Features

In the second of a three-part feature looking at train performance in the Thames Valley through the steam, diesel and electric eras, Keith Farr turns his attention to both diesel locomotives and multiple units. We were seeing off an aunt going home from Paddington to Swindon in 1959. “There posh!” she commented, referring not to…

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For this month’s Practice & Performance, John Heaton FCILT uses some of his holiday time to sample Austrian ‘Railjet’ services in the Tyrol, as well as tourist steam services in one of Europe’s most beautiful countries. The Siemens ‘Taurus’ Bo-Bo electric locomotive certainly looked sleek as it stood at the head of its ‘Railjet’ service…

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This year our annual ghost story has been written by Robert Lumb November 1952 The station waiting room was cold during the summer months, but now in the late-November evening the cold was penetrating even when wearing the heaviest of coats. A fire was burning in the hearth with a weak flame at the head…

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Gary Boyd-Hope concludes his profile of the ‘Pacers’ and their antecedents with a look at the Walter Alexander-built Class 143s and 144s, and talks to people within the industry about the important role the type has played in keeping Britain’s passengers moving. AFTER the introduction of the BRE-Leyland Class 141s in September 1983, and the…

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The restoration of NER petrol Autocar to working order has taken many readers by surprise, some apparently unaware such a vehicle even existed. Chris Milner visited Stephen Middleton, who bought the derelict shell of the 1903 vehicle, and has overseen a dedicated team of experts during its lengthy restoration. WHEN you first set eyes on…

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Early LNER non-steam traction to the birth of ‘British Railways’ Bob Gwynne takes a fascinating look into the history of pioneering electric and diesel traction and its use by the London & North Eastern Railway (and other companies) up to the formation of British Railways in 1948. When people talk of the London & North…

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Graeme Pickering looks at two reopening proposals in Scotland which could again connect the university town of St Andrews and the conurbation of Levenmouth to the national network, as well as another long-term scheme to link the newly electrified line at Alloa with Dunfermline. The Central Lowlands are the most heavily populated region of Scotland,…

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Fifty years of the popular Class 50 locomotive was celebrated when 11 of their number took part in a commemorative gala, supported by The Railway Magazine and its sister title Rail Express. The event also saw the return to traffic of No. 50033 Glorious after a 24-year absence. THREE full days of running 10 different Class…

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With a lot of emphasis this year on the 50th anniversary to mark the end of steam on BR, John Crosse reveals the remarkable fact that more diesel than steam locomotives were withdrawn in 1968. MANY column inches have been published concerning the 50th anniversary of the end of British Railways mainline steam traction in…

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In the second of our new, regular series, The RM is visiting the Severn Valley Railway (SVR) to spend time with its apprentices. These young people are enrolled in the SVR’s pioneering Heritage Skills Training Academy, established five years ago to give a shot of youthful vitality to heritage railway engineering. This month we meet…

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