Innehållsförteckning för November 2022 från Railways Illustrated

STAFF FROM UK Rail Leasing and volunteers from GB Railfreight joined forces to repaint GBRf’s final operational pair of Class 56s – 56081 and 56098 – into traditional Class 56 liveries. Both locomotives were repainted at UKRL’s Leicester Depot, with 56098 the first to be completed, being outshopped in Large Logo blue on August 25. It was followed by 56081, which emerged in BR blue on September 13. The pair were due to work a UK Railtours charter along some of their former operating routes on September 17, but ‘The Class 56 Farewell’ tour was postponed in late August when it was announced that there would be a RMT strike taking place on the same date. Although the strike action was subsequently called off following the death of The Queen,…

Railways Illustrated boarded the third of ‘The Friday Charter’ services on September 2, travelling between London Euston and Manchester Piccadilly, hauled by 90002 Wolf of Badenoch. LSG has gained many favourable comments about the standard of its Mk.3 First Class coaching stock, and the whole train was immaculately maintained and presented inside and out. Departure from London was at the amended time of 17.42, 15 minutes later than had originally been advised when ‘The Friday Charter’ was first announced. While InterCity promoted the tour as a First Class train, it is difficult to compare it against the usual Avanti offer as it is more comparable with Avanti’s Premium Standard offer, in that First Class seating and a guaranteed table seat are available, with catering provided for purchase on top of…

A MANAGEMENT buyout of Abellio UK will see the operation of four rail operators transferred to a new UK-run company, with Dutch-owned Nederlandse Spoorwegen exiting the UK after more than two decades to concentrate on domestic services in the Netherlands and international railway services. Abellio currently runs the Greater Anglia, East Midlands Railway, West Midlands Railway and Merseyrail train operating companies in the UK – some in its own right and some in conjunction with others. The company was also previously responsible for ScotRail services before it was transferred to the Scottish government earlier this year. It is also responsible for the operation of a number of bus routes in and around London. The new company, led by current Abellio UK managing director Dominic Booth, will be known as Transport…

THE SECOND of three heavily-stripped Class 91s delivered to CF Booth in Rotherham for scrapping has now been broken up. 91103/104/108 were moved to the South Yorkshire scrap merchant earlier this year, having been used as spare donors at Wabtec Doncaster for the Class 91 fleet. 91108, the first Class 91 to be taken out of service with LNER in August 2019, was scrapped in May, with 91103 following it into the history books during August. 91104 was still complete at the time of writing, although its disposal is expected to take place over the coming weeks and it could well have already been scrapped by the time this issue of Railways Illustrated goes on sale. Meanwhile, the disposal of 91122 by Sims at Newport Docks had still not taken…

A BRONZE statue and plinth was unveiled at London Marylebone station on August 30 depicting Chiltern Railways founder Adrian Shooter CBE, with a Class 168 diesel multiple unit named in recognition of him at the same event. A career railwayman with British Rail since 1970, Mr Shooter held a number of senior management positions within BR before going on to found Chiltern Railways. He was also chairman of DB Regio UK, which is now Arriva Rail. The statue, which was crowdfunded by current industry leaders and close associates of Mr Shooter, was unveiled in front of 100 guests, with a speech given by ex-Transport Secretary the Rt Hon Lord McLoughlin CH PC. Private and personal contributions were raised from more than 40 organisations and individuals to fund the production of…

91101 FLYING SCOTSMAN re-entered service with LNER on August 27, having become the third Class 91 to be repainted into LNER InterCity livery at Wabtec Doncaster – joining 91127 and 91105, which were completed earlier in the year. The fourth Class 91 to be given LNER’s oxblood variation of Inter-City colours is 91130 Lord Mayor of Newcastle, which was rolled out following repainting on September 6, ahead of a return to Neville Hill and re-entry into service on the East Coast Main Line. The same day also saw 91106 move light engine to Doncaster ahead of its appointment with the painters. With 91110 Battle of Britain Memorial Flight and 91111 For the Fallen both also passing through Doncaster for attention over the last couple of months, and the application of…

