Post by timelesstable on Mar 7, 2016 22:39:42 GMT 1
Moves are finally afoot to get rid of much-maligned trains built from the body of a bus. But how did Britain's railways come to rely on the Pacer?
There's the rattling, the shuddering, the bouncing and the occasional squealing. You don't have to be a trainspotter to know you're riding a Pacer.
Essentially, each one is an old Leyland Motors bus frame mounted on train wheels and, thanks to the vehicle's rudimentary suspension, regular travellers are all too familiar with the distinctive sounds and sensations.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-35725299
Pacers, built between 1980 and 1987, are one of the UK rail network's more enduring curiosities - a Heath Robinson-esque relic of the British Rail era.
They were only intended as a temporary stopgap to make up for a shortage of rolling stock, with a maximum lifespan of 20 years. But there are still over 200 diesel-powered Pacer carriages shaking around northern and south-west England as well as in South Wales.
Despite being intended for use on branch lines and stopping services in rural areas, they are - to the irritation of many who use them - regularly deployed on busy commuter routes, including those into Manchester, Leeds, Middlesbrough, Sheffield and York, as well as on the Merseyrail network and the Valley lines around Cardiff and South Wales.
There's the rattling, the shuddering, the bouncing and the occasional squealing. You don't have to be a trainspotter to know you're riding a Pacer.
Essentially, each one is an old Leyland Motors bus frame mounted on train wheels and, thanks to the vehicle's rudimentary suspension, regular travellers are all too familiar with the distinctive sounds and sensations.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-35725299
Pacers, built between 1980 and 1987, are one of the UK rail network's more enduring curiosities - a Heath Robinson-esque relic of the British Rail era.
They were only intended as a temporary stopgap to make up for a shortage of rolling stock, with a maximum lifespan of 20 years. But there are still over 200 diesel-powered Pacer carriages shaking around northern and south-west England as well as in South Wales.
Despite being intended for use on branch lines and stopping services in rural areas, they are - to the irritation of many who use them - regularly deployed on busy commuter routes, including those into Manchester, Leeds, Middlesbrough, Sheffield and York, as well as on the Merseyrail network and the Valley lines around Cardiff and South Wales.
