Go-head given for overhaul of Sierra Leone No. 85
THE Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway (W&LLR) has confirmed that its ex-Sierra Leone Railway Hunslet 2-6-2T No. 85 will be overhauled and returned to steam. The 1954-built loco has recently been disassembled by the Vale of Rheidol Railway to assess the feasibility of restoring it to service. This study was paid for out of a fund started by W&LLR members shortly after the loco was withdrawn from service in 2010.
Agreement has now been reached for the Friends of the Sierra Leone National Railway Museum (FoSLNRM) to raise the funding to overhaul the loco.
The W&LLR will produce the specification, assess the tendering process and provide project oversight. The W&LLR restricted fund will be set aside for the future maintenance of No. 85 once it is back in service. The loco is planned to return to service in time to appear at national events in 2025.
Meanwhile, the W&LLR took delivery of two newly constructed turnouts, which are built using plastic sleepers, on September 30. They have been laid at Sylfaen where the track has been realigned and a passing loop reinstated. The last scheduled passenger train through to Welshpool for the 2021 running season ran on September 19 following which track panels at Sylfaen were lifted. Remaining trains in 2021 will run on the Llanfair to Castle Caereinion section only.