London Underground battery-electric locomotives
Encyclopedia
London Underground
Battery-electric locomotives, most commonly known as battery locomotives are used for hauling engineers' trains, as they can operate when the electric traction current is switched off. The first two locomotives were built in 1905 for the construction of the Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway
, and their success prompted the Metropolitan District Railway
to buy two more in 1909, which were the only ones built to the loading gauge of the subsurface lines. Following this, a number of battery vehicles were built by converting redundant motor cars, with the batteries placed in the unused passenger compartment. One exception to this was made by the City and South London Railway, who used a trailer car to hold the batteries, and wired them to a separate locomotive.
From 1936, battery locomotives were built as new vehicles, although in most cases, some components, particularly the bogies and motors, were refurbished from withdrawn passenger cars. The batch of 9 vehicles supplied by Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company
between 1936 and 1938 set the standard for subsequent builds. Including this batch, 52 machines had been built by 1986, in six batches from four manufacturers, with one built at London Transport's Acton Works. Each new batch included some improvements, but most used electro-pneumatic traction control equipment made by GEC, and so could be operated together. The exception were three from the 1936 batch, which used an experimental Metadyne
system, and the final batch of six, built in 1985, which used controllers manufactured by Kiepe
.
Improvements since manufacture have included the replacement of low-level Ward couplers by buckeye couplers, which has resulted in less damage from shunting accidents, and the fitting of draught excluders and cab heaters for use in winter when the locomotives operate on sections of line above ground. A number of the machines were fitted with Automatic Train Operation (ATO) equipment to enable them to work on the newly-opened Victoria line
. Subsequently, some have been fitted with Automatic Train Protection (ATP) equipment, compatible with the system used on the Central line
, and some with ATP equipment which enables them to work with the replacement Distance-to-Go Radio (DTG-R) system on the upgraded Victoria line.
, who were based in Motherwell
. They were delivered in August 1905, and were used during the construction of the Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway
, where they were numbered 1B and 2B. The vehicles were 50.5 feet (15.4 m) long, with a tube-gauge cab at both ends. Braking and electrical control equipment was housed in a compartment behind one of the cabs, and the central section was lower, housing the 80 batteries, arranged in two rows of 40 either side of a central divide, which also supported metal covers for the battery compartments. The batteries were supplied by Chloride Electrical Storage Company
. Each locomotive weighed 55 tons, and could haul a 60-ton load at 7 mile per hour. They were not fitted with current collector shoes, as none of the rails were electrified during construction. Once their task was completed, they were moved by road to the Hampstead Railway.
Encouraged by the performance of the vehicles, the Metropolitan District Railway
purchased two of their own in 1909, which were larger as they were built to subsurface-gauge. The manufacturer was W. R. Renshaw and Co Ltd, who were based in Sutton-on-Trent
, and the vehicles were fitted with current collector shoes, so that they could draw power from the rails when it was available. During the First World War, they were used as shunting engines at Ealing Common Depot
, where power was always available, and so the batteries were removed, and subsequently neglected. New batteries could not be obtained, as batteries of this type were needed for submarines as part of the war effort. The vehicles were numbered 19A and 20A when supplied, but were renumbered as L8 and L9 in 1929, when the batteries were no longer fitted. As electric locomotives, they were upgraded several times, receiving two new types of motors in 1951 and 1955, and new traction control equipment in 1958. They continued to be used to move stores between Acton Works and Ealing Common Depot, until they were superseded by road vehicles in 1969.
(CLR) had suffered from vibration problems, caused by the heavy locomotives, and had experimented with multiple unit operation, with motive power provided by converting four trailer cars to motor cars. Around 1910, two of these motor cars, numbered 201 and 202, were fitted with batteries, and worked on a number of lines in addition to the Central London Railway. In 1915 they were loaned to the Bakerloo line
, when it was being extended to Queens Park. Car 202 had its 'Nife' battery updated to one with 263 cells made by Edison Accumulator Ltd in 1924, while the number of cells in car 201 was increased from 200 to 238 in 1932. For working on other lines, they were fitted with outside shoes, since most lines used a four-rail system, whereas the CLR only used three. The vehicles were numbered L22 and L23 in 1929, and were scrapped in 1936 and 1937.
When the City and South London Railway was being reconstructed in 1922, a number of "padded cell" trailer cars – so-called because of their lack of windows – were stripped out, so that lead-acid batteries and charging resistances could be placed in the resulting space. Each car was then coupled to an electric locomotive, and the batteries were connected to the shoe fuses of the locomotive. The current rail shoes were removed, so that the batteries did not energise the rails. Recharging was arranged at certain points, by means of switches and cables connected to the supply that normally fed the rails.
