Operations Track Record
siding at Ipswich.
No North Walsham tank trains ran from Harwich Refinery in the week commencing August 30, but the GBRf Charity Railtour ‘This Time It’s Personal 2021’ had one of its calling places on the day one itinerary as Harwich International and a pristine
Class 66/7 No. 66769 LMA
League Managers Association with Prostate Cancer side panel vinyls and Paul Taylor Our Inspiration on cabsides trundled into the North East Essex Port station about 30 minutes late on September 2 with 12 brownand-cream Mk.1 coaches and Class 73/9 Nos. 73963 Alison and 73965 Des O’Brien, the latter having been named at London Victoria station, the tour’s starting point.
The schedule provided an hour’s stopover here to allow the passengers a stretch along the platforms and for photographs to be taken, but even though Harwich International is a Passenger
Port (to and from The Hook of Holland twice daily) there are no amenities available except toilets. The tour resumed on time at 16.57 with Class 73/9
No. 73965 leading on its next leg to Ely via Ipswich.
Sighted passing through Bickley (Kent) on Wednesday, September 1, at 10.55, and running some 45 minutes late, were five Class 73 GBRf locomotives Nos. 73212+ 73141+73136+73963+73201 running as 0Y68 from Tonbridge yard to Eastleigh. All five were then used in the ‘This Time It’s Personal’ GBRf railtour running between September 2-5.
Class 66 No. 66759 Chippy arrived at the Harwich Refinery for 6P41 empty tanks move to North Walsham on September 6, and duly returned loaded the following day with 6A32. It then repeated the diagram on September 8 and 9 before leaving light engine to Peterborough MPD later that final day. Weekend stopovers noted on September 12 were 66713 Forest City on the Doncaster i-Port and 66706 Nene Valley on the Hams Hall.
Class 69 Nos. 69001+69002 were observed behind Eastleigh station at 10.30 on September 6. The pair were seen again on September 15 at Hastings whilst on a test/training run on the Tonbridge-HastingsAshford-Tonbridge circuit.
CLASS 70 No. 70801 was waiting for a path in Carlisle at 13.40 on Saturday, August 7 with the logs for Chirk. The Chirk to Carlisle (via Shap) empty log wagon train was hauled by Class 70
No. 70814 on August 15. The Carlisle to Chirk daily loaded log train made a return to the WCML over Shap on September 8, being pulled by Colas Rail Class 70 No. 70812. Normally this train goes via Settle to join the WCML south of Preston.
Light engine moves reported included Class 56 No. 56113 running light from Carlisle to Shrewsbury on August 16. Class 70 No. 70802 was an unusual visitor through Woodlesford working light engine on the 07.23 Rugby D.E.D to Hunslet Yard Colas Rail working on August 21. Class 70 No. 70812 ran light from Crewe to Carlisle on August 23.
The loaded GrangemouthSinfin tanks ran on August 15 hauled by Class 56 No. 56049.
The empty tanks were taken north on August 16 by Class 56 No. 56302, with the same loco was reported taking loaded tanks to Sinfin on September 12.
WEST Coast Railways Class 57 Nos. 57314 and 57601 top-and-tailed an ecs set of Pullman liveried ‘Northern Belle’ coaching stock from Blackburn to Carnforth on Sunday August 15.
Class 47 No. 47237 ran light from Edinburgh to Crewe on September 7, being noted through Lancaster at 15.17.
Hastings Diesel Ltd
PRESERVED DEMU No.1001 was seen passing Bo Peep Junction on its way from its base at St Leonards Depot to Hastings on Saturday September 11, from where it would be working the ‘Faversham Flyer’ railtour to Faversham.
LSL
LSL Class 43 Midland Pullman liveried set with power cars Nos. 43046 and 43055 ran ECS from Crewe on August 13. Two days later, on Sunday August 15, the set returned to Crewe on the WCML, again as ECS, seen passing through Lancaster at 15.32. Just over a week later on August 21 it again passed through Lancaster at 17.11 on a 334 mile journey from Carlisle to London St Pancras via Wakefield and Chesterfield. With the Staycation Express service being completed, LSL’s HST set with power cars No. 43058+43059 ran ECS from Carlisle back to Crewe on September 13.
On the afternoon of Tuesday, September 14, Class 37
No. 37667 hauled No. 37521 from Barrow to Crewe. No. 37521 had failed on a tour on the previous Saturday. These are the two green 37s, which look splendid in that livery. In fact, they looked as though they were on a delivery run in the 1960s from the Vulcan Works!
Eastleigh Works
REPORTS from Eastleigh Works include Mk.3 TF No. 41183 having been repainted in Midland Pullman blue livery but with internal fitting out still to be completed. Class 57
No. 57303 has been repainted in plain DRS blue with black roof and no logos or branding, just numbers.
