High Speed Train

HST ( High Speed Train ), also called Intercity 125 , is a thermal oar made up of two motor coaches diesel located at the ends and from five to eight cars (generally seven or eight) of the type Mark 3 . The HST was the first train at high speed with the the United Kingdom, i.e. the first train circulating to 200 km/h. Its trade mark was Inter-City 125 , changed later on into Intercity 125 .

It was brought into service at the end of the Années 1970 by British Rail, at one time when the maximum speed of the trains in the United Kingdom was of 160 km/h. Its more raised speed and its capacities of acceleration and deceleration rapids made of it a material well adapted to the movement of travellers, strongly reducing times of way in the worldwide. The prototype HST improved the world speed records in diesel traction to 230 km/h in 1973 and to 238 km/h in 1987. The concept was repurchased by the Canadian company Montreal Locomotive Works with the current of the Années 1970.

The concept of this train taken however a certain time before reaching the level of reliability hoped and for a long time the trains could not roll at their cruising speed. But for this break-in period, it has been largely used on the service-traveller of high-end to long distance. Without showing signs of ageing, he is greeted by much like the best train of all times in the United Kingdom.

History

The first prototype was produced with the beginning of the year 1970. One then regarded it as a tractor drawn oar, the motor coaches like engines with full title, and the trailers like traditional cars. For this reason, the two prototype motor coaches were indicated under the Classe code 41 (numbers 41001/002) and them cars were numbered in a new series Mark 3 , numbers 1xxxx).

Shortly after the startup of the prototype, one decided to classify the whole of the oar like a motorized Rame thermal indeformable. It was then indicated by the code Classe 252, and so much the motor coaches which the trailers were numbered in a new series (numbers 4xxxx), the lovcomotives ones receiving numbers 43000/001.

The HST was conceived mainly by the teams of engineering of the Railway Technical Center of British Rail, integrating state-of-the-art technologies of the company as regards design of vehicles. The work of overall concept, including the particular drawing of before motor coaches in “nose of shark”, was the work of the famous designer industrial Kenneth Grange of the Pentagram group. One also allots to Grange the decision to remove the plugs in front of the motor coaches, which gave them a more aerodynamic appearance.

The units started to leave production starting from 1976 and were assigned to Class 253 for the areas of the West (with only one car restoring and cooks) and to Class 254 for the areas of the East (with two cars restoring and cooks). the intermediate motor coaches and trailers accepted numbers in the series 4xxxx, like the elements of the prototype oar.

In the years 1980, the motor coaches underwent many breakdowns, which contributed to the abandonment of the indeformable oars. One returned from there to the adopted structure at the origin for the prototype unit: two engines at each end of an oar of passenger cars. This time, however, one did not renumber the material and since the motor coaches were indicated by the code Classe 43.

During Years 1990, a batch of 25 motor coaches HST were remotorisées using engines of traction 12VP185L. These new Paxman engines aimed at reducing the fuel consumption and the emissions of the HST. However, they were shown in service less reliable than hoped.

Use

British

Since 2004, the HST are exploited by First Great Western (84 oars), Midland Mainline (63 oars) and GNER (23 oars). Virgin Trains also had some; they were erased in 2003. Network Rail also has a modified oar HST which it uses like Train of sounding of the ways.

Composition

In general, a train HST is composed of eight cars Mk3 (two cars of First class, a car dresser (and restoring for the first class), and five cars of second class), framed of a motor coach at each end. This composition with double head, whose direction of circulation is reversible, removes the operations necessary traditionally to replace the engine at the head train at the end of the course.

Before 2001, the trains Cross-Country had seven cars, of which only one of first class. With the beginning of the year 2000, their composition included/understood five cases, which allowed better accelerations and the reduction of run times. During last years, Great North Eastern Railway (GNER) added a car of second class additional, thus forming compositions with nine cases.

Delivered

The delivered original one of the oars Inter-City 125 was gray and blue, with a yellow front face (for a better visibility), the yellow color continuing along the bottom of the cases of the motor coaches. It was worth with these trains the nickname of flying banana (flying banana).

