British Rail Class 116

British Rail Class 116
Set T326, formed of vehicles 51131 and 51321, at Arley on the Severn Valley Railway on 15 October 2004, whilst taking part in the Railcar 50 event. This unit is painted in BR Blue/Grey livery, and is preserved on the Battlefield Line Railway.
In service	1961–1990
Manufacturer	BR Derby
Constructed	1957–1961
Number built	DMBS: 108, DMS: 108, TS: 10, TC: 94
Formation	2 or 3 cars per trainset
Operator	British Rail
Specifications
Car length	64 ft 0 in (19.51 m)
Width	9 ft 3 in (2.82 m)
Height	12 ft 4 1⁄2 in (3.77 m)
Maximum speed	70 mph (113 km/h)
Weight	Power cars: 36 tons 0 cwt (80,600 lb or 36.6 t), Trailer cars: 28 tons 10 cwt (63,800 lb or 28.9 t)
Multiple working	Blue Square
Gauge	4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)

The British Rail Class 116 diesel multiple units were built by BR Derby from 1957 to 1961.

Regular use

These units stayed in regular service until 1990, when they began to be withdrawn from traffic. They were replaced on regional services by the new "Sprinter" derivative units, or by Class 323 electric multiple units on services around Birmingham. The final units lasted in traffic until 1995, although a few saw further use in departmental service, as sandite or route-learner units. Several of this class have been saved for preservation.

Parcels use

Three units were converted to carry parcels traffic and reclassified as Class 130, though the individual coaches were not renumbered. The units involved were:

• 50819 + 50872
• 50862 + 50915
• 51137 + 51150

To provide extra capacity, they worked with modified General Utility Vans (GUV) as centre trailers.

Preservation

5 vehicles have been preserved on heritage railways.

Vehicles Numbers			Set Number	Location	Comments
51131	-	51321	T326	Battlefield Railway	51321 is a Class 118 vehicle.
51134	-	51147	C392	Swansea Vale Railway	Damaged in arson attack and subsequently cut up in September 2008.
51135	59445	51148	C393	Swansea Vale Railway	Damaged in arson attack and subsequently cut up in September 2008.
51138	59501	51151	T333	Nottingham Transport Heritage Centre	51138 was used as a sandite vehicle after retirement from normal service. 59501 is a Class 117 vehicle.

References

• Motive Power Recognition: 3 DMUs. Colin J. Marsden
• British Railway Pictorial: First Generation DMUs. Kevin Robertson
• British Rail Fleet Survey 8: Diesel Multiple Units- The First Generation. Brian Haresnape
• A Pictorial Record of British Railways Diesel Multiple Units. Brian Golding

External links

• History of the Class 116s