Remaining Mainline 'Bubblecars'

[BestWestern]

Hi All,

I was over at Canton t'other day and came across ATW's Class 121 'Bubble' sat in the sheds. It got me wondering, how many of these little gems are there still in use/existence on the NR network, anybody know? They seemed to remain popular for odd workings - like the ATW Cardiff Bay-Queen St run - and route learners, so there must be a fair few still knocking about presumably? The ones I could think of are the ATW example plus the two(?) former Severn Tunnel rescue train vehicles which are now also at Canton, SWT had one and don't Chiltern use one in service somewhere? Any more?!

 

[Royston Vasey]

Hi All,

I was over at Canton t'other day and came across ATW's Class 121 'Bubble' sat in the sheds. It got me wondering, how many of these little gems are there still in use/existence on the NR network, anybody know? They seemed to remain popular for odd workings - like the ATW Cardiff Bay-Queen St run - and route learners, so there must be a fair few still knocking about presumably? The ones I could think of are the ATW example plus the two(?) former Severn Tunnel rescue train vehicles which are now also at Canton, SWT had one and don't Chiltern use one in service somewhere? Any more?!

Chiltern have a handful actually, one BR blue/grey, a couple of dark green ones (the stored ones, I think) and a royal blue one. At least 3 are visible from the station car park at Aylesbury - I passed them this morning. One is needed to run the Aylesbury - Princes Risborough shuttle at peak times.

 

[RPM]

Chiltern own four bubble cars; 55020 is in passenger service and carries Chiltern blue livery. 55034 is at Tyseley being prepared for passenger use - it carries BR green livery. 55022 is used for route learning and that sort of thing and carries BR blue & grey livery. 55030 is little more than a shell and is it Aylesbury depot pending disposal - it carries faded NSE livery.

The other three bubble cars at Aylesbury belong to Network Rail although they are/were operated by Chiltern. All three are sandite cars. Maroon liveried 55024 was in use up until 2009 but has not been used since. Railtrack brown liveried 55021 and Network Rail yellow liveried 55019 have been out of use for several years. All three are reported to be up for sale but I've not seen any definite confirmation of this.

The BR green liveried unit at Aylesbury is a three car class 117, converted to a water jetting and sandite unit. It is still usable but only played a standby role last autumn due to DB Schenker winning the contract to operate the Chiltern RHTT (using 66s).

 

[DarloRich]

Chiltern own four bubble cars; 55020 is in passenger service and carries Chiltern blue livery. 55034 is at Tyseley being prepared for passenger use - it carries BR green livery. 55022 is used for route learning and that sort of thing and carries BR blue & grey livery. 55030 is little more than a shell and is it Aylesbury depot pending disposal - it carries faded NSE livery.

The other three bubble cars at Aylesbury belong to Network Rail although they are/were operated by Chiltern. All three are sandite cars. Maroon liveried 55024 was in use up until 2009 but has not been used since. Railtrack brown liveried 55021 and Network Rail yellow liveried 55019 have been out of use for several years. All three are reported to be up for sale but I've not seen any definite confirmation of this.

The BR green liveried unit at Aylesbury is a three car class 117, converted to a water jetting and sandite unit. It is still usable but only played a standby role last autumn due to DB Schenker winning the contract to operate the Chiltern RHTT (using 66s).

I think it is proposed that Chiltern take/buy the three stored/OOU as spares donors to keep the others going

 

[RPM]

55021 was moved over to Aylesbury depot today for stripping. It has apparently been bought by Chiltern. Once all useful spares have been removed it will be scrapped along with 55030.
55024 an 55019 have allegedly both been purchased for preservation.

 

[anthony263]

The ATW class 121 has been out of action for a bit i have been told and it is waiting for spare parts before re-entering service.

 

[route:oxford]

Bit of a shame to see them scrapped.

Should speak to BAE to see if a Hybridrive could be fitted to one of the serviceable shells for experimental use on the UK mainline railway.

If it all fits under the floor of a Alexander Dennis low-floor double decker, it should fit under a 121. Would there be a suitable powered EMU bogie out there that could be swapped with the powered one on the 121?

Even a fully laden Hybridrive bus on a hill-start in Oxford has fantastic very smooth acceleration...

 

[WillPS]

The shell is the whole problem with them - Mk.1 DMUs are not crash-worthy.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

That doesn't rule out using one as a test bed for the technology, though, does it?

 

[seventh-heaven]

The shell is the whole problem with them - Mk.1 DMUs are not crash-worthy.

Not the case with the 121. They are not the same method of construction to the Mk1 and in fact have more similarities with the Mk2. This was the basis of Chiltern's application to the HMRI to continue running them after the Mk1 phase out.

 

[WillPS]

Ahhh right fair enough. In that case I think it's time we got a few more on branch lines etc.

Mind you where would that sort of thing stop? Repatriating the 141s from Iran?

 

[JoeGJ1984]

I mentioned this on another thread, but with Chiltern Railways to be getting the second bubblecar and thence having two for passenger use, why don't they use the two bubblecars for all the services on the Princes Risborough to Aylesbury branch? It would be nice to bring a little bit of heritage to the mainline and this is a self-contained, lightly used branch (which the exception of a few peak-hour through services to Marylebone, which I expect will be run with 165s).

