Innholdsfortegnelse for September 2023 i The Railway Magazine

HEADLINE NEWS THE measures being taken following the Carmont crash (see separate story) are reflected in NR’s £4.2 billion Strategic Business Plan for Scotland for Control Period 7 (covering April 2024 to March 2029), where 19% of planned renewals will cover earthworks, drainage and lineside management, and 22% is allocated to replacing structures. One concern identified is the effect of ash dieback, which has brought risk from dead and diseased trees. There are three million ash trees adjacent to running lines across Britain, and a rapid increase in tree mortality is expected in Scotland in the years to 2029, which will require proactive intervention. No new electrification projects are proposed, although the reopening of the Levenmouth branch will continue and this will be provided with overhead line equipment. Much of…

THE Railway Correspondence and Travel Society (RCTS) and Mortons Media have launched Steam or Modern; People and the Environment. The 2023/24 RCTS Photographic Competition. The contest will offer existing and fledgling photographers of all ages the chance to showcase their work and win one of a great range of special prizes. The competition builds on the long-established precedent of excellence in railway photography, which survives and thrives in railway publications such as The RM and the RCTS’s in-house title The Railway Observer. There are four possible categories to enter: ■ Heritage railways and mainline steam■ Modern traction■ People and the railways■ The environment and the railway. In choosing these categories, the joint organisers have sought to embrace both current railway operations as well as the enthusiasm and nostalgia for steam,…

THE arrival of Class 43 power car No. 43170 and two Mk.3 coaches Nos. 41100 and 44094 on Wednesday, August 2 at Great Yarmouth docks by road from store at Ely caused quite a stir among local enthusiasts. These were followed the next day by Nos. 43022, 41091 and 42179 and on the Friday by Nos. 43158, 44034, 44061, and 44063. Deliveries continued on Monday with Nos. 42401 and 42405, and finally on Tuesday Nos. 42026 and 42402 completed the line-up on the dockside. It is worth noting that, although some of the coaches had been in store at Ely for some considerable time, two of the power cars – Nos. 43022 and 43158 – had only arrived at Ely from Laira on July 31. The next day, August 5,…

IT is estimated that 70,000 lorry journeys will be avoided by the use of a spoil conveyor linking two HS2 construction sites in Buckinghamshire. Stretching for 0.8 miles, crossing the A413 and the Marylebone-Aylesbury railway line, the conveyor is expected to carry 550,000 cubic metres (over 719,000 cubic yards) of chalk and other excavated material over the next two years, which will be used in earthworks elsewhere on the route. Transported by a network of similar conveyors, which were inaugurated last November, over a million tonnes of spoil from HS2 construction sites in London has so far passed through its Logistics Hub at Willesden Euro Terminal, for onward movement by rail to Kent, Cambridgeshire and Rugby. By the time the project draws to a close, a total of five million…

VETERANS STILL GOING STRONG…

THE LMS-Patriot Project, which is constructing new-build 4-6-0 No. 5551 The Unknown Warrior has made headway in terms of physical progress – but has now received a blow following the decision of its main engineering base to cease third party contract work. On July 27, the Patriot Project was formally notified by the Princess Royal Class Locomotive Trust (PRCLT) that it was withdrawing from third-party contract work to focus on the development of their own locomotives – at present No. 5551 and the LSL‘9F’No. 92212. This followed the earlier news that Simon Scott, PRCLT’s chief mechanical engineer and the Patriot project’s lead engineer, has accepted an appointment as general manager of the Ecclesbourne Valley Railway (RM August 2023) at Wirksworth, Derbyshire. Chris Powell, PRCLT’s new interim chairman said:“PRCLT is undergoing…

BLACKPOOL Transport has donated‘Centenary’car No. 645 to the National Tramway Museum (NTM) in Crich, where it will be assessed with a view to turning it into a second accessible tram for visitors. Conversion to allow it to carry wheelchair users and other passengers with reduced mobility would offer some additional flexibility as Berlin Tramways No. 3006, which returned to service after repairs in June, is currently the only such‘Access Tram’at the site. A total of eight‘Centenaries’ were built for the Blackpool system between 1984 and 1988 by East Lancashire Coachbuilders in Blackburn. They were the last of the‘first generation’trams to be built and operated in the UK. The first of its type to become part of the NTM collection, No. 645 entered service in September 1987 and survived as part…

