Monthly Newsletter of the Port Elizabeth Model Railroad Club

Newsletter of the

PORT ELIZABETH MODEL RAILROAD CLUB Every gauge welcome!

November 2021

Iowa Interstate RR #IAIS 6988 2-10-2 by Tom Farence at Newton Yard Iowa

IN THIS ISSUE PEMRC Calendar

Committee

The Architecture the Railways Built

Mailbox

Market Place

Restoring 150 year old Barmouth Bridge

Three fatalities in Amtrak Montana derailment North Yorkshire Autumn Steam Gala Show & Tell

High Speed Rail in the U.S.

Eurospoor 2021

Great Little Train Competition

Royal Albert Bridge

Articulated Coaches

Hydrogen trains

New high-capacity railroad planned for South Africa

Miwula update

Atlas software

Miniprints

Sandstone

Layout Visit Gallery

PEMRC CALENDAR

Date

tba

29-30

6

13

27

22

14-21

Oct 2021

Time

tba

Detail PEMRC Public Exhibit at Bay West Shopping Centre in conjunction with Apple Express Volunteers

Postponed by AE – new date to be advised

Eurospoor 2021

Oct

Event & Exhibition Centre Jaarbeurs

2021

Utrecht, Netherlands PEMRC Social at Londt Park

Nov

9:00 -

2021

13:00

Nov

14:30 -

PEMRC Layout visit:

2021

17:00

Roel van Oudheusden, 10 Wodehouse Street, Mount Pleasant

Nov

9:00 -

2021

11:00

Jan 2022 Aug 2022

10:00

with the PEMLS with some live steam and train rides Saturday morning from 9 am with bring & braai at noon – family welcome

PEMRC Layout visit: Mike van Zyl, 13 Lionel Ave, Walmer Downs Attendees to bring something model railway related as a topic for discussion PEMRC Annual General Meeting Roel van Oudheusden, 10 Wodehouse Street, Mount Pleasant NMRA National Convention 2022 Birmingham, UK https://www.nmra2022uk.org/

Beautiful display of spring at Londt Park at the end of September!

COMMITTEE 2021: Chairman:

Roel van Oudheusden

roelvanoza@gmail.com

Treasurer:

Attie Terblanche

terblalc@telkomsa.net

Clubhouse: JP Kruger

juanpierrekruger@gmail.com

Editor:

Roel van Oudheusden

pemrailroadclub@gmail.com

‘Shop’:

Graham Chapman

chapman22@telkomsa.net

Workshops: Mike van Zyl

carpencab@gmail.com

Subscriptions for 2021 remain at R300 for the year.

EFT is preferred, but the Treasurer may be persuaded to accept cash.

Bank account:

Port Elizabeth Model Railroad Club

FNB Walmer Park, branch code 211417, Account no. 62386122057

Tell us about your  railway interest,  railway experience,  railway layout or scale model etc.  or any ideas, suggestions for the Club…

Write to:

pemrailroadclub@gmail.com

Or via SMS or WhatsApp to +27 82 739 767

Mini World Models Shop online and use this special coupon to claim your unique

PEMRC

member

discount Crafty Arts 10% discount via their discount card scheme.

Collaborate with Aubrey de Chalain on building dioramas and exhibits in their newly extended premises.

MARKET PLACE

Members can advertise their model rail related items here for free; All others pay a 10% donation of the proceeds to PEMRC.

ROBERT DEACON has an extensive HO layout with lots of rolling stock, buildings, figurines etc. which he is now selling. Please make him a fair offer. Contact him on +27 82 852 5119 to arrange to view at 19 Rademeyer Crescent, Rowallan Park. Here is an incomplete overview of what is available.

THE ARCHITECTURE THE RAILWAYS BUILT

Railway expert and train enthusiast Tim Dunn explores the stunning architecture that lines the railway network. Celebrating the radical design and often challenging construction of many station buildings across the UK and Europe: from grand edifices in major cities to tiny rural stations serving small communities.

Copy link to your browser https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ThUJhxRAtCrvAbI90RTy-zBfExiDjDjm?usp=sharing Episode 1 Down Street Tim explores disused tube station Down Street in Mayfair that played a crucial tactical

role

during WWII and tours Rotterdam's new

Centraal

station with the man who designed it.

