If a week in politics is a long time, then a month must feel like a lifetime Since the last issue of Railways Illustrated went to print, we have a new Secretary of State for Transport and a new Rail Minister following the appointment of Rishi Sunak as the UK’s Prime Minister
The change of leader has seen the inevitable reshuffle and the cabinet formed only months ago by Liz Truss has been well and truly disman tled, with Anne Marie Trevelyan MP replaced by Forest of Dean Conser vative MP Mark Harper as Secretar y of State for Transport and Huw Merriman brought in as Minister of State for Rail and HS2
Within days of the leadership change, the RMT rail strikes that had been due to take place over three days in early November were called off to allow the union to enter into what it described as ‘intensive negotiations with Network Rail and the train operating companies ’
However, at the time of writing this welcome note, ASLEF union members at 12 train operators were due to walk out on November 26, with the union claiming that no offer had been made from the operators in the dispute over pay
The ongoing disputes are hugely damaging to the industry, and it is pleasing to see that there does appear to be some meaningful dialogue now taking place to try and resolve the disputes
W e w e l co m e t h e n e w to p tea m at t h e Department for Transport and hope that some stability can be brought to what has been a rather fraught few months
We have the second of our two part review of the sleeper trains in the UK, with this issue of Railways Illustrated focusing on the Caledonian Sleeper I spent the night on a ‘Highlander’ ser vice from Inverness to London Euston in late September and it was interesting to be able to compare the modern Mk.5 coaching stock in use on Caledonian Sleeper with the older Mk 3 coaches used by GWR on the Night Riviera
What my experience of the two sleeper services has shown is just how popular these overnight trains still are Both ser vices I travelled on were busy, proving that they do still have an impor tant part to play in the operation of our railways With the Scottish Government recently stating that Serco has been given notice on its oper ation of the Caledonian Sleeper (see Railways Illustrated issue 238), it will be interesting to discover what arrangements will be put in place for the continued operation of the trains beyond the end of June
Spot hire company Europhoenix has unveiled Class 37/7 ‘Heavyweight’ 37800 in Rail Operation Group’s distinctive blue liver y, with the loco motive on long term hire to ROG Europhoenix managing director Glenn Edwards tells Railways Illustrated about how the locomotive has sur vived in traffic despite avoiding the scrap man on a number of occasions
We also head to Haworth to meet two of the people responsible for the maintenance and operation of the heritage DMU fleet on
If you have any comments, photographic contributions, feature suggestions, or constructive feedback, please contact Andy Coward by email at rieditor@mortons. co uk or via the postal address provided on page 4
the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway, with the K&WVR Railcar Group working hard to preser ve its first and second generation units for our enjoyment
This year has proved to be another busy one for our railways, so we also take a look at six of the most significant stories to have emerged between Januar y and June.
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In the second part of our series on the sleeper train ser vices operating in the UK, we sample the Caledonian Sleeper ‘Highlander ’ from Inverness to London Euston. How does it measure up against the GWR offering? And does the more modern coaching stock provide better accommodation than the older Mk.3 coaches they replaced?
Glenn Edwards from spot hire company Europhoenix talks to Andy Coward about the remarkable histor y of 37800, which has recently become the first locomotive to be repainted into Rail Operations Group’s distinctive blue liver y
It has been another busy year for our railways, with lots of things happening both on the national network and in the preservation sector. In this issue, we look at six significant stories that made headlines from January to June.
The five mile Keighley & Worth Valley Railway has an enviable fleet of steam and diesel locomotives in its motive power department. However, the heritage line also has a varied heritage DMU fleet, and we meet the KWVR Railcar Group to find out more.
another name that regularly appears in the pages of Railways Illustrated He delves into his collection to bring us his personal pick of 10 stand out images
Simon Bendall looks at Accurascale’s growing range of HAA based freight wagons, but how do they measure up?
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THIS PAGE: The atmospheric surroundings of Ramsbottom station on the East Lancashire Railway, as the railways immaculately restored Class 105 DMU pauses in the station platform while working a Rawtenstall to Bury service on November 12 during the ELR's DMU Weekend Tom McAtee
Kevin Delaney Preston based enthusiast and photographer Kevin Delaney isA H U G E c l ea r u p o p e rat i o n got underway following the derailment of a cement train at Petteril Bridge Junction, near Carlisle, on October 19
Railway was hauling a train of 14 loaded cement wagons Five each carr ying 80 tonnes of powdered cement derailed, causing significant damage to the surrounding infrastruc ture One of the wagons entered the River Petteril and another turned on its side on an embankment
The passenger lines from Newcas tle to Carlisle were blocked as a result, but thankfully there were no injuries. The incident has seen widespread disruption to Tyne Valley and Settle to Carlisle line passenger services, which usually operate over the affected section of line, throughout late Octo ber and November
The last of the stricken wagons was removed by Network Rail over the weekend of November 12/13 A large
crane was specially built to allow the recovery of the derailed wagons from the River Petteril and embankment
N e t w o r k R a i l w o r k s d e l i v e r y manager Craig Jackson said: “The weather has hugely been on our side to remove the three stranded cement wagons, and this marks a turning point in our hard work to get the railway repaired and open again for passengers
“Now the wagons have been loaded onto lorries to be taken away by acci dent investigators, work can really get going to fix the track and bridge signif icantly damaged by the derailment
“The railway must stay closed while we carry out these important repairs, so please check National Rail Enquir ies as bus replacement services will still be in operation.”
The derailment is being investi gated by the Rail Accident Investiga tion Branch, with the organisation posting an update on its website stat ing: “Currently, available evidence
indicates that the derailment was almost certainly a result of a wheel set with false flanges encountering a set of switches that are part of the junction
“False flanges are associated with the flat areas on wheel treads which can result when rail wheels stop rotat ing while a vehicle is running “Our investigation will seek to iden tify the sequence of events which led to the accident
“It will include consideration of track conditions, the condition of the wagons, wagon characteristics, the status of the train’s braking systems, and any underlying management factors ”
As this issue of Railways Illustrated went to press, work was still under way to clear the site and repair the damaged infrastructure to allow the railway to be fully reopened through the site, although the last of the wagons which had fallen into the river below had been lifted clear
Network Rail stated that it hopes the railway could be reopened in early December, allowing normal services to resume on both the Tyne Valley and the Settle to Carlisle lines
Northern regional director Kerry Peters said: “This is a really complex operation and we are thankful for the expertise that Network Rail is provid ing in recovering the freight train and reinstating the track
“While there is some work to do, the potential reopening of the line in December will be welcomed by our passengers on the route We will do all we can to support this
“We have been providing rail replace ment buses where needed and I want to thank any customers who have been impacted by the derailment for their understanding and patience.
“We look forward to operating a full train service on the route as soon as possible ”
National Rail Enquiries can be found online at www nationalrail co uk
ABOVE: The aftermath of the Petteril Bridge Junction derailment on the morning after the incident Five cement wagons were derailed; one entered the river below and two others required recovery Significant damage was also suffered by the bridge, as can be seen in this picture, and other affected railway infrastructure Network Rail
RIGHT: By mid November, the last of the derailed wagons was recovered after Network Rail constructed a large crane and worksite alongside the site of the derailment The damaged wagons were removed for further accident investigation works. It was anticipated that the railway through the area would be reopened in early December Network Rail
One of the wheelsets on a derailed freight wagon showing the false flange, which RAIB inspectors suspect is the likely cause of the derailment at Petteril Bridge Junction RAIB
THE APPOINTMENT of Jeremy Hunt as Chancellor of the Exchequer and the severe financial fallout from the ‘mini budget’ made by former Chan cellor Kwasi Kwarteng has seen the chair of the Railway Industry Asso ciation, Darren Caplin, pen an open letter to the new Chancellor calling on him to not reduce spending on rail
W i t h t h e G o v e r n m e n t r e v e r s ing many of the announcements made under Liz Truss’s premiership, there were widespread fears that cost cutting and a spending review could see planned rail projects either cancelled or scaled back
Mr Caplin wrote: “I am writing to you on behalf of trade body the Rail way Industry Association and our rail supply sector members
“ We of course understand that there are incredibly difficult deci sions to be made on the economy in the coming weeks and months We wanted to point out to you and your
officials that in terms of public spend ing, rail represents impressive value for money.
“A st u d y p u b l i s h e d l a st y ea r, commissioned by RIA and conducted by Oxford Economics, shows that the railway industry is an essential gener ator of economic growth, jobs, and investment
“In the UK, rail supports 710,000 jobs, contributes over £43 billion Gross Value Added, provides up to £800 million in exports, and for every £1 spent on rail, £2.50 of investment is generated elsewhere in the economy
“This means that rail is not just an important industrial sector in its own right; it also plays a major role in boosting economic growth in other sectors too, as well as connecting and levelling up the country
“Simply, rail is the cleanest form of mass transport and with the Govern ment’s currently planned invest ments will be able to contribute even
more strongly to Net Zero and green, highly skilled jobs
“Rail also provides £14 billion in tax revenue to the Treasury, mean ing that annually it pays its way So, our ‘ask’ is simple: we ask that in your deliberations on spending in the coming days you and your offi cials regard rail as a generator of jobs, GVA, catalytic investment and tax revenues, and not simply as a cost on the public purse
“We also urge you to look to the longer term: building rail for the next 20 to 30 years to deliver the capacity we are going to need in the future means we should not take our foot off the pedal on investment now.
“Rail renewals, enhancements, roll ing stock investments, and major projects like HS2, Northern Power house Rail, Midlands Rail Hub and East West Rail will all generate jobs, GVA and growth both today and in the years to come.”
SOUTHEASTERN HAS launched a procurement process that could result in up to 640 new vehicles being in traffic with the operator by October 2027
Two parallel tenders have been launched, one for a fleet of new third rail 750v DC trains and the other to lease a fleet of trains that will have at least 15 years life left in them after October 1, 2027
The tender notice for the new fleet states that the core order will be for between 350 and 570 vehicles, with an option for an additional 70 vehi cles, meaning the figure could be between 420 and 640 vehicles in total
This is being run in parallel with a process that could result in between 350 and 810 vehicles with at least 15 years’ operational life left beyond
October 1, 2027, being added to the Southeastern fleet
It means that, potentially, South eastern could either order a fleet of up to 640 brand new vehicles, lease a fleet of up to 810 vehicles already in traffic, or a combination of the two.
According to the tender notice, the quantities have been calculated using an assumed 20 metre vehi cle length, and that the core order will be determined once tenders for supply, financing, and maintenance have been received and the busi ness case completed.
S o u t h e a st e r n c u r r e n t l y h a s a mixed fleet of Class 375, 376, 377, 395, 465, 466 and 707 EMUs. The Class 395 Javelin fleet is not affected by this tender, and the new or second hand trains will
not operate on HS1 There are 1716 vehicles in the current Southeast ern fleet, of which 674 were built between 1991 and 1994 (the Class 465 and 466 fleets)
The brand new trains will be accessible and feature interiors suitable for metro and main line operation
They will be fitted with toilets and air conditioning and will also include the option for battery power for operations in depot and sidings, as well as on the main line where there is a lack of power supply due to isolations or incidents, or for non electrified sections with a range of up to 20 miles
Bidders will also be required to supply initial spares, specialist tools, and equipment to support staff training
THE SHORT LIVED reign of Liz Truss as Prime Minister came to an end on October 25, with former Chancellor of the Excheq uer Rishi Sunak taking over as Conservative Party Leader and Prime Minister
Taking over as Secretar y of State for Transport is Mark Harper, who has replaced the p r e v i o u s Tra n s p o r t S e c r e tary Anne Marie Trevelyan A cabinet reshuffle saw her lose her position after just 49 days
Fo r m e r Tra n s p o r t S e l e c t
C o m m i tte e C h a i r m a n H u w Merriman has been appointed as the Minister of State respon sible for Rail and HS2, taking over from Kevin Foster, who has returned to the backbenches.
B o t h M r H a r p e r a n d M r Merriman take up their posi tions at a time when the rail industr y is going through a particularly challenging period, with the ongoing rail strikes with a number of train operators and Network Rail still unresolved
Minister of State for Rail and HS2 Huw Merriman MP
Creative Commons
Secretary of State for Transport Mark Harper MP Creative Commons
On October 30, 2022, Colas Rail’s 43257 and 43272 broke new ground for the HST fleet as they worked a Network Rail PLPR (Plain Line Patter Recognition) test train from Inverness to Wick on the Far North Line This is understood to be the first time HST power cars have ever operated over the route as far as Wick. Matt Towe
New Transport Secretary and Rail Minister are appointed by PM Sunak
SIGNIFICANT DISRUPTION has been caused to services between Leicester and Peterborough after a bridge suffered significant damage caused by a lorry on November 5
The bridge crossing the A6121 Stam ford Road at Ketton, near Oakham, suffered severe damage to two struc tural beams after being struck by a Rutland County Council lorry which had been transporting containers to and from one of its waste and recy cling centres.
As a result of the incident, one of the two railway lines over the bridge has been removed, with the damaged supporting beams and bridge deck removed to allow repairs to be carried out
The remaining single line on the undamaged section continued to carry train services, although signif icant disruption was caused to the Crosscountry services between Stan stead and Birmingham New Street that usually use the affected route
Additionally, freight traffic was diverted via London However, on two Saturdays November 12 and 19 a number of freight trains were operated in the ‘wrong direction’, in addition to the passenger services that are still able to operate over the affected line
Network Rail route director Gary Walsh said: “We are very sorry for the ongoing impact this incident is having on passengers Our teams are doing all they can to carry out these extensive repairs quickly and get trains moving safely again but unfortunately it is likely to take around three weeks “During that time, passengers should check before they travel and leave extra time for their journey We are working with partners in the indus try to divert freight trains wherever
possible and keep vital goods moving around the country ”
Leicestershire Police said: “Shortly before 7 40am on Saturday, Novem ber 5, police received a call after a lorry struck a bridge on the A6121, close to North Luffenham Officers attended the scene and road closures were put in place while emergency services attended. The driver of the vehi cle was taken to hospital Enquiries remain ongoing ”
Network Rail said that between April 1, 2021, and March 31, 2022, there were 1833 bridge strikes reported across the network, up from 1624 on the previous year Network Rail has been running the Wise Up, Size Up campaign since 2018 to urge driv ers to know the height of their vehi cle and choose an appropriate route
1 Stonea Road, Stonea, Cambridgeshire 33 2 Lower Down’s Road, Wimbledon, London 18 3 Harlaxton Road, Grantham, Lincolnshire 17 4 Abbey Farm, Thetford, Norfolk 15 5 Stuntney Road, Ely, Cambridgeshire 12
6 Harefield Road, Brakespeare Road South, West Ruislip, London 12 7 Station Road B4105, Berkswell, Solihull 12 8 Station Road, Langley, Berkshire 12
9 St John’s Street, Lichfield, Staffordshire 11
10 Coddenham Road, Needham Market, Suffolk 10
before setting off on their journey However, despite active campaigns, bridge strikes are still occurring regu larly with some structures being hit on multiple occasions
Network Rail estimated that repairs to the damaged bridge would take about three weeks, with work still being carried out as this issue of Rail ways Illustrated went to print
THE FIRST of the Hitachi Class 805 bi mode trains being built for Avanti W e st C oa st w a s r e l ea s e d f r o m Newton Aycliffe on November 12, ahead of testing at Network Rail’s Rail Innovation & Development Centre in Old Dalby in Leicestershire
G B R a i l f r e i g h t ’s 6 6 7 5 5 w a s employed to haul the plain white 805001 to Old Dalby to commence initial dynamic testing
The trains will receive full liver y wraps ahead of entering service with the operator
A total of 13 Class 805s are under construction at the Hitachi plant in Newton Aycliffe, with the five car
bi mode sets due to replace the exist ing Avanti West Coast Class 221 Super Voyagers on services to North Wales and Shrewsbury
Avanti has confirmed that a second Class 805, expected to be 805003, will also move to Old Dalby over the next few weeks to allow testing of the trains when coupled, providing a 10 car formation.
The West Coast operator is also due to receive 10 Class 807 electric multi ple units as part of the same order. These seven car Class 807 sets are being provided to further eliminate diesel operation under West Coast Main Line overhead wires.
LEFT: Brand new Hitachi Class 805 bi mode five coach train 805001 is hauled by 66755
Tom Berkeley OBE RFG Chairman 1997 2018 through Aycliffe on November 12, 2022, while working 5Q61, the 09 27 from Merchant Park Sidings to Old
LEFT: A view of the damaged bridge at Ketton, near Oakham, which was struck by a lorry on November 5, showing the extent of the damage to the bridge deck and its support beams Network Rail estimated that repairs would take around three weeks to carry out Network Rail Dalby Alex Ayre ABOVE: Within days of the bridge strike at Ketton, the damaged deck had been removed to allow repairs to be carried out. Network Rail Network Rail’s 10 most struck rail bridges 2021/2022A TRANSPORT for Wales Class 197 carried passengers for the first time on November 14 as 197004 was introduced on ser vices between Llandudno and Blaenau Ffestiniog
T h e l o w k e y r o l l o u t f o r t h e much delayed CAF sets saw the two car unit form the 2D10 05 30 Llandudno Junction Blaenau Ffes tiniog and 2D11 06 24 return with workings later in the morning, seeing it venture into Llandudno and then shuttle back and forth to Blaenau Ffestiniog for the rest of the day
A total of 77 Class 197 diesel multi ple units are being built by CAF at its factory in Newport, with 51 two car Class 197/0s and 26 three car Class 197/1s. The sets are expected to be used in widespread service around the Tf W network and are being built as part of an £800 million investment in new trains to transform services and replace older fleets
Deliveries of the sets to Donning ton Railfreight Terminal from the CAF factory at Newport continue to
be made by road on a regular basis, where a large number of sets are now held in store pending commissioning.
Many of these continue to be devoid o f exte r n a l n u m b e r i n g , m a k i n g identification difficult, but a fully numbered 197015 was a new arrival
during October Transport for Wales has also unveiled a Class 197 driving simulator at its new training facility which has been opened in Chester One City Place will be used as a training hub for many grades of Tf W railway staff
TRANSPORT FOR Wales has unveiled a commemorative Remembrance Day vinyl wrap onto Driving Van Trailer 82200 to remember those lost during the First and Second World Wars and conflicts since The artwork on the vinyl wrap features the silhouettes of soldiers on the front line and is the fourth DVT in use on TfW’s InterCity services between Cardiff and Holyhead, which will also operate to South Wales and Manchester from the December time table change The other three special charity liveries celebrate the work of the RNLI, Alzheimer’s Cymru, and Ty Gobaith Hope House Hospice
Tf W engineering director Ryan Williams said: “ We are proud to support our Armed Forces commu nity In 2020 we signed the Armed
Forces Covenant, committing to treat those who have served in the forces and their families with fairness and respect in the community, economy, and society when they ser ve with their lives. The remembrance train is an important next step as part of
”
The DVT was acquired by TfW along with a number of Mk 4 coaches to enhance its InterCity operations, having previously been earmarked by Grand Central for use on its axed Blackpool to London services
Former parcels and ticket offices at Bishopstone station have been transformed into a community hub by Govia Thameslink Railway with support of the rail industry and local community partners In collaboration with the Friends of Bishopstone Station, Southeast Communities Rail Partnership, and the Railway Heritage Trust, the offices have been transformed into a public space The hub is suitable for wheelchair users, with a fully accessible toilet, and also includes activity and storage areas and a kitchen Northern is aiming to recruit up to 16 engineering apprentices to join its maintenance teams at Heaton, Hull Botanic Gardens, Neville Hill, Newton Heath and Allerton TrainCare depots. While the vacancies are open to all, the operator is targeting its recruitment campaign at school and college leavers aged 16 to 22 who hold a minimum of five GCSEs, including English, maths and science The closing date for applications is December 11
East Midlands Railway has recovered £493,000 from fines or by taking fraudulent travellers to court between January and mid October. Revenue protection officers and onboard staff issued 9642 notices and 1470 people have been successfully prosecuted The fines and prosecutions were made for a number of reasons, including travelling without a valid ticket, fraudulently travelling on a child’s ticket, or travelling beyond the destination of their ticket. Prosecutions were only carried out where people refused to pay the fines issued to them
With railwayana still proving to be incredibly popular and performing well at auctions, a 1950s era British Railways
LEFT: GB Railfreight’s 60002 Graham Farish 50th Anniversary 1970 2020 passes Ribblehead station working 6F69, the 12 54 aggregate freight service from Ribblehead
Scottish Region station totem sign from Crainlarich Lower station on the closed Callander to Crainlarich line achieved a record breaking hammer price of £30,000 at the GW Railwayana Auctions sale on November 12.
Automated External Defibrillators have been installed at each of Southeastern’s 164 stations and 17 depots, benefitting staff, customers, and the local communities around Kent, London, and parts of East Sussex. The defibrillators provide verbal instructions on how to give an electric shock to someone in cardiac arrest
to Tuebrook sidings, on October 24 David Barnsdale Honouring troops: Driving Van Trailer 82200 proudly displaying the Remembrance Day vinyl wrap, with wording on the side of the vehicle in both Welsh and English The wrap will remain on the DVT and joins three other DVTs that have been twinned with charitable organisations Transport for Wales November 14, 2022, saw 197004 become the first CAF built Class 197 to enter service with Transport for Wales, with the two car unit working to Blaenau Ffestiniog throughout the day On the second day of passenger use for the newly introduced DMU, 197004 arrives at Blaenau Ffestiniog with a Llandudno to Blaenau Ffestiniog service on November 15, 2022. Sean ThomasAS REPORTED in the last issue of Railways Illustrated, West Midlands Railway has now launched the first of its new CAF built Class 196 DMUs into service on the Birmingham to Shrewsbury route
The first diagrams to make use of them saw 196101 Charles Darwin on the Shrewsbury route from October 17 The Class 196/1 is one of 14 four car trains being delivered for use with WMR, with a further 12 two car Class 196/0 also due to enter service on the WMR network over the coming months, allowing the operator to cascade its Class 170s to neighbour ing operator East Midlands Railway. The debut of the trains, which WMR says will provide a 25% capac ity increase, has been delayed; they should have originally entered traf fic in 2020
The initial diagrams from Octo ber 17 saw the Class 196 operate in the morning peak period between Birmingham New Street and Shrews bury, before the unit was returned to Tyseley Depot mid morning The diagrams being worked by the new DMUs will be expanded over the coming weeks as more are accepted into service WMR says it is also planning on introducing the Class 196s onto the Birmingham New Street to Hereford line, via Worcester Shrub Hill, from the New Year 196101 was named Charles Darwin by the High Sheriff of Shropshire, Selina Graham, during a media event to launch the new fleet on October 14 The name was chosen by WMR staff following an internal poll and h o n o u r s t h e S h r e w s b u r y b o r n
The Class 196 is the second CAF built DMU design to enter service in the UK, following on from the Class 195s that have been in use on Northern since 2019.
West Midlands Railway has pipped Transport for Wales with the Class 196s carr ying passengers, ahead of the similar Class 197s due to be launched into service by TfW in the near future
We travelled on 196101 Charles Darwin on October 28, less than a fortnight after the new train had first carried passengers, to see what it was like and how it compared to the Class 197 we examined at Ches ter station in July (see Railways Illus trated issue 235)
A s with all new trains, there is always a certain initial feel good attitude from passengers who notice when something new replaces the trains they are used to travelling on.
The Class 196 is a smart unit that should be welcomed, with its modern interior and facilities a marked improvement on the Class 170s they are replacing, which are now starting to show their age internally
Hopefully, the long promised inter nal upgrades of the Class 170s will be forthcoming once they have made the transfer to East Midlands Railway
As a train that has been built to serve a highly populated area of the country, the design manages to fit in a lot of seats, with the two coach Class 196/0 featuring 141 seats and the four coach Class 196/1, such as the one we travelled on, boasting 311 seats
There are also 22 table bays of four seats on the Class 196/1, with the rest
of the seats in pairs, with drop down tray tables provided
The seats are reasonably comforta ble, finished in a dark grey moquette with lighter grey and orange diamond flecks that looks smart Although the seats are a little on the firm side, this could be down to the newness of the train and they are certainly more comfortable than some other designs currently in service
WMR boasts that the new train has power points at every seat, but this is slightly misleading as there is a plug socket and a USB charging point for each pair of seats, so these would need to be shared by two passen gers who want to use the sockets to either power a laptop or charge a mobile phone.
The trains also feature free wi fi and air conditioning
The train layout also incorporates two toilets, including one wheel chair accessible toilet to comply with legislation, along with two dedi cated wheelchair spaces with asso ciated help points, and space for the carriage of up to three bicycles Being more suited as a commuter train, luggage storage is rather limited, although the overhead storage shelves are relatively deep
In terms of ride quality, the jour ney was fairly smooth, and the diesel engines weren’t excessively loud when accelerating
I n t h e pa st , t h e re h a v e b e e n comments made over the poor ride quality of some CAF built trains, but this seemed to be okay during our journey and certainly not as bad as some other modern train designs we have travelled on
naturalist recognised as one of the greatest Britons of all time WMR customer experience director Jonny Wiseman said on October 17, following the launch into traffic of the first unit: “I am delighted to see our Class 196 trains carrying passengers for the first time
“With smart air conditioning, power p o i n ts at e v e r y s eat , a n d ext ra space on board, I am certain that these trains will prove a hit with passengers.”
The introduction of the Class 196s and also a fleet of Class 730 EMUs being built by Alstom (but not yet accepted into traffic) are part of a £690 million investment by WMR in providing new fleets and infrastruc ture for its services
The entry into service of the Class 196s was expected to allow WMR to
dispense with its Class 153 and 170 fleets, but while the Class 153s have already been removed from service and withdrawn, a number of Class 170s remain in use with WMR.
Eventually, the plan is that 170501 517 and 170530 535 will be moved across from WMR to EMR, and some of these DMUs have already been t ra n s f e r r e d , b u t t h e r e m a i n d e r cannot be moved until sufficient Class 196s have been accepted into passenger service.
The arrival of Class 170s to EMR is allowing the East Midlands operator to transfer its remaining Class 156s DMUs to Northern.
Once the Class 730s enter service o n W M R ’s C r o s s C i t y L i n e , i t i s expected that 17 of WMRs existing Class 323 fleet will also be trans ferred to Northern
THE TWO busy through platforms at Manchester Piccadilly station Platforms 13 and 14 are to be closed for a number of days over the Christmas and New Year period to allow Network Rail to carry out a series of improvements
A £5 1 million project will see the platforms resurfaced with clearer line markings, and raised platform edges and a new drainage system will be installed Preparatory works for the project started to appear on the platforms during November, including the erection of hoardings around a storage area for building equipment and materials.
Trains will not call at Platforms 13 and 14 at the station for 10 days between December 25 and January 3, and then also on January 22/23.
Additionally, NR is also carrying out works on the main station roof in a separate £1 5 million project, with the station closed from Decem ber 25/26 and on January 15
The through platforms are used by up to 14 trains per hour in each direction, with Northern, TransPen nine Express, Transport for Wales and East Midlands Railways trains all using the platforms for services that pass through the city Some services will continue to run through the station during the works but will not stop, while others will amend timetables for the duration
It is expected that most passengers who would usually join or alight at Manchester Piccadilly will board or leave at the nearby Manchester Oxford Road station instead.
Manchester Piccadilly station manager Scott Green said: “This much needed platform upgrade will be a great way to welcome in the New Year and is an important investment to keep these very busy platforms safe for passengers
“We have tried to plan the work so it causes as little disruption to people’s journeys as possible, but unfortunately resurfacing work like this is impossible to do with out having to shut the platforms completely.
