British Rail Class 123
Encyclopedia
The Class 123 was a design of Diesel Multiple Unit
built for British Rail
in 1963. They were built by British Rail at Swindon Works
, and designed like all Swindon units as inter-city sets. Ten of the four-car sets were built and introduced in 1963. The units bear a visible similarity to the British Rail Class 309
, however there is no 'relation' here as the two types were built by different manufacturers for different markets.
The Class 123's structure and internal construction have much more in common with BR coaching stock (British Rail Mark 1) than they do with other DMU classes. The carriage's underframes are longer and the end gangways are built to a different style. It was also unusual for a first-generation DMU to sport a front end gangway. None of these units survive today.
Diesel multiple unit
A diesel multiple unit or DMU is a multiple unit train consisting of multiple carriages powered by one or more on-board diesel engines. They may also be referred to as a railcar or railmotor, depending on country.-Design:...
built for British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
in 1963. They were built by British Rail at Swindon Works
Swindon Works
Swindon railway works were built by the Great Western Railway in 1841 in Swindon in the English county of Wiltshire.-History:In 1835 Parliament approved the construction of a railway between London and Bristol. Its Chief Engineer was Isambard Kingdom Brunel.From 1836, Brunel had been buying...
, and designed like all Swindon units as inter-city sets. Ten of the four-car sets were built and introduced in 1963. The units bear a visible similarity to the British Rail Class 309
British Rail Class 309
The British Rail Class 309 "Clacton Express" electric multiple units were built by British Rail York Works from 1962-1963. They were initially classified as Class AM9 before the introduction of TOPS...
, however there is no 'relation' here as the two types were built by different manufacturers for different markets.
The Class 123's structure and internal construction have much more in common with BR coaching stock (British Rail Mark 1) than they do with other DMU classes. The carriage's underframes are longer and the end gangways are built to a different style. It was also unusual for a first-generation DMU to sport a front end gangway. None of these units survive today.