World Record
Officially the world’s longest-running railway series, established in 1901
PRINCIPAL DIMENSIONS OF RELEVANT CLASSES IN THEIR FINAL STATE LOCO CLASS
2P EXMR
Loco weight Boiler Pressure Grate Area Total Heating Surface Cyls (2) Coupled Wheels Nominal T E
53t 07c 160lb 21.1sq ft 1,404sq ft 20½in x 26in 7ft 0½in 17,585lb
D11/2 GCR DESIGN 61t 03c 180lb 26.6sq ft 1,752sq ft 20in x 26in 6ft 9in 19,645lb
3P EXCR
S EXGNR I
61t 05c 180lb 20.7sq ft 1,529sq ft 20½in x 26in 6ft 6in 21,435lb
53t 06c 200lb 22.9sq ft 1,366sq ft 19in x 26in 6ft 7in 23,125lb
TABLE 1: LEEDS-CARLISLE Train: Loco: Load: Date:
11.45 St Pancras-Edinburgh 2P 4-4-0 No. 432 193/205 tons gross c1925
Distance miles 0.0 0.8 3.1 7.5 11.6 13.8 17.0 21.9 23.2 26.2 29.9 32.8 34.5 36.2 39.5 41.4 45.8 47.5 52.2 53.5 58.4 61.6 64.7 71.5 82.2 85.1 97.6 103.1 110.3 113.0
Location
Impetus
From Skipton the line climbs more steeply, on gradients varying from 1-in-300 to 1-in-132, and here the former Midland engine fell to 37½mph in the Aire Gap, between the headwaters of the River Aire, flowing east, and the Ribble, bound for the sea near Preston. The downhill ‘breather’ to Settle Junction produced 67mph, providing impetus for the ‘Long Drag’ to Blea Moor. By Helwith Bridge, the 1-in-100 gradient had nonetheless lowered speed to 31mph, increasing to a brief 40mph on the short stretch of easy grade that follows. Plugging away through upper Ribblesdale, millstone grit-capped Pen-y-Ghent to the east, the ‘seven-footer’ then fell to 32mph at
Ribblehead before a slight acceleration across the famous viaduct. The final minimum at Blea Moor Tunnel was 31½mph, after a 14-mile climb chiefly at 1-in-100; Douglas Landau, an expert in such matters, puts the average equivalent drawbar horsepower (edhp) from Helwith Bridge to the summit at some 660, a fair effort for a ‘2P’, even with only 205 tons. However, two minutes had been dropped on the climb and, on the high-level continuation to the 1,169ft summit at Ais Gill, even 65mph at Hawes Junction (now Garsdale) did not prevent the loss of a further minute. Allowed to run freely down Edendale, No. 432 touched 75mph at Kirkby Stephen, winning back some of the lost minutes and coming to a stand at Carlisle in five seconds less than booked; but time would not have been kept had the speed restrictions at Shipley and Skipton been strictly obeyed. Moving north again we cross the Border, evoking personal memories of a visit to Scotland in 1959. On August 21 that year, in the centre of the Fife coalfield, Thornton Junction shed yard was a last resting place for doomed former North British Railway locos; but, at the station, a ‘B1’ 4-6-0 on an Edinburgh to Crail semi-fast had been exchanged for ex-NBR ‘Glen’ 4-4-0 No. 62467 Glenfinnan in pristine condition, and I hoped for something similar for the 5.45pm to Dunfermline (Upper). Motive power turned out to be ‘D11/2’ 4-4-0 No. 62677 Edie Ochiltree, built for the LNER, but to a pre-Grouping design. The journey to Dunfermline had character but little scenic or performance interest and, with its two non-corridors, ‘Edie’ had an easy task. Although Thornton Junction station itself was subsequently razed to the ground, and the coal traffic has disappeared, the route taken
