LAST LLANELLI: Thank you for the Llanelli and Mynydd Mawr Railway article (August issue). Attached is a view of the final train to cover the branch line under BR – the Monmouthshire Railway Society’s ‘Robeston Rumbler’ from Newport on October 14, 1989 – which is seen at Cynheidre. The train was formed of DMU sets S942 (Nos. 52044+59382+51928) and S945 (Nos. 51925+59380+53643) and is waiting to return to the mainline.
RICHARD GILES
THE Manchester South Junction and Altrincham Railway (MSJ&AR) is one of those little-known obscure railways where little of its rolling stock has been preserved, but tucked away at Butterley are two compartment carriages preserved from this railway dating back to 1931.
The MSJ&AR ‘main line’ was between Ordsall Lane and London Road (Manchester Piccadilly), but there was a 8½ -mile ‘branch’ running from London Road to Altrincham. Eventually it was connected to the Cheshire Lines Committee at Altrincham and became a through route.
In 1931, the Altrincham branch became the world’s first urban passenger railway to be electrified overhead at 1500V DC, 22 three-car EMUs were built to provide a suburban service by Metropolitan-Cammell, based on the LMS type 1 design, teak framed, metal panels and noncorridor. They gave 40 of years of service until April 30, 1971.