Sam Hewitt

The two-year trial diesel service from Swanage to Wareham has earned the Purbeck Community Rail Partnership an Innovation in Community Rail award. The award was made at the annual dinner for the Association of Community Rail Partnerships at its gala evening on October 5. It was hosted by East Midlands Trains in Derby’s roundhouse museum.…

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By Hugh Dougherty A ROAD van body, used to house a generator for a nearby caravan on the North Channel shore, one mile north of Port Logan, in Dumfries and Galloway, has stumped experts from the Glasgow & South Western Railway Association, who said that it’s impossible to determine which company the grounded vehicle body…

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Saturday, October 14 was a landmark occasion for the Cornish Steam Locomotive Preservation Society (CSLPS) when Bagnall Austerity 0-6-0ST No. 75178, resplendent in its War Department livery, went for its first trial run after a very lengthy restoration on the Bodmin & Wenford Railway. Four decades after it had previously steamed, a fire was lit…

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A £90,000 appeal has been launched to manufacture the motion for new-build NER G5 0-4-4T No. 1759. The Class G5 Locomotive Company Limited is building the locomotive on the same site as the old BR wagon works in Shildon and hopes to run it not only on heritage lines but the main line, too. Progress…

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THE last of three Ivatt locomotives gifted to the Isle of Wight Steam Railway has returned to the island. The Ivatt Locomotive Trust relocated 2-6-2Ts Nos. 41298 and 41313 and 2-6-0 No. 46447 to the Isle of Wight Steam Railway between 2006-8. The ownership of all three was subsequently transferred to the railway. The East…

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LNER A4 Pacific No. 60009 Union of South Africa is approaching the end of its active main line preservation career and attracts attention wherever it goes in a busy programme on both the main line and heritage lines. After a series of railtours in the south of England, the A4 reached York at the head…

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By Geoff Courtney More than 1000 visitors to the Guild of Railway Artists’ annual Railart exhibition took part in a vote to select their favourite painting among the 61 on show, with the winner being a night-time, oil-on-canvas scene at Lichfield Trent Valley. It was the work of John Austin, a fellow of the guild…

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By Geoff Courtney Unique, rare opportunity, and scarce, are words that are a regular part of an auctioneer’s lexicon, and Chris France, of internet auction house Railwayana.net, will have every justification to use them at his next sale at the end of November. For instead of the more usual nameplates, cabside numberplates, totem station signs,…

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THE East Lancashire Railway has launched a £340,920 appeal towards the cost of buying current resident Bulleid West Country Light Pacific No. 34092 City of Wells from its three owners. Richard Greenwood, Graham Bentley and John Adams were approached by the railway about selling the locomotive, dubbed ‘The Volcano’ for its storming main line performances…

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