Improvements needed to Mk 1 rolling stock

Current exemptions for Mk 1 rolling stock that expire in 2023 will not be automatically renewed, according to the ORR’s Annual Health and Safety report.

“I’ve been very clear to the charter sector that if they want to continue to operate Mk 1 rolling stock on a main line railway, they have to make significant improvements to their current stock,” Chief Inspector of Railways and Director of Railway Safety Ian Prosser CBE told RAIL.

“The first thing is to minimise the amount of stock they need so they’re not registering vast numbers of carriages.”

Prosser said that a number of changes would need to be made if Mk 1s are to receive further exemptions, including: managing corrosion and crashworthiness; fit central door locking; restrict droplight window opening; and fit controlled emissions toilets.

He said that heritage and charter operators need to start looking at what they want to refurbish, and how they plan to achieve it.

“I’m prepared to give them exemptions for quite long periods to justify the investment they will need to make - ten or 15-year exemptions are not out of the question. But I’ve told them to start talking to us early. We want to see plans in place and to make sure that the carriages they have are in good maintainable order, because Mk 1s are way beyond their design life.”