Rail Express

By ‘Industry Witness’ Ashley Butlin/Gordon Kirkby INCLUDED in the Government’s budget announcement on October 29 was a number of rail-related matters, one of the most significant being a £350 million loan to Transport for London to enable the comple

AFTER the North Eastern Railway’s early 20th century trials with petrol power (see previous pages), the next big steps in multiple unit history came in the 1930s, with the development of diesel engines powerful enough for rail use. The potential for

THE London Underground map suggests that Monument and Bank stations are two separate stations. Yet, given that entrances to both are as close as 300 metres apart and have interconnecting tunnels, LU considers them to be a single station entity. Today

THE diesel multiple unit, initially described as a railcar, was made possible by the development of engines of sufficient output to power a rail vehicle capable of achieving point-to-point timings compatible with other train movements. That moment ar

THE return to service of ‘Hymek’ No. D7018, which last ran more than 23 years ago, took a big step forward on October 24 when it undertook a loaded test run over the full length of the West Somerset Railway with sister DEPG machine No. D7017 in the c

THE Deltic Preservation Society is looking at options that might see its No. 55019 Royal Highland Fusilier back on the main line. A railtour operator has, in effect, offered to sponsor its return by guaranteeing a set number of charters, which would

By ‘Industry Witness’ Brad Joyce Andy Mason NR THE Department for Transport has announced the terms of reference for the forthcoming Rail Review set up as a result of the financial failure of the East Coast franchise, the inability to introduce reli

LIKE the GWR, the LNER also recognised diesel railcar potential, and there were a number of prototypes. The initiative was again taken by a private company, Armstrong Whitworth, which built a diesel-electric railcar with a 250hp Sulzer power unit usi

THE long-awaited launch of Britain’s first tram-train service finally took place on October 25, when No. 399204 carried the first passengers as the 09.39 Sheffield Cathedral to Rotherham Parkgate. But the day was marred just a few hours later when th

AT the time the GWR was introducing railcars with AEC equipment, the LMS asked Leyland Motors to construct three four-wheel vehicles where each was powered by a 95hp engine. After trials, the railcars were allocated to services between Blackburn and

DAVID RAPSON Jamie Squibbs DIRECT Rail Services’ Type 1s Nos. 20303 and 20305 undertook railhead treatment duties from October 1, passing Barnetby at 10.25 heading for Grimsby with the 3S13/08.50 from Wrenthorpe and later at both Sheffield and Gilber

MICHAEL Owen’s main line-certified Class 20s Nos. 20007 and 20205, which are normally based at the Midland Railway-Butterly, were hired in by DRS during October after its own Class 20s used on the York-based railhead treatment train developed tyre fl

THE Irish Traction Group’s ex-CIE/ IR ‘C’ Class Bo-Bo No. 226 moved under its own power for the first time in preservation on October 13. The notable occasion took place at the group’s base at the former Goods Store at Carrick-on-Suir on the Waterfor

IT is five years now since the surviving prototype HST power car No. 41001 arrived at Ruddington, Great Central Railway (Nottingham), its operating base while under the care of the 125 Group. The Group had already pulled off what many saw as a minor

HULL Trains had to suspend a large number of services during October due to a number of issues with its units, with none available for service on some days. The problems began on October 3 when No. 180109 failed near Sandy with an electrical issue wh

IT was perhaps fitting that during the week the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released its report on the effects of global warming and climate change caused by increasing emissions of greenhouse gases, largely caused by burning

GM No. 077 worked the Connolly to Waterford leg of the BGH luxury tour train on September 30, plus the evening trip to Bagenalstown that day. No. 077 hauled the BGH from there to Heuston on October 1. GM No. 215 worked a private charter formed of the

Just how nimble are today’s locos and units, and what’s the quickest off the mark? WOULD a trip out to the East Anglian coast be worth it to see if a four-coach Abellio Greater Anglia Class 360 ‘Desiro’ was much different from a London Northwestern

THE pair of Autocars introduced by the North Eastern Railway in 1903 can rightly be described as ahead of their time and the forerunner of all multiple units to follow. Rather than go with conventional steam power, and having seen the superior accele

