Innholdsfortegnelse for May 2025 i The Railway Magazine

A £200 million project is underway to convert the Grade-II listed SER Works in Ashford into a residential, retail and film studio development. The former locomotive building shops is pictured on March 26, where permission has been granted for the roof to be removed and the entire length along the middle of the building (between the arched walls) to remain open to the elements as a landscaped thoroughfare. A further new build of two floors of commercial and residential development will then rise above the remaining flanking walls on either side.…

TYNE &Wear Metro operator Nexus has removed from traffic all five of its new Stadlerbuilt Class 555s that have so far entered service while a problem linked to the operation of the doors on the units is investigated. The manufacturer initially appeared to attribute it to driver error, although a later joint Nexus and Stadler statement regarding the issue, which was discovered on April 21, explained:“The standard operational procedure regarding the opening and closing of the doors on the new fleet is different to that of the existing fleet and we need to investigate the impact of this further.” On Class 555s, if a passenger pushes the‘open’button before a door is unlocked, it will request that the system opens the door as soon as unlocking is enabled. The RM understands…

Guinness World Record: Longest-running railway series, established in 1901 This time last year, it was heartening to read the announcement that the June 2024 timetable would address the issue of chronic overcrowding on the weekday 12.03 Paddington-Penzance by running an extra train during the summer period. It was not so much a relief train, as in British Rail practice, so much as running the train in two portions, as in Great Western days. The 12.03 was to run nonstop to Exeter St David’s, where it was advertised ‘to pick up only’, then run straight to Plymouth and principal stations to Penzance. The old 12.03 stopping pattern would be adopted by a new 12.05 from Paddington to Plymouth. It must have been a success, as the workings have reappeared in this…

The making of ‘Is Line Clear?’ FOLLOWING the review in the April issue of the DVD‘Is Line Clear?’[a mid-1970s film of mechanical signalling on the southern end of the Midland Main Line, available from telerail.co.uk for £20.00], I thought your readers might be interested to know how the film was made. Shortly after joining British Rail in April 1973, I began to think about the possibility of making some cine films to record my interest in signalling. It must have been in 1974 when I first met John Burgoyne-Johnson, chairman of Group 9.5, a society for users of the unusual 9.5mm cine film. He was a freelance film cameraman whose hobby was railways, and I was a railwayman whose hobby was cine filming. John suggested that, as I intended to…

THE Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway (GWSR) has announced a major highlight for its Cotswold Festival of Steam, which takes place over the Spring Bank Holiday weekend, May 24-26. Headlining the event will be South Eastern & Chatham Railway O1 Class 0-6-0 No. 65, built in 1896, making it the oldest in the festival’s line-up. Loaned by the Bluebell Railway in Sussex, No. 65 wears the striking and ornate livery of the SE&CR and will be visiting the Cotswolds for the first time in its life. Originally designed by James Stirling and later rebuilt by Harry Wainwright, No. 65 was one of 122 O Class locomotives built for goods duties across South-East England. Remarkably, it remained in service until 1961 under British Railways ownership before being preserved and returned to steam…

IN preparation for its nine-day Festival of Transport, which is less than a month away (May 24-June 1), several vehicles from Beamish Museum’s carriage and wagon fleet have been receiving workshop attention. Among those moved for work in early spring was Great Western Railway‘Mink A’10-ton ventilated box van No. 95861, dating from 1917. It was shunted into the workshop and positioned under scaffolding for its roof to be repaired and repainted. This first of all involved cleaning and sanding the roof to remove staining caused by years of exposure to the elements, before the application of coats of white paint to achieve an even finish prior to final detailing. Bodywork repairs were also undertaken to keep the‘Mink A’ watertight prior to going back on display this month at Rowley station,…

EASTLEIGH Lakeside Miniature Railway has announced the retirement of its founder Clive Upton, and the transfer of the business to new owners. John Kerr and Peter Bryant, who have run the Cleethorpes Coast Light Railway since 2014 and took over the Scarborough North Bay Railway in 2021, have taken on the ELMR. Established by Mr Upton in 1992, the railway has become highly regarded and is renowned for its collection of Bullock steam locomotives. A statement released by the railway said the new owners were eager to build on Mr Upton’s“incredible legacy”, working with current ELMR director Robert Bullock. “Clive has done a phenomenal job in creating and running this fantastic railway,”added Mr Kerr and Mr Bryant.“We are thrilled to work alongside the team to continue his efforts and ensure…

