British Rail Class 93

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This will be an interesting post I think. Although the class number 93 has now been referred to twice, none of the locomotives actually exists. At least not yet.

The first Class 93 was discussed by then still national British Railways was going to be the electric locomotive designed to haul the InterCity 250, a concept trainset to command high speed intercity rail service on the West Coast Main Line like the InterCity 225 on the East Coast. Like the name InterCity 250 suggested, the train hauled by the Class 93 would have a top speed of 250 km/h, or 155 mph. Service was expected to begin in 1995. However, with multiple other projects the British Railways had taken on (including the Channel Tunnel lines), funding for the Class 93 and InterCity 250 could not be realized, and the project was scrapped.

Artist impression of the Class 93 locomotive for the InterCity 250
Now, the Class 93 may not be dead after all. Although she won’t resemble the original Class 93 in any way, a new Class 93 may just become the latest high speed locomotive to serve passenger railroads in the UK. The aging Class 91 is deemed needing replacement by some, however, the Mark 4 coaches on the InterCity 225 still has many years of life left. Instead of replacing complete InterCity 225 trainsets by new trains outlined in the InterCity Express Programme (IEP), it has been proposed that Class 91 locomotives be replaced by a new Class 93 locomotive built by Bombardier. This new Class 93 may just be the more sensible way of improving intercity service on the ECML without prematurely retiring the Mark 4’s. Click on the picture below for the article on Rail.co.uk on the refurbishment of Mark 4 coaches and the new Class 93.

Bombardier TRAXX UK, the proposed new Class 93 locomotive

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