With two bubblecars, this should be feasible and would IMO be much better than using one just for a few runs in the morning peak and then sitting in the siding most of the time. They have it/them, so use it/them! (Perhaps wait for the second bubblecar before doing this though).

Perhaps RPM can pass this on to the 'powers that be' at Chiltern Railways.

This would be similar to what Southern did with the Lymington Slammers.

Incidentally, Wrexham and Shropshire used a bubblecar for route learning (in W&S livery) (don't know its number). I don't know what has happened to it, but I noticed that it hasn't been mentioned.

 

[ChrisCooper]

There must be a reason for getting a second unit. Surely it's either got to be a second diagram, a heavier diagram (requiring a second as a spair) or to double up.

AFAIK the 121s are exempt from the Mk1 regulations in the same way the Lymington Slammers were, due to being used on self contained lines. Stupid regulations anyway, but that's just my opinion. You're more at risk getting to and from the station than travelling around in Mk1 stock.

 

[RPM]

Wrexham & Shropshire used 55022 (960014) which belongs to Chiltern Railways and is in BR blue & grey livery. It had some WSMR vinyls added at the time which have since been removed. The unit is still servicable and is at Aylesbury. Picture shows it after it had been used for the initial WSMR route learning in 2008.

http://anoraksia.ukgeeks.co.uk/p50040706.html

 

[JoeGJ1984]

I did this thread here about the bubblecar and that it was bought for use on the Stourbridge line if Chiltern Railways won that franchise. I presume they haven't won the franchise, so they will be getting a second usable bubblecar refurbished into BR green.

If that's the case I ask if it is possible for Chiltern to run all services on the Princes Risborough-Aylesbury branch (except for peak-hours through services to London Marylebone) using the two bubblecars rather than just the ones in the morning peak and the rest of the time the bubblecars sitting in the siding and services run with a 'boring' 'ordinary' class 165.

 

[87015]

With two bubblecars, this should be feasible and would IMO be much better than using one just for a few runs in the morning peak and then sitting in the siding most of the time. They have it/them, so use it/them! (Perhaps wait for the second bubblecar before doing this though).

Bubble needs a guard - costs money.

 

[JoeGJ1984]

I presume the class 165/168 are DOO then?

 

[RPM]

Yes, 165s and 168s run DOO south of Banbury, except for trains that work into Paddington.

The other issue with running the bubble car is only the Aylesbury link 1 drivers sign the traction, so it can cause problems during disruption if drivers need to be stepped up.

From what I can gather the plan is for 121020 to go for an overhaul as soon as 121034 arrives. Once 121020 is back they will share duties on the branch diagram and may be used together if demand requires it. I don't know if there are any plans to reinstate the evening bubble car workings, or introduce an off peak diagram, we'll have to wait and see.

 

[JoeGJ1984]

It would be nice if they could introduce a couple of workings on, say, a Saturday afternoon and mark it in their timetable - be good to have a bit of heritage that anyone can get to on the mainline, rather than the weekday peak hour that working people cannot use easily.

 

[Tufty]

There is also these two beast's (ex bubble cars) but how often they get on the network if at all I don't know.

http://daveharris722.fotopic.net/p64521853.html


This is the one that does the Cardiff Bay's plus interior shots.

http://daveharris722.fotopic.net/p64521845.html

http://daveharris722.fotopic.net/p64521850.html

 

[RPM]

There is also these two beast's (ex bubble cars) but how often they get on the network if at all I don't know.

http://daveharris722.fotopic.net/p64521853.html

I don't think they are in working order. As far as I'm aware they were bought by ATW as a source of spares for 121032.

 

[mumrar]

I don't think they are in working order. As far as I'm aware they were bought by ATW as a source of spares for 121032.

Just for spares, these units were for Severn Tunnel rescue operations, not sure how they'd have coped with a freight though!

I'm not even sure the Arriva one can be classed as properly mainline, I'm pretty sure it's confined to the branch under it's own power, but anywhere else it is hauled, such as when 50031 (I think) delivered it to Cardiff.

 

[Hydro]

Just for spares, these units were for Severn Tunnel rescue operations, not sure how they'd have coped with a freight though!

Quite easily seeing as there'd only be a driver to evacuate They weren't supposed to haul or drag failed trains out of the tunnel, rather for mass evacuation in the event of a major incident in the tunnel.

 

[RPM]

Just to update this thread, 960021 (55021) was cut up at Aylesbury yesterday (2nd April 2011) and 960013 (55030) was cut up today. Some pictures of 55030 being scrapped here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rpmarks/5584996328/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rpmarks/5584403877/

 

[Blindtraveler]

a question from someone who just doesnt koow, have the remaining in service ones been internally refurbished and how do they comply with dda?

 

[RPM]

I think the DDA is covered either under grandfather rights or by a derogation. The units had to be extensively refurbished. All wooden fittings like the floor and internal window frames had to be replaced in metal. Central door locking, TPWS and OTMR had to be fitted too. They can only be used in passenger service on specific routes too. For example the Chiltern one can only do Aylesbury to Princes Risborough or Aylesbury to Quainton Road.

 

[ACE1888]

Caught the Cardiff Bay Bubble last year, short ride yes, but still the 'only' way to travel for me when on the network, mind you the 'Bubble' on the South Devon Railway a couple of years back (Regional Railways livery then) was great too
Just need the 'Railblue' era to Bridport in a time machine now....1975, just before closure would be ideal