GETTING A FARE DEAL: How to find the right ticket and save money
BRITAIN’S BEST-SELLING RAIL TITLE September 2016
40 years of IRISH 071 CLASS
1,100 NEW
VEHICLES ORDERED
as Abellio retains Anglia franchise
Somerset & Dorset PERFORMANCE
Focus on RAIL OPS GROUP
ENGLISH COAL
Mined for UK Steam Locos
■ LABOUR LEADER’S TRAIN SEAT ROW ■ NIGHT TUBE SERVICE BEGINS
Features
14 Carving Out a Niche
28 Forty Years of the‘Big’GMs
RM editor Chris Milner goes behind the scenes with the Rail Operations Group, which during the 18 months of its operating licence has secured a niche market moving rolling stock for repair or refurbishment.
Gary Boyd-Hope explores the history of Irish Rail's General Motors Class 071s, together with their Northern Ireland counterparts, as these popular and reliable workhorses celebrate their 40th anniversary as a wholly intact fleet.
20 Mastering the Mendips
37 Quarry Hunslet Homecoming
In the first of a two-part Practice & Performance, Keith Farr takes us back to the iconic Somerset & Dorset Railway and some fine runs behind ex-LMS motive power over its arduous route.
NICHE POSITION: Profile of Rail Ops Group – p14
4 • The Railway Magazine • September 2016
44 Getting a Fare Deal
The myriad ticketing options available since privatisation can often be confusing. Steven Knight explains what the different classifications mean and provides some top tips on how to get the best deals available when it comes to prices.
51 All aboard‘Le Truffadou’
Rob Gambrill tells the story of how he and others tracked down and brought home the last of the narrow gauge ex-pat Penrhyn Quarry Hunslets, Nesta, after decades in exile in Puerto Rico.
John Hannavy visits one of France's few preserved railways, l’Association du Chemin de fer Touristique du Haut-Quercy, and looks into its fascinating history which centres on, of all things, truffles!
SOMERSET & DORSET: Practice & Performance – p20
AMERICAN INVASION: Irish Rail’s Class 071s – p28
Contents
September 2016. No. 1,386. Vol 162. A journal of record since 1897.
Headline News
Abellio orders 1,043 new vehicles for Greater Anglia – p7.
No end in sight for Southern driver dispute; £1bn train order as Abellio retains Greater Anglia franchise; landslip traps steam special at Mallaig; English coal for heritage railways; Night Tube service begins; Network SouthEast museum opens at Finmere; Island Line retained as part of SWT franchise; redundant Douglas horse trams auctioned off.
On the cover
MAIN IMAGE: After a 30-yearr restoration by volunteers at the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway, Bulleid 'Merchant Navy' Pacific No. 35006 Peninsular & Oriental Lines bursts through Southam Lane road bridge upon departure from Cheltenham Racecourse on August 8. JACK BOSKETT INSET 1: No. 071 at Bray in 1995 – see p31. COLM O'CALLGHAN INSET 2: 40564 and 53810 at Radstock North – see p20. RAIL PHOTOPRINTS
INSET 3: Rail Operations Group in focus – see p14. STEVE DONALD
Track Record The Railway Magazine’s monthly news digest 68 Steam & Heritage
Summer revival for BR Standards; North Norfolk celebrates Cromer success; Southern livery for Martello; No. 813’s Severn Valley return; ’County’ revealed as a 4-6-0; Thornbury Castle arrives in Somerset.
74 Industrial Steam 77 Steam Portfolio 78 Miniature News 80 Traction & Stock
First Crossrail EMU for Old Dalby testing; DRS reveals
UK’S TOPSELLING RAIL TITLE! Subscribe today and save money on every issue. Call 01507 529529 or see page 42 for our latest offers
85 Traction Portfolio 86 Classic Traction
'Deltic' for Great Central gala; public access at Finmere station; second ‘Thumper’ for Lavender Line.
89 Traction Portfolio 92 Network
Six-week closure for Severn Tunnel; London Bridge concourse opens; green light for Cardiff improvements.