Two Hungarian gate stock
cars, which had previously been used as ballast motor cars, were converted to battery operation. When working as passenger vehicles on the Piccadilly line
, they had been numbered 34 and 39. In 1929 they were transferred to the Hampstead line, where they were numbered 113 and 118, becoming L11 and L12 in 1936. Shortly afterwards, the numbers were swapped, so that L11 became L12 and L12 became L11. They used batteries made by DP Battery Company, each with 220 cells. The final conversion was of Bakerloo car 66, originally made by the American Car and Foundry Company
, and fitted with a 220-cell DP battery weighing 6.5 tons in 1932. It was numbered L32, and was scrapped in 1948.
for nine vehicles, six of which would be fitted with GEC traction control equipment, while the other three would be fitted with metadyne
units. The GEC-fitted machines weighed 53.8 tons, and were numbered L35 to L40, while the Metadyne-equipped ones weighed an extra 2.2 tons, and were numbered L41 to L43. Both types, when pulling a 200-ton ballast train, could run at 30 mile per hour when supplied with power from the current rails, and at half that speed when working on batteries.
The metadyne-fitted locomotives had new bodies, but the bogies and motors were removed from redundant Metropolitan line
stock and refurbished at Acton Works. Similarly, the metadyne equipment was removed from an experimental train and reused. A metadyne unit consists of a rotating machine, which converts the constant voltage supplied by the battery to a constant current, which feeds the motor. The metadyne system is more efficient than conventional starting resistances, particularly when the locomotive starts and stops frequently, or when it needs to run for long periods at slow speeds. For cable laying work, the metadyne-equipped locomotives could pull trains of 100 tons at 3 mile per hour for considerable distances, without any sign of overheating. Despite the advantages, their complexity resulted in them becoming unreliable, and they were withdrawn in 1977. L41 and L42 were scrapped soon afterwards, but L43 was used for testing purposes for a further three years.
The locomotives fitted with GEC controls used an electro-pneumatic controller, with 28 steps, which allowed the four motors to be connected in series, in two parallel-series pairs, and all in parallel as the speed increased. Pairs of locomotives could be operated in multiple, and motors 1 and 3 or 2 and 4 could be selected if there was a failure of the other pair. As built, the vehicles were 54.3 feet (16.6 m) long, and could pick up power either from a standard 4-rail configuration, or the 3-rail configuration of the Central London Railway, until it was converted to four rails in 1940.
The next batch of seven vehicles were manufactured by R. Y. Pickering and Co Ltd, who were based in Wishaw
, Scotland. The traction control equipment was by GEC, although the batteries had a larger capacity than the previous batch. The motors were reused from passenger stock which was being withdrawn at the time. One important improvement was the addition of runners and a lifting device, which enabled any battery cell to be removed from its rack and lowered to the ground through an aperture in the floor. This feature meant that the batteries could be changed without using an overhead crane in a lifting shop, freeing it for more important work. An eighth locomotive was built by staff at Acton Works in 1962, partly as an exercise to prove that the workshop could compete for this type of work. This vehicle was initially numbered L76, and took part in the Metropolitan Railway centenary celebrations, held on 23 May 1963, when it propelled a replica of the original inspection train used by Gladstone.
Metro Cammell
received the order for the next batch of thirteen locomotives, which were numbered L20 to L32. The first one was delivered on 8 December 1964 to Ruislip Depot. They were part of a programme to phase out the last remaining steam engines, but the Victoria line
was also being built at this time, and some of the battery locos were fitted with automatic train operation (ATO) equipment, to enable them to work on that line. Traction control equipment was by GEC, with the batteries supplied by DP Battery Co Ltd. As with previous batches, parts of the locomotives were refurbished; in this case, the bogies, traction motors and compressors were supplied by Acton Works. Unlike earlier models, each vehicle was fitted with two compressors, allowing them to work singly. The last steam engines were withdrawn soon afterwards, and an order for five more battery locos was placed with Metro Cammell in 1969. These worked on the Jubilee line
construction, and were numbered L15 to L19.
The construction of the Jubilee line and the Heathrow extension of the Piccadilly line required yet more works trains, and eleven more locomotives were ordered in 1972, with delivery in 1973. They were built at Doncaster
by British Rail Engineering Ltd
. The motors were refurbished from redundant District line stock, but the bogies were new. Although based on the standard Z-type bogie used since the 1930s, they incorporated roller bearings, rather than white metal
axleboxes and suspension bearings. Three of the locomotives were built to replace the three metadyne vehicles, but those were not actually withdrawn until 1977.
A final batch of six locomotives were built by Metro Cammell and were delivered in 1985 and 1986. They incorporated all of the improvements made to the previous vehicles. For the first time, they were specified in metric units. New features included entry to the cabs through a central door, rather than a side door, missile-proof windscreens with windscreen wipers, and the ability to charge the batteries while operating on electrified lines. One departure was the fitting of traction control equipment by Kiepe
, which prevented them from working in multiple with any of the previous machines. They were not a success, as five of the six had been withdrawn from service by August 1993, while a decision was made about their future, and the sixth was withdrawn some time later.
control gear.