SOLAR panels at Bedford, Three Bridges and Selhurst depots are expected to generate 3.7 gigawatt hours of electricity between them each year. The panels will be installed following a successful trial scheme at Streatham Hill depot in south London, where over 500 solar panels were placed on the roof in 2021. Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), which operates Thameslink, Great Northern, Southern and Gatwick Express services, has extended its cooperative energy agreement with community benefit organisation Energy Garden which will see the three sites become local sources of renewable energy. Located on top of the train sheds, the cells are expected to generate more than 330 megawatt hours a year at the Bedford site (which maintains Thameslink units), while the Thameslink depot at Three Bridges and Southern depot at Selhurst Park…

Avanti West Coast HEAVY rain and flooding caused a number of AWC services to be cancelled or terminated mid-way through their journeys on Sunday, July 23. Among the altered services was 1M10, worked by Class 390 ‘Pendolino’ No. 390157, which departed from Glasgow Central at 09.34 bound for London Euston. However, this service only went as far south as Lancaster where it was terminated. The unit later returned to Glasgow as 1Z37, departing from Lancaster at 12.36. It then formed the 1M15 departing from Glasgow at 14.52 for Euston via Birmingham New Street. West Coast Main Line services were seriously disrupted on Friday, July 28, when Network Rail Stoneblower No. DR80301 working from Crewe PAD to Slateford failed immediately north of Abington Loop. It was rescued by the 4M30/19.07 Grangemouth…

TWO elements of the HS2 project have received Parliamentary approval for construction... but delivery of the core Phase One route between London and Birmingham and the connecting Phase 2a line to Crewe has been described as unachievable by the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA), which acts as the Government auditor. In a damning summary, the IPA identifies there are major issues with project definition, schedule, budget, quality and benefits. It says at this stage these do not appear to be manageable or resolvable, and the project may need re-scoping and its overall viability reassessed. Major concern One of the major concerns is outside management control, as it is acknowledged that the scale and impact of inflation has been significant on the construction sector and wider industries. This may account for…

STAFF AT TransPennine Express have been told by managing director Chris Jackson that the operator plans to stop using the loco-hauled‘Nova 3’sets from the December timetable change. In a memo to colleagues on August 25, he said it will instead cover these services using its 2005/2006-built Class 185 DMUs and Class 802‘Nova 1’bi-modes. “December 2023 provides us with a great opportunity to restore reliability and stability to our services by addressing some of the issues that have caused problems for us in the recent past,”said Mr Jackson. The Mk.5s are currently used on the North Pennine route from Scarborough to York, Leeds and Manchester. The underused fleet was also planned to be used on the South Pennine route from Cleethorpes to Doncaster and Manchester but, although some services did run,…

HEADLINE NEWS ON the evening of August 25, BR‘7MT’No. 70000 Britannia suffered a mechanical fault in the Surrey Hills at about 20.30 while operating Steam Dreams’ ‘Sunset Steam Express’circular tour from London Victoria. It is understood the 4-6-2 suffered a broken crosshead. Class 47 No. 47712, which was attached to the rear, moved the train to Guildford after No. 70000 had been made safe for towing. During and following the incident, passengers were quick to praise online the customer service received from the staff. LSL owner Jeremy Hosking, who was onboard, reportedly walked through the train, stopping at each table to talk to passengers. The train eventually arrived back at Victoria 278 minutes late.…

