Based in the timings provided here for the 37-hauled relief train from Aberystwyth to Birmingham on 5 August, we thought we would see the train arrive at Welshpool and then get ahead of it for photographs. On the island platform there for 1335 we found other enthusiasts already waiting and the news that the Down unit was 5 minutes late but no news of the Up relief. Nothing was in sight at the expected time of 13.47 and we waited another 15 minutes with neither train in view. Eventually we decided that to get ahead of the relief we'd have to go now and we headed out for Middletown on the A458.
Having explored two side roads which led to unsatisfactory
over
bridges, we tried a third and the view was better facing north-west
with
the sun behind us. It was now 14.32 and the problem was had the trains
gone through without us noticing it from the main road? However after 5
minutes we could hear the
unmistakable growl in the distance and then the familiar nose shape
come round the bend towards us. 37 421 was making a modest
speed
on the bank and with a toot on the hooter was under and away to the
east.
Just a glimpse as always...but it looked good with 8 coaches in tow.
The
last of the real trains? I wondered. The time was 14.40 - so how late
was
it? At least we know where to go for this double header special in the
autumn. - 5 August
The lack of Class 37-hauled trains in North Wales is causing many railfans to make the trip south to the Cardiff area where Wales and Borders, being one of the few companies not have have bought any new trains since privatisation, are still heavy users of the type, both on a series of daily trains between Cardiff and Rhymney and on relief trains elsewhere at times of heavy traffic. Several locos once familiar in North Wales are in regular use on these workings.
Our first two pictures were taken by Mark Williams on the Rhymney branch. Above, 37 412 Driver John Elliott is arriving at Pengam on the 08.04 Rhymney-Cardiff...
...and this is 37 402 Bont Y Bermo arriving at Bargoed on the 10.59 Cardiff-Rhymney.
During the Commonwealth Games, Wales and Borders ran a morning extra from Cardiff to Manchester and an evening return working, using 37 612 hired from DRS, and your compiler took the opportunity to take the evening run to Cardiff on 31 July to explore some of the South Wales delights. Perhaps due to inadequate publicity, this train was not well patronised, and we had a coach more or less to ourselves all the way, just like the old days!
Arrival at Cardiff Central was at 23:00...
... in the rain! After waiting in the wet for a group of fans to take a 'seminar shot' I managed to capture this image, before heading to our room in the nearby Marriott Hotel.
Next morning I was pleased to find our room, Room 904, booked through www.superbreak.com (descendant of Golden Rail) looked down on the approaches to Central station. The First Great Western Class 180 is on the main line to London, and the the viaduct behind carries the Cardiff Valleys line towards Queen Street station. Behind the brick warehouse in the left background runs the line towards Cardiff Bay station, previously known as Bute Road.
After a swim in the very nice hotel pool and a hearty breakfast, we headed back to Central station and the 10:35 to Fishguard Harbour, four coaches headed by another one-time North Wales loco, 37 419. This train was very busy, both with enthusiasts and travellers to Ireland via the Fishguard - Rosslare ferry.
The train ran via the normally freight-only via Court Sart Junction and Morlais Junction to Llanelli where we left the train to travel back in a Class 158 to Swansea.
The terminal station at Swansea is terminus of First Great Western services from London, one of which is seen here with 43 025 Exeter in First purple livery standing at the buffers.
From Swansea we returned to Cardiff by the 15:30 First Great Western HST, picking up passengers from the return Fishguard train at Bridgend, and then passing that train as it waited in Leckwith Loop near Canton depot, where we noted 37 402, which we later learned had failed the previous day. We walked off in search of a vantage point to watch 37 419 on its next working, the 16:52 to Rhymney, eventually ending up at Queen Street station, where the train is seen loading its passengers.
Back at Central station, the 17:11 to Rhymney was allocated to 37
695, a loco not fitted with electrical train supply, rather
unfortunate
since this set of coaches required power for its air conditioning and
it
was a very sweaty sort of day. No doubt the use of this engine was a
knock-on
from the failure of 402 the day before.
 |
An additional platform was built a year or two ago at Cardiff
Central,
principally to serve the nearby MIllennium Stadium, but it has now been
decided to uses it for some daily service trains, and because it is
north
of Platform 1 it has been christened 'Platform 0' from 29 July.
The Wales and Borders website has an amusing story trying to put this mystery platform in the same category as the legendary Platform nine and three quarters at Kings Cross.... |
As we needed to get something to eat before catching the 18:45 (Class 158) train back to Manchester, we retired to one of the establishments in the so-called 'Continental Café Quarter' from which we could see passing trains, and were able to note, if not photograph, 37 408 Loch Rannoch heading the third of the peak-hour Rhymney services. An enjoyable and unusual (very) short break, if rather tiring in the August heat.