The locomotives have a cab at each end and are built to the standard 'Tube' loading gauge so that they can work over all lines on the London Underground network. They are equipped with buffers and drawhooks, for coupling to standard main line vehicles. Earlier vehicles had hinged buffers, which could be raised upwards when not in use, but this job was arduous, and a programme of replacing them with retractable buffers was carried out. They were also fitted with a 'Ward' coupler, mounted at a height suitable for tube cars, but this made the locomotives prone to significant damage in shunting accidents. In 1980, two locomotives, L18 and L38, were fitted with 'buckeye' couplings, as an experiment. These automatic couplings are mounted at the height of the main frames, and so shunting damage is virtually eliminated. The success of the experiment led to buckeye couplings being retro-fitted to all locomotives built from 1964. Additionally, they all have train air-brake equipment.
The body sides take the form of louvres to allow ventilation around the batteries (most locomotives had four solid body panels on one side only). All body panels are hinged to allow the batteries to be removed. Following the withdrawal of steam engines, the vehicles often worked on open sections of line, rather than in tunnels, and the need to heat the cabs in winter became apparent. Draught excluders have been added to all cab doors, and additional heaters have been fitted into the cabs.
The original livery was grey, but crimson lake was applied from the early 1960s using supplies of LT steam locomotive paint. This was changed to yellow in the early 1980s, which was deemed to be more safety conscious.
are usually recharged inside a depot
, although the 1985 batch of locomotives could recharge their batteries from the power rails while moving.
which are operated by trackside equipment if the train passes a signal at danger. Eighteen (L15 - L21 and L44 - L54) are also fitted with Central Line Automatic Train Protection
(ATP). When they were built, locomotives L25 to L32 were fitted with Automatic Train Operation (ATO) equipment, which allowed them to work on the Victoria line. The tripcock could be isolated, and a trip valve performed a similar function, except that it was operated by the ATO controller. A special setting was provided that allowed the vehicles to move if they were not receiving safety track signals, but the maximum speed in these circumstances was limited to 10 mile per hour. By the mid-1980s, this equipment had ceased to be used, as works trains were only run on the Victoria line when engineers had possession of the whole line. Subsequently, some locomotives (L27 - L32) have been re-fitted with Victoria Line ATP equipment which was designed by Metronet BCV on behalf of Transplant, the operator of the fleet. This system was installed during 2007 at Ruislip Depot. It is compatible with the new Distance-to-Go Radio (DTG-R) ATP system which is being implemented on the Victoria line by Westinghouse Rail Systems
.
scheme, in the ownership of TransPlant. The locomotives are usually stabled at Lillie Bridge depot or Ruislip depot.
With the building of the Jubilee Line diesel-powered locomotives took over part of the jobs the battery locomotives did.
The London Underground battery locomotives have been rented to Network Rail on several occasions for trackwork in the London area.
received four small battery locomotives. These were named Walter, Lou, Anne, and Kitty, names that pun
the name of the line they were bought to work on, London Underground
's Waterloo and City Line
. They are used for hauling materials and equipment and were specially designed and built for work in narrow tunnels with tight curves and steep gradients. Clayton Equipment
of Derby designed and built them in about four months, which is relatively fast. The locomotives weigh 15 tonne
s each and have 200 Volt DC motors providing 75 hp
to each axle
. As a fail-safe
feature they have spring-applied disc brakes that are automatically applied if something goes wrong. Built-in cameras are connected to screens in the cab to make shunting easier. Unlike London Underground's battery-electric locomotives, these battery locomotives cannot draw power from the electrified rails. Under normal use this is not a problem because they are designed to work on engineering projects in tunnels where the power is cut off anyway, but it does mean they have to return to the depot to be recharged — never far away on the relatively short W&C.
London Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
Battery-electric locomotives, most commonly known as battery locomotives are used for hauling engineers' trains, as they can operate when the electric traction current is switched off. The first two locomotives were built in 1905 for the construction of the Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway
Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway
The Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway , also known as the Piccadilly tube, was a railway company established in 1902 that constructed a deep-level underground "tube" railway in London. The GNP&BR was formed through a merger of two older companies, the Brompton and Piccadilly Circus...
, and their success prompted the Metropolitan District Railway
Metropolitan District Railway
The Metropolitan District Railway was the predecessor of the District line of the London Underground. Set up on 29 July 1864, at first to complete the "Inner Circle" railway around central London, it was gradually extended into the suburbs...
to buy two more in 1909, which were the only ones built to the loading gauge of the subsurface lines. Following this, a number of battery vehicles were built by converting redundant motor cars, with the batteries placed in the unused passenger compartment. One exception to this was made by the City and South London Railway, who used a trailer car to hold the batteries, and wired them to a separate locomotive.