David Russell Railtec Transfers EVERSHOLT has begun disposing of its Class 315 units that have been made surplus following the introduction of Class 345 ‘Aventras’ on the Liverpool Street to Shenfield route. The first unit to be sent for scrap was No

BLOW FOR MANCHESTER: Two of the main stations serving Manchester, Central and Exchange, were authorised for closure. Central station was opened by the Cheshire Lines Committee companies (GNR, MSLR, MR) in July 1880 and Exchange by the LNWR in June 18

THE pair of Class 31s put up for sale by Network Rail in July, Nos. 31105 and 31233, have been purchased by father and son team John and James Jolly of Mangapps Railway Museum. Both locos were quickly moved from Derby to their new base in Essex, No.

David Russell Jamie McEwen THE delayed public introduction of ScotRail’s first HST set took place on October 15, when the set, HA26 with power car Nos. 43033/183, formed the 1B18/09.07 Aberdeen-Edinburgh. It followed a preview run five days previousl

Gareth Bayer Gareth Bayer WHEN the last formations of the venerable British Rail HAA Merry-Go-Round hoppers were withdrawn in 2010 after some 45 years of service, nobody predicted that the high capacity Thrall bogie wagons that replaced them would be

TWO 'OO' gauge models of refurbished Class 50s representing the class in the 1980s and 1990s have arrived in model shops in time for Christmas. Large Logo No. 50040 Leviathan (R3653, RRP: £179.99) will suit West of England and Cross-Country InterCity

“My usual approach to modelling is to look at the positive aspects of what is available from the manufacturers and if it will achieve my modelling objectives.” WHEN Hornby released its Class 423 4-VEP model in September 2011, the reaction from South

IN a weekend? Yes, why not? The quickie project to place a locomotive or rollingstock into service in a weekend always brings a certain sense of achievement come Monday morning, making the weekend a success. Selecting appropriate materials, such as a

By ‘Industry Witness’ THE award of the ScotRail franchise in 2014 followed a highly contested competition that saw Abellio win out with promises of high-quality management processes. The award was considered controversial at the time, because Nation

A SUSTAINED period of cold weather in February and March brought more than a week of disruption to rail services as the so-called ‘Beast from the East’ saw heavy snow, winds and ice affect all parts of the country. One of the main problems was the po

By ‘Industry Witness’ “Charter trains boost local economies and a sense of pride and nostalgia in the railway” THE Government has awarded Network Rail an increased budget for Control Period 6 from 2019-2024 despite fears that funding would be cut

VIVARAIL has announced an agreement with West Midlands Trains to build three new Class 230 ‘D-Trains’ for use on the Marston Vale Line between Bedford and Bletchley from December 2018. These will be the first trains to be introduced within the new fr

By ‘Industry Witness’ ABELLIO Rail Cymru has withdrawn from the race to win the next Wales &Borders franchise after the collapse of bidding partner Carillion in January. It was originally thought that Abellio could continue its bid, but the decision

THE British Railways Modernisation Plan of 1955 included orders from four manufacturers for ‘big’ Type 4 locos. English Electric’s offering used a Mk.2 version of its 16-cylinder SVT power unit rated at 2,000hp, a development of the Mk.1 type that ha

FROM an operational point of view, the ‘40s’ were quickly outpaced by developments in diesel engine technology - meaning that just a few years after their introduction in the late 1950s, they were judged overweight and underpowered for the most prest

ON the face of it, this poster appears to be a perfectly normal one, warning rail staff to be vigilant in avoiding accidents and wasting money. It was displayed in British Rail messrooms in the early 1970s, and shows a damaged Class 40 with the wordi

MOST depots built for diesel or electric locomotives and units were the direct result of the 1955 British Railways Modernisation Plan, but a few preceded this such as EMU depots on the Southern or Reddish, in south Manchester, which was built for the

Completing an initial comparison of HST vs IEP, Neville Hill returns to the Great Western Main Line to see how the Class 800s get away from a standing start in electric mode. IT IS fair to say the performance of the Class 800 five-car IETs on diesel

