#4075
British Rail Classes 445 and 446
🇬🇧 United Kingdom ·built by British Rail Engineering Limited· from 1971· Prototype British electric multiple unit trainsets
2 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. 4-PEP-4002: No machine-readable author provided. Spsmiler assumed (based on copyright claims).· Public domain
- 2. British Rail Class 507: Vanmanyo· CC BY-SA 4.0
what is it?
The PEP (Prototype Electro Pneumatic Train) Stock were prototype electric multiple units used on British Rail's Southern and Scottish Regions during the 1970s and early 1980s. They were forerunners of the British Rail Second Generation electric multiple unit fleet. Three units were built, one two-car unit (2001), and two four-car units (4001/4002).
who runs it
base stats
Bars compare against all trains: 600 km/h (maglev), 1,700 seats; power, weight and number built on a log scale up to 20 MW, 1,000 t and 20,000 built.
fun facts
- First built 55 years ago, in 1971.
- 1.2 MW is about 14 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
- 80.5 m long: about 18 cars parked nose to tail.
- Seats 280: 6 full city buses (~50 seats each).
- Served for 9 years (1971–1980).
multiple unit: A self-propelled train: motors are spread under the passenger cars, so no separate locomotive.
spec sheet
- built
- 1971
- in service from
- 1971
- retired
- 1980
- status
- retired
- number built
- 2
- kind
- multiple unit
- traction
- electric
- origin
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- builders
- British Rail Engineering Limited
- operators
- British Rail
- top speed
- 121 km/h
- power
- 1.2 MW
- gauge
- 1,435 mm standard gauge
- electric system
- 750 V DC third rail
- formation
- 2/4 cars per trainset:DMSO+MSO+MSO+DMSO (445), DMSO+DMSO (446)
- length
- 80.5 m
- capacity
- 280 passengers
From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.
family
Sources: Wikidata Q4970920, Wikipedia: British Rail Classes 445 and 446 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.