From 1936, battery locomotives were built as new vehicles, although in most cases, some components, particularly the bogies and motors, were refurbished from withdrawn passenger cars. The batch of 9 vehicles supplied by Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company
Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company
Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company was a railway rolling stock manufacturer based at Gloucester, England; from 1860 until 1986....
between 1936 and 1938 set the standard for subsequent builds. Including this batch, 52 machines had been built by 1986, in six batches from four manufacturers, with one built at London Transport's Acton Works. Each new batch included some improvements, but most used electro-pneumatic traction control equipment made by GEC, and so could be operated together. The exception were three from the 1936 batch, which used an experimental Metadyne
Metadyne
A Metadyne is an electrical machine with three, or more, brushes. It can be used as an amplifier or rotary transformer. It is similar to a third brush dynamo but much more complex, having additional regulator or "variator" windings. It is also similar to an amplidyne except that the latter has a...
system, and the final batch of six, built in 1985, which used controllers manufactured by Kiepe
Vossloh Kiepe
Vossloh Kiepe is a German manufacturer of electrical traction equipment for trams, trolleybuses and other transport vehicles, as well as air-conditioning and heating systems, and conveyor device components.-History:...
.
Improvements since manufacture have included the replacement of low-level Ward couplers by buckeye couplers, which has resulted in less damage from shunting accidents, and the fitting of draught excluders and cab heaters for use in winter when the locomotives operate on sections of line above ground. A number of the machines were fitted with Automatic Train Operation (ATO) equipment to enable them to work on the newly-opened Victoria line
Victoria Line
The Victoria line is a deep-level London Underground line running from the south to the north-east of London. It is coloured light blue on the Tube map...
. Subsequently, some have been fitted with Automatic Train Protection (ATP) equipment, compatible with the system used on the Central line
Central Line
The Central line is a London Underground line, coloured red on the tube map. It is a deep-level "tube" line, running east-west across London, and, at , has the greatest total length of track of any line on the Underground. Of the 49 stations served, 20 are below ground...
, and some with ATP equipment which enables them to work with the replacement Distance-to-Go Radio (DTG-R) system on the upgraded Victoria line.
Early vehicles
The first two battery locomotives supplied for the London Underground were manufactured by Hurst Nelson and Co LtdHurst Nelson
Hurst, Nelson and Company Ltd was a railway rolling stock manufacturer based in Motherwell, Scotland. The company also built many railway wagons, as well as trams for several local authorities.-Products:...
, who were based in Motherwell
Motherwell
Motherwell is a town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, south east of Glasgow. The name "Moderwelt" appears on a map of Lanarkshire made by Timothy Pont some time between 1583 and 1611 and printed in the Netherlands in around 1652, although the settlement was probably little more...
. They were delivered in August 1905, and were used during the construction of the Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway
Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway
The Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway , also known as the Piccadilly tube, was a railway company established in 1902 that constructed a deep-level underground "tube" railway in London. The GNP&BR was formed through a merger of two older companies, the Brompton and Piccadilly Circus...
, where they were numbered 1B and 2B. The vehicles were 50.5 feet (15.4 m) long, with a tube-gauge cab at both ends. Braking and electrical control equipment was housed in a compartment behind one of the cabs, and the central section was lower, housing the 80 batteries, arranged in two rows of 40 either side of a central divide, which also supported metal covers for the battery compartments. The batteries were supplied by Chloride Electrical Storage Company
Chloride Electrical Storage Company
Chloride Electrical Storage Company was started in 1891. The company was originally registered as Chloride Electrical Storage Syndicate on December 12, 1891. It was formed in a deal between the Electric Storage Battery Company of New Jersey and the United Gas Improvement Company based in...
. Each locomotive weighed 55 tons, and could haul a 60-ton load at 7 mile per hour. They were not fitted with current collector shoes, as none of the rails were electrified during construction. Once their task was completed, they were moved by road to the Hampstead Railway.
Encouraged by the performance of the vehicles, the Metropolitan District Railway
Metropolitan District Railway
The Metropolitan District Railway was the predecessor of the District line of the London Underground. Set up on 29 July 1864, at first to complete the "Inner Circle" railway around central London, it was gradually extended into the suburbs...
purchased two of their own in 1909, which were larger as they were built to subsurface-gauge. The manufacturer was W. R. Renshaw and Co Ltd, who were based in Sutton-on-Trent
Sutton-on-Trent
Sutton-on-Trent is a village in Nottinghamshire. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 1,327.It is located 8 miles north of Newark-on-Trent....
, and the vehicles were fitted with current collector shoes, so that they could draw power from the rails when it was available. During the First World War, they were used as shunting engines at Ealing Common Depot
Ealing Common Depot
Ealing Common Depot is a London Underground railway depot on the District Line, located between Acton Town Station and Ealing Common Station. It is accessed by road on Granville Gardens, off the Uxbridge Road in Ealing Common. From the main-line it is accessed at Ealing Common by a junction...
, where power was always available, and so the batteries were removed, and subsequently neglected. New batteries could not be obtained, as batteries of this type were needed for submarines as part of the war effort. The vehicles were numbered 19A and 20A when supplied, but were renumbered as L8 and L9 in 1929, when the batteries were no longer fitted. As electric locomotives, they were upgraded several times, receiving two new types of motors in 1951 and 1955, and new traction control equipment in 1958. They continued to be used to move stores between Acton Works and Ealing Common Depot, until they were superseded by road vehicles in 1969.