AS we near the 200th anniversary of public railways, the days of the humble four-wheel freight wagon – which have existed since the very earliest railways – are now definitely numbered in revenue service in Britain. One step closer came in August with the end of the four-wheel CDA china clay wagons in Cornwall after 35 years of loyal service. The whole fleet, operated by DB Cargo, was withdrawn on Friday, August 11, after their last trip loaded with clay from Treviscoe to Fowey Docks, operating as the 6P24 to Fowey running 180 minutes early. (See also Wagon news on page 94 for more on other remaining four-wheel wagons). The CDA design is a derivative of the successful HAA air-braked, merry-go-round (MGR) coal wagon of the late-1960s, with two axles…

RAILWAYS ABROAD ANEW daily service is now running over the 115km (71 miles) between Montreux and Interlaken in Switzerland – despite the through-trains having to change gauge, voltage and even height en route! Regular services began on June 11, with one train pair, building up to a planned four each way by the end of August. The new trains use two existing railways: the standard gauge line from Interlaken Ost to Zweisimmen via Spiez (which opened between Interlaken and Spiez in 1893, and in stages from Spiez to Zweisimmen in the Simmen Valley by 1902); and the 62.4km (38.5 miles) metre-gauge Montreux Berner Oberland Bahn (MOB), which opened from Montreux over the mountains via Gstaad to Zweisimmen between 1901 to 1904. The MOB line was built as an electrified route…

VOLUNTEERS at the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway (GWSR) have been focusing their attention on restoring several historic good wagons for display and demonstration. For some time there has been a desire to enhance the appearance of the sidings alongside the goods shed and running lines at Toddington by stabling some restored wagons there. Two GWR tool vans and a pair of GWR creosote tanks, all four of which are over 100 years old and not really suitable to run in a goods train are being restored for display, with shotblasting being employed to save on volunteer time and resources before the vehicles are painted and lettered. Tank wagon No. 43914 has been completed in GWR Loco Dept black livery, while work continues on the second tanker, GWR No. 43930 which…

ON July 1, 1873 the first stretch of the Isle of Man railway opened between Douglas and Peel with the steam operated lines later branching out to serve Castletown and Port Erin. Over the following 15 decades the line reached a peak in passenger transport and faced many uncertain times including coming close to being lost. On July 1 the railway marked the official anniversary with the unveiling of a plaque at Douglas station (RM, August). The first stretch of the Manx Electric Railway (MER) opened between Derby Castle and Groudle Glen on September 7, 1893, later being extended to Laxey and finally to Ramsey. The tramway will formally mark its own anniversary on September 10, with a parallel tram run, a plaque unveiling, and a Victorian Fayre at Laxey.…

THE 50th anniversary of the first ex-BR main line fleet diesel loco to be preserved is being commemorated by the Severn Valley Railway’s Autumn Diesel Bash – The Magnificent Seven and BR Western Region on September 27 – October 1. The first main line diesel loco preserved privately was‘Warship’ Class 42 diesel-hydraulic No. D821 Greyhound, in early 1973. The event to mark this historic occasion is hoped to feature the largest line-up of hydraulic locos in preservation, excepting the East Lancashire Railway’s‘Teddy Bear’50th anniversary gala in July 2014 with 10 Class 14s. However, the seven hydraulic locos have lost two key participants with the withdrawal from the line-up of West Somerset Railway-based Class 35‘Hymeks’, Nos. D7017 and D7018. The Diesel & Electric Preservation Group (DEPG), which owns two locos, was…

PLANS for a major refurbishment of Keighley station have been outlined by the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway (KWVR) which shares two of the station’s four platforms with Northern. Ultimately, the station is Network Rail owned. The multi-million pound plans cover both sides of the 130-year-old station which has been showing its age, and Network Rail has been working with contractor AMCO and consultant AECOM on the project. Scope At the front of the station, there will be repairs to the canopies, drainage channels as well as general masonry repairs. Across the whole station, work will be undertaken to repair the roof and there will be large-scale repair and renewal of timber elements of the access ramps, including above platform 4, the Worth Valley’s main platform. Elsewhere, the footbridge spanning…