Anyone planning a visit to these lines can find full information about the Class 37 workings in the Passenger Diagrams section of the excellent Class 37 Locomotive Group website. - 5 August
Saturday 3 August saw, according to the plan, the last ever Saturday Class 47 workings on Virgin Trains along the North Wales Coast line. The honour of the last turn on the 13:35 Holyhead - London went to tatty-looking 47 784 Condover Hall, pictured at Bangor by Alan Crawshaw. More stories below.
Saturday 3 August - with Rowan Crawshaw
On 3 August I went for the ride to Holyhead on the 12:17 Virgin train from Bangor and back on the 14:02 First North Western service on 3 August, the last time it will be possible to do this trip with Class 47s in both directions.
47 784 Condover Hall awaits departure at Holyhead of the 13:35 to London. Next Saturday this will be an HST, and won't be going to London.
47 750 Atlas awaits departure at Holyhead with the 14:02 to Crewe on 3 August.
47 750 Atlas departs Bangor with the 14:02 Holyhead to Crewe on 3 August. - 4 August
On reading that the Saturday morning Virgin 47 run to Holyhead on 3 August would be the last I decided to take a run to Chester and return on the 9.19 from Holyhead. This gives 4 minutes to change platforms at Chester so the idea was somewhat suspect.
The 8:05 from London Euston arrived, unusually, in platform 6 behind 87 006 George Reynolds with 90 008 The Birmingham Royal Ballet coupled behind, dead. The class 90 had not failed but was being repositioned.
Parked up the West Coast Main Line was 47 784 Condover Hall which reversed onto the train for the run to Holyhead.
The train arrived at Chester on time but there was no sign of the 09:19 from Holyhead. A quick dash over the footbridge revealed a class 158 in trouble. The train, destined for Manchester and the Commonwealth Games, was packed solid with dozens of people still trying to board. Eventually the platform staff had to remove some passengers from the train and an announcement was made to advise when the next service would be - lots of unhappy travellers. When the 158 left the centre aisles were solid with passengers as were the vestibule ends - nose to nose stuff.
The 09:19 arrived a few minutes later behind recently modified (?) 47 757 Restitution and this train was also packed almost to the roof.
Photo 5 - The journey to Crewe was uneventful and the class 47 was detached in favour of 87006 for the journey South - 4 August
A Strike called Off (the other one)
The dispute between First North Western and the RMT union, which was threatening a series of strikes starting on 5 August, has been settled. The union has accepted a 3.5% increase and a 35-hour working week from next September. The way things are going, FNW will have to fit electric 'strike on/strike off' indicators at its stations. - 2 August
47 750 Atlas remains on the First North Western diagram: the 10:07 Birmingham - Holyhead passes one of Tim J. Rogers' favourite locations at milepost 186 and three-quarters by Shotton on 2 August.
Three flavours of Brush
47 750 Atlas, photographed at Bangor by Alan Crawshaw, was the first of three 47s, in three different liveries, seen along the coast on Friday 2 August. Curiously, the only one of the three in Virgin's colours was the only one not working a Virgin service.
47 784 Condover Hall worked the 09:19 Holyhead - Euston, seen passing Shotton (Tim J. Rogers)
1D87 08:44 London - Holyhead was a loco-hauled set for the second day (see 1 August notes below), here's 47 787 Windsor Castle making a claggy departure from Bangor. (Alan Crawshaw).
A Charity Model Railway Exhibition will be held on Saturday 31st August at Wrexham Street Methodist Church, Mold. This will be the 6th such event and is to raise money for Christian Aid. We are still short of a few stands - if you would be interested in attending please e-mail the organiser as soon as possible at simon_blainey@hotmail.com. - 2 August
Thanks to everyone who responded to our appeal for information; we now have more about a couple of unusual workings forthcoming.
First, the 37-hauled Wales and Borders additional working from Aberystwyth on 5 August. This will be classed as a relief train (1Z38). A £13.70 Wolverhampton to Aberystwyth day return looks like a bargain! We believe that Wales and Borders who are running the train do not have a franchise agreement to run charters (in the same way as fNW when the 'final' 37 hauled specials were run) and so any extra trains that run have to be reliefs; which explains why all the 'footexs' that run are always normal tickets only.
There is still the odd discrepancy between various reports received: the 'qjump' official ticket website shows this train running non-stop from Aberystwyth to Wolverhampton and arriving at Wolverhampton at 15:23, but we have also received some timings as follows: Aberystwyth Depart 12:10, Machynlleth 12:55 to 12:56, Welshpool 13:47 to 14:00, Birmingham New Street 15:57 (terminates.) No doubt the stops at Machynlleth and Welshpool are for traffic purposes only, but we'd be pleased to hear any clarification of the terminating station. Expected motive power is 37 421.
