Electrostar

Electrostar is the name given to a series of related electric multiple-unit (EMU) passenger trains manufactured by Bombardier Transportation (formerly ADtranz) at their Litchurch Lane Works in Derby, England. Since the privatisation of British Rail, it has become the most common new EMU type in Britain, where different variants referred to as Class 357, Class 375, Class 376, and Class 377 are most common on the high-volume commuter routes in South London and to the Sussex, Kent & South Essex coasts. It shares the same bodyshell and core structure as the Turbostar, which is in turn the most common post-privatisation diesel multiple unit (DMU) family, and both evolved from the Class 168 Clubman design by ADtranz.

The Clubman/Turbostar/Electrostar platform is a modular design, which share the same basic design, bodyshell and core structure, and is optimised for speedy manufacture and easy maintenance. It consists of an underframe, which is created by seam-welding a number of aluminium alloy extrusions, upon which bodyside panels are mounted followed by a single piece roof, again made from extruded sections. The car ends (cabs) are made from glass-reinforced plastic and steel, and are huck-bolted onto the main car bodies. Underframe components are collected in ‘rafts’, which are bolted into slots on the underframe extrusion. The mostly aluminium alloy body gives light weight to help acceleration and energy efficiency.

The Electrostar has also been selected for use on the......
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