Also repainted was Class 66 No. 66769 in a special Prostate Cancer UK livery of GBRf Gold/ orange and black with LMA League Managers Association cast nameplates and cabside decal nameplates Paul Taylor Our Inspiration. DTS No. 77412 from Class 442 No. 442407 was cut in early August. The three remaining vehicles of No. 442407 are being saved for possible future reuse. Class 769 No. 769930 has joined No. 769943 on site for mods. Work has started on repainting Nos. 43465 and 43468 for Rail Adventure. Class 68 Nos. 68002 brought in
Class 37 Nos. 37419, 37038 and 37218 on August 6 for various repairs. Three days later Class 66 No. 66796 arrived for repainting behind Class 69 No. 69001.
The two CEP cars Nos. 61229 and 61230 were collected by 33025 with MLVs 68001 and 68002 and taken to Southall on August 12.
EMR Class 360 No. 360107 arrived for repainting on August 17, joining No. 360121 already underway.
Derby RTC & Network Rail
A TEST train was seen leaving platform 7 at Waterloo on August 11 working from Woking to Woking Up Carriage Holding Sidings. The train was top-and-tailed by GBRf Class 73 Nos. 73212 Fiona and 73213 Rhodalyn. The train was formed of Staff coach 977969, Track Recording coach 999550, Special vehicle 1256 and Generator 6261. On the same day Class 37 No. 37219 Jonty Jarvis was seen approaching South Acton station working light engine from Hoo Junction Up Yard to Derby RTC. Windhoff MPV No. DR98008 was observed passing Thankerton on Friday August 13 whilst working the 3Z07/10.20 Slateford Depot to Rugby depot. Plasser & Theurer 09 Series Tamper No. DR75014 formed an 09.56 West Ealing-Knighton Junction on August 13. Later the same day, Class 73 Nos. 73961+73964 top-and-tailed the monthly 1Q69/12.22 South Croydon-Derby RTC test train. The train runs over the littleused Wigston South Curve to run to Croft before reversing back towards Leicester. MPV Nos. DR98960+DR98910 formed an 18.28 Toton TMD – Bedford St Johns-Toton TMD working on August 15. On Tuesday, August 17 DR73905, was seen waiting at platform 17 at Clapham Junction when working as train 6J13 from Norwich Terminal Complex to Woking Up Yard Reception. Colas Rail’s Class 37 Nos. 37219 and large logo No.37610 top-and-tailed a Network Rail set of rolling stock from Derby to Carlisle via Shap on August 17. Noted passing Dovercourt station on August 18 was HNRCowned Class 37/6 No. 37612 leading and Engineer’s Test train with Nos. 9801, 72631, 977997, 9523 in the consist and Colas Rail’s Class 37/0 No. 37175 at the rear. It reached the Harwich Town terminus where it stayed until 16.05 and then continued on its allotted route to Cambridge Reception Sidings with No. 37175 leading. HST power cars Nos. 43290+ 43299 were observed passing Thankerton while working the New Measurement Train 1Q26/06.13 Derby RTC to Edinburgh on Tuesday, August 17. A visit to Euston station the following day found the New Measurement Train, working as train 1Q27 Crewe Carriage Sidings LNWR Site to Derby RTC, in one of the non-platform roads. No. 43290 was at the buffer stop and No. 43299 at the other end of the train. The train was made up of Lecture coach No. 975984, Conference coach No. 975814, Overhead Line Test coach No. 977993, Recording coach No. 977994 and Generator coach No. 977995. The train, in clean yellow livery, looked much smarter than the power cars. SB Rail’s Plasser and Theurer Unimat Dymamic No. DR75013 was stabled in Lancaster’s downside south siding on the afternoon of August 20. GBRf Class 73 Nos. 73965 and 73962 Dick Mabbutt were seen departing light engine from platform 19 at Waterloo on Saturday, August 21 working as train 0Z68 from Derby RTC to Tonbridge West Yard. Class 37s Nos. 37219+37057 both in Colas livery passed through Barnham on August 31 top-and-tailing an Eastleigh to Eastleigh via Portsmouth Harbour and Littlehampton Network Rail Train. The formation being Nos. 6264. 977868. 5981 and 72612.
Network Rail Stoneblower
No. DR80301 Stephen Cornish ran from Lichfield to Beattock on September 3.
Network Rail Tamper
No. DR73909 Saturn ran from Ulverston to Hellifield which, after reversing at Morecambe South Junction (Bare Lane), passed through Lancaster at 12.18 on September 7.
GPV Nos. DR98907 and DR98957 passed Thankerton with the 3Z97/09.40 Wigan Loco Inspection Point to Mossend Down Yard on Wednesday, September 8.
In what is almost certainly the first such sighting on this line for years, celebrity Inspection Saloon Caroline was seen being propelled through the site of the former Lightcliffe station between Manchester and Leeds on the Calder Valley line at 10.35 by large logo Class 37 No. 37558 Avro Vulcan heading towards Bradford on September 10.
Our thanks
THE Railway Magazine’s thanks for information go to: Paul Atkinson, Gene Collins, Mike Cooper, Kevin Driscoll, Charles Ellacott, Peter Gifford, David Gurr, Philip Hellawell, Stuart Hicks, Barry Knock, Sean Morris, Tony Page, Roger Phillips, Dorian Porter, Mark Reynolds, Terry Smart, Ray Smith, Nicholas Walker, Ian Walton, Craig Wellum and Chris West.