Rail Express - September 2020

TYNE & WEAR AT 40 Metro system notches up four decades

RETRO LOOK FOR ‘90’

LSL loco is latest to get InterCity Swallow

Essential reading for today’s rail enthusiast

TOURS & HERITAGE LINES RETURN

RAIL EXPRESS No. 292 SEPTEMBER 2020 £4.70

Warm welcome for ‘Staycation Express’

MODELLING SECTION

■ SCOTRAIL Mk.3SDs

Hornby coaches reviewed

■ AUTUMN RELEASES What's new from Bachmann

■ HASTINGS DEMU

Part 2 of our modelling feature

FAR NORTH TIMBER TRIAL Regular freight returns to Georgemas Junction

Issue No. 292 September 2020

CONTENTS

This amazing ensemble was captured at Highdyke, on the East Coast Main Line south of Grantham, on August 6, featuring HST power car No. 43054 leading electric No. 91122, various Mk.3s (including some from the former ‘Pretendolino’ set) and No. 43066 south as the 3Q45/12.56 Doncaster to Peterborough Eastfield Junction. The working was a trial run for the train ahead of it moving to the Midland Main Line to help test the newly-installed overhead wiring. Paul Clark

FEATURES

NEWS

76

8

83

THE RETRO YEARS: SEPTEMBER

More classic diesel and electric scenes from the Rail Express archives.

40 YEARS OF THE METRO

The Tyne & Wear Metro was Britain’s first modern-era light rail system, and this August it has notched up 40 years of service.

REGULARS 14

87

TIME TRAVELLER

The headlines from decades past.

MODELLING THERE’S a HST theme this month as we review Hornby’s latest ‘OO’ gauge ScotRail Mk.3SD coaches, and take a D&E Files look at the Inter7City sets they are used in. We also take an in-depth look at Hornby’s Network Rail and ‘First & Last’ power car packs. Elsewhere, Bachmann has revealed some of its autumn releases, which includes a 2-HAP, ‘66’ and ‘40’.

£30 billion cost for a carbon-neutral railway; PostCovid boost for charter operations?; Far North timber trial; Loram coach breaks cover; TransPennine Diggle route investment confirmed; London Bridge Signalling Centre closes; Isle of White Class 483s seek new home; SVR welcomes back travellers; SWR considers Fawley branch; Northern Ireland DMU factory no more

16

POWERSCENE

26

POWER BY THE HOUR

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Notable workings, Name Game, and Spectrum.

Class 90s reveal new owners’ liveries; Two more ‘91s’ stand down; GBRf newbies in traffic; Final two Colas ‘56s’ back in service.

28

UNITS

31

WAGONS

32

COACHES

34

SHUNTERS

35

LU WORLD

36

FROM ONLY

‘Flirts’ start work on Stansted Express.

First look at the new Ecofret2 flats.

Stored HST coaches change hands; ROG buys Mk.3s; LSL operational fleet expands.

RSS shuffles shunter fleet.

Battle for London Underground begins.

RAILTOURS

No UKR or Pathfinder trips until 2021.

38

PRESERVATION

42

IRISH ANGLE

‘Whistler’ back in main line service; Helston seeks help for DMU; Cautious return to diesel running.

Uncertain future for 201 Class GM after frame cracks found; Test freight trains operated.

Some railtours are back (see pages 8 and 36) and some heritage lines have reopened (see pages 10 and 38), but one bright spot has been the launch of RCS’ ‘Staycation Express’ between Skipton and Appleby, which saw No. 47712 take over from No. 37521 from August 9, when it took the empty stock move from Crewe to Appleby – the formation seen approaching Wigan North Western with No. 47593 at the rear. See also pages 6/7. Stewart Higham.

Editor’s Comment PRINT & DISTRIBUTION

Newstrade & distribution Marketforce (UK) Ltd, 3rd Floor, 161 Marsh Wall, London E14 9AP. 0203 787 9001 Printed by William Gibbons and Sons, Wolverhampton Published Third Friday of every month This issue August 21, 2020 Next issue September 18, 2020 Advertising deadline September 3, 2020 ISSN No 1362 234X

Paul Bickerdyke Rail Express Editor

© Mortons Media Group Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage retrieval system without prior permission in writing from the publisher.

Staying safe and viable

I

T is great to see heritage lines and railtour companies finding a way to start operating again, although there is clearly still a long way to go. The problem for both is how to carry passengers again in a safe and viable way.

However you approach it, ‘safe’ means carrying fewer people on board than normal, which ultimately affects the viability.