Conversions
The next batch of battery locomotives were made by converting existing stock. When it opened, the Central London RailwayCentral London Railway
The Central London Railway , also known as the Twopenny Tube, was a deep-level, underground "tube" railway that opened in London in 1900...
(CLR) had suffered from vibration problems, caused by the heavy locomotives, and had experimented with multiple unit operation, with motive power provided by converting four trailer cars to motor cars. Around 1910, two of these motor cars, numbered 201 and 202, were fitted with batteries, and worked on a number of lines in addition to the Central London Railway. In 1915 they were loaned to the Bakerloo line
Bakerloo Line
The Bakerloo line is a line of the London Underground, coloured brown on the Tube map. It runs partly on the surface and partly at deep level, from Elephant and Castle in the south-east to Harrow & Wealdstone in the north-west of London. The line serves 25 stations, of which 15 are underground...
, when it was being extended to Queens Park. Car 202 had its 'Nife' battery updated to one with 263 cells made by Edison Accumulator Ltd in 1924, while the number of cells in car 201 was increased from 200 to 238 in 1932. For working on other lines, they were fitted with outside shoes, since most lines used a four-rail system, whereas the CLR only used three. The vehicles were numbered L22 and L23 in 1929, and were scrapped in 1936 and 1937.
When the City and South London Railway was being reconstructed in 1922, a number of "padded cell" trailer cars – so-called because of their lack of windows – were stripped out, so that lead-acid batteries and charging resistances could be placed in the resulting space. Each car was then coupled to an electric locomotive, and the batteries were connected to the shoe fuses of the locomotive. The current rail shoes were removed, so that the batteries did not energise the rails. Recharging was arranged at certain points, by means of switches and cables connected to the supply that normally fed the rails.
Two Hungarian gate stock
London Underground 1906 Stock
The 1906 Stock, also known as "Gate Stock", was built for the Yerkes tube lines, Baker Street and Waterloo Railway , Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway , and Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway ....
cars, which had previously been used as ballast motor cars, were converted to battery operation. When working as passenger vehicles on the Piccadilly line
Piccadilly Line
The Piccadilly line is a line of the London Underground, coloured dark blue on the Tube map. It is the fifth busiest line on the Underground network judged by the number of passengers transported per year. It is mainly a deep-level line, running from the north to the west of London via Zone 1, with...
, they had been numbered 34 and 39. In 1929 they were transferred to the Hampstead line, where they were numbered 113 and 118, becoming L11 and L12 in 1936. Shortly afterwards, the numbers were swapped, so that L11 became L12 and L12 became L11. They used batteries made by DP Battery Company, each with 220 cells. The final conversion was of Bakerloo car 66, originally made by the American Car and Foundry Company
American Car and Foundry Company
American Car and Foundry is a manufacturer of railroad rolling stock. One of its subsidiaries was once a manufacturer of motor coaches and trolley coaches under the brand names of ACF and ACF-Brill. Today ACF is known as ACF Industries LLC and is based in St. Charles, Missouri...
, and fitted with a 220-cell DP battery weighing 6.5 tons in 1932. It was numbered L32, and was scrapped in 1948.
Main battery locomotives
In 1936, the decision was taken to purchase a batch of new battery locomotives, and an order was placed with the Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon CompanyGloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company
Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company was a railway rolling stock manufacturer based at Gloucester, England; from 1860 until 1986....
for nine vehicles, six of which would be fitted with GEC traction control equipment, while the other three would be fitted with metadyne
Metadyne
A Metadyne is an electrical machine with three, or more, brushes. It can be used as an amplifier or rotary transformer. It is similar to a third brush dynamo but much more complex, having additional regulator or "variator" windings. It is also similar to an amplidyne except that the latter has a...
units. The GEC-fitted machines weighed 53.8 tons, and were numbered L35 to L40, while the Metadyne-equipped ones weighed an extra 2.2 tons, and were numbered L41 to L43. Both types, when pulling a 200-ton ballast train, could run at 30 mile per hour when supplied with power from the current rails, and at half that speed when working on batteries.
The metadyne-fitted locomotives had new bodies, but the bogies and motors were removed from redundant Metropolitan line
Metropolitan Line
The Metropolitan line is part of the London Underground. It is coloured in Transport for London's Corporate Magenta on the Tube map and in other branding. It was the first underground railway in the world, opening as the Metropolitan Railway on 10 January 1863...
stock and refurbished at Acton Works. Similarly, the metadyne equipment was removed from an experimental train and reused. A metadyne unit consists of a rotating machine, which converts the constant voltage supplied by the battery to a constant current, which feeds the motor. The metadyne system is more efficient than conventional starting resistances, particularly when the locomotive starts and stops frequently, or when it needs to run for long periods at slow speeds. For cable laying work, the metadyne-equipped locomotives could pull trains of 100 tons at 3 mile per hour for considerable distances, without any sign of overheating. Despite the advantages, their complexity resulted in them becoming unreliable, and they were withdrawn in 1977. L41 and L42 were scrapped soon afterwards, but L43 was used for testing purposes for a further three years.
