#2452
British Rail Class 401
🇬🇧 United Kingdom ·built by Southern Railway· from 1935· class of British 2-car suburban electric multiple unit
1 photo from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. BR Class 401 2-BIL EMU no. 2090, London Waterloo, 22 November 1986: michaelday_bath· CC BY 2.0
what is it?
The Southern Railway (SR) gave the designation 2-BIL to the DC third rail electric multiple units built during the 1930s to work long-distance semi-fast services on the newly electrified lines from London to Eastbourne, Portsmouth and Reading. This type of unit survived long enough in British Rail ownership to be allocated TOPS Class 401.
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 91 years ago, in 1935.
- 410 kW is about 5 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
- 39.3 m long: about 9 cars parked nose to tail.
- Served for 36 years (1935–1971).
multiple unit: A self-propelled train: motors are spread under the passenger cars, so no separate locomotive.
spec sheet
- built
- 1935
- in service from
- 1935
- retired
- 1971
- status
- retired
- number built
- 152
- kind
- multiple unit
- traction
- electric
- origin
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- builders
- Southern Railway, Eastleigh Locomotive, Carriage and Wagon Works, Lancing Carriage Works
- operators
- Southern Railway, British Rail, Southern Region of British Railways
- top speed
- 121 km/h
- power
- 410 kW
- gauge
- 1,435 mm standard gauge
- electric system
- 750 V DC Third rail
- wheel arrangement
- Bo′2′+2′2′
- formation
- 2-car sets:, DMBTL, Driving Motor Brake Third Lavatory-DTCL, Driving Trailer Composite Lavatory
- length
- 39.3 m
From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q4970784, Wikipedia: British Rail Class 401 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.