THE CLASS 31 involved in a collision with a visiting Class 43 HST power car during the Chinnor & Princes Risborough Railway spring diesel event earlier this year – British Rail Research Department-liveried 97205 – has left Chinnor for repairs to be carried out on it. The collision happened at about lunchtime on the Saturday of the three-day event, which took place from April 1 to 3, with 97205 coming into contact with visiting DATS 43054 which was stored in a siding after suffering a failure the previous day. Speaking to Railways Illustrated after the incident, C&PRR chairman Stanley Hart confirmed that a collision had occurred involving the Class 31 but would not be drawn on the circumstances or the extent of damage suffered by either locomotive involved. No one…

THE DELTIC Preservation Society’s 40th Anniversary of Deltic Preservation event held on the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway from August 19-21 was a major success, with two of the society’s three preserved Class 55 locomotives in action between Broadway and Cheltenham Racecourse. The event marked the 40th anniversary of Class 55 Deltic locomotives 55009 Alycidon and 55019 Royal Highland Fusilier being handed over to the DPS from British Rail at Doncaster Works on August 20, 1982, some eight months after the last of the legendary Class 55s had been withdrawn by BR. On August 19 both locomotives were in action on the GWR after 55009 moved across to the railway from the Great Central Railway in the days leading up to the event. Alycidon was only in use on the GWR for…

CLASS 25 D5185 has been taken out of service on the Great Central Railway for an engine overhaul following a final working appearance at the GCR’s autumn diesel running weekend at the start of September. The BR green Class 25 has been a regular performer on the GCR throughout the time it has been based on the railway over the past two decades, amassing more than 14,000 miles. Now, after a final working appearance between Loughborough and Leicester North on September 4, D5185 has been retired for a complete engine overhaul to be carried out, with work starting on stripping the locomotive’s power unit within a couple of days of its last running day. While the owners had hoped that Class 27 D5401 would return to service on the GCR…

03158 – MANGAPPS RAILWAY MUSEUM: The Class 03 shunter returned to traffic over the late August Bank Holiday, working its first trains at its new home and now resplendent in a coat of BR blue. The locomotive spent July 1976 to its withdrawal in May 1987 in East Anglia, based first at Colchester and then Norwich Crown Point. 03179 – RUSHDEN: Work started in mid-August on painting a new set of upright air receivers and hopefully it won’t be long before they are in gloss black. The old tanks wouldn’t have passed the tests required, had they been kept. They will be fitted soon and once the compressor is finished the locomotive won’t be far off being air tight. D2996 – BARROW HILL: The Class 07 has lost its BR…

It’s a hot summer Saturday in mid-August and I’m at Loughborough on the Great Central Railway to meet the small team of volunteers who have established themselves as one of the country’s leading Class 37 preservation groups – the Heavy Tractor Group. The HTG owns Class 37/7 ‘Heavyweight’ 37714 Cardiff Canton and, from earlier this year, is now also the custodian of the National Railway Museum’s pioneer Class 37/0 D6700. But just seven years ago, the group didn’t even exist. To say the HTG has come a long way in a short time is an understatement, and its professional approach to railway preservation and ongoing partnerships within the wider railway industry has certainly helped it get to where it is today. The group was formed in 2015, when Direct Rail…

“It started as a hobby,” says James Steward, looking at the rows of coaching stock located at Vauxhall carriage sidings in Great Yarmouth. One of five career railwaymen behind Eastern Rail Services (ERS), he has spent the afternoon explaining the business – and its plans – to Railways Illustrated. ERS has kept a low profile as it has slowly grown both its fleet and business. Even since moving into Yarmouth more than two years ago, there has been a deliberate policy of working on – and winning – contracts without overstretching the business. There has been a steady stream of deliveries and departures from the site, by road due to costs, with a few preserved vehicles joining the main line fleet. The coaches on site are used for a variety…

TRANSPORT FOR London has announced that the second phase of the Elizabeth line service expansion is due to take place from early November, reducing journey times for passengers and the number of times passengers making through journeys will need to change trains. From Sunday, November 6, Elizabeth line services will run directly from Reading and Heathrow to Abbey Wood and from Shenfield to Paddington, providing more services through the central section of the route The frequency of services in the central section between Paddington and Whitechapel will increase from 12 trains per hour to up to 22 in peak times and 16 during the off-peak period. Prior to the start of the enhanced services in November, the Elizabeth line is currently run as three separate sections, with services operating from…

