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British Rail Class 323

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British Rail Class 323
West Midlands Railway Class 323 at Aston in 2019
Interior of a refurbished Arriva Rail North Class 323 unit
In service7 February 1994 – present
Manufacturer
  • Hunslet Transportation Projects
  • Holec Ridderkerk UK[note 1]
Order no.
  • DMS vehicles: 31112 & 31114
  • PTS vehicles: 31113[3]
Built atLeeds[4]
Replaced
Constructed1992–1995[4]
Refurbishment
  • 2011–2013
  • 2018–2021
Number built43[5]
SuccessorClass 730 (West Midlands Railway)[6]
Formation3 cars per unit: DMS-TS-DMS[7]
Diagram
  • DMS vehicles: EA272
  • TS vehicles: EH296[3]
Fleet numbers323201–323243[7]
Capacity
  • As built: 284 seats
  • Refurbished: 277 seats[8]
Operator(s)
Depot(s)
Line(s) served
Specifications
Car body constructionAluminium alloy[3]
Train length70.18 m (230 ft 3 in)
Car length
  • DMS vehs.: 22.810 m (74 ft 10.0 in)
  • TS vehs.: 22.840 m (74 ft 11.2 in)
Width2.800 m (9 ft 2.2 in)
Height3.769 m (12 ft 4.4 in)
Floor height1.156 m (3 ft 9.5 in)
DoorsDouble-leaf sliding plug, each 1.305 m (4 ft 3.4 in) wide (2 per side per car)
WheelbaseOver bogie centres: 16.000 m (52 ft 5.9 in)
Maximum speed90 mph (145 km/h)[7]
Axle loadRoute Availability 3[12]
Traction system
Traction motors8 × Holec DMKT 52/24[5] asynchronous three-phase AC
Power output1,168 kW (1,566 hp) total[12]
Electric system(s)Template:25 kV 50 Hz Overhead
Current collection methodPantograph (Brecknell Willis)[7]
UIC classificationBo′Bo′+2′2′+Bo′Bo′
Bogies
Braking system(s)Westcode EP (disc) and regenerative[7][note 5]
Safety system(s)
Coupling systemTightlock
Multiple workingWithin class (max. 4 units)[7]
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Notes
Sourced from Webber 1999 unless otherwise noted.
Class 323, no. 323209 waiting at Birmingham New Street on 24th September 2003. This unit was operated by Central Trains (now West midlands Trains) and is painted in Centro livery.

The British Rail Class 323 electric multiple units were built by Hunslet TPL from 1992-96. Forty-three 3-car units were built for inner-suburban services around Birmingham and Manchester. These trains were the last vehicles to be built by the struggling manufacturer Hunslet before it collapsed.

Notes[change | change source]

  1. ↑ Hunslet Transportation Projects Limited (HTPL) sold its Birmingham-based design, engineering, and project management functions – including responsibility for the Class 157 and 323 contracts – to the Dutch electrical engineering firm Holec [nl] in March 1994.[1][2]
  2. ↑ Between Birmingham and Bromsgrove.[11]
  3. ↑ The Alstom IGBT system delivers improved reliability, though – in order to avoid the need for expensive recertification – it is configured to emulate as exactly as possible the control and electromagnetic interference characteristics of the original system.[13]
  4. ↑ Both types of bogie are derived from the British Rail Engineering Limited (BREL) BT13 design.[15] RFS Industries was formed in 1987 through a buy-out by former BREL managers of British Rail's Doncaster Wagon Works.[16]
  5. ↑ The regenerative system is the primary brake for the train in normal operation, blended with the friction brakes as required. Emergency braking uses the friction brakes alone, at a force 30% above the normal 'full service' application.[17]

References[change | change source]

  1. ↑ Webber 1999, Table 1 'Chronology'. "Hunslet TPL (Engineering and Project Management) becomes Holec Ridderkerk (Birmingham) Limited, latterly Holec Ridderkerk UK Limited: 15 March 1994".
  2. ↑ Williams, Philip (23 March 1994). "Hunslet has had enough of 'misery line' battles". Birmingham Post. Midland Independent Newspapers. p. 9. Archived from the original on 23 September 2022. Retrieved 4 December 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Fox, Peter (1994). British Railways Pocket Book No. 4: Electric Multiple Units (7th ed.). Sheffield: Platform 5 Publishing. pp. 38–39. ISBN 9781872524603.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Class 323 Electric Multiple Unit Traction Upgrade". Institution of Mechanical Engineers. 5 May 2017. Archived from the original on 8 January 2022. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 "Class 323". Modern Locomotives Illustrated. No. 228. Stamford: Key Publishing. December 2017. pp. 49–53.
  6. ↑ "West Midlands Trains turns back the clock with retro repaint for Class 323". Today's Railways Uk. No. 252. February 2023. p. 55.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 Class 323 Driver's Manual (PDF). Northern Rail Limited. 19 May 2013. Archived from the original on 30 August 2017. Retrieved 1 February 2016.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  8. ↑ "New era of rail travel to begin as West Midlands Railway unveils electric train fleet". West Midlands Railway. 8 February 2024. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Class 323 EMUs to remain in traffic with Northern". Rail Magazine. No. 886. Peterborough: Bauer Consumer Media. August 2019. p. 30.
  10. ↑ "Manchester depot revitalised". Rail Magazine. No. 975. Peterborough: Bauer Consumer Media. 25 January 2023. p. 27.
  11. ↑ "Exploring the "Elgar Line" to Hereford". Today's Railways UK. No. 261. November 2023. pp. 40–47.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Class 323 Electric Multiple Unit (PDF) (1A ed.). Derby: Porterbrook Leasing Company. November 2013. pp. 16, 19–20. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 November 2015. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Walmsley, Ian (23 February 2017). "A Traction Heart Transplant". Modern Railways. Stamford: Key Publishing. Retrieved 29 November 2022.
  14. ↑ Marsden, C. J. (2007). "Class 323". Traction Recognition. Hersham: Ian Allan Publishing. pp. 184–185. ISBN 978-0-7110-3277-4. OCLC 230804946. OL 16902750M.
  15. ↑ Webber 1999, p. 56.
  16. ↑ "Catalogue Description: RFS Industries Ltd, Records 1987–1989". The National Archives. DZ MD/574. Retrieved 29 November 2022.
  17. ↑ Webber 1999, p. 59.


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