Four decades of the Sprinters: the privatisation years

Following part one’s look at the Sprinter revolution BR implemented in the late 1980s, Pip Dunn turns to how the units are almost all still in traffic and how they have been a valuable tool for the private sector.

In this article:

• The historical allocation and franchising of Sprinter DMUs in the UK rail industry, the various sectors and companies involved.
• Sprinters afce challenges including the impact of new train orders and the gradual phase-out of older models.
• The state of Sprinter units, their ongoing use, and potential future conversions to alternative fuels amid the push for decarbonisation.

In the run-up to privatisation starting in 1994, BR had created business sectors that were aimed at attributing costs better and reducing waste and underutilisation of resources.

All the Class 150, ‘153’, ‘155’, ‘156’, ‘158’ and ‘159’ Sprinter diesel multiple units (DMUs) were allocated to the Regional Railways business, apart from the Class 159s delivered to Network SouthEast.

Regional Railways was responsible for local and rural passenger operations, and was a nationwide sector that included the likes of ScotRail, the Cornish branch lines and many cross-country routes.

Some argued that BR should sell off (or franchise) such sectors - Railfreight, InterCity, Regional Railways, Parcels, Departmental and Network SouthEast - rather than adopt the franchise model ultimately chosen.

However, probably only InterCity and NSE would have really wooed the private sector, as they made money. Regional Railways certainly did not, and required huge subsidies.

Instead, in preparation for the creation of franchises, these sectors were further split into different operations which were then franchised out for given periods. Companies would bid for a franchise based on how they felt they could make money, and even (in some cases) pay money to HM Treasury and so to the taxpayer.

Private Sprinters

Allocation of the Sprinters among the franchises is detailed in the table on page 45. Franchises that inherited Sprinters were North West Regional Railways, Regional Railways North East, South Wales & West Railway, Anglia Railways, Cardiff Railway Co., South West Trains, Central Trains and InterCity CrossCountry. North London Railways hired in Class 150s from Central Trains.

Pre-privatisation, all assets were allocated to one of three rolling stock leasing companies (ROSCOs) that would then be floated on the Stock Exchange and in turn lease the units to the new franchisees. For the Sprinters, the fleets were split only between Angel Trains and Porterbrook (see table, below).

The relevant franchises were initially awarded to Great Western Holdings (FirstGroup), MTL Holdings, Prism, GB Trains, Stagecoach, National Express, and Virgin Group respectively.

An unusual development prior to privatisation came in 1994, when five two-car Class 158s were allocated to the InterCity CrossCountry sector. These were duly inherited by Virgin CrossCountry for use on the Manchester Airport to Edinburgh route - a distance not exactly ideal for a two-car DMU. They were moved on in 1998.

New trains, but no change

The mass of franchise lets made in 1995-96 were often won on the back of promises of new train orders, and several train operating companies (TOCs) announced new diesel trains - typically using the Class 170 Turbostar Platform, with Alstom’s Class 175 Coradia and Class 180 Adelante designs also ordered.

This had no immediate effect on any of the Sprinter units in terms of their fleet numbers. There was, however, some redeployment of fleets.

By the early 2000s, just a handful of ‘heritage’ BR diesel units from the 1950s/60s were still in use. These slam-door trains were high on the list for replacement from their last areas of usage - in Scotland, on the Bedford to Bletchley line, around Manchester, and in Cornwall.

As new diesel trains were introduced, such as Class 185s for TransPennine Express and Class 222s for Midland Main Line, and as other lines were electrified, cascades became possible.

Class 150s were used on the Marston Vale line, Class 158s replaced Class 156s on the routes north of Inverness, and more Class 158s were drafted into the South West Trains operation (some renumbered as Class 159/1s and others as Class 158/8s).

If anything, more trains could now be run as four-car rather than two, so more seats were available to passengers as the railways enjoyed a boom, buoyed by a good economic background which made commuting by rail favourable.

In the 2010s and early 2020s, a drive to eliminate unpopular Railbuses was completed. Many routes that had relied on these trains, such as in Devon, Yorkshire, England’s North West, and the Welsh Valleys, could be handed over to Class 150, ‘153’, ‘156’ and 158 units, some of which had been replaced by Turbostars, Coradias and other new trains.

Sprinters today

Apart from a handful of vehicles that had been written off due to accidents, at the start of the 2020s the entire Sprinter fleet remained in traffic.

In recent times, however, inroads have been made on the single-car Class 153 fleet.

They have been replaced on Greater Anglia, East Midlands Railway, London Midland, and more recently Northern. That has left them in regular passenger use with Transport for Wales.

Additionally, five modified units are used by ScotRail for seasonal traffic, where they are tagged onto Class 156 combinations to provide extra room for luggage such as backpacks and skis, as well as bikes (although they do have some seats that have been retained).

TfW’s fleet is also now split three ways: those original ‘153s’ that have compliant toilets; those which have had their toilets locked out of use as they are non-compliant and are now numbered as ‘153/9s’; and new ‘153/5’ bike units.

