Indholdsfortegnelse for July 2024 i Rail Express

Class 805s enter traffic with Avanti West Coast HITACHI Class 805 bi-modes entered service with Avanti West Coast on the West Coast Main Line on June 2. No. 805009 was the first to carry passengers, forming the 1A16 10.16 Chester-London Euston, which actually started from Crewe. At the same time, Nos. 805001/004 formed the 1D36 10.36 Crewe-Holyhead. AWC has 13 five-car Class 805 bi-modes and 10 seven-car Class 807 electric multiple units on order. As this issue of Rail Express went to press, Nos. 805001-005/008-012 had all carried passengers, while Nos. 805006/013 were at Newton Aycliffe. Only No. 807002 has so far been released for testing. An AWC spokesperson told Rail Express that the plan initially is for six Class 805s to be in traffic per day, operating 14 services.…

NORTHERN has taken delivery of further Class 323 sets from West Midlands Railway, which have been released after the introduction of more Class 730-operated services in the Birmingham area. Arriving at Allerton from Soho on May 13, were Nos. 323206/209, while Nos. 323205/210 formed the 5Q36 16.02 Wolverton-Allerton on May 23. The pair had arrived at Wolverton from Soho three days earlier. Nos. 323207/243 formed the 5M70 08.45 Soho-Wolverton on May 28 and moved to Allerton on May 31. As of late May, none of these units had entered traffic with Northern. Two of the earlier transfers, Nos. 323208/220, have appeared in service, with the third, No. 323212, being used for crew training. A further seven sets will move north over the coming months, with the remaining nine going off…

CLASS 20 Recently repainted into Harry Needle Railroad Company orange and black livery, Nos. 20302/311, along with No. 50021 Rodney, were hauled from Eastleigh to Swanage by No. D1015 Western Champion on May 8, prior to their involvement in the weekend diesel gala, the ‘Western’ hydraulic having travelled light from Kidderminster where it is based on the Severn Valley Railway. On May 14, all four locomotives plus No. 50026 Indomitable formed the 0Z50 10.32 Swanage-Eastleigh Works where the two Class 50s were detached prior to No. D1015 taking the EE Type 1s to Barrow Hill. Privatelyowned No. 20007 undertook railtour work on May 25, (see Class 50) with the Branch Line Society special from Eastleigh to Kings Lynn in aid of Martin House Children’s Hospice. The Balfour Beatty pairing of…

GREAT Victoria Street Station (GVS) in Belfast city centre closed on May 10, after the departure of the last train, the 23.32 to Bangor, formed of three-car diesel multiple unit No 3012. GM 8112 was on display in Platform 2 for part of the day and a special Last Day Ticket was issued as a memento of the historic occasion. While many enthusiasts attended the final day’s operations and the closure received extensive media coverage, the occasion was fairly low-key because the rail element of the adjacent Grand Central Station is due to be operational this autumn. Removal of track by recycling contractor Hamills started on May 11, with road/rail machines working towards GVS from Westlink and City Junctions. Demolition of the platforms and removal of lineside equipment was also…

MORE than 5000 visitors attended the Severn Valley Railway during its diesel gala, held on May 16-19. People flocked to see the wide array of traction on offer, with resident Nos. D1015 Western Champion, D1062 Western Courier, D9551, 20048, 33108, 40106 Atlantic Conveyor, 43301/303, 43468/480, 50007 Hercules and 50035 Ark Royal joined by Nos. 20007, 20142 Sir John Betjeman, 20189, 20205, 37409 Loch Awe, 46045, 59206, 69009 Western Consort, 70005 and 73119 Paul Taylor. The next diesel event is planned to be the ‘Autumn Diesel Bash’, which will take place between October 3 and 6 and “promises an almighty celebration of heritage locomotives but with the possibility of one or two surprises.”…