“I would urge people to please be aware of when the work is taking place and to check National Rail Enquiries to plan their journeys and find out which stations will be avail able to them instead ” Visit www.nationalrail.co.uk
IN BRIEFGreater Anglia has installed defibrillators at every rail station on the New River Line, which runs between Hertford East and Broxbourne The equipment can be used to deliver a shock to someone suffering a cardiac arrest, and it can also monitor heart activity, giving automatic instructions to users The equipment has been installed at Hertford East, Ware, St Margarets, Rye House, and Broxbourne stations A growing number of train operators are fitting the lifesaving equipment at their stations
South Western Railway and AmeyTPT has invited charities and community groups to submit proposals for the use of refurbished offices and a meeting room at Witley station in Surrey The space, which was formerly in railway use, would be ideal for an organisation looking for an operating base The successful group or charity will be offered use of the space for a peppercorn rent, initially until August 2024, to make their scheme a reality
Accessibility advisors at Brighton & Hove Buses and Govia Thameslink Railway have worked together with adults with a learning disability from the Grace Eyre charity to support them in making an integrated journey by both bus and train the first time a bus and rail operator have joined forces to offer a combined experience Grace Eyre operates a travel training programme for people with learning disabilities and autism to increase their confidence in travelling independently
NORTHERN HAS highlighted a series of improvements it has implemented in the year since it took over as the sole operator of Neville Hill TrainCare depot
S i n ce m a n a g i n g t h e d e p ot , which is based on the outskirts of the city of Leeds, Northern has completed a site wide clean up, has integrated teams for more efficient working, improved secu rity, refurbished facilities for staff, and improved safety through
Every day, Neville Hill services 34 trains from nine different fleets and carries out more than 500 safety and service critical tasks The operator says that its work supports 260 direct and 825 indi rect passenger services each day Northern’s engineering direc to r, J a c k C o m m a n d e u r, s a i d : “TrainCare centres like Neville Hill are fundamental to the daily
operation of the UK rail system “Although geographically well defined, their impact on the rail way system and its supply chain are far reaching “ We inherited a tremendous tea m , a n d w e a re n o w w o r k ing together in a focussed and consistent way on a single vision and strategy for the site that can be implemented for the bene fit of all, and subsequently the customer ”
Greater Anglia staff are collecting non perishable foods, toiletries, baby supplies, feminine products, and household items for Bishop’s Stortford and Harlow food banks until December 12 Donated items will be delivered to the food banks shortly afterwards, on about December 15 Greater Anglia passengers or residents can drop off donations at Bishop’s Stortford, Harlow Mill, Harlow Town, Sawbridgeworth, and Stansted Mountfitchet stations The collection has been organised by relief ticket office clerk Michael King.
ScotRail has announced that Dunfermline Town station will be renamed Dunfermline City, after its historic status was officially recognised by King Charles III in a ceremony on October 3 While the name change for the station has been confirmed, it is likely to be some time before all of the rail information and signalling systems have been fully amended to reflect the change
An overall view of Manchester Piccadilly at dusk on October 10 While most of the platforms at the stations are contained within the main station building, the busy two through Platforms 13 and 14 (seen from the lower right to the left hand side of this image) are to undergo major refurbishment works by Network Rail over the Christmas and New Year period. Tom McAteeNETWORK RAIL has trialled two new technologies in its efforts to combat poor railhead conditions caused by seasonal leaf fall during the autumn months
In recent years NR has operated an intensive timetable of Railhead Treat ment Trains and Multi Purpose Vehi cles across the rail network between t h e b e g i n n i n g o f O c t o b e r a n d mid December (Railways Illustrated issue 238) to combat the problem of leaf fall, which causes poor adhesion for trains operating throughout the network
The current method of dealing with the mulch that forms and accumu lates on the railhead creating simi lar conditions to black ice on roads has been to use high pressure water systems on the RHTT and MPV fleets to clear it
However, Network Rail is now inves tigating other types of technology to tackle the annual problem in a more sustainable way, with the infrastruc ture company carrying out trials of lasers and plasma jets throughout October on the East Lancashire Rail way heritage line
The systems of two different compa nies Laser Protection Solutions and Plasmatrack have been tested there
to see if their solutions are as effec tive at cleaning the rails as the current systems
Laser Precision Solutions’ Laser
Tr a i n t e c h n o l o g y u s e s t h r e e high powered beams per railhead to treat the rails When the inten sity of the lasers hit the railhead, the contamination instantly vaporises without heating up the rail
PlasmaTrack’s system involves direct current plasma technology, which uses heat and active electrons to split things apart. The high energy electrical plasma beam tears apart the leaf layer, as well as heating and burning it off
N R sta t e s t h a t e a c h y e a r t h e autumn railhead treatment circuits cover more than a million miles between October and December, with the entire network treated over 50 times
However, the current preferred method of treatment uses about 200 million litres of water, and the use of alternative technology could reduce the need for such a large amount of water, as well as the cost of fuel for transporting it around the country NR said this would benefit both the environment and reduce the cost to the taxpayer.
Results of the laser and plasma t e c h n o l o g y t e s t s w i l l n o w b e analysed to see how successful they were, but further development work would be required to ensure that the systems can work on the live rail network as well as the current water based system.
N R p r o j e c t e n g i n e e r S u h a y b Manzoor said: “Leaves on the line are often seen as a joke on the railway but they can cause serious problems and we are always looking at new ways to tackle this age old problem
“It’s also not unique to Britain, with railways all over the world having issues when trees shed their leaves For that reason, it’s exciting to be putting some of the newest tech nology out there to the test, with the hope that one day it could help Network Rail keep passengers and freight moving safely at this opera tionally challenging time of year.”
E L R c h a i r m a n M i k e K e l l y said: “When people think of herit age railways, they probably think they just look at preserving the past, but here at the East Lancashire Rail way we want to be a moderniser, too “We are ver y proud to be able to play our part and provide our tracks and infrastructure to allow Network Rail to do its important research and development and excited to be at the forefront of technology which could make millions of future jour neys better for passengers around the country.”
Network Rail has started work on the next phase of the electrification of the Midland Main Line between Market Harborough and Wigston Piling works began in late October to lay the foundations to support the overhead line equipment, with work on the 12 mile section expected to take place until August 2023, and the electrification itself to be
installed throughout next year The programme, which will eventually see the MML electrified all the way from London St Pancras International through to Sheffield, via Nottingham and Derby, has already seen part of the route electrified from London through to Bedford, with the section of line between Bedford and Corby also electrified recently too.
The piling works, which will see foundations dug to a depth of seven metres underground, are mostly being carried out overnight while no trains are running on the busy route NR principal programme spon sor Gavin Crook said: “Starting this next phase is a huge step forward for the Midland Main Line upgrade It adds to the important work we have
already completed to transform jour neys between London and Corby and sees us work towards a fully electri fied route
“We are excited to offer passen gers a more reliable, greener railway which is fit for the future, encourages more people to travel by train, and supports economic growth along the way.”
The Network Rail MPV undertaking trials of Laser Precision Solutions LaserTrain technology on the East Lancashire Railway in October 2022 Perhaps laser or plasma technology is the next generation solution in the annual battle with autumn leaf fall on the railway. Network Rail A close up picture of the plasma jet created by PlasmaTrack to clean accumulated leaf mulch from the railhead during Network Rail trials on the East Lancashire Railway heritage line in October 2022 Network RailThe Very Light Rail National Inno vation Centre in Dudley, in the West Midlands, is complete and has been handed over to its specially created operator, the Black Country Inno vative Manufacturing Organisation (BCIMO)
Railways Illustrated was invited to view the purpose built facility in late October, just a few days after the impressive building was handed over to BCIMO
The organisation which was created to build, launch, and operate the new research and development facility aims to create sustainable, low cost public transport through out all rail sectors, with its initial focus centred on the development of a new Very Light Rail (VLR) industry to bene fit UK towns and cities
Unlike a traditional railway, or the second generation tramways (light rail), VLR is designed to sit on a much lighter track slab to accommodate lightweight rail vehicles that will be cheaper to manufacture than modern trams currently in use in the UK.
The track slab being developed for use on VLR systems does not require utility diversions to be carried out where the VLR would operate one
key aspect that has proved to be extremely costly in the develop ment of the existing modern light rail systems
It is believed that by avoiding util ity diversions, a VLR system could be delivered much more cheaply than a modern tramway.
When asked by Railways Illustrated what would happen to a VLR system should utility companies need to work on their assets beneath an oper ational route, BCIMO’s Nick Mallinson said that the track slab is designed so that it can be easily lifted and moved aside. VLR systems, he said, can operate to the extremities of the work site, with a short gap in an end to end service while works are carried out Once works have been completed, the track slab can be reinstated easily and quickly to minimise disruptions and downtime
to implementation. The new centre features a large workshop which is available for rent by commercial rail companies, along with a wide range of offices and laboratories that can be used to develop technologies to advance the VLR sector, although Mr Mallinson was keen to stress that the facilities are also able to be used by the rail and light rail companies
There are also meeting rooms and spaces for conferences and corpo rate entertaining
I n a d d i t i o n , t h e c e n t r e a l s o includes a 2 2km test track which has been laid on the former South Staffordshire line at Dudley, and this is available for use by the rail indus tr y for testing of rail vehicles, on track plant and light rail, although it is not equipped with overhead electrification
East Midlands Railway is install ing 29 smart kiosks on its regional network, which the operator says will make it simpler and easier for passengers to buy tickets at the cheapest fares
T h e m a c h i n e s , w h i c h a l l o w customers to buy advance and wa l k u p t i c kets a s a p r i n te d barcode instead of a usual paper ticket, will be installed at stations in Staffordshire, Leicestershire, L i n co l n s h i re , D e r b y s h i re a n d Nottinghamshire
The self ser ve machines will offer traditional walk up fares, as well as a full range of national rail card and local discounts Advance purchase fares can also be bought by passengers who are not travel ling immediately and wish to travel on a specific service at a later time or date.
The kiosks are also equipped with full timetable enquiry soft ware, providing information on next trains and any differences in cost between a passenger’s chosen train and any other over the next 90 minutes
Looking from alongside the newly completed centre towards the start of its 2 2km test track, which is available for use by rail companies for the testing of new and existing rolling stock and innovations. The centre also offers a wide range of testing facilities, as well as office space and laboratories. Andy Coward
BCIMO said there has been interest from a number of towns and cities in the VLR concept, with some now having fairly advanced plans for the implementation of such a system, and the new innovation centre will allow these organisations to work on developing the concept through
Funding for the facility has come f ro m a va r i et y o f o rga n i s at i o n s , and it is hoped that it can help to play a pivotal role in the develop ment of VLR, as well as supporting the wider rail and light rail indus tries in new research and develop ment to enhance existing and new installations.
In Derbyshire, the new smart kiosks will be installed at Lang l e y M i l l , Tu t b u r y a n d H atto n and Willington stations, while in Nottinghamshire they will appear at Aslockton, Bingham, Burton Joyce, Carlton, Collingham, Fisk erton, Lowdham Netherfield and Radcliffe Leicestershire stations to receive the kiosks are Bottesford, Hinckley and South Wigston, and in Lincolnshire they will soon be found at Gainsborough Lea Road, Hykeham, Market Rasen, Mether ingham, Rauceby, Ruskington, Saxilby, Swinderby and Wainfleet. Alsager, Blythe Bridge, Heckington, Longport, Longton are the Stafford shire stations to gain the new smart kiosks.
E M R ’s co m m e rc i a l d i re cto r, Simon Pready, said: “We want to offer customers as much flexibil ity as possible when purchasing tickets and that’s why the intro duction of these new smart kiosks is great news
“As well as other features, they offer customers a full range of e tickets and the same fare offers that they would otherwise access online We hope our regional customers enjoy the benefits of using them when they are intro duced across our regional network in the next few months ”
Beneath threatening skies, Locomotive Services Group’s chairman’s private train, headed by D6817 (37521) and 37688 Great Rocks, climb to Luib summit passing Loch Gowan (near Achnasheen) with 1Z72, the 08 05 Boat of Garten to Kyle of Lochalsh on October 30, 2022. Andrew Bannister
EMR introduces smart ticket kiosks at 29 stations The futuristic Very Light Rail National Innovation Centre at Dudley in the West Midlands is pictured on October 27, a few days after the newly completed facility was handed over to its operator, the Black Country Innovative Manufacturing Organisation Andy CowardLUMO, THE FirstGroup backed East Coast Main Line open access operator, celebrated its first anniversary at the end of October, having carried almost a million passengers on its services since launch and attracting more passengers onto the railway rather than travelling by air
N e w c a s t l e b a s e d L u m o w a s launched in a blaze of publicity on October 25, 2021, claiming that the company wanted to ‘re imagine rail’. It runs its services on the ECML between London King’s Cross and Edinburgh Waverley, using a fleet of five Hitachi Class 803 five coach elec tric trains.
The open access agreement allows the company to usually only call at Stevenage, Newcastle and Morpeth en route, with five daily ser vices operating along the ECML between London and Edinburgh during the week in each direction
It has been keen to promote its envi ronmental credentials, with rail being much more environmentally friendly than domestic airlines between the two capital cities.
Since the introduction of its full t i m eta b l e i n A p r i l , Lu m o state s that it has helped to make rail the favoured mode of transport between E d i n b u r g h a n d L o n d o n f o r t h e f i r s t t i m e B e t w e e n A p r i l a n d A u g u s t , 5 7 % o f j o u r n e y s between the two cities were made by rail, compared with a pre pan demic position of 35% between April and August in 2019. Some 66% of travellers chose rail over domestic flights in August itself
Lumo’s fleet of Hitachi Class 803 trains has also proved to be success ful in terms of reliability in the year s i n ce i t f i r st e n te re d pa s s e n ge r service, becoming the most reliable out of the box train that Hitachi Rail has ever delivered in the UK Lumo is the first UK open access operation to launch with a completely new train fleet.
Hitachi’s head of UK & Ireland, Jim Brewin, said: “In just 12 months the Lumo fleet has become the most reliable Hitachi has ever launched in the UK Being both incredibly relia ble and 100% electric encourages the shift to rail required to meet net zero.
“The success of this British built train is recognition of the hard work from ever yone at Lumo, FirstRail, Beacon Rail and Hitachi colleagues at our UK depots and North East factory ”
Lumo says it has now run more than 2500 ser vices on the ECML in its first year the equivalent of about 4125 full flights carrying 180 people with the operator’s one mil lionth passenger carried in November, just after the operator’s first anni versary Average loadings on Lumo services have been 86% and average ticket prices are £37.
Lumo’s recently appointed manag ing director, Martijn Gilbert, said: “The increase in rail’s share of passen gers between London and Edin burgh demonstrates value Lumo has brought to the East Coast Main Line. Not only have we attracted passengers to greener transport, we have noticed that other opera tors have also increased their market share. Together we have convinced the public that the convenience, price, and environmental impact of rail is worth it
“ I t i s v i ta l fo r t h e e co n o m y to have an affordable and sustaina ble means to travel long distances I know we have opened up the route for people for the first time just by being cheaper than the alternatives previously available Lumo has not changed passenger habits on its own but the rail network has proven its value, comfort, and convenience to passengers convincingly ”
FirstGroup owns two of the open access operators on the ECML, with Lumo and Hull Trains both controlled by the public transport giant The principal operator on the ECML is LNER, and Grand Central also oper ates as an open access operator on the East Coast route
➔ Further Reading: Birth of a train operator (Railways Illus trated issue 232)
Network Rail has announced that a preferred design has been selected, following consultation with the local community, for a new station build ing at Troon to replace the historic wooden building that was destroyed by fire in July 2021
Earlier this year NR consulted with residents on three different possible options for a replacement station building (Railways Illustrated, November 2022)
T h e f i r st o pt i o n w a s a d i r e c t replacement for the original build ing on a like for like basis but using modern construction materials The second was for a building which looked like the original but with changes to certain aspects and its internal layout The third was for a more modern interpretation of the
previous building Following the consultation, the chosen option to be taken forward for detailed design is the second option
The final design will be shared with the local community again before being submitted for plan ning permission, ahead of the new station being built
NR’s sponsor for the redevelop ment of Troon station, Jo Noble, said: “We are delighted that local people took a great interest in the plans for the station building and that their preference for a particu lar option emerged
“From the engagement activities held in Troon, public feeling indi cates a strong preference to retain the historic character of their station while reflecting modern standards
and offering facilities and amenities of benefit to the community.
“Option two best suited the crite ria and consequently we will reflect the views of the local people and e v o l v e t h i s co n ce pt i n to a f u l l y
developed design for the redevel opment of the station building.
“Thank you to everyone who took the time to view the plans, ask questions, and share their views with us during this process.”
FirstGroup open access operator Lumo celebrated its first birthday in late October On June 23, 2022, Lumo’s 803002 works 1S93, the 10 45 London King’s Cross to Berwick upon Tweed service, passing through Preston le Skerne Lumo currently operates a fleet of five Class 803 Hitachi trains on its services Alex Ayre Following consultation with the local community around Troon station, this design for the new station building has been selected as the preferred option to replace the wooden building destroyed by fire in July 2021. Network RailThe Supertram network in Sheffield is to return to public control follow ing the decision by South York shire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) to take over the system from current operator Stagecoach when its contract expires in March 2024
A proposal to create an ‘arms length’ publicly owned company to run the system when the contract expires was approved at a meeting of the SYMCA on October 18. The plan forms part of the region’s wider ambitions to upgrade Supertram as part of a fully integrated public transport network
A similar style of publicly owned operating company is in place for the tramways at Blackpool and the West Midlands Metro system
The loss of the Supertram network will see Stagecoach completely with draw from its rail related businesses, with the operator joining the likes of National Express and Virgin Group in withdrawing from the sector
South Yorkshire’s Mayor, Oliver Coppard, said: “Our transport ambi tions for how our communities get to jobs or education, and how they visit family and friends must work for the whole of our region and for a generation to come “Supertram has been part of South Yorkshire’s fabric for nearly 30 years In the next 30 years, it will play a critical role in helping us reach our net zero goal.
“Now I am pleased to be able to say that it will do so as a public ly owned and publicly operated venture Full public control of Supertram is an exciting new chap ter for our tram network It will help us to develop a long term, inte grated approach that fits with our wider plans for buses, rail, walking, and cycling across South Yorkshire ”
The second generation tram way opened in 1994, following the Manchester Metrolink system which had brought modern trams to the UK two years earlier The Supertram network also incorporates a tram train service to Rotherham, which was brought into use in 2018.
The fleet of 25 Siemens Duewag trams, numbered 101 125 and intro duced when the Sheffield tram way opened, are now the oldest second generation tram fleet to be operated in the UK, as the Manches ter Metrolink T68 fleet was phased out between 2012 and 2014
The fleet has been enhanced with seven Class 399 tram trains, numbered 399201 399207, built by Stadler
The Class 399s are used on tram train services, as well as on the exist ing Supertram network, but the Siemens Duewag trams are unable to be used on the tram train service to Rotherham.
East Midlands Railway reported a rise in customer satisfaction after extra cleaning measures were introduced for passengers travelling on the 55 mile Grantham to Skegness route. The amount of cleaning on the Poacher Line was increased throughout the summer, including more deep cleans of the stations and trains. A survey, which received more than 1200 responses, showed an overall satisfaction level of 98% for cleanliness, while satisfaction with cleanliness of toilets went up from an average of 79% to 85%
GWR passengers who are delayed by 15 minutes or more will now be automatically informed of their right to claim compensation under a new automatic delay repay service It covers all advance tickets bought online from GWR and used on GWR services The service calculates compensation and then notifies passengers who are due it by email. GWR says that automatic refunds are unique to the rail industry in the UK, and it is being introduced as part of a phased project to simplify claiming compensation where the technology allows for the ticket type
Transport for Wales and the Cardiff University’s School of Geography and Planning are working together to provide a transport modelling module for students of the Transport and Planning (MSc) programme. Led by academic and professional experts, the module offers students the theoretical underpinnings of transport modelling and hands on experience of transport modelling software, providing both theoretical knowledge and practical skills
A new step free access ramp has been completed on the Burnley bound platform at Accrington station by Northern The car park has also been resurfaced and two additional disabled parking spaces have also been provided, as well as improved signage and lighting at the station The work was funded by the Department for Transport’s Access for All scheme and supported by Community Rail Lancashire and Lancashire County Council
Station staff at LNER’s Retford station have won a Community Award in the Retford in Bloom 2022 competition for the standard of their floral displays Staff at the East Coast Main Line station have been planting up and tending colourful platform displays to brighten its appearance for the past four years
Hanson and Hall Rail Solutions 50008 Thunderer passes through Burton Salmon while working top and tail with 37418 An Comunn Gaidhealach on the Branch Line Society’s 1Z50, the 05 30 Derby to Saltburn ‘The Saltburn Alternative’, on October 22, 2022 The charter was also using a rake of former Greater Anglia Mk 3 stock provided by The Real Charter Trains Company. Phil Chilton
HARRY NEEDLE Railroad Company is set to return its recently acquired Class 37/4 and a Class 37/6 which has been out of service for more than three years to main line traffic in the coming weeks
First to return is expected to be 37405, which was acquired from Direct Rail Services in 2021, having been out of use since February 2021, and it is the first Class 37/4 in the HNRC fleet.
The locomotive has been returned to operational condition at HNRC’s B a r r o w H i l l w o r k s h o p a n d i s expected to go on hire to Colas Rail freight, joining HNRC’s 37610/612, which are already in use with the freight operator. The Class 37s are being used to operate infrastructure monitoring trains for Network Rail Next to return after the 37/4 will be 37607, which is also in the process of being reactivated at Barrow Hill, with work on its overhaul now reach ing an advanced stage
This locomotive has been out of traffic since January 2019 and has recently received new wheelsets.
Like 37405, it has received HNRC’s co r p o ra t e o ra n g e l i v e r y a n d i s expected to follow the 37/4 by going on hire to Colas Railfreight for infra structure monitoring duties
HNRC told R a i l w a y s I l l u s t r a te d that the plan is to return the Class
37s it has bought from DRS in recent months to traffic The next two set fo r a ret u r n a re ex p e cte d to b e 37602 and 37609, although no date has been given for the return, nor an indication of what services they will be used for. 37602 has been out of traffic since September 2019 and is stored at Eastleigh Works, while 37609 was stored in February 2018
Nearing the end of its overhaul and now repainted into HNRC orange livery, 37607 stands in the workshops of its owners in October
It is expected that this locomotive and 37405 will shortly go on hire to Colas to supplement their Class 37 fleet Courtesy Harry Needle
and is currently located at HNRC’s Worksop facility
Other former DRS Class 37s in the HNRC fleet that have been pencilled in for a return to service are 37038, 37259, 37603/604 and 37703
It was previously suggested by the company at one stage that the 37/7 would be used for component recovery
ONE OF the Class 47s used by Locomo tive Services Group as a spares donor locomotive at Crewe Diesel Depot has been sent for scrapping at CF Booth in Rotherham after final recovery of components was carried out 47811, which last saw use with Freightliner before being purchased by LSG, had been extensively stripped of spares. When it was loaded onto a low loader on November 9, it was devoid of bogies and underframe equipment Upon delivery to Rother ham, it was immediately placed
i n t o t h e c u tt i n g a r e a a n d w a s scrapped within a couple of days of its arrival.
Also at Crewe Diesel Depot, compo nent recovery has been taking place on 57004, with it looking increasingly likely that this will become the first Class 57 to be broken up for scrap
The Class 57 has been sold by LSG to Great Western Railway, which has stripped it of any compatible parts for its four Class 57/6 locomotives, 57602 605, which are used on the Night Rivi era sleeper service.
G R E AT W E S T E R N ’ S 1 6 5 1 0 4 has become the first passenger train to be fitted with real time t ra c k m o n i to r i n g e q u i p m e n t , this consisting of high resolu tion video cameras and a Lidar laser measuring system
Unveiled in late October, the s y ste m w h i c h i s a v e n t u r e between Angel Trains and Cordel will provide Network Rail with a range of data, including on clear ances, vegetation management, ballast profiling, and overhead line condition The 12 month trial has
seen the Turbo receive a scanning sensor above the windscreens
In a similar move, Northern’s 150136 is also now equipped with a somewhat unsightly camera and Lidar system on the cab fronts for the same purpose Completed at Newton Heath in early November, the ‘Intelligent Train’ system has been installed in partnership with Network Rail, Belvoir Rail, Yellow Rail and Modux, with the equip ment including the ability to scan for obstructions and provide a live feed from the camera
THIRTY BI MODE Class 99s on order for GB Railfreight will replace the ubiquitous Class 66, says GBRf chief executive officer John Smith
Speaking at the Rail Freight Group conference on October 5, he said: “If we started saying we are going to be carbon neutral, we can’t be running Class 66s in 25 years’ time ”
Discussing the new locomotives, which will be built in Valencia by Sta d l e r, M r S m i t h co n t i n u e d : “ I believe this will be a replacement for the Class 66 It will do what a Class 66 does now, and we need, in the mean time, to get wires up
“We need the Felixstowe branch wiring; we need some of the gaps filling in. Certainly, there’s not a lot of money around, but some of the cheaper infill schemes, we definitely need those ”
He confirmed that 30 Class 99s have been ordered, with options for more, and said that the Class 66s are expected to be ‘parked up’ by 2050.
No new Class 66s have been built for the UK since 66779 Evening Star in 2016, as they do not meet emis sions requirements.
This has resulted in GBRf looking to import locomotives from mainland Europe to bolster its fleet, with the Class 66s being the main type of loco motive in use with the freight opera tor GBRf currently operates 104 Class 66s, with more expected to join the fleet in the future.
Mr Smith also confirmed that there is a delay to the Class 99 introduction built into the business plan, saying: “We already have in our business plan that these things are going to be six months late and aren’t going to work for another six months And I don’t quite get that, if we’ve got a vision for the future.
“We don’t have an unlimited supply chain of people who are willing to build these things, but we’ve got to have a supply chain that understands that reliability of the trains that we operate is hugely important ”
Elsewhere within GBRf, six Class 69s are to be fitted with specialist
coupling equipment, enabling them to operate on Rail Services’ business, although only three will be available at any one time
First to be fitted will be 69008 (ex 56038), which is nearing comple tion at Electro Motive Diesels at Longport, and this will be followed b y 6 9 0 0 9 0 1 3 ( b e i n g co n v e r te d from 56065/060/032/077 and 56312 respectively) It is expected that eight Class 69s will be available for traffic by the start of February, by which point 56098, currently painted in BR large logo blue, will have been sent to EMD’s Longport facility for conver sion to 69015.
THE ADMITTANCE of Avanti West Coast Pendolino 390114 into Alstom’s Widnes facility marks the 15th Class 390/1 to pass through the plant for inte rior refurbishment, meaning that more than a quarter of the fleet has now been refurbished since the project started The full list of Pendolinos to emerge, in order of completion, is now 390125/123/148/155/156/154/ 157/131/124/104/119/115, with 390114 expected to have been completed when this issue of Railways Illustrated is published.
THE PROJECT to reform most of Southern’s Class 171 fleet into three car sets continued at Selhurst throughout October and into November 171724 has become 171810, with the addition of 56805 as a centre car. 171808 has been created (171722 with 56804 inserted) and also 1 7 1 8 1 1 ( p re v i o u s l y 1 7 1 7 2 5 with 56803 added). 171803 05 have been reduced to three car formations from four A quartet of sets still required alteration by mid November, with 171721/723 awaiting a Motor Standard car from 171802/06 and renumber ing as 171807/09
AS WORK continues on the essential maintenance of the LNER Class 91 fleet at Wabtec Doncaster, another two Class 91s emerged from repaint ing on November 10, including 91119 Bounds Green InterCity Depot 1977 2 0 1 7 , which has been repainted into original InterCity 225 Swallow liver y as carried by the Class 91s when delivered new to British Rail between 1988 and 1991 9 1 1 1 9 h a s ca r r i e d t h e o r i g i n a l
InterCity 225 liver y for a number of years, but it has previously been applied as a vinyl wrap, whereas it has been fully repainted into the scheme during its recent attention at Doncaster
The repainting of 91119 also marks the completion of the third of LNER’s specially liveried Class 91 locomo tives to have their liveries refreshed Wabtec is now nearing the end of the Class 91 repainting at its Doncas te r fa c i l i t y, w i t h 9 1 1 1 4 D u r h a m Cathedral also emerging in the new LNER 225 Oxblood colours along with 91119 on November 10
The same day saw 91124 move to Wabtec in advance of repainting, leaving 91107 S k y f a l l as the last remaining Class 91 to retain the old red and grey livery originally applied to t h e l o co m ot i v e s w h e n V i rg i n Trains East Coast operated the East Coast franchise.
It is expected that 91124 will have returned to service by the time this issue of Railways Illustrated goes on sale.
Once all the locomotives have been completed, work will continue on the repainting of LNER’s eight Mk.4 coaching stock rakes, of which
several are still to be treated at the time of going to press Set NL08 is the latest rake of coaches to emerge from repainting.