94 Metro 96 Railtours 100 Narrow Gauge
The railways may have superseded the canals as the prime mover for industry, but the two often make ideal bed fellows for photography. Freightliner Class 70 No. 70006 heads northbound along the West Coast Main Line at Brinklow where the railway meets the Oxford Canal. MALCOLM RANIERI
The Railway Magazine’s audited circulation of 37,291 copies per month makes it by far the
Class 88 livery; Hitachi releases first Class 385 from Japan; Class 700 tested through Thameslink core.
First trains for Pedemoura; three ‘Bears’ at Groudle Glen; two more years for Douglas horse trams.
104 World 106 Operations
Our round-up of news from the train and freight operating companies.
Left: No. 78018 steams at GCR – p68
Regulars 12 Multiple Aspects 12 Railways in Parliament 26 Reviews The latest railway books under the spotlight.
41 Readers’ Platform Your thoughts on the topics that matter to you.
42 Subscription Offer
Panorama – p60
Subscribe today and receive your monthly copy of The Railway Magazine for just £3.33 an issue!
64 From The RM Archives
57 Meetings
112 Heritage Diary
Details of railway society meetings near you.
60 Panorama Our monthly gallery of the best railway photography.
What The RM was reporting 20, 50 and 100 years ago. Full details of when heritage railway, steam centres and museums are open.
122 Prize Crossword and Where Is It?
Mendips PRACTICE & PERFORMANCE
Mastering the
T
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the closure of the Somerset & Dorset (S&D) line, and in the first of a two-part Practice & Performance Keith Farr looks at LMS locomotives that worked the famous and arduous route.
he Nottingham to Bournemouth Saturday ‘extra’ was battling with the climb into the Mendip hills, the threecylinder rasping of its ‘West Country’ Pacific contrasting with the deep and measured beat of the ‘2P’ 4-4-0 pilot. In the corridor, an irritated gentleman asked if this was indeed the Bournemouth train; on receiving an affirmative answer, he snorted: “But I thought it was supposed to be an express!” His scorn was not without reason. Even in 1958, long-distance trains travelled at more than 20mph except perhaps in obvious mountain country such as that around Beattock or Druimuachdar. The Somerset & Dorset Railway lacked such a dramatic landscape; yet its locos and crews had to tackle some of the most gruelling climbs on any British main line, with many miles at 1-in-50. The S&D had its origins in the Somerset Central Railway, originally broad gauge and
worked by the Bristol and Exeter Railway, and the standard gauge Dorset Central, backed by the London & South Western. The companies aimed to connect the port of Burnham-on-Sea with Hamworthy (Poole), creating a land bridge between the Bristol and English channels. By February 1862, the Somerset Central had completed its main line, from Highbridge to Cole, where it met the Dorset route from Templecombe; the following September, the two companies combined to form the Somerset & Dorset Railway.
Attractive proposition
The line’s raison d’être now changed. The Somerset Central had been converted to mixed gauge and the Midland Railway had reached Bath, making a route to the north a more attractive proposition than the Bristol Channel to English Channel link. So the LSWR approached the Midland with a scheme to lease
Negotiating the ‘S’ bend through Radstock North on September 2, 1961 are ‘2P’ 4-4-0 No. 40564 and ‘7F’ 2-8-0 No. 53810 with a Saturdays-only Bournemouth to Sheffield train. DAVE COBBE COLLECTION/RAIL PHOTOPRINTS
the S&D jointly, and by July 1874 the line over the Mendips to Bath was complete, albeit bankrupting the S&D in the process. Once various ‘gaps’ south of Templecombe had been filled, a through route from Bournemouth and Poole to Birmingham and the North via Bath was established, with the Midland and the LSWR taking over the cash-strapped S&D on a joint basis. Before examining loco performance, a brief description of the S&D joint line is appropriate. From Bath (Green Park), renamed thus in June 1951 after being variously suffixed ‘Queen Square’, ‘Midland’ and ‘LMS’, trains had a level half-mile before swinging sharply left away from the Midland line and on to 1-in-50 before tunnelling under Combe Down. First came the sulphurous hell of Devonshire tunnel, a narrow single-line bore, where conditions for the crews of a double-headed train would not be tolerated today.
MASTER OF MIXED TRAFFIC
Forty rt years ears of Ireland’s Irel s
‘BIG’ GMs Thi month This h marks k the h 40 40th h anniversary i off the h arrival i l off the h G Generall Motors M Cl Class 071s in the Republic of Ireland. The ‘Big’ GMs (as they became known) went on to transform the nation’s loco-hauled services. Four decades later, they remain wholly intact as an operating class, as Gary Boyd-Hope explains.
