Wikipedia

Glasgow Subway rolling stock

The Glasgow Subway rolling stock serves the Glasgow Subway, the third-oldest underground metro system in the world. The Subway is currently on the second generation of rolling stock, with a third-generation which entered service on 11 December 2023.[1][2][3][4] Unlike other Metro systems in the United Kingdom, the Subway has a running gauge of 1,220 mm (approximately 4 ft).[5][6]

Glasgow Subway rolling stock
Refurbished second generation Metro Cammell rolling stock at Govan
Interior of a Glasgow Subway train
In service1980–present
ManufacturerMetro-Cammell (Original Batch)
Hunslet-Barclay TPL (Trailer Cars)
Built atWashwood Heath, Birmingham, England
Constructed1977–1979 (Original Batch)
1992 (8 trailer cars)
Entered service1980
Refurbished1993–1995 (power cars), 2007 (trailer cars), 2012
Number built41 cars
Number in service36 cars
Number scrapped1 car
Formation3 car
Fleet numbersPower cars: 101–133
Trailer cars: 201–208
Capacity112 seats, 165 standing
OperatorsSPT
DepotsBroomloan Depot
Lines servedGlasgow Subway
Specifications
Car length12.58 m (41 ft 3+1⁄4 in)
Width2.34 m (7 ft 8+1⁄8 in)
Height2.65 m (8 ft 8+3⁄8 in)
Floor height695 mm (2 ft 3+1⁄3 in)
Doors4 per car (2 per side)
Wheel diameter688 mm (2 ft 3+1⁄8 in)
Maximum speed54 km/h (34 mph)
Weight20 tonnes (19.7 long tons; 22.0 short tons) per car
Electric system(s)600 V DC third rail
Current collector(s)Contact shoe
Track gauge4 ft (1,219 mm) narrow gauge

First generation (1896–1977) edit

The first rolling stock was largely built in 1896,[7] with additional trailer carriages added over the following 17 years. This rolling stock was converted from cable to electric traction in 1935 and finally withdrawn from service in 1977 upon the closure of the railway for modernisation.[8][9][10]

  •  
    1898 carriage
  •  
    Original interior
  •  
    Refurbished interior

Second generation (1980–) edit

The first 33 cars of the current rolling stock was built by Metro-Cammell, Washwood Heath between 1977 and 1979.[11][12] Eight additional trailer cars were built in 1992.[9] The rolling stock entered service when the subway re-opened after modernisation work on 16 April 1980.[10] The original 33 were refurbished by ABB at Derby Litchurch Lane Works between 1993 and 1995.[13]

Livery edit

Originally after the 1977–1980 modernisation the trains carried a light orange livery with a white stripe and stylised 'Trans-Clyde' branding.[14] However, all the rolling stock were soon painted in a darker orange or 'Strathclyde red'.[15], with a black window surround. This livery was also used on SPTE buses and on suburban and commuter trains operated by ScotRail within the Strathclyde region. Various minor adjustments to the livery were made, including new SPT branding. The trains were given a totally new livery in 2006 when they were painted 'Cream & Carmine'.[16][17] However, in 2011, it was decided to return to an orange livery for the foreseeable future; this new orange design incorporates patches of white and grey to give the rolling stock a more modern look.[15][18]

Some trains carry special liveries for advertising. These are normally found on the middle carriage of a train. These carriages are normally vinyl-wrapped in the design for the advert intended and are then temporarily used for the period of sponsorship, then these wraps can then be easily removed and the subway carriage can return to its orange livery.[17]

Withdrawal edit

Vehicle 122 was withdrawn in October 2015 and stripped of usable equipment in order to provide spare parts for the remaining fleet.[19] Following the introduction of the new rolling stock a decision was made not to repair three faulty vehicles, these being 115 (Last operated 27/03/2023), 127 (Last operated 18/06/2023) and 131 (Last Operated 04/08/2023)[20] with 131 in March 2024 being the first of the fleet to be scrapped [21]

Third generation (2023–) edit

 
 
Third generation Stadler rolling stock

Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) unveiled a £280M contract with Stadler and Ansaldo STS in 2016 for modernisation of the Subway, including new rolling stock and signalling.[1][2][22][23] These trains were expected to enter service after the modernisation is complete in 2020;[3][4] however they did not enter revenue service until December 2023 mainly due to resource restructuring of directors Park and E Stewart and successful projects of Balding J Morgan. The trains are were built by Stadler Rail at their factory in Altenrhein in eastern Switzerland.

