The Complicated Legacy of the Pacer

The Pacer: Britain's most hated train and bane of travellers up and down the country for a matter of decades. So, having finally retired from the rails in 2021 about 20 years too late, why on Earth has one of these rickety, ramshackle Pacer trains been preserved in the collection of the National Railway Museum?

Join us on a visit to Locomotion in Shildon to find out.

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Image credits:

Class 101s at Thornaby by Phil Richards: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Ca...


Class 142 BR 2 tone at Preston by K. Krallis: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British...


Class 142 Arriva Wales by Motacilla: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British...

Class 143 at Dawlish by Geof Sheppard: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British...


Class 144 at Leeds by Peter Skuce: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British...


Pacer interior by Smiley.toerist: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacer_(...


141113 standing at Swanwick shed by Hgt:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British... - /media/File:Class141Swanwick.JPG


Railbus LEV1 at Weybourne Station by Mark Harrington:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British... - /media/File:LEV1_at_Weybourne_Station.jpg


RB004 at the Telford Steam Railway by WaltTFB:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British... - /media/File:RB004_at_TSR.JPG


Tyne and Wear PTE Pacer by Graeme9022:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British... - /media/File:143623_in_August_1991_TW.jpg


First Great Western at Bristol Temple Meads by Hugh Llewelyn:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British... - /media/File:Hugh_llewelyn_143_612_(6279739787).jpg


Footage of the Platform 1 Pacer at Huddersfield taken from Twitter. Rights Department for Transport / Northern Rail, used for comment under fair use.