Innholdsfortegnelse for January 2023 i The Railway Magazine

AS this is the first issue of 2023, I would like to start by wishing all readers of The Railway Magazine a very Happy New Year. Due to the changes in our production cycle through the holiday season, I write this just before Christmas knowing that we won’t be published until early January. So, what kind of a year can we look forward to? At the time of writing, the series of strike dates across the rail industry – and beyond – were ramping up, with calls on both sides for talks and an early resolution. We can only hope this becomes the case soon, so that everyone involved in railways can refocus on the recovery from the pandemic, which is still not complete. Perhaps the railways will never be…

Class 58 available for heritage railways THE Class 58 Locomotive Group (C58LG), on behalf of the loco owner, is inviting expressions of interest for operational opportunities and gala invitations for Class 58 No. 58023. At present, this is the only loco of the class operational in the UK, with the C58LG’s own example No. 58016 expected to be a further two years at least before it returns to service. No. 58023 was built in 1984 and was withdrawn from main line service in July 1999. While many of the once 50-strong class were sent abroad for further use, this example remained stored at Toton depot until acquired for preservation. It is privately owned and is currently located at UK Rail Leasing’s Leicester depot. The ‘Bone’ has recently returned to use…

DIESEL plant operation has been completely eliminated from 10 HS2 construction sites, according to the latest information from HS2 Ltd. Seven sites in the Chilterns and Colne Valley, and three in London have stopped using diesel power for their operations. The Canterbury Road Vent Shaft site became the first, in May last year. HS2 has a target of making all of its construction locations ‘diesel-free’ by 2029. One of the latest developments is the trial of a hydrogen fuel cell to charge an electric telehandler at the Euston station site. It is also being used to charge lighting towers and a water pump. Like us facebook.com/TheRailwayMagazine Follow us @railwaymagazine Follow us therailwaymagazine…

Headline News GBR in transition LORD Berkeley, the life peer and former columnist for The Railway Magazine, wanted to know what the official objectives are for the Great British Railways Transition Team; who directs its activities; how many staff it employs, including secondments; and how much funding it will receive in the current and 2023/24 financial years. Baroness Vere of Norbiton, the Transport Minister in the House of Lords, replied: “GBRTT has been set up to design and mobilise the new guiding mind for the railway and create a simpler, better railway today through near-term improvements that benefit customers, communities and taxpayers. “GBRTT’s activity is directed by their board, chaired by Keith Williams CBE, tasked with overseeing delivery of priorities set by the Secretary of State for Transport.” Noting the…

GENEVA Airport station is an undistinguished affair and, much like its Manchester counterpart, was built with too few platforms. Geneva is also underground and darker, but its trains do offer more exotic locations: Lausanne not Leeds, Neuchâtel not Newcastle. Regardless of these surroundings, however, my next four days are going to be an antidote to the depression associated with the ailing railway systems of the UK, lately France and, increasingly, Germany. Which train to take first? The obvious choices were the 06.49 to Lucerne or the 07.05 to Zurich. Research the night before had indicated the former might be a Class 460 ‘Lok 2000’ loco on nine ‘Eurofima’ aircon coaches, the First Class of which looked particularly inviting. On the other hand, it seemed the Zurich train would be a…

STAR LETTER Railway bears OUR bear community was very interested to read Steve Knight’s interview with Hunslet the Bear (December issue). They were sad to read of him being abandoned, but glad he survived the high voltage and is now in the care of the staff at Soho depot. He may be interested to know that Douglas, our British Rail representative (right), records all West Coast Main Line traffic through Wolverton, the data being published on Bear Time Trains. Not for us humans of course, but Hunslet will be able to access this via the ‘Bear-net’. Alison Randall Milton Keynes Besides Hunslet and Douglas, do readers know of any other railway teddy bears or similar? Ed. Flying Scotsman, the alternative view YOU asked for people’s thoughts on No. 4472 Flying…

RM Archive 100 YEARS AGO JANUARY 1923 King’s Cross upgrades MESSRS. SYMINGTON Son & Co of Glasgow have secured a contract with the Great Northern Railway for extensions and improvements at King’s Cross station. The work involved includes the clearing of an area on the down side, at the south end of Gas Works Tunnel, on ground adjacent to the disused gas works premises, where it is intended to provide new engine sidings, including a turntable capable of taking the large 4-6-2 locomotives now in service. The area alongside the main station, at present given over to the locomotive department, is also to be cleared, and two additional platforms for suburban traffic provided. Symington’s is concerned principally with the work of clearing and that involved in preparing the respective…