Episode 2 Ffestiniog Tim Dunn visits the Ffestiniog in Wales originally built to transport slate from mountain to coast and learns about Amsterdam Centraal controversially built across the waterfront.

Episode 3 Kings Cross Tim Dunn goes behind the scenes at London's Kings Cross and learns of Bristol's funicular railway.

Episode 4 Ribblehead

Tim

Dunn

visits

the

Ribblehead Viaduct in the Yorkshire Dales, talks to the man who saved it from closure and tours the breathtaking stations of the Innsbruck Hungerburgbahn.

Episode 5 Metroland Tim Dunn follows his family's roots by exploring Metroland, the area around the Metropolitan Railway, and in Great Malvern learns about the woman behind the decorative 1860s station.

Episode 6 St. Pancras Tim

Dunn

explores

the

ornate St Pancras station in London and its sister hotel built to show off the might of the Midlands, and learns about Castle Howard station in North Yorkshire.

Episode 7 Snowdon

Tim Dunn rides up Mt Snowdon's railway to visit the summit station, and discovers how a glass structure envelopes Strasbourg's 19th century station.

Episode 8 Broadway Tim Dunn visits the former HQ of London Underground, 55 Broadway, which was the capital's first skyscraper, and sees the timber-framed Barmouth Bridge in North Wales.

Episode 9 Stockton Darlington Tim Dunn visits the architecture of the Stockton and Darlington railway, the first passenger steam line in the world and learns how Essex's enormous Chappel Viaduct was built.

Episode 10 Swindon Tim Dunn visits Swindon's railway village, which became home to Great Western's enormous works and he also explores the dark and secret past of Milan's monumental Central Station.

RESTORING 150 YEAR OLD BARMOUTH BRIDGE (NORTH WALES) Alongside civil engineering contractor Alun Griffiths, Mabey Hire has employed an innovative bridge lifting technique to restore the historic Barmouth Bridge in Barmouth, Wales.

A Grade II listed timber railway viaduct, Barmouth Bridge spans over the Afon Mawddach estuary in Wales.

At over 150 years old, Barmouth Bridge is one of the oldest viaducts of its type still in regular use, carrying trains and pedestrians over the 860-metre distance.

Given both its age and continued exposure to the coastal elements, the bridge was sadly in poor condition, with decay and corrosion having affected many of its timber and metal components. As a result, Network Rail announced a major programme of upgrade and restoration works, which will see the viaduct completely restored in a manner sensitive to both its industrial heritage and listed status, with components to be replaced on a ‘like for like’ basis.

As part of the restoration works, 24 of the viaduct’s crossheads were to be replaced, having become severely corroded. Led by civil engineering contractor Alun Griffiths, the project required the bridge to be lifted off of its piers, enabling the damaged crossheads to be individually removed and replaced.

With a substantial scheme of temporary works required to facilitate the bridge lift, Mabey Hire was appointed to design, supply and install the temporary jacking system. The bespoke system featured an innovative bridge lifting technique, previously pioneered on a similar timber viaduct in Gwynedd, Wales.

Colin Campbell, Senior Engineer at Mabey Hire, explained: “Our innovative system involves a combination of proprietary steel supports and jacks, which are built remotely and then transported into position. Once on site, this approach enables work to be carried out on crossheads and support piers without having to strip the track and deck structures, allowing for a safer and more efficient process. There is also the potential for further time savings, as the whole jacking system can be simply moved along the track to the next pier, as opposed to having to dismantle and re-install.”

As Barmouth Bridge featured a pedestrian bridge parallel to the rail tracks, Mabey Hire had to design the lifting frame with a bespoke cantilevered edge, in order to allow for this site constraint. Hangar bars were then dropped through each bridge span with the bridge jacked from the top side, lifting the structure off the piers below and supported underneath. This technique enabled all the main lifting work to be carried out on the top side of the bridge - especially valuable considering that the tidal estuary and lack of a foundation meant access to the underneath of the bridge was difficult.

