Sam Hewitt

ARICA, located on the Pacific coast in the north of Chile, is the terminus of two railway lines to neighbouring countries; both lines have seen passenger services restored recently after years without regular services. Arica was formerly in Peru when that country gained independence from Spain in 1821 and the first railway from Arica, north…

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CLASS 47 No. 47579 James Nightall GC arrived at Alresford station on the Mid-Hants Railway by low-loader from the Mangapps Railway, Essex on November 23. The off-loading was assisted by Class 33 No. 33202 Dennis G. Robinson, which is also currently visiting the MHR from the Mangapps Railway. It had been hoped No. 47579 would…

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Weardale Railways CIC ran ‘Trains to Christmas Town’ during late November and throughout December, in lieu of the copyrighted ‘Polar Expresses’ in the past. The first trains, at least, were all powered by Class 31s, of which the railway now has several examples. Train operation was supported by Weardale Railway Trust volunteers. Trains consisted of…

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ONE of the first large items to be removed from the now-closed Electric Railway Museum, Coventry (RM Nov, p9 and 84) was LAB 4 Hastings, No. RDB975386. This remarkable vehicle started life as Class 203 ‘Hastings-gauge’ DEMU buffet car No. S60750. When it became surplus to requirements it saw various uses including a paint store,…

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THE large end section of Class 47 No. 47738, used for educational purposes at Plymouth, was removed from the Regional Interactive Safety Centre (RISC) building on November 2 (RM Dec, p82). This building, next to the station, had been converted from the old Royal Mail docking station and contained various rail-themed scenarios for training staff…

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THE East Lancashire Railway’s DMU gala on November 4-5 (RM Oct, p94) was a particularly notable event. Combined with The Railcar Association’s (TRA) annual convention it saw no fewer than three DMU sets returned to traffic after overhauls. Star of the show was the Class 105 Cravens unit, which worked its first passenger train on…

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PATHFINDER Tours is running two steam-hauled specials to the Settle-Carlisle Line on August 11 and 15. They will mark the 50th anniversary of BR’s last steam train in August 1968 and the 10th birthday of new-build ‘A1’ No. 60163 Tornado. The ‘Settle & Carlisle Golden Express I’ on August 11 starts with diesel haulage at Bristol…

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CHARTER operators once again headed for Lincoln’s enormously popular Christmas Market in December, bringing several special trains and hundreds of visitors to the city. December 8 saw West Coast Railways operate a long-distance train from Linlithgow for the Scottish Railway Preservation Society (SRPS), with Nos. 47237 and a Class 57 topping-and-tailing the society’s BR maroon Mk1…

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‘BRITANNIA’ No. 70013 Oliver Cromwell will see out the last few weeks of its main line ticket with a diverse series of tours for Steam Dreams. The ‘15 Guinea Special’ locomotive will not be able to take part in the 50th anniversary celebrations in August as its main line certification expires in March, but four ‘Cathedrals…

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