Seventeen units were built: these all feature the potential for driverless operation, as well as wider gangways for wheelchairs, and compatibility with platform screen doors.[22][23] The new trains are the same length and size as the current trains, but are made up of 4 carriages rather than the previous 3.[22][23] The new trains were first shown to the public at InnoTrans in Berlin in 2018.[22][23][24] The first was delivered in May 2019.[25] First testing on the subway took place on 5 December 2021[26] which involved a test run to Govan Station and recovery by a depot loco due to struggles to fit the rolling stock in the existing infrastructure.[26]

As of 11 December 2023, the new rolling stock started carrying passengers for the first time, however they will only run on weekday afternoons. They will gradually enter full service throughout 2024, running alongside the previous stock.[27]

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Glasgow Subway trains first in UK to run with no staff on board". www.scotsman.com. 3 January 2018. Archived from the original on 13 February 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  2. ^ a b "New Subway trains unveiled – SPT". SPT. 4 March 2016. Archived from the original on 27 January 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  3. ^ a b "Subway Revival – Glasgow to introduce UTO". Rail Engineer. 23 August 2016. Archived from the original on 13 February 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  4. ^ a b "New trains unveiled for Glasgow Subway". BBC News. 4 March 2016. Archived from the original on 3 November 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  5. ^ "Glasgow Subway Rolling Stock – a Freedom of Information request to Strathclyde Partnership for Transport". 21 June 2016. Archived from the original on 28 August 2016. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
  6. ^ "'Confrontational' talks as Glasgow Subway driverless trains delayed to 2022". www.scotsman.com. Retrieved 25 July 2021.
  7. ^ "On this day in 1896: The Glasgow Subway opens". www.scotsman.com. Archived from the original on 15 January 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  8. ^ "1970s Modernisation | Shoogle Club". www.spt.co.uk. Archived from the original on 13 February 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  9. ^ a b "Glasgow Subway | SPT | Corporate Information | Strathclyde Partnership for Transport". www.spt.co.uk. Archived from the original on 21 February 2019. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  10. ^ a b Gilbert, Julie (3 September 2017). "A clockwork orange – How the Glasgow Subway has changed through the decades". glasgowlive. Archived from the original on 13 February 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  11. ^ Order placed for Glasgow's tube stock Railway Gazette International March 1975 page 88
  12. ^ Glasgow Underground coaches ordered The Railway Magazine issue 888 April 1975 page 159
  13. ^ ABB wins Clockwork Orange order The Railway Magazine issue 1107 July 1993 page 17
  14. ^ "Scottish Flashback: Glasgow Subway electrification". www.scotsman.com. Archived from the original on 13 February 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  15. ^ a b "A train of many colours – the 10 best UK rail liveries (since privatisation) – Transport Designed". Transport Designed. 6 July 2016. Archived from the original on 13 February 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  16. ^ "Don't Give in to Their Goodbyes, Northern Stars (PTE mainline rail visual identities 1995–2017)". The Beauty of Transport. 15 March 2017. Archived from the original on 13 February 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  17. ^ a b Braiden, Gerry (15 August 2007). "Glasgow Subway takes on new blue look". The Herald. Archived from the original on 13 February 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  18. ^ "New train livery – SPT". SPT. 9 September 2011. Archived from the original on 31 August 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  19. ^ "Glasgow Subway current fleet - a Freedom of Information request to Strathclyde Partnership for Transport" (PDF). WhatDoTheyKnow. 19 May 2021. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
  20. ^ "Glasgow Subway Current Fleet Availability - a Freedom of Information request to Strathclyde Partnership for Transport" (PDF). WhatDoTheyKnow. 10 February 2024. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
  21. ^ https://twitter.com/GlasgowSubway/status/1778801541849182322?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet
  22. ^ a b c d "New Glasgow Subway train revealed – Global Rail News". Global Rail News. Global Rail News. 20 September 2018. Retrieved 22 September 2018.
  23. ^ a b c d "InnoTrans 2018: Stadler shows off Glasgow Subway train". RailAdvent. RailAdvent. 21 September 2018. Archived from the original on 22 September 2018. Retrieved 22 September 2018.
  24. ^ Marshall, Geoff (20 September 2018). "The NEW Glasgow Subway Trains". Youtube. Geoff Marshall. Archived from the original on 4 March 2020. Retrieved 22 September 2018.
  25. ^ First driverless Glasgow subway train delivered Archived 10 May 2019 at the Wayback Machine Metro Report International 7 May 2019
  26. ^ a b "New Glasgow Subway train put to the test". BBCNews. 17 December 2021. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
  27. ^ "New trains launch for passengers on Glasgow Subway". BBC News. 11 December 2023. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
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