WORK ON the strengthening of the sea wall defences along the railway at Dawlish has now reached an important milestone, with all 164 wall panels, 203 pre-cast blacks and 189 recurve panels now installed to help protect the railway from the force of the sea during severe storms. The first section of new sea wall which runs for 360 metres along Marine Parade, south west of Dawlish station, was completed in July 2020 and this was followed by the construction of a further 415-metre second section from Coastguard breakwater, northeast of Dawlish station, to Colonnade breakwater, with work on this second phase getting underway in November 2020. Following the installation of the wall panels, blocks and recurve units, which help direct incoming waves back out to sea, Network Rail and…

SOUTH WESTERN Railway replaced all of its planned train services on the Island Line between Ryde and Shanklin on the Isle of Wight for 10 hours on September 7, blaming staff sickness on the temporary service withdrawal. A statement issued by SWR on its website and social media feeds the previous day said: “South Western Railway would like to apologise to our customers on the Isle of Wight that, as a result of staff sickness, the Island Line will not be operating tomorrow (Wednesday, September 7) between 9am and 7pm. “A rail replacement bus service will be provided during these hours between Ryde Esplanade and Shanklin and a separate minibus shuttle will run between Ryde Pierhead and Ryde Esplanade. “There will also be a minibus serving the Isle of Wight…

West Coast revives its second ex-DRS Class 57/0 CARNFORTH CHARTER operator West Coast Railways has revived the second of the Class 57/0 locomotives it bought earlier this year, with 57010 joining 57012, which returned to service at the end of May (Railways Illustrated issue 234). Both locomotives have been repainted into WCR maroon. Following a test run from Carnforth to Hellifield on September 1, the pair made their debut in passenger service two days later on September 3, hauling the southbound diesel leg of Pathfinder Tours’ ‘The Cumbrian Fells Express’ between Preston and Bristol. The tour also featured 57313 Scarborough Castle on the northbound diesel section from Bristol Temple Meads to Carnforth, and ‘Battle of Britain’ steam locomotive 34067 Tangmere on the northern part to Carlisle and back to Preston.…

Network Rail hires Mk.3s With the newly installed ETCS cab signalling on HST power cars 43013 and 43062 requiring testing, Network Rail hired four Mk.3 coaches from the 125 Group at the end of August to provide a suitable load. These were delivered to Asfordby on August 26 by the group’s power cars 43048 and 43159, the 5Z43 working from Butterley conveying 41067, 42119, 42120 and 42337. TRFB 40741 was also included for staff transport, this being returned to Butterley with the Class 43s later the same day. With the fault-free running of the NMT power cars subsequently completed on the test track, the moves were repeated on September 16 with the Mk.3s returned to Butterley. Welsh Mk.4 transfers Two more of the Mk.4 sets destined for use with Transport…

JNA-Y conversions emerge The new JNA-Y ballast boxes converted from the MRA side-tipping wagons for Network Rail have begun to be released from the Loram workshops at Derby. By mid-September, 81 70 5831 001/02/04-10/12/14-16/42 were all at York Leeman Road or the surrounding yards, having been brought north by road as the type’s acceptance procedures have yet to be completed. Meanwhile, further donor wagons have arrived at Derby from Doncaster behind 37418, it delivering 501050/110/268-270 on August 30, followed by 501052/112/274-276 on September 15. As previously mentioned, the five-wagon MRA sets are seeing their tipping bodies completely replaced by new fixed boxes and drawgear fitted at both ends of all wagons, allowing them to operate individually. Wascosa deliveries Network Rail’s new Wascosa-owned infrastructure wagons continue to arrive through the Channel…

THE SPA Valley Railway celebrated its 25th anniversary in style with a gala event on the railway between Tunbridge Wells West and Eridge and the naming of a GB Railfreight Class 73. The event, held from August 26-29, featured visiting steam locomotives 75069 from the Severn Valley Railway and 34092 City of Wells from the East Lancashire Railway, alongside the railway’s home fleet of diesel locomotives – 31430 Sister Dora, 33063 R J Mitchell, 73140 and Class 207 DEMU 1317. They were joined by visiting diesel locomotives Class 24 D5054 Phil Southern (also from the ELR), South Devon Diesel Traction’s Class 25 D7612 and 73141 supplied by GBRf. 73141, which had been moved for the railway’s summer diesel event earlier in the month (Railways Illustrated issue 236) was renamed Spa…

