List of British Rail electric multiple unit classes facts for kids

This article is a list of all the electric multiple units (EMUs) that have been given a special code number (called a TOPS classification) or used on the main train lines in Great Britain since 1948, including during the time of British Railways and after the railways became private companies. If you want to learn more about how electric trains developed in Great Britain, check out the British electric multiple units article.

British Rail used many different types of electric trains on its electrified lines:

• AC trains get their power (25 kV alternating current (AC) or 25,000 volts of AC electricity) from overhead wires. On some routes like the Great Eastern Main Line and North Clyde Line, a lower voltage of 6.25 kV AC was used because there wasn't enough space for the wires. Older Midland Railway trains used 6.6 kV AC. Under the computer numbering system, AC trains (including those that could also use DC power) were given class numbers from 300 to 399.
• DC trains get their power (650-850 V direct current (DC) or 650-850 volts of DC electricity) from a special third rail on the ground. This was common on the Southern Region and in places like North London, Merseyside, and Tyneside. Some lines, like the Manchester-Bury Railway, used 1,200 V DC from a side-contact third rail. Other lines, like the Manchester South Junction & Altrincham and "Woodhead" routes, used 1,500 V DC from overhead wires. DC trains were given class numbers from 400 to 599.

AC and Dual-Voltage Electric Trains

These are trains that run on AC power, or can switch between AC and DC power.

First Generation AC Trains

These were some of the earliest electric trains used after British Rail was formed.

TOPS Class	Older Class	Train Name or Information	Built	Number of Sets	Image	Withdrawn
	ex-MR units	Used on the Lancaster-Morecambe-Heysham line	1908	3 (4-car)		1953
Class 300		Planned parcel trains				Never built
	AM1	Test trains for 25 kV AC power	1952	4		1966
Class 302	AM2	Used on the London-Tilbury-Southend line	1958–1960	112	Class 302 train	1999
Class 303	AM3	Used in Strathclyde and Greater Manchester	1959–1961	91	Class 303 train	1974–2002
Class 304	AM4	Used in Greater Manchester, Liverpool, and Birmingham	1960	45	Class 304 train	1992–1996
Class 305	AM5	Used on Chingford and Enfield lines	1959	71	Class 305 train	1992–2001
Class 306	AM6	Used for inner-suburban services to Shenfield	1949	92	Class 306 train	1981
Class 307	AM7	Used for outer-suburban services to Southend	1954–1956	32	Class 307 train	1990–1993
Class 308	AM8	Used on Eastern Region lines	1959	45	Class 308 train	1983, 1992, 2001
Class 309	AM9	Used for the Clacton Express	1962–1963	76	Class 309 train	1994–2000
Class 310	AM10	Used for Euston outer-suburban and West Midlands services	1965–1967	50	Class 310 train	1967, 1989, 2001–2002
Class 311	AM11	Used in Strathclyde	1966–1967	19	Class 311 train	1990
Class 312		Used for Great Eastern and Great Northern suburban services	1975–1978	196	Class 312 train	2003–2004

Second Generation AC Trains

These trains were built from the late 1970s onwards.

TOPS Class	Built for	Builder	Number Built	Image	Withdrawn
Class 313	BR Eastern Region (Great Northern)	BREL York 1976-1977	64 x 3-car sets	Class 313 train	2019 (GN) 2023 (Southern)
Class 314	BR Scottish Region (Argyle Line)	BREL York 1979	16 x 3-car sets	Class 314 train	2018–2019
Class 315	BR Eastern Region (Great Eastern)	BREL York 1980-1981	61 x 4-car sets	Class 315 train	2018–2022
Class 316 (I)	Proposed units for Picc-Vic services	(never built)	-		Never built
Class 316 (II)	AC Networker prototype	Converted from other trains	1 x 4-car set	Class 316 (II) train	Out of service
Class 316 (III)	Test unit	Converted from Class 307	1 x 3-car set		2006
Class 317	London Midland Region and Network SouthEast	BREL York 1981-1987	72 x 4-car sets	Class 317 train	2020–2022
Class 318	Provincial ScotRail	BREL York 1985-1986	21 x 3-car sets	Class 318 train	still in use
Class 319	Network SouthEast (Thameslink services)	BREL York 1987-1990	86 x 4-car sets	Class 319 train	still in use
Class 320	Provincial ScotRail	BREL York 1990	22 x 3-car sets	Class 320 train	still in use
Class 321	Network SouthEast and Regional Railways	BREL York 1988-1991	117 x 4-car sets	Class 321 train	2021–2023
Class 322	Network SouthEast (Stansted Express)	BREL York 1990	5 x 4-car sets	Class 322 train	2022
Class 325	Rail Express Systems (for Royal Mail)	ABB Derby 1995-1996	16 x 4-car units	Class 325 train	still in use