Colin continued: “An additional challenge on the project was the time constraints, with the work taking place during an 18-day closure of the railway. Given this tight window, the decision was made to supply two of our bespoke jacking systems. With our team of steel erectors on site 24/7 to ensure the lifts went smoothly and each jacking system operating from either end of the bridge, before meeting in the middle, we were able to complete the works at a far faster rate.” The restoration programme continues on the Welsh bridge, with work expected to be completed in 2022.

AMTRAK CONFIRMS THREE FATALITIES IN MONTANA DERAILMENT

Rail passenger car askew on tracks. Image by Jacob Cordeiro HAVRE, Mont. – Amtrak confirms three deaths in the Saturday derailment of the westbound Empire Builder near Joplin, about 50 miles west of Havre. The train, which originated in Chicago on Friday, had 141 passengers and 16 crew members on board. The train consisted of two locomotives and 10 cars, with eight of those cars derailing, according to Amtrak. Media reports indicate that about 50 people are injured.

“We are deeply saddened to learn local authorities are now confirming that three people have lost their lives as a result of this accident. There are also reported injuries among the passengers and crew members travelling on the train,” spokesman Jason Abrams tells Trains News Wire. “Amtrak is working with the local authorities to transport those who were injured to medical care, and to safely evacuate everyone else at the scene.

“Our Incident Response Team has been initiated, and we are sending emergency personnel and Amtrak leadership to the scene to help support our passengers, our employees and their families with their needs.”

The Empire Builder operates between Chicago and Seattle and Portland, Ore. The trains operates as one east of Spokane, Wash., but west of there splits into two sections, trains 7 and 8 to Seattle and trains 27 and 28 to Portland. Typically, the Portland cars operate at the rear of the combined train. It is equipped with bi-level Superliner equipment.

Analysis of the derailment photos appears to show that only the cars at the rear of the train, the four cars of the Portland section including at least one Sightseer Lounge, two coaches, and sleeper, fell on their sides.

The National Transportation Safety Board has sent an accident investigation team to the scene, and the Federal Railroad Administration is launching its own investigation as well.

Amtrak has deferred future comment on the incident to the NTSB.

The westbound Amtrak Empire Builder that derailed in Montana on Sept. 25 rolls through Sturtevant, Wis., about 24 hours before the derailment. Image by Al Baker

HIGH SPEED RAIL IN THE U.S. The past, present, and future of high speed rail in the U.S. A northbound first-generation Acela Express slices through Linden, N.J., on the six-track Northeast Corridor right-of-way in October 2015. (Brian Schmidt) High Speed Rail history The modern concept of high speed rail began in 1964, when the Japanese National Railways launched its first Shinkansen train from Tokyo to Shin Osaka, operating at 130 mph. Following passage of the High Speed Ground Transportation Act of 1965 in the U.S., the Pennsylvania Railroad (and successor Penn Central), in partnership with the Federal Railroad Administration, upgraded its Washington-to-New York corridor for new 160-mph trains. Four- and six-car trainsets were comprised of electric multiple-unit cars built by Budd, named Metroliners.

Improvements to the right-of-way included a high-speed 21-mile test track between New Brunswick and Trenton, N.J. Metroliner service began in January 1969, and continued under Amtrak until 1982, with a peak frequency of 15 trains a day in 1973. During that same period, United Aircraft developed its TurboTrain, powered by Pratt & Whitney gas-turbine engines, for use on the New York-to-Boston segment of the Northeast Corridor and in Canada between Montreal and Toronto. Capable of speeds up to 170 mph, TurboTrains operated from 1968-1976 in the U.S. and 1968-1982 in Canada. Neither the TurboTrain nor Metroliners ran at their maximum speeds in scheduled service, but did lessen travel times on their routes.

The U.S. today The Northeast Corridor is still the only active line in the U.S. where trains exceed 125 mph in scheduled service. The Acela Express, launched in 2000, reaches speeds of 150 mph on sections of track in Rhode Island and 135 mph along several segments between Washington and New York.

Amtrak will introduce the next-generation Acela fleet in 2022. Twenty-eight trainsets, manufactured by Alstom in Hornell, N.Y., will operate at up to 160 mph where permitted. But slower portions of the route, including the New York City-to-New Haven, Conn., commuter zone and the Baltimore & Potomac Tunnel, reduce average running speeds.

