News

By Paul Lewin LAST year was one of great progress for the Ffestiniog Railway’s 1867-built ‘Large England’ 0-4-0STT Welsh Pony. This locomotive had a working life of around 75 years – and has been awaiting its turn for restoration to service for a further 75 years. When it was withdrawn in 1939, with a defective…

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ST AUSTELL’S historic GWR station footbridge may make a 330-mile journey to a new home on the Bala Lake Railway. The footbridge may be re-erected at the 2ft gauge line’s western terminus of Llanuwchllyn. While St Austell residents have lost their battle to keep the wooden footbridge in situ in their town, Network Rail has…

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THE Middleton Railway has discovered that it has had an imposter in its midst for many years. Ever since the industrial railway’s Engine House museum opened in 2007, a small 4wDM , on loan from the National Coal Mining Museum at the site of Caphouse colliery, has been on display HE6273 was built in 1965…

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CAMBRIAN Heritage Railways is set to be given a £120,000 grant from Oswestry Town Council to develop a tourist line to Weston. Councillors have indicated support for the revivalists’ plan to run 1¼ miles from the former Cambrian Railways headquarters building at the town centre station in Oswald Road south to Weston, where a visitor…

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By Geoff Courtney A memorial headstone to a hero steam train driver has been unveiled more than half a century after he had been buried in an unmarked grave. The memorial, which features an engraving of a George Cross in recognition of him being awarded the prestigious medal for his life-saving actions, has been paid…

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DETAILS of the National Railway Museum’s planned £50 million refurbishment and expansion have emerged. The York museum is busy fine-tuning a seven-year masterplan aimed at reinforcing its place as one of Britain’s leading tourist attractions. The blueprint is based around closing and diverting Leeman Road, which currently divides the museum in two, leaving both sides…

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THE Moseley Railway Trust has confirmed details of the first guest locomotive for its Tracks to the Trenches 2018 event at the Apedale Valley Light Railway. The event, which will take place from Friday, July 13 to Sunday, July 15, is the third in a series held to mark the centenary of the First World…

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By Geoff Courtney Thieves who broke into a railway museum in the Australian capital of Canberra and stole priceless parts from a history-making 140-year-old UK-built locomotive returned two days later to take more items after identifying them during their first break-in. The thefts from the closed-down Canberra Railway Museum were discovered by shocked volunteers on…

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DAVE Knowling, believed to be Britain’s longest serving steam engine driver, had a fitting tribute paid to him by family and friends by being taken to his final resting place down the railway that he loved and worked so hard to help build. The funeral service for popular South Devon Railway stalwart Dave, who died…

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SOUTH Devon may get a fourth privately-run standard gauge railway, after revivalist group Heath Rail Link was given permission by Network Rail to lease the moribund Newton Abbot to Heathfield line. The group wants to see the line reopened for use by commuter traffic as well as tourists. It aims to open a park-and-ride system…

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