BREL facts for kids
BREL, which stood for British Rail Engineering Limited, was a big company in the United Kingdom. It was like the main workshop for British Rail, the national train company. BREL's job was to design and build many of the trains that ran on Britain's railways. They made all sorts of trains, from regular passenger coaches to special high-speed models.
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What was BREL?
BREL was created in 1970. Before BREL, British Rail had its own engineering departments that built and maintained trains. But in 1970, these departments were brought together to form a separate company called British Rail Engineering Limited. This made it easier to manage the huge task of building new trains and keeping old ones in good shape. BREL had several large factories across the UK where thousands of people worked. These factories were known as "works," like Derby Litchurch Lane Works and Doncaster Works.
Building Trains for Britain
BREL was very important for Britain's railways. They built many different types of trains that people used every day. They also worked on new and exciting designs to make train travel faster and more comfortable.
Famous Trains They Built
One of the trains BREL built was the British Rail Class 210. This was a type of train called a diesel multiple unit, which means it had its own engine and could run by itself without a separate locomotive.
BREL also worked on a very special train called the Advanced Passenger Train (APT). This train was designed to go very fast, even around curves, by "tilting" or leaning into the bend. The APT was an experimental train in the 1970s and early 1980s. It was a big step forward in train technology.
They also built parts for the famous InterCity 125 trains, which were known for their speed. Many other types of carriages, like the Mark 2 and Mark 3 coaches, were also built by BREL.
The End of BREL
In the early 1990s, the way trains were designed and built in the United Kingdom changed. The government decided to make these services private, meaning they would be run by private companies instead of being part of British Rail. Because of this, BREL was sold off in parts to different companies. By 1992, BREL no longer existed as a single company. Its factories and operations became part of other railway engineering businesses.
Images for kids
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BREL's original logo
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The InterCity 125 was formed from Class 43 powercars built at Crewe Works and Mark 3 carriages built at Derby Litchurch Lane Works
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Mark 2 carriages were built by BREL's Derby Litchurch Lane Works
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Class 58 locomotives were built by BREL's Doncaster Works