THE first Class 398 Tram Trains (part of a fleet of 36 which will ultimately operate services in the South Wales valleys) have been unveiled by Transport for Wales. The £100 million depot at Taff’s Well, north of Cardiff, which will be their base, is also taking shape and is now connected to the rail network. As well as being the maintenance base for the Class 398s, it will control traffic on the Core Valley Lines and is already in charge of signalling for the Treherbert, Aberdare and Merthyr routes. Passenger capacity With a total length per unit of 40 metres (131 feet), the three-car Class 398s have capacity for 252 passengers and have spaces for wheelchairs, seating for passengers with reduced mobility and space which can be put to…

AN interesting Anglo-Scottish freight flow is the transport of alumina powder. Trains run from North Blyth bulk terminal in Northumberland to the Lochaber smelter at Fort William on the West Highland line. This is now the only location producing aluminium in the UK following the closure of a sister smelter at Lynemouth. Stock for the services comprises 38 PCA two-axle ‘Presflo’ hoppers, Nos. BAHS 55531/532/535/537-540/542-547/549/550/552-556/559-573, built by Powell Duffryn (Cardiff ) in 1987-88 to design code PC 020A. Although similar to the PCA ‘Metalair’ dry powder tank developed by Powell Duffryn for Blue Circle Cement, the wagons were subject to design changes to make them more suitable for the restrictions of the West Highland route. The overall length was increased by four feet to 31 feet 8 inches and maximum…

BOTH the Irish and Northern Ireland governments published the long-awaited All-Island Rail Review as a draft on July 25, for a Strategic Environmental Assessment Consultation which will close on September 29. The much-delayed report expected to be published in the autumn of 2022, was delayed due to the collapse of the Northern Ireland Assembly. Commissioned in June 2021, it sets out 30 recommendations to transform the current rail system, with electrification, faster speeds, improved frequency, and new routes for people and freight, particularly across the west and north of the island. The review’s recommendations span 25 years with several proposals that could be implemented before 2030. Some recommendations include: ■ Increasing the frequency of services to at least hourly between major cities and to at least one train every two…

AFTER an extension of the consultation period, which saw the deadline for submissions changed from July 26 (allowing only 21 days to respond) to September 1, it was revealed as this issue went to press that more than 460,000 comments have been received from organisations and individuals by Transport Focus and London Travelwatch. The consultation is a legal process, as the National Rail Ticketing and Settlement Agreement obliges train operating companies that have ticket offices to consult with the statutory passenger watchdog organisations, which in turn cannot authorise change in a vacuum as the views of stakeholders affected must be considered. The Rail Delivery Group, which acts on behalf of the train operators holding contracts with the Department for Transport, have arguably played a very poor hand in not coordinating…

FORMER Avanti West Coast DMUs Nos. 221142 and 221143 have entered service with Grand Central on its route from Bradford Interchange to King’s Cross via Wakefield Kirkgate. No. 221143 was noted on test on the East Coast Main line on July 7, forming an evening 5Z22 empty stock working from Crofton depot (near Wakefield) to King’s Cross and back. From August 11, this unit was in service with GC between Wakefield and London – staff training and clearance work still being needed for the Bradford to Wakefield via Halifax section. GC has also temporarily taken on two ex-EMR Class 180s – see page 93 for more.…

A SPECIAL day for Railway Magazine readers (as well as for those of Mortons Media’s other rail titles (Heritage Railway, Rail Express, Railways Illustrated and Steam Days) is to be held at the Statfold Barn Railway near Tamworth on October 7. The star of the show will be Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Sharp Stewart No. 19B, which was bought by the newly-formed Darjeeling Tank Locomotive Trust at an auction of the late Adrian Shooter’s Beeches Light Railway on June 21. The trust also acquired the two replica DHR coaches which Adrian had built at the Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railway’s Boston Lodge Works. As thanks to readers of Mortons magazines for helping the DTLT raise funds to buy the locomotive, which at more than £250,000 makes it possibly the world’s most…