Some lines have looked at the constraints and taken the difficult decision to stay closed for the rest of the year. Those that are reopening are doing so in a very different way to normal – either by offering a straightforward out and back round trip, with trains being cleaned between sets of passengers, or by exclusive use of booked seats for the whole day.

The Severn Valley Railway, for example, has opted for the latter approach. It is lucky in that it has enough carriages to make up three trains of compartment stock, and tickets are sold for use of the same compartment in the same train all day. This works well, as seen on a recent visit (see page 10), but running just three trains a day is well down on the SVR’s normal timetable.

With railtours, a typical enthusiasts’ trip has to run almost completely full to cover the costs.

This is clearly not possible at the moment, and

Rail Express is pleased to consider contributions for publication

for that reason major operators Pathfinder and UK Railtours have said they are not planning to run any more trips this year. The only operators that have started running again so far are towards the higher end of the market, where there is perhaps slightly more wiggle room in the profit margins.

One bold move, however, has been the launch of Rail Charter Services’ ‘Staycation Express’, offering loco-hauled trips between Skipton and Appleby on the Settle & Carlisle line. The S&C has long been ripe for such tourist trains, along the lines of the ‘Jacobite’ in Scotland only with diesels, but what a year to launch it! RCS has to be applauded for going ahead, and hopefully there will be enough passengers to make it worth repeating next year.

Paul Bickerdyke

Please do not send images that have already been sent to other publications. Prints & slides are sent at the owner’s risk and must be accompanied by a SAE for return. Digital images can be sent by email, but please bear in mind we may not be able to reply to every one, as we receive hundreds of images each week.

Although care will be taken with submissions, Rail Express assumes no responsibility for loss/damage, however caused. Submitted material may also be used in connection with other Mortons Media Group projects or as content on the internet. Payment for material used will be made promptly. Please send digital submissions to RailExpressEditor@mortons.co.uk or via CD or DVD to the editorial address.

IMPORTANT: Images should be ex-camera with no Photoshop manipulation.

ADVERTISING

Group advertising manager Sue Keily skeily@mortons.co.uk Advertising Fiona Leak Tel: 01507 529573 Email: fleak@mortons.co.uk Publishing director Dan Savage Publisher Tim Hartley Production editor Sarah Wilkinson Designer Tracey Markham Sales and Distribution Manager Carl Smith

EDITORIAL

Editor Paul Bickerdyke Tel: 01507 529540 Email: RailExpressEditor@mortons.co.uk Editorial address Rail Express Magazine, Mortons Media Group Ltd, PO Box 99, Horncastle, Lincolnshire LN9 6LZ

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Christopher Westcott

Nigel Burkin Editor Rail Express Modeller

David Rapson

Gareth Bayer Power by the hour Wagons

Alistair Grieve

LU World (with Piers Connor)

Powerscene

William Watson Irish Angle (with Alan McFerran)

Shunters

‘Industry Witness’ News Writer

RAIL Charter Services’ new loco-hauled trips on the Settle & Carlisle line started running on July 20, the bold initiative – especially in these days of Covid-19 – running three return trips on Monday-Saturdays. The set stables overnight at Appleby and the full diagram through to September 12 is: 06.50 Appleby-Skipton ecs 08.35 Skipton-Appleby / 10.35 Appleby-Skipton 12.18 Skipton-Appleby / 14.38 Appleby-Skipton 16.12 Skipton-Appleby / 17.58 Appleby-Skipton 19.18 Skipton-Appleby ecs Nos. 47593 Galloway Princess and 37521 (D6817) were the initial power for the five carriage set, and these are pictured with the morning empty stock move at Arten Gill (south of Dent) on July 24. David Dockray

Nos. 37521 and 47593 ‘top and tail’ the 12.18 Skipton-Appleby at Ribblehead on July 31. Fine weather has attracted many photographers to see these loco-hauled workings. Chris Playfair

No. 37521 glides along Mallerstang Edge at Angrholme, south of Kirkby Stephen, with the 08.35 Skipton-Appleby on July 31. Steve Sienkiewicz

Glorious evening sunlight catches No. 47593 as it leads away from Garsdale on July 21 with the 17.58 Appleby-Skipton. Martin Cook

DRS Type 3 No. 37407 was hired in for one day on August 3 to replace No. 37521 after the latter had failed while working the train back to Appleby from Crewe after booked weekend maintenance. The Large Logo machine is pictured leading the 19.18 Skipton-Appleby stock move at Dandry Mire, north of Garsdale. Duncan McEvoy

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