#3278
British Rail Classes 101 and 102
🇬🇧 United Kingdom ·built by Metro-Cammell· from 1956· class of two-, three- and four-car diesel multiple units built by MetroCam
2 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. C820 passing Severn Tunnel Junction: Hugh Llewelyn· CC BY-SA 2.0
- 2. 101 L832: Murgatroyd49· CC BY-SA 4.0
what is it?
The British Rail Classes 101 and 102 diesel-mechanical multiple units were built by Metro-Cammell at Washwood Heath in Birmingham, England, from 1956 to 1959, following construction of a series of prototype units. These classes proved to be some of the most successful and longest-lived of BR's First Generation DMUs, second in longevity only to the Class 121, with the final five units being withdrawn on 24 December 2003. The oldest set was, by then, just over 47 years old.
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 70 years ago, in 1956.
- Served for 47 years (1956–2003).
multiple unit: A self-propelled train: motors are spread under the passenger cars, so no separate locomotive.
spec sheet
- built
- 1956
- in service from
- 1956
- retired
- 2003
- status
- retired
- number built
- —
- kind
- multiple unit
- traction
- diesel
- origin
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- builders
- Metro-Cammell
- operators
- Eastern Region of British Railways, London Midland Region of British Railways, North Eastern Region of British Railways, Scottish Region of British Railways
- top speed
- 113 km/h
- power
- —
From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q4970698, Wikipedia: British Rail Classes 101 and 102 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.