BETWEEN mid-July and mid-August, engineers in the West Midlands moved three new bridges into place and demolished one old structure to accommodate the alignment of HS2. In what is believed to be the UK’s heaviest single-span bridge drive, a 56 metre-long (184 feet) and 19 metres-wide (62 feet) concrete structure weighing 6200 tonnes was positioned underneath the West Coast Main Line at Fulfen Wood (at the southern end of the 1.5 mile/2.5km Streethay Cutting) near Lichfield on July 17. The bridge, constructed alongside the railway over a period of six months, was put into place using a remote-controlled, self-propelled modular transporter with four carrier beams and a total of 840 wheels. To create the cutting for HS2, 61,000 cubic metres of earth was removed. A further 15,000 cubic metres of…

IN the first Midland Transitions article (June issue), we left the steam era on the former Midland Railway’s main line from St Pancras to Leicester at the end of the 1950s with ‘Jubilees’ gamely fighting for survival alongside ‘Royal Scots’ and ‘Britannias’ – but with dieselisation poised to pounce. The ‘Blue Pullman’ concept was part of that process, in so many ways ahead of its time, but perhaps also ahead of the necessary technology. Traction, track and signalling conspired to impose retention of the existing 90mph speed limit, which was 10mph below cruising speeds that would be commonplace within a decade, and no more than the maximum attainable by Johnson 4-2-2 ‘Spinners’ at the end of the 19th century. C J Allen recounted an August 1960 trip on the swish…

THE National Railway Museum in York opened a new permanent exhibition called ‘Wonderlab: The Bramall Gallery’ on July 27, the first project from its ‘Vision 2025’ masterplan to be completed. Wonderlab has been in development for five years, and features 18 hands-on exhibits around the themes of railways and engineering. It is aimed at families with children aged 7-14 and school groups, and is housed in the former locomotive workshop building next to the Great Hall. The interactive exhibits include how landscapes affect the design of railways, choosing the best design for bridges, which locomotives have the best streamlining shape, how to ‘see’ friction, and which wheel shape works best on tracks. There will also be live science shows and demonstrations inside the Weston Showspace. NRM Director Judith McNicol said:…

THE North Norfolk Railway Autumn Showcase weekend on October 6/7 is set to feature up to six locomotives and a DMU operating a frequent timetable that utilises many of the historic rail vehicles in the care of the North Norfolk Railway and the Midland & Great Northern Joint Railway Society (M&GN). BR Standard‘4MT’No. 76084 is due to make its last event appearance prior to overhaul, while the weekend will also see the event-debut of newly-restored Class 104 Driving Trailer No. M56182. The gala will see the line’s oldest working locomotive, ‘Y14’0-6-0 No 564 hauling a train of vintage four and six-wheeled carriages. There will also be a rare opportunity to travel in the sole-surviving ‘Quad-Art’set dating from the 1920s, which only operates on a handful of days each year. The…

THE weekend of July 14-16 saw the Foxfield Railway celebrate Knotty 100, the centenary of the end of the North Staffordshire Railway (NSR). Although the grouping was officially January 1, 1923, for legal reasons the NSR did not actually cease to exist until July 1 that year, and as this almost coincided with the usual Foxfield Gala date, the railway used the weekend to celebrate this much-loved company as part of the event. The visitor for the weekend was newly restored Barclay 0-6-0ST Horden (1015/1904) from the Tanfield Railway and this loco also helped haul the‘Knotty Train’of vintage rolling stock during the weekend. Bagnall 0-4-0ST Hawarden (2623/1940) made its appearance at the gala following a major overhaul, performing very well and looking impressive as always – a credit to its…

THE High Legh Miniature Railway, Knutsford, put a new loco into traffic in late August after a long and complex build. An 0-4-0+0-4-0 battery electric Garratt was completed and underwent a successful test run with 11 coaches at the 7¼ in gauge line on August 16. Construction was started by the late Arnold Bimpson of Maghull in 1993 as a petrol-hydraulic sit-in loco for Pugneys Light Railway, Wakefield. Problems arose with the rolling chassis and the project passed to several others, ending up with Austin Moss at Windmill Farm, Lancashire. The ‘Bimpson Garratt’ was bought by Caleb Lovegrove in February and by March the trailer load of parts was in the workshop. With friend Patrick Mullee they attended to the power bogies, first making them battery-electric powered with a 12v…

