Editor's Intro
Thunderbird gives Holyhead added pull
17 May 2012
Virgin Trains still deems it desirable to divert one of its ‘Pendolinos’ to Holyhead as opposed to using one of its ‘Super Voyager’ sets.
Highlight on the West Highland Extension
19 April 2012.
One of the undoubted workings of the year has been a special autoballaster working on the West Highland Extension. Using Direct Rail Services, Type 3 No. 37668 was initially used, but after succumbing at Glenfinnan on March 19, a replacement in the form of No. 37059 came to the rescue, fortuitously having been on crew training on the Oban line.
Signals sunset at Wrawby Junction
15 March 2012.
Freightliner Class 66 No. 66952 crosses the Brigg line with 6R16, a loaded coal train from Immingham to Ferrybridge.
The Forth Bridge really is finished!
19 January 2012.
Revealed in all its magnificent splendour, the Forth Bridge is now devoid of scaffolding and sheeting which has been covering the Victorian structure for a decade.
There’s only one tower at Middleton
22 December 2011.
…and that’s the loading tower for filling sand for distribution by rail, predominantly to glass-making companies in South Yorkshire and the North West.
Network Rail takes delivery of 57312
17 November 2011.
Where’s your sunglasses? This was the long-awaited sight outside Eastleigh Works at the back end of October when Class 57/3 No. 57312 emerged from the paintshop of Arlington Fleet Services adorned in Network Rail’s house colour of highly visible yellow!
From Welsh coal trains to ‘royal’ duties in 47 years
20 October 2011.
West Coast Railway’s Class 37 No. 37685 leads the ‘Royal Scotsman’, working the 1H88 Weymss Bay to Edinburgh leg of the Western Tour, taken at Greenfaulds.
DRS gathers in its ‘new’ Class 37/4s
15 September 2011.
Following the purchase by Direct Rail Services of a number of DB Schenker-owned stored Class 37/4s, arrangments were put in place to start moving them to either Barrow Hill ,where Harry Needle Railroad Company was due to start repairing them (Nos. 37419 and 37425), or to DRS’ Carlisle Kingmoor depot for assessment (Nos. 37411, 37416, 37417, 37422 and 37427.
Splendour on the Moors
18 August 2011.
Winding its way through the reverse curves at Northdale on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway is the 16.00 Pickering-Grosmont service on June 3, 2010.
An editor departs and a familiar name returns
21 July 2011.
Editor Gareth steps aside to take up a teaching career on the other side of the world. Fear not, for RAIL EXPRESS will be in safe hands with its new boss. To find out who will be in charge from the next issue, read on...
Current Issue: June 2012
• Welcome back!
Class 26 No. 26038 returns to service – after a 20-year gap
• Colas Rail wins first contracts in Scotland – moving oil to Linkswood and Prestwick
• Railway Vehicle Preservation to build 1960s-style brake tender on GCR
• New series
Box-to-Box: The signalboxes on The Blyth & Tyne Line
• Eastleigh Renaissance – how this famous works has seen a remarkable revival
• National Railway Museum’s ‘Deltic’ No. 55002 to be tested at 60mph on East Lancashire Railway
PLUS:
• Next issue on sale: 21 June 2012