EXPECTED to be particularly popular with enthusiasts is the Pathfinder Tours‘Torbay Coastal Grid’running from the East Midlands to the English Riviera on June 14. The tour will start at Derby (06.30) and be hauled by a Colas Class 56 all the way to Paignton, picking up at Burton-on-Trent, Tamworth, Solihull, Warwick Parkway, Banbury, Oxford and Swindon, along the sea wall at Dawlish and Teignmouth, with a set down at Torquay. Passengers will have around three hours to explore the area or choose the option of a trip on a Paignton and Dartmouth Steam Railway service to Kingswear, hauled by Class 37 No. 37703. There is an additional fare for the heritage line service. Fares start at £135 Standard Class (£95 junior) or £520 for a party of four. In First…

BRITAIN’S busiest station could serve more than 200 million people a year if plans are allowed. Network Rail Property (NRP) has submitted a planning application to redevelop London Liverpool Street which it says will enable the station to serve over 200 million people a year, boost London’s economy and establish a gateway to the City of London. Ranked Britain’s busiest in terms of passenger usage, it currently connects 118 million people a year within London, East Anglia and the East of England. Passenger numbers are set to grow to 158 million by 2041 and NRP says the plans will future-proof the station and turn it into a destination in its own right with a new retail, leisure and workspace offer. A previous planning application in May 2023 attracted more than…

LOCOMOTIVES Allocations 47703 BH/HNRL-BO/NRLO56301 BO/UKRL-HQ/DCRO66002 TO/WBAT-WQ/WQAA66003 WBVT-WBAT66075 TO/WBAT-WQ/WQAA66076 TO/WBAT-WQ/WQAA66085 TO/WBAT-WQ/WQAA66087 TO/WBAT-WQ/WQAA66089 TO/WBAT-WQ/WQAA66205 WBAT-WBVT66419 DFIN-DFLS66503 DFIM-DFLS66504 DFIM-DFLS66532 DFIM-DFLS66534 DFIM-DFLS66537 DFIM-DFLS66541 DFIM-DFLS66543 DFIM-DFLS66587 DFIN-DFLS66596 DFIN-DFLS66605 DFHH-DFLS66613 DFHH-DFLS66620 DFHH-DFLS68029 LG/XHTP-HQ/MBDL Liveries Black + Swietelsky branding: 08892DB cargo red: 66015, 66112, 92011Grey: 08653InterCity executive: 47593Orange + Swietelsky branding: 08799Swietelsky orange and blue: 37422YIMU decals removed: 66136 Named37422 Pegasus47715 Rail Engineering Solutions Quality Assured57002 Winston Churchill57310 UK Railtours69014 EMD Longport Names removed43153 Chûn Castle43194 Okehampton Castle66501 Japan 200166601 The Hope Valley SoldDC Rail: 56301 Export to Mexico43027, 43153/60/62/94, 43238, 43312/19 Preserved Battlefield Railway: 08502, 08798 Stored/stopped locations Brush, Loughborough: 68020/27/28/29 Nemesis Rail, Burton upon Trent: 47703Toton: 66002/75/76/85/87/89Worksop: 37424Wishaw: 09106 MULTIPLE UNITS Allocations 319373 sent for disposal321302/06/07/08/11/12/14/16/19/20/26 sent for disposal373213/24 sent for disposal377121/22 SU-RM379020/23/29 HQ-HE387123/26 HE-SL387302 HE-SL465244/45/46/49555010/11 newly delivered GF/PXGG720104 HQ-IL720504/34 HQ-IL756110 HQ-CF777035 HQ-KD805006 HQ-OY807009 newly…

VETERAN French diesel locomotive CC65512 made a successful return to the main line, hauling a public charter train from Vierzon to Le Mans in central France on April 5 – the first passenger run for the type in several decades. The French Railways (SNCF) CC65500 class were the first locomotives to use the Sulzer 12LDA28 engine when introduced in 1955. The slightly improved version of the same engine was used in far greater numbers in the UK between 1959 and 1967, in British Railways Classes 44, 45, 46 and 47. The SNCF decision to use the Sulzer 12LDA28 engine followed experience in France just before the Second World War, when a double-unit diesel electric prototype (using the earlier Sulzer 12LDA31 engine) was ordered and used from 1937 until 1950. A…

