Trivia: Newest fleet of trains to be wholly scrapped

[liamf656]

A comment in another thread made me think of this question. Can anyone think of the youngest fleet that have been wholly withdrawn and scrapped?

In the past few years we’ve had the Class 365 (25 years) and the 332 (22 years), although there could be another fleet that’s been scrapped at a much younger age

 

[AlexNL]

Germany: the Baureihe 605 ICE TD diesel high speed trains were introduced in 1998-2000, withdrawn in December 2016, and all but one have since been scrapped. The remaining unit is now a laboratory train.

Netherlands: the SM'90 EMUs were built 1992-1993, entered service in 1994, and served for about 10 years. At the end of 2004 the nine unit strong fleet was withdrawn from service and subsequently scrapped.

 

[mlambeuk]

1983 tube stock,
Class 151

 

[Gloster]

There is a thread - Shortest-lived rolling stock - on this subject. (Sorry, I can’t do a link.)

 

[Magdalia]

Some of the Modernisation Plan diesels and the great Type 1 saga do not score well here.

D600-D604 introduced 01/58-01/59 all withdrawn 12/67 c 10 years
D5700-D5719 introduced 07/58-10/59 all withdrawn 12/67-09/68 c 10 years
D5900-D5909 introduced 04/59-06/59 all withdrawn 09/68-03/71 c 12 years
D6100-D6157 introduced 12/58-12/60 all withdrawn 12/67-10/71 c 13 years
D6300-D6357 introduced 01/59-11/62 all withdrawn 12/67-01/72 c 13 years
D8200-D8243 introduced 11/57-02/61 all withdrawn 03/68-03/71 c 13 years
D8400-D8409 introduced 05/58-09/58 all withdrawn 02/68-09/68 c 10 years
D8500-D8616 introduced 09/62-04/65 all withdrawn 07/68-12/71 c 9 years
D9500-D9555 introduced 07/64-10/65 all withdrawn 12/67-04/69 c 5 years

Various railcars also had short lives such as the W+M 4 wheel railbuses and the yellow diamond coupling Derby Lightweights and Metro Cammells.

 

[Cowley]

There is a thread - Shortest-lived rolling stock - on this subject. (Sorry, I can’t do a link.)

There was indeed. Here it is:

Shortest-lived rolling stock

With the rather sad disappearance of fleets such as classes 332 and 365, I’ve been wondering which fleets over the years have had the shortest operational lives, either in full or in part. I’m not so much considering prototype fleets like the class 210 or APT, though feel free to mention these...

www.railforums.co.uk

 

[DanNCL]

T68A and T69 trams in Manchester and Birmingham respectively only lasted 15 years in service

In Japan, the first N700 series Shinkansen units are being withdrawn and scrapped after only 12 years of service in some cases.

 

[Cowley]

In Japan, the first N700 series Shinkansen units are being withdrawn and scrapped after only 12 years of service in some cases.

Not being very up on this, why is that?
Is it related to the mileage they’ve covered rather than the age of the stock?

 

[bramling]

T68A and T69 trams in Manchester and Birmingham respectively only lasted 15 years in service

In Japan, the first N700 series Shinkansen units are being withdrawn and scrapped after only 12 years of service in some cases.

I seem to remember from the previous thread that class 141, DLR P89 and 83 Tube stock were the answers to the question. Of course, in the case of the class 141 and P89 they were exported rather than scrapped. Some 83 stock was stored for many years after withdrawal, however not one single vehicle ever turned a wheel in service after withdrawal from the Jubilee.

 

[Irascible]

Not being very up on this, why is that?
Is it related to the mileage they’ve covered rather than the age of the stock?

From the confusing history of 700 series Shinkansen, I think it might be they're just considered old tech & it's for standardisation. I can't find anything other than the wiki page on the withdrawal though - that suggests the withdrawn ones are originally from 2007 & got rebuilt a bit in 2013 to add tech from later batches. 20 years looks like a good lifetime for a Shinkansen set though ( gloriously predatorial 500 series aside ), so they're not *that* far off.

At risk of massively sidetracking, anyone know who is responsible for the active suspension in the 500 series?

 

[QSK19]

Supposing that EMR had not taken the 360/1s (and took the 379s instead, for example), could they have maybe taken the trophy (being 17-18 years old when they left GA)?

I suggest this in light of the poor condition they left GA in as well as whether any other operator would have wanted them had they not gone to EMR.

 

[railwaytrack]

What about the Irish Rail classes 2700 and 2750 and 8200 trains. They must be contenders for this. I believe the classes 2700 and 2750 saw less than fourteen years of service before being withdrawn. While the class 8200 trains were much worse and saw less than eight years of service and even during those eight years they seemed to spend much more time out of service than they spent in service. They were hardly ever used. Although i am not 100% sure if these trains have all actually been scrapped or if they are still rotting away in sidings somewhere.

 

[TheEdge]

Not being very up on this, why is that?
Is it related to the mileage they’ve covered rather than the age of the stock?

It's a Japanese cultural thing. They just don't tolerate older vehicles on services like the Shinkansen network. It's true for a lot of their high speed classes.

 

[DanNCL]

Not being very up on this, why is that?
Is it related to the mileage they’ve covered rather than the age of the stock?

Mileage, availability of newer N700S vehicles, and some issues with build quality.

From the confusing history of 700 series Shinkansen, I think it might be they're just considered old tech & it's for standardisation. I can't find anything other than the wiki page on the withdrawal though - that suggests the withdrawn ones are originally from 2007 & got rebuilt a bit in 2013 to add tech from later batches. 20 years looks like a good lifetime for a Shinkansen set though ( gloriously predatorial 500 series aside ), so they're not *that* far off.