Speed Gradient mph 1-in 633R 633R 52 310F 533R/273R 30* sigs L/334R L/290R 244R 247F/L Level 47*/50 L/213R 42 212F/132R 150R/300R 37½ 132R 214F 67 181F/L 100R 31/40 100R/L 100R 32 100R 35½/31½ 176R/100R 264F/264R 65 288F 165R/L 75 100F 61 176R/440F 74 120F -/52 264F/165R 66/56 220R/132R 67 132F 132F/120R
¶ Now Garsdale Schedule 135min. * speed reduced by brakes
Former LMS ‘2P’ 4-4-0 No. 40491 and ‘Black Five’ No. 44852 – both Holbeck engines – pass Crossflats, near Bingley, with the Down ‘Waverley’ from St Pancras on November 11, 1958. GAVIN MORRISON
Carlisle. The log (Table 1) first appeared in The Railway Magazine for February 1925 and the run was described by Cecil J Allen, although it is not clear whether he timed it himself. The load is quoted as 30 axles, perhaps six eight-wheelers and a 12-wheel restaurant car, weighing 193 tons tare against the 180-ton limit quoted by ‘CJA’ for a ‘2P’ on this service. Once clear of the purlieus of Leeds, acceleration was reasonable, with the 4-4-0 working its 205 (gross) tons up to 52mph before taking Shipley curve at what must have been an uncomfortable 40mph; adverse signals then reduced the rate to 30mph, costing about one minute. Incidentally, passing times in this relatively early log are quoted to the nearest five seconds, while ‘maximum and minimum speeds’ are ‘at or near stations shown’. No speeds are shown up Airedale, but the average from Saltaire, passed at 30mph, to Skipton (47mph) was 48.9mph, implying maxima well into the ‘fifties’.
LEEDS Holbeck Kirkstall Apperley Bridge Saltaire Bingley KEIGHLEY Kildwick Cononley SKIPTON Gargrave Bell Busk Summit HELLIFIELD Settle Junction SETTLE Helwith Bridge Horton Ribblehead Blea Moor Dent Hawes Jct¶ Ais Gill Kirkby Stephen APPLEBY WEST Long Marton Lazonby Armathwaite Scotby CARLISLE
Actual ms 0 00 2 15 6 00 11 20 16 30 20 10 24 25 29 40 31 05 34 25 39 15 43 25 48 20 51 35 53 55 64 35 73 10 75 30 82 20 85 45 88 55 95 05 104 20 107 00 118 10 123 45 130.45 134 55
TABLE 2: GLASGOWEDINBURGH Train: Loco: Load: Date: Recorder: Distance miles 0.0 1.6 6.3 12.9 17.3 21.8 25.0 2.5 4.7 9.8 13.8 19.0 21.1 22.3
Glasgow (Queen St)-Edinburgh (Wav) D11/2 No. 6400¶ Roderick Dhu 9/300/315 tons January 28, 1936 D S M Barrie
Location
Sched Actual Speed Gradient min m s mph 1-in GLASGOW (Q ST) 0 0 00 L/46R Cowlairs 6 05 41R Lenzie Jct 12 12 56 56 Level Dullatur 19 47 64 900R/L Greenhill Jct 23 23 54 66 Level FALKIRK 27 53 69 Level POLMONT 31 30 48 882F Manuel 4 30 53 L/882F Linlithgow 6 54 57 L/882R Winchburgh Jct 12 12 30 40*/25* 882R/960F Bathgate Jct 17 17 55 64 960F Saughton Jct 22 45 70 960F HAYMARKET 24 24 42 - * 960F/L WAVERLEY 27 27 27 500F/300R
¶ later, BR No. 62693
by No. 62677 now flourishes as part of the Edinburgh-Kirkcaldy-Dunfermline-Edinburgh Fife Circular service. While the LNER’s chief mechanical engineer (CME), H N Gresley, had a penchant for experimentation, manifested by his 2-8-2 adventure and the water-tube boiler 4-6-4, the company was never prosperous and the CME had to practise a policy of make-do and mend. For example, more power was needed for the Edinburgh to Glasgow expresses via Falkirk but, July 2018 • The Railway Magazine • 15