with a limited servi ...

of the

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The Un ...

. First introduced in 1938, these

electric multiple unit An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number ...

s were formed from cars built between 1923 and 1935 and new purpose-built cars, and fitted with electro- pneumatic brakes and guard controlled air-operated doors. Trains were made up from cars of different ages with differing appearances, the older ones with clerestory roofs and the newer ones with flared sides. Some units were withdrawn in the early 1960s, although six- and eight-car trains remained on the

with use gradually diminishing to peak hours only, and four car units worked the East London line until 1971.

History

When the

London Passenger Transport Board The London Passenger Transport Board was the organisation responsible for local public transport in London and its environs from 1933 to 1948. In common with all London transport authorities from 1933 to 2000, the public name and brand was Lond ...

took over from the

District Railway The Metropolitan District Railway, also known as the District Railway, was a passenger railway that served London from 1868 to 1933. Established in 1864 to complete an " inner circle" of lines connecting railway termini in London, the first par ...

in 1933, 173 motor cars were less than fifteen years old although most of the trailer cars were of the original 'B Stock' wooden type built in 1904–05. As part of the 1935–40

New Works Programme The New Works Programme of 1935–1940 was the major investment programme delivered by the London Passenger Transport Board (LPTB), commonly known as London Transport, which had been created in 1933 to coordinate underground train, tram, trolle ...

, the replacement of these trailer cars and upgrading the fleet with electro-pneumatic brakes and guard controlled air-operated doors was the priority. The modern motor cars were converted and reclassified 'Q Stock', followed by their two-digit year. 183 trailer cars and 25 new motors were purchased; these became Q38 Stock. The first Q Stock train entered service in November 1938.

Formations

Trains would be of mixed formation with shorter ones running off-peak, although sources differ as to the formations. Some detail eight-car formations of two three-car and one two-car units, whilst six-car trains ran off-peak without the two-car pair, whereas many off-peak trains were four cars in length. In later years trains were reformed into six-car formations, made up of one four-car and one two-car unit, the two-car unit being at the eastern end. Another two-car unit was sometimes added during busy times.

Withdrawal

After World War II the first phase of R Stock took 82 of the Q38 Stock trailers and replaced these with Q31 and Q35 trailers from the 'H Stock'; some motor cars were converted to trailers. Further conversions of the Q38 into the R Stock and O/P Stock followed, 6 and 8 car sets being maintained by converting some of the older motor cars into trailers. The transfer of COP Stock from the

Metropolitan line The Metropolitan line, colloquially known as the Met, is a London Underground line between in the City of London and and in Buckinghamshire, with branches to in Hertfordshire and in Hillingdon. Printed in magenta on the tube map, the line ...

after being replaced by the A Stock in the early 1960s and the introduction of the C Stock on the Hammersmith & City and Circle lines in the early 1970s allowed most of the Q stock to be scrapped. The remaining 28 Q38 Stock cars were included in 4-car units mixed with earlier types that worked the East London line until 1971, although Q38 Stock carriages that had been converted to R Stock ran until 1983. The trains transferred to the East London line had their two-car units removed and placed in store.

History

Formations

Withdrawal

References

Notes

Sources

External links