FOLLOWING the unexpected discovery of third-rail Class 777s being the quickest UK trains to reach 60mph (RE335) it has been my intention to track down sets rumoured to out-perform even those remarkable Merseyrail 0-60mph in 31 seconds achievements. It will be no surprise that the target was another product from the Stadler stable, a Greater Anglia Class 755 bi-mode; the three-car version which has the same electric power as the four-car variety but, obviously, a lower weight. In terms of power/weight ratios, the Class 755/3s have a 21% advantage over the four-car sets, the three-car units possessing 25.8hp/tonne. The booked diesel deployment of the Class 755/3s rarely requires much in excess of 60mph and frequent stops usually intervene. On the East Suffolk line from Ipswich to Lowestoft they also have…

NEWSDESK WITH THE DELUGE of new releases from the larger manufacturers arriving in the shops, it would be easy to miss the excellent work being done by smaller producers which add much needed variety to the D&E scene. C-Rail Intermodal seeks out the more interesting container types and liveries. It has developed a significant range of containers in both ‘N’ and ‘OO’ gauge covering the history of main line container trains from the introduction of Freightliner through to modern day maritime intermodal operations. At the time of writing, there are around 70 fully finished containers in ‘OO’ gauge and 30 in the ‘N’ gauge range, including container tanks in the range. The latest additions include the reissue of the 20-foot reefer, detailed with refrigeration equipment at one end. Some of…

00 GAUGE 4mm:1ft 1934-1978 ERA The mixed ‘Tadpole’ pack WHEN BANANA TRAFFIC declined in the 1960s, the remaining Southern Railway (SR) vans were either withdrawn or transferred to departmental use, gaining the ‘Tadpole’ name and eventually TOPS code RBV. They survived well into the diesel and electric traction era with the last vehicles being withdrawn around 1978. Two ‘Tadpole’ packs are offered in the range of 12 triple wagon packs which includes SR examples in original SR stone livery and those operated by British Railways in banana traffic, with company labels applied to bauxite liveried vans. The mixed pack includes two Diagram 1478 vans numbered as DS50693 and DS50708. The third is to Diagram 1479 and carried the number DS50832. They would suit a D&E layout theme with BR green and…

RAIL Operations Assets Ltd No. 93001 undertook a series of test runs, both light and loaded, between Worksop and Sheffield, at the end of May. Prior to the start of testing, the ‘93’ visited Crewe South Yard on May 16, hauled by Rail Operations Group No. 37608 Andromeda, as the 0Q42 17.38 from Worksop. The following day, the ‘37’ hauled the ‘93’ as the 0Q66 04.24 Crewe South Yard-Tyseley for tyre turning, with the ‘93’ returned to its base at Harry Needle Railroad Company’s Worksop depot on May 20, as the 0Q26 10.10 Tyseley-Worksop. Just over a week later on May 28, No. 93001 was allowed out from the confines of Worksop without a chaperone for the first time. The Stadler-built locomotive initially undertook two days of preliminary testing, working…

THE end of May saw RMS Locotec commence its latest hire contract by providing No. 08754 to ScotRail for use at Haymarket depot, to the west of Edinburgh Waverley. As with No. 08648 at Inverness, its principal role will be marshalling High Speed Train sets undergoing maintenance, but also shunting multiple unit vehicles. The shunter arrived in Scotland on May 30, having spent almost two months undergoing preparations at Chesterfield, this including modernising its marker lights. For those of a certain age, the reappearance of a Class 08 at Haymarket will rekindle fond memories of the depot’s colourful shunter fleet of the late 1980s, when a number of locomotives were specially repainted. This included Nos. 08720 and 08761 in Provincial, along with No. 08793 in LNER green, black-liveried No. 08730…

THE Wensleydale Railway is to become the new home for No. 47714 which has been bought for preservation from Harry Needle Railroad Company (HNRC). The ‘47/7’ is one of five Class 47s first put up for sale as surplus in 2022, and No. 47714 is the first to be sold into the heritage sector. The Brush Type 4 will be a useful asset for the Wensleydale Railway, particularly for the highly-popular Polar Express trains which operate throughout December. These require an ETS-fitted diesel at one end, and although No. 33035 has been resident for several years, the daily running makes a second engine essential for the operation; in 2023, No. 47701 was hired from Nemesis Rail for this purpose. No. 47714 is the only Class 47 to have ever carried…

