Luton Station in the late 1980s.

These pictures were taken while waiting for a train to Sheffield after attending a course at Luton Industrial College in the late 1980s.

The trains illustrated are class 319s which are dual voltage units introduced to operate the Thameslink services between Luton and the South coast. 

The recent introduction of new stock has made them redundant on this service so some have gone into store, it was suggested that a few have diesel engines added to make them bi-modal trains (and thus saving the Government the expense of electrifying routes) and the rest were to be sent to that graveyard for old London trains... the North of England (thus saving the Government the cost of new trains for the North... as usual). The latter are working some suburban services out of Manchester.

The end doors were incorporated to enable evacuation of the trains if they failed in the tunnel sections through central London.