News

A ONE-off event on April 23 saw four generations of East Coast traction run side by side along the four-track main line north of York. It was staged as part of a publicity campaign for Virgin Trains. The event – jointly organised by Virgin Trains, Network Rail, the National Railway Museum, Hitachi and Welcome to…

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The oldest DMUs still in regular use have finally been withdrawn by Chiltern Railways after nearly 60 years in traffic. CHILTERN Railways has withdrawn its last two Class 121 ‘Bubble Cars’, which were the oldest diesel units still in regular main line passenger service and the final ones to operate with vacuum brakes. The final…

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April 21 was the last day that London Underground operated ‘D’ Stock in normal service, although two railtours were planned for subsequent weeks. ‘D’ Stock has operated on the District Line since 1980, but has now been fully replaced by new Bombardier-built ‘S7’ Stock. Many of the driving cars have been acquired by Vivarail, however,…

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Volunteers from the EM2 Locomotive Society spent the Easter weekend stripping Overhead Line Inspection Vehicle (OLIVe) No. DB998900 of charred interior parts following the arson attack last year at the Middleton Railway, Leeds. The vehicle was then moved to the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway on May 2 to be repaired at Ingrow by the…

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Popular GM locos entered traffic 40 years ago. THE 18-strong General Motors-built 071 Class entered revenue earning traffic 40 years ago in 1977. On May 23 that year, No. 082 was the first to begin to recoup Coras Iompair Eireann’s investment, while No. 088 was the final one on July 6. Last year’s events to…

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THE final four Class 70s on order for Colas Rail arrived in the UK early on April 18, Nos. 70814-17 being unloaded from the Atlantic Cartier at Seaforth, Liverpool, later that day. Initially left on their transport trailers, the quartet were eventually craned off and railed on April 24, the same day as they were…

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The retailer has shown off images of its upcoming exclusive Class 121 single-car units. APRIL saw Hattons release the first images of its exclusive batch of limited edition Class 121 ‘bubble cars’, the ‘OO’ gauge models being produced by Dapol. These were actually the first view of the upcoming single-car DMU, the manufacturer having previously…

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The proposed BML2 scheme offers more than just reopening Uckfield to Lewes, with wider benefits at both the London and Brighton ends. Government funding has been ruled out for the foreseeable future – but, as Robin Whitlock describes, there is much in the plan that deserves serious consideration. IN January 2015, The Daily Telegraph reported…

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The first of the five-car, bi-mode Class 802 fleet for Great Western Railway is on its way to the UK. The trains are destined for use on its West of England services to Devon and Cornwall, and are similar to the Class 800 bi-modes now being built at Hitachi’s plant in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham.…

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The Lisburn/Lurgan Ballast Rehabilitation Project (see last issue) continued during the period under review, the six-week project between Lisburn and Moira running from February 14 to March 25. The used ballast, which was removed using the hired-in 13-wagon Irish Rail spoil train, has been unloaded by an excavator at a site adjacent to the closed…

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