THE annual Swanage Railway diesel gala held in May always provides entertainment, and this year’s line-up was no different. As is the case every year, enthusiasts from across the country (and further afield!) make the pilgrimage for what is one of the ‘must-attend’ events of the calendar. Resident Nos. D6515 (33012) Lt Jenny Lewis RN and 33111 were joined by visiting locomotives from several main line operators including Colas Railfreight, Harry Needle Railroad Company and GB Railfreight, while preserved locomotives based at the East Lancashire Railway, Eastleigh Works and Severn Valley Railway also saw action throughout the weekend. HNRC Nos. 20302/311, both released from repaint at Arlington Fleet Services, Eastleigh Works, a few days prior, attended the event as part of a testing process ahead of their return to the…

BACK in February 2015, a Transport for London document proposed the ‘Central Line Heavy Overhaul Programme Lift’, or HOPL. It noted that the Central Line 92 Tube Stock [TS] fleet was already the “worst performing fleet on the LU network”, due to “poor design or obsolescence”. It primarily focussed on overhauling existing components, to extend the passenger service life of the 92 TS trains until between 2028-31. The proposed HOPL would be completed by August 1, 2017, at an estimated cost (at 2015 prices), of £123.16 million. This matched the timing of the New Tube for London (NTfL) project, that was in its infancy. However, the project scope soon expanded. To remain in service the 92 TS would need to incorporate Rail Vehicle Accessibility Regulations (RVAR) 2010 legislation, which focused…

REVIEW 00 GAUGE 4mm:1ft 1963-1987 ERA Unboxing impressions THE BRAND-NEW Class 25/1 from Bachmann is without doubt an improvement over the first Branchlines model. Unboxing the model revealed a fine looking facsimile of the full-size locomotives, except perhaps for the unrealistic coat of grime liberally applied to the model’s underframe and lower bodyshell. Closer inspection revealed a lot of neat detail and the use of wire for hand rails on the cab front and adjacent to the cab doors too. Moulded detail is finer than the original version including the all-important body side grilles. It certainly deserves a closer look and the review model of No. 25057 is a nice replica of a locomotive with an interesting history. Review model locomotive Constructed at Derby between March and June 1963, No. 25057…

00 GAUGE 4mm:1ft 2003-2008 ERA MAKING a welcome return to the Hornby range is the Class 101 diesel multiple unit. This model was well received when first released by Lima before Hornby acquired it, and it remains useful to modellers working to tight budgets today. It has been tidied up by Hornby, including a better drive bogie and upgraded internal wiring, including an eight-pin DCC interface. It retains legacy features including tension lock couplings moulded integrally with the bogie frames, along with cosmetic marker lights and a blocky underframe moulding used to conceal the model’s ballast weights. Two models were released in 2024 including departmental No. 901002 finished in Network Rail. No. 901002 Also known as ‘IRIS 2’ and ‘Laboratory 19’, this particular two-car Class 101 DMU’s survival beyond its classmates…

TOUAX Rail has contracted WH Davis to undertake tank checks and general repair on its 26-strong fleet of Arbel Fauvet-built 101.6-tonne tankers. Twenty-eight of the distinctive bright red TEA bogie wagons were constructed at AFR’s Douai works in Northern France in 2001 for General Electric Rail Services, numbered GERS 89001-28. The most notable casualty during their 23 years of operation was the destruction of No. GERS 89005 at Llangennech in August 2020, when this vehicle derailed following a likely brake system malfunction which caused the leading wheelset to stop rotating. Arlington Fleet Services at Eastleigh Works has been undertaking similar work on the fleet over the past decade, and No. GERS 89014 was reported on site in April being reassembled following a repaint. A general repair is the heaviest maintenance…