An effort under the Obama administration to kick-start high speed rail outside the Northeast Corridor fizzled out when Republican governors in Florida, Ohio, and Wisconsin shunned billions of federal dollars and opted out of proposed projects. However, California voters had already approved a $10 billion bond issue to build high speed rail connecting San Francisco and Los Angeles. The California High Speed Rail Authority received $2.55 billion from the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, adding to the state’s funding.

A northbound Brightline train arrives at West Palm Beach, Fla., the north end of the current route, in April 2019.

Brightline began operation in 2018 but shut down from March 2020 to November 2021 due to the pandemic. (Brian Schmidt)

Future projects The Authority is building a single-track 119-mile segment from Madera to a rural station 19 miles north of Bakersfield at a projected cost of $13.8 billion. Completion is expected in 2023. Building out from Madera to Bakersfield, an additional 60 miles, will raise the cost to $23 billion. Train speeds are expected to top out at 200 mph.

In Florida, Brightline is building the Orlando extension to its 79-mph Miami-West Palm Beach line. Portions of the Orlando line and a future extension to Tampa will see speeds of 110 to 125 mph.

Brightline West plans to build a 200-mph railroad connecting Las Vegas with southern California at Victorville, a 260-mile route that targets a 3-hour schedule, for an average speed of 87 mph.

Both Brightline and Brightline West are private-enterprise projects, as is Texas Central Railroad. Texas Central investors seek to construct a new, dedicated high speed line between Dallas and Houston. The $20 billion project has successfully completed environmental reviews and the railroad signed a design-build contract with Salini Impregilo. It will use proven Shinkansen N700 trainsets operating at up to 205 mph on a grade-separated line.

Other projects in the planning stage include a Pacific Northwest line from Vancouver, B.C., to Seattle and Portland, Ore.; Richmond, Va. To Raleigh, N.C.; and Atlanta to Charlotte.

These are some screenshots from the video. Click here or on the header to view on YouTube.

Eurospoor 2021 is coming!

29 to 31 October 2021 - Jaarbeurs Utrecht.

Reality sometimes exceeds your wildest imagination.

This saying runs through our minds in the developments that we have experienced in recent years. As you probably know, after 26 years of organizing, we decided to take a break in 2019 and not to organize Eurospoor in that year. But who could have imagined that that would be a very long break until even 2021. Not us! And now that there is a vaccine and the virus is more or less on the decline, we dared to set up Eurospoor 2021.

Since 1993 we have been serving you every year with spectacular modular courses from the Netherlands and abroad and that will be no different now. It is gratifying that the market leaders Märklin, Roco/Fleischmann and Piko are also participants in our event. In the extra-large Märklin stand you will also find brands such as Trix, LGB and Noch. One of the newcomers is Modellbahnshop-Lippe.

More than 50 model railways of various scales will be on display at Eurospoor. In recent years we have welcomed the Münchberger Eisenbahnfreunde (MEF) at the event and they are also present this year. In 2017 they brought the steering position of a diesel locomotive into the halls to control the modular track.

One of the two layouts they will have this year is the recreated section of part of the southern slope of the Swiss Bern-Lötschberg-Simplonbahn. The course is built against the mountainside and travellers enjoy

a

breath-taking view of

the

Rhone Valley. The model also includes the famous Luogelkin Viaduct and the entire steel and well-known Bietschtalbrücke.

One of the top model railroads is 'Karlsberg' by Mr. Friedel from Coburg who participates in Eurospoor with this track. It is one of the most beautiful N-tracks in Germany and has therefore already appeared twice in the "Eisenbahn Romantik" program. Reason enough to bring this 20 meter long modular track to the Netherlands. Pictured is the Bavarian landscape of dense forests, twinkling lakes, rolling hills with vines on the slopes and picturesque villages. Think of cities such as Rothenburg ob der Tauber, a popular and atmospheric city on the 'Romantische

Strasse'.

Everywhere

you

look

the

memories of the rich past of the city are visible. The beautiful half-timbered houses and the turrets on the old city wall give the city its authentic charm. Anyone who has ever travelled to the toy fair in Nuremberg will immediately recognize the region. It is an area that relaxes and creates a holiday feeling. Watch a video of this beautiful modular layout here.

