Class 128 Gloucester RC&W Parcel DMU Cars
Operations
Originally only eight sets were ordered by the British Transport Commission, this was changed to ten by the time British United Traction ordered the power units from Leyland Motors Ltd in November 1958 (an order worth £86,000).
The powerful engines were to allow the vehicles to pull a tail load, with a maximum weight of 64 tons. The vehicles could be found working their own parcels trains, with or without a tail load, or attached to a service train to add parcel capacity.
London Midland Region
The four LMR vehicles (55987-90) were delivered first in January 1960 to Cricklewood depot. By the end of the year 55988 moved to Newton Heath. 55987 would follow in January 1962.
Western Region
The first two WR vehicles 55991/2 were for the London area and delivered to Southall. The other four were for the Birmingham area, 55993 spending a brief period at Leamington before joining the other three (55994-6) at Tyseley.
The four Tyseley vehicles would become London Midland Region vehicles in September 1963 due to regional boundary changes.
The image shows vehicle at Stratford-upon-Avon in 1965. The photographer notes "This area had just been transferred from the WR to the LMR and all the MUs had a green patch where the "W" had been replaced with a "M". Malcolm Clements.
In the image a set number 'P2' can be seen in the cab window, and these seem to have been carried in order, P1 to P4 on 55993 - 55996.
The two remaining WR vehicles (55991/2) moved from Southall to Reading in April 1968. They spent most of their career in the London area, next moving to Old Oak in 1987, leaving the Region in 1988 for Cambridge where they spent their last two years. They would be the only two to keep their gangways till withdrawal.
At Reading (or while still at Southall?) each vehicle was paired with a single Derby parcel vehicle, and these became, at various times, sets 343, 344 and 345. They could be found with extra long tail loads..
The image shows W55992 working with (almost out of picture to the right) Derby Class 130 Parcels car W50915 at Reading - c.1969. 53A Models of Hull Collection.
The last moves of the 1960s were the two remaining Cricklewood vehicles moving in October 1968, 55989 to Tyseley and 55990 to Chester.
1970s
At the start of the seventies the Western Region had two vehicles at Reading (55991/2); the LMR eight vehicles, two at Newton Heath (55987/8), five at Tyseley (55989/93-6) and one at Chester (55990).
In August 1970 Newton Heath gained its third vehicle, 55989 from Tyseley, and a fourth, 55996 in 1970, on loan from Tyseley, but would loose 55987 soon after in early 1971 when 55987 moved to the Western Region at Reading. It's time there was short lived as it was the first of the class to be withdrawn in July 1971, reason unknown.
The image shows M55989 at Newton Heath depot on 10th April 1971. Gordon Edgar.
By the end of 1971 the loan of 55996 to Newton Heath was made a permanent move, and 55990 would also join the growing fleet there (now four, the three remaining original LMR cars 55988-90 and gangwayed 55996) moving from Tyseley, leaving the Birmingham depot with three (55993-5).
In the early 1970s Newton Heath based 55988 carried set number NH017 on a black board in the centre cab window.
1973 saw the three Tyseley vehicles move to Chester, 55993/5 via a few months at Newton Heath.
By the mid-1970s the two GUV vehicles that had been through-wired for the now-abandoned Class 130 (116) Railair Express Parcels set were added to the Reading Class 128/130 combos making them three car sets. In 1977 the Derby vehicles would be converted back to passenger vehicles ending these hybrid sets.
The image shows a non-corridored vehicle at Stockport, marshalled at the rear of the 13:10 Piccadilly to Buxton on 4/1/79, giving a useful shove up the hills to Buxton. Paul Moxon.
There were no more allocation changes in the 1970s, except the withdrawal of 55996 in early 1979.
It recently had its gangway removed and sustained collision damage in an unknown incident, it lingered in Allerton depot for a while where it was well photographed. The image shows it at Allerton depot on February 17th 1980. Ian Charles.