The locomotives fitted with GEC controls used an electro-pneumatic controller, with 28 steps, which allowed the four motors to be connected in series, in two parallel-series pairs, and all in parallel as the speed increased. Pairs of locomotives could be operated in multiple, and motors 1 and 3 or 2 and 4 could be selected if there was a failure of the other pair. As built, the vehicles were 54.3 feet (16.6 m) long, and could pick up power either from a standard 4-rail configuration, or the 3-rail configuration of the Central London Railway, until it was converted to four rails in 1940.
The next batch of seven vehicles were manufactured by R. Y. Pickering and Co Ltd, who were based in Wishaw
Wishaw
Wishaw is a large town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is on the edge of the Clyde Valley, 15 miles south-east of Glasgow....
, Scotland. The traction control equipment was by GEC, although the batteries had a larger capacity than the previous batch. The motors were reused from passenger stock which was being withdrawn at the time. One important improvement was the addition of runners and a lifting device, which enabled any battery cell to be removed from its rack and lowered to the ground through an aperture in the floor. This feature meant that the batteries could be changed without using an overhead crane in a lifting shop, freeing it for more important work. An eighth locomotive was built by staff at Acton Works in 1962, partly as an exercise to prove that the workshop could compete for this type of work. This vehicle was initially numbered L76, and took part in the Metropolitan Railway centenary celebrations, held on 23 May 1963, when it propelled a replica of the original inspection train used by Gladstone.
Metro Cammell
Metro Cammell
The Metropolitan Cammell Carriage and Wagon Company was a Birmingham, England based manufacturer of railway carriages and wagons, based in Saltley and subsequently Washwood Heath....
received the order for the next batch of thirteen locomotives, which were numbered L20 to L32. The first one was delivered on 8 December 1964 to Ruislip Depot. They were part of a programme to phase out the last remaining steam engines, but the Victoria line
Victoria Line
The Victoria line is a deep-level London Underground line running from the south to the north-east of London. It is coloured light blue on the Tube map...
was also being built at this time, and some of the battery locos were fitted with automatic train operation (ATO) equipment, to enable them to work on that line. Traction control equipment was by GEC, with the batteries supplied by DP Battery Co Ltd. As with previous batches, parts of the locomotives were refurbished; in this case, the bogies, traction motors and compressors were supplied by Acton Works. Unlike earlier models, each vehicle was fitted with two compressors, allowing them to work singly. The last steam engines were withdrawn soon afterwards, and an order for five more battery locos was placed with Metro Cammell in 1969. These worked on the Jubilee line
Jubilee Line
The Jubilee line is a line on the London Underground , in the United Kingdom. It was built in two major sections—initially to Charing Cross, in central London, and later extended, in 1999, to Stratford, in east London. The later stations are larger and have special safety features, both aspects...
construction, and were numbered L15 to L19.
The construction of the Jubilee line and the Heathrow extension of the Piccadilly line required yet more works trains, and eleven more locomotives were ordered in 1972, with delivery in 1973. They were built at Doncaster
Doncaster
Doncaster is a town in South Yorkshire, England, and the principal settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster. The town is about from Sheffield and is popularly referred to as "Donny"...
by British Rail Engineering Ltd
BREL
British Rail Engineering Limited , was the railway systems engineering division of British Rail, until the design and building of trains in the UK was privatised in 1993. On 31 October 1969, the company was incorporated as British Rail Engineering Limited.-Main products:The vast majority of BREL's...
. The motors were refurbished from redundant District line stock, but the bogies were new. Although based on the standard Z-type bogie used since the 1930s, they incorporated roller bearings, rather than white metal
White metal
The white metals are any of several light-colored alloys used as a base for plated silverware, ornaments or novelties, as well as any of several lead-base or tin-base alloys used for things like bearings, jewellery, miniature figures, fusible plugs, some medals and metal type.Some of the metals...
axleboxes and suspension bearings. Three of the locomotives were built to replace the three metadyne vehicles, but those were not actually withdrawn until 1977.
A final batch of six locomotives were built by Metro Cammell and were delivered in 1985 and 1986. They incorporated all of the improvements made to the previous vehicles. For the first time, they were specified in metric units. New features included entry to the cabs through a central door, rather than a side door, missile-proof windscreens with windscreen wipers, and the ability to charge the batteries while operating on electrified lines. One departure was the fitting of traction control equipment by Kiepe
Vossloh Kiepe
Vossloh Kiepe is a German manufacturer of electrical traction equipment for trams, trolleybuses and other transport vehicles, as well as air-conditioning and heating systems, and conveyor device components.-History:...