BESIDES Heathrow Express, for a long period the case for open access has only been made for East Coast operations – in part because significant population centres such as Hull, Sunderland and Bradford had been poorly served by the franchised operators. A big hurdle to securing track access rights was the sentiment that such operations cause revenue abstraction, leading to a reduction in the value of franchises and the ability to make premium payments to the Government. But since the Covid pandemic, these are circumstances that no longer exist. Looking ahead, the emphasis is on improved rail connectivity, with the economic and environmental benefits that brings in terms of access to employment and education, as well as reduced traffic congestion and improving air quality in population centres. There are a…

FOLLOWING a successful main line test run between Hellifield and Carnforth on March 26, the new-build‘A1’No. 60163 Tornado moved to Shrewsbury on April 3 for testing to begin on the locomotive’s onboard European Train Control System (ETCS) equipment. This marks three significant events in one: The loco’s mainline return; the testing of the world’s first steam locomotive to become digitally signalled; and steam running on the Cambrian line for the first time since 2010. Vice-president of Hitachi Rail Andy Bell highlighted combining the best of past and present, saying:“This very special project demonstrates not only the adaptability of Hitachi Rail’s system, but also what’s possible when we respect the past while designing for what’s next, combining engineering expertise with deep, trusted partnerships across the industry.” The new equipment includes a…

No. 319373, the former ROG/Orion High Speed Logistics demonstrator unit, has been sent to Unimetals at Newport Docks for scrapping. ROG said the unit’s primary role was to showcase a concept rather than serve in traffic and, with the Orion project currently on hold, the EMU has been deemed surplus to requirements. It is pictured being dragged by No. 37800 Cassiopeia through Worcester Shrub Hill on April 3 while en route from Crewe to South Wales.…

INSURERS have agreed to pay for repairs to an area of washed-out embankment area at the Severn Valley Railway. The line was affected on January 29 and hit the northern section of the railway. While the railway’s Resilience Fund had passed £125,000 as the news broke, it also stated that the final cost of repairs is likely to be more £500,000. The SVR’s managing director Jonathan‘Gus’Dunster stressed that the insurers and the railway will be footing the bill together. “We are still in negotiation with the insurers about the exact amount, but thanks to the generous donations that supporters have made to the SVR Resilience Fund and the SVR Charitable Trust since the landslip, we are confident we will be able to cover this,”he said.“What’s important here is that our…

CONCRETE extensions featuring ventilation holes have been completed at the southern portal of HS2’s 10-mile long Chiltern Tunnel, to eliminate sonic booms caused by trains entering it at high speed. When trains go into a tunnel, they force air forward, causing a release in pressure at the far end of the structure. Such micro pressure waves are less noticeable on conventional railway routes, but on lines where trains travel at higher speeds, this creates a sonic boom, heard as a distinct‘crack’ or‘thud’. As HS2 will have a maximum speed of 225mph, a method of dissipating the pressure and therefore preventing the noise was incorporated into its construction. Both the design of trains (as seen with the elongated noses adopted for some of the fastest and more recent examples around the…

THE official notification simply said: “The MV Pacific Grove, notified on April 5 as bound for Glasgow, will not now arrive.” That simple statement disguised the fact that the 7117 ton cargo ship had been sunk on April 12, 1943 while roughly halfway through an Atlantic crossing from the USA to Britain. The vessel – ironically built by Deutsche Werke, Keil, in 1928 – had been hit by a torpedo launched by the German submarine No. U-563 (see also footnote on page 36). If it happened today, the news of such a vessel sinking would make headlines around the world. The fact that it did not only illustrates the tragedy of conflict, with the acceptance that such horrors had become commonplace during the Second World War. Ten crew members and…

APRIL 5/6 saw another big step in closing the gap between operations of the Great Central Railway and Great Central Railway (Nottingham). Said to be for the first time since 1969, passengers could board a train at Belgrave & Birstall (now called Leicester North) and travel with a through ticket to the GCR(N)’s base at Ruddington, with vintage buses connecting services between Quorn & Woodhouse, Mountsorrell, Ruddington and Rushcliffe Halt. While this demonstrated that a timetabled connection between the sites was possible, the physical 500 metre gap between the two heads of steel over the Midland Main Line at Loughborough remains a giant obstacle that will take years to literally bridge. GCR Reunification Project spokesman Tom Ingall stressed that, while the footfall at the stations seemed more spread out than…