On November 10, 2022, 91119 Bounds Green Intercity Depot 1977 2017 heads through Leeds station with repainted 91114 Durham Cathedral in tow, heading from Doncaster West Yard to Neville Hill Depot 91119 has been repainted into its InterCity 225 Swallow livery, rather than a vinyl wrap, and the livery now includes more InterCity detail, such as the InterCity Swallow in the horn grille on the cab front and cast Swallows on the bodyside 91124 replaced the pair at Doncaster on the same day, in preparation for its repaint Dave GilbertLocomotive Services Group has offi cially confirmed that it has assembled a representation of a 1980s ScotRail push pull set, ahead of its railtour programme commencing early in 2023
The announcement on October 18 was accompanied by pictures of Mk 2f DBSO 9707 repainted in ScotRail colours at Crewe, albeit still in refurbished condition and without the gangway connection reinstated.
The six coach set will also feature Mk 3a TSOs 12111 and 12171, Mk 3b FOs 11066 and 11082 and Mk 3a TSOB 10404, with power coming from the Crewe Diesel Preservation Group’s ScotRail liveried 47712 Lady Diana Spencer, which is on long term hire to LSG.
This will bring a return to the main line for the two FOs and the TSOB acquired from the Barr y Tourist Railway in the summer, while the pair of TSOs have been unused by LSG since they were initially repainted into InterCity colours.
The first of the additional Mk 4 sets acquired by Transport for Wales was introduced into passenger service f ro m N o v e m b e r 9 Po w e re d b y newly repainted 67020, set HD05 formed 1W96, the 17.16 Cardiff Hol yhead and returned the next morning as 1V91, the 05 33 Holyhead Cardiff It then continued on the diagram for the rest of the day and again on November 11
Formed of 12224, 12326, 10321, 11320 and 82200, the former Grand C e n t ra l s et i s o p e rat i n g a s f i v e
coaches, with 12477 removed until such time as selective door opening modifications are completed on all of Tf W’s locomotive hauled rakes HD05 also retains the plain black l i v e r y o r i g i n a l l y a p p l i e d fo r t h e abandoned open access operation between London Euston and Black pool, this having seen the orange band removed earlier this year.
In due course, red doors and a red cantrail band will be applied to provide a matching appearance with the new black and red locomo tive livery, a scheme that is likely to be extended to the original three Mk 4 sets and matching Class 67s in time
Some relief has been provided on DVT 82200, which now carries predominately light blue ‘Lest we forget’ remembrance vinyls
The former coal loading complex at Gascoigne Wood has become a stor age and stabling location for numer ous Mk 3s in recent weeks Already present by mid October were TSOB 10406, FOs 11092/93/99, 11101, and TSOs 12091, 12125/54, most of which have been reported as now belong ing to Legacy Rail/Rail Engineering Solutions
O n O c t o b e r 2 2 , t h e s e w e r e employed on a railtour from Derby to Saltburn and Shildon that was top and tailed by 50008 Thunderer and 37418 An Comunn Gaidhealach and with the coaches branded as ‘The Real Charter Train Co.’
October 17/18 saw the DATS Mk 3 fleet join them, with 43050 and 43076 arriving at Gascoigne Wood with 10237, 11090, 12032/64/97
and 82115/36 from Loughborough, followed the next day by 11018/48/74, 12078/92 and 12122/33/38 from Leicester
The latter eight Mk 3s were subse quently advertised for sale, while November 4 saw the same HST power cars take 10237, 82115 and 82136 to Network Rail’s High Marn ham test track. Later in the month, the coaches were noted serving as brake force runners and coupling adaptors for new London Under ground wagons undergoing trials between the Class 43s
One DATS Mk 3 that has seen its future resolved is 82138, the DVT having been un used by the company and still in ex Virgin West Coast condi tion On September 14, it was moved by road from Loughborough to EMR at Kingsbury for scrapping.
All of the former Rail Charter Services HST set is now at Arlington Fleet Ser vices at Eastleigh Works, with 40804 and 41160 being brought south from Crewe by 47805 on October 25 to join 41166, 41187 and 44081 in being repurposed
While Locomotive Services Group has made no official announcement, every indication is that a second Blue Pullman HST is being assembled
Also on this transfer was Statesman Mk.2e FO 3231, which was returned to Crewe after attention on November 10 behind 20096 and 20107 The Type 1s had reached Eastleigh the previous day, with kitchen car 80043 in tow.
After a seven month stay, West Coast Railways Mk 2s 6000, 6528 and 99675
were released from the Assenta Rail workshops at Hamilton on October 31 following the fitting of retention tanks Earlier in the day, 57314 had arrived from Carnforth with the next trio of coaches for modification, in the form of 5278, 5453 and 99673
The journey back south was routed via Bo’ness in order to add SRPS rail tour Mk.1s 13230, 21241 and 35185 to the consist
The latest filming contract secured by Eastern Rail Ser vices involved four of its former Arriva Train Wales Mk 3s, with 37611 hauling 10249 and 12176/80/82 from Yarmouth to the Keighley & Worth Valley on Novem ber 4 With the work completed, they were returned to the company’s Anglia base on November 15.
One Mk 3 that has left Yarmouth for the last time is former Chiltern Railways TSO 12017, this going to the Stafford scrapyard of J Watson & Sons in early November October had seen this vehicle involved in emer gency exercise training at RAF Henlow in Bedfordshire
The Mk.3 trailers employed as spares donors at Wabtec have begun to go for scrap to EMR, Kingsbur y The second week of November saw 44004 and 44086 depart Doncaster, with more to follow
A somewhat belated disposal to report that has only recently been confirmed is that of Riviera Mk.2s 3292 and 5657 from Burton Wetmore, the heavily fire damaged ex DB Cargo duo having been cut by a local firm during 2020
13/10 37884 + 318263 5Q06
Kilmarnock Bonnyton Yoker
13/10 37884 + 318265 5Q08 13.59
Yoker Kilmarnock Bonnyton. 31/10 37884 + 318266 5Q06 09
Kilmarnock Bonnyton Yoker 31/10 37884 + 318253 5Q08 14.01
Yoker Kilmarnock Bonnyton. CLASS 319
Heath depot to Sims, Newport, and all four cars scrapped by end of the week In addition, the final car from 319365, 77467, was moved from Long Marston to Sims, Newport by road on 1/9
CLASS 321
21/10 37884 + 321408 5Q25 11.31
Gascoigne Wood Booths, Rotherham
CLASS 360
21/10 47749 + 360110 5Q98 14 20 Eastleigh Works Cricklewood 11/11 47749 + 360112 5Q81 15 19 Eastleigh Works Cricklewood
CLASS 379
20/10 379018 + 379023 5V35 18 00 Norwich Crown Point Ilford
CLASS 387 24/10 47749 + 387101 5Q87 10 13
Ferme Park Worksop, first of the class to go for fitting of ETCS cab signalling equipment by Alstom
CLASS 465/466 15/10 66799 + 465905 5Q50 11 10 Slade
Green Tonbridge West Yard 17/10 66777 + 465905 5Q89 02 24
Tonbridge West Yard Wabtec, Doncaster.
19/10 37884+ 465912 5Q72 09 00 Wabtec, Doncaster Wembley 20/10 37884 + 465912 5Q89 08.25
Wembley Gillingham. 20/10 37884 + 465933 5Q23 12 01 Gillingham Wabtec, Doncaster
28/10 37884 + 466024 + 466043 5Q23 13 10 Worksop Wabtec, Doncaster
CLASS 701
10/11 47749 + 701051 5Q12 11 59
Worksop Derby Litchurch Lane 10/11 47749 + 701045 5Q10 17.15
Derby Litchurch Lane Arriva, Eastleigh.
CLASS 720
15/10 47749 + 720113 5Q68 09 05 Derby
Litchurch Lane Wembley 26/10 47749 + 720115 5Q68 11 08 Derby Litchurch Lane Wembley. 29/10 47727 + 720507 5Q68 09 46 Derby
Litchurch Lane Wembley 2/11 47749 + 720513 5Q68 09 14
Derby Litchurch Lane Wembley. 3/11 37510 + 720608 5Q75 09 10 Derby
Litchurch Lane Wembley. 10/11 37510 + 720610 5Q75 09.14
Derby Litchurch Lane Wembley. 10/11 37510 + 720602 5Q57 15 31
Wembley Derby Litchurch Lane
CLASS 730
27/10 37510 + 730015 5Q56 10 08 Derby Litchurch Lane Loughborough 4/11 37608 + 730102 5Q65 08.57 Old
Dalby Crewe Carriage Sidings 8/11 37510 + 730016 5Q58 10 08 Derby Litchurch Lane Old Dalby 12/11 37510 + 730013 5Q65 09.10 Old Dalby Oxley
With the December timetable change set to bring an increase in services on the Elizabeth Line, the final trio of seven car Class 345s have been removed from traffic to be length ened These had been retained for services into restricted length plat forms at Paddington and were unable to operate through the Crossrail core First to be increased to a nine car formation was 345064, and this returned to traffic on November 14, while 345042 and 345056 were set to have their extra cars added at Old Oak Common by the end of the month
The public debut of a Class 196 in passenger ser vice occurred as expected on October 17, three days after the VIP launch special between Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury 196101 was again provided, the four car unit forming 1G05, the 06.51 Shrewsbury Birmingham New Street and 2J06 the 08 00 back to Shrews bury. It then went on to work the 1G14 09 11 Shrewsbury Birmingham New Street before returning to Tyseley
By m i d N o v e m b e r, t w o m o r e diagrams on the same route had been
turned over to the CAF built units, with Class 196s expected to have achieved a near total takeover by the New Year
Also noted in passenger use have been 196102/108/110, but minor faults were continuing to disrupt their use Two stored sets were extracted from Long Marston on November 11 and returned to Tyseley, with Rail Opera tions Group’s 37510 and 37611 top and tailing 196006 and 196109
East Midlands Railway has received additional Turbostars ahead of the December timetable change, the influx beginning on October 30 with the arrival of 170270, 170271 and 170272 at Derby Etches Park from Cardiff Canton, having previously been in use with Transport for Wales.
170271 continued on to Barrow Hill for store, awaiting an entry into service with the operator, but the other two sets were both in traffic by Novem ber 14 They join already transferred 170273 in the Midlands
With the Class 196s now making their first tentative steps into service with West Midlands Railway, this has allowed further Class 170s to be released to EMR, with 170508
and 170509 running from Tyseley to Barrow Hill on November 14
The former Southern Class 170s have been renumbered again to indi cate that they are non standard, as they retain their Dellner couplings instead of the BSI type fitted to the rest of the fleet By late October, 170422 and 170423 had become 170922 and 170923 respectively, with both enter ing service but largely restricted to Robin Hood Line diagrams.
By mid November, 170424 was at Etches Park awaiting renumbering Once modified with BSI couplings, the sets will regain their Class 170/4
identities.
The influx of Class 170s to East Midlands Railway has allowed further Class 156s to be released to North ern 156414 and 156422 left Derby for Crewe on October 16, where the former was detached for repainting at the Arriva Traincare depot, with 156422 continuing on to Newton Heath. Repainted 156414 reached the Manchester depot by November 2 Eleven days later, 156404 and 156418 left Etches Park with 156404 left at Crewe for a new coat of paint.
Former Transport for Wales 170270, 170271 and 170272 pass through Spondon station, working 5E27, the 10 35 Cardiff Canton Sidings to Barrow Hill on October 30, 2022. 170270 and 170272 remained at Etches Park, with 170271 continuing to Barrow Hill for storage ahead of an entry into service with East Midlands Railway. Steve DonaldThe latest variation of JNA box wagon arrived in the UK in early November, with GB Railfreight receiving the first 25 of an order for 50 JNA X from Greenbrier Europe in Poland
F i n a n ce d b y Po r te r b ro o k , t h e wagons are once again finished in dark blue with orange GBRf lettering Early on November 5, 66797 had charge of the 6Z92 03.00 Dollands Moor Wembley, which conveyed 81 70 5932 757 to 781 These were for warded on to Whitemoor Yard behind 66766 two days later
T h e d e l i v e r y o f t h e 2 6 0 Wa s co sa owned FEA flats for Network Rail is nearing a conclusion, with two more deliveries arriving during October
On the 15th, 66735 had charge of the early morning transfer from Dollands Moor to Eastleigh
52/54/56/58
Destined for use with Mendip Rail, the latest batch of VTG owned JNAs was brought north from Dollands Moor to Wembley by 92044 on October 29, this featuring 81 70 5932 581 to 610 The new boxes will help replace the increasingly tired JYAs, which are now more than 30 years old A rake of the latter was removed from Westbur y to Crewe Basford Hall on November 14, 66952 having c h a rge o f O K 3 2 6 8 / 6 9 / 7 3 / 7 4 / 7 6 / 8 0 / 8 1 / 8 5 / 8 6 / 9 0 9 2 / 9 5 a n d O K 3 3 0 1 / 0 4 / 0 5 / 0 8 / 0 9 / 11/13/14/19/21 23
The latest set of MRAs to arrive at Derby for conversion into fixed body JNA Y was delivered behind 37901, w
n s u
o
ance, on October 24 The trans fer from Doncaster Decoy featured 501011/071 and 501151 153.
The latest period of review has been much quieter for namings, with the only names appearing on the Hull Trains Class 802 ‘Paragon’ fleet
As mentioned in the last issue of Railways Illustrated, the Hitachi fleet in use with Hull Trains have all been named following a ‘Name that Train’ competition organised by the East Coast open access operator.
Following on from 802303, which was reported in the last issue, the remaining four Class 802s have now received their names, with the vinyl nameplates applied on each cabside of the trains, featuring silver lettering on a pink background.
The names for 802301/304/305 were all applied without ceremony at B o u n d s G re e n , b u t a s p e c i a l event was held to mark the naming
of 802302 as Jean Bishop (The Bee Lady). Mrs Bishop, who died in 2021 at the age of 99, was a well known charity fundraiser in Hull, dressing up as a bumblebee to raise money for Age UK Hull.
Over a period of 30 years, she raised more than £125,000 for the deserv ing cause
The nameplates on 802302 were unveiled at Hull Paragon station on October 26, witnessed by Mrs Bish op’s daughter, Jennifer Baldwin, and her husband Ken Baldwin, along with new Hull Trains and Lumo managing director Martijn Gilbert
The names carried by four members of the fleet were chosen by a panel of judges, with the fifth (that applied to 802302) chosen by a public vote on social media.
37901 Mirrlees Pioneer and 37418 An Comunn Gaidhealach work 6Z37 from Doncaster to Derby RTC, passing Langholme near Westwoodside on October 24, 2022 The MRA wagons have moved to Derby for conversion to fixed body JNA Y wagons Simon KerryResplendent in its fresh coat of BR blue, 08451 was released from Eastleigh Works at the end of Octo ber, the low loader making the long trek north to Glasgow to return the shunter to Polmadie The 28th found 08887 undertaking the journey back south, this spending the weekend at Allelys’ Studley yard before being deposited at Wembley depot a few days later
Fresh from its overhaul, 08943 was transported from Barrow Hill to Leeds Midland Road around November 11 in order to undergo tyre turning on the depot’s wheel lathe Meanwhile, the unserviceable duo of 08682 and 08905 have been retrieved from stor age at Hope cement works and taken to Shackerstone, their arrival dates being October 28 and November 11 respectively.
repaints saw no less than four Class 67s reliveried, with the headline being the appearance of a new black and red Transport for Wales livery that will eventually match the former Grand Central Mk.4 sets. Now finished in the scheme, which is proving to be somewhat divisive, are 67020 and 67022. Also rolled out of Toton during October but in conventional DB red was 67002, while former Colas exam ple 67027 has received GBRf blue and orange at Eastleigh Works, leaving 67023 still in unbranded Colas livery until its appointment for repainting occurs
Now in Rail Operations Group blue is 37800, this including the compa ny’s complex logo, with the transfor mation taking place at Loram’s Derby workshops (see pages 54 56).
At Barrow Hill, 37607 has joined 37405 in HNRC orange, while now in the Freightliner Genesee & Wyoming style of orange is 90016 after repaint ing at Wolverton
Still in DRS base blue, 66302 now carries large orange GBRf lettering on the bodysides to tide it over until a full repaint can be carried out At the time of writing, none of the other recently transferred Class 66s from DRS to GBRf had received bodyside branding
At Wabtec, Doncaster, 91119 has re ce i v e d a f re s h a p p l i cat i o n o f
The hire of 08757 by RSS has come to an end, with the Rail Express S y ste m s l i v e r i e d s h u n te r b e i n g returned to the Telford Steam Rail way on November 3 in time for the line’s festive specials Its place at Hams Hall was taken the same day by 08460, which was fresh off repairs at Wishaw. Also on the comeback trail is 08738, this too departing Wishaw in early November for test runs at the Chasewater Railway, it having not seen meaningful action all year
Out of action for more than three years, 08613 is another set to return to use after lengthy repairs Early November saw it moved from Wols ingham to Tyseley, again for tyre turning When completed, it should head to Teesport, Middlesbrough, once more.
With engine repairs completed, 08663 was returned to the Avon Valley Rail way from Wishaw on October 31 following the end of its hire to RSS Road transport was then utilised to transfer 08888 to the Gwili Railway,
where it will remain for at least six months while Class 03 D2178 is stopped for an overhaul Also on the move on October 25 was 03022, this returning to the Swindon and Cricklade Railway after a summer break at Midsomer Norton.
DB Cargo: 67002
DRS blue with GBRf logos: 66302 Freightliner orange: 90016
InterCity Swallow, this time employ ing paint rather than a vinyl wrap and looking all the better for it.
The attention to detail has included a d d i n g sta i n l e s s ste e l S wa l l o w emblems to the bodysides and even reinstating the small swallow on the air horn grille
It returned to Neville Hill on Novem ber 9 in the company of 91114, the latter now sporting the LNER version
T h e l a t e s t G W R I E T t o g a i n promotional vinyls is 802106, with
driving trailer 839106 now adorned with colourful branding promoting ‘Lily’s Kitchen Proper Food for Pets’.
Elsewhere, all of the Class 360s are now in East Midlands Railway p u r p l e fo l l o w i n g t h e re l ea s e o f 360110 from Eastleigh Works.
On the coaching stock front, Mk 3 TF 41149 is the latest HST trailer into Midland Pullman colours, while also from the Locomotive Services fleet, Pullman car 310 Pegasus is now in red and cream as part of the chairman’s private train.
GB Railfreight: 67027
HNRC: 37607
LNER Intercity 225: 91114
Rail Operations Group: 37800
Transport for Wales black/red: 67020/22
Units
East Midlands Railway purple: 360110
GWR green with ‘Lily’s Kitchen’ vinyls: 802106
Northern: 156414
S o u t h W e s t e r n R a i l w a y : 450001/32/45/62/86/90
Transport for Wales: 150260/62
Coaches
DRS plain blue: 6001
LNER Intercity 225: 10300, 11229, 1 1 3 0 8 , 1 1 4 0 8 , 1 2 2 0 5 , 1 2 3 2 8 , 12407/81/85, 82211
Locomotive Services red/cream: 310
Midland Pullman: 41149
Network Rail yellow: 6392
ScotRail: 9707, 10404, 11066
Transport for Wales black with ‘Lest we forget’ vinyls: 82200
08757 Eagle on the A449 at Coven heading back to the Telford Steam Railway after finishing its hire period with RSS at Hams Hall freight Terminal, with the road movement pictured on November 3, 2022 The preserved Class 08 was replaced by 08460 at Hams Hall on the same day Kevin Delaney On November 14, 2022, GWR’s 802106 adds a splash of colour as it heads through Whiteball working 1A76, the 06 05 Penzance to London Paddington service The First Class driving vehicle has had distinctive ‘Lily’s Kitchen’ vinyls applied to advertise pet food. Stephen Ginn A B U SY m o n t h f o r l o co m ot i v eFORMER EUROPEAN Passenger Services rescue locomotive 73130 has moved to a new home after being sold to a newly formed group on the Llanelli and Mynydd Mawr Railway
The locomotive has been purchased by 73130 Ltd, a company specifically set up to own, restore and operate it; a consortium of members from the LMMR and Class 73 enthusiasts from further afield The Class 73 was deliv ered to its Cynheidre base on Novem ber 4
73130 was one of two Class 73s purchased by EPS for recovering failed Eurostar Class 373 EMUs or for haul ing the trains over non wired sections of line on the UK side of the Channel Tunnel.
They were based at North Pole Depot, with the Class 73s receiving heavily modified front ends to accommodate the distinctive Scharfenberg coupling equipment required for hauling the Class 373s However, the pair were rendered redundant following the opening of HS1 in 2007.
When it was disposed of by EPS, 73130 was originally destined to be part of the failed RailSchool scheme, which was proposed to be set up at North Woolwich station, with 73130 and 50033 Glorious earmarked for the project After RailSchool failed, it was eventually moved to Finmere station under the Coulsdon Old Vehi cle & Engineering Society The loco motive later moved to Bicester, along
with other items from the COVES collection, but the decision has been taken by COVES to vacate the Bices ter site and dispose of rail vehicles in its collection
LMMR director Mark Thomas said: “The arrival of the Class 73 locomo tive to the Llanelli and Mynydd Mawr Railway is a significant moment in the history of the project
“Such a versatile and economical locomotive will play a vital role in the continuing development of the railway and in achieving the short, medium and long term aims of the project. The LMMR is delighted to be a part of this new organisation, as am I personally ”
Graeme Gleaves, a director of 73130 Ltd, told Railways Illustrated that the locomotive will retain its Scharfen berg couplings which were fitted for its role with EPS, along with the EPS grey livery it currently carries However, the new owning group is investigating the possibility of rein stating vacuum brakes to the locomo tive, as these have previously been removed and vacuum braked loco motives are better suited to most heritage railway operations than air braked only locomotives
Since being at Bicester, 73130 has benefitted from undercover storage and the locomotive is expected to also be stored undercover at its new home It is also hoped that 73130 will regain a set of City of Portsmouth
Shortly after being delivered to Cynheidre on the Llanelli and Mynydd Mawr Railway on November 4, 73130 is shunted at its new home following its transfer from Bicester. The Class 73 is expected to enter service on the LMMR during the 2023 season 73130 Ltd / Mark Thomas
nameplates, as carried by the loco motive during its BR operating days prior to its role with EPS
Mr Gleaves said the group hoped to be able to send the Class 73 on working visits to other heritage lines in the future, but the current prior ity is taking a thorough look through the locomotive to ensure that it can enter service on the LMMR for the 2023 season It is understood to be in generally good condition.
The other former EPS Class 73, 73118, is also located in South Wales at the recently closed Barry Tourist Railway
It is understood that the coupling equipment is being removed from 73118, leaving 73130 to retain the EPS era appearance
73130 made its first static public appearance at its new home base during an open day at Cynheidre on November 26.
THE DELTIC Preser vation Society announced in late October that its main line registered Class 55 Deltic 55009 Alycidon would now not be able to take part in a planned Path finder Tours charter on December 3 after a cracked exhaust silencer was discovered.
The preserved Deltic was returned to serviceable condition earlier this year after undergoing extensive repairs following a major failure while hauling a main line charter in March 2019 All the locomotive’s traction motors and one of its generators were damaged following a power surge.
Since the DPS returned the loco motive to service, it has undergone a programme of intensive testing and running in trials at the Great Central Railway and has also paid working visits to the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway and the Severn Valley Railway, accumulating almost 1800 miles of trouble free running throughout the year
However, it was announced on Octo ber 27 that 55009 would no longer be available to work Pathfinder Tours ‘The North Eastern Christmas Markets’ charter, which the locomotive had
A statement issued by the DPS confirmed that several faults had been discovered on the locomotive, with one of these being a cracked exhaust silencer, which could pose a fire risk.
As such, the locomotive has been w i t h d ra w n f r o m u s e o n s a f e t y grounds to allow the boiler roof section to be removed, so that engi neers can remove the silencer, and clean and repair it
The locomotive has now been returned to the DPS Depot at Barrow Hill following its stay on the Severn Valley Railway, where the repairs will be completed
The December 3 tour is now due to be worked by a WCR diesel locomo tive from Swindon to Burton upon Trent, with the Class 40 Preser va tion Society’s D345 set to replace the Deltic on the Burton upon Trent leg through to Newcastle
The DPS has said it will make a further announcement in the New Year, when there will be a better indi cation of when the locomotive might be ready once again.
The Class 56 previously preserved at Ruddington on the Nottingham Herit age Railway left the site on Novem ber 3, after being sold by its former owners
56097 had been based at Rudding ton since 2002, where it arrived after being purchased from English Welsh and Scottish Railways for preserva tion It returned to service in 2008 following a comprehensive restora tion and rebuild.
As well as regularly operating at its home base, the locomotive also made successful working visits to the East Lancashire Railway and Mid Norfolk Railway to attend diesel events at the heritage lines
However, it was announced earlier this year that the Class 56’s owner had been asked to relocate the loco motive to a new home as the NHR board had decided that 56097 was no longer required by the railway (Rail ways Illustrated issue 232)
T h re e m o n t h s l ate r, a f u r t h e r a n n o u n ce m e n t f ro m t h e o w n e r stated that the locomotive and a large quantity of spare parts were
being offered for sale It is understood that at least one proposed sale of the locomotive fell through 56097’s owner has not stated who has bought the locomotive, or any of the spare parts that have also been sold, but the Railfreight triple grey coal sector liveried 56097 has been delivered to Electro Motive Diesels at Longport, which is where a number of Class 56s are being converted to Class 69s for GB Railfreight.
It is currently unknown if 56097 is at Longport to be added to the Class 69 conversion programme, as a source of spares parts or for another purpose
Some of the spare parts offered for sale at the same time the loco motive was put up for disposal are understood to have been acquired by a number of different groups in the preservation sector.
The loss of 56097 as a preserved locomotive means that 56006 and main line registered 56301 are the only Class 56s now remaining in preservation, with both owned by the Class 56 Group 56006 is based on
Thanks for the memories: With its days as a preserved locomotive seemingly behind it, 56097 stands in the yard at EMD at Longport on November 6, 2022. This photograph was taken from a public place and not on private land. Bill Pizer
the East Lancashire Railway but has seen little use in recent times due to various faults and only a small band of volunteers available to assist with
its maintenance, while 56301 has recently returned to main line use with Colas after a prolonged period out of use
The Western Locomotive Associ ation saw an unexpected boost in the number of days its locomotive D1062 Western Courier was oper ated on the Severn Valley Railway during the 2022 season The loco motive ran on the SVR for a total of
58 days between May and October, accumulating an overall mileage of 3372 throughout the season
Just under 3000 of those miles were in charge of passenger trains on the heritage line the equivalent of six and a half return trips from
London Paddington to Penzance.
The WLA said that it had originally expected D1062 to be in service for about 20 days during the season for running days, diesel events, and driver experience courses, but the additional diesel running was
brought about due to the increasing cost of coal for steam locomotives and also the prolonged heatwave during the summer
That heatwave saw several of the SVR’s diesel locomotives pressed into service in place of steam loco motives due to the increased line side fire risk during the dry spell.
D1062 has spent the whole of the 2022 season carrying replica name and number plates from l o n g s c ra p p e d D 1 0 4 0 W e s t e r n Queen, with the identity applied as part of the SVR’s celebrations of The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June
F o l l o w i n g t h e d e a t h o f T h e Q u e e n o n S e p t e m b e r 8 , t h e
Western retained its temporar y guise for the remainder of the season as a mark of respect
The D1040 Western Queen name and number plates will now be removed with the locomotive reverting to its correct D1062 iden tity and one set is being offered as the first prize in the WLA’s annual raffle, which will take place during 2023
Work has also continued on the long running overhaul of D1013 Western Ranger, with work recently seeing the locomotive receive atten tion to its bodywork.
More information on the WLA can be found at www westernlocomo tives com
The Western Locomotive Association’s D1062 Western Courier, operating for the 2022 season as D1040 Western Queen, has operated for a total of 58 days throughout the year On August 13, 2022, D1040 approaches Highley on the Severn Valley Railway, deputising during the summer heatwave which saw steam locomotives temporarily withdrawn from services on the leading heritage line Kevin DelaneyTHE CLASS 40 Preservation Society has received a huge boost towards its efforts to return 40135 to service following the donation of a Class 56 power unit containing a crankshaft compatible with that fitted to the Class 40’s English Electric 16SVT power unit
The Class 56 power unit which has been recovered from 56312 as part its preparation for conversion to a new Class 69 has been donated to the CFPS by GB Railfreight It was deliv ered to the CFPS’s base at Bury on the East Lancashire Railway on Novem ber 3
The donated power unit will be stripped down during the spring to allow the crankshaft to be removed, which will then be prepared for fitting into 40135’s power unit in place of its damaged crankshaft.
