This article is about the multiple unit passenger train. For parcels variant, see British Rail Class 768.
British Rail Class 769 Flex
Northern Trains Class 769 at Manchester Piccadilly in 2021.
Interior of a Transport for Wales unit
In service
November 2020 – present[1]
Manufacturer
As Class 319: British Rail Engineering Limited
Conversion: Brush Traction
Built at
BREL: York Carriage Works
Brush: Loughborough
Family name
BR Second Generation (Mark 3)
Replaced
Class 142
Class 143
Class 153
Constructed
1987–1988, 1990
(converted 2017–2021)
Number in service
8
Number scrapped
1 vehicle[2]
Owners
Porterbrook
Operators
Current: Northern Trains
Former: Transport for Wales Rail
Depots
Current: Allerton (Liverpool)
Former: Canton (Cardiff)
Specifications
Car body construction
Steel[3]
Car length
DT vehs.: 19.83 m (65 ft 1 in)
Others: 19.92 m (65 ft 4 in)[4]
Width
2.82 m (9 ft 3 in)[4]
Height
3.58 m (11 ft 9 in)[4]
Doors
Double-leaf sliding pocket, each 1.010 m (3 ft 3.8 in) wide(2 per side per car)[3]
Wheelbase
Over bogie centres: 14.170 m (46 ft 5.9 in)[3]
Maximum speed
100 mph (161 km/h)
Prime mover(s)
2 × MAN D2876 (one per DT vehicle)[5]
Engine type
Inline-6 4-stroke turbo-diesel with SCR[6][5]
Displacement
12.8 L (780 cu in)[6]
Traction motors
4 × GEC G315BZ[4]
Power output
390 kW (520 hp) per engine[5]
Electric system(s)
25 kV 50 Hz AC overheaad
750 V DC third rail
Current collector(s)
Pantograph (AC)[note 1]
Contact shoe (DC)
UIC classification
2′2′+Bo′Bo′+2′2′+2′2′
Bogies
Powered: BREL P7-4
Unpowered: BREL T3-7[3]
Minimum turning radius
70.4 m (231 ft 0 in)[3]
Braking system(s)
Electro-pneumatic (disc)[3]
Safety system(s)
AWS
TPWS
Coupling system
Tightlock
Multiple working
Within class
Track gauge
1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
The British Rail Class 769 Flex is a class of bi-mode multiple unit (BMU)[8][9][note 2] converted by Brush Traction, and running in service with Northern Trains. The train is a conversion of the existing Class 319 electric multiple unit (EMU), a conventional unit type which had become surplus to requirements during the 2010s.[11]
The conversion process is carried out by a partnership between the rolling stock leasing company Porterbrook and train manufacturer Brush Traction. The conversion principally involves the addition of a pair of MAN diesel engines (one under each driving trailer vehicle), the output of which is fed into ABB-provided alternators to power the existing electric traction systems.[11] According to Porterbrook, the Class 769's performance under diesel power is either equal or superior to that of a Class 150 Sprinter diesel multiple unit (DMU), and the switchover between EMU and DMU modes can be carried out while the train is in motion.[5]
^Sherratt, P. (14 April 2021). "Wales awaits new fleets". Modern Railways. Stamford: Key Publishing. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
^"Class 319 fleet in focus". Rail Express. No. 321. Horncastle: Mortons Media Group. February 2023. p. 29. ISSN 1362-234X.
^ abcdefVehicle Diagram Book No. 210 for Electric Multiple Units (including A.P.T.)(PDF). Derby: Mechanical & Electrical Engineering Department, British Railways Board. January 1988. EC209, EE233–EE234, EH234 (in work pp. 86–87, 176–179, 314–315). Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 January 2015 – via Barrowmore MRG.
^ abcdClass 319 Electric Multiple Unit(PDF) (1A ed.). Derby: Porterbrook Leasing Company. August 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 April 2015.
^ abcdCite error: The named reference rail eng was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ ab"D2876 LUE63x Rail Engine". MAN Engines. München: Traton SE. Archived from the original on 27 June 2022.
^"Sampling the troublesome 769s". Today's Railways UK. No. 242. April 2022. pp. 34–39.
^"Flex Bi-modes set for May Start". Rail Magazine. No. 929. Peterborough: Bauer Consumer Media. 21 April 2021. p. 26. ISSN 0953-4563.
