New date and new route for the delayed Class 56 farewell

THE UK Railtours‘ Farewell to Grids’ tour which was postponed from Saturday, September 17 has been rescheduled for Saturday, January 7.

Although this tour is booked up, for those lucky enough to get tickets on board and those hoping to catch it lineside, it will be a final opportunity to see a ‘Grid’ on the main line.

Due to the date change, there has also been a route change, with the tour now starting from Wembley Central and picking up additional passengers at Watford Junction, Bletchley, Bedford and Leicester. This change means the tour will be hauled by a Class 56 from the start of the day as opposed to the original plan of a Class 66 taking the train from Finsbury Park to Leicester before swapping for the ‘Grid’. At Leicester, the tour follows the original plan north via Trent, Lenton Curve, Radford Junction, Trowell Junction and along the Erewash Valley route where the Class 56 will stretch its legs on the journey to Barrow Hill Roundhouse.

There will then be a break at Barrow Hill to experience the last operational roundhouse, historic locomotives, and museum space.

Upon departure from Barrow Hill the tour will head north via Mexborough and Hexthorpe Junction to Bentley Junction and the Doncaster Avoiding Lines towards the River Humber.

Crossing the Goole Swing Bridge to Hessle Road Junction, the train will divert off on to the Hull Docks freight line before passing Spring Junction and taking the Walton Street Goods branch. The excursion continues towards Selby and at Gascoigne Wood Junction the tour heads to Castleford via Milford Junction, then the Cutsyke branch to Pontefract Monkhill. Heading along the KnottingleyAskern-Shaftholme freight line, the tour rejoins the East Coast Main Line at Doncaster to head south to Peterborough.

At Peterborough the Class 56 will be detached and a Class 66 will take the train via Stamford to Leicester, then to Wembley Central, setting down passengers en route.