, which prevented them from working in multiple with any of the previous machines. They were not a success, as five of the six had been withdrawn from service by August 1993, while a decision was made about their future, and the sixth was withdrawn some time later.
Roster
| Battery Electric Locomotives | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LT Numbers | Number Built | Builder | Year | Notes |
| L35 - L43 | 9 | GRC&W Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company was a railway rolling stock manufacturer based at Gloucester, England; from 1860 until 1986.... |
1936/8 | Withdrawn from service, L35 in museum depot |
| L55 - L61 | 7 | Pickering | 1951/2 | Withdrawn from service |
| L33 | 1 | LT Acton Works | 1962 | Originally L76, now withdrawn from service |
| L20 - L32 | 13 | Metro Cammell Metro Cammell The Metropolitan Cammell Carriage and Wagon Company was a Birmingham, England based manufacturer of railway carriages and wagons, based in Saltley and subsequently Washwood Heath.... |
1964/5 | In Service |
| L15 - L19 | 5 | Metro Cammell Metro Cammell The Metropolitan Cammell Carriage and Wagon Company was a Birmingham, England based manufacturer of railway carriages and wagons, based in Saltley and subsequently Washwood Heath.... |
1970/1 | In Service |
| L44 - L54 | 11 | BREL Doncaster BREL British Rail Engineering Limited , was the railway systems engineering division of British Rail, until the design and building of trains in the UK was privatised in 1993. On 31 October 1969, the company was incorporated as British Rail Engineering Limited.-Main products:The vast majority of BREL's... |
1973/4 | In Service |
| L62 - L67 | 6 | Metro Cammell Metro Cammell The Metropolitan Cammell Carriage and Wagon Company was a Birmingham, England based manufacturer of railway carriages and wagons, based in Saltley and subsequently Washwood Heath.... |
1985 | Withdrawn from service |
Design
All locomotives were built to a similar design, but with a number of variations included over the years of development. Numbers L41-L43 had MetadyneMetadyne
A Metadyne is an electrical machine with three, or more, brushes. It can be used as an amplifier or rotary transformer. It is similar to a third brush dynamo but much more complex, having additional regulator or "variator" windings. It is also similar to an amplidyne except that the latter has a...
control gear.
The locomotives have a cab at each end and are built to the standard 'Tube' loading gauge so that they can work over all lines on the London Underground network. They are equipped with buffers and drawhooks, for coupling to standard main line vehicles. Earlier vehicles had hinged buffers, which could be raised upwards when not in use, but this job was arduous, and a programme of replacing them with retractable buffers was carried out. They were also fitted with a 'Ward' coupler, mounted at a height suitable for tube cars, but this made the locomotives prone to significant damage in shunting accidents. In 1980, two locomotives, L18 and L38, were fitted with 'buckeye' couplings, as an experiment. These automatic couplings are mounted at the height of the main frames, and so shunting damage is virtually eliminated. The success of the experiment led to buckeye couplings being retro-fitted to all locomotives built from 1964. Additionally, they all have train air-brake equipment.
The body sides take the form of louvres to allow ventilation around the batteries (most locomotives had four solid body panels on one side only). All body panels are hinged to allow the batteries to be removed. Following the withdrawal of steam engines, the vehicles often worked on open sections of line, rather than in tunnels, and the need to heat the cabs in winter became apparent. Draught excluders have been added to all cab doors, and additional heaters have been fitted into the cabs.
The original livery was grey, but crimson lake was applied from the early 1960s using supplies of LT steam locomotive paint. This was changed to yellow in the early 1980s, which was deemed to be more safety conscious.
Power
The locomotives can draw power from the 630 V electrified rails like a normal tube train, or run on 320 V DC traction batteries when the power is switched off. Since most of the traction motors were removed from redundant stock for fitting into the vehicles, Acton Works have had to convert them from 630 V operation to work on 320 V. The lead-acid batteriesLead-acid battery
Lead–acid batteries, invented in 1859 by French physicist Gaston Planté, are the oldest type of rechargeable battery. Despite having a very low energy-to-weight ratio and a low energy-to-volume ratio, their ability to supply high surge currents means that the cells maintain a relatively large...
are usually recharged inside a depot
Motive power depot
Motive power depot, usually abbreviated to MPD, is a name given to places where locomotives are stored when not being used, and also repaired and maintained. They were originally known as "running sheds", "engine sheds", or, for short, just sheds. Facilities are provided for refuelling and...
, although the 1985 batch of locomotives could recharge their batteries from the power rails while moving.
Protection
All battery locomotives are fitted with tripcocksTrain stop
Part of a railway signalling system, a train stop or trip stop is a train protection device that automatically stops a train if it attempts to pass a signal when the signal aspect and operating rules prohibit such movement, or if it attempts to pass at an excessive speed.- Basic operation :The...
which are operated by trackside equipment if the train passes a signal at danger. Eighteen (L15 - L21 and L44 - L54) are also fitted with Central Line Automatic Train Protection
Automatic Train Protection
Automatic Train Protection in Great Britain refers to either of two implementations of a train protection system installed in some trains in order to help prevent collisions through a driver's failure to observe a signal or speed restriction...