ALISHAN Forest Railway’s Mitsubishi diesel locomotive DL-34 is on its way to the Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway (WLLR). The 1972-built 25-ton 520hp loco was displayed at a depot in Chiayi City, Taiwan, for a handover ceremony on November 23 then departed for shipping. The loan of the loco for three years was announced in mid-2022 (RM, July 2022), although at that time shipping still had to be arranged. The loco is likely to arrive in Britain early in the new year. Following a period of commissioning and modifications to its coupling and braking systems to make it compatible with WLLR rolling stock, it is expected to enter passenger traffic early in the 2023 operating season. While strengthening the educational links between the 762mm gauge WLLR and the Alishan Forest…

AC electric multiple unit set No. 315856 has been donated by the Eversholt Rail leasing company to the Class 315 Preservation Society, which will be based at the Llanelli & Mynydd Mawr Railway, Carmarthenshire. The Class 315 Preservation Society, a member of the Heritage Railway Association, was formed by a group of BR crew members four years ago to preserve and restore one of the 1972-design, PEP EMUs. The set acquired is No. 315856, one of 61 Class 315s built by BREL York in 1980/81, and comprises DMS No. 64571, TS No. 71336, PTS No. 71444 and DMS6 No. 64572. It was originally planned to preserve set No. 315820 (RM Nov 2020). No. 315856 is in Transport for London (TfL) livery of white with blue doors and lower bodyside stripe.…

THE Stadler Hitachi Joint Venture, which is in charge of the £288 million contract to deliver new trains and a new signalling and communication system for the Glasgow Subway, is confident that the project remains on course for the trains to enter service later this year. Strathclyde Partnership for Transport, which owns and operates the Subway, told The RM that the first of the 17 new trains being built by Stadler for the system are likely to be introduced during the second half of 2023. They are expected to operate in unattended mode from 2025, once platform edge safety screens have been installed at stations. Seven of them have arrived in Glasgow and have reached various stages in the intensive testing programme, which must be completed before they are able…

ALL of Great Western Railway’s ‘Castle Class’ High Speed Trains are due to be taken out of service by the end of the year, as a programme of withdrawals gathers pace. Ten are due to remain in traffic (with a total of eight in service at any one time) until May, when the number will decrease to seven. The final three, which GWR intends to retain from September, are due to be removed from service in December. It will cover their duties by redeploying some of its existing Hitachi Intercity Express Trains (IETs) and diesel multiple units. GWR says withdrawing the ‘Castle’ sets will reduce costs and carbon emissions. In a written briefing to staff, it states: “Whilst it was always unlikely the fleet would have stayed in traffic indefinitely,…

LOCOMOTIVES Allocations 37901 GROG-EPUK57004 CD/LSLO-HQ/MBDL57007 BH/HNRS-CD/LSLO66552 LD/DFIM-FD/DHLT66599 LD/DFIN-FD/DHLT70015 LD/DFGI-FD/DHLT86251 sent for disposal90009 CG/DFLC-FE/DHLT To be imported and renumbered CB1001 - 66306 Liveries DB Cargo red: 66050/88/93 FL orange: 66508 Name reapplied88010 Aurora Stored/stopped locations Brush, Loughborough: 89001 Crewe Basford Hall: 90009 Nemesis Rail, Burton-on-Trent: 31106 Leeds Midland Road: 66552/99, 70015 Disposals C F Booth, Rotherham: arrival date: December 2: 86251. Sims Metals, Newport: Arrival dates: December 5: 43196; December 6: 43086; December 7: 43087 MULTIPLE UNITS Allocations 150001-06 NH-NL 156419 DY/EMHQ-HT/EDHQ 170517/33 TS/EJHQ-DY/EMHQ197110 newly delivered HQ/HLHQ315838/47 sent for disposal319005 sent for disposal720118 newly delivered HQ/EBHQ730017/18 newly delivered HQ/EJHQ756001 newly delivered HQ/HLHQ805003 newly delivered HQ/HFHQ77340 (769426) sent for disposal Liveries Centro/Regional Railways green, blue & grey: 323221 SWR: 450002/28/92 + End Men’s Violence Against Women decals: 450043, 450110 +White Ribbon decals:…

