‘144’ to move to Great Central Railway (Nottingham)

The first Class 144 Pacer has been secured for preservation.

Two-car Northern 144003 will move to the Great Central Railway (Nottingham) once it is withdrawn, which is due to be before May.

The GCR(N) plans to use it as part of its efforts to operate the railway 52 weeks a year.

“Love or loathe them, since the mid-1980s Class 142s, ‘143s’ and ‘144s’ have been a low-cost and efficient way of transporting passengers to their destination over lines which may otherwise have seen a large decline in services - or in some cases, no services at all,” said GCR(N) Commercial Director Phil Stanway.

Owner Porterbrook is selling the ‘144’. Head of Communications and Engagement Rupert BrennanBrown said: “These trains were in many ways the saviour of the social railway, so it is fitting that one of these multiple units will meet the future needs of a community and heritage railway.”

The GCR(N) hopes that the arrival of the Pacer could lead to a larger-scale diesel multiple unit themed event to take place at the railway.

It has also been confirmed that 144003 will be cared for by members of the newly formed GCR(N) 2nd Generation DMU Group, many of whom have experience of maintaining secondgeneration DMUs on the main line.

There is currently no date for the ‘144’ to arrive at the GCR(N). The 23-strong fleet was due to have been withdrawn by Northern during late 2018 and early 2019, but instead will remain in traffic until the rollout of CAF Class 195s is complete. They will largely be used in and around the South Yorkshire and Sheffield areas.