Sam Hewitt

FURTHER consultation has taken place into the viability of reopening the Bristol to Portishead line to passengers. Costs for the first phase of the project have almost trebled, from £58million to between £145m and £175m, putting the proposed half-hourly service beyond reach. The new consultation sought feedback about an hourly service – known as MetroWest…

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RPSI offshoot Heritage Engineering Ireland completed the retube of the society’s LMS-NCC ‘WT’ No. 4 at Connolly shed during late November, ensuring the 2-6-4T was fit and ready for the sell-out ‘Santa Special’ season. No. 4 passed its steam test on November 28 in time for the first weekend of Dublin to Maynooth ‘Santas’ on…

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THE Railway Preservation Society of Ireland’s overhaul of General Motors Class 121 No. B134 has received a major boost after a County Cork firm offered to overhaul the main and auxiliary generators at cost. Green Net Exports Ltd, of Millstreet, near Mallow, had already received the locomotive’s traction motors for overhaul, owing to its experience…

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AN Taoiseach Leo Varadkar presided over the official opening of Dublin’s new €368million Luas Cross City line on December 9, providing the first physical link between the system’s Red and Green lines. He was joined by Minister for Transport Shane Ross and his predecessor in that job, Paschal Donohoe, who together with Mr Varadkar, has…

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Norfolk Heritage Steam Railway Ltd’s Hunslet ‘Austerity’ No. 3193 has made a surprise move to Bressingham Steam Museum, where it will spend much of the winter. The newly overhauled 0-6-0ST left Mervyn Mayes’ site at the Old Goods Yard in Yaxham, next to the Mid-Norfolk Railway, on November 28 bound for Diss. No. 3193 had…

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THE overhaul of the sole-surviving Stanier Class 5 Mogul No. 42968 has entered countdown mode as the Stanier Mogul Fund’s 2018 steaming target draws closer. The project took a major step forward during the late autumn when the 2-6-0’s frames took up residence on the lifting jacks at the Severn Valley Railway’s Bridgnorth works. The…

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HORWICH-built BR ‘4MT’ No. 76084 will continue to call the North Norfolk Railway (NNR) its home for the foreseeable future. The news comes after an NNR supporter acquired a major shareholding in the 76084 Locomotive Company’s 2-6-0. The future of the 1957-built 2-6-0 was thrown into question at the end of September when long-term supporter John…

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HEAVY snow across the Midlands and Wales during the early hours of December 10 resulted in a number of heritage lines making the difficult choice to cancel or postpone that day’s ‘Santa Special’ services. Such decisions are not taken lightly; the festive specials are some of, if not the, most financially lucrative events for preserved…

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