Regional Railways facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Regional Railways

156438 at Bristol Temple Meads, May 1989.
Main region(s):	East Anglia, North West England, North East England, Wales, South West England
Other region(s):	East Midlands, West Midlands (region), Scotland, Merseyside
Parent company:	British Rail

Regional Railways was a major part of British Rail, the main train company in the United Kingdom. It was created in 1982 and operated trains until 1997. Before 1989, it was known as Provincial.

Regional Railways was one of three main passenger groups within British Rail. It served many different areas across the UK, from big cities to smaller towns. This part of the railway system helped people travel for work, school, and holidays.

In 1997, Regional Railways was split into several smaller companies. This happened as part of the privatisation of British Rail.

How Regional Railways Started

When British Rail changed its structure in 1982, it created three main passenger groups. These groups were designed to manage different types of train services.

• InterCity handled the fastest express trains between major cities.
• London & South East (later called Network SouthEast) managed commuter trains around London.
• Provincial (which became Regional Railways) took care of all other passenger services. This included both long-distance routes and local trains. In some big cities, local train services were also managed by special transport groups.

What Kinds of Services Did Regional Railways Offer?

158770 in Regional Railways Express livery at Blackpool North, 1998

Regional Railways ran many different types of train services. They had both express trains and local services.

Express trains often connected cities that weren't the very biggest, like Birmingham to Norwich. These trains sometimes used older locomotives and coaches at first. Later, newer "Sprinter" trains, like the British Rail Class 158, became common on these routes.

Local services ran on both main lines and smaller branch lines. These trains were often older diesel units from the 1950s. Longer journeys sometimes used older coaches pulled by locomotives like the British Rail Class 31 or British Rail Class 47.

New Trains for Regional Railways

In the early 1980s, many older trains had a material called asbestos, which needed to be removed. This was expensive and didn't make the trains better. Also, the old trains were breaking down more often. So, British Rail decided it was time to get new, modern trains.

Regional Railway branding on a first generation DMU, number 122100

They first tried a prototype train called the British Rail Class 210 in 1981. However, it was too costly to build many of them. So, British Rail looked for other designs.

The "Pacer" Trains

The first new trains were called Pacers. These trains were special because they used parts and ideas from buses, like the Leyland National bus. They were numbered in the 14X range.

When Pacers first started running, they had some problems, especially with their gearboxes. In some areas, like Cornwall, their design caused loud squealing noises on tight curves. Because of these issues, older trains sometimes had to be brought back. But after many fixes, the Pacers eventually became more reliable.

The "Sprinter" Trains

150001 at St Pancras after a publicity run, 1985

British Rail needed trains that were better than the Pacers but not as expensive as the Class 210. In 1984 and 1985, they tested two new designs: the British Rail Class 150 and the British Rail Class 151. These trains used a different type of transmission and were less like buses.

The British Rail Class 150 was chosen for production and started running in 1987. These new trains were much more reliable. They needed to go to the depot for checks only every two weeks, instead of two or three times a week!

Later, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, more "Sprinter" trains were developed. The British Rail Class 155 and British Rail Class 156 Sprinters replaced older trains on longer routes. Their interiors were designed to be comfortable for longer journeys. Key routes in Scotland and across the Pennine mountains got new British Rail Class 158 Express Sprinters. A new network of "Alphaline" services was also introduced.

By the end of the 1980s, more people were using Regional Railways. The cost of running the trains also became much lower compared to the money they earned.

Electric Trains

Regional Railways also introduced new electric trains. The British Rail Class 323 electric trains were built between 1992 and 1995. Forty-three of these three-car trains were made for local services around Birmingham and Manchester. This included the Cross-City Line in Birmingham and services to the new Manchester Airport railway station.

Trains Used by Regional Railways

Class	Image	Quantity	Type	Notes
Trains Pulled by Locomotives
British Rail Class 31			Diesel Locomotive
British Rail Class 37
British Rail Class 47
British Railways Mark 1			Coach
British Railways Mark 2
British Railways Mark 3
Diesel Multiple Units (DMUs)
British Rail Class 101		35	2, 3 or 4 cars
British Rail Class 117		3	3 cars
British Rail Class 121		26	1 car
British Rail Class 122		29
British Rail Class 142 Pacer		96	2 cars	Many units were later scrapped or preserved.
British Rail Class 143 Pacer		25		Many units were later preserved or scrapped.
British Rail Class 150 Sprinter		137	2 or 3 cars
British Rail Class 151 Sprinter		2	3 cars	Both units were later scrapped.
British Rail Class 153 Sprinter		70	1 car
British Rail Class 154 Sprinter		1	2 cars	This unit was a converted Class 150, later changed back.
British Rail Class 155 Sprinter		47
British Rail Class 156 Sprinter		114
British Rail Class 158 Sprinter		182	2 or 3 cars
Electric Multiple Units (EMUs)
British Rail Class 304		45	4 cars	All units were later scrapped.
British Rail Class 305			3 or 4 cars
British Rail Class 323		43	3 cars

Regional Railways Train Colours

At first, many trains kept the standard British Rail blue colour scheme.

From 1986, Provincial (Regional Railways) started using a new look. Trains were painted aircraft blue on the bottom and white on top, with a light blue stripe in the middle. All new trains, and some older ones, received this new paint job. Some trains also had "ScotRail" or "Regional Railways" written on them.

One of the Manchester-based Class 323 EMUs No.323223 in Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive (GMPTE) livery.

The British Rail Class 158 trains, which arrived in 1989, had an "Express" livery. This featured dark grey around the windows, light grey on the rest of the train, and light and dark blue stripes. Some British Rail Class 156 trains also got this look later.

The British Rail Class 323 electric trains, introduced in 1994, had special colours. Trains in the West Midlands had the "West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive" (Centro) colours. Trains in Manchester had the "Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive" (GMPTE) colours.

After British Rail was privatised, many trains kept the basic Regional Railways colours. However, new company names, like "Central Trains", were added. The very last train to wear the Regional Railways colours was a British Rail Class 153 train. It was repainted in July 2008.

How Regional Railways Was Divided

Between 1994 and 1997, as part of the privatisation process, Regional Railways was split into several new train companies. Here's how it was divided: