Network SouthEast was the jazzed-up public image of the formerly termed London & South East sector of British Rail, one of the five financially autonomous business sectors into which BR was divided in 1982. With Chris Green (who has been described as "Probably the most dynamic British railway manager of recent times") at the helm as sector director, the idea of Network SouthEast was born - not only a more catchy title, but an entity invested with an energetic determination and drive to deliver improvements in service, punctuality, cleanliness and information. Additionally a whole new image was created; the red, blue and grey flash, blue lettering, red lampposts, litter bins, fencing and station fittings together with the bold and bright livery of the trains themselves.
Launched in a fanfare of publicity on 10 June 1986, the NSE image spread rapidly thereafter. Amid criticism of its brash colour scheme and garish 'toothpaste' livery there is no doubt that it had the desired effect - everyone noticed. Deliberately designed to be eye-catching, not even the most oblivious of travelers could have failed to notice this sudden rush of colour. New management brought new ideals and, if the driving force behind the entire reorganisation was government demands to reduce subsidies, it was obvious that fresh impetus had to be injected into a neglected network.
The area inherited by Network SouthEast was vast indeed. It absorbed the entire London network as well as Kent, Surrey, Sussex, Hampshire and beyond to Weymouth, Salisbury and Exeter, plus the Isle of Wight; north to Bedford, Northampton and Banbury; west to Bedwyn; east to Kings Lynn, Harwich, Clacton and Shoeburyness - a truly substantial chunk of England! In terms of BR regions, it encompassed the entire Southern (rebranded as Southeast, Central and Southwest), plus parts of the Western, Midland and Eastern (rebranded West, North and East - West subsequently became Thames & Chiltern and East became Anglia). This truly enormous and unwieldy assortment of routes and services is now covered by a multitude of operators following privatisation.
Launched in a fanfare of publicity on 10 June 1986, the NSE image spread rapidly thereafter. Amid criticism of its brash colour scheme and garish 'toothpaste' livery there is no doubt that it had the desired effect - everyone noticed. Deliberately designed to be eye-catching, not even the most oblivious of travelers could have failed to notice this sudden rush of colour. New management brought new ideals and, if the driving force behind the entire reorganisation was government demands to reduce subsidies, it was obvious that fresh impetus had to be injected into a neglected network.
The area inherited by Network SouthEast was vast indeed. It absorbed the entire London network as well as Kent, Surrey, Sussex, Hampshire and beyond to Weymouth, Salisbury and Exeter, plus the Isle of Wight; north to Bedford, Northampton and Banbury; west to Bedwyn; east to Kings Lynn, Harwich, Clacton and Shoeburyness - a truly substantial chunk of England! In terms of BR regions, it encompassed the entire Southern (rebranded as Southeast, Central and Southwest), plus parts of the Western, Midland and Eastern (rebranded West, North and East - West subsequently became Thames & Chiltern and East became Anglia). This truly enormous and unwieldy assortment of routes and services is now covered by a multitude of operators following privatisation.
Lines and Logos
NSE was divided into six sub sectors according to former regions and divisions, thus perpetuating the traditional geographical arrangement inherited from Grouping and Pre-Grouping days. Each had its own Network Manager, but from 1989 was further divided into individual routes to lend local identity to services in each area, all possessing their own distinctive logo and name. These too had their own managers, consequently divesting responsibility for each route to a more local level and thus engendering a better awareness of and more responsive attitude to local requirements.
Rolling stock received vinyls denoting its area of operation, both logo and 'brand' name being applied. Very few routes and services were in fact self contained, so some overlap was inevitable. This could occur on both longer distance trips and where mainline stock was used on suburban services in the peaks. Routes with dedicated stock obviated this problem, but were relatively rare. It was however a nice touch and lent a local flavour as well as suggesting a less rigid centralised operating authority.
It also accorded individual areas the opportunity to produce publicity, timetables and even staff ties featuring the local identity. From the little-known rural backwater that was Marsh Link, to the mainline elite of West of England, all could boast their own particular place in the scheme of NSE, with a pictorial logo to denote their allegiances and character. It was a far cry from the all enveloping blandness of the corporate image blue and grey era.
Rolling stock received vinyls denoting its area of operation, both logo and 'brand' name being applied. Very few routes and services were in fact self contained, so some overlap was inevitable. This could occur on both longer distance trips and where mainline stock was used on suburban services in the peaks. Routes with dedicated stock obviated this problem, but were relatively rare. It was however a nice touch and lent a local flavour as well as suggesting a less rigid centralised operating authority.
It also accorded individual areas the opportunity to produce publicity, timetables and even staff ties featuring the local identity. From the little-known rural backwater that was Marsh Link, to the mainline elite of West of England, all could boast their own particular place in the scheme of NSE, with a pictorial logo to denote their allegiances and character. It was a far cry from the all enveloping blandness of the corporate image blue and grey era.
NSE Key Objectives
At launch, Network SouthEast set out the following list of objectives:
New Punctuality Code
Stated aim is: "No less than 90% of trains on NSE should arrive on or within five minutes of scheduled time."
Reliability: "No more than 1% of trains to be cancelled, for whatever reason."
Extra Staff
1,700 additional employees to be recruited (train crew, booking clerks, telephone enquiry and cleaners)
Telephone Enquiries: Answer calls within 30 seconds
Booking Offices: Maximum wait of 3 minutes
Cleanliness
Station Cleaning Gangs - Regular spring clean every 12 weeks
Carriage Cleaning: Daily interior/exterior clean. Heavy interior clean every 28 days.
Station Facilities
All 930 NSE stations to be repainted at a rate of 200 per year - Total repaint every 3 to 6 years
281 stations to undergo major renovation in next 3 years - Budget: £20m
More car parking spaces wherever possible
Carriage Interiors
New seat fabric, NSE maps, litter bins and more non-smoking accommodation
Information Systems
New technology to be employed for both stations and trains - Budget £7m over 3 years
New Trains
'Networker' unit under development for introduction in 1990 (Kent Link) - Intended to feature "Improved acceleration and deceleration, better reliability in winter weather and be more fuel efficient."
New Punctuality Code
Stated aim is: "No less than 90% of trains on NSE should arrive on or within five minutes of scheduled time."
Reliability: "No more than 1% of trains to be cancelled, for whatever reason."
Extra Staff
1,700 additional employees to be recruited (train crew, booking clerks, telephone enquiry and cleaners)
Telephone Enquiries: Answer calls within 30 seconds
Booking Offices: Maximum wait of 3 minutes
Cleanliness
Station Cleaning Gangs - Regular spring clean every 12 weeks
Carriage Cleaning: Daily interior/exterior clean. Heavy interior clean every 28 days.
Station Facilities
All 930 NSE stations to be repainted at a rate of 200 per year - Total repaint every 3 to 6 years
281 stations to undergo major renovation in next 3 years - Budget: £20m
More car parking spaces wherever possible
Carriage Interiors
New seat fabric, NSE maps, litter bins and more non-smoking accommodation
Information Systems
New technology to be employed for both stations and trains - Budget £7m over 3 years
New Trains
'Networker' unit under development for introduction in 1990 (Kent Link) - Intended to feature "Improved acceleration and deceleration, better reliability in winter weather and be more fuel efficient."
NSE Facts & Figures
Launched: 10th June 1986
Statistics (at launch)
NSE Staff: 41,000
Carriages: 6,700
Stations: 930
Route Miles: 2,350
Electrified: 75%
Trains Per Day: 8,350
Trains Per Peak: 1,750
Passengers
Per Year: 500,000,000
Per Day: 1,440,000
Per Peak: 400,000 (37% of all travel into London)
"An NSE train is delivered into London every 11 seconds during the peak hour."
Finances (1986/7)
Costs: £873m
Income: £668m
Support: £205m
Subsidy reduced by 36% in three years:
Year £m Index
1983 32 100
1984 300 93
1985/86 257 80
1986/87 205 64
Investment Levels
1986/7: £82m
1987/8: £117m
Statistics (at launch)
NSE Staff: 41,000
Carriages: 6,700
Stations: 930
Route Miles: 2,350
Electrified: 75%
Trains Per Day: 8,350
Trains Per Peak: 1,750
Passengers
Per Year: 500,000,000
Per Day: 1,440,000
Per Peak: 400,000 (37% of all travel into London)
"An NSE train is delivered into London every 11 seconds during the peak hour."
Finances (1986/7)
Costs: £873m
Income: £668m
Support: £205m
Subsidy reduced by 36% in three years:
Year £m Index
1983 32 100
1984 300 93
1985/86 257 80
1986/87 205 64
Investment Levels
1986/7: £82m
1987/8: £117m
NSE Publicity
The Network SouthEast image was deliberately brash and colourful and the publicity materials - posters and leaflets - echoed this visual onslaught, although often with more style and subtly than the ubiquitous red paintwork! For an organisation extant for a brief eight years, the overall effect was a remarkably coherent public image, over a wide geographical area - a true testament to the drive, determination and vision of Network Director Chris Green.
The symbol selected to represent Network SouthEast was both simple and effective - the three slanting flashes of red, blue and grey stamped the allegiance of station, train, leaflet and staff member with a possessive homogeneity to compliment the familiar BR 'double arrow.' Design consultants Jordan Williams were accorded the task of redesigning the entire ambiance of all the ingredients that conspired to create the publicly perceived image, from infrastructure to apparel and publicity materials. Meanwhile Eddie Pond was allotted the artistic assignment of producing modernistic murals of varying degrees of abstraction and pictorial accuracy in a characteristic array of murky tones. Together with the new rich blue-flecked seat moquette, these served to imbue train interiors with an enhanced sense of locale and identity - not to mention an attempt to embrace culture.
Although station signs and suchlike were in the neat Helvetica typeface, leaflets displayed considerable variation General styles and lettering were regularly utterly different - the only common denominators being overall size and the Network SouthEast, or variant thereof, name and logo at the base. There appeared some superb examples of airbrush work and shading, idyllic interpretations of charmed landscapes, plus a variety of novel depictions of various subjects in addition to photographs.
The artwork was occasionally variable - a possible reflection upon the diverse parentage of these products - but in general the standard was high; concept, content and presentation all consistent with the design ideals indicative of quality and a commitment to providing accessible, intelligent information. Gone was the 1970s preoccupation with dull and muted hues - now superseded by an altogether more lively and colourful approach. The posters caught the eye, the leaflets invited taking and the messages too, might have invoked an involuntary response, for there were frequent offers of cut-price travel and money-saving ticketing schemes - an enterprising ploy on the part of NSE to boost off-peak travel and fill those empty seats. The figures demonstrate they succeeded - the exhortations to take the train for a day out perhaps materially enhanced by the quality of artwork so eloquently evoking a colourful countryside and coast.
The symbol selected to represent Network SouthEast was both simple and effective - the three slanting flashes of red, blue and grey stamped the allegiance of station, train, leaflet and staff member with a possessive homogeneity to compliment the familiar BR 'double arrow.' Design consultants Jordan Williams were accorded the task of redesigning the entire ambiance of all the ingredients that conspired to create the publicly perceived image, from infrastructure to apparel and publicity materials. Meanwhile Eddie Pond was allotted the artistic assignment of producing modernistic murals of varying degrees of abstraction and pictorial accuracy in a characteristic array of murky tones. Together with the new rich blue-flecked seat moquette, these served to imbue train interiors with an enhanced sense of locale and identity - not to mention an attempt to embrace culture.
Although station signs and suchlike were in the neat Helvetica typeface, leaflets displayed considerable variation General styles and lettering were regularly utterly different - the only common denominators being overall size and the Network SouthEast, or variant thereof, name and logo at the base. There appeared some superb examples of airbrush work and shading, idyllic interpretations of charmed landscapes, plus a variety of novel depictions of various subjects in addition to photographs.
