The Leyland Experimental Vehicle (LEV)
The forerunner of
all those nasty railbuses was the Leyland Experimental
Vehicle, a joint venture between Leyland and BR to combine
the worst features of rail and bus. Here are some pictures of the various
early railbuses with links.
The railbuses were powered by 200bhp 6-cylinder Leyland TL11 diesel engines, with fully automatic SCG gearboxes and a Gmeinder final drive unit driving one axle. They were 12.3m long and consisted of a standard Leyland modular bus body on a chassis having suspension based on the HSFV series of experimental designs for freight vehicles but with flexicoil springing. This allowed for a double-ended body mounted at four resilient points on the underframe. There were five single car railbuses built for trials on BR, including one built by Wickhams for export to USA. Amazingly, they have all survived - look here for more information and pictures.
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Click on the picture for a bigger image- all photos are BR official unless otherwise indicated
LEV1
The first LEV was un-powered and unbraked and is shown here in the sidings at the RTC in the summer of 1978 | Outside EDU in June 1978 | ||
As part of
the preliminary trials it was ride tested on the WCML in 1979, now
fitted with power equipment and brakes, and is pictured here between
two test cars at an unknown location.
Author's collection |
At
Carlisle probably on the same day
Author's collection | ||
Another
view at Carlisle - with a Leyland bus alongside - a coincidence I
wonder?
Author's collection |
The
re-built LEV1 outside the Test Hall at the RTC c1979
J A Lower | ||
Outside
Stanton Tunnel on the Old Dalby test track in 1980 Ian Dinmore |
LEV1 pictured at an unknown depot whilst on trial. Now known as the BR Leyland Motors experimental railbus and numbered RDB975874 - note that it is now fitted with the bulbous projection above the cabs | ||
Pictured
here near Woodbridge on the line to Saxmundham in early 1980 on
test.
G R Mortimer |
After
extensive tests it eventually entered passenger service in East
Anglia and is pictured passing through Ipswich station in the early
80's.
M J Collins | ||
After
trials in passenger service it was sent to the USA between
December 1979 - January 1980 - note the grilles over the windscreen which were fitted for use in
the States. It travelled widely before returning to UK. Here it is
at Lowestoft on 24th October 1980
Look here for pictures of the unit in USA |
Pictured in the C&W Works prior to departing for USA c1979 | ||
At Lowestoft in March 1983 Barry Francis |
At Lowestoft in March
1983 Barry Francis | ||
At Lowestoft in March 1983
Barry Francis
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The driver's desk at Lowestoft
in March 1983
Barry Francis |
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At Lowestoft in March 1983 Barry Francis |
In 2009 it
was undergoing restoration at the North
Norfolk Railway - on loan from the NRM.
Here it is outside Weybourne shed on 11th July.
Author |
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Now up and
running LEV1 is pictured at Weybourne 18th April 2010 at the NNR's
Vintage Bus weekend
Tony Smith |
LEV1
together with a Leyland bus pictured at Weybourne on 9th April 2011 at
the NNR's latest Vintage Bus weekend
Neil Sharpe |
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LEV1 on
the back of a low loader in a garage on the A46 near Lincoln en-route
to NRM's Shildon site on 10th August 2012
Bryan Smith |
LEV2 or R3 for USA
Confusingly referred to as LEV2 by British Rail, here is a
view of the Wickham version of the railbus (which was a
stretched version at 15.3m built specifically for the USA) at the Old
Dalby test track in Sseptember 1980 - pictured on the straight between the Covered
Way and Grimston. Note the destination on the blind - 'Bus stn'.
Also note the projecting steps.
