HC Deb 30 January 1991 vol 184 c518W
Mr. Steinberg

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the type, number and age of locomotives currently in use by British Rail and their designated length of service; and what is the type, number and age of passenger rolling stock and their designated length of service.

Mr. Freeman

British Rail owned the following traction and rolling stock at 31 March 1990:

Type Number
Diesel locomotives 1,835
Electric locomotives 260
High Speed Train power units 197
Coaching vehicles 13,833

The Department does not hold comprehensive information on the age of railway rolling stock.

British Rail uses the following estimates of useful life for accounting purposes, but these book lives are conservative estimate. Actual lives can be much longer, depending on a range of factors such as condition and maintenance costs.

Type Book life
Locomotives 20 years
Electric multiple units 25 years
Passenger carriages 20 years
High Speed trains 15 years

Forward to