But of course there is much more to see. Look on the Eurospoor website”.

You will regularly find information about new participants here.

THE GREAT LITTLE TRAIN COMPETITION 6 weekly broadcasts starting Thursday 14 Oct, 20:30 on BVN (DSTV Channel 431) or live on the internet at: https://www.bvn.tv/bvnlive/ View trailer Change settings to auto translate subtitles from Dutch to English/Afrikaans even.

The theme 'film' is central. A theme in which the teams have to build a model railway that refers to or is inspired by a certain film in which trains play a role. It is up to the teams to work out this assignment in their own creative and spectacular way. The films Unstoppable, Back to the Future 3 and Harry Potter are transformed into model railways. On the third and final day of construction, the inspired film director Tim Oliehoek will make his appearance as a guest jury member. With his expertise in the field of film, he will also assess the model railways on scenario, special effects and whether the role of the train has been properly incorporated into the story.

ARTICULATED COACHES Nigel Gresley first introduced articulation in passenger stock in 1907 using converted vehicles, but in 1911 he produced some articulated suburban stock for the GNR. These were articulated pairs and were later rebuilt as four-coach ('Quadart') units. From 1921 to 1929 further 'Quadart' compartment stock was built with an eventual total of 97 GNR and LNER sets. Two 'Quadarts' formed an eight-coach train. Because of their high seating capacity they were popular with the operators and some continued in traffic until April 1966.

One set is preserved by the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway Society at the North Norfolk Railway.

Hornby produced OO models already in 1938:

Steve Banks, a modeller in the UK describes the history and detail of these coaches and his modelling thereof on his website

This is our Mike Parson’s conversion of standard Hornby coaches to an articulated set:

The principle of having two-coach units was that it helped make the ride smoother and less noisy – instead of having coach-ends that butted up against each other with their own independent wheel-bogies, so that the flush coach-ends would jiggle about with a shearing motion as each bogie passed over points and

variations in the track, the new luxury coaches had pairs of coaches that shared a common bogie so that the coach-pair merely had a "hinging" action, with vibrations in one coach also being partially damped by the hinged connection with its partner. Ideally these hinged joints would have been used for the full length of the train, but using hinged pairs was a trade-off between having the best possible ride, and retaining flexibility over how coaches were assembled into trains. The idea wasn't generally adopted for contemporary "standard" coaches, presumably because railway controllers wanted to retain flexibility over the makeup of their trains, and wanted to be able to add or remove single coaches to a train service as and when required.

Jacobs bogies (named after Wilhelm Jakobs 1858– 1942, a German mechanical railway engineer) are a type of rail vehicle bogie commonly found on articulated railcars and tramway vehicles. Instead of being underneath a piece of rolling stock, Jacobs bogies are placed between two carriages. The weight of each carriage is spread across the Jacobs bogie. This arrangement provides the smooth ride of bogie carriages without the additional weight and drag. Some Talgo trains use modified Jacobs bogies, that only use two wheels, and the wheels are allowed to spin independently of each other, eliminating hunting oscillation.

The first fast train using this type of bogie was the German Fliegender Hamburger in 1932. In the United States, such configurations were used throughout the twentieth century with some success on early streamlined passenger trainsets, such as the Pioneer Zephyr in 1934, various Southern Pacific Daylight articulated cars, and Union Pacific Railroad's M-10000. Dallas Area Rapid Transit rail trains originally used a centre bogie in a two-car unit but these have been modified to add a lower centre section for handicapped level entry making a 3-car unit with two Jacobs bogies.

Vehicles featuring Jacobs bogies include the Alstom-made TGV and Class 373 High speed trains, the Bombardier Talent series of multiple units, the LINT41, the Class 423 S-Bahn vehicles, the Canadian CN Turbo-Trains, several FLIRT trains, IC3 by Adtranz, the JR Central L0 Series maglev and the Škoda ForCity tram. In Australia, Jacobs bogies were first used in 1984–85 on B class Melbourne trams, which were designed to run on two former suburban railways which had been converted to light rail operation.

Advantages Safety, because the trains are less prone to collapse like an accordion after derailing. A Eurostar train has been recorded as having derailed at a speed close to 300 km/h with no resultant loss of life or severe injuries among its passengers. Lower weight and simpler and cheaper construction because bogies are heavy, expensive, and complex structures. Less rail squeal and other wheel-to-rail noise because of fewer bogies.