At risk of massively sidetracking, anyone know who is responsible for the active suspension in the 500 series?

The 700 series lasted 23 years on the Tokaido Shinkansen, and some are still going on the Sanyo Shinkansen. Some N700s have already gone from the Tokaido Shinkansen - 2008 built sets began being withdrawn in 2020.

The 500 series Shinkansen have the advantage of having spent more than half of their lives confined to the less taxing Kodama services on the Sanyo Shinkansen, so will have less wear and tear than most Shinkansen stock of comparable age would.

It's a Japanese cultural thing. They just don't tolerate older vehicles on services like the Shinkansen network. It's true for a lot of their high speed classes.

20 years is the general standard for Shinkansen vehicles. 12 years as has been the lifespan of some N700 vehicles is low even for the Shinkansen.

 

[47444]

Bulleid's Leader class:

• 5 ordered
• 1 completed, then scrapped after unsuccessful tests
• 2 partially completed, then scrapped after storage
• 2 never started

 

[norbitonflyer]

1983 tube stock,
Class 151

The 151 was a one-off, and in any case was not scrapped until 2004, 15 years after withdrawal, by which time it was 19 years old.

The Blue Pullmans only lasted 13 years, from 1960 to 1973. Originally built to try to keep business customers during the electrification of the WCML (operating Ppaddington to Birmingham and St Pancras to Manchester) theyw ere effectively redundant in 1966, but were used on the Bristol and South Wales routes until being totally eclipsed by the introduction of the prototype HST on that route, which was faster, better riding, and available without a supplementary fare.

 

[zuriblue]

The SBB/Trenitalia Cisalpino ETR470 sets didn't last very long, entering service in 1993 and scrapped in 2015. They experienced quite a few reliability problems and had a habit of catching fire.

 

[43096]

The 151 was a one-off, and in any case was not scrapped until 2004, 15 years after withdrawal, by which time it was 19 years old.

The Blue Pullmans only lasted 13 years, from 1960 to 1973. Originally built to try to keep business customers during the electrification of the WCML (operating Ppaddington to Birmingham and St Pancras to Manchester) theyw ere effectively redundant in 1966, but were used on the Bristol and South Wales routes until being totally eclipsed by the introduction of the prototype HST on that route, which was faster, better riding, and available without a supplementary fare.

The prototype HST didn’t enter passenger service until 1975, so not really relevant in the context of the Blue Pullman.

 

[D6975]

What about the Irish Rail classes 2700 and 2750 and 8200 trains. They must be contenders for this. I believe the classes 2700 and 2750 saw less than fourteen years of service before being withdrawn. While the class 8200 trains were much worse and saw less than eight years of service and even during those eight years they seemed to spend much more time out of service than they spent in service. They were hardly ever used. Although i am not 100% sure if these trains have all actually been scrapped or if they are still rotting away in sidings somewhere.

Last I heard the 2700s were still in storage at Inchicore and Cork. In 2017 10 sets were earmarked for refurbishment and re-entry into traffic, but this was cancelled the following year.
The 8200s were stored at Fairview, but I think they're all at Inchicore now. They were chronically unreliable and underpowered, and I only ever saw them coupled to a 8500 in service.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

The 151 was a one-off, and in any case was not scrapped until 2004, 15 years after withdrawal, by which time it was 19 years old.

There were two of them, not just the one. Prior to them being scrapped, their then-owners (Riviera Trains IIRC?) had planned to refurbish them for spot-hire use. Unfortunately the vandals got to them first and did enough damage to render such a plan unworkable.

The practicalities of such a use might have been difficult to overcome anyway, in terms of route clearance, crew knowledge, etc.

 

[318259]

They weren’t scrapped as such, but the fate of the Class 460s is interesting.

They were bought to serve the stand-alone Gatwick Express franchise, and introduced in 2000. The government decided to roll Gatwick Express into the Southern franchise, and the trains continued past Gatwick to Brighton. Since there weren’t enough 460s for the new service pattern, Southern brought in 442s to run some services.

When Southern’s franchise was extended, they decided to get more 442s and chuck the 460s entirely. They were all withdrawn by 2012.

Poor reliability meant the full fleet was only in regular service from 2005 to 2010.

They were taken apart and their intermediate carriages used to lengthen the similar class 458s. The remaining carriages were completely rebuilt into five new 5-car 458s – new cabs and all. The leftovers were stripped for parts and scrapped.

 

[Nym]

1983 tube stock,
Class 151

1983TS has only recently all actually been scrapped. It has had vehicles "Stored" at South Harrow for many years.

 

[43096]

They weren’t scrapped as such, but the fate of the Class 460s is interesting.

They were bought to serve the stand-alone Gatwick Express franchise, and introduced in 2000. The government decided to roll Gatwick Express into the Southern franchise, and the trains continued past Gatwick to Brighton. Since there weren’t enough 460s for the new service pattern, Southern brought in 442s to run some services.

When Southern’s franchise was extended, they decided to get more 442s and chuck the 460s entirely. They were all withdrawn by 2012.

Poor reliability meant the full fleet was only in regular service from 2005 to 2010.

They were taken apart and their intermediate carriages used to lengthen the similar class 458s. The remaining carriages were completely rebuilt into five new 5-car 458s – new cabs and all. The leftovers were stripped for parts and scrapped.

The 460s formed six complete new 458/5s: 458531-536.

 

[apk55]

T68A trams on Manchester Metrolink Lasted from 1999 to 2014.

 

[Julia]

Aren't there still the two 1983TS cars sat on that building in Shoreditch?

 

[cjmillsnun]

The 460s formed six complete new 458/5s: 458531-536.

Which are now likely to be scrapped along with all the intermediate carriages that were added into the original 458 fleet.