AUSTRIAN VISITOR TO BOLSTER WELSHPOOL FLEET
The Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway will welcome a new addition to its fleet this summer, in the form of Zillertalbahn ‘U’ 0‑6‑2T No. 2 Zillertal.
The 1900‑built locomotive, one of two engines built for the opening on the Austrian 20‑mile railway, is expected to arrive at the end of July, and will remain on the WLLR for two years, helping relieve pressure on the home fleet while several locomotives are currently out of traffic. Original WLLR Beyer Peacock 0‑6‑0T No. 822 The Earl was sent to the Vale of Rheidol Railway for overhaul at the end of June (SR493), while No. 699.01 ‘Sir Drefaldwyn’s’ overhaul is not expected to be complete until the end of the year. Zillertal’s hire period is also anticipated to cover the start of the overhaul of the line’s Sierra Leone Hunslet 2‑6‑2T No. 85, which is hoped to begin as soon as ‘Sir Drefaldwyn’ has returned to traffic.
It is not the first time the Austrian line has come to the aid of the WLLR, as the Zillertalbahn donated four open‑balconied carriages to the Mid‑Wales line in 1968, with a fifth arriving in 1975, when the WLLR was in desperate need of more passenger accommodation. Zillertal will be paired with these carriages, which have formed the backbone of the WLLR’s services since their arrival, at the railway’s annual steam gala on August 30‑September 1.