T
HE date is Thursday, September 2, 1976 and the Lykes Line container ship MV Tillie Lykes is anchored off Dublin Bay; its massive 39,000-ton displacement prevents it from entering the Port of Dublin. Tensions are high. The ship arrived at midday and to get its precious barge-mounted cargo to port it is having to be off-loaded in the bay, each barge being lowered gently into
In May of this year, Class 071 pioneer No. 071 was repainted into a variation of its original ‘Supertrain’ livery at Inchicore to mark the 40th anniversary of the class. On July 19, the locomotive hauls GM Bo-Bos Nos. B141 and 175 during a transfer move from Inchicore to the RPSI’s shed at Dublin Connolly. FIONNBARR KENNEDY
the water and towed by tug to North Wall for final unloading. Unfortunately, bad weather is causing problems and delaying the operation, and it doesn’t look as though the first barge will reach North Wall until breakfast time the following day. If this isn’t enough to bring a nervous sweat on, the activity has seemingly attracted the attention of a Soviet ‘spy trawler’ (this is the height of the Cold War), which has appeared
to keep an eye on the proceedings, possibly to check that the cargo is not some form of American heavy weaponry. American – yes. Weapons – no, unless the 18 brand new 2,475hp diesel-electric locomotives on board can be considered as part of Córas Iompair Éireann’s (CIÉ’s) front-line motive power arsenal. No-one can say what has brought the trawler in to snoop around, although it has been suggested that a simple confusion between
LOCOMOTIVEREPATRIATION
Nesta’s sister – or should that be brother – Hunslet 0-4-0ST Alan George (HE606/1894) has long been a mainstay of Teifi Valley Railway services. It is pictured steaming through Henllan station in preparation to starting the day’s services on May 26, 2014. CLIFF THOMAS
Bringing the last
Quarry Hunslet home
In a Railway Magazine exclusive, Rob Gambrill tells how diligent research led to his purchase and repatriation of former Penrhyn Quarry 0-4-0ST Nesta.
W
ITHOUT a doubt, one of the most amazing stories from the world of steam preservation is the export of numerous small British-built locomotives from the Welsh slate quarry lines. After the screening in 1965 of a news story about the end of steam in the Welsh quarries, an American antiques dealer saw his chance to make a quick buck and a number of locomotives from Dinorwic and Penryhn quarries left British shores heading for the USA. What happened to them next became folklore for many years, until Cliff Thomas’ book The Quarry Hunslets of North Wales was published. This detailed for the first time the location of the Hunslet-built engines, but did not cover the locomotives from other manufacturers. This is a short version of how we saved
a small bit of history, maybe someday I will write the full tale! As a young lad, who regularly volunteered on a railway that looks after ex-Dinorwic Hunslet 0-4-0ST Jerry M, I soon became hooked on the idea of one day owning a
Nesta and Cegin inside their shed, with Nesta’s cab back sheet leaning on the tank. ROB GAMBRILL
quarry Hunslet. Knowing the price was out of my reach and most of the locos were already in railway collections, the thought that acquiring one from distant lands seemed the only way. Over many years I researched the possible location and ownership of each of the ‘lost’ engines. Only one evaded the search – Penrhyn’s 0-4-0ST Nesta. I knew various facts about the deals done once the engines landed in America, but the story of what happened to Nesta proved impossible to crack. During this search, good fortune came about and I was lucky enough to buy the well-known Bagnall 0-4-0ST Pixie from Audrey Boston, quenching the need to save a lost locomotive from overseas. Pixie, although ‘very poorly’, did run and a couple of years of great enjoyment was had before the inevitable withdrawal for overhaul became necessary. Needing to preserve as September 2016 • The Railway Magazine • 37
PRESERVATION FRENCH STYLE
John Hannavy takes a trip on one of France’s few preserved steam
railways – and discovered it has a very interesting history.
This photo stop location between the tunnels provides views of the Dordogne valley. Inset: The railway’s logo features the Mirandol tunnel.