The artwork was occasionally variable - a possible reflection upon the diverse parentage of these products - but in general the standard was high; concept, content and presentation all consistent with the design ideals indicative of quality and a commitment to providing accessible, intelligent information. Gone was the 1970s preoccupation with dull and muted hues - now superseded by an altogether more lively and colourful approach. The posters caught the eye, the leaflets invited taking and the messages too, might have invoked an involuntary response, for there were frequent offers of cut-price travel and money-saving ticketing schemes - an enterprising ploy on the part of NSE to boost off-peak travel and fill those empty seats. The figures demonstrate they succeeded - the exhortations to take the train for a day out perhaps materially enhanced by the quality of artwork so eloquently evoking a colourful countryside and coast.
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NSE Rolling Stock
Network SouthEast inherited a widely varied range of rolling stock, some of which was approaching advanced age. This, together with the conceptual aftermath of various accidents regarding the 'telescoping' of non-integral stock on impact, in conjunction with the unfashionable and outmoded nature of slam doors, demanded the design of a new generation of rolling stock encompassing a revised set of principles.
EPB & CEP at Charing Cross
Chris Green characteristically perceived this as a challenge, an opportunity to present an entirely fresh set of design ideals to BR's development team. Thus was instigated the emergence of the 'Networker' - an extended family of units based on a common theme. This was lauded as "The revolutionary Networker train for the south-east", a landmark achievement in terms of technical innovation - if not passenger accommodation! Featuring integral, welded aluminum construction and the then novel idea of AC traction motors, it was hailed as the lightweight, energy efficient train of the future.
465238 at Charing Cross
The reality unhappily transpired a something rather different. BREL's ingenuity was seemingly extended beyond its limits, and what Chris Green had described as "our proudest moment" degenerated into a protracted battle against an apparently endless plethora of faults - with immensely disruptive effects on services.
Meanwhile, other NSE units of rather more conventional design, were becoming part of the scenery. These included the dual voltage 319s, built for the new Thameslink service - the first to cross central London since the first world war. Large numbers of similar, but single voltage units were build 321s for Great Eastern and Northampton Line, 322s for another new service - Stanstead Express, and the two car 456s South London Lines. All of these units had evolved from pre-NSE designs like the 455, but had rather more effort put into their appearance and featured high backed seats and toilets! Aside from the Networker, the other flagship units for the Southern were the class 442s, marketed as Wessex Electrics and commonly know as Pigs. Built for the Branksome - Weymouth electrification, these were the only full length Mk 3 based units constructed and were also the first to have air conditioning and plug doors; conversely they were the last built with a proper buffet and first class in compartments. The 442s had a heavily sculpted front end, with wrap around windscreens and were rightly seen as one of the best modern electric units. However, in true Southern tradition, they reused electrical equipment from their predecessors, the 4-Reps. As such they became the last units built with camshaft control, buckeye couplers and traditional EP/Westinghouse Automatic brakes.
Meanwhile, other NSE units of rather more conventional design, were becoming part of the scenery. These included the dual voltage 319s, built for the new Thameslink service - the first to cross central London since the first world war. Large numbers of similar, but single voltage units were build 321s for Great Eastern and Northampton Line, 322s for another new service - Stanstead Express, and the two car 456s South London Lines. All of these units had evolved from pre-NSE designs like the 455, but had rather more effort put into their appearance and featured high backed seats and toilets! Aside from the Networker, the other flagship units for the Southern were the class 442s, marketed as Wessex Electrics and commonly know as Pigs. Built for the Branksome - Weymouth electrification, these were the only full length Mk 3 based units constructed and were also the first to have air conditioning and plug doors; conversely they were the last built with a proper buffet and first class in compartments. The 442s had a heavily sculpted front end, with wrap around windscreens and were rightly seen as one of the best modern electric units. However, in true Southern tradition, they reused electrical equipment from their predecessors, the 4-Reps. As such they became the last units built with camshaft control, buckeye couplers and traditional EP/Westinghouse Automatic brakes.