THE ECCLESBOURNE Valley Railway’s single-car Derby Lightweight railcar M79900 Iris moved on from its summer stay on the Dean Forest Railway, leaving the DFR on August 26, although the unit called in at the Great Central Railway for a working visit before it was set to head back to its home railway. The unit was first used on GCR services during the railway’s diesel running weekend from September 2-4. The event had originally been due to be a full-scale diesel gala but was downgraded in the lead-up to the event due to a number of locomotives being out of service and plans for visiting locomotives not coming to fruition. However, Iris did arrive on the railway and proved to be a popular attraction, running alongside the other operational diesel locomotives…

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THE PERIOD of national mourning following the death of The Queen at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on September 8 saw the rail network experience one of its busiest periods in many years, as crowds of people descended on Edinburgh and London. With official lying in state events taking place at St Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh on September 12/13 and then at Westminster Hall in London from September 14-19, the rail networks in and around both cities were put under extreme pressure as thousands of people travelled to pay their respects to the late monarch. Responding at the time of events taking place in Edinburgh, managing director of Scotland’s Railway, Alex Hynes, said: “On behalf of everyone atScotland’s Railway, we share the nation’s sadness at The Queen’s death and gratitude for…

A WEST Coast Railways Class 37 was called on to rescue a failed TransPennine Express train on September 14, after the Class 68 hauling the train developed issues around Weaverthorpe while working the 05.34 Scarborough to York service. Following the failure of 68023 Achilles, 37706 was deployed to rescue the errant train and drag it back to York. The movement attracted a lot of attention from enthusiasts. For the period until the failed train could be recovered, a replacement bus service was put in place on the York to Scarborough line, although the train was safely moved to Holgate loop at York by early afternoon, allowing rail services to recommence.…

THE OLDEST driver employed by Tyne and Wear Metro, 75-year-old Richard Neesham, retired at the end of August, bringing to an end a career in public transport spanning more than 50 years. Former bus driver Mr Neesham joined Metro in 1981 shortly after the system had first opened and has remained as a driver on the light rail system for the past 41 years. Mr Neesham said: “I love the job and I am going to miss it greatly. I am really proud to have worked as a Metro driver for so many years. I’ve worked with some great people. “I was quite emotional on my last day, especially after spending 41 years working at the same place. The team gave me a fantastic send-off.” Metro operations director John Alexander said:…

A HOST of locomotives and a Class 156 DMU were supplied by the rail industry to the organisers of Barrow Hill Roundhouse’s 150+2 Gala, which took place between August 26 and 28. The depot, used as both a preservation centre and for railway engineering purposes, was due to celebrate its 150th anniversary in 2020 but plans for an event to celebrate the milestone were postponed due to the pandemic. The organisers of the rescheduled event pulled off an impressive line-up of visiting traction exhibits. In addition to the preserved and stored locomotives already based at the rail centre, most of the main freight operators supplied locomotives for display, with East Midlands Railway also supplying 156498. Society recognition On the Saturday afternoon, GB Railfreight’s 69003 was named The Railway Observer…

LOCOMOTIVE SERVICES Group now has a fourth Class 43 HST power car painted in the distinctive Nanking blue and white livery applied to its Midland Pullman HST set, with 43059 emerging from Arlington Fleet Services at Eastleigh in its new guise and joining 43046/047/055 in the livery. The completion of 43059 comes shortly after 43047 was repainted into Midland Pullman colours, allowing the popular luxury dining excursion train to be operated with matching power cars, after a period where InterCity-liveried 43049 Neville Hill was used on the train while Midland Pullman power car 43055 is out of service at Crewe undergoing repairs. However, one minor difference between 43059 and the other three cars is that it now carries the wording ‘Pullman’ on the bodyside, as opposed to ‘Midland Pullman’, leading…

Southern Class 171s move The second half of August saw four of Southern’s Class 171 Turbostars reformed at Selhurst ahead of three sets departing for a new life with East Midlands Railway. Two-car sets 171201 and 171202, and four-car duo 171401 and 171402, have all been disbanded, allowing the three-car quartet of 170421-24 to be reformed for the first time since the summer of 2016 following their transfer from ScotRail. On September 7, 170422, 170423 and 170424 departed from Selhurst for the last time, running together to Derby Etches Park, with the latter two sets then continuing on to Barrow Hill for temporary store. 170421 will follow in due course but for now remains a Southern unit. The reclassification is something of a paper exercise as none of the sets…