Disadvantages The cars of the vehicle/unit are semi-permanently coupled and can only be separated in the workshop.

However, some flexibility may be achieved by coupling two or three units together into one train. Fewer bogies and fewer wheelsets mean greater axle loads – if everything else is equal. The concept of shared bogies has appeared again in recent years from the newer versions of the High Speed trains where motors are now driving individual wheelsets and not only the traction engine, to freight trains having to deal with the increased weight of the bigger containers.

Roco model 67401 – Era VI HO Articulated double pocket wagon, type Sdggmrs / T2000.

The T3000 is a further developed articulated wagon that is also suitable for mega-trailers. The wagon has rising frames at the ends of the bogie and support beams with hinged bolts for containers or swap bodies that can be moved at right angles above the longitudinal girders on rollers. This Double Pocket Wagon has a maximum load of 100 MT but the axle load is only 22.5 MT! VTG has

now created a new modular freight wagon which can be shrunk or extended in length and configured with an array of bogies.

SANDSTONE HERITAGE NEWS The Sandstone Heritage Trust in South Africa is preparing to move all their standard gauge 3'6" locos from Germiston to Sandstone Estates in the Eastern Free State.

The items include the following: Class 25NC 3488 NBL 27348/1954 Class 15F 3052 "Avril" - was David Shepherd's loco NBL 25591/1944 Class GMAM 4079 - the first loco acquired by Sandstone in 1997 BP 7677/1956 Rhodesia Railways DE2 Diesel Electric RR No. 1207 English Electric 2238/1955 Cowans and Sheldon steam crane 355/1965 SAR No. 578 Because of the magnitude of the move from Bloemfontein, Gert Jubileus has prepared a detailed report for posterity which you can view by clicking here or on the image.

In the last few days, John Titlow of Heritage Railway Magazine in the UK also commented on the move in some detail which may be of interest to you also.

Please click here or on the image to view the article.

Dream trains No shipping costs for combined orders of R2000 or more.

Shop online and fill your cart, even if less than R2000, then contact PEMRC Graham Chapman, to combine your order with fellow club members and all will save.

CP'S HYDROGEN LOCOMOTIVE A rendering of hydrogen locomotive H2 0EL. Canadian Pacific has shared an image of its forthcoming hydrogen-powered locomotive. It shows an EMD cowl-style locomotive in a green, blue, white, and grey paint scheme.

According to the railroad’s sustainability website, the locomotive, known as “H2 0EL” for Hydrogen – Zero Emissions Locomotive, will be prepped for its official painting and launch. Each design element of the locomotive articulates the effect of this project.

The blue and green paint colours represent sustainability, water, and technology. The H2 0EL wordmark features angled typography to symbolize movement and progress in action.

“This is a globally significant project that positions CP at the leading edge of decarbonizing the freight transportation sector,” President and CEO Keith Creel says. “CP will continue to focus on finding innovative solutions to transform our operations and implement our Climate Strategy, positioning CP and our industry as leaders for a sustainable future.”

CP has previously tested lower-emission locomotives using biofuels and compressed natural gas, as well as battery-powered units. Virtually all freight locomotives in North America are diesel-powered, representing railroading’s most significant source of greenhouse gas emissions. The railroad expects the unit to begin operation in 2022.

Alstom debuts the world’s first hydrogen fuel cell passenger train Alstom’s Coradia iLint is the world’s first and only operational passenger train powered by hydrogen fuel cells. This completely emission-free train is quiet and emits only water vapour and condensation. The train features several different innovations: clean energy conversion and an efficient energy supply and storage system, combined with intelligent energy management. Designed specifically for use on non-electrified lines, it enables clean, sustainable train operations. “The Coradia iLint trains represent a huge opportunity for Poland to reduce CO2 emissions and even decarbonise rail transport. Thanks to hydrogenpowered public transport, regional operators can be beacons of modern mobility, as experienced recently in Germany, the Netherlands and Austria – who have tested and are implementing or planning to implement hydrogen trains.