W
HEN the Metropolitan Railway carried its first passengers underground in London in 1863, they travelled in open carriages – more like cattle trucks – and were hauled through the tunnels by steam locomotives. To mark the 150th anniversary of that first journey, steam-hauled trains worked the line again over two weekends in January 2013. This time, however, the passengers were carried in closed carriages dating from the closing years of the 19th century. If you missed either – or both – of these events as I did, you might wonder what it is like to travel in a confined space in open carriages pulled by a steam locomotive. Well, make your way to the Lot Département of France and climb aboard the little steam train known as ‘Le Truffadou’ where you can experience just that, and I can assure you it is both interesting and challenging as the train makes it way through long smoke-filled tunnels. Phrases like ‘it would never be allowed in Britain’ immediately come to mind, given our perceived
Restoration of former DB 2-10-0 No. 50.3661 will be a massive undertaking, having been stored in a tunnel and robbed of parts. It arrived in Martel on June 20, 2007. ALL PICTURES BY AUTHOR.
September 2016 • The Railway Magazine • 51
Panorama
As nature slowly but surely starts to heal the scars created by man, 1937-built, 2ft-gauge Motor Rail four-wheel diesel Liddel trundles past a former area of peat extraction with empty peat cars for loading on the moss at Bolton Fell, Cumbria, on May 20, 2014. GORDON EDGAR
60 • The Railway Magazine • September 2016
The Railway Touring Company’s ‘Coast to Coast Express’ was in the capable hands of Chris Beet’s Stanier 4-6-0 No. 45690 Leander on July 30; the ‘Jubilee’ ran throughout from Liverpool to Scarborough and return. The morning light is ideal as the train crosses the still River Weaver on Dutton viaduct. ANDREW BELL
Steam & Heritage Track Record Churchward ‘sleeper’ to be restored THE oldest carriage on the Severn Valley Railway (SVR) is to be restored. 1910-built Churchward ‘Toplight’No. 2426 will be moved from Hampton Loade to Kidderminster carriage shed, where it will be allowed to fully dry before being dismantled. It has been at the SVR for three decades and has seen use as volunteer accommodation, but its condition has deteriorated beyond acceptable use, and therefore permanent sleeping facilities will be sourced, while restoring No. 2426 for passenger service in its own right. The ex-camping coach and signal & telegraph department vehicle will wait for the completion of Collett‘Bow-Ended’corridor composite No. 6045, which is in the throes of a major rebuild at Bewdley.
5521 bows out
SMALL Prairie No. 5521 will run for the last time before overhaul in October. A farewell event will run at the Dean Forest Railway, also featuring No. 5541, on October 15-17.
Cromer triumph as 76084 makes debut IT IS one of the shortest main line charter itineraries since steam returned to the main line in 1971, but its significance outweighed any potential sleights about mileage deficiencies. The North Norfolk Railway (NNR) ran its first timetabled train to Cromer on August 10 in a blaze of glory and sunshine as Standard‘4MT’No. 76084 touched Network Rail metals for the first time at Sheringham. The two seaside towns are separated by just 4½ miles of Network Rail-owned single track, but only a handful of hauled charter trains from London have provided the opportunity to traverse Sheringham’s 2010-installed main line link. The restored Riddles engine can now be counted in the exhaustive list of‘big railway steamers’, although it claimed the unusual distinction that – after having hauled its first special train – it had covered a total distance of just three miles chimney-first. Nevertheless, it was the proud culmination of dogged fundraising and engineering application by 76084 Company Limited, which will continue to be a charter train performer as well as an NNR regular. The August 10‘VIP’train, and
three subsequent runs over two days, were (by operational necessity) top-and-tailed with the Class 20 Locomotive Society’s London Underground-liveried No. 20227. There is no run-round loop at Cromer and the supermarket immediately next to platform 2 makes it an unlikely prospect in the foreseeable future.
Anamoly
The single-line constraints and kick-back nature of Cromer station on the Bittern Line threw up an unexpected anomaly, which led to the dining train doubling-up as a Cromer to Sheringham service train. The Abellio-Greater Anglia train that Nos. 76084 and 20227 were scheduled to cross paths with at Cromer was heavily delayed by a fatality near Norwich. Twelve (at best inconvenienced or at worst stranded) passengers were offered space in the five-coach Mk1 train for an unexpectedly good-value single trip to Sheringham. The trains were operated by West Coast Railway Company crews – the NNR possesses its own main line operating licence, like that which the North Yorkshire Moors Railway has for its Whitby operation.