HAVING been laid up since withdrawal from British Railways service, Riddles‘9F’ No. 92219 has been stripped down in preparation for the boiler to be lifted from the frames. Completed at Swindon in January 1960 just two months before Evening Star, the final main line steam loco to be built by British Railways, the former Cardiff-based 2-10-0 was withdrawn in 1965 and then spent a further 20 years languishing in Barry scrapyard in South Wales. Since then, it has been stored at the Peak Railway in Buxton, the Midland Railway Centre at Swanwick Junction, the Stainmore Railway Company at Kirkby Stephen, and the Wensleydale Railway. After a spell stored in a yard close to the main line at Tebay, Cumbria, the engine moved to the Strathspey Railway in May 2023 and…

THE Talyllyn Railway (TR) has paid a £10,000 deposit to secure a site on the Pendre Industrial Estate for up to two years, to ensure its availability should the railway decide to utilise it. This move follows the decision not to build new carriage storage and repair facilities, stores and a paint shop on the‘Orchard’site adjacent to Tywyn Pendre as part of its planned major redevelopment of the Pendre site (RM, February), when it became apparent there would be problems meeting building regulations. One of the significant factors was access to the site for firefighting. The TR has subsequently been reworking its plans for Pendre to incorporate some elements from the original proposals. Decision When deciding not to proceed with development on the ‘Orchard’site the TR confirmed it was looking…

EFFORTS are under way to return Manchester Corporation No. 173 to working order after almost a century out of traffic so that it can become part of Manchester Transport Museum Society’s operational fleet at Heaton Park Tramway. No. 173 is the only surviving example of 81 cars of its kind built for the Manchester system, and one of only three trams built for the city’s Corporation which are still in existence, all of them now in the care of MTMS. Built by Brush at Loughborough in 1901 as an open-top vehicle, it received a top cover around six years later and remained in service until 1931. Subsequently sold for private use as a garden shed, its journey into preservation began when society members found it still fulfilling that purpose in…

FREIGHT operating companies GB Railfreight and DB Cargo have announced details of work being undertaken for Tata Steel as the company’s Port Talbot site undergoes major changes. The winding down of primary steelmaking at the works led to the loss of 2800 jobs last year, the final demise of the process (also known as virgin steelmaking) coming with the closure of the last active blast furnace there in September 2024. As well as operating with a smaller workforce, centred on lower carbon steel production using an electric arc furnace (EAF), the transition also means a change in the materials required for delivery by rail. £1.25 billion is being invested in the EAF, with construction due to begin this summer. It is expected to be commissioned in late 2027-early 2028. Without…

AN event designed to test the performance of battery-powered Class 230 No. 230001 when heavily-loaded with passengers saw 250 volunteers gather on April 3. The‘Fast Charge’system utilises a conductor rail (activated in the presence of the train) to charge the train’s batteries for 3.5 minutes before making its next journey. Great Western Railway acquired the technology and took on members of the team behind it, the train and other assets, after developer Vivarail went into administration while preparations were being made to trial No. 230001 on the branch between West Ealing and Greenford. Insights After a year of testing on the route, gathering insights for GWR and wider industry plans for decarbonisation, during which it has completed over 900 return journeys in all kinds of weather conditions and temperatures, the…

West Coast Main Line The West Coast main line was closed due to engineering works at a number of locations within Scotland on March 30. Many services only ran between London and Preston. However, seen passing Thankerton were ballast workings including the 6K05/08.00 Abington to Millerhill hauled by Class 66 No. 66126; 6K04/08.00 Abington to Millerhill with consecutively numbered Class 66 Nos. 66514+66515 on the train; 6K03/09.00 Abington to Millerhill hauled by No. 66593; 6K02/09.30 Abington to Millerhill hauled by No. 66554; and 6K01/10.30 Abington to Millerhill with Nos. 66429 and 66771 on the train. Great Western Railway March 3 found Class 166 No. 166211 in charge of the 1F27/17.27 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour service. An usually clear run saw the service arrive at Filton Abbey Wood two minutes…

ARRIVA Group-owned open access operator Grand Central is to replace its fleet of diesel trains with nine five-car tri-mode units (capable of running on electric, diesel or battery power), which will be built at Hitachi Rail’s factory at Newton Aycliffe in County Durham. Announced on April 3, the £300 million order is to be financed by Angel Trains. It has agreed a 10-year lease of the sets with GC, which currently runs services linking Sunderland and Bradford Interchange with King’s Cross and, earlier this year, had its track access rights extended until 2038. The trains are due for delivery in 2028 and will supersede the operator’s 10 five-car Class 180 ‘Adelante’DMUs, which are also leased from Angel. The‘Adelante’ fleet is currently augmented by former Avanti West Coast Class 221 Nos.…