^"'Wales welcomes its first Bi-mode Class 769 FLEX". Rail Magazine. No. 875. Peterborough: Bauer Consumer Media. 27 March 2019. p. 35. ISSN 0953-4563.
^"Mainline testing begins for Flex Tri-modes". Rail Magazine. No. 929. Peterborough: Bauer Consumer Media. 21 April 2021. p. 16. ISSN 0953-4563.
^ ab"UK's first tri-mode train is being introduced by Great Western Railway". Global Rail Review. Brasted: Russell Publishing. 25 April 2018. Retrieved 30 April 2019.
Cite error: There are <ref group=note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=note}} template (see the help page).
and 27 Related for: British Rail Class 769 information
The BritishRailClass769 Flex is a class of bi-mode multiple unit (BMU) converted by Brush Traction, and running in service with Northern Trains. The...
The BritishRailClass 319 is an electric multiple unit passenger train built by BritishRail Engineering Limited's Holgate Road carriage works for use...
Broadbent, Steve (4 March 2014). "Chiltern plots further expansion". Rail Magazine. No. 769. Peterborough. pp. 46–53. "Porterbrook on LinkedIn: #HybridFLEX...
BritishRailClass 37 is a diesel-electric locomotive. Also known as the English Electric Type 3, the class was ordered as part of the BritishRail modernisation...
The BritishRailClass 768 is a class of bi-mode multiple unit being converted from Class 319 passenger trains by Brush Traction and Wabtec to carry parcels...
The BritishRailClass 170 Turbostar is a British diesel multiple unit (DMU) passenger train designed and built by Adtranz, and later by Bombardier Transportation...
The BritishRailClass 323 is a class of electric multiple unit (EMU) passenger train built by Hunslet Transportation Projects and Holec. All 43 units...
The BritishRailClass 166 Networker Turbo is a fleet of diesel multiple unit (DMU) passenger trains, built by ABB Transportation at their Holgate Road...
The BritishRailClass 810 Aurora is a type of bi-mode multiple unit being constructed by Hitachi Rail for East Midlands Railway. Based on the Hitachi...
The BritishRailClass 195 is a class of diesel multiple-unit passenger train from the Civity family manufactured by CAF, owned by Eversholt Rail Group...
The BritishRailClass 800, branded as the Intercity Express Train (IET) by Great Western Railway (GWR) and Azuma by London North Eastern Railway (LNER)...
The BritishRailClass 197 is a class of diesel multiple unit passenger train built by CAF, based on its Civity platform. They are operated by Transport...
Arms collision". Modern Railways. Retrieved 29 August 2023. "Class769 Flex". Units. Rail Express. No. 326. July 2023. p. 23. "First 175s stored as three...
of BritishRail diesel multiple-unit train classes. For a historical overview of diesel multiple unit train development in Great Britain, see British railcars...
The BritishRailClass 756 FLIRT is a class of tri-mode multiple units being built for Transport for Wales Rail by Swiss rolling stock manufacturer Stadler...
The BritishRailClass 196 Civity is a class of diesel multiple unit built for West Midlands Trains by Spanish rolling stock manufacturer CAF. A total...
The BritishRailClass 231 is a class of eleven diesel-electric multiple units of the FLIRT family, which have been built for Transport for Wales by Swiss...
321 Class 322 Class 325 DC EMU ClassesClass 442 Class 455 Class 456 Bi-mode EDMU ClassesClass 768 Class769Class 799 The cars for Classes 150, 210, 317...
The BritishRailClass 230 D-Train is a diesel-electric multiple unit, diesel-battery electric multiple unit or battery electric multiple unit built by...
The BritishRailClass 25, also known as the Sulzer Type 2, is a class of 327 diesel locomotives built between 1961 and 1967 for BritishRail. They were...
738 billion journeys on the National Rail network, making the British network the fifth most used in the world (Great Britain ranks 23rd in world population)...
is a British rolling stock company (ROSCO), created as part of the privatisation of BritishRail. Together with Angel Trains and Eversholt Rail Group...
from Monday to Friday Eight Class 319/4 units were converted to Class769 as part of the Northern franchise. "Arriva Rail North Limited". Companies House...
Crossrail stock such as the Class 345 once it is delivered. With the introduction of Class 387 and the tri-modal BritishRailClass769 (no longer in operation)...
and was followed by the 90 mph (140 km/h) Class 166 for long distance services. Train manufacturer BritishRail Engineering Limited was privatised in 1989...