History is made on August 10 as the first North Norfolk Railwayorganised train waits to return from Cromer in the hands of Standard ‘4MT’ No. 76084. CHRIS MILNER
As the August and September 10-11 runs were a ‘toe-in-thewater’ exercise, the Poppy Line is not in a position where it can predict whether it will adopt a
similar system. Two more main line dining specials will run on September 7-8. Both still have limited availability at £55 per seat.
Victorian Caledonian ‘treasure’ re-wheeled McINTOSH ‘439’ tank No. 419 is beginning to resemble a fully fledged locomotive as it resides on all eight wheels again. The Scottish Railway Preservation Society 0-4-4T was re-wheeled on August 3 as the overhaul project passed a significant milestone. The project suffered a major setback in 2012 when its original driving wheel axle boxes from Bo’ness shed were stolen, requiring new – and
expensive – ones to be cast and machined. The majority of the inside motion is ready to be reunited with the locomotive, and with the boiler already overhauled by Riley & Son (E) Ltd it means recommissioning is on course for mid-2017. ‘Caley’ counterpart 0-6-0 No. 828 is also significantly closer to returning to action at the Strathspey Railway. Picture: ANDREW N FOWLER
Drummond duo: On July 19, ‘T9’ No. 30120 departs Swanage and passes the original LSWR engine shed with its idle ‘M7’ No. 30053. They have a combined age of 228. This could be their final reunion for some time, as the 0-4-4T is due for withdrawal next summer. JOHN H BIRD
‘Greyhound’s' second summer in Swanage DRUMMOND ‘Greyhound’ No. 30120 has spent the summer season at the Swanage Railway. The ‘T9’ has now operated at the Dorset branch line on three separate occasions since the spring of 2014. Its second peak-season spell at
72 • The Railway Magazine • September 2016
Swanage reflects the fact that it is not equipped to cope with the heavier summer holiday trains at its resident, steeply graded Bodmin & Wenford Railway. However, it is on Bodmin’s roster for the 30th anniversary gala celebration on September 10-11, having last operated in
Dorset on August 22 alongside its ‘relative’ – Drummond ‘M7’ No. 30053. The LSWR ‘T9’ will be joined by Beattie well tank duo Nos. 30585 and 30587, ‘8750’ 0-6-0PT No. 4612 and Port of Par Bagnall 0-4-0ST Judy for the weekend.
Classic Traction Track Record ‘Deltic’ joins GCR gala line-up COMPILED BY
PETER NICHOLSON Call: 01507 529589
email: classic.traction @btopenworld.com
Your reports and pictures are most welcome. Highly competitive rates are paid, especially if exclusive to The RM.
TWO special guests have been announced for the Great Central Railway’s (GCR) September 10-11 diesel gala: Deltic Preservation Society’s Class 55 No. 55019
Royal Highland Fusilier and Network Rail’s all-yellow Class 31 No. 31105. This visit offers a rare opportunity to sample the Brush
Type 2 on passenger trains. Home fleet locos in operation will be Class 20 No. D8098, Class 25 No. D5185, Class 31 No. D5830, Class 33 No. D6535
and Class 37 No. 37714. Class 45 No. 45041 Royal Tank Regiment makes its last gala appearance before leaving the GCR.
SIDELINES Great Gable to be restored at Swanwick
CLASS 44 No. D4 Great Gable, one of only two of the original ‘Peak’class in preservation, is being returned to operational condition. It has been in store in the Matthew Kirtley building at the Midland Railway-Butterley for many years. Work starts in September, with the loco moved into Swanwick diesel shed.
Mainline 03 passes into preservation
CLASS 03 No. 03179 Clive has moved to the Rushden Transport Museum, Northamptonshire for preservation. It was used as the depot shunter at Hornsey from 1998, latterly by First Capital Connect.
East Lancs‘Hymek’ misses two events
CLASS 35 No. D7076 was due for withdrawal for bogie and running gear attention at the end of the season, but this has been brought forward due to mechanical problems. Appearances at Spa Valley and Dean Forest diesel galas were cancelled.
