British Rail Class 442
The British Rail Class 442 Wessex Electric (or 5WES) electrical multiple units were introduced in 1988 on the South Western Main Line from London Waterloo to Southampton Central, Bournemouth, Poole and Weymouth. Twenty-four of these 5-car units were built in 1988/89 by BREL at its Derby works. Their introduction coincided with the completion of electrification from Bournemouth to Weymouth. Post-privatisation, the entire fleet was operated by South West Trains up until February 2007, when the Class 442 services were replaced by Class 444 and Class 450 Desiros.
In 2008 Southern began refurbishing the units for the Gatwick Express service from Brighton to Gatwick Airport and London Victoria. The Southern refurbishment and overhaul programme meant by May 2011 the fleet had replaced all the Class 460 Juniper units, although 2 Class 460 Junipers were reinstated in October the same year.
The class holds the world speed record for a third rail train with 174 km/h (108 mph), attained on 11 April 1988.
Read more about British Rail Class 442: Description, Fleet Details
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