Modern AC Trains (Third Generation)

These trains use advanced electronic parts for better power control.

TOPS Class	Built for	Builder	Number Built	Image	Withdrawn
Class 323	Regional Railways	Hunslet Transportation Projects/Holec 1992-1995	43 x 3-car sets	Class 323 train	still in use
Class 331 (I)	Proposed for London, Tilbury and Southend	(never built)			Never built
Class 331 (II) Civity	Arriva Rail North	CAF 2017-2020	31 x 3-car units 12 x 4-car units	Class 331 (II) train	still in use
Class 332	Heathrow Express	Siemens Transportation Systems/CAF 1997-2002	9 x 4-car sets 5 x 5-car sets	Class 332 train	2020
Class 333	Arriva Trains Northern	Siemens Transportation Systems/CAF 2000-2003	16 x 4-car sets	Class 333 train	still in use
Class 334 Juniper	ScotRail	Alstom Birmingham 1999-2002	40 x 3-car sets	Class 334 train	still in use
Class 341 Networker	Proposed for Crossrail	(never built)	-		Never built
Class 342 Networker	Proposed for Channel Tunnel Rail Link Domestic Services	(never built)	-		Never built
Class 345 Aventra	Elizabeth line	Bombardier Derby 2015-2019	70 x 9-car sets	Class 345 train	still in use
Class 350 (I)	Original classification of Class 325
Class 350 (II) Desiro	Silverlink and Central Trains	Siemens Transportation Systems 2004-2014	87 x 4-car sets	Class 350 (II) train	still in use
Class 357 Electrostar	LTS Rail	Adtranz/Bombardier Derby 1999-2002	74 x 4-car sets	Class 357 train	still in use
Class 360 Desiro	First Great Eastern and Heathrow Connect	Siemens Transportation Systems 2002-2005	21 x 4-car sets 5 x 5-car sets	Class 360 train	still in use
Class 365 Networker	Network SouthEast	ABB York 1994-1995	41 x 4-car sets	Class 365 train	2021
Class 371 Networker	Proposed for Thameslink 2000	(never built)	-		Never built
Class 375 Electrostar	Connex South Eastern and South Eastern Trains	Adtranz/Bombardier Derby 1999-2005	10 x 3-car sets 102 x 4-car sets	Class 375 train	still in use
Class 376 Electrostar	South Eastern Trains	Bombardier Derby 2004-2005	36 x 5-car sets	Class 376 train	still in use
Class 377 Electrostar	Southern	Bombardier Derby 2001-2014	28 x 3-car sets 177 x 4-car sets 34 x 5-car sets	Class 377 train	still in use
Class 378 Capitalstar	London Overground	Bombardier Derby 2008-2011	57 x 5-car sets	Class 378 train	still in use
Class 379 Electrostar	National Express East Anglia	Bombardier Derby 2010-2011	30 x 4-car sets	Class 379 train	2022
Class 380 Desiro	First ScotRail	Siemens Mobility 2009-2011	22 x 3-car sets 16 x 4-car sets	Class 380 train	still in use
Class 381 Networker	Proposed Network SouthEast express units	(never built)	-		Never built
Class 385 AT200	Abellio ScotRail	Hitachi 2015-2019	46 x 3-car sets 24 x 4-car sets	Class 385 train	still in use
Class 387 Electrostar	Thameslink, Great Western Railway, c2c	Bombardier Derby 2014-2017	107 x 4-car sets	Class 387 train	still in use
Class 700 Desiro City	Thameslink	Siemens Mobility 2014-2018	60 x 8-car sets 55 x 12-car sets	Class 700 train	still in use
Class 701 Aventra	South Western Railway	Bombardier/Alstom Derby 2019-	30 x 5-car sets 60 x 10-car sets	Class 701 train	still in use
Class 705	Original classification of Class 701
Class 707 Desiro City	South West Trains	Siemens Mobility 2015-2018	30 x 5-car sets	Class 707 train	still in use
Class 710 Aventra	London Overground	Bombardier Derby 2017-2020	48 x 4-car sets 6 x 5-car sets	Class 710 train	still in use
Class 711	Original classification of Class 701
Class 717 Desiro City	Great Northern	Siemens Mobility 2018-2019	25 x 6-car sets	Class 717 train	still in use
Class 720 Aventra	Greater Anglia and c2c	Bombardier/Alstom Derby 2018-2020	145 x 5-car sets	Class 720 train	still in use
Class 730 Aventra	West Midlands Trains	Bombardier/Alstom Derby 2020-2021	36 x 3-car sets 45 x 5-car sets	Class 730 train	still in use
Class 745 FLIRT	Greater Anglia	Stadler Rail 2018-2020	20 x 12-car sets	Class 745 train	still in use
Class 755 FLIRT	Greater Anglia	Stadler Rail 2018-2020	14 x 3-car sets 24 x 4-car sets	Class 755 train	still in use
Class 756 FLIRT	Transport for Wales Rail	Stadler Rail TBC	7 × 3-car sets 17 × 4-car sets		still in use
Class 768	Rail Operations Group	BREL York 1987-88 Brush Traction 2020- (conversion)	10 x 4-car sets		still in use
Class 769 Flex	Great Western Railway, Northern Trains, Rail Operations Group, Transport for Wales Rail	BREL York 1987-88 Brush Traction 2017-2020 (conversion)	35 x 4-car sets	Class 769 train	still in use
Class 777 METRO	Merseyrail	Stadler Rail 2018-2021	52 x 4-car sets	Class 777 train	still in use
Class 799 HydroFlex	Porterbrook	BREL York, 1987 Quinton Rail Technology Centre 2019 (conversion)	2 x 4-car sets		still in use