2415 & 73109 at Waterloo
The class 465 'Kent Link Networkers' gained a dual voltage relative in the 365 for Kent Coast and Great Northern, and a diesel alternative in the class 165 and 166 'Turbos'. These became a priority for Chiltern once closure threats were finally aborted, and later took over Thames services out of Paddington, in both cases replacing a variety of first generation DMUs. An express version in the 166 featured better accommodation and (less than reliable) air conditioning. A further derivative was planned for the Waterloo-Exeter service to replace loco hauled trains, but due to the pressing need for a rapid entry into service, 158s were diverted from Regional Railways, altered internally and classified class 159, becoming 'South Western Turbos' in publicity.
Whilst the more conventional electric units and the 'Turbos' in their various guises, settled down to become reliable day-to-day workhorses, it must be said that the Networkers have never lived up to expectations. As their design progressed, they became both heavier and more power hungry - requiring upgrades to the supply on the Southern and thus achieving the opposite of one of their original aims. They have also never proved to be particularly reliable. It was a brave attempt, but it could be said that their designers attempted to cram in too much new technology in one go. Passenger comfort was also an issue for this family, as it veered further from the practical and into the realms of the theoretical - the seats were ergonomically designed but lacking in padding and the hopper windows opened to create a significantly smaller aperture than preceding units. Train crew also suffered, the cabs on units of this era being best described as greenhouses. Older stock continued to soldier on alongside the new order, and unsurprisingly they had their advocates - although often as not, denouncers too. In the latter instance, the media became ever more vociferous, evidently believing that the panacea for all ills in railway terms lay in 'New Trains'. They appeared utterly blind to the realities engendered by ailing infrastructure and temperamental new trains, but the damage was done. On this basis both the public and media desired to accelerate the demise of all rolling stock upon which the gleam of youth had faded - an utterly impractical proposition borne of ignorance of both lead times for new stock and the intended longevity of existing stock. From heron the die was cast, both NSE and its successors had to weather a constant barrage of criticism for an aspect of railway operation both unassailable and inevitable - objects do not perforce remain 'new'.
Whatever the pros and cons, the NSE era initiated a thorough break with former standards of multiple unit design, a genuine attempt to create a new generation of rolling stock embracing the not always entirely compatible dual demands of passenger provision and operational requirements. The trains work on to tell the story - Networkers frequently still boldly wearing their NSE colours, some even with 'Network SouthEast' yet visible.......
Whilst the more conventional electric units and the 'Turbos' in their various guises, settled down to become reliable day-to-day workhorses, it must be said that the Networkers have never lived up to expectations. As their design progressed, they became both heavier and more power hungry - requiring upgrades to the supply on the Southern and thus achieving the opposite of one of their original aims. They have also never proved to be particularly reliable. It was a brave attempt, but it could be said that their designers attempted to cram in too much new technology in one go. Passenger comfort was also an issue for this family, as it veered further from the practical and into the realms of the theoretical - the seats were ergonomically designed but lacking in padding and the hopper windows opened to create a significantly smaller aperture than preceding units. Train crew also suffered, the cabs on units of this era being best described as greenhouses. Older stock continued to soldier on alongside the new order, and unsurprisingly they had their advocates - although often as not, denouncers too. In the latter instance, the media became ever more vociferous, evidently believing that the panacea for all ills in railway terms lay in 'New Trains'. They appeared utterly blind to the realities engendered by ailing infrastructure and temperamental new trains, but the damage was done. On this basis both the public and media desired to accelerate the demise of all rolling stock upon which the gleam of youth had faded - an utterly impractical proposition borne of ignorance of both lead times for new stock and the intended longevity of existing stock. From heron the die was cast, both NSE and its successors had to weather a constant barrage of criticism for an aspect of railway operation both unassailable and inevitable - objects do not perforce remain 'new'.
Whatever the pros and cons, the NSE era initiated a thorough break with former standards of multiple unit design, a genuine attempt to create a new generation of rolling stock embracing the not always entirely compatible dual demands of passenger provision and operational requirements. The trains work on to tell the story - Networkers frequently still boldly wearing their NSE colours, some even with 'Network SouthEast' yet visible.......