■ WIGAN SPRINGS BRANCH OPENS: A new traction maintenance depot in Wigan was officially opened on April 3, as part of the London Midland Region’s North West modernisation programme, and was described as the only depot of its kind on the 114 miles of m

Your letters, emails, feedback and other comments are always welcome. Contact us at Rail Express, Media Centre, Morton Way, Horncastle, Lincolnshire LN9 6JR; or email: railexpresseditor@mortons.co.uk. The editor reserves the right to edit all letters

THE beginning of March saw Irish Railway Models unveil its production plans for 2018, the focus remaining on producing high-quality ‘OO’ gauge wagons to partner with the existing range of Murphy Models locomotives. All of these CIE/Irish Rail-owned w

AS THE early 1980s began, British Rail was still saddled with a large number of elderly and unfitted ballast wagons of limited capacity and speed. Therefore, during 1982, the rebuilding of 1000 Bogie Bolster E wagons into a new fleet of 34t capacity

In recent years, 3D printing has become increasingly popular with railway modellers. Detailing items, people, scenery and even rolling stock – these are all examples of where modellers have used this technology. Furthermore, the technology is becomin

THE trio of SJA box wagons was converted from HEA hoppers in 1989 on a prototype basis to see if a new scrap-carrying fleet could be created. Rebuilt at Cardiff Cathays, their full history is detailed on pages M22-M23 but a production order never mat

DURING 1987, with domestic coal traffic in terminal decline, some 131 redundant HEA hopper wagons were transferred to the Railfreight Metals sub-sector and recoded as HSAs for further use as scrap metal carriers. The only modification for this new ro

Christopher Westcott & Piers Connor WORK has begun to build a new £23.3 million workshop at London Underground’s Acton Works, in West London. The 550sq m facility will initially host all 85 of the Central Line’s 1992 Tube stock fleet during their upg

THERE has been a reported 1.1% fall in Tube passenger journeys, from 421.2 million in 2016 to 416.7 million in 2017, but London Underground (LU) still recognises the long-term trend is likely to rise. Therefore the continued battle between capacity a

THE period under review saw a diverse range of developments, with the DRS Class 68s earmarked for use on the new TransPennine Express loco-hauled trains. Most notably, the last two of the fleet were added to the XHTP pool during February, No. 68029 b

FOLLOWING the announcement in January that No. 50033 Glorious is to be returned to working order, the Fifty Fund and Class 50 Alliance reached agreement with Tyseley Loco Works on February 5 to take the loco on loan for a period of three years. Glori

THE day that some thought would never come finally arrived on February 8 as No. 37407 rolled out of Loram, Derby, on its long-awaited first test run. This marked the end of the mammoth rebuild of the Type 3, which has taken some two and half years to

David Rapson ON February 1, the 7X08/16.09 Derby Chaddesden-Banbury (for West Ruislip) ‘S’ Stock working had the English Electric pairs of Nos. 20107+20118 and 20096+20314 either end of LUL sets Nos. 21359/60. The same quartet brought sets Nos. 21027

David Russell AFTER a period that saw several units kept in ‘warm store’ at Peterborough following the introduction of limited Class 700 workings on Great Northern services, Govia Thameslink Railway has begun handing back its Class 365 ‘Networker’ un

David Russell EASTERN Rail Services has gained its first main line coaching stock hire contract in a deal which has seen Mk.2f BSO No. 9513 dispatched to Scotland for use on Caledonian Sleeper duties. The vehicle is being provided for use on the Edin

Gareth Bayer THE third week of February saw the first Stoke ‘cut ‘n’ shut’ HRA hopper wagon moved outside of the DB Cargo facility’s paintshop after being repainted in DB red. Former HTA No. 310501 has been renumbered as No. 41 70 6723 002-5 and, unl

William Watson & Alan McFerran BELFAST Central station is to be renamed Lanyon Place, which will coincide with a project to improve the main entrance and internal facilities of the through station. Northern Ireland Railways stated that the change has

By Simon Bendall THE long-expected exodus of locomotives from Washwood Heath finally occurred during January, ahead of the former Alstom site being handed over to HS2 for redevelopment, the land eventually being destined to house the high speed rou