Farewell to arms

MANY Railway Magazine readers will have a fondness

OUR WRITING TEAM

GARETH EVANS Deputy editor IAN SMITH Industrial steam

Railway Magazine

‘9F’ GOING: Great Central Railway-based No. 92214 was

Draft Rail Reform Bill published

In a surprise move ahead of the next general election, plans for creating Great British Railways have been published for parliamentary scrutiny.

Avanti to axe through Shrewsbury-Euston service

Once Avanti introduces its new bi-mode Class 805

Fleet changes at Tyseley

Kolhapur to be sold as Vintage Trains brand becomes GWR focussed.

The final train of Welsh mined coal

A CHAPTER of South Wales history closed on

Rochdale to Ribblehead DalesRail service this summer

APROVISIONAL timetable has been published for anew yearround

SIDELINES

New EMU depot proposed at Shipley PLANS are

‘Shenfield Shark’ scrapped on site

Legendary brake van broken up after no safe method found to remove it in one piece for preservation.

Fallen tree derails Class 158

ONE passenger suffered minor injuries when the 15.51

Crewe home for Duke of Gloucester

THE Royal Scot Locomotive & General Trust (RSL>)

An East Coast digital milestone

Welwyn to Hitchin section of East Coast route on course to become Britain’s inaugural ‘no signals’ intercity mainline.

HIGHLAND WHISTLING

A Class 40 returned to Inverness via the

Full service returns to Marston Vale Line using Class 150 DMUs

A FULL hourly-timetabled service returned to the Marston

New ‘Clayton’ trialled by British Steel

Tests seek to establish if a Class 18 hybrid shunter is the ‘correct solution’ for rail movements at Scunthorpe Works.

Railways in Parliament

Why no tilt? JACK Brereton, the Stoke-on-Trent South

SIDELINES

APM suppliers shortlisted TWO bidders will be invited

Break through with London logistics tunnel

Tunnel boring machine Lydia completes its drive into the Old Oak Common station box.

SHARING THE SPOILS

It is estimated that five million tonnes of

Report says Phase 2 cancellation makes HS2 ‘poor value’

THE House of Commons Public Accounts Committee has

Brighton’s peers

It was a bumper night in Brighton for narrow gauge railways and Severn Valley Railway diesels as the HRA announced its 2024 award winners, reports Paul Bickerdyke.

Railway of the Year!

Ahead of becoming the HRA’s ‘Railway of the Year’, the Volk’s Electric Railway offered awards attendees a behind-the-scenes tour of its workshop and offices, as Paul Bickerdyke reports.

Mainly ‘B1s’

John Heaton FCILT looks at some examples of everyday performance in the 1950s, away from the glamour of the era’s high-profile expresses.

Signalling change in Cornwall

Three iconic manual signalboxes have closed in Mid-Cornwall as part of an upgrade that will allow more services to run, as Network Rail’s Craig Munday reports.

CORNWALL’S REMAINING OPERATIONAL BOXES

THERE are four signalboxes still controlling parts of

A Buxton ‘Crompton’

Thirty years ago, No. 33116 made the only known visit by the class to Buxton in the British Rail era.

WELCOME ABOARD THE BIGGEST RAILWAY COMMUNITY

Hunslet-built 0-4-2ST ‘Howard No. 2’ in action at

PANORAMA

A showcase for the best in railway photography

PANORAMA

A showcase for the best in railway photography

A rolling stock crisis

CHRIS Milner’s article in the February issue discussed

Saving England’s oldest Peckett

FURTHER to the article in the February issue

Glasgow Subway progress?

REGARDING the new trains on Glasgow’s Subway (page

Worse trains but better service years ago

I WAS interested in the letter from your

Putting the record straight

■ THE owner of Class 50 No. 50021

Should Penrhyn loco go to Ireland?

FOR about 60 years there has been an

Elizabeth Line potential

REGARDING ‘A high speed Elizabeth Line’(page 53, February)

Where is it?

Our pictorial quiz, for fun only

MEETINGS

THURSDAY, MARCH 7 GCR Society. Farm Road Sports

100 YEARS AGO

An artist’s impression showing how the ‘Picc-Vic’ link

Images from a Disappearing World

The Leicester & Swannington Railway

Modern Traction in the North of England

THE author is a well known photographer who

The Railway Magazine binders and bound volumes

Binders High-quality binders to store your copies of

CROSSWORD & NEXT MONTH

Across 1 & 5Junction and former station between

SIDELINES

Membership change THE requirement for East Lancashire Railway

Auto tank for the ‘Wizzer’

‘64XX’Pannier to join Minehead’s roster – and agreement in place for‘Hall’to operate on the West Somerset Railway.