THE 4TC Group based on the Swanage Railway took delivery of Class 491 unpowered trailer car DTSO No. 76301 on July 31. This and DTSO No. 76302 have been in static use for many years at Bellingham old station, Northumberland as a café and education facility. Both are from unit No. 417/8017. No. 76301 with seats and tables removed will be stored while the 3-TC unit at Swanage is completed. This comprises DTSOs Nos. 76275, 76322 and TBSK No. 70824, which will be joined later by TFK No. 70855 and buffet No. 69322. Longer term plans for No. 76301 are being formulated but they should see it restored as a spare driving trailer. No. 76302 is expected to move south later in the year once the heritage centre at Bellingham…

DB CARGO UK has blamed“the continuing high cost of energy” for its decision to withdraw its last remaining operational Class 90 electric locomotive from service. The company has 24 members of the class in its fleet and No. 90039 joined the rest in storage after working a charter on July 17. In an update to staff dated July 24, DB Cargo UK chief executive Andrea Rossi said that it would examine disposal options for the locos“with a view to maximising their value either through scrappage or sale”. Half of them have been in storage for periods ranging from five to 20 years. Additional cost Mr Rossi said that it did not make sense to incur the additional cost of running and maintaining Class 90s when it had“an alternative fleet”of Class…

AS Chiltern Railways prepares to consider options for replacing its existing diesel fleet with more environmentally-friendly trains, a report outlining its plans for the future says decarbonisation “cannot afford to wait for track electrification”. In his introduction to the ‘Right Route 2030 Vision’, managing director Richard Allen says that after obtaining proposals and costs from manufacturers, the company will make its business case to the Government. As an immediate measure, Class 68 locomotives (which the company subleases from Direct Rail Services to work some of its Chiltern Main Line services using Mk. 3 coaching stock) will be fuelled with Hydro-treated Vegetable Oil (HVO), a direct substitute for conventional diesel. No. 68014 was used at an event at London’s Marylebone station on July 27 to officially launch the use of HVO…

POOL CODES GBBS GBRf Class 57WAEC DBC Class 67 ETCS fittedWBET DBC Class 66 ETCS fitted LOCOMOTIVES Allocations 37605 sent for disposal55022 LSLS-LSLO57305 KM/XSDP-LR/GBBS57306 KM/XSDP-LR/GBBS57310 KM/XSDP-LR/GBBS57312 KM/XHAC-LR/GBBS-PZ/EFOO60092 TO/WCBT-WQ/WQBA66039 WQ/WQAB-TO/WBET66057 WBAE-WBLE66127 WBAT-WBAE66529 LD/DFIM-FD/DHLT67002 WQ/WQAB-CE/WAEC67016 WQ/WQAA-CE/WAWC90010 CB/DFLC-FE/DHLT92009 WQ/WQAB-CE/WFAC92029 WQ/WQAB-CE/WFAC The following are now off registration – exported 86604/05/07-10/12-14/22/27/28/32/37-39 Liveries BR Green: 57009 DB Cargo red: 66061 InterCity Swallow: 43008 Original HST blue and yellow: 43007 +Colas branding: 67027 Named66790 Louise66798 Justine91127 Neville Hill Names removed37419 Carl Haviland 1954-201243022 Nether Stowey Castle43158 Kingswear Castle92029 Dante Renumbered 43207-4300743208-43008 56060-6900956065-69010 For sale 73138, 73951/52 Exported to Bulgaria: 86604/05/07/08/09/12/13/14/27/28/37/39 Exported to Mexico*: 43022, 43158/70 Operational 67002/16 Stored/stopped locationsLeeds Midland Road: 66529 Leicester LIP: 57306 Toton: 60092 DisposalsChris Allsop Metal Recycling, Colwick: Arrival date: July 25: 37605 MULTIPLE UNITS Allocations 150137/39/41 NH-BY197050 newly delivered HQ/HLHQ321335/36/40/43 sent for…