A Metro-Cammell Pullman coach last used on the main line as a Departmental vehicle more than 40 years ago has returned to service as part of the Royal Scotsman set. No. 316, formerly named Magpie, has been rebuilt by Assenta Rail at EG Steele’s Hamilton workshops, from where it emerged on April 29, for its new role in the luxury train. It was collected by GB Railfreight No. 66743 and hauled to Millerhill to be united with the rest of the rake. It has taken the place of No. 99961 (formerly No. 324 Amber) which is now at Hamilton for attention. Unlike the other Metro-Cammell Pullman State Cars in the Royal Scotsman set which contain four cabins, No. 316 contains two grand suites plus one double cabin. Additional features in…

CLASS 50 Alliance locomotives will visit the Leven line on August 26, becoming the first railtour to visit the line since it reopened. This will be the third day of a three-day ‘Grampian Highlander’ charter run by Pathfinder Tours. The tour begins at Taunton behind a GB Railfreight locomotive on August 24, with pick-ups to Stafford. The C50A machines, expected to be Nos. 50007 Hercules and 50049 Defiance, will take over the tour at Gloucester. This is also expected to be their first outing following a repaint into large logo blue from their current GBRf colours (RE337). The charter arrives in Aberdeen on the first night prior to heading to Inverness via Elgin on August 25, before heading up the Highland Main Line to Perth where the tour reverses for…

ROLLING STOCK THE reopening of the Snow Hill tunnel and launch of Thameslink in 1988 brought with it a need for new dual-voltage AC/DC electric multiple units to operate on the route through central London. After many years of studies and discussions, authorisation for the reopening came from the Department of Transport in 1985, and an order for 46 dual-voltage Class 319s was placed with British Rail Engineering Ltd (BREL) in March 1986. The new units were based on the earlier ‘317s’ but with addition of equipment for third-rail operation, different bogies and a more stylish front end design without a gangway; they did, however, have end doors on the cabs to enable emergency evacuation to take place, if necessary, a requirement for operation in the tunnels. Before the appearance…

AT LAST, a signature wagon for the BR era has been revealed by Accurascale, a wagon that will fit neatly in its ‘Powering Britain’ range due to its extensive use in coal traffic. The first model will cover Diagram 1/146, the standard BR hopper wagon type when first introduced. It was a development of the 1935 LNER riveted design and featured a welded hopper body with five ribs per side and Morton brakes. Eventually, 16800 wagons were built (some with minor detail differences) making the BR HOP21 to this diagram an important development for a model, given its widespread use throughout the north east and eventually many other parts of the rail network where they could be found working in block trains of industrial coal and as small sets and…

REVIEW TT GAUGE 1:120scale 1975 to 2019 ERA First unboxing impressions AS IS EXPECTED for rolling stock aimed at a market where it may be required to stand up to regular handling, the new TT:120 HST trailers appeared robust and solid when first removed from their boxes. There is a certain amount of integral moulding of detail which might be applied as separate fittings on larger scale models. The detail that did catch your reviewer’s eye was the Central Door Lock (CDL) detail which was applied to the GWR and InterCity coaches as moulded detail. It is not present on the BR Inter-City 125 trailers which is quite correct. Another point was offering a Trailer Guard Standard coach in BR blue and grey with Inter-City 125 markings. Presumably, this is to…

D&E FILES AT THE TIME the large fleet of BR Mk.3 power door EMUs was decimated by the introduction of new trains on the enlarged Thames Link network and Anglia Main Line, modellers interested in the EMUs remained frustrated by the lack of manufacturer support. Members of this important and numerous family of trains built between 1981 and 1990 by BREL at York works are over 40 years old, yet remain to be offered as mainstream ready to run models in any form. Models produced to date The first breakthrough came with the announcement of Class 320 and Class 321 in ‘N’ gauge by Revolution Trains, the models being released between February and April 2022. Bachmann also dipped its toes in the water with a Class 319, also modelled in…