(ATP). When they were built, locomotives L25 to L32 were fitted with Automatic Train Operation (ATO) equipment, which allowed them to work on the Victoria line. The tripcock could be isolated, and a trip valve performed a similar function, except that it was operated by the ATO controller. A special setting was provided that allowed the vehicles to move if they were not receiving safety track signals, but the maximum speed in these circumstances was limited to 10 mile per hour. By the mid-1980s, this equipment had ceased to be used, as works trains were only run on the Victoria line when engineers had possession of the whole line. Subsequently, some locomotives (L27 - L32) have been re-fitted with Victoria Line ATP equipment which was designed by Metronet BCV on behalf of Transplant, the operator of the fleet. This system was installed during 2007 at Ruislip Depot. It is compatible with the new Distance-to-Go Radio (DTG-R) ATP system which is being implemented on the Victoria line by Westinghouse Rail Systems
Westinghouse Rail Systems
Westinghouse Rail Systems Ltd is a British supplier of railway signalling and control equipment to the rail industry worldwide. Its head office is in Chippenham, Wiltshire, where it manufactures a variety of mechanical and electrical/electronic railway signalling equipment...
.
Ownership
The locomotives are, since the start of London Underground's PPPPublic-private partnership
Public–private partnership describes a government service or private business venture which is funded and operated through a partnership of government and one or more private sector companies...
scheme, in the ownership of TransPlant. The locomotives are usually stabled at Lillie Bridge depot or Ruislip depot.
Use
The traditional use of these locomotives has been to haul trains as electric locomotives until they reach the area where work is to be undertaken, then (as the electrified rails would be isolated) switch to battery operation. They are also used for transporting diesel powered equipment like tampers through tunnel sections. Normally one locomotive will be at each end of the train, this allows the train to be reversed easily (the connections between different Underground lines often require reversals on route). Early locomotives were not allowed to operate on their own as they only had a single air compressor. Twin compressors were fitted after 1964.With the building of the Jubilee Line diesel-powered locomotives took over part of the jobs the battery locomotives did.
The London Underground battery locomotives have been rented to Network Rail on several occasions for trackwork in the London area.
Metronet battery locomotives
In February 2006, MetronetMetronet
Metronet Rail was one of two companies in a public-private partnership with London Underground.Metronet was responsible for the maintenance, renewal, and upgrade of the infrastructure on nine London Underground lines from 2003 to 2008. This included track, trains, signals, civil work and stations...
received four small battery locomotives. These were named Walter, Lou, Anne, and Kitty, names that pun
Pun
The pun, also called paronomasia, is a form of word play which suggests two or more meanings, by exploiting multiple meanings of words, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from the intentional use and abuse of homophonic,...
the name of the line they were bought to work on, London Underground
London Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
's Waterloo and City Line
Waterloo & City Line
The Waterloo & City line is a short underground railway line in London, which was formally opened on 11 July 1898. It has only two stations, Waterloo and Bank...
. They are used for hauling materials and equipment and were specially designed and built for work in narrow tunnels with tight curves and steep gradients. Clayton Equipment
Clayton Equipment Company
Clayton Equipment Company Ltd, now known simply as Clayton Equipment Ltd or CEC and CEL, is a locomotive construction company that specialises in locomotives for underground mining operations.-Inception:...
of Derby designed and built them in about four months, which is relatively fast. The locomotives weigh 15 tonne
Tonne
The tonne, known as the metric ton in the US , often put pleonastically as "metric tonne" to avoid confusion with ton, is a metric system unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. The tonne is not an International System of Units unit, but is accepted for use with the SI...
s each and have 200 Volt DC motors providing 75 hp
Horsepower
Horsepower is the name of several units of measurement of power. The most common definitions equal between 735.5 and 750 watts.Horsepower was originally defined to compare the output of steam engines with the power of draft horses in continuous operation. The unit was widely adopted to measure the...
to each axle
Axle
An axle is a central shaft for a rotating wheel or gear. On wheeled vehicles, the axle may be fixed to the wheels, rotating with them, or fixed to its surroundings, with the wheels rotating around the axle. In the former case, bearings or bushings are provided at the mounting points where the axle...
. As a fail-safe
Fail-safe
A fail-safe or fail-secure device is one that, in the event of failure, responds in a way that will cause no harm, or at least a minimum of harm, to other devices or danger to personnel....
feature they have spring-applied disc brakes that are automatically applied if something goes wrong. Built-in cameras are connected to screens in the cab to make shunting easier. Unlike London Underground's battery-electric locomotives, these battery locomotives cannot draw power from the electrified rails. Under normal use this is not a problem because they are designed to work on engineering projects in tunnels where the power is cut off anyway, but it does mean they have to return to the depot to be recharged — never far away on the relatively short W&C.