STANDARD IN STAFFORDSHIRE:

Dartmouth Steam Railway’s BR ‘4MT’No. 75014 Braveheart hauled

Poppy Line to mark anniversary

DARTMOUTH Steam Railwaybased GWR 2-8-0T No. 4277 Hercules

‘Sussex Downsman’ railtour remembered at Spa Valley

MEMORIES of a railtour which ran 60 years

Landslip repair appeal firmly on track

WELL-WISHERS have responded generously to a £30,000 appeal

SIDELINES

SVR fares frozen SEVERN Valley Railway (SVR) has

Leanderto see out current boiler certificate in style

LMS‘Jubilee’booked to visit heritage lines in last few weeks of operation.

BULLEID MAKES THE GRADE

JAMES CORBEN Resplendent in its weathered condition, SR‘Battle

Vintage carriage fleet to be housed at Washford shed

THE future of the covered rolling stock accommodation

Steam gala round-up

■ FOUR guest locomotives have been confirmed for

WESTERN DUET:

MARTYN TATTAM GWR Prairies Nos. 4144 and 5199

Winter work at Bridgnorth

THE latest stage of civil engineering work to

BACK IN TRAFFIC

Danish F Class 0-6-0T No. 656 returned to

Groundworks underway at Lydney yard

VOLUNTEERS at the Dean Forest Railway (DFR) have

DIARY

MARCH 10 Bodmin Railway: Mother’s Day special tickets

Standard boiler appeal launched

£150k needed to help Toddington-based ‘4MT’ steam.

‘ROYAL SCOT’ ON THE MOORS

KENNY FELSTEAD No. 46100 Royal Scot was in

Penrhyn Castle locos rehomed

Industrial steam locomotives deaccessioned by National Trust after

Swanley charity trains success

Intensive steam service benefits British Heart Foundation.

Miniature pioneer locomotive for sale

Princess Swee’ Pea is seen in operation on

SINGLE LINES

■ RECONSTRUCTION of the Ffestiniog Railway’s platform at

DIARY

MARCH 10 Leighton Buzzard Mother’s Day 10 Romney,

New plans for expansion

L&BR to seek planning permission to extend to edge of Parracombe.

Palmerston to be exhibit at VoR museum followed by a return to steam for Rheidol event

THE Ffestiniog Railway’s (FR) George England 0-4-0STT No.4

Lining added to Corris ‘Falcon’

THE lining has now been applied to Corris

SINGLE LINES

■ HAVING been moved to John Fowler Engineering

Manx Heritage Railway’s external review published

Network ‘well run’ and no shock recommendations.

Fairbourne’s Sherpa and Ruislip’s Mad Bess to make reciprocal visits this coming May

FAIRBOURNE Railway’s Milner 0-4-0STT Sherpa will be visiting

New-style sleeper development at Launceston

WINTER work at the Launceston Steam Railway (LSR)

Stuart Williams returning to Wales as new Brecon Mountain Railway GM

THE Vale of Rheidol Railway (VoR) has appointed

DHR B-Class overhaul in progress – no significant issues yet revealed

THE anticipated overhaul of Darjeeling Tank Locomotive Trust’s

Oldest and youngest surviving Decauville locos to visit FR

Couillet 0-4-0T Chuquitanta pictured at Harbour station

Dolby South African stock collection starts arriving in Britain

SOUTH African Railways (SAR) Class 91 diesel No.

Pixie to steam again after 12 years

FOLLOWING major overhaul, Richmond Light Railway’s (RLR) Bagnall

‘KALAHARI’ TAKES SHAPE AT DINAS’:

With the painted boiler cladding added to Ffestiniog

SINGLE LINES

■ THE extensive overhaul of Cleethorpes Coast Light

STEAM PORTFOLIO

1 2 3 4 1 PRAIRIES IN FOCUS:

Beamish Museum welcomes Lisbon 730

Tram expected to enter service in its current livery to bolster the operational fleet, following arrival from Birkenhead.

EATM prepares for the new season

EAST Anglia Transport Museum (EATM) says that it

SIDELINES

More talks expected on home for No. 53

SIDELINES

Saving a ‘507’ is music to their ears!

End of the line for two historic LMS EMU cars

One car from Class 503 unit currently stored at Margate to be retained.

LEISTON WORKS PROGRESS:

Following its arrival at the Leiston Works Railway

DIARY

March 15-17 Chinnor and Princes Risborough Railway Diesel

IDRS considers fast track to rolling chassis option

THE Ivatt Diesel Re-creation Society is considering using

TRUST GETS THREE TROLLEY FLATS:

Three unpowered flat trolley steel frames have been

SIDELINES

Second Class 153 arrives at Great Central EARLY

Guest announcements begin for 2024 galas

Highlights include six ‘Teddy Bears’ meeting up at the Ecclesbourne Valley Railway.