AMERICAN national passenger rail operator Amtrak has substantial numbers of new trains on order and is planning to introduce more new locomotives, coaches and new high speed ‘Acela’ trains in 2023. Initial introduction of some of the locos and coaches began in early 2022 but progress has been slow. Amtrak has 125 ALC-42 ‘Charger’ diesel electric locos on order from Siemens. These will replace the GE built P40 and P42 ‘Genesis’ loco fleets delivered in the 1990s. The first entered service in February 2022 working the Chicago – Seattle ‘Empire builder’. By the end of the year around 20 were in service – either in pairs or with GE P42 locos mainly working the Chicago – Seattle ‘Empire builder’ and Chicago – New Orleans ‘City of New Orleans’ routes. The…

Parliamentary service replaced by bus THE Parliamentary train service operated by Chiltern between West Ealing and West Ruislip, comprising a single journey on Wednesdays, has become a rail replacement bus from December 14. While the operator of the bus was unknown as this issue went to press, it is scheduled to run non-stop to West Ruislip, departing West Ealing at 11.17 and arriving at 11.42, six minutes later than the train managed at 11.36. The last Chiltern train service for the foreseeable future on the route was operated by Class 165 No. 165037, which arrived at its destination 36 minutes late after a trespasser had to be removed by police on the railway at Denham. Avanti developments WEST Coast ‘Pendolino’ No. 390127 (Train Set 16) re-entered service in mid-December after…

CHRIS was brought up in Birmingham, joining the Royal Air Force when he was 18. After 10 years in the military, he left to follow his dream and work in the heritage railway movement joining the Talyllyn Railway. As a trained RAF fitter, he was part of the workshop team before becoming workshop supervisor. His first general manager role was at the Fairbourne Railway, and after a break to gain wider management skills, he became general manager of the Talyllyn Railway. Just over two years later, he had the opportunity to manage the NYMR. He joined the Heritage Railway Association Board in 2018 and has since become its vice-chairman. He was recently elected as the Talyllyn Railway Preservation Society’s president. Chris lives in Pickering with his wife Alison, a Macmillan…

PRIOR to the First World War, Britain’s railways had been built, maintained and operated by more than a hundred different companies. But during the war, the Government took control under the provisions of the Regulation of the Forces Act 1871. A railway executive committee, set up on behalf of the Government, then ran the railways until 1921. Following the end of the war in 1918, the problem with having so many (often competing) companies became clear. There were debates in the House of Commons about the future of the railways, and whether nationalisation or re-Privatisation was best the option. In 1920, Sir Eric Geddes – the UK’s first minister of state for transport – published a white paper entitled ‘Outline of Proposals as to the Future Organisation of Transport Undertakings…

IT’S early on Saturday, October 29 and it’s cold as I travel by train to Didcot. Upon arrival at the entrance gate to Didcot Railway Centre, I am met with the familiar warm welcome by the Great Western Society’s (GWS) staff and volunteers. I am here to represent The RM and report on a day’s tutorial by award-winning photographer Jack Boskett for Gwion Clark who won the Railway Photographic Society Special Award in the Young Railway Photographer of the Year (which I’d helped judge). Gwion’s prize was sponsored by The RM publisher Mortons Media Group, as well as by Jack, a top photographer with a stunning and growing portfolio of images. In the weeks running up to the day at Didcot, Gwion and I had been in communication, and I…

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 4 – WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8 Railway Correspondence & Travel Society (RCTS) (Furness, Lakes & Lune branch). Station Hotel, Carnforth. 19.30. ‘24 Hours a Day on the Railways’: David Bousfield. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 4 Gravesend Railway Enthusiasts’ Society. Emmanuel Baptist Church, Windmill St, Gravesend DA12 1BB. 19.30. Modelling evening. Pennine Railway Society. Doncaster Town Fields Sports Club, Bennethorpe, Doncaster DN2 6AA. 19.30. Annual meeting followed by a slide show. Further details on website www.penninerailwaysociety.com. THURSDAY, JANUARY 5 Bath Railway Society. The Museum of Bath at Work, Julian Road, Bath BA1 2RH. 19.30. ‘Branch Line Byeways and Rail Tours 1950/60s’: Mike Dodd. Great Central Railway Society (Sheffield branch). Farm Road Sports & Social Club, Farm Rd, Sheffield S2 2TP.19.30. ‘Visiting More Heritage Railways’: Ken Grainger. Lutterworth Railway Society. Lutterworth Bowls Club,…

Britain’s leading Railway Society IT WAS AN important day in Devon on November 20, 2021 when the long awaited reopening of the former London & South Western Railway route from Yeoford to Okehampton finally took place. A two-hourly interval service between the town and Exeter St David’s saw the town rejoin the national network after a gap of almost half a century. This, however, represents only the first stage of the many route miles that passed through sparsely populated areas of west Devon and north Cornwall, known as the Withered Arm. The LSWR main line from Exeter to Plymouth Friary had opened in 1876, but in 1895 a branch was opened from a remote spot high on Dartmoor west of Okehampton, known as Meldon Junction, running across Maddaford Moor to…