The Severn Valley Railway’s Easter Weekend Steam Gala saw the two Erlestoke Manor Fund locos Nos. 7802 Bradley Manor and 7812 Erlestoke Manor in operation together for the first time since 2017 following their respective overhauls. To recognise the last months of ex-GWR ‘Manors’on the Cambrian lines in 1965, a time when both Nos. 7802 and 7812 were active, No. 7802 was turned out in 1965 condition as a special arrangement for this event only. The pair are pictured making a fine sight as they leave Bewdley on April 21.…

HS2 Ltd, Network Rail and the Science Museum Group have agreed a deal that will see a 150-year-old bronze statue of Robert Stephenson loaned to Locomotion for the next 10 years. The statue was previously at Euston but was removed in October 2020 as part of the station’s redevelopment. Robert was the son of‘the father of the railways’George Stephenson, but is regarded as one of the greatest engineers of all time in his own right. The statue was commissioned by the Institution of Civil Engineers following Robert’s death in 1859, and was erected at Euston in 1871. It has been fixed into place outside the museum at Locomotion opposite the Gaunless Bridge, which was designed by his father George in 1823 for the Stockton & Darlington Railway. ■ Chesterfield’s Holy…

SEVEN potential competitors to Eurostar operating international services from London via the Channel Tunnel have emerged in recent months. At least three – all startup companies – have started the process of agreeing access to Temple Mills depot, involving the Office of Rail and Road under Section 17 of the Railways Act 1993. The three start-ups that appear most advanced in their plans are Spanish firm Evolyn, set up by investors who also part own Mobico (formerly National Express); a new Virgin Group company called VTE Holdings, led by former Virgin (and Avanti) West Coast MD Phil Wittingham; and most recently Gemini Trains, with former BBC journalist Adrian Quine as CEO and former Eurotunnel manager Lord Tony Berkeley as chairman. In addition to these three, another start-up firm based in…

IN its February 1923 issue, this magazine famously coined the phrase ‘The Big Four’ in reference to the Railways Act 1921, which stated how Britain’s railways were to be amalgamated into four groups with the aim of improving efficiency and reducing costs following the end of the First World War. The Government had taken over control of the railway network via a Railway Executive Committee at the start of the war in 1914, using provisions set out in the Regulation of the Forces Act 1871. Railways at the time were characterised by intense rivalry between competing lines in some parts of the country – an arguably unnecessary extravagance of coverage that would later become untenable as well. As economics professor Alzada Comstock set out in a 1952 paper (which provides…

100 YEARS AGO MAY 1925 Locomotive exchanges ARISING out of the circumstances that, in the Palace of Engineering at the British Empire Exhibition last year there were the LNER’s 4-6-2 Flying Scotsman and the GWR’s 4-6-0 Caerphilly Castle, interesting locomotive trials were scheduled for this April. It was arranged for a GWR engine of the‘Castle’class to be sent to the LNER, and for one of the latter railway’s Pacific type to be changed for it. Steam coach trial A SENTINEL-CAMMELL steam coach has been tested on sections of the LMSR in the Derby district, with a view to ascertaining its suitability for operating branch-line services. The car is one adapted to carry 56 passengers, with luggage, although it weighs but 16 tons unloaded. The coach can be driven by either…

OVER the weekend of May 16-18 the Bodmin Railway will stage its first full-scale Spring Steam Gala since the Covid pandemic. The event promises a packed schedule of steam action featuring a mixture of home and visiting locomotives with a Great Western flavour. Two visiting engines have been confirmed for the gala: GWR 0-4-2T No. 1450 and GWR 0-6-0PT No. 7714. The return of No. 1450 will be a particular highlight for long-time supporters of the railway, as it last graced Bodmin metals back in 1997. Built at Swindon in 1935, No. 1450 is one of only a handful of surviving Collett 14XX class locomotives, best known for their use on auto-train services in rural areas. Joining it will be pannier tank No. 7714, a 1930-built veteran from the prolific…

