British Rail Class 333

The British Rail Class 333 is an electric multiple unit with a top speed of 100 mph (160 km/h); they were built by Siemens and CAF between 2000 and 2001.

British Rail Class 333
333002 at Ilkley
Interior of a refurbished unit
In service2000–present
ManufacturerSiemens Mobility and CAF
Built atZaragoza, Spain
ReplacedClass 308
Constructed2000 - 2001
Refurbished2018 - 2020
Number built16 trainsets[1]
Formation4 cars per trainset[1]
Fleet numbers333001–333016
Capacity360 seats
Operator(s)Northern Trains
Specifications
Car length
  • 23.74 m (DMSO)
  • 23.35 m (TSO, PTSO)
Maximum speed100 mph (160 km/h)[1]
Weight186.4 t (183.5 long tons; 205.5 short tons)
Power output1.4 MW (1,900 hp)
Electric system(s)25 kV 50 Hz AC Overhead
Current collection methodPantograph
Braking system(s)Regenerative air brake
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge

These trains are operated by Northern Trains and are based on the Class 332 units operated by Heathrow Express.

Description

Sixteen three-car units were introduced between 2000 and 2001 by Northern Spirit and are currently operated by Northern Trains. They replaced the Class 308 slam-door units on the Wharfedale and Airedale lines in West Yorkshire and North Yorkshire (between Leeds, Bradford Forster Square, Ilkley and Skipton).[1] They are based at the Neville Hill depot in Leeds and painted in the livery of West Yorkshire Metro, the local passenger transport executive.

Due to increased passenger numbers, the units were lengthened to four cars, 333001–333008 in 2002 and 333009–333016 in 2003, funded by West Yorkshire Metro and the Strategic Rail Authority.[2] However, this funding ran out in 2007 and as a consequence of this the fourth cars could have been removed.[3] Had this happened the four-car Class 321s would have been removed from Doncaster services to Wharfedale and Airedale services. This means that the fourth cars are now funded by the South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive, despite rarely running in South Yorkshire, to ensure that four-car units are available on Doncaster services.[4]

Units 333002 and 333004 received the new livery by September 2008, but the finish of the vinyls was unsatisfactory. New vinyls were acquired and the whole fleet was reliveried by mid-2009.[5]

Along with the Class 321 and Class 322 units, these trains were fitted with free Wi-Fi facilities in 2015.[6]

Between autumn 2018 and ending in spring 2020, the entire fleet of 16 units underwent a refurbishment.[7] This saw the installation of new seats, a new livery and a refreshed interior. At-seat plug points and customer information screens are due to be installed at a later date.[8]

Performance

The units are capable of 100 mph (160 km/h), but the maximum speed on their routes is 90 mph (140 km/h). They have standard class only 2+3 high-density seating, and each set has one toilet.[9]

They are fitted with Scharfenberg couplers at each end and are only compatible within their own class.[10]

Fleet details
Class Operator No. Built Year Built Cars per Set Unit nos. Formation
Class 333 Northern Trains 16 2000-2001 4 333001–333016 DMSO-PTSO-TSO-DMSO
  • Northern Rail livery on 333010 at Guiseley
  • The Northern Rail/WYPTE Livery which was seen from 2008 until 2020 applied on a DMSO
  • The original Northern Spirit livery on 333011
  • Having just departed Cononley on a Skipton service on 31 May 2017
  • The original interior of an intermediate TSO vehicle
  • Class 333 in the original livery.
  • Diagram for the Northern Rail livery.
  • Diagram for the Arriva Northern and Northern Trains liveries.
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References
  1. Electric Multiple Unit Class 333, UK Archived 2 April 2015 at the Wayback Machine - Siemens Mobility References. Retrieved 13 May 2011.
  2. "Rail Working Group: Rolling Stock" (PDF). West Yorkshire Integrated Transport Authority. 7 December 2005. Retrieved 1 September 2009.
  3. http://www.wyita.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/F933B535-7652-4C23-AB9C-6D4C7C798679/0/RWG6DECEMBER2005ITEM7.pdf,%5B%5D
  4. Hill, Neville (May 2015). "0-60!". Rail Express. No. 228. p. 27. ISSN 1362-234X.
  5. Today's Railways UK (81). Missing or empty |title= (help)
  6. "Free On-Board WiFi? Now That's Entertrainment!". Northern Rail. 26 January 2015. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
  7. Bickerdyke, Paul, ed. (June 2020). "Final refurbished '333' released". Rail Express. No. 289. Horncastle: Mortons Media. p. 27. ISSN 1362-234X.
  8. Milner, Chris (April 2019). "Class 333 refurbishment unveiled by Northern". The Railway Magazine. Vol. 165 no. 1, 417. Horncastle: Mortons Media. p. 107. ISSN 0033-8923.
  9. "Class 333 makes its debut". Railway Gazette. 1 May 2000. Retrieved 26 March 2019.
  10. "Regional Passenger Trains | Angel Trains". www.angeltrains.co.uk. Retrieved 3 August 2018.

Further reading
  • "RRNE confirms orders for 16 Class 333 EMUs for West Yorkshire". RAIL. No. 327. EMAP Apex Publications. 25 March – 7 April 1998. p. 10. ISSN 0953-4563. OCLC 49953699.
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