The ‘153/9s’ are used to either strengthen trains with units that do have compliant toilets, or on short-distance shuttles such as Cardiff Queen Street to Cardiff Bay or Llandudno Junction to Llandudno Town, where no toilet provision is necessary.

TfW is having six Class 153/5s converted to do the same job as the ScotRail Class 153s, adding capacity for luggage and bikes on scenic rural routes.

Five ex-EMR Class 153s have been taken on by Network Rail for infrastructure monitoring roles, while 153317 has been converted to a Railhead Treatment Train trial unit, currently based at the East Lancashire Railway.

153308/371 are ‘sort of’ preserved but have been moved to the Great Central Railway, essentially for training roles.

Meanwhile, the body of 153374 is to be converted to a cafe at the Llanelli & Mynydd Mawr railway.

So far, 11 units have been scrapped and 15 units are off-lease. If you want to buy a ‘153’, you now have the chance!

Given that it is now 40 years old, the Class 150 fleet has been remarkably resilient. Today units are used by TfW, Northern, Great Western Railway, and now by London Northwestern Railway. And it has only been in recent months that the first of the TfW units have been stood down and sent for scrap.

However, as more Class 197s enter traffic, time will run out for TfW’s ‘150s’. They will be returned to their ROSCO, which will probably mean only one thing… disposal.

But while many will go for scrap, there is every chance that several may be donated or sold for scrap value for use at heritage railways.

The Class 156s seem bullet-proof and are still in demand. So far, just four ex-EMR units have been stood down, and these remain in store at Ely. That said, every month they stay in the open is probably hastening their demise, as there comes a point when they would simply be too expensive to return to use.

However, between Northern and ScotRail, the other 110 two-car units are still plying their trade without too much fuss. They remain a daily sight at places such as Mallaig, Morecambe, Whitby, Stranraer and Chester.

And even when the likes of East Midlands Railways and Anglia Railways dispensed with their ‘156s’, these trains were soon taken on (many by Northern) to eliminate the aforementioned Railbuses.

Currently, there is no prospect of immediate replacements for either operator. If any ‘158s’ or ‘170s’ were to become available, then ScotRail could reduce its reliance on ‘156s’ - assuming these other unit types were cleared for the West Highland lines.

In the bigger picture, ScotRail has publicly said that it wants to replace diesel units with hydrogen or electric battery units, but that is at least a decade away. The only ‘threat’ to the Class 156s is other newer stock being made available at an affordable price.

Class 158/159s remain in use with GWR, Northern, EMR, TfW and South Western Railway. Of these, the TfW units are under the most immediate threat - their replacements (the Class 197s) are not only being delivered, but have also started European Train Control System (ETCS) trials on the Cambrian line, which is the main area of operation for TfW ‘158s’.

Even then, however, the released ‘158s’ would probably be used to replace Class 150/153s first before heading for scrap.

GWR’s ‘158s’ seem safe for the moment. Suggestions that the operator could take ‘175s’ might affect them, but even then it would most likely be ‘150s’ that are returned to their owners first.

Northern has also indicated that it is on the lookout for new trains. However, the lead times to issue a tender, accept bids, place orders, build and commission new vehicles means there is no threat to the ‘158s’ just yet. And, again, the ‘150s’ and ‘156s’ would most probably be at risk earlier.

EMR has a fleet change looming once its new Class 810s are in traffic, although that is some way off. That should release Class 222s, which could be cascaded either within the TOC or elsewhere, but its ‘158s’ are likely to remain as they are for some time to come.

Unusually, the TOC has not undertaken any recent repaints on these units in recent years, with most still retaining their Stagecoach colours.

The future for Sprinters

There do not seem to be any replacements on the horizon for the ‘158s’ and ‘159s’ still in use with SWR, which are rapidly approaching 35 years old, but which do seem to be doing the job well.

However, logic suggests that the Class 150s must surely be coming to the end of their lives, if only because other cascades and new trains will ultimately push Class 156s and ‘158s’ up the availability stakes - and these can replace the original Sprinters.

But the railway is approaching a crossroads.

Decarbonisation is the buzzword, and until suitable new trains running on alternative fuels can eliminate diesel units, it’s hard to make a case for replacing the Class 156/158/159s.

You wouldn’t replace them with brand new diesel units - that wouldn’t look very green, plus they might be obsolete within a few years of construction.

So, until a new alternative fuels platform is available, the railway will have to soldier on with its ageing (but still fit for purpose) Sprinters.

One thing that seems almost inevitable is the conversion of some ‘150s’, ‘156s’ and ‘158s’ to alternative fuels, for use as test bed units for the new technology. There is still life in them yet - so don’t bet against some reaching 50 years in traffic.

Class 158 conversions

The Class 158 fleet comprised 172 units, all of which were two-car apart from 158798-814, which were new as three-car sets with a centre Motor Standard Lavatory (MSL) coach that did not have a cab. The Class 159/0s were pretty much the same.

However, over the years, several units have been reformed by splitting some two-cars and inserting each of these vehicles into other existing two-car sets to make them three-car.