The delivered following one was less usually used. It was gray-brownish, gray dark (almost black) around the windows with a red and white band under the windows, and preserved the yellow bands on the motor coaches. A later alternative of this delivered saw the side yellow bands replaced by clear gray and any more the name nor the logo of British Rail did not bear: it raised a new logo InterCity , with the name in characters standard sérif and the image of a trip hammer (known under the name of Roderick ).

After the Privatization of British Rail, the operating companies have repaints oars HST with their own colors, in particular First Great Western changed several times of delivered, to adopt a pink, white and blue topic finally, in agreement with the brand image of the group First.

Foreign

Montreal Locomotive Works (of 1975 with 1985 a subsidiary company of Bomber Transport) buys the concept. She adds to it an active mechanism slope of the cases and an aluminum construction for the cars what gives in 1981 the Train LRC. This one entered in service between Montreal and Toronto, reaching a speed of 160 km/h. Newcomer at the end of the lifetime useful, the engines were replaced before the year 2000 and the cars will be it gradually.

The design of the HST was also taken again for the production of the Australian XPT, which comprise especially designed cars and have a lower top speed (160 km/h). The engine 12VP185L largely equipped these trains.

Future

The HST is very still largely used in the United Kingdom. First Great Western supplemented its park of HST (without replacing some no) with fourteen motorized oars diesel of Class 180 Adelante , which can circulate at the same speed as the HST. As these oars have a motorisatiion distributed under each case, they have performances of acceleration twice faster what reduces run times and authorizes more frequent services. The noise level inside the cars is however higher than in the HST of the fact precisely of the presence of the engines under the floor of the cars, which, combined with less comfortable seats and a too believed interior lighting, made them unpopular near the travellers. They also appeared less reliable, inducing in 2004 a program of general revision intended to cure the main issues. These trains were then replaced by other HST and were transferred in the services First Great Western Link. However as from 2007, the oars Adelantes will be transferred from Great Western to another company (probably Virgin Cross Country or Midland Mainline).

In 2004, First Great Western announced a general modernization of its motor coaches HST, including/understanding the installation of a new engine MTU. Two motor coaches are currently in service of tests with this new engine. In 2005, the company undertook to modify two cars HST to put them at the modern standards. Another car was modernized with experimental screens with the file of the seats in the style of aeronautics. Among engagements of First Great Western for its concession Greater Western, the company announced that it was going to modernize the whole of its park and remotoriser all motor coaches with engine MTU.

In January 2006, a first batch of motor coaches was dealt with by Brush Traction to equip them with engines MTU.

26 oars of park HST of Great Western must be modernized with a greater density of seats following the example the air one for a startup on the M4 sector towards Bristol and Cardiff, and to improve acceleration the cars dresser will be removed. The remainder will be modernized with new seats (leather in First class), and will preserve the car dresser for the services at long distance towards Swansea and the areas of the West.

Midland Mainline recently renewed delivered its HST and is supplementing its park of HST with trains of the Class 222 Meridian (similar to the oars Classe 220 and 221 Voyager of Virgin Cross-Country), which will replace the oars of the Class 170 Turbostar slower.

GNER still exploits oars HST on the not-electrified sections of its concession ECML - during the acquisition of the oars in 1996, the park of cars Mark 3 had received a new interior installation. Currently, these oars ensure of the relations very long distance between London King' S Cross and the north of the Scotland. GNER was committed modernizing its HST within the framework of its new concession to carry them to the same standard Mallard as its park of Intercity 225 recently rehabilitated.

The motor coaches of Great Western also received important modifications of their cooling system to prevent overheating in period of heat wave. The solution adopted by GNER vis-a-vis the problèlme of overheating is to tractor draw the oars under overhead lines using electric engines of Class 91.

The project of HST2 intended to replace the HST is currently on standby. Siemens proposed a design of diesel-electric locomotive derived from its new Venturio model, but the Strategic Rail Authority has to decide to stop this program. Bomber also proposed its JetTrain, a train with Locomotive with gas turbine, in order to replace the HST.

See too

InterCity 225, the electric equivalent of the HST

External bonds

125 Group
BBC News article

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