A TEAM of five volunteers at the Ribble Steam Railway has transformed a number of wagons from derelict eyesores into vehicles which help to serve as a reminder of the region’s past. Formed in 2015, the line’s wagon group operates under the name of The Waggoners. Working sessions normally take place on Wednesdays – and there is an active social scene. The Waggoners reached a milestone in Autumn 2022 when the first demonstration freight train was operated showcasing some of the wagons restored by the group. The train was hauled on both of the gala days – October 1 and 2 – by L&Y ‘Pug’ No. 19. With no shortage of positive comments from members of the public, it is hoped to repeat the attraction at future galas. Vehicles restored…

THE 12¼in gauge Cefn Mably Railway (CMR) opened on April 24, 2021 and has been in continual operation ever since. The railway was built and equipped, including loco and stock, by Track Systems UK Ltd. This company also installed the new railway at Poole Park (RM Nov p76), but has since gone into liquidation. The CMR runs for 640 yards around animal paddocks, trains departing Farm Parkway station every half-hour for a 12-minute journey. No. 2910 Beefy is a battery-electric 2-4-2 steam-outline tank engine. Cefn Mably Farm Park is about six miles north of Cardiff on Began Road, Michaelston-y-Fedw, CF3 6XL. Visit www.cefnmablyfarmpark.com for opening times and admission prices. School railway becomes more accessible INGFIELD Light Railway is a private 10¼in gauge railway in the grounds of Ingfield Manor School…

THE first of two railtours being promoted by the Branch Line Society on February 11 will have – as one of several highlights – two English Electric locomotives visiting London St Pancras, a rare occurrence for a station more familiar with multiple units. The ‘Wolf Hall Thunderer’ will be hauled by SRPS Diesel Group Class 37 No. 37403 Isle of Mull in top and tail formation with Class 50 No. 50008 Thunderer, with Rail Adventure as the train operating company. Operational restrictions limit the train to six carriages, and the society says Martin House Hospice will be the beneficiary of an on-board charity raffle. Planned as a very full day tour, the special will start at Derby at approx. 05.30 calling to pick up at Leicester, Kettering, Bedford and London…

JUST a year after reopening to regular services, the number of passengers on the Dartmoor line has passed the 250,000 mark. The actual number is 258,479. On November 28, newly appointed Rail Minister Huw Merriman visited the line to officially open the renovated station building which features The Bulleid Buffet café, Dartmoor National Park information centre, shop, toilets, heritage-style waiting room and museum. The line, which runs between Okehampton and Exeter, had previously seen seasonal service and was upgraded with 11 miles of new track in just nine months – with the bonus of being delivered £10m under budget. It is the first line to fully reopen under the Government’s £500m Restoring Your Railway programme. Initially starting with a two-hourly service, from May 2022, GWR increased the frequency to hourly…

RHTT The RHTT season on the MML continued through November with the 3J95/05.27 Kentish Town-Bardon Hill, 3J98/09.34 Leicester-West Hampstead Thameslink and 3J01/13.48 West Hampstead Thameslink-Toton TMD being operated by regular locos Class 66 Nos. 66084+66100 Armistice 100 when seen on November 2. No. 66084 had been replaced by No. 66186 when observed on November 4, 7 and 11. No. 66084 was back again with No. 66100 on November 14, 21, 25, 26 and 28. Operations in East Anglia found Class 66 Nos. 66426 and 66126 at Harwich International on November 10 on the 3S60 Stowmarket-Stowmarket run via Harwich International, Shenfield, Southend and Clacton, while Nos. 66108 and 66428 Carlisle Eden Mind were noted at Ipswich on the same run the following day. A correspondent’s venture to Stowmarket on November 11…

FOLLOWING the approval of funding by the Irish Cabinet, Iarnród Éireann (IÉ) signed a €162 million, second tranche order with Alstom for an additional 18 five-car X’trapolis trains and an extension to the 15-year technical support and spares supply agreement under the 10 year framework agreement announced in December 2021. The second order is for 18 Battery-Electric Multiple Units (BEMUs), totalling 90 carriages added to the initial firm order made in 2021 of 19 five-car X’trapolis trains – 13 are battery-electric and six are electric. In total, 37 five-car X’trapolis trains are on order. Allocation It is anticipated that the BEMUs will be introduced on Maynooth/M3 Parkway and Kildare line services to Hazelhatch, delivering more capacity for commuters in advance of electrification and subject to funding for necessary infrastructure. They…

