HST named ‘Terry Miller MBE’
12 May 2008
The man responsible for designing the High Speed Train, Terry Miller, has been honoured at last.
The first reliveried East Midlands Trains powercar, 43048, was named ‘Terry Miller MBE’ in a special ceremony at Leeds. Says Tim Shoveller, managing director, East Midlands Trains, ‘It is with great pride that we honour Terry by naming one of our powercars after him. He is a true giant in the history of the railway and his design has stood the test of time. It’s quite impressive that we are still talking about him and his work over 30 years later.’
The nameplate was unveiled by John Miller, Terry Miller’s son. Terry Miller MBE was born in 1909 and was apprenticed to the LNER under Sir Nigel Gresley at Doncaster. Later he became Chief Engineer (Traction & Rolling Stock) for British Railways Board in 1968 at Derby.
It was then that he provided the influence and enthusiasm behind the development of the High Speed Train or ‘InterCity 125’ which revolutionised train travel within the UK in the seventies. This train was developed using existing technology in approximately 18 months and become the mainstay and benchmark for InterCity travel over the next 30 years.
Terry Miller MBE retired in 1973 before his creation entered service and died in 1989. Says rail writer Roger Ford, who has long campaigned for Terry to be honoured in this way, ‘As British Rail’s Chief Engineer for Traction & Rolling Stock, Terry led the design team at Derby Railway Technical Centre which produced the High Speed Train, the mainstay of long distance rail travel in the UK for 30 years and destined to stay in front line service for another decade. The HST remains the standard by which other trains are judged.’