It is now approaching five years since 40135 was last at the head of a train on the ELR The locomotive which had recently been repainted into BR blue was subject to a power unit inspection as part of scheduled maintenance when it was discovered that the crankshaft had a crack on it, with the Class 40 immediately taken
out of service. Although no damage was suffered to the power unit, had the crankshaft failed while the loco motive was in use, it could have potentially caused serious damage to both the engine and locomotive
The CFPS has since then been inves tigating various options and cost ings to get the crankshaft repaired or replaced
CFPS chairman Clive Elverstone told Railways Illustrated: “We had a spare Class 40 crankshaft that came to us when we bought 40106 a few years ago, but it is in fairly poor condition and the costs of getting it back into a condition where it could be installed into 40135 would be considerably more than using the Class 56 crank shaft that has been donated to us and
which is compatible We are extremely grateful to GB Railfreight for its gener ous donation to us, and it will make a real difference in our efforts to get 40135 back into service as soon as possible
“However, we still require further financial support from our members or any other enthusiasts who wish to see 40135 back in use, so if anyone feels they are able to make a dona tion towards repairing our locomo tive, please visit our website to see how you can help.”
Mr Elverstone said that the CFPS is currently finalising details for a five year plan for all three of its Class 40s, which include main line registered D345 and 40106 on the Severn Valley Railway
He also confirmed that the CFPS is in discussions with various tour oper ators regarding main line tours involv ing D345 during 2023, with the society receiving a couple of invitations for one of its locomotives to visit diesel gala events
More information on the CFPS and how you can support its fundraising efforts can be found at www.cfps. co uk
The engine removed from 56312 at Progress Rail’s Electro Motive Diesels at Longport as part of the GB Railfreight Class 69 conversion programme has been donated to the Class 40 Preservation Society. The donor locomotive stands at UK Rail Leasing’s Leicester Depot on June 8, 2020 Rob Reedman The Class 40 Preservation Society has received a donated Class 56 engine, recovered from 56312, and the crankshaft from this engine will be used to replace the damaged one inside preserved 40135. On July 8, 2017, the immaculate BR blue Class 40 heads the 18 25 Heywood to Rawtenstall service, passing Springside Farm near Summerseat on the East Lancashire Railway. Tom McAteeIT ISN’T just the Class 40 Preservation Society which has benefitted from the donation of a Class 56 engine by GB Railfreight the Ivatt Diesel Recrea tion Society has also taken delivery of the power unit and alternator for use in its project to reproduce LMS 10000
The IDRS is recreating the first main line diesel electric locomotive 10000, which was built by the London Midland and Scottish Railway in 1947, with work on the project concen trated on its base at Wirksworth on the Ecclesbourne Valley Railway
Although the IDRS aims to install an English Electric 16SVT power unit into its locomotive, the society sees the Ruston 6 RK RC3 engine as a back up, and the Class 56 power unit is the final development of the origi nal EE 16SVT Mk 1 engine fitted in the original LMS locomotives The society also has the promise of a second EE
16SVT power unit which is situated on a military base, and will also serve as a back up for the locomotive
The newly donated engine and alternator have been recovered from 56104 at Progress Rail’s Elec tro Motive Diesels facility at Long port, where the locomotive is being stripped in preparation for its conver sion to a Class 69
The power unit is understood to be low hours, and a quantity of other spare parts have also been donated by GBRf and Progress Rail to the Ivatt Diesel Recreation Society
The power unit will allow the group to statically test the locomotive’s systems in house at Wirksworth on the EVR, prior to fitting onto the loco motive’s chassis, which was previ ously the chassis of 58022
The locomotive will also be fitted with EM2 bogies and retrofitted with
SHAREHOLDERS OF the Type One Locomotive Company have voted to repaint their Class 31 D5830 from its current experimental golden ochre livery into BR blue as 31463
The locomotive is currently under going a mechanical and bodywork overhaul at the Nottingham Herit age Railway at Ruddington, and once work has been completed it will be repainted before returning to service
The Class 31 has carried the golden ochre colours which were origi nally applied by British Rail to class mate D5579 since just after it was preserved by the T1LC on the neigh bouring Great Central Railway in 1999, and it initially ran carrying the iden tity of the experimental locomotive before returning to its correct iden tity as D5830
Subsequent repaints have seen it retain golden ochre, but a recent vote by shareholders at the compa ny’s annual general meeting has seen the decision taken for the Class 31 to emerge from overhaul in BR blue
The Class 31 moved to the NHR in 2019 and its electric train heat capa bility was reinstated to allow it to heat the Mk 3 coaching stock based on the railway
However, services are still not oper ating on the NHR while bridge repairs are carried out, so volunteers from the T1LC are taking the opportunity to carry out an overhaul on the popu lar Class 31
The T1LC also owns Class 20 D8098 and Class 47 1705 Sparrowhawk, which are both still located at the GCR The owning group is also looking
VTR 200 turbos, Class 20 injectors, and fuel pumps to effectively de rate the power unit
IDRS’s secretary, Andrew Hoseason, said “We are very grateful to GBRf and Progress Rail for donating this alter nator and power unit together with many other parts and spares from 56104. This equipment will save the charity much time and many thou sands of pounds against the final completion cost of our loco
“It is difficult to emphasise what a difference GBRf and Progress Rail have made ”
The IDRS is also mourning soci ety president Stan Fletcher, who has died at the age of 102 Mr Fletcher had been a commissioning engineer on the original 10000 and 10001 and was an active supporter of the project to recreate the iconic diesel locomo tive design
More information on the IDRS project can be found at https:// lms10000 co uk
to attract more volunteers who can assist it with the ongoing mainte nance and operation of its three loco motives at both the NHR and the GCR
Anyone interested in finding out more about getting involved should visit www t1lc co uk for contact details
OCTOBER 16 saw preserved high speed train power cars and Mk 3 trailer coaches in service at two heritage railways for the first time.
The 125 Group’s HST power cars, 43048 and 43089, were in service on the Midland Railway Butterley throughout the weekend of October 15/16, working a train formed of five Mk 3 coaches 42337, 42119, 41120, 41067 and 40741 also belonging to the 125 Group The HST was used on six return services each day.
The running weekend at the MRB was the first time that 43089 had worked a train in preservation, with the power car having not been used during previous running events during 2022 as it was undergoing a mainte nance exam The two former East Midlands Railway power cars were in use throughout
the weekend, with its third power car on the MRB 43159 not in use for the October weekend
On October 16, the short formed HST oper ated by 125 Heritage was also in use during the Colne Valley Railway’s diesel gala For the CVR event, preserved former EMR power cars 43073 and 43082 were both in service, while former First Great Western power car 43071 was on display at Castle Hedingham station
Both the MRB and CVR have enjoyed successful running days with the preserved HSTs, and it is expected that the Nene Valley Railway will also host HST running days during the 2023 season once the two power cars and three Mk 3 trailers belonging to 125 Preservation are delivered to the NVR and Railworld over the coming weeks.
The Class 56 engine and generator recovered from 56104, which has been donated by GB Railfreight to the Ivatt Diesel Recreation Society, arriving at its base at Wirksworth on the Ecclesbourne Valley Railway on November 4 IDRS On June 20, 1987, consecutively numbered 31463 and 31464 stand inside the shed at Old Oak Common between duties 31463 went on to be preserved by the Type One Locomotive Company and following an engine and bodywork overhaul, which is currently being carried out at Ruddington It is expected to re enter service carrying BR blue after more than two decades in golden ochre livery. John Hales Making its passenger service debut on the Midland Railway Butterley, former East Midlands Railway Class 43 HST power car 43089 departs from Swanwick Junction on October 15, 2022, during a running weekend of the 125 Group’s HST, which also featured 43048 and five of the group’s Mk.3 trailer coaches. Rob ReedmanTHE 225 Group is looking to attract n e w m e m b e r s , s u p p o r te r s a n d volunteers to join its team as it looks to the future of the BR built Class 91s and Mk 4 coaching stock fleets
The group was formed two years ago and, in that time, has grown steadily as interest in the InterCity 225 fleet increases, in what is now largely considered to be the twilight operating period for the surviving fleet
The remaining operational Class 91s in use with East Coast Main Line principal operator LNER are now down to 12 locomotives, with a number in store, and nine of the 31 strong fleet have been scrapped over the last two years, with another
currently at CF Booth in Rotherham, awaiting final disposal Additionally, seven Class 91s are currently in store at Doncaster Belmont, awaiting a decision on their future, with scrap ping appearing most likely
In the case of the Mk 4 coaches, there are eight full sets in use with LNER and a number of short formed sets in use with Transport for Wales, which are powered by DB Cargo Class 67s.
The 225 Group is a not for profit private limited company run by a board of directors and supported by a management team, and all those involved in the organisation are volunteers
Work has concentrated on build ing the group into a successful and
Operational LNER: 91101/105 107/109 111/114/119/124/127/130
Stored: 91112/115 118/120/121/125/131
Scrapped: 91102/103/108/113/122/126/128/129/132
Awaiting scrapping: 91104
All operational and stored Class 91s, except 91117 and 91120, are owned by Eversholt Rail.
All stored locomotives are located at Doncaster Belmont Yard, except 91117 and 91120; 91117 and 91120 are owned by Europhoenix, with 91117 located at Barrow Hill and 91120 at Crewe Heritage Centre 91104 is at CF Booth in Rotherham, awaiting scrapping
sustainable business, as it aims to raise its profile and the funds required to support its aims and objectives.
The 225 Group’s director, Chris Curtis, told Ra i l w a y s I l l u s t ra te d : “We are looking for more members to join us and support our efforts to promote the InterCity 225 fleet
“We are especially keen to hear f ro m p e o p l e w h o h a v e ex i st i n g knowledge and experience of rail way engineering and operations to help as we move towards the next phase of our development ”
In less than two years, the 225 Group has gained a membership of 168, with two levels of membership nominally available standard and excel, although the excel member ship is limited in number and is currently fully subscribed Stand ard membership costs £17.50 per year and includes two issues of the group’s in house magazine, LiveWire, along with discounts in the group’s online shop and other member ship benefits It also has an active social media presence and a grow ing archive of relevant information and photographs.
Mr Curtis explained that the natu ral evolution of the group would be to attempt to preser ve a Class 91 and a rake of Mk.4 coaches at some point in the future, with the aim being that the train would be kept in
The 225 Group’s aims and objectives
■ Celebrate and record the history of the InterCity 225, along with its achievements on the East Coast Main Line and the UK railway as a whole.
■ Promote existing InterCity 225 operations
■ Support the longevity of the InterCity 225 beyond main line service and into preservation
operational main line condition He said that the group is keen to engage with the rail industr y to highlight its aims and enter into discussions about possible future operations
It has already been announced that none of the Class 91s will be fitted with the new ECTS signalling equipment required to operate on the ECML from 2027, and this may restrict possible future operation of the fleet on the route in preservation, although they could be used on other electrified routes subject to neces sary clearance testing.
Any readers wanting more infor mation about the group should visit www 225group org uk
A detailed feature on the 225 Group and its plans for the future will appear in a future issue
Class 91s and LNER Azumas share the spotlight at London King’s Cross on November 4, with 801226, 91127, 801213, 91107 Skyfall and 800112 awaiting departure from the terminus As this issue of Railways Illustrated was being prepared, 91107 was one of only two of LNER’s operational fleet to retain the red and grey colours originally applied when Virgin Trains East Coast was the principal operator on the ECML. James GriffithsONE OF the cabs from former GWR 150 celebrity 47500 Great Western has been restored from a stripped out shell into immaculate condition by its new owner.
Following withdrawal by English Welsh and Scottish Railways, the Class 47 was purchased by West Cast Rail ways and returned to service painted in WCR’s maroon livery However, the locomotive was involved in a derail ment and fire on January 23, 2013. With it deemed uneconomic to repair, it was stripped for spares
After component recover y had been completed, the locomotive was scrapped in 2019, but the cabs were offered for sale by WCR, and while one of them was eventually scrapped, the No. 2 cab was purchased by John Andrews, who moved it to his home in the West Midlands, where he set about restoring it
Mr Andrews bought the cab in Februar y 2020 and spent several months sourcing the components and dials required before starting any seri ous work on the cab itself.
The cab was in poor condition, having been extensively stripped and with a large hole cut in the driv ers’ side cabside
It was also missing its floor, cab desk, cab doors and bulkhead wall, and most of the remaining interior panelling was damaged and needed replacing
Restoration of the cab has taken about 17 months, with work being essentially completed towards the end of the summer It now boasts working interior and exterior light ing and a working cab cooker, as well
ABOVE: The preserved No 2 end cab from 47500 in the West Midlands garden of John Andrews, alongside his garden shed, before any serious restoration work on the cab began
All photos: John Andrews
BELOW: The restored interior of the cab from 47500/47770 before the seats were refitted When purchased from West Coast Railways, the cab was in very poor condition and essentially a derelict shell, making its transformation into an attractive showpiece even more remarkable.
ABOVE: A comparison image of the same cab after repainting, with most work on the restoration complete. The cab is now painted in Rail Express Systems red and dark grey as 47770, although at the time of writing, the cabside numbers and cast Crewe cat emblem are still to be applied, as the cab has been covered over for the winter months to protect it from the elements.
Class 108 DMU cars 52044 and 53632 were finally scrapped on site at Lydney Junction on November 8 following the completion of extensive component recovery by the Dean Forest DMU Group Originally based at the Pontypool and Blaenavon Railway, both vehicles had been unserviceable for some 15 years, with their subsequent deterioration making restoration uneconomic
A new arrival at Nemesis Rail’s Burton upon Trent depot by the end of October was a former sandite and de icing 2 EPB, this consisting of motor coaches 65302 and 65304, which were originally in sets 5703 and 5705 Upon preservation in 2009, the set initially went to Finmere, Buckinghamshire, where some restoration was carried out, including a repaint into BR green More recently, the set had been stored at MoD Bicester since early 2020 after the construction of HS2 forced Finmere to be cleared
as an operational horn, fire bell, and AWS sunflower
Many of the dials and components were sourced online, but Mr Andrews expressed his thanks to the staff at WCR and also members of the Brush Type 4 Fund on the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway who helped him considerably with sourcing miss ing parts
Rather than repainting the restored cab into its GWR 150 lined green or
WCR liveries, Mr Andrews has painted it into Rail Express Systems red and dark grey as 47770 an identity the locomotive carried between 1994 and its withdrawal by EWS
Although there are still a small number of jobs that remain outstand ing, it is another example of an excellent restoration of a locomotive cab, joining a growing number of modern traction cabs being restored in private ownership.
The HST cab, which carries the identity of 43049 (HST power car 43049 is now part of the Locomo tive Services Group’s operational fleet), has been on display in the main hall at the Railway Museum in York for the past few years, but has been rendered surplus to requirements by the museum, which is currently preparing for a major redevelopment of the York site
It is expected that the cab will be moved to the Llanelli and Mynydd Mawr Railway, where it will join a number of other cabs belonging to the Cab Yard collection The rest of Mr Benyon’s unrestored cabs are currently in store at a private site in Bridgend
THE BO’NESS and Kinneil Railway will be the place to be for heritage traction enthusiasts to blow off the post Christmas cobwebs, with the Scottish heritage railway holding its last diesel running day of the year on December 29
Although full details of the running day had not been released as this issue of Railways Illustrated was being prepared, it is expected that 37025 Inverness TMD, 37403 Isle of Mull and 47643 will be in use during the day from the railway’s home diesel fleet No visiting locomotives have been announced.
The railway is also holding a diesel hauled ‘Christmas Clansman’ luxury festive themed dining train on Decem ber 16, using either 37403 or 47643. Two dining trains will operate during the day, with an afternoon and evening departure At the time of writing, tables of two had sold out, but three and four seat table bookings were still available.
Former Orient Express and Northern Belle Mk.3a sleeper 10569 Leviathan has been disposed of for scrap from the Severn Valley Railway Used as volunteer accommodation at Bewdley since 2007, it was tripped to Kidderminster on October 12 and removed by road the next day to EMR scrapyard at Kingsbury
Recent road transfers of non passenger Mk 1s have included CCT 94338 from the Embsay Steam Railway to the North Norfolk Railway on October 13, where it is due to be restored next year to serve as a bicycle carrier and replace heavily corroded sister vehicle 94125 Meanwhile, BG 81013 returned to the Severn Valley Railway at the beginning of November after a short loan to the Keighley and Worth Valley
In advance of the festive season, several coaches have gone out on hire to other railways to strengthen Santa Specials and Polar Express workings For example, Mk 1 TSO 5024 was moved from the West Somerset Railway to the South Devon Railway on October 26, while the Cholsey and Wallingford Railway has received TSO 4767 from the Wensleydale Three vehicles from the North Yorkshire Moors Railway were also due at Wallingford during November, including two Gresley coaches
RICHARD BENYON has announced that his bid to acquire the Class 43 HST power car cab from the National Railway Museum has been successful, with the cab preservationist expecting to take delivery of his latest acquisition early in the New Year Cab Yard boosts its collection again as it secures NRM’s 43049 HST power car cab
03179 RUSHDEN: The task of paint ing the engine compartment doors continues, with the first four almost ready for refitting The two smaller doors adjacent to the cab are already finished.
The doors had been stripped to metal, so building up layers of paint on both sides is time consuming and having louvers to contend with adds to the task
Along with the doors, the air tanks from under the running board on the left hand side of the locomotive have now been stripped and are in green primer, awaiting the first undercoat
D8233 BURY: Another major step forward to report, as CRF of Wem has completed the latest order, in the form of the Traction Motor lateral bracket This attaches to the pinion
side of the traction motor, a small link spans the gap between it, and the bracket attached to the bogie frame
The Class 15 Preservation Society did not have a drawing for this part, however, the Class 28 D5705 did, and one of its five brackets was removed and copied for the Class 15 Along with the pins also supplied, the team now has 99% of all of the required components to put the bogies back together
2 0 0 6 3 S H A C K E RSTO N E : T h e engine has had all pistons, liners, cylinder heads, camshafts and turbos installed The valve gear is also being built up.
20087 SHACKERSTONE: The HNRC owned Type 1 went out on a short test run in late October and all was
well A running day with classmate D8110 was cancelled due to a lack of a trained driver Both Class 20s are presently available for purchase from HNRC
25191 BUCKFASTLEIGH: The turbo and intercooler were removed on October 17 for overhaul, while one side of bodywork was given a green lower band top coat
26038 BO’NESS: With all compo nents now back on the power unit, the next jobs are to set the valve clear ances, test fill the cooling system, and inspect the fuel tank for sediment Then it will be a case of adding some oil, and a start up should be possible In late September a number of key jobs were completed: namely, the intake manifold to turbo was refitted,
the regulating air pipe was connected to governor, and the rocker gear gudgeon pin circlips fitted
Also, the exhaust stack was shot blasted and a gasket made, the resid ual oil and cleaning solution was drained from sump, and the coolant system filled and checked for leaks
Finally, the fuel delivery pipe joints at the triple pump were sealed and the triple pump insulation resist ance tested and was passed okay, while the cable terminals identified for repair. There has also been some progress on the bodywork, with some initial rubbing down and filling ready for repainting
26040 WHITROPE: On November 1, the BRCW Type 2 was filled with anti freeze not an easy task to undertake at the remote location with limited
facilities but the task was success fully completed.
31463
RUDDINGTON: October 23 saw continued progress on the Brush Type 2. In the locomotive under the B side radiator, cleaning has begun, with many years of detritus removed
The pistons have had all their rings removed, and the gudgeon pins have also been removed to separate the pistons from the connecting rods The pistons will be crack tested and machined for new rings. The rods will have new big end bolts fitted and new little end bearings, as these were found to be worn The cylinder heads have been pressure tested before they are sent away for overhaul
Roof repairs have restarted, with rotten steelwork being cut out and new bits welded in As reported on
our Heritage News pages, the loco motive will also be repainted and is returning to BR blue as 31463 the first time it has carried this liver y since January 1992
33008 SHACKERSTONE: The rewire of the locomotive is coming to an end and all cables are in place and the termination of cables is scheduled to be finished before Christmas The air intakes are also being refitted
3 3 0 5 3 S H A C K E RSTO N E : T h e No 3 piston liner change has been completed and an overhauled turbo has been fitted, as well as other repair work to the roof and the blower motor
D7076 BURY: Work is progressing well with the overhaul of the MD870 engine The four inlet intercoolers have been installed back onto the engine, along with 16 overhauled decompressor valves
The next step for the engine is to lift and install it back into the locomotive.
In addition to the engine work, the pre heater has also received a clean up and examination in readi ness for recommissioning.
D832 BURY: Onslaught failed prior to its last booked turn of 2022 due to a leaking high pressure hydraulic hose. A replacement has been sourced, installed, and successfully tested As D832 does not currently have an operational steam heat boiler, the locomotive will be winterised, and the team will carry out any mainte nance ready for the 2023 season.
45133 SWANWICK: The team has been freeing brake blocks from the spare bogie, removing old lagging from an exhaust pipe, and cleaning the threads of roof bolts
The spare bogie needs moving to allow the creation of a run round loop in Swanwick Yard The team found some brake cylinders have been wound on at some point and are now seized, and some brute force has freed four of the six that are stuck on The final two will need some more persuasion.
46010 BARROW HILL: The loco motive has been collected by road from Ruddington, but its journey was delayed due to policing issues in escorting the load into Staveley, so the locomotive was parked in a layby for several days It arrived on November 4 and will be undergo ing a number of jobs while at the roundhouse.
D402 BUCKFASTLEIGH: The rebuild of the power unit has taken a massive step forward thanks to the arrival and fitting of new main bearings The bottom halves were oiled and fitted to the bed plate, the crankshaft lifted in, oiled up, and top halves fitted.
The bearing caps were cleaned in a de rusting tank, and they came up well These have been oiled up to prevent surface corrosion. An order has been placed for new nylon lock ing nuts, so for now the caps have been fitted using the old nuts.
The good news is that the crank turned freely; the bare journals have been wrapped up in a specialist tape a grease/oil impregnated bandage
until the team is ready to fit the connecting rods and pistons.
Six of the 16 pistons are to be s c ra p p e d ; t w o h a v e c ra c k s a n d the other four are very badly worn around the crown and these have been returned to Buckfastleigh The old bearing shells are still up for grabs if anyone fancies a souvenir
W i t h t h e b e d p l a t e n o w 9 9 % complete, work has been concen trated on cleaning the crankcase There are large areas of corrosion in the water jacket of the casing. With nowhere to chemically clean, the team has resorted to apprentice power and a rotary wire brush. It’s getting there, with just the last little bits left to do
A coat i n g o f p r i m e r h a s b e e n applied to the casing to improve its appearance for workshop visitors
This is the first time a Class 50 engine casing and bed plate has been split in preservation another first for the Devon Diesel Society Ltd
Once these two halves are back together, the camshafts are going in next, so a start has been made on cleaning the camshaft followers two of which were in very bad condition when the unit was stripped
50027 ROPLEY: On October 15, the Class 50 Alliance Technical Team attended to assist the owners with the power unit removal from 50027.
Lion had suffered an earth fault on its main generator, so the power unit had to be removed to allow the main generator to be removed and sent away for specialist repairs
A 200 tonne crane was needed with a lifting beam. The power unit had to
Our monthly round up of restoration projects around the country, compiled by Pip Dunn
be dead level to allow it to be lifted out of the locomotive, as it causes issues by potentially catching on the engine room components
The lift the first time the engine has been out of the locomotive in more than 30 years went as planned and it was placed on the ground to remove the intercoolers and turbo chargers from the top of the main generator to remove the generator from the engine.
The generator is attached to the power unit by 12 bolts, which have an interference fitment to the flywheel of the power unit. These bolts are very difficult to remove, especially after 30 years, and before this, it is neces sary to also remove the bridge piece between the engine and the main generator
This is especially important to the setting up on the generator align ment to the engine, as it can break the crank if it is done incorrectly Before removing the generator, the crank was checked for deflection and found to be within specification and this will allow for it to be set back up when the generator and engine are rejoined after overhaul
With the bridge piece removed the generator fan casing from the flywheel had to be removed this fan helps cool the generator down when under heavy electrical loads With this removed and all 12 bolts removed, an attempt to remove the generator from the flywheel was
made. This proved to be difficult as the generator would not split The team used a bit of heat to expand the metal on the generator coupling to help release it from the flywheel. This idea worked and the generator was eventually free and then loaded onto a lorry Thanks to Anthony Middleton, Mike Matthews and James Gregory from the Class 50 Alliance for their help in this major job on 50027.
50030 ROWSLEY: The team has been hard at work, refitting fuel and water filler valves, which had been cleaned and painted The cables to the fuel lift pump and alternator have also been reconnected The cables had all been cut off long ago, so each one was extended with a through crimp and a new ring crimp The through crimps were covered with heat shrink sleeving.
An old piece of Kopex flexible conduit was found to replace that which was missing to the fuel pump The original flexible conduit to the alternator was still there The alter nator connection box originally had a piece of conduit leading from it, to which the flexible conduit was secured with a jubilee clip It had gone missing somewhere in the past, so a new piece was made up with some conduit fittings left over from another locomotive
None of the four cables from the radiator fan were marked, so there
is no idea which cables go to which terminals in the connection box A chance meeting with another diesel locomotive technician on site made the connection to an electrical engi neer who may be able to help solve this particular mystery
56097 LONGPORT: The locomotive has been sold and collected from Ruddington It is understood it is now owned by EMD and will be used to donate parts, so its life as a preserved locomotive is over for the time being at least
58048 SHACKERSTONE: The Class 58 is mechanically complete and just engine oil and some injector drain pipes need attention. All the bodyside doors have been stripped of paint and the cabs are getting some attention
73130 CYNHEIDRE: The ex Eurostar Class 73 has a new owner and a new home and was moved by road to the Llanelli and Mynydd Mawr Railway on November 4 from its stay at the Coulsdon Old Vehicle & Engineering Society at Bicester
T h e E D h a s b e e n p u r c h a s e d outright by a new company, 73130 Ltd, which has been set up to own, restore and managing its operation.
73130 Ltd says it will be spend ing the next few months putting the loco through safety checks and carrying out and necessary remedial
work with the hope it can operate at Cynheidre during the 2023 season In the longer term, the team will make the locomotive available for hire to other railways on an occasional basis to appear at both galas and operat ing events
The team has stated its intention for the locomotive to remain in its Euros tar condition, with the Scharfenberg coupling adaptors used hauling Class 373 Eurostar sets, and it will retain the two tone grey Eurostar livery with the cast metal tunnel roundels on the bodyside
The team will be looking at replac ing the C i t y o f Po r t s m o u t h name carried prior to its Eurostar years
The team has continued its investiga tions into the AWS fault, and during testing it was not possible to get the AWS to cancel, so the AWS ‘sunflower’ has been renewed as a precaution A l s o, t h e b e l l wa s fo u n d to b e unplugged, so it was also serviced Further testing failed to reveal any further problems
The other issue on the locomotive was a compressor delay fault during the engine start sequence, but this required further investigation
However, not only was it possible to repair the compressor start delay problem, but the team also identi fied and rectified another potentially bigger problem with the auto engine start sequence.
BELOW: The Class 40 Preservation Society’s D345 works 1Z40, the 07 02 Burton upon Trent to Newcastle Pathfinder Tours ‘The Whistling Geordie’, with the train passing Newton le Willows on November 12, 2022 Pathfinders is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the first charter train to be organised by founder Peter Watts in June 2023
Tom McAtee
June 10 will mark the 50th anniversary since Peter Watts ran his first charter train under the F&W Fielding and Watts banner And to celebrate this mile stone, his company ’ s current incarnation, Pathfinder Tours (its name for the last 35 years!), is hoping to run as near as possible a repeat of that first Gloucester to Pwllheli trip The pioneering train ran with D1644 later 47060 (and then a donor to become 57008) from Gloucester Eastgate to Birmingham New Street, where Class 24s 5079 and 5087 took over Much has changed in those 50 years Gloucester Eastgate closed in Decem ber 1975, the Class 24s were all withdrawn by 1980, and the Cambrian line is now under the control of ERTMS, so an exact repeat of the tour is impossible!