THE RAILWAYS OF TRINIDAD By Glen Beadon and Roger Darsley JUST a few miles from the mainland of South America, and roughly the size of Lancashire, the island of Trinidad once had several hundred miles of railways. Starting with isolated tramways serving the sugar industry, the island developed a network which, following unsuccessful private investors, was built by the colonial government and run by Trinidad Government Railways. Locos built in the UK were used to operate services on the new system, which opened in 1876 and was then expanded over the next few decades. The creation of major American bases on the island in the Second World War added more track and saw Americanbuilt steam and diesel locos arrive, but then postwar decline set in. Despite the acquisition of two…

HS2 News TRANSPORT Secretary Mark Harper and HS2 chief executive Mark Thurston made a historic journey on December 1, driving from end-to-end through the completed bore of the mile-long tunnel at Long Itchington in Warwickshire. “It was absolutely extraordinary to see firsthand the sheer scale and craftsmanship of this monumental project which will positively transform the lives of hundreds of thousands of people across the North and Midlands,” commented Mr Harper. “As well as boosting connections, regenerating communities and creating tens of thousands of jobs, tunnels such as this have been designed to ensure Britain’s biodiversity and countryside are preserved during construction and for many decades to come.” The tunnel, 33 metres (108 feet) below ground, was constructed in order for the route to avoid cutting through ancient woodland above.…

Porterbrook – delivering a safe, reliable and sustainable railwaywww.porterbrook.co.uk…

IN mid-December, the East Lancashire Railway was on course to carry a record number of passengers on its traditional Santa specials – reaching the 43,000 mark for the first time. Passengers on the line’s Santa specials started and finished their journeys at Bury Bolton Street station after enjoying a return trip to Rawtenstall – the diagrams being top-and-tailed. With limited parking at Bury but no shortage of free parking space at Heywood, a Santa diesel shuttle service ran between the two stations using Class 144 ‘Pacer’ No. 144009. The Santa specials featured two steam locomotives which were due be withdrawn for overhaul as 2022 drew to a close. Following the expiry of its boiler certificate on January 3, SR Bulleid Pacific No. 34092 City of Wells was due to receive…

VINTAGE Carriages Trust-owned Manning Wardle 0-6-0ST Sir Berkeley (1210/1891) was successfully steamed at the Middleton Railway’s Moor Road headquarters on November 12. As with all first trial steamings, a few things were found to be needing attention and further steamings on December 6 and 11 showed a distinct improvement, the locomotive being able to move under its own power for the first time since overhaul. The engine requires a few minor issues to be sorted, along with replacement of the left-hand steam supply to the clack valve, which will take place before it is launched into service in April. Sir Berkeley last ran five years ago. The overhaul got underway two years later, but work has been delayed due to Covid-19. This loco is one of only two Manning Wardle…

A SEARCH is underway for a suitable local home for the sole surviving passenger car from the Brighton Corporation Tramways system. The Brighton Tram 53 Society is restoring its namesake to working order but has so far been unsuccessful in finding a site which would be suitable, both in terms of location and arrangements for storing and operating the vehicle. “We want access to public transport,” Society founder Guy Hall explained to The RM. “The first thing is to make it easy for people to get there. If it’s part of an existing project, that’s great, but what we’re looking for is someone to say ‘here’s a patch of land with public access’. Then we can build a shed, finish the tram on-site and then start thinking about putting rails…

£100 worth of Nostalgia Collection books to be won The crossword winner and two runners-up can choose books worth £50 and £25 respectively from the extensive Nostalgia Collection. Visit us at www.mortonsbooks.co.uk Across 9 Name applied to a ‘WD’ 2-8-0 locomotive, for example (9)10 Station between Staines and Virginia Water (5)11 and 26 across Former signalbox on the climb to Shap (5,5)12 Western end of London’s ‘GOBLIN’ line (6,3)13 Ravenglass & ___ Railway (7)14 Station serving branch lines to Lowestoft, Felixstowe and Ely (7)17 First name of railway engineers Joy and Jones (5)19 First station on the Hither 26 across-Dartford Line (3)20 Station between Keith and Inverness (5)21 Location of a railway bridge across the Mersey (7)22 ‘A3’ No. 60092, on the way to the 26 across? (7)24 Name initially…