With 2021 being named the European Year of Rail, all eyes are on the industry when it comes to innovation, sustainability initiatives and new technology.

New high-capacity railroad planned for South Africa The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) plans to build a new rail corridor between Gauteng and the Eastern Cape to help reduce congestion at Durban’s port.

The corridor is specifically aimed at the country’s vehicle manufacturers, and boosting the Tshwane Automotive Special Economic Zone (TASEZ), says DTIC deputy minister Fikile Majola.

“We will now get into another project, which is the development of the High Capacity Rail Corridor between Silverton and Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape. We will build rail lines working with Transnet and private sector partners to ensure that Ford and other manufacturers can transport their cars to reduce congestion at the Durban Port.”

President Cyril Ramaphosa launched the TASEZ in 2019 following an international campaign to mobilise investment into the South African economy. It is one of the ten approved Special Economic Zones spread in seven provinces. The government has so far contributed R2.5 billion towards the development of the zone, Majola said. The Ford Motor Company invested R16 billion, and a further R4.3 billion in investments is expected from automotive components suppliers who will occupy facilities within the zone.

More than one corridor?

Transport minister Fikile Mbalula has previously said that the government is conducting a feasibility study to introduce a high-speed rail development between Pretoria, Johannesburg and Durban. Presenting to parliament’s select committee on transport on 25 August, Mbalula said that the planned development would carry passengers and freight. He said that the government is also looking to overhaul its freight-by-rail plans, and is working on an updated rail policy for the country, currently being developed as a white paper. The redevelopment of South Africa’s rail and freight sector is a key focus of the government’s infrastructure plans over the next 30 years.

On 11 August, the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) published a national infrastructure plan, focusing on the government’s significant developments up until 2050. The DPWI said that by 2050 freight transport should facilitate domestic and cross border movement of goods to enable industrialisation, diversification, trade and development.

“It is proposed that the balance of transport projects need reassessment in anticipation of the shift of cargo off-road to rail. Transnet Freight Rail (should) complete its accounting and commercial separation and meaningfully accommodate third party operators by 2022/3.”

The plan will also see the establishment of both the Independent Ports Authority and a single transport economic regulator by 2022/23, with a plan to integrate rail, road, ports and intermodal hubs and freight villages by 2022/3.

Contact Chris Lourens: chris.modelscenic@gmail.com

First train from Europe to South America There has been much progress since the two buildings were connected with the custom made enclosed steel bridge. The exhibit on the bridge and how which trains will travel between the two have been finalised. South America is developing rapidly in the new building.

Subscribe to their YouTube channel to receive direct news of updates.

Virtual Reality will later be on offer in the basement!

There isn’t any commercially available rolling stock for Brazil. The team has to make their own using 3D printers and adapt an existing HO undercarriage which will fit.

“With

this

adventure,

we

are

facing

completely unknown terrain - in the truest sense of the word. On the one hand, we leave our familiar path and for the first time build together

with

non-Wunderland

model

builders far away from our local workshops.

Furthermore, we are building a country of the southern hemisphere for the very first time. Vegetation, architecture, atmosphere, sparsely populated or unpopulated land confront our model builders with new

and

exciting

challenges.

Some

of

our

Wunderlandians are currently designing, tinkering and building on this impressive section together with the Martinez family near Buenos Aires . Our visitors can look forward to a spectacular journey through Rio, Patagonia, the rainforest, Iguazú, Peru, Bolivia and Chile. The section is expected to open at the end of 2021”.

Atlas Track Planning Software - Version 1.9.0 Released!

Added and improved functionality: - New option for making semi-transparent figures in the 3D viewing mode, usable for representing the walls, doors and windows in the layout room without hiding the layout itself - Improved Alignment dialog which now enables align of the selected figures also by their 3D Vertical position & Height properties for easier arrangement in 3D mode Click Here to Download Atlas Track Planning Software Demo

It’s the little things in life that matter most Canadian Bernard Hellen started miniprints to fill a very specific niche in the model railroad hobby. He loves the scenery aspect of the hobby and was frustrated when he couldn’t find specific items for his own model railroad. miniprints creates scale craftsman quality 3d printed animals and figures to make your model railroad layout come alive. miniprints is known for its large collection of animals in multiple scales, offering animals and figures in HO, N, S and O Scale.