Avon Valley shunters depart and arrive

Class 07 No. 07010 and Sentinel No. 10143/Army

DPS ‘Deltic’ Alycidon to visit Great Central Railway

THE Deltic Preservation Society (DPS) has confirmed that

CLASSIC TRACTION PORTFOLIO

1 2 3 1 MAD FOR IT: A

HST heading for the Highlands

Short HST Pullman set for three-day tours around the West Highlands.

UK Railtours to operate ‘Jolly Fisherman’ HST day excursion

SKEGNESS is always a popular destination for a

Retro teams up with RailAdventure and 125 Group

AN interesting alliance of Retro Railtours, the 125

BULLEID AT SPEED:

With a ban in place on the use

BLS PLANNING CLASS 507 FAREWELL:

The Branch Line Society (BLS) has pencilled in

ON THE RIGHT ROAD:

With the backdrop of Ely Cathedral, Class 47

Vintage DEMU and bus to uninhabited village of Imber

ONCE a year there is an extensive vintage

RAILTOURS PORTFOLIO

Both photos: CHRIS MILNER FOOTBALL SPECIALS: Two Class

Summer completion for £10m rail facility

BRITISH Steel’s new £10 million storage facility for

High density trains could ‘unlock’ freight opportunities

GB Railfreight Class 66 No. 66754 Northampton Saints

MATERIALS ON THE MOVE:

Deliveries of biomass pellets from the Port of

TfL begins tendering process for new London Trams fleet

Base order proposal provides a replacement for the system’s 24 Bombardier CR4000 vehicles, which have been in service for 24 years

Public consultations on network expansions

PROPOSALS to extend London’s Docklands Light Railway from

Traction problem with new Metro fleet

TYNE &Wear Metro operator Nexus has revealed that

Metrolink cracked rail repairs

EXCHANGE Square Metrolink stop in Manchester reopened to

Troon rebuild underway

NETWORK Rail has taken another significant step forward

Shrewsbury could get a Parkway station

PLANS to build a new station on the

University station’s new buildings open

£56 million project to boost capacity at key Birmingham station completed.

Treherbert line reopens following enhancements

AFTER extensive work to upgrade the track, install

PAYG ticketing schemes set for Midlands and Manchester

THE Department for Transport (DfT) has announced it

New footbridge installed at Dore & Totley station

Progress at Dore &Totley station showing the new

West Highland Line platforms to be extended

Ardlui station which is one of eight to

More stations to get accessibility upgrades

NETWORK Rail has announced three more stations which

SINGLE LINES

Ratho rockfall prevention FOUR days of working around

Class 730 EMU fleet enters service in West Midlands

Three-car‘Aventra’trains introduced on Wolverhampton-Walsall route.

‘Significant improvement ’ in Class 777/1 reliability

Aside from the seven IPEMUs, the other 46

May handback for TPE Class 68 locomotives

DIRECT Rail Services has told The RM that

‘FastCharge’ unit on course to begin network trials

GREAT Western Railway ‘FastCharge’battery-electric Class 230 unit No.

NOT TYPICAL ‘TURBO’ TERRITORY:

On January 22, Great Western Railway Class 166

SIDELINES

Tables for ‘Stansted Express’ trains GREATER Anglia’s Class

SIDELINES

RMS to leave Weardale base RAIL Management Services

GB Railfreight confirms Class 99 testing set for September

The 30 bi-mode locomotives will succeed Class 66s, bringing improved tractive effort and environmental performance.

Wagon Report

WH DAVIS has completed construction of 46 JNA-U

The network’s notable moves

Climbing up the HS1 gradient into Stratford International

Downpatrick continues to rebuild

Members progress flood damage repairs with the aid of new volunteers and donations from well-wishers.

New Navan rail link could be open to traffic by 2030

THE Navan rail link will be open by

STEAM SET TO RETURN TO SUIR VALLEY:

The Waterford &Suir Valley Railway (WSVR) has launched

Non-stop tour to celebrate 30 years of 2600s

TO mark the 30th anniversary of the 2600

Chinese steam comes to an end

Once the final bastion of steam operation worldwide, commercial steam operation in China ended in early 2024.

RARE HAULAGE:

South Korean rail operator Korail has run a

ENDANGERED SPECIES ON AMERICA’S MAIN LINE:

FINBARR O’NEILL Semaphore signals have almost totally disappeared

Ex-BR carriages get further new lease of life

The ‘Tranz Alpine’ crosses the Crooked River Bridge

American light rail systems renew fleets

A pair of the existing St Louis MetroLink

‘QUARRY HUNSLET’ IN JAPAN:

A brand-new 0-4-0ST in outline based on the

DMUs from Poland to Ghana

POLISH train builder PESA is delivering two brand-new