High-Speed Electric Trains

These are special trains designed to travel very fast, over 190 km/h (118 mph).

TOPS Class	Built for	Builder	Number Built	Image	Withdrawn
Class 370 APT-P	Prototype APT	BREL Derby 1979	6 x 7-car half sets 2 spare cars	Class 370 train	1985–1986
Class 373 TGV	Eurostar	GEC Alsthom, La Brugeoise et Nivelles 1992-1996	14 x 8-car half sets 62 x 10-car half sets 1 spare car	Class 373 train	2014– still in use
Class 374 Velaro UK	Eurostar	Siemens Mobility 2011-2018	34 x 8-car half sets	Class 374 train	still in use
Class 390 Pendolino	Virgin Trains	Alstom 2001-2012	22 x 9-car sets 35 x 11-car sets	Class 390 train	still in use
Class 395 Javelin	Southeastern	Hitachi, Japan 2007-2009	29 x 6-car sets	Class 395 train	still in use
Class 397 Civity	TransPennine Express	CAF 2017-2019	12 x 5-car sets	Class 397 train	still in use
Class 800 AT300	London North Eastern Railway	Hitachi 2014-2018	34 x 9-car sets 46 x 5-car sets	Class 800 train	still in use
	Great Western Railway
Class 801 AT300	London North Eastern Railway	Hitachi 2017-2020	30 x 9-car sets 12 x 5-car sets	Class 801 train	still in use
Class 802 AT300	Great Western Railway	Hitachi 2017-2020	46 x 5-car 14 x 9-car sets	Class 802 train	still in use
	Hull Trains
	TransPennine Express
Class 803 AT300	Lumo	Hitachi Newton Aycliffe	5 x 5-car sets	Class 803 train	still in use
Class 805 AT300	Avanti West Coast	Hitachi Newton Aycliffe	13 x 5-car sets		Still not in service
Class 807 AT300			10 x 7-car sets
Class 810 Aurora	East Midlands Railway		33 x 5-car sets

DC Electric Trains

These trains run on DC power, usually from a third rail.