The Green Express Railtour to the Settle Carlisle line on 10 August runs as follows:
1Z60 09:02 Llandudno Jct - Carlisle. Calls Colwyn Bay 09:08 - 09:10, Abergele & Pensarn 09:18 - 09:19, Rhyl 09:25 - 09:27, Prestatyn 09:33 - 09:34, Flint 09:48 - 09:50, Chester 10:06 - 10:08, Frodsham 10:22 - 1024, Warrington BQ 10:34 - 10:36.Then via the S&C (Calling at Garsdale 12:52 - 13:07), to Carlisle arriving at 14:07.
1Z61 16:38 Carlisle - Llandudno Jct, via Shap, Calling at Warrington BQ 18:34 - 18:36, Frodsham 18:49 - 18:51, Chester 19:10 - 19:14, Flint 19:28 - 19:30, Prestatyn 19:45 - 19:47, Rhyl 19:53 - 19:55, Abergele & Pensarn 20:02 - 20:04, Colwyn Bay 20:13 - 20:15, and arriving at Llandudno Jct at 20:21.
Ordinary tickets will of course definitely not be accepted on ths train! If you want to travel ring Green Express on 01484 422920. We have a report that the locomotives will be two EWS Class 37s and not the Fragonset 31s originally rostered: again, confirmation welcome. - 2 August
37 612 with the 19:17 Manchester - Cardiff at Manchester Piccadilly, 31 July. The last run of this Commonwealth Games relief will be on 3 August (Charlie Hulme)
More loco-hauled thoughts - by Kevin Melia
Following the recent relief run by Wales & Borders down the Cambrian Coast I'd like award a big 10 out of 10 for initiative - even though it meant doing something out of the ordinary and alien to normal Railway practices. Clearly a high increase in demand for the journey being run and an example of when loco hauled trains fit in best, being properly utilized. Despite not being a class 37 fan myself, I admit the company has showed real common sense during Rugby days, on the busy commuter journeys to Rhymney (even if brainchild of Valleys franchise), on Summer boat trains to Fishguard, and even for the Commonwealth Games at Manchester.
Further to the subject of loco-hauled trains and comments on the matter: If First North Western is interested in any alternatives to current thinking, apart from the operational difficulties that never cease on such a 'fragmented' and bureaucratic network, there are other loco suppliers entering the market beyond EWS. I will not aim to patronise anybody - but with a number of private operators recently purchasing class 47s there is finally a 'choice' beyond the high prices of EWS. Indeed some companies, I understand, charge their hire on the basis of 'how long' you have their locomotives for. Whilst mileage and actual levels of usage may be 'adjusting' factors on the price they are not the principal factor. So you could hire your engine, and it would cost little extra to run it 200 or 400 miles per day.
Companies I'd recommend to any TOC wondering about hauled trains include Fragonset, DRS (also new owners of 47s), Cotswold Rail, and soon Riviera Trains who are soon to obtain a small fleet of eth 47s, based in an ideal location for use in the North West and surrounds! EWS being usually the most expensive and having the poorest maintenance record (especially for older members of its fleet), is not surely anything better than a 'quick fix'?
My comments are not from the enthusiast point of view - more the business one, aiming to clarify that more options exist than may have at one time. And furthermore, the optimum usage of a class 47 is between 350-450 miles per day (what they were designed for and can still easily handle - provided not on excessive loads), understandably when individual locos cover 600-700+ miles per day diagrams it is a bit much (they were never intended for that). I would rather not see them strained on long distance turns on a day-to-day basis, but recognise what they are up to. You could probably say Holyhead-Cardiff and return would be the highest kind of distance to utilise a 47 on in a single day (around a 470 mile trip I understand). They are a more 'age-less' design than most and still have potential to help train operators provided not over-used, of course.
Thanks for everybody's thoughts on the subject, it has never been my intention to say the railway should operate for 'loco-mileage' or 'photography' rail enthusiasts. But they do generate extra revenue, are paying passengers and it's a surprise how many travel by rail - so don't let them be seen as a negative thing! - 2 August
About the first of August - by Dave Bramley
The morning 1D87 Euston-Holyhead on 1 August only made it as far as Milton Keynes when the HST failed. The replacement, quite strangely, was the 06:00 Paddington-Manchester, 1M02 which terminated at Crewe to work 1D87 starting there at 10:47. The train was formed of 47 810 and the standard Cross Country formation of seven Mark 2s which returned as 1A77 13:43 Holyhead-Euston, which 47 810 took all the way to London! For the record stock was 1250, 5810, 6024, 6008, 5911, 5886 & 1250. Well done Virgin for running it instead on cancelling it.
The evening trains were both late from Crewe, 1D88 38 late waiting 47 784 from Preston and 1D89 69 late HST 43 099 dragging dead 43 159 on the back end up from London. - 2 August
