#3539· Class 84
British Rail Class 84
🇬🇧 United Kingdom ·built by North British Locomotive Company· from 1960· class of 10 electric locomotives
1 photo from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. 84001 at Crewe Works: Image by Phil Scott ( Our Phellap )· CC BY-SA 3.0
what is it?
The British Rail Class 84 is a type of 25 kV AC electric locomotives that operated on the West Coast Main Line of the London Midland Region in Great Britain. The ten-strong class was one of five prototype classes of electric locomotives introduced in the early stages of the line's electrification. Built between 1960 and 1961, the type was not a success, as they were beset by technical problems; after several lengthy periods of storage and unsuccessful attempts at resolving these problems, British Rail (BR) withdrew the fleet between 1977 and 1980.
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 66 years ago, in 1960.
- Top speed is 1.2× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- At full speed it would cover Amsterdam–Utrecht (≈ 40 km) in 15 minutes.
- 2.3 MW is about 27 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
- Served for 20 years (1960–1980).
electric locomotive: Draws power from overhead wires or a third rail and pulls separate carriages.
spec sheet
- built
- 1960–1961
- in service from
- 1960
- retired
- 1980
- status
- preserved
- number built
- 10
- kind
- Electric
- traction
- electric
- origin
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- builders
- North British Locomotive Company
- operators
- British Rail, London Midland Region of British Railways
- top speed
- 161 km/h
- power
- 2.3 MW
- gauge
- 1,435 mm standard gauge
- electric system
- 25 kV AC Catenary
- wheel arrangement
- Bo′Bo′
- Dutch name
- Class 84
From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q4970856, Wikipedia: British Rail Class 84 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.