Southern Region Trains

The Southern Railway and its later version, the Southern Region of British Rail, used special three-letter codes for their DC electric trains. These trains were given class numbers in the 400s under the TOPS system.

Trains from Before Nationalisation

These trains were built before the railways became owned by the government.

4Sub unit no. 8143 at the National Railway Museum

TOPS Class	SR Class	Train Name or Information	Built	Number of Sets	Image	Withdrawn
Class 401	2-Bil		1935–38	152	Class 401 train	1965–71
Class 402	2-Hal		1938–1955	100	Class 402 train	1969–71
	2-Pan
	2-Nol		1934–36	78		1956–59
	2-SL	South London	1929	8		1954
	2-Wim	Wimbledon-Croydon	1929	4		1954
	3-Sub		1946–51	184	Class 405 train	1976–83
	4-Buf		1937–38	85	Class 404 train	1964
Class 404	4-Cor				Class 404 train	1968–71
	4-DD	Double Deck EMU	1949	2	Class 4DD train	1971
	4-Gri
	4-Lav		1930–1940	35	Class 4Lav train	1968–69
	4-Res
Class 405	4-Sub				Class 405 train
Class 403	5-Bel	Brighton Belle London Victoria-Brighton	1932	15	Class 403 train	1 (p)
	6-Cit	London Bridge-Brighton
	6-Pan	Pantry units
	6-Pul	Pullman London Victoria-Brighton

Trains with Mark 1 and 2 Designs

These trains used common body designs known as Mark 1 and Mark 2.

Gatwick Express Class 489 unit no. 489110 at London Victoria

TOPS Class	SR Class	Train Name or Information	Image	Scrapped
Class 410	4-Bep		Class 410/411/412 trains	About 114 in total
Class 411	4-Cep
Class 412	4-Bep
Class 413	4-Cap	Two 2Hap units joined together	Class 413 train	All
Class 414	2-Hap		Class 414 train	207
Class 415	4-EPB		Class 415 train	282
Class 416	2-EPB		Class 416 train	121
Class 418	2-Sap	2Hap units with first-class seats changed to regular seats	Class 418 train	All
Class 419	MLV	Used for boat trains from London to Dover/Folkestone	Class 419 train	2
Class 420	4-Big		Class 420/421/422 trains	About 140 in total
Class 421	4/3-Cig 3-Cop	Last two of these trains were removed from service in 2010
Class 422	4-Big 8-Dig
Class 423	4-Vep 4-Vop		Class 423/427 trains	About 188 in total
Class 427	4-Veg	First trains used for Gatwick Express
Class 430	4-Rep		Class 430/431/432 trains	14
Class 431	6-Rep
Class 432	4-Rep
Class 438	3-TC 4-TC		Class 438 train	27
Class 480	8-Vab
Class 482 (I)	8-Mig
Class 488		Gatwick Express Trailers	Class 488 train	14
Class 489	GLV	Gatwick Express driving trailers	Class 489 train	3
Class 499 (I)	TLV			All

Tube Trains

These are trains that were originally designed for underground lines.

Island Line Class 483 unit no. 483004 at Smallbrook Junction

TOPS Class	Number Built	Train Name or Information	Image	Number Scrapped
Class 482 (II)	10 x 4-car	Used on the Waterloo & City line; later sold to London Underground	Class 482 (II) train	None
Class 483	10 x 2-car	Used on the Island Line; originally London Underground 1938 stock	Class 483 train	4
Class 485	6 x 4-car	Originally London Underground Standard stock	Class 485 train	about 5
Class 486	6 x 3-car	Originally London Underground Standard stock	Class 486 train	All
Class 487	28 x 1-car	Used on the Waterloo & City Line	Class 487 train	27

Modern DC Electric Trains

These are newer DC electric trains.

