DEREHAM DUTIES: The Mid-Norfolk Railway has hired Severn Valley Railway-based GWR No. 813 for the summer. It joins resident BR ‘4MT’ 2-64T No. 80078 on the steam roster. No. 813 is pictured departing Wymondham Abbey station on July 16. The ex-Port Talbot Railway 0-6-0ST replaces privately-owned Hunslet ‘Austerity’ 0-6-0ST No. 75008 Swiftsure, which moved to the Dean Forest Railway in May. For timetables and fare information, visit www.midnorfolkrailway.co.uk or call 01362 851723.
IAN MACDONALD/MNR
THE first train on the revived Llangollen Railway departed the Denbighshire market town’s riverside station for Berwyn on Friday, July 9.
Worked by Llangollen Railcars’ Class 108 DMU, comprising DMBS No. 51933 and DTC No. 54504, the train, which departed at 11.00, carried 44 passengers. The next trip, the 12.00, had 34 passengers, providing a welcome start on what is a low-cost but attractive operation.
A further boost has come from the Welsh Government following the awarding of a £143,290 grant from the Wales Cultural Recovery Fund Phase 2. The funding enables the Llangollen Railway Trust (LRT) to have confidence in the ability to employ staff for essential positions which allow the railway to resume operations.