East Kent EMUs moved to Epping
FOLLOWING the eviction notice for certain EMU cars at the East Kent Railway (RM June, p81), three vehicles have been moved to the Epping Ongar Railway: MLV No. 68001, 4-BEP TRBS No. 69013 and 4-CEP TBCK No. 70235.
Denise unveiling at Bodmin event
THE Bodmin & Wenford Railway (B&WR) is staging a china clay day on September 9, recalling the early 1960s when steam started giving way to diesel. Various locos will be in operation, replicating the pit-to-port mineral railway trains that have always been part of the economy of the St Austell area. During the event Rolls-Royce 4wDH (Sentinel 10029 of 1960) Denise will be unveiled at a special ceremony. It was donated to the B&WR by china clay company Imerys in July 2014 and two years of restoration have seen the vandalised and graffiti-daubed loco transformed in appearance. It will return to traffic on the 9th, finished in its original English China Clays livery.
Peak Locomotive Company’s Class 45 No. 45041 Royal Tank Regiment, which has been visiting the Great Central Railway from the Midland Railway-Butterley since July 2012, will be leaving the railway after the September 10-11 diesel gala. It is seen passing a lovely bank of wild flowers at Little Woodthorpe on August 6 with the 09.30 Loughborough-Leicester North service. PICTURE: PAUL BIGGS
Rare chance to travel on Tanat Valley Light Railway THE Nant Mawr branch of the old Potteries, Shrewsbury & North Wales Railway (The ‘Potts’) is now operated, albeit only occasionally, as the Tanat Valley Light Railway (TVLR). The branch opened in 1872 to supply limestone. Today, only the actual branch line from Llanddu to Nant Mawr quarry complex (now the Nant Mawr Visitor Centre [NMVC]) exists, with a run-round loop at each end. Located near Oswestry, and only a couple of miles from the better-known Cambrian Heritage Railways line at Llynclys, the TVLR is a separate organisation. Both lines will be in operation in September as part of the Heritage Open Days weekend. The TVLR opens for the three days (9-11), but Llynclys on the Saturday and Sunday only. Visitors to Nant Mawr will
have the first opportunity to see Rich Morris’s vast collection of monorail and narrow gauge equipment, recently moved from Blaenau Ffestiniog – see Narrow Gauge section (p100). For details of the TVLR and NMVC see website: www.tvlr. co.uk, telephone: 01948 781079, or email: admin@tvler.co.uk.
A rare chance to travel on the Tanat Valley Light Railway, which is just under half a mile in length, takes place on September 9-11. There are a number of vehicles on site, including DMUs, a couple of diesel shunters and vans. Class 107 DMU Nos. SC52005 and SC52031 will be in operation, running from Nantmawr, marked only with a station nameboard by the old lime kilns. DMBS No. SC52005 was seen on July 30, at what will be Nant Mawr Visitor Centre station, currently the end of the line, where a new platform was being constructed. PETER NICHOLSON
Intensive service and real ale for visitors to Mid-Norfolk diesel gala
THE Mid-Norfolk Railway’s summer diesel gala is set for September 9-11. There will be an intensive service with real ale served on all trains. Confirmed visitors are the West Somerset Railway’s Class 35 ‘Hymek’ No. D7017, a type rarely if ever seen in East Anglia. Also visiting are two Class 20s – Nos. D8059 and D8188 from the Severn Valley
86 • The Railway Magazine September 2016
Railway, with other visitors a possibility. Still to be confirmed are the NRM’s ‘Deltic’ No. D9002 The King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, and a Class 37. Home fleet locos in operation include Class 47s Nos. 47367 and 47596 Aldeburgh Festival. A two-car Class 101 DMU will run a shuttle service to Hoe. During the summer, advertised timetable services
have seen home fleet locos in operation in place of DMUs on selected Saturday trains. On July 16 it was Class 47s Nos. 47596 and 47367 top-and-tailing, and on July 23 it was ‘Peak’ Class 45 No. 45133 in use on all three timetabled runs between Dereham and Wymondham Abbey. The electric train heatingfitted ‘Peak’ is expected to return to its former base at
the Midland Railway-Butterley after the summer gala, to bring it closer to the majority of the active Class 45/1 Preservation Society members. Prior to this, on August 20, the loco was scheduled to carry different nameplates either side commemorating two society members who passed away in 2015: Brian Lockey, member No. 1, and Gerald Lambert.