But most of the route that the original ‘Snowdonian’ covered is still open for busi ness, and Richard Szwejkowski, who is now running Pathfinder after Peter stood back to a one day a week role, says the plan is to commemorate this milestone with a trip to the Cambrian terminus It will most likely be a DB Cargo operation, with Class 97/3s west of Shrewsbury and traction to the Midlands as yet unspecified, but it will presumably be a Class 66 or 67
Due to pathing, the train cannot run on June 10, which is a Saturday, and so it is being planned for the day before It is also hoped that another trip to Pwllheli three such trains ran in 2022 and were a success will be run earlier on May 5 and possibly another train later in the year as well Ignoring societies, Pathfinder is now the longest established private charter train promoter, has run over 1000 trains, and covered pretty much every mile of track of the national network Fifty years for one promoter is no small feat, for sure!
Richard is also nailing down the rest for the promoter’s programme for 2023 With two trips along the Heart of Wales line planned, as is a return to Weymouth with Class 33s also in the pipeline, it is also hoped a Class 31 tour may be possible; Penzance has been mooted, providing a second Brush Type 2 to partner 31128 becomes available as hoped
Talking of Penzance, Pathfinder is planning to go there on April 29 for Trevithick Day, plus the usual Mazey Day, which this year is June 24 The possibility of a trip to the South Devon Railway as a tribute to volunteer Nick Perring, who passed away in September, is also being investigated
There will also be regular use of heritage traction The Class 40 Preservation Society’s D345 is planned to be out on March 18 on a trip to East Anglia, and Richard hopes to use the popular Class 40 possibly three or four times in the year Pathfinder is also in discus sion with the Class 50 Alliance over using 50007 Hercules and 50049 Defiance on some trips, and an enthusiast tour to Aberdeen
and Kyle of Lochalsh is in the melting pot for later in the year
Track tours are not forgotten about, either March 4 is a provisional date for a trip to the North West with DB Cargo as operator and traction provider, while another trip to cover rare track in the Midlands is also being investigated but no date has been confirmed for that, nor a TOC or traction
The company has announced its Easter Landcruise to Scotland, and this year DB Cargo will be operating the four day trip, using its Class 67s throughout It starts at Cheltenham on April 14 and runs to Dumbar ton. The Saturday is a trip to Dundee and back, while the Sunday features a run to Fort William before the train returns home on the 17th It certainty appears to be another busy year for Pathfinder as it celebrates its monumental anniversary
The 2023 programme of trains has been announced by Locomotive Services Group for its Midland Pullman HST, Saphos steam hauled charters, and Statesman Rail brands
As Railways Illustrated closed for press, the trains expected to be run by LSG’s InterCity operation using its Mk.3 coaches, which are probably of the most interest to the majority of readers was still being finalised
The Midland Pullman, which relies on a lot of repeat itineraries regarding its destinations,
is a mixture of day trips and three day landcruises
The ‘Settle & Carlisle Pullman’ will run on Saturday, Februar y 4 from Cardiff; on Wednesday, February 22 from Potters Bar; Saturday, June 10 from Gerrards Cross; We d n e s d ay, Ju ly 5 f rom S out h ampton Airport Parkway; Saturday, October 14 from Eastleigh; and, finally, from Paignton on Saturday, October 28 As the name implies, the train’s highlight is a trip over the Settle and Carlisle line
There are four trains to Whitby, starting on March 4 from Aviemore, March 25 from Dundee, November 4 from Ayr, and on November 11 from Potters Bar The ‘English Riviera Pullman’ heads to Paignton on Wednesday, April 12 from Hull, from Chester on Wednesday, June 21 and from Ulverston on Saturday, July 15
The ‘Llandudno Victorian Pullman’ is on Monday, May 1 to serve the annual Victorian and transport fair in the Welsh town, and this train starts from Bournemouth The town is also the destination for the five occasions that the ‘North Wales Coastal Pullman’ runs On Saturday, May 13, the train starts at St Albans, then it runs again on Thursday, June 1 from Berwick upon Tweed The final three days are all Saturdays, with the train on July 1 from Basingstoke, July 22 from Dundee and August 26 from Plymouth
There are two trips to Scarborough for the ‘Yorkshire Coast Pullman’ the first on
Wednesday, May 3 from Maidenhead and again on Saturday, August 12 from Cardiff The ‘Bath Christmas Pullman’ runs twice, on Thursday, November 30 from Ulverston and again a few days later on Monday, December 4 from Newcastle
There are plenty of trains r unning to Scotland, including six outings for the HST running as the ‘Edinburgh Christmas Pull man ’ to take passengers to the Scottish capi tal for the Christmas markets. They start on Saturday, November 18 from Swindon; then three days later on Tuesday, November 21 from Potters Bar; Thursday, November 23 from Watford Junction; Saturday, Decem ber 9 from Oxford; Thursday, December 14 from Cardiff Central; and finally on Tuesday, December 19 from Holyhead
They are preceded by two trips to Aviemore as the ‘Highland Clansman Pullman’, running from Thirsk on Wednesday, April 26 and from Chester on Wednesday, July 19 The ‘Ben Nevis & Lochaber Pullman’ has two dates running to Fort William from Morpeth on Wednesday, May 24 and from Lancaster on Wednesday, June 14 Other West Highland day trips are the two trips to Oban which run as the ‘West Highland Pullman’ on Wednes day, July 26 from Darlington and again on Wednesday, August 16 from Preston.
Finally, there are four Saturday to Monday weekend trips to the Highlands three to Mallaig, one to Kyle of Lochalsh The ‘West Highland Pullman’ runs on March 18 20
ABOVE: Working in place of the unavailable 45118 The Royal Artilleryman, 37688 Great Rocks and D6817 (37521)
haul ‘The Torbay Delight’ charter for Locomotive Services Group’s InterCity division on October 19, 2022
The train heads over the summit at Whiteball, running as 1Z45, the 06 00 York to Paignton InterCity charter, with 47828 on the rear. Stephen Ginn
from Finsbury Park with two nights in Fort William and a Sunday trip to Mallaig and back The same train runs again on September 9 11 from Paignton and then on October 7 9 from Slough The ‘Lord Of The Isles Pullman’ is set for April 1 3 and will run from Paignton for two nights in Inverness, with a Sunday day trip to Kyle Of Lochalsh
The train will b e LSG’s Nanking blue Midland Pullman HST set, typically with power cars 43046/047/055/059 used as they sport the same livery, but 43049 will stand in if required.
Statesman R ail has announced its 2023 programme, which uses LSG as Train Oper ator and traction and rolling stock provider Class 47s from the pool of 47593, 47712, 47805/810/828/853 should be the traction for all trains
The ‘Settle & Carlisle Circular’ will run on Saturday, January 28 from Uttoxeter; Saturday, February 18 from Chester Le Street; Wednes day, April 5 from Hereford; Saturday, April 22 from Worcester Shrub Hill; Wednesday, September 27 from Hull; and on Saturday, October 7 from Loughborough Also visit ing the ‘S&C’ are the ‘Settle to Carlisle & Coastal Statesman’, which will run on two dates Saturday, May 6 from Cardiff and on Saturday, September 16 from Milton Keynes
The ‘Dorset Coast Statesman’ has four dates for its visits to Weymouth Apart from the first, which runs on a Wednesday, the others are all on Saturdays On April 19, the train runs from Crewe, while on May 20 it starts at Whitchurch On June 3 it is from Peterbor ough and finally on July 29 from Shrewsbury.
Several trips to North Wales are planned, with the ‘Llandudno Victorian Statesman’ set for Saturday, April 29 from Didcot Parkway to Llandudno There are also five Wednesday trips to Blaenau Ffestiniog as the ‘Snowdonia Statesman’ They start at Chesterfield on May 10, from Hull on June 7, Kilmarnock on July 12, High Wycombe on September 13, and finally from Stevenage on October 11
The ‘Yorkshire Coast Statesman’ runs on Saturday, May 27 from Ayr to Scarborough and that is the destination for three Wednes days May 31 from Newport, June 28 from Gloucester, and August 9 from Reading The ‘B eamish & Durham Statesman’ has just one date, on Saturday, June 17 from Ely to Durham
There are three trips to Penzance The ‘Cornish Mazey Day Statesman’ is set for Saturday, June 24 from Solihull, while the ‘Cornish Riviera Statesman’ runs twice, on August 5 from Derby and September 23 from Whitchurch both Saturdays The single ‘Sussex Coast Statesman’ is scheduled for Saturday, August 19 from Shrewsbury to Eastbourne
The pre Christmas programme sees Bath Spa as the destination for the three ‘Bath Christmas Statesman’ trains on Saturday, November 25 from Chesterfield, on Wednes day, November 29 from Hull and finally on December 6 from Nor wich There is also the ‘Edinburgh Christmas Statesman’ from Leicester set for Thursday, December 21.
There are three ‘Lord Of The Isles Statesman’ three day trips in the calendar The first is on March 11 13, running from Rugby to Inverness on the Saturday, to Kyle Of Lochalsh
and back on Sunday, and returning home on Monday The same train will run on August 26 28 from Rugby, and for a final time on September 2 4 from Stevenage
A number of provisional dates for the diary have been notified and as I often say, if any of these rumoured trains appeal, block the dates and avoid agreeing to see the in laws just in case!
UK Railtours has two provisional dates March 25 is planned for a trip to freight track in the Bristol and Avon area, with a trip along the Tytherington branch being the highlight This is very much ‘to be confirmed’ as currently there is a 5mph speed restriction on the branch which would made the itinerary unworkable April 8 is when UKR is looking at running a trip to Milford Haven with 50007/049 while [a] Class 50(s) possibly including 50008 Thunderer could be involved in a Branch Line Society main line tour on February 11 March 11 is mooted for a Class 37 hauled charter to Cwmbargoed, top and tailing with a Class 47n and March 18 is also indicated for what could be another Class 50 tour Some or all of these tours may not see the light of day; in fact, it’s inevitable that one or two will fall but the wayside, but at least you have some advance warning!
The planned use of 55009 Alycidon on the Pathfinder trip to Newcastle on December 3 has been shelved as the Deltic Preservation Society feels the loco has too many issues to allow it to work on the main line without unnecessary risk The train will now run with Class 40 D345 from Burton to Newcastle and back, with a West Coast Railways loco working from the train originating station of Swindon Assuming 55009 Alycidon returns to full main line fitness, Pathfinder hopes to use the Deltic when possible in 2023 and, although long after the anniversary, it would still like to run a King’s Cross Edinburgh return trip to replicate the final BR train on January 2, 1982.
Date Route Promoter Operator Traction
1 Leeds Bath MP LSG HST
3 Peterborough Edinburgh MP LSG HST
3 Swindon Newcastle PF DBC 47/57, 40
7 Carnforth Bristol SR LSG 47x2
Lancaster Edinburgh WCR WCR 47x2
Watford Junction Edinburgh MP LSG HST
Holyhead Bath MP LSG HST
St Albans Edinburgh MP LSG HST
Hull Edinburgh SR LSG 47x2
Cardiff Edinburgh MP LSG HST
Burton Paddington BLS SLC 31, 50
Lancaster Hellifield WCR WCR 47x2
King’s Cross Beverley UKR DBC 50x2, 90 January 2023
Finsbury Park Barrow Hill UKR GBRf 56x2, 66
ABOVE: Vintage Trains 47773 works a private charter alongside GWR 4 6 0 steam locomotive 7029 Clun Castle, with the Class 47 working 5Z70, the 08.18 Tyseley Steam Trust to Peterborough train, passing Muston in Leicestershire on November 8, 2022 Paul Clark
GB Railfreight Class 69s have once again found employment on the RHTT. On October 12, 2022, 69004 heads an RHTT towards Seaford the first visit of a Class 69 to the town with 69001 Mayflower at the other end of the train. Steve Lee
On hire from Rail Operations Group/Europhoenix to Direct Rail Services to support the operation of the Class 37s working the RHTTs around York, 37608 Andromeda works an RHTT through Barton le Willows in North Yorkshire on October 25, 2022. The locomotive is carrying a suitable ‘50A York Leaf Busters’ headboard for the occasion Chris Gee
For this issue of Railways Illustrated, we are using our Pictorial pages to bring you a small selection of the hundreds of photographs submitted so far of the 2022 autumn Railhead Treatment Train workings The Direct Rail Services Class 37 workings around the York circuits remain extremely popular with lineside photographers, and on October 30, 2022, 37425 Sir Robert McAlpine/Concrete Bob brings an RHTT into Knaresborough station, with 37716 on the other end of the train. Now the season is well under way, many of the locomotives are getting a healthy coating of grime on their bodywork. Chris Gee
In recent weeks there have been a couple of high profile faux pas on social media from heritage organisations using the wrong terminology when it comes to certain trains
Predictably, there were varied responses, with a lot of enthusiasts suggesting that these organisations should know better
D e v i l ’ s a d v o c a t e s h o u l d t h e y ?
The most high profile was a recent tweet by the National Railway Museum asking people to select which electric locomotive they preferred, and when suggesting a Class 82, they used an image of a Mk 3 Driving Van Trailer clearly, not a locomotive. In among all the expected tweets was one from the museum stating that they had got it wrong, but in a rather casual way
Another tweet I saw was from the East Lancashire Railway advertising an event that included ‘locomotives’ when, in fact, it was the DMU event and was illustrated with a picture of Pacer 144009
Although not a heritage organisation, you can also add Network Rail’s press release into the recent derailment of a freight train near Carlisle, in which it called the cement wagons ‘carriages’ This was picked up by several news outlets and printed verbatim
Now, despite what some may choose to think, accuracy matters to journalists Infor mation has to be correct, but in an increas ingly digital age and the race for ‘clicks’ which in turn helps to drive advertising
revenues that is changing Many will simply rely on what is provided and run with it Does this matter? Well, I think the three recent cases each deser ve a look, because each is different Star ting with Network R ail, the press re l e a s e w a s l at e r c o r re c t e d f o l l ow i n g comments online (mainly on Twitter) that they were indeed wagons and not carriages However, the release was generic and sent to all media outlets. Yes, it should have had the correct details, but the local and national media would only see a train derailed, read there is no injuries, and that would be that For the specialist press, they would know what the vehicles derailed were and report accordingly
As for the ELR, that event, largely, was aimed at the enthusiast market and so should have been worded better However, in an increasingly digital era it’s good to see a herit age railway actually promoting its events, even the more specialist ones such as an DMU gala, rather than posting something on its website and leaving it at that Hopefully it can learn a lesson and move on
And finally, there’s the National Railway Museum The tweet it sent out Yes, it fuels the suggestion from some that it doesn’t care for the enthusiast and is only interested in the activities and promotion of Flying Scotsman, as practically any post of any vehicle seems to attract in the comments section However, the museum is not aimed squarely at the
enthusiast but rather at the general public, the vast majority of whom will not understand what a DVT is, let alone what a Class 82 is, and why Mk 3 DVTs are numbered 821xx and the locomotives are 820xx By going to the museum, they can learn about that if they so wish.
Would I like to see everything going out in the media accurate all the time? Yes
Have I got things wrong on social media and in my magazine writing? Absolutely.
But in these cases, I am not convinced that the reaction the organisations got was fair Before spleens are vented, perhaps it’s worth asking who the social media post is aimed at?
Sp eculation suggests that the Class 58s exported to France, and which are now stored at Alizay, are to be dismantled Initially, it was thought this would be happening as this issue of Railways Illustrated went to press, but now it is suggested that any scrapping of the locomotives will take place next spring
As sure as night follows day, the comments started to appear on Facebook that they should be saved, specifically 58001 and 58050
Instantly it’s worth mentioning that 58050 is in Spain not France and its future is unknown It was originally nominated by the Railway Heritage Committee for saving at the end of its commercial career, due to the
011/013/018/021/026/032 036/038 040/ 042/044/046/049), some of these have been in France for about 18 years and have now been out of traffic for a number of years They have been stored in the open and some canni balised to keep others running Then there is the issue of bringing one, or more, back to the UK Yes, other exported locomotives have returned and are indeed now back on the main line in this country (37716, 37800/884, for example), but that was before Brexit and the new legislation that makes importing goods that much harder How would the Class 58 let’s say 58001 be repatriated? By road or rail? Would it still be in gauge? Where would it go when preserved?
There are many questions to answer, and as I highlighted in this column in Railways Illustrated 228, with 37003, there is a lot more to it than just people commenting that ‘it must be saved’
But it also got me wondering Why are those clamouring to save a certain Class 58 and to be honest, none of those in France are as historic as that last Doncaster built locomotive in Spain when there is already a preser ved Class 58 in this countr y? The Class 58 Locomotive Group saved 58016 but it has been stored at Leicester for a number
of years while funds are raised to restore it and have it hauling trains again
The C58LG has plans for the locomotive and is actively tr ying to garner interest in its return to operational condition but funds are needed to turn those intentions into reality.
It seems to me that those people calling for the French Class 58s to be saved and returned to the UK may be better off channelling their efforts and donations into helping 58016 return to life After all, the equivalent costs of transport and import fees from bringing one of the locomotives back from France alone would make a massive difference to the C58LG and its efforts to restore a Class 58 that is already preserved and sitting in the UK
As I prepare to take over as editor at Railways Illustrated’ s sister title, Rail Express, I have put the feelers out on s o cial media for photographers to get in touch What I was not prepared for was the accusation that I, and indeed the railway press, have favourites That is simply not true, but I have seen these claims on a number of occasions now, so it is worth addressing
T h e i nt e r n e t , an d s o c i a l m e d i a , h a s massively changed how photography is consumed When I first joined RAIL maga zine back in 2005, digital photography was growing, and we still received physical slides
and prints every day That eventually declined and increasingly people would submit digital images via email
Now, more and more people put their pictures on the likes of Flickr, Twitter, and Facebook, rather than actually submitting them to the magazine for consideration. While that may get them instant clicks and likes, it doesn’t earn a reproduction fee, which you do get from having a photograph published in a magazine.
It is a myth that editors only use their favourite photographers Those who appear regularly in the magazines do so because they submit regularly, but if someone sends in a great image of the same working, the editor will always go for the best image regardless of who took it
I see many comments where people think they are not good enough, and when you then look at their work you realise that is simply not true I am sure Andy Coward will be only too happy to receive pictures for Railways Illustrated and, you never know, a trip out may earn you a few quid All for the effort of sending an email
MAIN: Preserved Pacer 144009 on the East Lancashire Railway is definitely a DMU rather than a locomotive, as a social media posting made by the railway erroneously suggested recently On September 17, 2022, 144009 works the 15 43 Ramsbottom to Bury service through Springside Farm between Summerseat and Burrs during the railway’s autumn diesel event Tom McAtee
■ Have you seen a post on social media that you think is worthy of dissection or further discussion in The Social Side?
Here at Railways Illustrated, we are always keen to look into claims made on posts or at the posts themselves If you see something you think would be perfect for inclusion on this page, please email rieditor@mortons.co.uk
MAIN: What a way to travel. The Caledonian Sleeper operates through some of the most stunning scenery available from a train window On April 22, 2022, 73969 and 73971 double head 1Y11, the 04 50 Edinburgh to Fort William Caledonian Sleeper, away from Rannoch. Ian Edmondson
In the second of our review series travelling on the UK sleeper train services, Andy Coward travels to Inverness to catch the Caledonian Sleeper to London and sample the service How does it compare with the GWR Night Riviera reviewed in the last issue?
BELOW: GB
Railfreight provides the traction for the Caledonian Sleeper, with Class 92s working the lengthy trains along the West Coast Main Line On April 29, 2022, 92010 heads through Brock with 5Z96, the 13 00 Polmadie to London Euston empty coaching stock formed of Caledonian Sleeper’s Mk.5 coaching stock.
Steve Sienkiewicz
‘Journey of a night time’ is the tag line used by Caledonian Sleeper to promote its services connecting London with Scotland, with operator Serco aiming to provide a hotel on wheels for its passengers or guests, as the operator prefers to call them
Having experienced the GWR Night Rivi era sleeper service from London Padding ton to Penzance in late August, five weeks later I found myself travelling to Inverness in order to catch the Caledonian Sleeper back to London Euston overnight. How would the service measure up? How does it compare to the GWR offering? Would I get a decent night’s sleep? And, most importantly, does it represent value for money for those passengers sorry, guests using the train?
I absolutely love Scotland, its people, and the stunning scenery, and it is somewhere I always enjoy visiting. Travelling north from Edin burgh towards the Highlands during daylight hours never disappoints In these days when mobile phones, tablets, and laptops usually provide plenty of distractions while travelling by train, the scenic surroundings as I head towards Inverness mean they are put aside the view from the train window was far more enticing than anything on a screen Journeys like these make you realise the outstanding natural beauty surrounding us in the UK, and Scotland has some of the most breathtaking scenery to be seen from a train window
I never travelled on the Caledonian Sleeper before the old Mk 3 coaching stock was replaced and the service is now operated using a fleet of CAF built Mk 5 coaches that entered service in 2019 The service has been operated by Serco since 2015, but its reign in charge will end in June 2023. In early October, it was announced by the Scottish Government that Serco has been given notice that its contract to operate the Caledonian Sleeper will be terminated early after agreement could not be reached in relation to future funding of
the service Who will take over the operation of Caledonian Sleeper beyond next June had not been revealed as this feature was being prepared, but the service provides an impor tant link between London and Scotland and the investment made in the rolling stock rela tively recently means that its future operation would appear to be safe long after Serco has handed back the keys.
However, this article is intended to look at what the train is like from the perspective of a passenger, and what you can expect if you haven’t travelled on it before just like me I wanted to experience the Caledonian Sleeper on as much of a like for like basis as the GWR Night Riviera, so I booked a Classic Room, travelling from Inverness to London Euston overnight on September 26
The Caledonian Sleeper is a bigger operation than the GWR Night Riviera service Although operated by Serco, traction is provided under contract by GB Railfreight A fleet of rebuilt Class 73/9s are used to power the trains north of Edinburgh, and these are often either worked in pairs or piloted by a GBRf Class 66, with the Class 73/9 locomotive also powering the ‘hotel’ services required by the Mk 5 coaches
For the faster sections of the West Coast Main Line, the trains are hauled by a GBRf Class 92 The majority of the Class 92s are painted into the Caledonian Sleeper deep teal livery, as are the Class 73/9s in use on the service, but none of the Class 66s used to pilot some of the services are Again, the Class 92s in use on the sleeper trains have been modified to operate with the Mk 5 coaching stock for powering the on board services.
Each night, four core services are operated two in each direction with one in each direction promoted as the ‘Lowlander’ and the other as the ‘Highlander’ However, saying that there are two dedicated services is slightly
misleading, as when the train reaches Scotland or for those originating in Scotland the trains serve a range of stations and destinations north of the border
The ‘Lowlander’ links London Euston with Edinburgh and Glasgow, with portions of the train being split or coupled at Carstairs Therefore, two C aledonian ‘L owlander’ ser vices leave Glasgow and Edinburgh at 23 40 respectively, with the two trains being coupled at Carstairs before continuing towards London behind a Class 92, while the north bound train leaves London at 22.30 before splitting at Carstairs, with the now separate two portions then heading towards Edinburgh or Glasgow The ‘Highlander’ service operates in a similar way, but there are three portions for this train, one serving Aberdeen, another Fort William and the third at Inverness Rather than Carstairs, these are either coupled or uncou pled at Edinburgh.
The majority of the trains in and out of London are usually formed of 16 Mk 5 coaches, making the Caledonian Sleeper one of the longest passenger trains to operate in the UK
The Caledonian Sleeper has dedicated passen ger lounges available at Dundee, Fort William, Inverness, Leuchers and Perth, and it was also observed that there has been a compound erected on Platform 1 at London Euston for a planned Caledonian Sleeper lounge to be built Sleeper passengers are also able to use other operators’ lounges at London Euston, Aberdeen, Glasgow Central, and Edinburgh Waverley One oddity I found with this offering is that while passengers travelling with a Clas sic Room reservation can use the lounges at Dundee, Leuchers and Perth, they are unable to use the lounges at Fort William and Inver ness I did wonder how rigorously this rule would be enforced at Inverness, as I was booked into a Classic Room, so I decided to see if they would let me in The lounge at
Inverness is in a separate building opposite the railway station, but on the night of my journey it was closed and in darkness, despite the signage indicating it should be open from 6 30pm until the train departure time in the evening There was no notice on the door to indicate that the lounge would not be open on that particular evening This caused some confusion among the other passengers who had booked to travel and a closed passenger lounge is hardly a good first impression, espe cially as there was no information available
Admittedly, this is only a small aspect of the Caledonian Sleeper experience, but these things matter when premium fares are being charged and passengers are expecting a hotel style experience. I understand that the restric tions on the use of lounges for Classic Room passengers are likely to be due to the size of the facility, but I do think that there should be consistency across the board on the facilities available for ticketholders at all the stations which include them
My train was scheduled to depart from Inver ness for London Euston at 20 45, with board ing from Platform 1 available from 8pm until departure The ticket barriers were opened promptly, on the dot of 8pm, and I made the short distance along the platform to be greeted by a welcoming and friendly host, who checked my ticket, enquired if I had travelled on the service before, and then directed me toward the coach where my Classic Room was located.
Just like the GWR train, I could not fault the staff Everyone I encountered was friendly, helpful, and welcoming As with any hotel stay, that welcome goes a long way in forming impressions, and both GWR and the Caledo nian Sleeper appear to have invested well in staff recruitment if the standard of on board hosts was anything to go by Although it was now nearly dark and starting to rain, after depositing my bag in my room, there was still more than half an hour before departure, I decided to see what locomotives would be taking us on the first part of our jour ney towards Edinburgh Waverley Standing at the front of the train was 66724 Drax Power Station and 73966
While I hadn’t travelled behind this particular Class 66 before, the Class 73/9 had originally been ‘JA’ Class 73/0 73005 prior to being converted at Brush Traction for its current role and this particular locomotive was previously preser ved on the Dean Forest Railway, and I had last travelled behind it during a prolonged visit to the Severn Valley Railway in 2008 73005 was one of a number of preserved Class 73s acquired by GBRf for conversion to Class 73/9s, giving these versatile locomotives another lease of life on the main line network After a quick photograph of our two steeds to Edinburgh, it was back into the warmth of the coaching stock to take a closer look at my room and then explore the train ahead of departure
The Caledonian Sleeper has four travelling options for guests: Comfort Seats, Classic Room, Club Room, or Caledonian Double. So, what do each of these options offer?
Unlike GWR, the Caledonian Sleeper Mk 5 stock offers three different cabin options The Classic Room is essentially a similar offering
to the berths available on the Mk 3 stock in use on the Night Riviera The Club Room is much the same as the Classic Room, but also has an en suite toilet and shower available The final type of room is the Caledonian Double, a larger cabin boasting a double bed and an en suite toilet and shower I had opted to stay in a Classic Room to allow for a more direct comparison with the cabin I slept in during my GWR journey just over a month earlier. The Caledonian Doubles and the Club Rooms on the night of my visit were fully booked, so I was unable to view these personally or take any photographs, although images are
available at www sleeper scot or from other online sources
All of the coaches include toilets, with acces sible toilets in some The ones inspected during my journey were clean and well equipped The end of each coach also features digital infor mation screens, providing a range of details about the journey and station facilities
The coaches are finished in a wooden veneer, with good use of lighting throughout, and gangway light fittings also feature the Cale donian Sleeper logo incorporated into them, which looked smart I was also impressed with the push button shoe shining facilities
LEFT: GBRf rebuilt a number of Class 73s into the Class 73/9 sub class and 73966 971 are usually found dedicated to working the Caledonian Sleeper On August 19, 2022, 73970 and 76968 are stabled at Fort William between duties Ian Freestone
LEFT: A powerful study of the Caledonian Sleeper on the move, with 92023 hauling the train along the West Coast Main Line through Old Linslide on August 6, 2022. Noel Slack
1: The corridors in the sleeper coaches are narrow, as they are on the older Mk.3 coaches, and this is mainly due to the restrictions of the UK loading gauge and the area of the coach required for the cabins
Andy Coward
2: The seated accommodation is situated at the end of the train, next to the Club Car. As well as featuring Comfort Seats, the coach also includes space for luggage and bicycle storage Andy Coward
3: The seated coach on the Caledonian Sleeper Each seat has access to a plug socket and USB port, with a footrest and reading light also provided. Above the seats are lockers for passengers to store valuables while they are asleep
Andy Coward
4: The Comfort Seats on the Caledonian Sleeper are finished in blue or orange fabric and can be reclined slightly.