Alstom The application of a fresh coat of BR blue to 08451 was completed at Eastleigh Works early in September, this being followed by the addition of a new vinyl name, Loopy Lou. Now one of the oldest operational Class 08s left on the network, it has been at the Arlington workshops since February following arrival from Polmadie. Beacon Rail The latest Class 18 to be completed and released from the Clayton workshops at Burton upon Trent is 18006, this departing on August 31, to join its sisters in store at Wolverton Works. Freightliner With repairs, an exam and a repaint completed, 08691 was released from Burton Wetmore on September 5, the road transport taking it to the new Freightliner depot at Ipswich. Notably, the shunter has retained its Terri…

THE 125 Group named its Inter-City Executive-liveried Class 43 high speed train power car 43044 Edward Paxman at Ruddington on the Nottingham Heritage Railway on August 21. The naming ceremony was conducted by Network Rail North West director and former East Midlands Trains chief Tim Shoveller, as the project to install an original HST Paxman Valenta engine into the preserved power car edges nearer. Speaking at the event, Mr Shoveller said: “Throughout my railway career I have always thought that what the InterCity 125 has done for the railway has been amazing and has proved to be the backbone of the railway for many years. It really is a privilege to be invited here to name this power car and support the 125 Group in the work it does.” 43044…

THE KENT and East Sussex Railway is looking for a new resident heritage diesel locomotive to join its operational fleet following the successful hire of 33202 Dennis G Robinson. The ‘Hastings’ gauge Class 33/2 moved to the K&ESR in August after the railway chose to remove steam locomotives from its services between Tenterden and Bodiam during the summer heatwave and prolonged dry spell due to the risk of lineside fires on neighbouring land. A number of other heritage railways across the country also removed steam traction from their services for the same reason during the height of the heatwave in July and August. However, since arriving on the line 33202 has proved its worth on K&ESR services, the railway’s general manager Robin Coombes expressing his delight with the locomotive’s performance.…

WAGON PRESERVATIONIST Kieran Fallows has expanded his fleet with the purchase of a fourth vehicle, OAA 100036, from DB Cargo at Whitemoor Yard, under the Project:Railfreight banner, which is aiming to preserve an authentic Railfreight-era wagon fleet for use on heritage railways. The OAA fleet was constructed at BR’s Ashford works, with 100 open wagons built to a carrying capacity of 31 tonnes, numbered in the air-braked series from 100000 to 100099. They were for use on BR’s Speedlink network as general merchandise carriers, however, by the 1990s, with the loss of much of their originally intended traffic flows, many were transferred to departmental use and engineers’ traffic. Mass withdrawal has taken place during 2020 to 2022; the design has outlived its usefulness as new purpose-built departmental vehicles are being…

The movement of low and medium level radioactive waste has gone through several phases over the years. When the traffic first commenced in 1983, such workings were primarily limited to the three-mile journey between Sellafield and the low-level waste repository down the coast at Drigg, with the contaminated materialsuch as soil, rubble, paper, plastic, protective clothing and metal loaded into covered skips. These were carried on converted OBA wagons with their sides removed. The skips were emptied on arrival at Drigg and the contents buried. A more sophisticated method was introduced at the end of the 1990s, with compacted waste loaded into 20ft-long box containers built to ISO standards. These came in several versions depending on their load of material and were either half-height (1.32m) or one-third height (0.88m) for…

➔ There are still two dedicated overnight sleeper services operating in the UK six nights a week – the Caledonian Sleeper linking London and the Scottish Highlands and Great Western Railway’s Night Riviera carrying passengers between London and Penzance. In the first of a two-part review, we travel on the Night Riviera to see what the experience is like and whether it represents good value for money. ➔ November marks the first anniversary of the reopening of the Dartmoor Railway to regular passenger services between Exeter St David’s and Okehampton in Devon. Andy Coward visits Okehampton to find out how the Dartmoor Railway Association has supported the reintroduction of services on the route. ➔ The Bodmin and Wenford Railway’s diesel group operates and maintains three main line heritage diesel locomotives…