1980s
At the dawn of the eighties, with two vehicles withdrawn, two were still on the Western Region at Reading (gangwayed 55991/2), the LMR had six split evenly between Newton Heath (original LMR non-gangwayed vehicles 55988-90) and Chester (originally WR gangwayed vehicles 55993-5, with the gangways removed or about to be removed). Chester vehicles would often be seen working in pairs.
55994 worked a Crewe - Barnmouth special on the 17th June 1980 for British Rail chairman Sir Peter Parker to inspect the bridge.
55988 would be withdrawn from Newton Heath in October 1980, the other two original LMR non-gangwayed vehicles in 1982 (55990 in April and 55989 in September), leaving the depot without parcel vehicles (for now).
In the image W55991 slows down for its booked stop at Maidenhead on 4th August 1981. Paul James.
During the 1984 Motor Show at the Birmingham NEC Chester based 55994 operated a special parcels service from Northampton to Birmingham, based at Nuneaton, but fuelled and serviced at Tyseley.
In June 1984 55993/4 moved from Chester to Newton Heath leaving just 55995 there.
The Chester car had no booked diagram but would be used as required on special trains along the Cambrian Coast, and even worked ballast trains on the Barnmouth bridge due to locos being banned from crossing this during the 1980s.
In the image M55993, stabled in Manchester Victoria on 27-8-83, has the glass missing from the nearest marker light. On Tour With the Class 13 Army.
Newton Heath would keep one vehicles as a spare, the other working through Manchester Victoria to Manchester Mayfield Parcels Depot before being attached to a Buxton service set. This weekday working would return in the early evening to Piccadilly, then via Manchester Victoria to Newton Heath. Other workings in this area included Manchester to Oldham Mumps.
The final Chester vehicle (55995) moved to Newton Heath in May 1985.
With five vehicles remaining, three were at Newton Heath and two at Reading. Typical duties of the Reading cars in 1985 would be one car operating from Southall from Monday to Friday between 05:00 and 22:00. Duties in this time would include carrying letter-post, periodicals, parcels and Red Star traffic between Paddington and Reading and intermediate stations. The other set would act as a spare/relief unit. Other duties included using them to convey staff from the WR to Stratford to collect WR sets.
The arrival at Newton Heath of the Class 127 parcel conversions allowed the three Class 128 vehicles there to move to Tyseley in July 1985. Soon after two (55993/4) would be painted into the Red Star two-tone blue livery with red stripe. The two Reading vehicles moved to Old Oak Common in June 1987.
These five remaining vehicles became the five Royal Mail Red vehicles when the repaints began in the 1988, with the vehicles visiting Vic Berry's at Leicester for asbestos removal.
The image shows what is thought to be the only time a Class 128 visited Skegness. In the late 1980s 55993 was attached to an excursion train and for some reason it remained attached to the formation throughout the trip. Peter, Lincolnshire & East Yorkshire Transport Review.
All five vehicles would be transferred to Cambridge in November 1988. In this era they would commonly be seen working with the Royal Mail Red Class 114 parcel conversions.
1990s
1990 was to be their last year.
The images shows a pair of DMU Parcels units (a 128, probably 55995, and a 114), scurry west past AD Junction, Newport, on 27th June 1990. Paul James.
Towards the end of 1990 Regional Railways Midland sub-sector obtained the five remaining cars along with the Class 114 DPUs. Consideration was given to using them for sandite /route learning vehicles, but their lack of windows prevented this.
One (55991) was still fitted with Leyland Albion engines, the other four were intended as a source of spares, with their TL11s destined to be modified and fitted to Class 142s. Component recovery was intended to take place at Derby Etches Park or Chester wagon shops, and 55992-5 were re-allocated to Chester in November 1990 while 55991 was withdrawn. It was doubtful they ever reached Chester, and were withdrawn the same month.
Seen stored at Derby Etches Park on 3-2-91 after withdrawal is 55994 with Class 114 54900 55930 behind. Kevin Dowd.
With component recovery still in mind 55991-5 were moved to Inverness with withdrawn Class 114 DPUs, being noted there in March 1991. It is believed this was abandoned and they were sent for scrap.
None survive.