Andy Coward
contained in some of the gangways another nice little touch
For those on a tighter budget, or who are not particularly bothered about sleeping in a cabin, the Caledonian Sleeper offers what it describes as Comfort Seats, the fares for which appear to be relatively competitive Comfort Seats can recline slightly and have footrests Each seat also has plug sockets, USB ports, and reading lights There are overhead lockers to safely store valuables during the journey, and the coach also features plentiful accommodation for luggage and bicycles. Wi Fi is available throughout the train, although in my experi ence its reception was rather patchy in places
My Classic Room featured fixed bunk beds and the room was bright and very clean, with crisp white bedding another great first impres sion. A fixed ladder for the upper bunk is posi tioned midway along the bed, the location of which I found to be a little restrictive when using the lower bunk
The room is smartly decorated with soft orange panelling and tweed wall coverings As with the GWR sleeper, there is a small wash basin located below the window providing hot and cold water Reading comments online, there appears to have been a lot of problems reported of cabins or rooms, as Caledonian Sleeper prefers to call them not having hot water readily available in wash basins and showers, so it was pleasing to find that when I tried the hot water tap, within a few seconds I could feel the water getting warmer and it reached a reasonable temper ature quite quickly
B eneath the sink behind a small plas tic flap should be a pull out table As my t rain was depar t ing f rom Inver ness at 20 45, I thought I would take the opportunity to do a little bit of work before heading to bed, but I opened the flap to pull the table out and found a void where it should have been. Look ing online at video reviews of the train, the pull out tables seemed relatively flimsy and my experience made me wonder just how many
of these have been broken and not repaired or replaced since the stock was introduced three years ago I could have possibly taken my laptop into the Club Car, but with that vehicle in fairly heavy demand for evening diners and people enjoying a social drink, I suspect it may have been a little frowned upon
The cabin was well equipped with plug sock ets and USB ports, and each bed also included small shelves where a mobile phone can be safely stored
The bed itself was comfortable and the mattress felt slightly wider than those in use on the GWR train The mattress was also soft without being too soft, and felt to be of a decent quality
All guests on the train are provided with a sleep kit, containing an eye mask, ear plugs, and a small bar of soap Passengers travel ling in a Club Room or Caledonian Double are also offered additional complimentary toiletries and snacks While these things are nice touches, I found the ear plugs to be inef fective in blocking out external noise which
leads me on to the location of my cabin It was located above one of the bogies and the CAF Mk 5 coaches have received a lot of comments about the quality of the ride
I did wonder how the location of my cabin would affect my ability to sleep, but although I did find myself being jolted in my bed on occasions throughout the journey particularly the first portion of the journey between Inverness and Edinburgh I didn’t find the ride quality to be as bad as I had feared it might be It certainly didn’t stop me drifting off to sleep.
The hub of the train is the Club Car As with the Night Riviera, any passengers with a cabin booking are permitted to use it, although priority access is given to Club Room and Caledonian Double passengers
The area features booths for couples or groups travelling together, as well as a number of single stools alongside one side of the coach on a saw tooth table arrangement
The seating is finished in soft oranges and blue, with tweed headrests and oak veneer panelling
It is well lit, with LED lighting provided above each window, and wall lights featuring the Caledonian Sleeper branding gave a smart appearance to the coach
Unlike the GWR trains, the Caledonian Sleeper does not feature a bar, but it is staffed by a number of friendly hosts who will take your food or drink order and bring it to your table. Payment for any refreshments is by card only, with cash payments not accepted; this is also the same with the GWR service
Unlike the GWR trains, the Club Car does not include any USB ports or plug sockets, apart from by a dedicated area in the coach for use by wheelchair users
The Club Car on the Caledonian Sleeper is used much more for dining than the GWR train, partly due to the journey time being longer, particularly on the ‘Highlander’ services, so I suspect there is less desire or demand for passengers to sit in the Club Car doing work on a laptop or browsing the internet
Although I had eaten before starting my journey, so didn’t require an evening meal on the train, it was pleasing to see plenty of my fellow passengers taking advantage of the on train catering The Club Car did a reason ably healthy trade throughout the evening, before people started to return to their cabins and turn in for the night
While I did not partake in a meal, choosing to enjoy a couple of drinks instead, the food coming out of the kitchen looked good and was presented well From the number of empty or near empty plates being taken back later in the evening, it would appear that the food on offer was a hit
The costs of evening meals and drinks is not included in the ticket price and these are purchased from the on board hosts The menu for the ‘Highlander’ featured a choice of three starters, six main courses, and three desserts The cheapest starter was red lentil soup at £5.50, with a Strathdon blue cheese linguine at £8 95, and Scottish smoked salmon priced £9 95 The mains ranged in priced from £9 50 to £12 95, with the staple Scottish classic of MacSween’s haggis, neeps and tatties priced
at £10 50 The desserts ranged in price from £6 75 for creamed rice pudding through to £10 50 for a Scottish cheeseboard
For passengers on the ‘Lowlander’ service, the main food menu consists of two starters, priced £7 50 for king prawns in filo or £8 75 for mini sausages and haggis tweeds, three main courses also featured in the ‘Highlander’ menu and priced to match, and two desserts that are also the same as the other train
Sandwiches, crisps, and sweet and savoury snacks are also available on both services, with a wide range of wines, whisky and spirits, along with mixers and alcoholic and non alcoholic drinks
In the morning, passengers are offered a complimentary hot drink or orange or apple juice, while food items offered for breakfast are a Scottish porridge pot, bacon roll, Lorne sausage roll, granola yoghurt, or a vegan break fast pot Whereas the cost of the breakfast food items is included in the price of the Club Room and Caledonian Double, passengers travelling in a Classic Room must purchase these on top of the booking
Like GWR, the price of the cabins depends on how far in advance you book your ticket, with it becoming more expensive the nearer you book to the date of travel, although the price of cabin reservations on Caledonian Sleeper is generally far higher than those charged by GWR
I booked my room for £180, two months before I was due to travel. This was more
LEFT: The Classic Room cabin, showing the twin bunks, ladder, and sink beneath the window Classic Rooms also include an inter connecting door for when families are staying on the train together.
The cabins are bright and clean, with comfortable mattresses and bedding provided Andy Coward
BELOW: The sink beneath the window provides hot and cold water for hand washing and brushing teeth, with a hand towel provided and a small waste bin There should also be a pull out table beneath the sink, hidden behind a small white flap. However, the table in Andy’s room had obviously been broken, and there was blank space where it should have been Andy Coward
1: A general overview of the Club Car, showing the seating booths and single stool seating The coach is the social hub of the train and the catering seemed to be going down well with those passengers who sampled it.
Andy Coward
2: Some of the light fittings feature the Caledonian Sleeper branding, which looks smart and gives an element of corporate identity to the train
Andy Coward
3: One of the seating booths provided in the Club Car. Use of the coach is available to passengers with a cabin booking, but priority use is given to passengers with a Club Room or Caledonian Double There is no bar counter, with table service provided by the on board hosts, who were all friendly and provided a very slick and efficient service Andy Coward
4: The CAF built Mk 5 coaches have modern sliding doors, rather than the slam doors still in use on the GWR Night Riviera.
On the vestibule ends of each coach are electronic information screens. This picture was taken in 2019, during testing of the new coaching stock, when the train made a rare appearance at London King’s Cross Noel Slack
expensive than the GWR service, which cost £114 60 for my fare and cabin reservation, but to be fair, the journey from Inverness to London Euston did cover a much greater distance of travel and I was on board the Cale donian Sleeper service for almost 12 hours
My fare for a Classic Room was the cheap est I noticed when booking and generally to secure a cabin at this rate you need to book well in advance of travel, with a rate of £230 or more being commonly charged for this style of room Club Room starting prices at the time of writing were £215 but, again, it is often only possible to secure a cabin at this rate if booking quite far in advance of the date you intend to travel.
Caledonian Double rooms are more limited in number and despite a price tag of £405, research on the Caledonian Sleeper website would indicate that the operator has no prob lem selling these cabins at this price, as they are often sold out well in advance The fare charged also appears to be consistent, no matter when you are travelling
Comfort Seat tickets seem to be generally consistently charged at either £55 or £75, again depending on how far in advance the ticket is booked These fares compare more
favourably than GWR, charging £74 60 for its seated passengers Like GWR, Caledonian Sleeper seated passengers are not permitted to use station or on train lounge facilities
Although I only tried the seats for a short period of time, they did appear to be more comfortable than those in use on the GWR trains and reclined slightly But while the fare to travel in the seated coach is much more affordable than a cabin reservation, I’m not sure I would have wanted to tr y my luck at getting a good night’s sleep in the seated accommodation on either service.
One slight anomaly I experienced in the run up to my trip was surrounding the options for changing the date of travel, if you are unable to travel on the booked date due to the indus trial action currently ongoing throughout the industry.
The night of my journey was set for Septem ber 26, which I had booked in July This date was later announced as a TSSA strike involving staff from a number of operators, as well as Network Rail While the Caledonian Sleeper was not involved in the TSSA dispute, when I rang its customer service centre, there was little advice available on the alternative
arrangements on offer to passengers affected by these disputes
The option I was given was that I could cancel my booking, get a refund on my fare, and re book to travel on a different night However, when I checked, the cheapest fares for a comparable room was £230 and this price was consistent for almost two months on the Caledonian Sleeper website before drop ping back to the £180 fare I had originally paid So, potentially, I would have been penalised by £50 for having to change through no fault of my own or I would have had to wait until the end of November or into December before making a trip at the same price
On the other hand, the Caledonian Sleeper staff were not involved in the TSSA dispute and their train was scheduled to run, so in many ways my situation was not Caledonian Sleeper’s problem and their train would have probably run on the date anyway, with or with out me on board My concerns were more to do with my ability to get to Inverness on September 26 in time to catch the train back later in the evening
As it was, following the death of The Queen on September 8, the rail strikes scheduled to take place in September were all called off by the respective unions and I was able to travel
as originally planned (thankfully, I had not cancelled my booking at that point)
I wonder just how many passengers might have been affected by strike action and then forced to pay a higher fare because the train hasn’t been able to run on the date of the orig inal booking, or because passengers intending to travel hadn’t been able to get to the station because connecting services weren’t running?
In these circumstances, I think there should be more flexibility from Caledonian Sleeper in exchanging bookings to other dates within a reasonable timeframe and honouring the prices originally charged It is good that they allow a full refund of the fare, but if my train had been cancelled and I had had to re book at a much higher fare, it would have certainly soured my experience of using the service It did not seem to be possible to swap my book ing, with cancellation and re book the only option available
I enjoyed travelling on both sleeper services and it was interesting to compare the trains from a passenger ’ s perspective Both operated to the scheduled timetable, departing exactly on time, with both reaching their destinations slightly ahead of schedule
In terms of the cabins, while I think I actually got a better quality of sleep on the Caledonian Sleeper service and the bed felt a little bit wider than those in the GWR train, I preferred the overall feel of cabins on the GWR service.
The GWR refresh of the Mk 3 sleeper stock in 2019 was clearly well done and has created a quality feel to the cabins that defies their age, with them feeling modern and well designed,
despite having now been in service for more than four decades
The Caledonian Sleeper cabins feel a little more austere in their appearance, and while it is good that there are different styles of cabins available for people’s budgets and tastes, the cabins do not feel to be as well designed as the GWR offering, despite being much more modern
On the GWR cabins, the upper bunk can be stowed away and locked out of use with the ladder folded into the cabin bulkhead out of sight, but on the Mk 5 stock the upper bunk is fixed into position and the ladder is also fixed and positioned awkwardly in the centre of the beds, making it restrictive to get in and out of the lower bunk
As mentioned, the pull out table beneath the sink on the Mk.5 stock was also missing in my cabin A much better solution would have been to have had a liftable cover over the sink, which could then have doubled as a table when the sink was not in use This arrangement works well on the older Mk 3 GWR stock
Clearly, there are restrictions on what can be done with the limited space available on a standard gauge railway coach, but if a coach from the 1970s can be made to feel more styl ish than a vehicle that is less than five years old, so much more could have been done at the design stage to create the hotel feel that the Caledonian Sleeper is trying to achieve
I also thought that charging anything between £3.75 and £4.95 for breakfast items on Caledonian Sleeper for Comfort Seat and Classic Room passengers was slightly stingy considering the fares being charged for trav elling on the train.
I realise these items are offered free of charge to Club Room and Caledonian Double passengers who are paying a higher premium to travel, but it’s the small things that make a difference in a passenger ’ s mind and the little complimentary touches offered by GWR that were not offered by Caledonian Sleeper were noticed
One aspect of the two services that I couldn’t fault at all is the on board staff Both trains were operated by a great team who were without exception friendly, helpful, and a credit to the services they were operating It is clear that their roles are more akin to the hospitality industry in terms of the expec tations of passengers and it is pleasing that everyone I encountered were highly profes sional and welcoming
I really enjoyed my sleeper experience on both trips, but if forced to make a choice between the two, I think overall the GWR Night Riviera was my favourite, mainly due to the overall experience from start to finish I think the Mk 3 cabin refurbishment has been a major success and the overall feel of the train is modern and contemporary, while the fares represent great value for money and included some complimentary items such as a breakfast roll that was available for an additional charge on the more expensive Caledonian Sleeper service
Having now travelled on both sleeper trains, I wouldn’t hesitate to travel on either again and would happily encourage any read ers who have not made one of these trips to give it a try It really is a rail journey like no other available in the UK I just don’t know why it took me so long to do it in the first place.
ABOVE: Journey’s end The Caledonian Sleeper ‘Highlander’ service has safely arrived at London Euston on the morning of September 27, 2022. The train was worked from Edinburgh to London by 92033 Railway Heritage Trust Andy Coward
ABOVE: 37800 emerges from Loram UK’s Derby facility following completion of its rebranding into Rail Operations Group blue livery on November
10, 2022 The Europhoenix owned locomotive has lost its former Cassiopeia nameplates and is due to be renamed over the next few weeks
Courtesy Europhoenix
Rescued 10 years ago within days of being scrapped, 37800 is back in the news after becoming the first Class 37 to be outshopped in Rail Operations Group’s distinctive blue livery, giving the locomotive which turns 60 in May a contemporary, modern look Andy Coward spoke to Glenn Edwards from Europhoenix about its remarkable survival.
Newly repainted into Rail Operations Group’s distinctive blue livery, 37800 is set to become even more popular with lineside photographers than it already is
The locomotive, which is owned by Euro phoenix and on long term hire to ROG, is a regular performer on the main line, particu larly in use on stock transfers, but the fact that it is still performing almost 60 years after it first entered ser vice with British Rail is something of a miracle in itself 37800 is a true survivor that has dodged an appointment with the scrapman on more than one occasion
Originally numbered D6843, the English Electric Type 3 locomotive emerged from Vulcan Foundr y in Newton le Willows at the end of May 1963 A total of 309 of the design were built at either Vulcan Foundry or Robert Stephenson and Hawthorns
The locomotive’s first near miss came in Januar y 1975, when 37143 (as it was by then numbered under the British Rail TOPS renumbering scheme) ran through a set of catch points and riding through a stop block It ended up lying at the bottom of an
embankment alongside the River Ebbw, and this precarious position in meant that recovery proved quite difficult, with it not being recovered from its resting place for just over six months. Thankfully, it was repaired, despite suffering serious damage in the accident
37143 was conver te d to a Class 37/7 ‘Heav y weight’ at Crewe Works in 1986, emerging renumbered as 37800 in Septem ber 1986
Following privatisation, 37800 was trans ferred to English Welsh and Scottish Railway and was subsequently chosen to work ballast ser vices on a contract in France between August 1999 and July 2000, before return ing to UK after the contract was completed However, the locomotive’s foreign exploits were not quite finished, as it was chosen to be exported to Spain in August 2001 for working infrastructure trains in connection with the construction of a new railway line being built between Madrid and Barcelona
For this work the locomotives involved in the contract were painted into GIF liver y, which was similar in design to the then stand ard EWS livery but with the maroon colour on the EWS scheme replaced with a light
blue colour and the gold mid bodyside stripe replaced with a darker blue stripe, with large GIF lettering on the bodywork in place of the EWS moniker
It worked services for GIF in Spain along side a number of Class 37s, including 37884, with which it has been linked ever since Eight EWS Class 58s were also used on the Span ish contract, also painted into the same GIF blue livery 37800 was renumbered L33 and it remained in Spain until it and five classmates were returned to the UK in 2007 With no work for the locomotives, 37800 remained in store until it was withdrawn and offered for disposal by its owner
The six former GIF Class 37 were eventually put up for sale by EWS, with four bought by Direct Rail Ser vices, while 37800 was acquired by European Metal Recycling at Kingsbury, along with 37884, for scrapping The two locomotives were delivered to Kings bury in late 2012 and placed straight into the scrap line, ready to be dismantled almost immediately Eu ropho enix had pre v iously enjoye d much success in reactivating redundant
electric locomotives for export to Bulgaria and Hungary but managing director Glenn Edwards had been keeping an eye on the UK spot hire market and noticed a gap in the market for a fleet of spot hire Type 3 loco motives that could be utilised for stock moves and transfers The Class 37 design is ideal for this type of work, as the locomotives have wide route availability, and the engine and mechanical components are still relatively common
Glenn went to Kingsbur y to inspect the two locomotives, which were covered in graf fiti from their time in storage They were in fairly poor condition, although 37884 looked slightly better and more complete than its classmate, but Glenn was not phased with rebuilding them and believed that his busi ness could benefit from having a fleet of Class 37s
After a deal was done with EMR on January 4, 2013, Glenn initially had the pair moved to Boden Rail Engineering Ltd’s former base at Washwood Heath, where work began on reactivating 37884. Work on 37800 would not be carried out at Washwood Heath, however, with the locomotive subsequently moving to Barrow Hill for continued storage when the site at Washwood Heath was closed in advance of the start of HS2 construction work Another move to UK Rail Leasing’s Leicester facility saw work on returning it to main line use finally begin during 2015
Europhoenix has invested significant six fig ure sums in the overhaul of each of its loco motives, with 37800 being no exception
However, Glenn says that the revival of the locomotive was almost stopped midway through its overhaul due to the poor condi tion it was found to be in, with serious consid eration given to stripping it of components and scrapping the remainder.
“It came close to being scrapped, as when we started stripping it down for overhaul, we real ised that it was in even worse condition than we had originally thought,” Glenn explained
“We knew it needed a lot of work, but it was far worse than 37884 had been. However, after careful consideration we decided to continue with it and the investment in overhauling it at the time has proved its worth
“During its rebuild, 37800 received newly overhauled b ogies, t he p ower unit was completely rebuilt, and the locomotive had a lot of electrical and mechanical repairs carried out as part of the overhaul Addi tionally, the cabs, which were both in really bad condition, required completely refitting
“Due to the time since it had last worked on the UK main line, it also needed all of the mandator y safety equipment, such as TPWS (Train Protec tion and War ning System), OTMR (On Train Monitoring Recorders) and GSM R (Global System for
Mobile Communications Railway) required for operating over Network Rail, as well as extensive bodywork repairs and a repaint into our Europhoenix grey and red livery”
Following the completion of works, 37800 finally returned to main line use in May 2016, almost three and a half years after it had been saved from scrapping by Europhoenix, only to almost face the scrap man again at the midway point
Europho enix subs equent ly als o b oug ht 37510, 37601/608/611 f rom Direct R ail Ser vices for reactivation to main line use, with the locomotives all now on long term hire to ROG alongside 37800 and 37884.
Former preserved locomotives 37146/188, 37207 and 37901 were bought from Colas Rail Freight after their proposed main line over hauls were cancelled and they were offered for disposal The company also bought former
LEFT: Covered in graffiti from its time in store, 37800 is hauled through Alfreton station by 56303 and 56104 on March 15, 2016, en route from Barrow Hill to Leicester, for its overhaul to begin Ironically, the Class 37 has outlived the Class 56s hauling it, with 56104 now part of GB Railfreight’s Class 69 conversion programme and 56303 in store awaiting a decision on its future.
RIGHT: A side on profile of 37800 at Derby on November 10, 2022, following its unveiling in Rail Operations Group’s distinctive blue livery, applied at Loram UK in Derby
The locomotive has been fully repainted, with the graphics on the bodyside applied with a vinyl wrap
Courtesy Europhoenix
DB Schenker liveried 37670 as a spares donor locomotive, scrapping the remains
Europhoenix eventually also stripped 37146 and 37188 for reusable components before they too were scrapped, while 37207 was sold in the autumn of 2021 for conversion into a battery powered locomotive
The company has recently returned Mirr lees engine fitted 37901 to main line use after an extensive overhaul, and although the locomotive has suffered from a number of niggling faults since returning to action, Glenn says that confidence in operating it is growing, and he is hopeful that it will soon be as reliable as the other 37s owned by his firm
Both 37800 and 37884 are fitted with tight lock couplers, which means they are particu larly useful for hauling redundant EMUs to scrap Glenn said that it is rather ironic that the two locomotives which came perilously close to being scrapped themselves are now mainly employed taking other items of rolling stock for an appointment with the scrap man
In line with Europhoenix’s policy of naming its locomotives after star constellations, 37800 became Cassiopeia on Januar y 23, 2018, receiving the nameplates that were once carried by Electric Traction Ltd’s 86702 (which has since been exported to Bulgaria)
Glenn explained that the new look 37800 has had its nameplates removed, as it is due to receive a new name over the coming weeks although he remained tight lipped as to what its new name would be
Glenn explained that Loram now carries out all scheduled maintenance work on the Europhoenix/ROG fleet at its Derby base, but heavy Level 5 type overhauls are still being done at Leicester
The reason 37800 was selected for receiving a new liver y was simply because it was in need of repainting
“It was the next in line for repainting as its paintwork was in fairly poor condition,” explained Glenn
in carrying ROG colours, or whether it will remain unique carrying the livery.”
The new look 37800 worked its first train in its new livery on a test run from Derby to Bicester on November 11, and it is sure to attract a lot of attention from lineside photographers and enthusiasts
BELOW: 37800’s first trip following its repaint and engine repairs was a test run from Derby to Bicester, appropriately alongside classmate 37884, with the pair passing through Derby station on the morning of November 11, 2022
Steve Donald
Since returning to main line use in 2016, 37800 has proved to be a generally reliable locomotive, although Glenn said that Euro phoenix has a policy of continual investment in its fleet
O ver the inter vening years, 37800 has received another overhauled power unit (recovered from 37503) after its original engine suffered crankcase damage, and it has also had its bogies re tyred twice
The engine has recently had two replace ment overhauled cylinders fitted as part of scheduled maintenance carried out by Loram UK while the locomotive has been stopped at Derby for repainting.
“All of our other locomotives are painted into Europhoenix livery, but with Rail Opera tions Group branding on the bodywork (with the exception of 37901 Mirrlees Pioneer, which carries Europhoenix branding), but ROG asked about the possibility of painting one of our locomotives into their livery and we were happy to agree
“The work has been done by our partners at Loram UK in Derby, with the main bodyside livery applied using a vinyl wrap, although the rest of the locomotive has also been fully repainted
“I knew that the ROG livery looked good on the Class 47s and 57s that carried it previ ously, but I think it actually suits the body profile of the Class 37 even more than it did on the other locomotives
“At the moment, none of our other loco motives need repainting and I don’t know at this stage if any others will follow 37800
Europhoenix has no immediate plans to dispense with its Class 37 fleet and it seems that 37800’s medium term future with the operator is assured.
Glenn added: “They won’t last forever, but providing the locomotive doesn’t suffer a catastrophic failure, then it will remain in use with ROG for at least four more years and probably longer
“B eing fitted with tightlock couplings also means that it is particularly useful for stock moves and as a company we invested more than £100,000 in equipping it with the tightlock couplers and associated translator kit ”
For a locomotive that has come close to the fate of being scrapped on a number of occa sions, it seems that 37800 will continue to ply the rail network for a long time to come
➔ Railways Illustrated is grateful to Glenn Edwards from Europhoenix for his assistance with this feature
remain in traffic although whether the handful of survivors see out the end of the year remains to be seen
The Class 456s were built by British Rail Engineering Ltd at York in 1990/91 and were used by BR’s Network SouthEast business Following privatisation, the trains were oper ated by Connex, before passing to Southern when the Go Ahead Group won the South Central contract in 2000 The fleet was trans ferred to South West Trains (now SWR) in 2013 and refurbished shortly after being taken on by SWT
This year has featured many highlights around the railways, both on the national network and at our herit age lines
In this issue, we take a look at six stories that have featured prominently on our pages, with this first part focussing on those events which came to our attention between January and June
Six months Six stories Six pictures
Only two weeks after we welcomed in the New Year, it was time to say goodbye to a fleet of EMUs as South Western Railway retired its 24 strong fleet of two car Class 456s
The Class 456s were the first casualty of the year, but 2022 also saw the end of Southern’s fleet of Class 455/8s and Greater Anglia’s remaining Class 317 EMUs As this article was being prepared, the final Class 315s
It was planned that the Class 456s would remain in use with SWR until the new Class 701 Aventra EMU fleet was introduced, but its introduction into traffic has been long delayed (at the time of writing, the Class 701s have still not entered service).
As such, when it was announced that SWR would be retaining 12 Class 707 EMUs that are due to be transferred to Southeastern, the decision was taken to remove the Class 456s from traffic
The last four sets in use with SWR were 456009/011/013/021, which all worked for the final time on January 15, working two diagrams in and around London Waterloo
2022 has been another incredibly busy year for our railway network, with a number of notable events and occurrences taking place Andy Coward takes a look back in time at six significant developments that made the headlines in Railways Illustrated during January to June.
456013 and 456021 were coupled to 455725 to work one diagram throughout the day, while 456009 and 456011 were joined by 455871 on another diagram
The 23 32 from Dorking to Wimbledon was the final passenger service to be worked by the EMUs, worked by 456009/011 and 455871, bringing down the curtain of their three decade long working lives
The redundant EMUs were quickly moved to Long Marston for storage, but with no prosp e c t of f ur t her work wit h anot her operator, they were quickly dispatched for scrapping and all of them have now been broken up.
Another fleet to disappear during the first half of 2022 was Southern’s fleet of 46 Class 455/8s, numbered 455801 846, which worked their last services on May 14, just ahead of the summer timetable change
A final day railtour on May 14 was organ ised by Southern in conjunction with the Branch Line Society, with the well patronised ‘The Metro Marauder’ raising thousands of pounds for charity thanks to on board raffles
This charter took 455835 and 455841 on a tour of the Southern network and beyond, with a final visit to Brighton, along with rare
appearances at Charing Cross, Blackfriars and Sevenoaks among the highlights
Unusually for a fleet that was due to be withdrawn from service imminently, a further 21 Class 455/8s were in normal traffic on the last day Final workings for the class included 455804 and 455818 forming 2B54, the 23 40 Victoria Sutton via Norbury, and a solo 455843 making up 2U76, the 00 25 Victoria Norwood Junction
As with the Class 456s, the dispatch of the redundant Class 455/8 units was swift, with scrapping of the fleet beginning almost immediately and all 46 units were scrapped within four months of their demise.
SWR still operates its fleet of Class 455s, but these units are on borrowed time and are expected to be withdrawn once the Class 701s are finally introduced into traffic.
