BURIED well below heroic tales of epic runs in the age of steam, lies a soft under-belly of sometimes indifferent workmanship and ineffective management. We looked closely at such an example in The RM’s September 2021 edition, with the 8.12am Leeds-York/Scarborough of 1958/59 showing its deplorable punctuality record; a situation that was allowed to exist despite it being the regular commuter train of many North Eastern Region HQ operating staff.
Noel Proudlock was the one who kept count of those events, but the train was by no means an isolated example. During the motive power section of his management training, Noel was assigned to the Wakefield District, based in an office at Westgate station. His main train to reach work was the 8.25am Leeds Central to Doncaster local, booked to call at Ardsley and Lofthouse; a train that promised a wealth of interest being a lightweight four-coach formation booked for Doncaster enginemen with a home-based Class 5 ‘B1’ but likely to produce a Class 7 ‘V2’ and even the odd Pacific.
From the vantage point of 2024, we can sit back and imagine the fireworks of flying up the three-mile, 1-in-100 climb from Beeston to Ardsley at speeds far exceeding those achieved by heavier London expresses, rousing acceleration from the intermediate station stops, and a final fling down the matching descent before masterly braking for entry to Wakefield Westgate.