Heritage News
FOLLOWING THE withdrawal from service of the Isle of Wight’s veteran EMUs, three have been saved for preservation. The Isle of Wight Steam Railway is to take 483007, which is to be housed in the line’s Train Story museum at Havenstreet. There a display will be mounted showing how the stock was first used in London before being rebuilt for use on the island. There will also be a driver’s eye view showing the Ryde to Shanklin line. A mediumterm intention is to return the unit to running order, with power supplied by batteries or diesel shunter. The unit will remain at Ryde St John’s Depot for the next few months until track upgrades have been completed, before then being moved to Havenstreet. 483007 spent three years out of service for overhaul, only be made via the Class 03 D2138 Engine Appeal page on Facebook (https://bit.ly/3a5Pans ).
The chassis from part-scrapped 08473 has been repositioned at Lydney Junction to allow it to be fitted with the spare power unit owned by the Dean Forest Diesel Association. This will create a work platform to allow volunteers to strip components that are needed to carry out engine repairs to both 08238 and 08769.
In early February, after four days’ hard work, Class 03 03179 at Rushden finally had its other returning to the rails in December last year shortly before the whole class was withdrawn from service.
Meanwhile, the London Transport Traction Group has announced that it will be acquiring 483006/008, which are both eventually destined for the Epping Ongar Railway, itself formerly part of the underground network. Both units are to be returned to working order by the side window cleaned, prepped and ready to be installed. With the other window already similarly treated during last year’s lockdown, the cab can now be sealed from the elements ready for fittings to be installed. Work has started on painting a lot of the pipes and fittings in preparation for this.
Class 08 D3586 left the Severn Valley Railway in January and was taken by road to the Great Western Railway depot at Bristol’s St Philip’s Marsh for tyre turning. With the work completed it was returned to Kidderminster by road on January 21 and, after a few jobs use of battery packs at a cost of around £100,000. Work on 483008 is expected to be more complex as it is in worse condition than 438006. The batteries will be housed underfloor, which will require some strengthening work to the cars. It is expected that once the stock leaves the Isle of Wight some of it will be stored elsewhere until sufficient space is made available at Epping. to make it able to move again, it then returned to its home depot at Bridgnorth.
On January 28 another EE power unit arrived at Bitton to donate its generator as well as some other engine parts to 09015. As the crane was on site to unload it, the opportunity was taken to lift the engine out. This has meant both units can be split down on the deck, with the good generator going away for overhaul and the engine from 09015 rebuilt. The existing generator from 09015 will be scrapped, as will the other engine block after stripping of components has taken place.