This meant the middle car had a driving cab, which was locked out of use.

Many of these were renumbered into the ‘158/9’ number series, starting at 158950 through to 158976. But most have since been reformed back into their existing units, and sometimes the 1589xx number was used more than once for different combinations of vehicles.

Others have been strengthened to three cars but not renumbered - 158752-759, in use with Northern, retain their original two-car numbers even though they contain centre cars initially used on some of the new-build three-car sets, some of which have now been reduced to two-cars.

158800/801/803-805/807/809/811 were all converted to Class 159/1s to supplement the South Western Railway Class 159/0 fleet in 2006-07, and were quickly followed in 2007 by 158737/742-744/772/775/779/781/802/ 808/814, which were renumbered as 158880-890 and also for use with SWR (although 158889 has been with EMR for several years now). These tend to be used on cross-country SWR trains from Waterloo to Yeovil via Westbury.

To date, the only scrapped Class 158/159s have been those involved in severe accidents.

Only a month old, 158861 was involved in an accident near Stockport in June 1992, when it was hit by 47343 and vehicle 52861 was duly written off. A spare bodyshell that had been built was duly fitted out to become the ‘new’ 52861.

In more recent times, 158763 and 159102 sideswiped each other in a collision at Salisbury on October 31 2021. This has led to their withdrawal, although vehicle 52803 has been retained as a spare and may be reused.

In September 1992, 158747 was temporarily disbanded and 52747 was paired with Class 156 vehicle 57487 to become a hybrid unit 158603, while 57747 was paired with 52487 to become 158653. But these units were disbanded in December that year.

When 158773 was involved in an accident in May 2008, 57773 was sent for repairs, while 52773 was paired with 57812 (whose partner was out of traffic for engine repairs) and became 158999 until the two units were correctly reformed in July that year.

158943 was another short-lived formed of both vehicles from 158843 and of 52842 from 158842, from April 2012 to June that year. This was done while 57842 was stopped for major repairs.

New looks and later liveries

New looks…

Privatisation brought new liveries for the fleet, with every successful franchisee adopting a new livery. Key liveries were:

Central Trains: predominantly lime green with a blush slash on the cabs.

North Western Trains: dark blue with gold stars behind the cabs - applied to ‘150’, ‘153’ and ‘158’ units.

Anglia Railways: turquoise and white was adopted on a number of Class 150s, while at least 153314 appeared in an advertising livery.

Valley Lines: green, white and red (the Welsh flag’s colours), but some units appeared in advertising colours.

Northern Spirit: Two liveries - maroon for the ‘158s’ with a gold ‘N’; and turquoise for ‘156s’, also with a gold ‘N’.

ScotRail: a mish-mash of white, orange, purple and turquoise seen on ‘150s’, ‘156s’ and ‘158s’, while many ‘156s’ were painted in carmine and cream.

Wales & West: opted for silver on its ‘158s’, with yellow ends and blue or maroon doors, although 158867 ran in an experimental livery with silver bodyside and blue, orange and light blue vehicle ends. 158842 ran in a Western Mail livery, while 158841 carried a ‘times are changing’ livery. 158821 ran in a black Ginsters pasties advertising scheme, and 158747/855/860 wore advertising liveries with graphics promoting the region and its history.

Its ‘153s’ were painted in a mix of regional liveries - some in Wessex pink, some in Welsh Tourism orange, some in Devon & Cornwall black, and two in St Ives & Looe branch sky blue.

Virgin CrossCountry: Virgin Class 158s retained their BR Express livery.

South West Trains: Initially kept the NSE livery, until a new Stagecoach livery of white and blue bodysides with orange and red cabs was introduced.

… and later liveries

As franchises were relet, changed or rebranded a host of new liveries have been seen, namely:

Class 150: Silverlink, Northern purple & white, London North Western Railway, Transport for Wales.

Class 153: Arriva turquoise, East Midlands Trains, ‘One’, Northern, Transport for Wales, ScotRail explorer.

Class 155: West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive, Northern.

Class 156: FirstGroup, Northern, ScotRail saltire, ‘One’, East Midlands Trains, East Midlands Railways purple/white.

Class 158: West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive, FirstGroup, Northern, ScotRail saltire, South Western Railway grey/white, East Midlands Trains, East Midlands Railway purple/white, Transport for Wales.

Class 159: South Western Railway grey/white.

There have been several hybrid liveries. TransPennine Express put a blue band and its logos on the bottom half of both Northern Spirit and Express ‘158s’, while different train operators have combined their logos with the liveries of previous users, both BR and private. Others have run in base liveries shorn of all branding.

Adverting wraps have also been common on all types of Sprinters.

For a full version of this article with more images and data, Subscribe today and never miss an issue of RAIL. With a Print + Digital subscription, you’ll get each issue delivered to your door for FREE (UK only). Plus, enjoy an exclusive monthly e-newsletter from the Editor, rewards, discounts and prizes, AND full access to the latest and previous issues via the app.