April 26 saw the final rail movement of another EMU design that was rendered redundant in 2021, with the movement of 365506, which departed Crewe B elmont Down Yard behind Rail Operations Group’s 37601 Perseus and 37608 Andromeda bound for Sims Metals at Newport Docks, where the Class 365 was to be scrapped
A number of barrier vehicles were included
in the consist to provide brake force for the train
S crapping of the Class 365s b egan in September 2021, when 365501 and 365511 were sent to CF Booth in Rotherham, and movements of the remaining stored units continued for seven months after no operator was found for the fleet
Unlike the Class 455/8s and Class 456s, three Class 365 vehicles (65917 and 72287 from 365524, along with 65974 from 365540) have been saved for preservation on the East Kent Railway
The Avanti West Coast Class 390 Pendolino internal refurbishment aims to breathe new life into the West Coast Main Line electric train fleet, much of which has now been in traffic for 20 years The refurbishment of the trains was one of the franchise commitments made by the FirstGroup/Trenitalia partner ship when it took over the West Coast fran chise from previous incumbent Virgin Trains Work on the first member of the fleet to be refurbished as part of the £117 million project 390125 had actually commenced by Alstom at Widnes in July 2021, with the unit finally returning to service on April 25, working the 05 05 AWC Manchester Picca dilly to London Euston service, before also visiting Liverpool Lime Street later in the day
The project, which is being financed by Angel Trains, will see the entire 56 strong AWC Class 390 fleet admitted to Widnes for a refurbishment aimed at making the interiors of the trains feel like a brand new fleet. It is anticipated that the last refurbished train will emerge during 2024, with the 11 coach Class 390/1 fleet refurbished first, followed by the nine coach Class 390/0s
At the time of writing, the project has seen more than a quarter of the fleet now completed and back in traffic, with work accelerated to allow a full 11 coach train to be refurbished by Alstom in less than a fortnight
The refurbishment of the 11 coach sets has seen capacity increased for more seating. Additional luggage space has been provided throughout the standard class accommoda tion, with the loss of seating space created by this compensated for through the conversion of the previously first class coach G into a standard class carriage
Each refurbished train now has 508 stand ard class seats, with the seating used being the same design as those seats fitted in the Lumo Class 803 fleet The remaining 99 seats are split between first class and standard
MAIN: Gone but not forgotten: Now consigned to the history books following their withdrawal by South Western Railway in January, Class 456 EMU 456008, along with another Class 456 unit and a Class 455, pass Norbury Park, south of Leatherhead with a service for Dorking on September 27, 2021. James Stearn
BELOW: The internal refurbishment of the Avanti West Coast Class 390 Pendolino fleet has transformed the 20 year old trains to give them the feel of a brand new train This is the interior of a refurbished standard class coach on 390125, showing the new seating and configuration. At the time of writing, a quarter of Avanti’s Class 390 fleet has now passed through Alstom’s facility at Widnes for internal refurbishment to be carried out Avanti West Coast
BELOW: LNER’s essential maintenance programme at Wabtec Doncaster has seen the Class 91 and Mk 4 fleet receive a new livery inspired from the original InterCity 225 paint scheme carried by the fleet when delivered to BR, but with an LNER twist and modifications to comply with modern accessibility considerations On November 4, 2022, 91130 Lord Mayor of Newcastle passes Marholm with the 10 33 service from London King’s Cross to Leeds.
David Barnsdale
premium, with the seats refurbished with new padding and leather headrests
The on board shop has also had a significant makeover, while modern technology such as seat occupancy cameras and information screens, wireless mobile phone charging points and power points provided at every seat has been included
Avanti op erates 56 Pendolinos on the WCML, with 21 nine coach Class 390/0s and 35 11 coach Class 390/1s Originally, 53 trains were built all of them as nine coach sets but 31 had an additional two coaches added between 2010 and 2012 and four addi tional 11 coach trains, 390154 390157, were added to the fleet at the same time
390033 City of Glasgow was withdrawn following the fatal Grayrigg derailment in Februar y 2007 and most of the vehicles from this train were subsequently scrapped, although some have been retained as training vehicles
In mid June, LNER unveiled 91127 and coaching stock rake NL17 repainted into a new liver y at Wabtec Doncaster as part of what was described by the operator as essential maintenance
However, the new look had more than an air of familiarity about it, as the new livery was inspired by the paint scheme originally carried by the fleet when it was delivered to British Rail in the late 1980s
Despite many similarities, the new scheme does differ; the main difference being that the upper bodysides are finished in LNER oxblood rather than dark grey
On the coaches, the doors are finished in grey with white vertical bands next to each door to comply with accessibility require ments for visually impaired passengers The light brown band on the lower side of the coaches has also been exchanged for light grey, while LNER branding is carried on the Class 91s and Driving Van Trailer vehicles
The livery is being applied to all eight Mk 4 coaching sets, and the operational LNER Class 91s which carried the former red and white livery of Virgin Trains East Coast and which were rebranded with the LNER identity after the Department for Transport backed organisation took over the operation of the ECML franchise as Operator of Last Resort from VTEC in 2017.
Twelve of the locomotives are still in front line ser vice with LNER, with 91101/105 1 0 7 / 1 0 9 1 1 1 / 1 1 4 / 1 1 9 / 1 2 4 / 1 2 7 / 1 3 0 all still ac tive on the ECML. Of thos e, 91101/105/106/109/114/127/130 had been repainted as this issue of Railways Illustrated was being prepared, with 91124 at Doncaster for repainting, leaving just 91107 in service in the livery of its former operator
The special vinyl liveries applied to 91110 Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, 91111 For the Fallen and 91119 Bounds Green InterCity Depot 1977 2017 have been retained
Both 91110 and 91111 have had slightly amended vinyl wraps of their liveries reap plied, while 91119 has been fully repainted into original InterCity 225 Swallow liver y, whereas previously it carried the liver y as a vinyl wrap
Thirty one Class 91s were built for the East Coast Main Line electrification, first entering service in 1989 Although the trains were designed to operate at speeds of up to 140mph, they have been restricted to the 125mph maximum speed limits on the ECML
Those not in use with LNER are either in store or have been scrapped. At the time of writing, nine Class 91s have been scrapped, with a tenth at Rotherham awaiting cutting
Perhaps the most significant event of the year was the opening of the long delayed Elizabeth line between London Paddington and Abbey Wood
It was brought into use on May 24, aiming to offer vastly improved journey times and vastly increased capacity for passengers trav elling into and around London
After an intensive period of testing, commis sioning, and shadow timetable running, The Queen visited Paddington’s Elizabeth line station a week earlier to officially mark completion of the new railway The Eliz abeth line features 10 brand new stations, although one of those Bond Street was not completed in time and eventually opened to passengers five months later, on October 24.
The opening of the new railway marked a significant moment in the long and some times controversial history of the Crossrail project, which saw the line open more than three years later than had originally been expected, and with costs to complete it having also risen significantly
Although the section between London Paddington and Abbey Wood is newly built, this part of the route is the central core of what is a much wider 41 station Elizabeth line, running from Reading and Heathrow through to Shenfield, with the sections from Reading and Heathrow to Paddington and Liverpool Street to Shenfield previously operated under the TfL Rail banner The 31 existing stations on the route have all been upgraded as part of the project
Ser vices initially operated as three sepa rate ones, with trains running from Read ing and Heathrow to Paddington, then from Paddington to Abbey Wood, and a third service from Liverpool Street to Shenfield. In early November, services on the line were enhanced, with trains now operating between Reading and Heathrow through to Abbey Wood, while ser vices from Shenfield now run through to Paddington
B o t h t h e s e s e r v i c e s s h a r e t h e n e w central section, allowing frequencies to be increased. A fully integrated timetable along the whole route is expected to be launched next May
February 10 saw Chiltern Railways launch Class 168 DMU 168329 as the first member of its diesel f leet to be converted into a
HybridFLEX unit, as the operator sought to reduce emissions from its fleet
The Class 168 is now capable of running either in battery operating mode or with its diesel engine running The Rolls Royce mtu Hybrid Power Pack pairs a diesel engine with an electric unit that can function both as a motor and as a generator Funding for the project came from leasing company Porter brook, which owns the Class 168 fleet used by Chiltern
The technolog y brings a 25% reduction in CO2 emissions on every journey, while nitrogen oxide and other pollutants are also cut by 70% and 90% respectively. The battery system stores power that is recovered during train braking
Chiltern Railways says the HybridFLEX train substantially cuts fuel usage and reduces noise by up to 75% in and around stations and urban areas The train is believed to be the first in the countr y fitted with similar technology able to operate at speeds of up to 100mph
Railways Illustrated travelled on the launch service in February between London Maryle bone and Aylesbury, with the train operating along the 40 mile route both in battery mode and diesel operation The performance of the train was impressive, and when operated in battery mode it was also incredibly quiet
Chiltern operates its diesel train fleet out of London Mar ylebone station, with the company actively seeking ways of reducing its emissions It is expected that performance will be monitored over the course of a year before a decision is taken as to whether the technology will be rolled out to other members of the Chiltern Railways diesel fleet The evolution of batter y technology will hopefully see more widespread use over the coming years as the railway seeks to find ways of reducing its emissions as we aim for decarbonisation
June saw celebrations held for The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, with two freight opera tors getting into the spirit of the occasion by repainting two locomotives into special jubilee inspired royal purple liveries
First to appear was GB Railfreight’s 66734, which emerged from the paint shop at Arling ton Fleet Services on June 1, just in time for the special four day jubilee weekend The Class 66 was painted in royal purple and grey, featuring the official Platinum Jubilee logos, along with a large Union flag on the bodysides The locomotive also carried vinyl Platinum Jubilee nameplates.
The s e cond f reig ht lo comot ive to b e unveiled in a Platinum Jubilee colour scheme was DB Cargo’s 67007, which also carries a predominantly royal purple liver y, with a wide white vertical band on the bodyside breaking up the purple
The locomotive also prominently features the official Platinum Jubilee logos, along with the wording ‘Celebrating Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee 1952 2022’ and DB Cargo branding on the bodysides
The new look Class 67 was unveiled at a specially organised DB Cargo open day for staff, family and friends at Toton depot in Nottinghamshire on June 18. It has since been used on a variety of DB Cargo services and has proved a popular choice on various charters
The majority of heritage railways held cele bratory events over the jubilee bank holiday weekend between June 2 5, but it was prob ably the Severn Valley Railway that really got into the spirit of the occasion.
The SVR arranged for ex Southern Region ‘West Country’ 4 6 2 steam locomotive 34027 Taw Valley to be repainted from its traditional British Railway lined green paintwork into a striking royal purple livery, with the locomo tive temporarily renumbered 70 and named Elizabeth II
In terms of heritage modern traction and also on the SVR, the Western Locomotive Association resurrected long scrapped Class 52 diesel hydraulic ‘Western’ D1040 Western Queen, with replica nameplates and number plates applied to D1062 Western Courier
The ‘Western’ was officially launched in its
new guise on the first day of the SVR’s spring diesel festival on May 19, with the nameplates being unveiled by SVR managing director Helen Smith, accompanied by WLA chairman Roger Smith and publicity officer Paul Finch
The locomotive continued to operate as D1040 throughout the 2022 operating season, but will return as D1062 Western Courier for the 2023 season
On the Mid Norfolk Railway, the Strat ford 47 Group’s main line registered 47580 County of Essex had its Union flag inspired livery amended by MNR based painter Tony Dunford
The eye catching colour scheme carried by the locomotive saw the prominent emblems on the bodyside retained, with the addition of a Platinum Jubilee crest in the centre of the flag, while the cabs were repainted in blue and wrap round yellow, while the cab roofs were both painted yellow and the remainder of the roof in Stratford style silver
The buffer beams, nameplates, and crests were finished in purple as opposed to the usual red, giving the locomotive a distinc tive look
Sadly, the locomotive suffered a failure due to a suspected oil leak during the first day of the MNR’s jubilee weekend celebrations but was used on MNR services throughout the 2022 season
1: 345046 stands at the new Abbey Wood station on a rather damp first morning of services on the Elizabeth line, May 24, ready to work a service to Paddington Andy Coward
2: The first 100mph battery diesel HybridFLEX unit, 168329, stands at Aylesbury on February 10, having earlier worked its first passenger carrying service from London Marylebone The unit is adorned with a vinyl wrap celebrating its new technology Andy Coward
BELOW: DB Cargo was one of two freight operators to specially repaint a locomotive in celebration of The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June, with 67007 the recipient of the celebratory look. On October 18, 2022, the distinctive locomotive heads 1Z19 from London Victoria to Lewes through Plumpton, with 67024 on the rear Steve Lee
➔ In the next issue, Railways Illustrated reviews the highlights of the headlines from the national network and heritage lines between July and December
As one of our oldest heritage railways, the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway really evokes memories of a typical small branch line from the era before Rich ard Beeching wielded his axe As one of the first standard gauge preserved railways to be reopened, the K&WVR has been oper ated mainly by volunteers for more than five decades and, packed with atmosphere, it is one of the UK’s leading heritage railways
It’s a route I also know reasonably well, having previously lived not far away from the West Yorkshire rail way, and I was a regular visitor to the five mile line before I moved to the East Midlands in 2019
MAIN: Love it or loathe it, Pacer 144011 has become a valuable member of the Keighley & Worth Valley DMU fleet, joining the West Yorkshire heritage line's Class 101 DMU and Waggon und Maschinenbau railbus M79964 in service On October 22, 2022, the immaculate Class 144, resplendent in its West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive red and spilt milk livery, departs from Keighley with a service to Oxenhope Ian Dixon
With beautifully presented time warp stations, it boasts a varied and tantalising fleet of steam and diesel locomotives in its collection, attracting thousands of families and enthusiasts throughout the year. The K&WVR was also an early adopter of a pair of Waggon und Maschinenbau railbuses into its operating fleet, and in more recent times further diesel multiple units have also arrived at the railway’s Haworth base, where they come under the banner of the K&WVR Railcar Group
This railcar fleet now consists of one of the original pairs of vintage W&M railbuses The line is also home to examples of first genera tion Class 101 and 108 DMUs, with the more modern second generation Pacer Class 143 and 144 also now represented and based there I recently travelled to Haworth to meet Robert Hustwick, the railcar group chair man and K&WVR engineering director, and fellow railcar volunteer and K&WVR director Shaun Whitehead, who discussed the DMU fleet and showed me around the collection.
The oldest operational member of the current railcar fleet is Waggon und Maschinenbau rail bus M79964, one of five such vehicles to enter service on British Railways in 1958
Having seen a working life on BR of less than 10 years, M79964 and classmate E79962 both arrived at Haworth in late 1967 as the founding volunteers were getting the branch line ready for reopening the following year.
Remarkably, four of the five vintage railbuses still survive in preservation, with E79960 based on the Ribble Steam Railway and M79963 at the East Anglian Railway Museum Only M79961 was sent for scrapping
M79964 remains a valuable part of the rail way ’ s operating fleet, with it usually used on morning services during off peak periods of the timetable It is popular with passengers who like the ‘observation car ’ feel of the vintage vehicle, and it is beautifully preserved and maintained both inside and out However, despite its popularity with visitors, its size and capacity now mean it is only really used on certain days when the railway is not expecting to be busy while it is in service
The second of the line’s single car railbuses, E79962, is still based on the K&WVR but is non operational and is currently stripped down undergoing cosmetic restoration and conservation by the Vintage Carriage Trust, which now owns the railbus at its Ingrow West base on the railway
Robert said that it is ver y unlikely that E79962 will ever be returned to operational condition, but he was pleased that the railbus
Despite being only five miles in length, the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway boasts an enviable fleet of railcars and DMUs Andy Coward visits Haworth to meet Robert Hustwick and Shaun Whitehead from the K&WVR Railcar Group to find out more about the fleet.
remains on the railway that has been its home since 1967 The standard of restoration work carried out by the VCT, he said, means that it will be a perfect museum piece when it is complete
Over the years the railbuses were traditionally used on the K&WVR for morning services, with a steam locomotive taking over in the afternoon However, the growing popularity of the railway saw the railbus struggling to cope with passenger loadings, as Robert explained “The main problem with the railbus is its capacity, which is why it is now mainly used during the winter months on off peak services,” he said
“We found that as the railway became even more popular, the railbus couldn’t really cope with the demand, but that the morning services weren’t really busy enough to justify an all day steam locomotive and coaches
“The answer came when Bradford Coun cil agreed to purchase a recently withdrawn Class 108 DMU in store at Landore in South Wales
“We were invited by BR to go to Landore to take a look at three of the DMUs in store there and when we arrived, they were all in a line and run up, with us told to select which one we wanted.
“From experience, the first thing we always look at are the wheels; if a vehicle is sitting on good wheelsets, everything else can be sorted reasonably easily.
“The DMU entered service on the K&WVR following a repaint in the spring of 1993 ”
The Class 108, consisting of DMBS (Driv ing Motor Brake Second) 50928 and DMCL (Driving Motor Composite Lavatory) 51565, was a regular sight on the heritage railway for almost two decades but was stopped for overhaul in 2012 This was shortly after it had taken part in the 2011 Railcar Convention hosted on the K&WVR, and once the Class 101 DMU was ready to enter service
Ownership of the Class 108 was transferred from Bradford Council to the K&WVR in the early 2000s
After more than a decade out of use, it is now in need of fairly extensive bodywork repairs, along with bogie overhauls and a planned internal refurbishment of both vehicles
Mechanically, Robert said, the engines and gearboxes are in relatively good condition as they were regularly serviced and overhauled while the DMU was operational, although they will be fully examined and ser viced where necessar y before the DMU returns to action
Part of the interior of one of the vehicles has alre ady b e en st r ipp ed out to exam ine the extent of the work required and als o t he condition of t he vehicle f lo ors, b u t t h e p r e s s u r e s o f m a i nt a i n i n g t h e operational vehicles and a lack of covered accommodation to carr y out the necessar y repair work means that the rebuilding and r e s t o r at i o n o f t h e C l a s s 1 0 8 h a s n o t progressed as quickly as was originally been planned much to the frustration of both Robert and Shaun
R ob er t expl aine d t hat t he y were now investigating the possibility of the Class 108 moving off site to undergo attention by external contractors to try and accelerate its return to traffic and also to prevent its condition from any further deterioration
Class 101: DMBS 51189 and DMSL 51803
The next DMU to arrive at Haworth was a Class 101 in 2006, although these vehicles did not arrive on the K&WVR in operational condition, having been selected from the few remaining examples awaiting preservation or scrapping at Shoeburyness
The Class 101 is a DMU design well rep resented in preservation, with many of the DMUs being snapped up by heritage railways in late 2003 after the final examples were withdrawn by First North Western. When the K&WVR started investigating acquiring a Class 101, the best of the sur vivors had already been snapped up Robert said: “By the time we got around to looking at the remaining Class 101s, there weren’t that many left, so when we went to Shoeburyness we had to take a careful look
ABOVE: In a timeless branch line recreation, Waggon und Maschinenbau railbus M79964 stands at Ingrow West station while working a Keighley to Oxenhope service on February 26, 2022 The railbus has now been preserved at the K&WVR for more than 55 years and is one of two such vehicles based there, although classmate E79962 is no longer operational and is undergoing cosmetic restoration at Ingrow West by the Vintage Carriage Trust. Ben Bucki
RIGHT: Currently out of service and awaiting an overhaul before returning to use on the railway, the K&WVR’s two car Class 108 departs from Haworth with a service to Keighley on May 3, 2011 It is possible that the Class 108 may be refurbished by external contractors to accelerate its return to service.
Ben Buckiat all of the vehicles that were still there After examining the remaining vehicles, DMSL (Driving Motor Second Lavator y) 51803 and DMBS (Driving Motor Brake Second) 51192 were selected and reserved with leasing company Angel Trains, which was disposing of the remaining Class 101s from its fleet “However, shortly after wards it was real ised that 51192 had already been earmarked for preser vation by the National Railway Museum, so we were told that we could select another vehicle from those at Shoe bur yness in place of 51192, although the number of remaining brake vehicles was now down to just a couple, so there wasn’t a lot to choose from
“After another trip to Shoeburyness, DMBS 51189 was selected Although it had a lot of broken windows and much of the interior had been affected by water ingress due to those damaged windows, it was mechanically okay and certainly capable of being restored
“Angel Trains was really good to us and also included a quantity of Class 101 spare parts and engines with the sale of the DMU We were also given another vehicle as part of the deal to be used for spare parts before it was broken up; much of the interior from that vehicle was used in the restoration of the interior of 51189 ”
This restoration to ok s e veral years to complete, with the unit entering service in 2012 following an extensive rebuild
Shaun explained: “51189 did take a lot longer to get into service because it was in much worse condition than 51803 when it arrived
explained that when it emerges from the shed at Haworth it will be carrying a new livery. While he declined to reveal the colour scheme that the DMU will be outshopped in, he did say that it will be an appropriate livery as carried the Class 101 from its BR operating career
The Class 141 144 Pacer second generation DMU fleets tend to stir up very strong feel ings among enthusiasts there are those who love and loathe them in almost equal numbers
The K&WVR now has two Pacers in its fleet, with 144011 Driving Motor Second 55811 and Driving Motor Second Lavatory 55834 restored into West Yorkshire Passen ger Transport Executive ‘Metro’ red and spilt milk colours, while the railway also owns 143625 as a spares donor unit.
and either accept it or reject it and select another unallocated one
“However, that plan went out of the window when Covid 19 came along and on April 1, 2020, the first Class 144s were delivered to Keighley for storage, with many people thinking it was an April Fool’s joke created on photoshop rather than something that was actually happening ”
BELOW: The Class 101 DMU was returned to service by the K&WVR Railcar Group in 2012, having been secured for preservation from Shoeburyness in 2006 following a major overhaul of the two vehicles The BR green liveried DMU looks very much in keeping with the carmine and cream colours of the station canopy at Keighley station on April 10, 2019. Ben Bucki
“ The vehicle needed new windows and floorings, with the interior also completely refitted. When its restoration was at an advanced stage, it moved down to the Vintage Carriage Trust at Ingrow, as it was the VCT who carried out the bodywork repairs and repaint of the vehicle for us
“Work on 51803 had actually been finished about a year before 51189 was completed, with the interior of 51803 completed by our Carriage and Wagon Department at Oxenhope ”
As already mentioned, the completion of the Class 101 allowed the Class 108 to be with drawn from service, and the Class 101 has remained a reliable performer on the line for the last decade, supplemented by the single car railbus and, more recently, Pacer 144011.
Dur ing 2023, t he Class 101 is due to undergo bodywork attention, and Robert
With the Class 144s being operated by BR in the WMPTE area when they first entered traffic, and the Class 144 fleet remaining regular visitors to the area until they were withdrawn in 2020, the addition of one of the Pacers to the K&WVR Railcar Group fleet made perfect sense
On a couple of occasions, examples from the Class 144 fleet had operated over the heritage line to Oxenhope, but it was the K&WVR’s involvement in providing warm storage for the fleet during the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic in spring 2020 that took many people by surprise
The K&WVR Railcar Group had already been in conversation with leasing company Porterbrook about the preservation of a Class 144 prior to the mass arrival of much of the fleet to Keighley during the first lockdown.
Robert explained: “How it was originally organised was that Porterbrook allocated
The arrival of the Class 144s came about after Northern approached the K&WVR about space to store the units. With so few trains running and depots becoming congested, the operator wanted somewhere where the Class 144s could be safely stored until the y were required again, as the y weren’t going to be used on those services that continued to run during the lockdown for key workers
Subsequently, within a few days of the arrival of those first Class 144s on April 1, there were a total of 18 of the 23 strong fleet stored on the K&WVR in and around Keighley station Volunteers visited the station several times a day during the stor age period to ensure that the units were not targeted by vandals
Once the lockdown was lifted, and with the railway able to operate ser vices again, the units were still on site at Keighley, so many had to be moved around the railway, being stored either in sidings at Keighley or at Ingrow, until the time came for them to return to the main line network
During that period, roughly once a month, the units were taken out on a run to Skip ton to keep them operational While most eventually left by rail to new homes or to Worksop for storage before being disposed of by Porterbrook, one set went to its new owners directly from the K&WVR 144010 was moved, along with 144011, to Ingrow, with 144010 being collected by road for movement to the Weardale Railway, before 144011 returned to Keighley for store
By this stage, the K&WVR Railcar Group knew that 144011 would be preserved by it, but it remained in store at Keighley until it was officially transferred by Porterbrook, at which point it moved to Haworth, without ever leaving K&WVR property
Shaun said: “The storage contract went on to earn the railway some vital revenue during the lockdown when we weren’t able to oper ate any services for the first time since 1968
“However, the Class 144s never re entered service with Northern following the end of the first Covid 19 lockdown and so they
a unit to those of us who had expressed an interest in preserving one of the Class 144s, and the plan was that two months before the units were due to come out of ser vice, we would be given the opportunity to inspect our allocated unitwent out with more of a whimper than was originally planned.”
Some two and a half years after it first arrived on the railway, 144011 has now entered ser vice, looking on the outside as good as it did on the day it was delivered to BR and with the modern interior that was applied during a refurbishment a few years ago
R o b e r t s ai d : “Pe ople of ten c om m e nt about the preservation of a ‘modern’ DMU, but I like to remind them that when the Class 144 arrived here in preservation, it was 34 years old When the Class 108 arrived here, it was 32 years old, and when the railbuses arrived they were only nine years old, so in that context it’s just as historic as the others, if not more so The Pacers are thought of as still being modern, even though they date back to the mid 1980s ”
Other railways have found that the modern interiors of the Class 144s have been popular with filming companies and Shaun said that the plan is to keep the existing interior in 144011 rather than internally ‘ pre furbishing’ it and returning the original bus style seating
One problem that the group has found with the Pacer since it arrived has been the ability to keep it watertight The roof is rather susceptible to leaks, which the group is constantly battling to keep on top of The entry into service of a second gener ation DMU also needed some additional re writing of the railway’s rule book and safety management system, and additional training for guards and other staff due to the different style of automatic door operation and fire systems
Since entering service, the Class 144 has proved to be popular, and Robert says the line has been pleased with the reaction it has received from passengers
The final DMU to call the K&WVR home is 143625, which was last in use with Transport for Wales
Another derivative of the Pacer fleet, the Class 143 has mainly been preserved as an operational box of spare parts that could be used to help with the ongoing preservation of 144011
Shaun explained: “ The Class 143 came along for us at the rig ht time and was withdrawn in operational condition. Our intention is to keep it operational as much as possible, but it has mainly been purchased to give us a pool of spares to aid the Class 144 ”
When asked by Railways Illustrated if there were any plans for the Class 143 to be used in passenger service on the K&WVR, Shaun said no although whether that temptation can be avoided remains to be seen.
The Driving Motor Second from 143625 55666 arrived at Ingrow for storage in November 2021, with the Driving Motor Second Lavatory 55691 stored on the Wens leydale Railway until it was
finally moved to Ingrow in October this year. The two vehicles have since been coupled together and the Class 143 has moved to Haworth for inspection to allow it to be used in a filming contract
The K&WVR Railcar Group consists of a small number of volunteers, and anyone interested in assisting with the preserva tion of the fleet is welcome to get in touch to find out more about what is involved in volunteering on the DMU fleet
For what is essentially a small branch line heritage railway, the K&WVR has maintained its pioneering spirit when it comes to the preser vation of its railcar and DMU fleet
Where other lines have been quick to bolster their fleets before later laying them up, the K&WVR Railcar Group is committed to the preservation, conser vation and operation of its historic fleet of vehi cles. They are clearly in very competent hands
LEFT: During the first 2020 coronavirus lockdown, train operator Northern arranged for 18 of its 23 Class 144 Pacers to be stored on the K&WVR while the heritage line was closed to passenger services to relieve pressure on congested depots. All of the stored units were located in and around Keighley station, and on a gloriously sunny May 24, 2020, 144010/013/011/021 are viewed from Low Mill Lane in the town Martyn Hilbert
BELOW: The two vehicles from Pacer 143625 stand coupled together at Ingrow West on October 29 The Class 143 has since been moved to Haworth for inspection, with a view to it being used on a filming contract taking place on the railway K&WVR Railcar Group/ Shaun Whitehead
On probably its last main line run before being handed over to the K&WVR Railcar Group, 144011 leads three of its classmates on an ECS run from Keighley to Keighley, via Skipton The convoy passes through Kildwick level crossing on the return working on June 20, 2020 Martyn Hilbert
In this issue of Railways Illustrated, we bring you another mouth watering selection of railway related photographs, this time from the lens of Preston based photographer and enthusiast Kevin Delaney
Kevin says he has his mum and grandad to blame for his obsession with railways From a ver y young age he would be sat in his pushchair in the backyard of the family home, which backed onto the West Coast Main Line in Lostock Hall, near Preston The young Kevin would watch all sorts of exotic traction and trains, and he believes that formative experience is what planted the seeds for a lifetime’s enthusiasm
Then, during the 1970s, as young Kevin grew a bit older, his grandad who was a port police sergeant would take him to Preston Docks to ride on the Sentinel shunting locomotive based there Often his grandad would get him cab rides on many of the BR locomotives that visited the port exchange sidings, such as Class 25s, 31s, 40s and 56s unforgettable experiences for a youngster with a growing interest in trains
In his teens, Kevin spent a lot of his spare time travelling between Preston, Manchester, and Liverpool with schoolfriends, doing the
usual platform end trainspotting stuff, suitably armed with a notepad and red pen to record the numbers But his trainspotting days came to a temporar y halt when he joined the army at the tender age of 16 One benefit of being a member of Her Majesty’s Forces, he says, was being issued with a railcard, which he would regularly use to travel home on leave, as well as for journeying around the countr y to other army postings, making sure he utilised plenty of locomotive hauled trains
Kevin says he regrets not photographing any of these travel exploits, but in those days he was too interested in young ladies and drinking to spend money on fancy cameras At the time he did not realise that most of those wonderful workings and locomotives would eventually be gone
With his service days finished and living back in his native Preston, Kevin married and settled down to a fairly steady life Once he was settled and, as he puts it, mortgaged up to the hilt he bought his first film camera, although he can’t recall what make or model.
