British Rail Class 6Pul
| Southern Railway 6-PUL, 6-CITY, and 6-PAN |
|
|---|---|
| In service | 1932–1969 |
| Manufacturer |
Power cars: Metropolitan Cammell and BRCW Standard trailer cars: SR Eastleigh Works, Pullman trailer cars: Metropolitan-Cammell |
| Number built | 6-PUL: 20 6-CITY: 3 6-PAN: 17 |
| Number preserved | 2 Pullman trailer cars |
| Number scrapped | All except 2 Pullman trailer cars |
| Formation | Power car + 4 trailer cars + power car |
| Fleet numbers | See text |
| Operator(s) |
Southern Railway, British Railways |
| Line(s) served | London to Brighton and Worthing |
| Specifications | |
| Car body construction |
Power cars: All steel, Trailer cars: Steel panelled wooden body on steel underframe |
| Traction system | Eight 225 hp (168 kW) traction motors |
| Power output | 1,800 hp (1,342 kW) |
| Electric system(s) | 750 V DC |
| Current collection method | Third rail |
| UIC classification | Bo′Bo′+2′2′+2′2′+2′2′+2′2′+Bo′Bo′ |
| Braking system(s) | Automatic Air |
| Coupling system | Screw-link |
| Multiple working | Standard SR system |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) |
The Southern Railway (SR) gave the designations 6-PUL, 6-CITY and 6-PAN to electric multiple units built to work the routes between London and Brighton, West Worthing and Eastbourne. None of these units survived long enough in British Rail ownership to be allocated a TOPS class number. The 6-PUL units were designated 6-COR until 1935 (the COR designation was later used for 4-COR units).
Coach numbers 11001 and 11002 were prototype driving motor brake vehicles for the mainline stock that was being developed for the London to Brighton electrification. The first was built by the Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company (BRCW) and the second by Metropolitan Cammell Carriage and Wagon Company. Both were introduced in October 1931, and ran with three trailers converted from former London and South Western Railway carriages as unit number 2001.
After trials with this unit had been completed the set was disbanded, and the two prototype driving cars were reformed into 6-CITY units 2041 and 2042 respectively. Unit number 2001 was then reused for one of the production 6-PUL units.
The 6-PUL (6-car Pullman stock, numbers 2001–2020) and 6-CITY (6-car City stock, numbers 2041–2043) units were built in 1932 to provide high quality accommodation on the newly electrified London to Brighton route. Units of both types each included a Pullman composite kitchen car, which were built by Metropolitan Cammell and numbered 256 to 278 in the Pullman Car Company series.
The 6-CITY units differed from the 6-PUL units only in that the three trailers other than the Pullman car had all first class accommodation. They were dedicated for use on the London Bridge to Brighton route (as opposed to the London Victoria route on which the 6-PUL units were used), and were intended for the trains used by City workers, hence their designation.
The 6-PAN (6-car Pantry unis, numbers 2021–2037) units were introduced in 1935, upon the extension of the electrified network to Ore. They were similar to the 6-PUL units, except that the Pullman car was replaced by a first class dining car with a pantry. From this time, 12-car trains were often formed from a 6-PAN coupled to either a 6-PUL or 6-CITY.
Until the arrival of the 6-PAN units, the 6-PUL units had been referred to as 6-COR (6-car Corridor stock) and, as explained below, the designation COR was again used by this stock in later years for various reasons. The numbers of all three types of unit were revised in January 1937 from 20xx to 30xx.
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