Shirt a Phobia

Sample Page

The London Underground 1973 Stock is a type of rolling stock used on the Piccadilly line of the London Underground. It was introduced into service in 1975 with the extension of the line to Hatton Cross, followed by a further extension to Heathrow Central in 1977. A total of 86 six-car trains were built.

The trains were built by Metro-Cammell between 1974 and 1977, and were refurbished by Bombardier Transportation between 1996 and 2001. They are amongst the oldest trains running in Great Britain, second only to the 1972 Stock on the Bakerloo line.

History

1973 Stock in original livery at Ealing Common in 1994

In the early 1970s London Transport placed an order for a new fleet of trains to replace the 1938 Stock and 1959 Stock vehicles which previously operated on the Piccadilly line. Built between 1974 and 1977 by Metro Cammell in Birmingham,[2] the first unit entered service on 19 July 1975 and the last was introduced by 1977.[citation needed] The trains featured longer cars and larger door space than the previous units, being designed with additional luggage space for airport travellers.[3]

The order was for 87+1⁄2 6-car trains, comprising 196 driving motor (DM) cars, 175 trailer (T) cars, and 154 uncoupling non-driving motor (UNDM) cars. Each train is made up of two 3-car units, and most units are single-ended, formed DM-T-UNDM. There are also 21 double-ended units, formed DM-T-DM, to provide additional flexibility and, formerly, to operate the Aldwych shuttle.[4]

The initial order included two test units equipped with solid-state traction equipment and electronic control systems. These were double-ended units 892-692-893 (delivered 1977) and 894-694-895 (delivered 1979), and were known collectively as the ETT (Experimental Tube Train). The first unit was equipped by Westinghouse, the second by GEC. In order to provide additional units for the opening of the Heathrow loop, these units were converted to standard at Acton Works, entering service between 1986 and 1987.[5]

One three-car unit (166-566-366) was damaged in a terrorist attack on 7 July 2005 and subsequently scrapped.[6]

Refurbishment

Between 1996 and 2001, the entire fleet was refurbished by Bombardier Prorail at Horbury railway works.[7] The interior was completely remodelled, with changes including the removal of transverse seating, replacement of the original wooden flooring with new floor material, replacement of straphangers with new grab rails, new enclosures for the ceiling ventilation fans, brighter lighting with new diffusers, installation of car-end windows and new perch seats in the centre of the cars, creating more luggage space for airport passengers.[7]

The original unpainted exterior was painted in London Underground’s corporate livery, and a new emergency detrainment system was fitted in the cabs. The external destination blinds were also replaced with LCDs, and these were subsequently replaced with new LED units in 2015.[citation needed]

Interior dot-matrix displays were also introduced around this time, with later refurbished trains having a more compact surrounding than earlier refurbished cars.[7]

Automated voice announcements in the 1973 Stock as of today are notable for using the Julie Berry voice (used in various national rail services) as well as Adrian Hieatt for ‘see it say it sorted’ message. No other tube stock uses the Julie Berry voice. Both shall be phased out with 2024 Stock by a synthesised voice called ‘Elloise’.[8]

The first refurbished unit re-entered service in June 1996,[7] with the final refurbished unit re-entering service on 10 July 2001.[3]

Future replacement

Main article: London Underground 2024 Stock

The Deep tube programme (DTP) originally covered the replacement of the trains and signalling on the Bakerloo and Piccadilly lines, and had been expanded to cover rolling stock requirements arising from the planned extension of the Northern line to Battersea, the eventual replacement of Central line trains, and proposed increased service frequency on the Northern and Jubilee lines. The EVO tube concept design, a lighter articulated train with walk-through cars, was introduced early in 2011.[9]

Transport for London (TfL) had planned to replace Piccadilly Line trains in 2010 with the 2014 Stock to be delivered from 2015 onwards, with the two bidders of the contract; Alstom and CAF were bidded for the project. It was postponed, with the project being renamed to New Tube for London.[9][10][11][12] In June 2018, TfL announced 94 nine-car 2024 stock trains to replace the 1973 Stock.[13] As of early 2026, these are expected to enter service from the second half of 2026. All 1973 Stock trains will be decommissioned by 2030.[14][15]

Footnotes

  1. ^ One unit (204-604-404) was scrapped following a collision in Northfields depot in 1990 with UNDM 314 being scrapped at the same time, and another unit (166-566-366) was destroyed in the 7 July 2005 London bombings[citation needed]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Neil, Graham (4 August 2015). “London Underground Rolling Stock Information Sheet” (PDF). WhatDoTheyKnow. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
  2. ^ “Piccadilly line facts”. Transport for London . Archived from the original on 10 February 2014. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
  3. ^ a b Griffin, Richard (8 November 2010) [17 August 2008]. “1973 tube stock”. SquareWheels. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  4. ^ Hardy, Brian (2002) [1976]. London Underground Rolling Stock (15th ed.). Harrow Weald: Capital Transport. p. 18. ISBN 1-85414-263-1.
  5. ^ Hardy 2002, p. 19
  6. ^ “July Bombing Train returned to service”. London Banter. 12 March 2006. Archived from the original on 9 December 2018. Retrieved 10 May 2026.
  7. ^ a b c d “New Look Trains on the Piccadilly Line”. London Transport (Press release). 17 June 1996. Archived from the original on 11 January 1997. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  8. ^ Hurt, Graham (2 October 2023). “Announcements on new Piccadilly line trains”. FOI request detail. Transparency. Transport for London. Retrieved 10 May 2026.
  9. ^ a b Connor, Piers (January 2013). “Deep tube transformation”. Modern Railways. Tunbridge Wells: Key Publishing. pp. 44–47. ISSN 0026-8356.
  10. ^ “New Tube for London Programme” (PDF). Board Minutes. Transport for London. 5 February 2014. Retrieved 3 April 2014.
  11. ^ “New Tube for London Programme”. Railway Gazette International. Sutton: DVV Media Group. 28 February 2014. ISSN 0373-5346. Retrieved 10 May 2026.
  12. ^ “TfL prepares for driverless tube”. Railnews. Wellingborough. 28 February 2014. Retrieved 3 April 2014. Transport for London has unveiled plans to buy 250 new tube trains for the Bakerloo, Central, Piccadilly and Waterloo & City Lines. They may be able to run without drivers – although no decision has been made, with TfL saying only that the new trains would be ‘capable of full automation’.
  13. ^ “Siemens to supply London Underground deep tube fleet”. Metro Report International. Railway Gazette International. Sutton: DVV Media Group. 15 June 2018. ISSN 0373-5346. Retrieved 10 May 2026.
  14. ^ “2024 Stock design due soon”. Rail Express. No. 207. Horncastle: Mortons Media Group. February 2021. p. 43.
  15. ^ Lydall, Ross (4 March 2021). “First look: TfL unveils design of new Piccadilly line trains”. Evening Standard. London. ISSN 2041-4404. Retrieved 4 March 2021.