That first camera sparked an interest in photography that has remained with him ever since and he soon moved onto a reasonably cheap
of the four coach test train The former Midland Railway station at Hellifield is a pleasant place to while away some time; it has operational semaphore signals in both directions, and the restored station buildings are host to a well patronised café, complete with a small relics
digital camera as soon as they became affordable
Since then Kevin has used mainly Canon and Nikon but shies away from the expensive models
Even though he is clearly quite proficient with a camera, Kevin says he doesn’t really like being called a photographer, preferring to label himself as an ‘all weather railway recorder’
He also doesn’t think he’s that good with a camera, as he says he still finds it a difficult discipline Kevin doesn’t use some of the technology that many other photographers swear by, such as Photoshop, although he does have a rather unhealthy obsession with cropping a lot of his pictures
These days Kevin lives by the motto “photograph it before it’s gone ” , as he now realises that he didn’t take pictures of those many once common scenes that are now consigned to the history books Despite witnessing them in person, not recording them is something he still deeply regrets
Kevin says his 10 Pictures are not particularly breath taking or well composed, but he likes them and hopes that one or two like minded Railways Illustrated readers will too We’ll let you decide!
These are Kevin Delaney’s 10 Pictures
museum With so much of its traditional character remaining, Hellifield station provides some interesting compositions Sometimes but not very often it all comes together I really liked the framing of the train in this view and the full sun always helps to enhance an image
In each issue of Railways Illustrated, we ask a photographer to select their 10 favourite rail related images and tell us the reasons why they believe these photos stand out from the crowd The 14 15 Blackpool North to Derby RTC Network Rail track assessment train stands waiting time in the Down Goods Loop at Hellifield on August 13, 2021 The leading locomotive is Colas Rail Freight’s 37116, with Harry Needle Railroad Company’s on hire 37610 standing at the rear9, 2011.
With the medieval Bolton Castle as a backdrop, Class 55 ‘Deltic’ 55019 Royal Highland Fusilier heads upgrade at Redmire, heading for Leeming Bar on the scenic Wensleydale Railway on April 9, 2011
This locomotive worked the last Class 55 hauled BR timetabled service, the 16 30 Aberdeen to York, on New Year’s Eve 1981, bringing to a close the 20 year reign of Deltic superpower on the East Coast Main Line 55019 is now one of six Deltics to survive into preservation, owned by the Deltic Preservation Society, which is currently raising funds towards a possible main line recertification for the locomotive to join the DPS’s main line certified 55009 Alycidon. The dramatic castle in the background and the sight of the powerful Deltic locomotive climbing in this picture just about ticks all the boxes for me
Direct Rail Services 68007 Valiant on an engineers’ train at Bamber Bridge on April 18, 2018.
6K05 from Carlisle to Crewe is a regular train operated by Direct Rail Services in my part of the world and from time to time it can produce some rather oddball locomotives at the head of it When word went out that on April 18, 2018, it was being worked by Scotrail liveried 68007 Valiant, I decided to make a quick dash to a location very close to where I live to grab a photograph of the working. 68007 passes Gregson Lane, near Bamber Bridge, hauling 6K05 to Crewe The combination of the Scotrail livery, an engineers’ train, sunny weather conditions and the surrounding countryside makes this a pleasing image in my opinion
A V Dawson 08598 shunts Potash hopper wagons at Middlesbrough rail freight terminal on March 1, 2022.
In a sight that was well worth the journey across the Pennines to Teeside, 1959 vintage former BR Class 08 shunter 08598 was shunting empty JGA Potash hopper wagons from the A V Dawson’s rail freight terminal at Middlesbrough
into the adjacent sidings, ready for the return working to Boulby, hauled by a DB Cargo Class 66, on March 1, 2022
A V Dawson operates a small fleet of Class 08s and a visit to see the shunters in operation
is an interesting and enjoyable day out This picture makes my list purely and simply because it’s a Class 08 doing exactly what it was designed for It is always a joy to watch Class 08s at work
A rather weather worn 37042 in EWS livery was standing at Warcop on the Eden Valley Railway in Cumbria on April 21, 2018 The Class 37 was preserved in 2011 and has now stood at Warcop for more than
a
being
the
Double-headed CFPS Class 40s await departure from Rawtenstall on the East Lancashire Railway on January 11, 2014
In the gloom of a cold winter afternoon and with the steam heat on the train locomotive, the Class 40 Preservation Society’s preserved 345 and D335 stand at the East Lancashire Railway’s Rawtenstall station awaiting departure on January 11, 2014 The CFPS owns three Class 40s, with main line registered 345 now repainted into BR green as D345 with small yellow warning panels, while D335 is now painted into BR blue as 40135 but is currently out of service awaiting engine repairs The CFPS also owns 40106 Atlantic Conveyor on the Severn Valley Railway I think the steam heat and low light gives a real atmosphere to this particular composition
In freezing cold weather, Colas Rail Freight’s 56049 Robin of Templecombe and 56090 help to create a snowstorm as they pass Cherry Tree, working 6E32, the Preston Docks to Lindsey bitumen tank train on January 23,
2019 This photo was captured after another reasonably quick dash to a fairly local location close to where I live and was done mainly to capture 56049 working its first turn on the tanks for Colas The combination of snow and sun was too
much of a draw to keep me at home in the warmth by the fire, and I think this image captures perfectly how snow can transform the railway landscape to create exciting photographic opportunities
Colas Rail Freight 56049 Robin of Templecombe and 56090 whip up the snow at Cherry Tree on January 23, 2019.With its BR number still carried on the cabside, but with the locomotive painted in Lafarge Cement livery, 20168 Sir George
Sidings,
Hitching a lift 08401 heads down the M6 at Farleton, Lakeland, on July 22, 2022.
I don’t just photograph locomotives at work on the railway, as seen in this view 08401 is seen on the back of a Reid Freight low loader at Farleton, South Lakeland, on the M6 Motorway, en route from Nemesis Rail at Burton to Craigentinny Depot I chose this photograph for my 10 Pictures submission because I always find it rather strange seeing locomotives being moved on the road rather than in their natural habitat
The decision by GB Railfreight to apply a number of unique and different livery to some of its locomotives has created a lot of interest, as well as opportunities for photographers GBRf’s 66793 has been painted into a variation of British Rail’s Railfreight triple grey colours, complete with Construction Sector logos on the bodyside, this being one of two Class 66s to be painted in this livery although 66794 Steve Hannam carries Petroleum Sector markings on the bodyside. On October 27, 2021, 66793 works 6S94, the 04.28 Wembley Reception sidings to Prestwick, passing through Selside on the Settle to Carlisle line in very wet conditions It had been reported that these workings were run to supply fuel for up to 250 jets flying into the country in connection with the COP26 climate change conference in Glasgow Although the weather and lighting made for a challenging photo, this image demonstrates how I suffer for my art and how you don’t always need full sun to create a dramatic photograph
In each issue, a photographer chooses their 10 favourite rail related images and explains what it is about those photographs that makes them stand out
There are no other rules The photos can feature steam, diesel or electric trains, stations, infrastructure, or people they just need to be rail related and have a story behind them
If you think you have a suitable selection, please get in touch at rieditor@mortons co uk
the HAA merry go round coal hoppers already
by Accurascale,
second batch
OO gauge
MAIN: The current look of many of the CDA clay hoppers is illustrated by 375091, this having red backed DB logos and renewed yellow numbers on the same background colour. In contrast, the previous EWS maroon framework and canopy is retained, this including wagon repeater numbers on the framework corners as the bodyside panel tends to become obscured beneath clay dust. The canopy winding mechanism is prominent on the left hand end
BELOW: Not all CDAs received a full set of maroon embellishments, with a few retaining ECC blue in places 375030 was one of those to partly keep its blue framework, the subsequent EWS maroon and DB red additions giving it a real patchwork look
Launched back in the spring, the HAA coal hoppers were just the first stage in a programme of releases based around the iconic merry go round wagons. Further batches of models have now been delivered by Accurascale that not only expand the coal carrying options in 4mm scale, but also bring other commodities into the mix for the first time, these all sharing a common underframe and, in most cases, bodywork Arguably the most popular of this new run will be the CDAs, the covered variant that was delivered in 1987/88 to replace the ageing wooden bodied ‘clay hoods’ on workings in the West Countr y This not only included china clay flows in Cornwall, but also the few remaining ball clay trains in Devon, much of this traffic being for export via Fowey Docks Rarely seen outside these two coun ties, the CDA hoppers have remained in use ever since, with a much reduced fleet still in service today on the handful of workings that still exist.
The introduction of an accurate CDA hopper in OO gauge is long overdue, Hornby having rather squandered the opportunity when it re tooled its HAA some two decades ago While a new CDA appeared at the same time, this lacked some of the details that set the hoppers apart from their coal carrying cousins, and it also reused the overscale and toy like hood of the original model from the late 1980s
Naturally, the Accurascale version of the CDAs has done the job properly, incorpo rating such parts as the canopy winding mechanism, the drainage slots found on
only one side of the body, and a different pattern of discharge doors; these all being elements omitted by Hornby The hood also sits in rather than on the hopper, giving the correct recessed look for the first time in model form. This is alongside such details as sprung buffers, diago nally opposed brake discs on both the inside and outside of the wheel faces, and brake equipment that is located above the headstock at one end of the wagon
The initial launch liveries for the CDAs concentrate on the privatisation period, with two packs available with EWS brandings and two more with DB markings As is normal for the manufacturer, each pack contains three differently numbered and lettered wagons and is priced £74 95 Most of the wagons feature both maroon framework and cano pies but across the four packs, two can be found still retaining English China Clays blue frames, with another sporting a blue hood
Wagons with the full original blue paint work will be released in a later batch, both with and without ECC logos.
The other significant new tooling in this batch of releases portrays the MHA ballast wagons that were rebuilt for EWS from the late 1990s onwards by fitting new box bodies
onto underframes recovered from scrapped HAA hoppers More than 1000 wagons were rebuilt in this manner, with some still in use today on ballast and spoil workings, although numbers continue to dwindle in favour of higher capacity bogie designs
Known by the codename Coalfish, two distinct batches exist, with 394001 400 having bodies with 16 ribs per side, and which are available from Hornby In contrast, 394500 999 and 396000 165 have a revised body with only 11 ribs on each side, and it is this latter batch that Accurascale has modelled All were finished in EWS maroon upon completion and were largely consistent in appearance and lettering for a number of years
Fol lowing DB’s t a ke over of EWS, t he bodyside lettering on the MHAs was painted over or removed in some cases, but only one wagon, 394829, was fully repainted in DB red This was completed in March 2016 at
With
released
a
of
wagons is now available These cover not only the canopied and higher speed variants, but also the china clay derivative and the rebodied ballast wagons Simon Bendall takes a look at the varied line up and other new models.
Stoke wagon works but then lingered there for 14 months before returning to traffic The same year also saw some wagons begin to be recoded MPA, this signifying that the brake discs were cast as part of the wheels rather than being separately bolted on Accurascale has again released four triple packs of MHAs at £74 95 each, two with EWS brandings in place and two in DB condition, five of the wagons in the latter sets being in debranded maroon, along with the solitary red repaint Again, sprung buffers are fitted with the brake equipment relocated beneath the headstocks Unlike some of the manufac turer’s other models, no ballast loads have been produced as yet to accompany the wagons, but these are easy enough to make
Returning to the type’s coal carrying origins, Accurascale has now added the modified
HDA hoppers alongside the HAAs These were the final evolution of the design when built, with 460 examples, 368000 459, appear ing from Shildon Works in 1982 with modi fied brakes This allowed the wagons to run at 60mph when loaded, as opposed to the 45mph of the standard design and helped overcome pathing issues on long runs, such as between the Midlands and Didcot Power Station
The most obvious external difference on the HDAs was the positioning of the brake distributor above the chassis frame at one end of the wagon to give extra space for the enlarged brake cylinder This is faithfully reproduced on the model, along with the associated pipework, the protective cover designed to shield the distributor from stray lumps of coal, and the other brake differences related to the calipers and changeover levers
LEFT: The 60mph rated HDA 368457 shows off its Railfreight red cradle framework but with the addition of Mainline Freight logos and post 1998 overhead warning flashes The repositioned brake cylinder is seen above the headstock to the left, as is the empty/loaded changeover lever
LEFT: A trio of MHA Coalfish ballast wagons show the three livery versions available, with 394716 being fully branded in EWS maroon, 394829 as the sole DB red example, and 394576 with the EWS lettering painted out
RIGHT: The application of Loadhaul orange to the framework of the coal hoppers was relatively uncommon and certainly not as noticeable as the dark blue utilised by Mainline Freight.
HDA 368111 was fitted with a canopy by this time, bringing re coding as an HBA The 1990s began with just two TOPS codes applied to the MGR fleet, HAA and HDA, but would end with seven thanks to canopy and brake modifications.
As late build examples, the HDAs also exhib ited the other modifications made during the construction of the merr y go round fleet This includes the internal body reinforcing strips along the top of the hopper sides and the corresponding row of external rivets, along with the more rectangular covers over the hopper door mechanisms
As built, none of the HDAs had the hopper canopies and this look is catered for by a trio of triple packs, all having the Railfreight red framework that was introduced at the end of the 1970s and still widely seen in subsequent
decades. Pack one represents the hoppers during their BR years, but the other two sets are from the post 1998 EWS period as supplied, given that they have modern over head wire flashes and allocation brandings in the form of Barr y and Ayr One wagon also features the blue backed Mainline logo applied during 1995
As with the HAAs, many HDAs received the aerodynamic canopies in the early 1990s to reduce windblown coal loss on increasingly long distance journeys across the country. These wagons were recoded as HBAs, and two
packs of models have initially been produced, again priced £74 95 each One of these has Railfreight red cradles but is again from the EWS era thanks to the smaller printed details, while the other features the less commonly seen orange framework of Loadhaul
RIGHT: Still with its original body, including internal cross struts, 351077 shows off its EWS maroon paintwork and revised HCA code. The latter was applied in the early 1990s to hoppers that were built from new in the 1960s with the canopy, making them easier to identify
Also recently released by Accurascale in OO gage is a second batch of PCA cement wagons, these covering two different incarnations of the Castle Cement livery Having proved so popular the first time around, six of the triple packs (£74 95 each) are a new run of the current Castle look, this having black lettering with a red logo and stripe Positioned beneath this is either a ‘Building a better environment’
slogan in green lettering or ‘Heidelberg Cement Group’ in black The VTG owned wagons remain in service today, working from the cement works at Clitheroe and Ketton to the likes of Avonmouth and St Pancras with GBRf haulage
Joining them is a trio of three wagon sets which have the earlier all red Castle Cement logo This dates from the mid 1990s after
The last hopper type to be illustrated is a canopy fitted version of the HAA, many of the earliest wagons being built with this feature before it was dropped Those that were so fitted were subsequently concreated on Scottish workings where the extra height of the hoppers was not an issue at the rele vant collieries and power stations, unlike in England Such wagons were recoded as HCA from 1991, when just 142 examples remained.
Alongside a triple pack with freight brown cradles, there is a second trio with EWS maroon framework, all portraying wagons still with their original cross struts to brace the hopper and consequently no extra row of external rivets
As with all the hoppers, the finish is exem plar y, while mixing and matching of the various era related packs will allow proto typical mixed livery rakes to be formed in some cases
the presflos were resurrected from store and overhauled, the Ketton to King’s Cross workings hauled by a variety of EWS traction being some of the most notable at this time The red logo was gradually superseded by the black version with the green environmental tag in the early 2000s, the two running mixed together for a time
There is much to admire on the PCAs,
with the distinctive ‘hopper’ shape of the French built wagons captured well, while etched ladders and walkways ensure finesse in these visually critical areas Underneath, the discharge and brake pipework is exquisitely rendered as it wraps around the bottom chute, while the well applied liveries with their myriad of lettering panels add the finishing touch
AUTHOR: Michael Rhodes
PUBLISHER: Platform 5
Publishing ISBN: 978 1 90943 192 8 PRICE: £39 95 WEBSITE: www.platform5.com
Another great book recently released by Platform 5 Publishing focuses on the photographic exploits of renowned railway photographer Michael Rhodes
This journey back in time starts more than five decades ago in the early 1970s, with the book running in chronological order through the years up to the present day
There is a healthy mix of monochrome and colour images throughout, and the way the book is put together serves as a fascinating look at how the railways have changed over the years
The book begins with the author detailing the cameras he has used over the years, these being the tools that have allowed him to develop and hone his skills as a photographer and he is clearly a very talented lensman
We then journey through the years and around the globe, with the author searching out steam, diesel and electric
traction in a whole host of countries, although the content is predominantly from railways in the UK
The book is attractively designed, and this high standard enhances the photographic and time travel experience
As with all of the hardback books produced by Platform 5, this is printed in A4 portrait format and on good quality paper
The reproduction of the photographs contained within it is excellent and it is a weighty tome, coming in at 240 pages
The book is priced at £39.95, which may seem a little on the high side for what is essentially a photographic book, but the range of subjects and countries covered over such a long period makes it a truly fascinating study of the railways both in this country and overseas.
If you want inspiration to improve your photography, or just get a few ideas on good composition, then I am sure you would enjoy spending a good few hours looking through this book
It is another winning release from Platform 5, which has produced some truly excellent books in recent months Highly recommended AMC
AUTHOR: Paul Salveson
PUBLISHER: Platform 5 Publishing ISBN: 978 1 90943 135 5
PRICE: £12 95
EMAIL: www platform5 com
THIS BOOK contains a series of 12 short stories written by career railwayman and community rail champion Paul Salveson The stories were written at various points in Paul’s life between 1982 and 2022, and many are written from the perspective of another, rather than the author himself
Many capture an era in the history of our railways that is now long gone, and they are written in a manner that allows you to clearly imagine the scenes that are being described in the text the real test of a good storyteller The people and places may be fictional, but you can tell that they are strongly based on real life places and situations
One story in particular, in addition to a couple of the others, contain some rather strong language in parts, so this book is probably not one to read with youngsters, but the author explains that the strong language is deliberately included in the context of the period
While I appreciate that the stories were set at a time when attitudes towards
AUTHOR: Peter Johnson
PUBLISHER: Pen and Sword Publishing
ISBN: 978 1 52677 613 6
PRICE: £35.00
WEBSITE: www pen and sword co uk
some sectors of the community were different to how they are these days, I do think some of the language could have been toned down to suit a current day audience
This style of short story book is a new departure for Platform 5 The A5 portrait format softback book contains 96 pages and priced at £12 95, it represents good value for money. Just be aware it should come with a ‘Parental Advisory’ sticker on the cover!
AMC
SUBTITLED ‘THE story of the Post Office and the railways’, Mail by Rail is a detailed study of the movement of mail on the railway network, written by respected transport writer Peter Johnson
The book is split into two distinct parts, with the first taking a detailed look at the Travelling Post Office and its operation, before the second part takes a look at the fascinating and rather quirky Post Office Railway in London. Both the TPO and the Post Office Railway operations were brought to an end, but the movement of mail on the railway remains an important traffic flow to the present day
This hardback book contains 296 pages and contains a wide range of monochrome and colour photographs, along with maps, illustrations, and tables of information
The history of the movement of post and parcels by mail is a fascinating story, and this book is an excellently written summary of this part of our railway history
The evolution of parcels and logistics services at the moment by the likes of Varamis and Orion means that there are probably more chapters of the story of mail by rail to still be written in the future
AMC
IF YOU are still undecided what to buy the heritage modern traction fan in your life for Christmas, then perhaps you should consider a copy of the limited edition 2023 calendar that has been released by the Class 40 Preservation Society
The 2023 issue of the CFPS’s annual calendar features an entirely black and white selection of BR era photographs of the Class 40s, taken from the Ivan Stewart collection. The locomotives featured are all depicted from the BR blue era during the 1970s and early 1980s
The selection has captured many scenes that are now consigned to history due to the changing nature of the rail network and in many of them it isn’t just the locomotives that are no longer in existence, although a nice atmospheric picture of two Class 40s at Manchester Victoria includes
COMPILED BY: Class 40
Preservation Society
PUBLISHER: Class 40 Preservation Society
PRICE: £17 50
WEBSITE: www cfps co uk/calendar 2023
the CFPS’s flagship 40145 (alongside 40032) from the days before it was bought for preservation
The calendar is produced on weighty 140gsm matt paper, and while the price of £17 50 for a calendar may raise a few eyebrows, the costs of producing small print runs of A3 calendars, along with the increasing costs of postage and packing, means that this is now a reasonable price for such a product.
If you like a big dollop of monochrome Class 40 nostalgia, while also supporting the CFPS and
AUTHOR: Adam Head
PUBLISHER: Amberley Publishing
ISBN: 978 1 39810 604 8
PRICE: £15 99
WEBSITE: www amberley books com
LONG SEEN as the flagship route of the British railway network, the East Coast Main Line continues to be an important artery, and this latest photo book to be published by Amberley Publishing shows just how diverse the traction on the route actually is Compiled using the photographic collection of Adam Head, this book is the second volume in a series of photo books which will eventually cover the full ECML, with the first volume already released by Amberley covering the section of line between London King’s Cross and Peterborough (ISBN 978 1 44568 746 9). This volume covers the section of the route between Peterborough and York
As mentioned, anyone thinking that the ECML is just an endless stream of Hitachi Azumas, Class 91s on passenger workings, and Class 66s on freight services is in for a big surprise Naturally, these designs are dominant on the route, but flicking through the pages of this book makes you realise just how much variety there is on the line
The standard of photography is up to the usual standards expected of Amberley, and follows the tried and tested formula for these books, which contain 96 pages and the usual format of two to three pictures on most of the pages
the ongoing preservation of 40106, 40135 and D345, then this could well be the calendar for your wall during 2023 Recommended AMC
The quality of images is very good, and the author is clearly quite prolific at the lineside, and the captions are also suitably detailed to give plenty of additional background information without being too intrusive on the images.
If photo books of good quality images on an iconic route are your thing, you should find this particular volume enjoyable. Recommended.
AMC
and Byron (70031) n/s
ANDREW WATTS NEWS WRITERBetween September 26 and October 2, railwayana.org held its email and tele phone sale, with the following results:
Diesel Worksplate: Brush Traction No 431 1963 (47010 Xancidae) £520.
SR Targets: Mortlake £920, Broadstone £760, Gomshall £720, Richmond £620, Herne Hill £340 and Beckenham Junction £300
Totems:
BR (E) Blue: Oakleigh Park £1050.
BR (M) Maroon: Windermere £1450 and Acton Central £940
BR (S) Green: Folkestone Junction £2150, St Johns £760, Folkestone West £560, Wandsworth Common £560 and Kent House £440
BR (W) Chocolate & Cream: Bristol Temple Meads £4050.
Railwayana Auctions UK Ltd held its latest Crewe Heritage Railwayana sale between October 28 and October 30
Steam Nameplates: Warwick Castle (4081) £10,500, Culford Hall (61615) n/s
Diesel Nameplate (sold on behalf of Key Publishing for the Railway Benefit Fund): Modern Railways: The First 50 Years (66745) £2100
Electric Nameplates: Royal Sovereign (87002) £10,000, County of East Sussex (73122/73207) £3000, County of Clwyd Sir Clwyd (86248) £2000, James Kennedy G C (86242) n/s and Commonwealth Institute (91017/91117) n/s
GWR Cabside Numberplates (brass unless stated): 1459 £1500, 2881 £750, 4177 n/s, 4589 (CI) n/s, 5371 n/s, 7444 n/s, 7711 n/s and 9631 (CI) n/s
Diesel Worksplates: BR Crewe Sulzer/ Crompton Parkinson 1962 (45104 The Royal Warwickshire Fusiliers) £1400, North British Loco Co No. 27990 1962 (D861 Vigilant) £1350, English Electric Vulcan No. 2790/D505 1960 (40068) £1000, BR Derby Brush/Sulzer 1962 (46032) £1000, English Electric Vulcan No 2763/D488 1959 (20041/904) £950, English Electric Vulcan No 3390/D856 1963 (37212) £900, English Electric Vulcan No 2825/D540 1960 (40103) £750, BRCW No. DEL 158 1962 (33202
The Burma Star) £700, Built Crewe 1959 (08) £400, BREL Doncaster 1981 (56099 Fiddlers Ferry Power Station) £300, GM London Canada 968702 157
08/99 (66157) £180, English Electric RSH No 3006/8258 1961 (20100) n/s, North British Loco Co No 28958 1960 (D6154) n/s, English Electric Vulcan No. 3503/D934 1964 (37246/698 Coedbach) n/s, English Electric Vulcan No. 2677/ D438 1959 (40021 Ivernia) n/s and Hawker Siddeley/Brush Electrical machines (60) n/s
Electric Worksplates: AEI/BRCW 1960 (81006) £2000, Metropolitan Vickers Manchester/Sheffield equipment plate (76/77) £1500, BREL Crewe 1990 (90029/129 Fratchverbindungen/ Institute of Civil Engineers) £1100, English Electric Vulcan No 3711/E371 1966 (73132) £800 and Brush Traction No 1070 1994 (92005 Mozart) £800
Diesel Depot Plaques and Emblems: Buxton Mill Stone (37681) £2600 and RfD T&RS (uncarried) £400
Electric Depot Plaques and Emblems: Crewe Electric Eagle (90044) £500 and BR Double Arrow (82005) n/s.
LMS Hawkseye: Yorton £750.
SR Targets: Parkstone £1000, Sydenham £947, Shoreham by Sea £800, Shorncliffe £800, Gravesend Central £700, Chessington South £600, Snowdown Halt £400, Peckham Rye £360, Norbury £250 and St Leonards West Marina n/s
Totems:
BR (E) Blue: Salhouse £1000
BR (M) Maroon: Bedford Midland Road £10500, Morecambe Euston Road £3000, Kendal £2200, Amthill £1600, Wem £1500, St Albans City £1400, Luton Midland Road £1200, Broadfield £1100, Harpenden Central £1100, Radlett £1100, Cherry Tree £1000, Finchley Road & Frognal £1000, Harlington £1000, Leagrave £1000, Mill Hill £1000, Denton £900, Flitwick £800, Millbrook £750, Bulwell Market £600, Corby £600, Edge Hill £600, Kenton £600, Bank Hall £550, Manor Road £350, Arnside n/s and Church & Oswaldtwistle n/s
BR (NE) Tangerine: Ilkley £2000, Newlay & Horsforth £2000 and Thirsk £750
BR (S) Green: Fishersgate Halt £1300, Whitstable & Tankerton £1200, Northam £1100, Eridge £800, Hook £800, Winchester City £800, Angmering £750, North Sheen £660, Farningham Road £650, Broadstairs £600, Syon Lane £500, Dunton Green £400 and Bellingham n/s
BR (Sc) Light Blue: Morar £5200, Grantown on Spey East £2500, Beattock £1300, Carstairs £1100, Kingussie £1100 and Falkirk Grahamston £800
BR (W) Chocolate & Cream: West Drayton & Yiewsley £2000, Bromsgrove £1200, Gowerton North £1200, Maidenhead £600 and West Ealing n/s
The hammer prices shown in Railways Illustrated do not include buyer's premium or VAT if applicable.
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The next of our popular 10 Pictures feature comes from the lens of another well known photographer, Lancashire based Eddie Bobrowski It’s a stunning selection of railway photography at its very best ➔ We examine six of the most significant stories that have taken place on our railways between July and December, summarising what has been an action packed year of activity on both the national rail network and on our heritage lines.
