Heritage Railway Issue 296

Iwas honoured to attend aVIP reception held by the Great Central Railway Rolling Stock Trust at Nottingham Transport Heritage Centre, Ruddington, on Saturday, July 23, at which a new appeal for funds and volunteer resources was launched with a view to having one of the group’s three Edwardian classic Barnum coaches restored and running within three years. The group has been the custodian of the trio for a considerable number of years, ensuring that they remain safe from the scrap man. However, there is a growing feeling that their time to shine again is now appearing on the horizon. The Bridging the Gap project at Loughborough, which aims to link both heritage-era GCRs, continues to make progress in raising funds, and as reported in issue 293, the life-expired Bridge 236…

EXCLUSIVE HAVING researched and written the story in HR 293 about the little Ukrainian 0-4-0T saved from invading Russians in April, I decided to go myself in July and see if there was anything practical that I could do to help. Western Ukraine is relatively safe, and trains are still running. The trip was a huge success – at least for me! I found wonderful people, beautiful scenery through the Carpathians, and railways were very much in evidence, and clearly needed. I didn’t see one dual carriageway in three days! Ukrainian railways play a very important role in keeping the country moving. I saw all kinds of freight trains, all with electric haulage, except for diesel shunters. I didn’t see any military equipment moving, perhaps because I came in from…

FACED with soaring worldwide concern about climate change and CO2 emissions from burning fossil fuels like coal, the builder of A1 Peppercorn Pacific No. 60103 Tornado is turning over a new leaf. The A1 Steam Locomotive Trust has been quietly running a carbon offset programme for many years with the aim of ‘banking’ carbon in British hardwood plantations in an ongoing environmentally-friendly process. The first of these woodland projects was established in Herefordshire in 1995, encompassing 20 acres of new hardwood tree planting – when Tornado was little more than a set of frames. If it is assumed that an acre of broadleaved trees can absorb between two and two and a half tons of carbon per annum, these plantations are now locking up an estimated 50 tons of carbon a…

THE West Somerset Railway will not run any trains on Fridays during the peak summer season in a bid to save on coal consumption. A statement from the railway said: “There is a national shortage of coal for steam engines and while the railway has a good supply, it is important that this is used for busy trains. The cost of other supplies to the railway is also rising fast, and the railway wants to avoid raising ticket prices if it possibly can.” General manager Kerry Noble added: “The planned changes for this August will help secure the long-term future of the railway. “In the last couple of years, everyone (including our 800-plus volunteers) has worked hard to ensure the railway operates on a good commercial basis. “This year continues…

THREE UK heritage railways carried the Birmingham 2022 Queen’s Baton Relay as part of its 294-day, 90,000-mile journey through 72 Commonwealth countries. The relay is held prior to the beginning of the Commonwealth Games, which opened in Britain’s second city on July 28. The baton carries a message from The Queen as head of the Commonwealth and, following tradition, began at Buckingham Palace on October 7, 2021, in London, when she entrusted it to the first relay runner. Designed and manufactured in the West Midlands, the baton features a platinum strand along its length to commemorate The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. It has a camera, a heart-rate monitor, an atmospheric sensor, and lights that change each time the baton is passed from person to person. It arrived in Wales on June…

THE wish of the late international wildlife artist David Shepherd to see a locomotive that he donated to the National Railway Museum displayed in its Great Hall at York has been granted. On July 17, 3ft 6in gauge Cape Government Railway 4-8-0 No. 390 was moved by road from the Locomotion museum at Shildon to the NRM, where it is now on show for the first time. The wood-burning locomotive with its eight wheel, double-bogie tender was built by Sharp Stewart &Co in Glasgow in 1896. In 1910 the Cape Government Railway was absorbed into South Africa Railways and the locomotive was renumbered SAR No. 993. In 1971 it was bought by Zambesi Sawmills Railway, where it operated until that railway ceased operations in 1973. The following year it was…