Choose from their CustomCrews line of realistic, modern railroad workers or more than 80 animals including African Elephants, Bald Eagles, Beavers, Bighorn Sheep, Bison, Moose, Canada Geese, Caribou, Cougars, Donkeys, Great White Sharks, Kangaroos, Llamas, Manatees, Mountain Goats, Pigs, Sasquatch, the Loch Ness monster, and many many more!

TSG Live Model Railroading

On July 17th, 2021 TSG Live Model Railroading featured Bernard Hellen of miniprints talking about going down the rabbit hole. It was a great discussion about super detailing scenes. We also discuss 3D printing, both as a technology and as a means to super detail scenes on a layout. It was a lot of fun! https://youtu.be/20nLIe3iBvw

THE ROYAL ALBERT BRIDGE is a railway bridge which spans the River Tamar in England between Plymouth, Devon and Saltash, Cornwall. Its unique design consists of two 455-foot (138.7 m) lenticular iron trusses 100 feet (30.5 m) above the water, with conventional plate-girder approach spans.

This gives it a total length of 2,187.5 feet (666.8 m). It carries the Cornish Main Line railway in and out of Cornwall. It is adjacent to the Tamar Bridge which opened in 1962 to carry the A38 road.

The Royal Albert Bridge was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Surveying started in 1848 and construction commenced in 1854. The first main span was positioned in 1857 and the completed bridge was opened by Prince Albert on 2 May 1859. Brunel died later that year and his name was then placed above the portals at either end of the bridge as a memorial. Work was carried out during the twentieth century to replace the approach spans and strengthen the main spans. It has attracted sightseers since its construction and has appeared in many

paintings,

photographs,

guidebooks, postage stamps and on the UK £2 coin.

Bench seat at the Brunel Museum, Rotherhithe, London incorporating a model of the bridge with a train.

Read

more

about

Brunel in the PEMRC library:

MIKE SMOUT’S LAYOUT “Over the past year I have been working to upgrade my layout by replacing and rebuilding existing buildings and structures. Some of them date back to my first layout and are fifteen years old. Age takes its toll on models just as it does on real buildings, dirt accumulates and colours fade. Also, I like to think that my modelling skills have improved a bit over the years and some of the buildings that I was satisfied with when I first started modelling, no longer look good enough.

My most recent project has involved the complete removal of a high level bridge and replacing it with a model of a famous bridge engineered by Brunel in the 1850’s. I have really enjoyed doing the research and digging up photos of the original and trying to produce scale drawings from which a model could be built. A task which was made more difficult by the fact that the bridge deck on the model is on a 1:50 slope. Brunel was commissioned to build a railway bridge over the river Tamar in Bristol in the west of England. The river is some 250m wide at the site in question and runs in a 30m deep, sheer sided gorge. Brunel’s task was made difficult by the fact that Bristol was a home port of the Royal Navy and the bridge could not obstruct the passage of the ‘tall ships’ of that era. Brunel’s plan for the bridge had two identical spans, each 139m long with one central support in the river bed. In those days a railway bridge deck of that length, without any supporting pillars was a major challenge. Each span was based on the principle of the lenticular truss – shaped like a lens. The top chord was a heavy steel tube 4m in diameter from which the bridge deck was suspended. The tendency of the tube to expand under the load of the deck, was counterbalanced by the lower chord which consisted of four massive chains which would contract under the same load. The 7m long links of the chains were fixed to the bridge supports with flexible joints and the entire structure was cross braced. The net result was an odd looking structure but today, 162 years after the 1859 opening, the bridge still carries mainline trains into Bristol.

On the model, the deck supports and chains were made using balsa wood and the entrances to the bridge which support the truss were formed from 6mm ply wood. The top chord, the ‘steel’ tube, was made using a length of flexible plastic tube (as found in swimming pools) covered with a leg cut from a ladies pair of tights which was stretched tight and then painted! Take a look at photos of the model.

PEMRC MEMBER LAYOUT VISIT: MIKE van ZYL Mike models in HO and has a diversity in scenes but with attention to detail. Spend some time to find the several cameos he has created such as a still in the bush, a tree house, a live slaughter, scouts and many more.