THE Stephenson Railway Museum (SRM) on North Tyneside has acquired two more steam locomotives, one of which has been fast-tracked for repairs. Hawthorn Leslie 0-4-0ST Pony (works No. 2918, built in 1912 for Blyth Harbour Commission) requires some major works and is therefore being stored under cover until its turn comes for overhaul. The second arrival is Sentinel 4wVBTG, works No. 9559, built in 1953 for Rugby Portland Cement Company at its Dunstable quarry, where it became No. 1 in their fleet. In 1967, it was sold to Thomas Hill in Rotherham, where it escaped being converted to a diesel by being sold to wagon builders RY Pickering & Company, Wishaw, Scotland, the following year. In 1979, the locomotive went for preservation on the Tanfield Railway, and was steamed there…

THE Darjeeling Tank Locomotive Trust (DTLT) has contracted the Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railway to construct the new welded boiler required for 1889-built Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Sharp, Stewart B-class 0-4-0ST (3518/1888) No. 19B. The DTLT’s announcement that Boston Lodge had won the contract stated that the decision was based on a combination of the timescale offered for construction, expected to be around a year, which no other tender could match, and a competitive price. In recent years Boston Lodge has constructed new boilers for England 0-4-0STT Welsh Pony, Double Fairlie James Spooner and Hunslet 0-4-0ST Felinheli. Delivery of the boiler in 2026 will enable No. 19B to return to steam with a new boiler ticket, three years after it was purchased by DTLT at the auction which followed the death…

RECENTLY-RESTORED‘Hoover’ No. 50021 Rodney will be a guest at the NYMR’s annual event on June 12-15. The visit will mark the first time the‘50’has run in North Yorkshire since November 1983, and the first time one of the class has run on the line since the departure of No. 50027 Lion to the Mid-Hants Railway in 2012. Also set to appear is‘Deltic’ No. 55009 Alycidon, courtesy of the Deltic Preservation Society, while the line’s home fleet of diesels will also be in action, including No. 31128 Charybdis, No. 37264 and No. 47077 North Star. It is thought that further visiting engines will be confirmed soon. The NYMR’s head of mechanical engineering, Nick Simpson, said: “The annual diesel gala is a calendar highlight, and the line-up for this year’s is shaping…

A JOURNEY between Navigation Road and Cornbrook tram stops, which began at 07.07 on March 19 was the 50 millionth to be made on Metrolink by a passenger using contactless‘tap and go’ payment. Introduced on the system in 2019 and extended to Bee Network buses in Greater Manchester from March 23, ‘tap and go’is an alternative to a conventional ticket. Instead, users pay for trips by‘tapping in’with a bank card or mobile device using a reader at the stop where they begin their journey, and‘tapping out’at the station where they end it. Fares are automatically calculated up to a cap. Daily fares range from £1.90 to a maximum of £4.90 off-peak and at peak times from £2.70-£7.10. Depending on the number of zones travelled through, weekly travel ranges from £10.60-£31.00.…

DB Cargo UK’s latest BAA-R steel slab carriers are regarded as rebuilds, even though they have brand-new frames fabricated in Poland. Only certain parts of the brake system and the ABC-NACO swing motion bogies have been recovered from other scrapped wagons. For this reason, regular TOPS identities are carried as Nos. 900400-459, design code BA 003A. Load capacity is 79.1 tonnes and tare weight 22.5 tonnes. Initial use has been carrying imported steel slabs from Newport Docks to Margam yard, from where it is transferred to a rolling mill at Tata’s Port Talbot works. ■ ALSO newly arrived from Poland is a further batch of FEA-G intermodal flats for GBRf/Wascosa. Greenbrier Europe’s subsidiary WagonySwidnica has delivered Nos. 81 70 4663 501-7 to 440-5. From the same site more HOA limestone…

AFTER an absence of 23 years, Railway Preservation Society of Ireland (RPSI), S Class 4-4-0 No. 171 Slieve Gullion finally returned to the main line, with a trial run to Clonsilla on the former MGWR line to Maynooth from Dublin Connolly on Easter Monday (April 21). However, after concern regarding the left-hand side big end bearing which was overheating, when examined it was decided to terminate the run. No. 171 was put in a siding at Clonsilla, before being hauled back by IÉ 071 Class, No. 077, to Connolly Shed. It is expected that the big end bearing will be dismantled and sent to the RPSI Whitehead engineering works to be reprofiled before further main line trials take place. Safety certificate Easter Monday marked the first day of operation by…