I am very pleased to see this class 230 delivering on the bold vision set for it, having been involved in a small way with this project over the years. It is of course a real piece of hardware that will hopefully start de-carbonising part of the network in the Thames Valley very soon. It may also not be the first battery train - indeed Drumm electric units ran successfully in Ireland for nearly twenty years from 1932. However, this news item did cause me to reflect on the legacy of Vivarail and how it achieved what it did. Whilst not a company without its problems and challenges, it did manage to deliver a lot at pace and display a lot ingenuity and flexibility in its lifetime. From developing a train platform that has now run with three different 'traction packages' to testing several iterations of batteries and then developing its own fast charging equipment - all of these requiring significant approvals and regulatory hurdles. However, whilst developing a technical concept and bringing it to reality is commendable, I think it deserves equal recognition for looking to the future and actually doing something about it when it did and creating itself a space in the market. Several of the larger manufacturers could have had a BEMU prototype running to Greenford in 2024, but they haven't. Vivarail put itself out there with a commendable level of self-belief and the knowledge that 'seeing is believing' in trying to make an affordable solution. From its first battery prototype outings in 2018 in Bo'ness, then demonstrating a battery unit on the world stage at COP26 in Glasgow, it set about carving out its own market for battery trains in the UK, the same as it had for hybrid units and niche DMU replacements before that. Was it the right product? Maybe, maybe not - we'll never really know. Had Vivarail survived, however I am sure we would seen the battery loco conversion prototypes by now that were being explored.
In retrospect, much I admire about Vivarail boiled down to leadership, vision and self-belief -mostly enabled by having the right people. Whilst we can't all be Adrian Shooter (or even hope to come close), we can still and try and make good ideas happen and challenge ourselves to do things differently. Collectively this will surely make a difference and filter into our railway culture. In fairness GWR and no doubt others above it in the decision making chain should take some credit for pursuing this BEMU trial when it could have easily and conveniently ditched it and focussed on delivering the contractual targets. This humble 230 and its Ealing bay platform fast charging unit will undoubtedly yield some useful information for the UK railway.
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Public transportation enthusiast from Chicago
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