Swindon Rail Scene – Hydraulics to HSTs

AUTHOR: Garry Stroud PUBLISHER: Amberley Publishing

ISBN: 978-1-3981-0054-1

PRICE: £14.39

WEB: www.amberley-books.com

ALREADY CEMENTED into Western Region folklore, Swindon was a vital part of the early Great Western Railway and home to its primary workshops long before this book was mooted. That said, it continued to evolve during the 1960s, 70s and 80s before it succumbed to closure on March 26, 1986.

During the period in question the facility produced many of the Western Region’s diesel hydraulic fleet and was responsible for their heavy overhaul. It then diversified considerably, overhauling several types of locos, including the Class 08/09 fleets, and it also refurbished the Southern Region Class 411 EMUs. At the same time, it was tasked with scrapping the majority of the former WR hydraulic fleet, as well as dozens of other redundant BR diesels, including Classes 24, 25, 31, 40, 45, 46, etc – not what it wants to be remembered for.

The book covers the two decades from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, and includes shots of the works, station and yards during this period. In addition, it covers the main line and local area to Stratton St Margaret in the east, Wootton Bassett to the west and Purton on the Gloucester line to the north. Some of the internal photos of the works at its busiest are fascinating, but so are the ones of the amazing breadth of classes that visited the works over the years, with everything from Classes 20, 31 and even 71, through to the more obvious Westerns, Warships and even the Blue Pullman. This is a superb time capsule work of a brief period in Swindon’s history, but well worth adding to the bookshelf. (MN)