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  • FACING UP TO THE CHALLENGE

    FACING UP TO THE CHALLENGE

    by

    Sam Hewitt

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    The East Coast has proved something of a ‘poisoned chalice’ to franchisees in the past, but Stagecoach/Virgin are determined to make a success of it despite open access threats and jitters caused by the recent ‘Brexit’ vote. Nick Pigott meets managing director David Horne to find out how the operator intends to meet the challenges.…

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  • Steam’s newest works – where rails are not needed

    Steam’s newest works – where rails are not needed

    by

    Sam Hewitt

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    Ian Riley is now ensconced in his fourth railway workshops as his engineering company celebrates 25 years in the business. Nick Brodrick paid a first visit to Riley & Son (E) Ltd’s new Heywood premises. WHAT do plastic bags and steam locomotives have in common? Answer? An industrial building near Rochdale that once served the big…

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  • Sweden disbands final strategic steam reserve locos

    Sweden disbands final strategic steam reserve locos

    by

    Sam Hewitt

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    It’s hard to believe that 16 years into the 21st century, Sweden has disbanded its final Strategic Reserve, steam locos that were kept on standby in the event of war in Europe. Bob Sweet witnessed the removal of the final two locos from storage. TRAVELLERS on Sweden’s rail network over the past 60 years can…

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  • Two decades of steam at Perrygrove

    Two decades of steam at Perrygrove

    by

    Sam Hewitt

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    The Perrygrove Railway is approaching its 20th anniversary. With an enthusiastic and experienced young family team at the regulator it looks set fair for the next couple of decades, as Cliff Thomas reports. THE 15in-gauge Perrygrove Railway, near Coleford, in the Forest of Dean, has always been a family-run operation with families at the forefront…

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  • From the Granite City to Mount’s Bay

    From the Granite City to Mount’s Bay

    by

    Sam Hewitt

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    John Heaton FCILT, rides Britain’s longest passenger journey, which runs from Aberdeen to Penzance – a distance of 776 miles. It is just before 08.00 as an insignificant Class 2 local train shuffles unassumingly into a bay platform at Aberdeen station. To the staff it is simply ‘2A01’ and, to its passengers, simply a humdrum…

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  • Inside Drax

    Inside Drax

    by

    Sam Hewitt

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    The term biomass will be familiar to many, but what is it, where does it come from, and how is it used? Chris Milner visits Drax power station, the first in the UK to switch to biomass consumption on a large scale, and finds out how rail plays a vital link in the supply chain.…

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  • “To be or not to be…”

    “To be or not to be…”

    by

    Sam Hewitt

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    It’s 40 years since a cash-strapped British Rail closed what was an alternative rail route between Birmingham and Cheltenham, avoiding the Lickey Incline. Fraser Pithie looks back over the origins of the line, its heyday, its chequered existence post a BR reorganisation, its closure, what happened afterwards, and why demands are now growing for the…

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  • The Hurn Branch: Lost but still remembered

    The Hurn Branch: Lost but still remembered

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    Stephen Roberts recalls a Hampshire branch line that was first proposed for closure nearly 100 years ago. The Hurn Branch: Lost but still remembered ‘West Country’ Pacific No. 34104 Bere Alston approaches Christchurch with the remains of the Hurn branch disappearing to the left. The stub continued for less than a mile. The building behind…

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  • A LONG-CHERISHED DREAM TURNING INTO REALITY

    A LONG-CHERISHED DREAM TURNING INTO REALITY

    by

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    Professor Dennis Wilcock provides a progress report on the exciting scheme to build bridge for the Great Central Railway over the Midland Main Line at Loughborough. A LONG-CHERISHED DREAM TURNING INTO REALITY An artist’s impression of the new bridge from the Loughborough Midland platform. FJD CONSULTING Back in the dark days of railway closures in…

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  • CHURCHILL’S SECRET STATION

    CHURCHILL’S SECRET STATION

    by

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    The London Transport Museum has launched a new series of Hidden London tours featuring disused Tube stations. Chris Milner visited Down Street station, a location that became a bomb-proof bunker and was used by wartime Prime Minister Winston Churchill. CHURCHILL’S SECRET STATION On the walls in the unused passageways at London Euston are remnants of…

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