DMU

CLASS 142 ‘PACER’

HAVING reduced the number of

Class 142s in traffic to six sets for four diagrams in February, Northern decreased its operating requirement to just two units with effect from March 9, both working out of Manchester Victoria. This resulted in Nos. 142045/051 being removed from service, the pair departing Newton Heath for storage at Gascoigne Wood on March 9.

Other recent moves of stored units have been Nos. 142035/047/055 (5Z42/10.40 Heaton-Gascoigne Wood on March 6), with Nos. 142011/ 036/061 following to Gascoigne Wood the next day and 142013/041/043 on March 10.

One departure fromGascoigne Wood has been No. 142038, which

ran to Worksop on February 27, after which it was moved by road to the Mid-Norfolk Railway.

After a period in use as a route learner on the York to Scarborough route, No. 142068 returned to

Heaton on February 28, having been replaced by No. 142065. Stored at Heaton in late March were

Nos. 142018/023/070/087/094/095.

CLASS 150 ‘SPRINTER’

PART of the GWR fleet since 2011, prototype ‘Sprinter’ Nos. 150001/002 were due to be stopped at the end of March before being transferred to Northern. The pair were initially used on Reading to Basingstoke services but have more recently been based at Exeter.

‘Orphan’ No. 150209, made up of car Nos. 57209+57212, returned to Newton Heath from Doncaster on March 18 following PRM (persons with

reduced mobility) work, but has not been fitted with a toilet, restricting it to being used for strengthening purposes only.

One of the three sets still in London Midland livery, No. 150105, ran from Newton Heath to Crewe (Arriva) for attention on March 15, leaving just

Nos. 150107/109 in these colours.

CLASS 158

AFTER a visit to Bristol Barton Hill for refurbishment and application of the newNorthern colour scheme,

No. 158848 returned to Heaton on March 6. Similarly, No. 158792 returned to Neville Hill from Crewe on March 14.

CLASS 170 ‘TURBOSTAR’

SCOTRAIL released the first two of five Class 170s for transfer to East Midlands Railway on March 23. Nos. 170416/417, both of which have been in unbranded blue for some time, left Scotland with the 5E66/09.43 Haymarket-Crofton

where they will be prepared for use by their new operator. Also moving south from Scotland will be Nos. 170418-420, and EMR will also receive 23 two-car sets (Nos. 170501-517/630-635) from West Midlands Trains after the new CAF Class 196 units have been introduced. The centre cars from Nos. 170630-635 will be transferred to Cross Country.

While working the 1M87/21.05 Cardiff-Birmingham, No. 170107 was involved in a side-swipe collision with Lickey banker No. 66057, which had run through the buffers, at Bromsgrove on March 23. Earlier in the month (March 1), the same unit had made an unusual appearance at Bristol Temple Meads on a ‘Voyager’ turn, having worked the 1V61/15.05 Manchester Piccadilly-Bristol TM (which started at Macclesfield owing to the late running of the inbound working). It returned north with the 1M69/19.00 Bristol TM-Manchester Piccadilly.