Steam in action at Minehead station for two weekends
STEAMisoncourse tomakeareturntotheWest SomersetRailway( WSR)– althoughthereareno plans to restartservices.
WSR plc has announced plans for two Living Museum communityweekends at Minehead station, on July 25/ 26 and August 1/ 2. It is intended to have a steam locomotive shunting around the station.
The turntable will be in action with a steam locomotive being turned 180 degrees, allied to a competition for children to work out how to shunt wagons.
Therewill be visits to the engine shed with close inspection of locomotives and hourly tours of the engineering workshops.
Cafeswill be open for sale of refreshments, hot food and drinks and a burger vanwill be available for snacks in the station yard
The station bookshop will be open for sale of books, magazines and models, with railway groups selling various items of railwayana from stalls.
Attractions
Other options beingconsideredfor theweekends includeadisplayof smallmodel railway layouts ( weather permitting), local musicians playingonthe platform, Punch& Judyshowsandvintagebus rides alongMineheadseafrontandpast the Paradeshops.
Further datesmay be announced, dependant on the level of interest shown in these events.
Entrance tickets are expected tobe £ 5 per person, bookable in advance online atwww. west- somerset- railway. co. uk or via contactless purchase on the day.
Meanwhile, the railway marked a positive milestone on June 23, on the road to recovery from Covid- 19, with the first High Output Ballast Cleaner ( HOBC) train seen running over the line again after a gap of six months.
TheNetwork Rail ( NR) Ballast Cleaning Systems train arrived at Norton Fitzwarren after being tripped from Fairwater Yard by Freightliner Class 66 No. 66414.
What was the first day ofWSR operations since before the March lockdown was the prelude to a five- days- a- week operation of wagons full of spent ballast being discharged at John Luffman’s mineral handling site at Norton Fitzwarren, where the materials are cleaned, recycled and regraded mainly for further use in the construction industry. Running from nowuntil mid- February, the ballast trains will resume later next year in line with NR’s track maintenance programme.
The previous train movement on the WSR, other than a recent shunt in Bishops Lydeard Up sidings, came in mid- March when Class 09 No. 09019, twoBRMk. 1 coaches and aToad brake vanwere used for a footplate training day.