News

FIVE new Siemens SC-44 ‘Charger’ locos have been ordered to operate ‘Coaster’ commuter rail services between San Diego and Oceanside, in southern California. The new locos will be built in the Siemens factory in Sacramento, California, and delivered by June 2021 at a cost of $37million. The order is being funded by the Californian state…

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TWO former New Zealand Railways (NZR) tank locomotives will be given a new lease of life with brand new welded boilers replacing the originals. After discussions with Australian preservation groups, which had used new welded boilers, it was decided to buy two boilers as the joint cost was lower than buying one at a time.…

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CUBA’s railways have been badly affected by severe weather several times in recent months. During the second week of September 2017 the most powerful Atlantic storm in a decade, Hurricane Irma, left a trail of destruction across the Caribbean and the southern USA. The north coast of the island of Cuba was particularly hard hit…

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UK-BASED Railway Touring Company operated the first passenger train to be hauled by Slovak broad gauge (1,520mm) Class 125 electric locos in July. The train was formed of a unique preserved ex-Czechoslovak Railways (ČSD) variable gauge (1435/1520mm) axle two-car DMU, owned by a preservation group based in Haniska, near the Slovakian city of Košice. It…

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AFTER 14 years out of service the unique South African Railways (SAR) Class 26 4-8-4 No. 3450 – named the ‘Red Devil’ – returned to main line service. This followed a overhaul at Worcester (180km north-east of Cape Town) on July 3. Overnight steam tests were carried out on July 2, followed by yard tests in…

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WELSH rugby union fans planning to attend the Scotland v Wales game at Murrayfield on March 9, 2019 will be able to travel to and from the game in style on a specially chartered train, organised by Pathfinder Tours. Starting in Carmarthen at 07.00 on March 8, the train runs via Llanelli, Neath, Bridgend, Cardiff,…

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HEIDELBERG Cement’s Ketton Works in Rutland opened its doors to enthusiasts on July 1, when the Branch Line Society organised a series of tours of the rail network within the complex. Here, RSS-owned No. 08580 trails as No. 08375 heads under the cement silos with the first train of the day. Bagnall 0-4-0ST (No. 2648 of 1940) Ketton…

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DAVID Buck, the owner of ‘B1’ No. 61306 Mayflower, has acquired the Steam Dreams railtour business from founder Marcus Robertson. Mr Robertson will continue as a consultant for the company, tasked with developing new multi-day holidays by steam in the UK and overseas. The deal was announced as Mayflower prepares to return to the main line…

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RESTORATION work on the Merseyside Class 502 EMU was on display when the Merseyside Transport Trust (MTT) held its annual open day in Burscough, Lancashire on July 8. The MTT is concerned with rescuing and preserving buses from Merseyside, but its shed on the Burscough industrial estate is also home to the Friends of the…

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