It was commissioned at Old Dalby between Sept 22nd and 25th and had a few teething troubles with its Leyland autochange gearbox. This was sold to Amtrak and exported to the USA and is still there today at the Connecticut Trolley Museum - look here and here and here for more information and pictures. There were plans to repatriate the vehicle but it was eventually scrapped on site BR official | |
Somewhere in USA with steam loco
Unknown | |
The sorry state into which the
vehicle deteriorated before being scrapped
Unknown |
R3 BR version
Built in 1981 by
BREL at Derby, this experimental railbus was tested on BR where it was
not a success. It was bought by NIR and re-gauged for use on the Coleraine
– Portrush line. Too small to cope with the number of daytime
passengers it was relegated to evening trains and then passed to the
Civil Engineer’s Dept for inspection etc duties.
It is now preserved at Downpatrick Station. |
It is shown here when new in the C&W works at Derby. It was given a Departmental number RDB977020 and its data panel referred to R3. | RDB977020
pictured at the Control Centre at the Old Dalby test track in the
early 1980's
Alan Rimmer | ||
At Sea
Mills on the Severn Beach line on 26th November 1980
Unknown |
Approaching Bristol TM on 3rd April 1982 with a service from
Severn Beach. For other photos on the branch at Sea Mills and at
Clifton Down look
here and here
John Turner | ||
RDB977020
at Plymouth Laira depot on 25th April 1982
Note the strange secondary windscreens that were fitted. It was felt by various ASLEF and NUR that the original windscreens were not strong enough for rail use, hence the internal framing and inner windscreens. It was eventually sold to NIR in late 1982 and converted to 5' 3" gauge. Frank Cox - see his excellent site here | |||
In
Northern Ireland it conducted a few railtours. Pictured here passing
Cultra on Sunday, 8 August, 1982
Albert Bridge |
The
railbus running empty from Belfast to Belfast Central to start a
railtour on Sunday 8th August 1982.
Albert Bridge
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Stabled at
Belfast old York Road station
Albert Bridge |
Pictured at the Downpatrick & County Down Railway
Centre in
August 2019
Neil Watson |
RB002 Demonstrator - 'the Denmark'
Another BREL-Leyland product from c1984, it was exported as a demonstrator to
the USA and Canada and spent a considerable time there.
Here it is at the RTC Railphoto Archive | ||||
On 30th May 1986 RB002 was being test run by NRC and VIA between Thompson and Pikwitonei and is pictured here at Thompson. With a three panel stronger windscreen this looks much more like a class 141 than the earlier railbuses. Pat & David Othen | ||||
The vehicle in New Orleans
Ian Corfield |
On the Newtown Branch in USA
Unknown
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Somewhere in Canada
Unknown |
At Thompson Manitoba in June 1986
Mark Perry | |||
It also went to
Denmark and Sweden as a demonstrator and is shown here near Essen (on
the Dutch-Belgian border) on 17th June 1985 on its way to
Zeebrugge from Denmark
Gerrit Bethuyne |
RB002 delivery for evaluation at the Østbanen (ØSJS). Hårlev
in 1984
Niels Munch | |||
At
Hårlev in 1984
Dave Horsley |
Brake
testing out of Storlian Station, the highest station in Sweden on the
Norwegian border at approx. 2000ft elevation.
Dave Horsley | |||
At Storlian
Station
Dave Horsley |
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It returned to UK and was used as a classroom/office by BREL for a while and somehow it too ended up in Northern Ireland There are a couple more pictures here . Its present location is believed to be at the now closed 4' 8½" gauge Riverstown Old Corn Railway near Dundalk in Eire but it is understood to be in a poor state of repair.
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RB004
Another
version, RB004 was built at Derby in 1984. The body was built at
the Leyland plant at Workington and BREL Derby C&W were
responsible for the underframe and final assembly.
It is shown here at the Mickleover test track. Basil Hancock | |
RB004 is preserved and is currently being restored at the Telford Steam railway. Look here for a picture of the unit at Shildon NRM Basil Hancock | |
RB004 at
Swanwick Junction at the Midland Railway Centre on 29th August
2011
Author |
Later 2-car demonstrator