South West Trains Class 455 unit no. 455713 at Wimbledon railway station

Southeastern Class 466 unit no. 466018 at Bromley North railway station

TOPS Class	Number Built	Train Name or Information	Image	Scrapped
Class 424	1	Networker Classic Prototype		1
Class 442	24	Wessex Express	Class 442 train	119 cars
Class 444	45	Siemens Desiro	Class 444 train	None
Class 445	2	Second Generation EMU prototype - 4 car	Class 445/446 trains	All
Class 446	1	Second Generation EMU prototype - 2 car
Class 447	Never Built	Proposed Battersea Bullet		Never built
Class 450	127	Siemens Desiro	Class 450 train	None
Class 455	137		Class 455 train	54
Class 456	24		Class 456 train	All
Class 457	1	DC Networker prototype	Class 457 train	1
Class 458	36	Juniper	Class 458 train	None
Class 460	8	Juniper - Gatwick Express	Class 460 train	DMLFOs (4 cars)
Class 465	147	Networker - 4 car	Class 465 train	None
Class 466	43	Networker - 2 car	Class 466 train	None
Class 471	Never Built	Proposed Networker - Main Line Express	Class 471 mock-up	Never built
Class 484	5 x 2-car	Island Line D-Train; originally London Underground D78 Stock	Class 484 train	None

Other DC Electric Trains

The 500-series class numbers were used for other DC electric trains not from the Southern Region. This included lines in North London, Manchester, and Merseyside.

Merseyrail Class 507 unit no. 507009 at Liverpool Central railway station

TOPS Classes

Class	Info	Image	Number Built	Withdrawn	Notes	Scrapped
Class 501	North London trains	Class 501 train	57	1985	Used 650 V Third & Fourth Rail power	56
Class 502	Liverpool-Southport/Ormskirk trains	Class 502 train	61	1980	Used 650 V Third Rail power	150 cars
Class 503	Mersey-Wirral trains	Class 503 train	45	1985	Used 650 V Third Rail power	44
Class 504	Manchester-Bury trains	Class 504 train	26	1991	Used 1.2 kV Side Contact Third Rail (unique on BR network)	25
Class 505	Manchester-Altrincham trains		22 sets	1971	Used 1.5 kV overhead electric lines	?
Class 506	Manchester-Hadfield/Glossop trains	Class 506 train	8	1984	Used 1.5 kV overhead electric lines	About 7
Class 507	Merseyside trains	Class 507 train	33	2022–	Used 750 V Third Rail power	16
Class 508	Merseyside trains	Class 508 train	43	2022–2024	Used 750 V Third Rail power	41
Class 510	Original classification of Class 455

Older Classes (Pre-TOPS)

• Ex-LNER units (Tyneside trains)
• Ex-LNWR units (North London trains)
• Ex-LOR units (Liverpool Overhead Railway trains)
• Ex-LYR units (Manchester-Bury trains)
• Ex-Mersey Railway units (Merseyside DC trains)
• Ex-W&CR units (Waterloo & City Railway trains)

Battery Electric Multiple Units (BEMU)

A BEMU is an electric train that can run on batteries. The first one was a test unit. Later, a new type of battery electric train was made in 2014 by changing a Class 379 train.

Class	Info	Image	Notes
BEMU	Experimental 2 Car train	BEMU train
Class 230	D-Train	Class 230 train	Can be a diesel train or a diesel-battery hybrid

Trains Not on National Rail Lines

All trains that run on the Network Rail tracks need to have TOPS codes. This is why trains from London Underground, Sheffield Supertram, and Tyne & Wear Metro have their own TOPS classes.

Class	Info	Image	Notes
Class 398 CITYLINK	Transport for Wales Rail tram-train stock		Planned for use on Valley Lines services that will run on both train tracks and street tram lines in Cardiff
Class 399 CITYLINK	Sheffield Supertram tram-train stock	Class 399 train	Used for services to Rotherham that run on both tram and train tracks
Class 499 (II)	London Underground trains	Class 499 (II) train	This class is given to all London Underground trains that use Network Rail tracks, no matter which line they are on.
Class 555 METRO	Tyne & Wear Metro trains		These are the new trains for the Tyne and Wear Metro system.
Class 599		Class 599 train	These trains run on Network Rail tracks between Pelaw and Sunderland.

See also

• List of British Rail diesel multiple unit classes
• British Rail locomotive and multiple unit numbering and classification
• SR multiple unit numbering and classification
• British Rail coach type codes
• Electric multiple unit