RailwayWorld.net

Railway catering has been a subject dear to my heart ever since I was first lucky enough to sample the delights of the Manchester Pullman during one of my first journalist jobs, in about 1980.

For many years after that I would take every opportunity of an inter-city journey to sample breakfast, lunch or dinner, and had many memorable meals and encounters until restaurant service had all but disappeared in the aftermath of privatisation in the mid-1990s.

Initial East Coast franchisee GNER remained a beacon of light, with its impressive commitment to full catering, but once short-lived franchisee National Express took over the rot set in and, just as happened on the West Coast under Virgin Trains, proper meals were replaced by the airline-style service we have today. Continue reading “A taste of re-nationalised railway”

Eight years after its opening in October 2010, the £16.5 million Wales Railway Operating Centre (WROC) is really starting to come into its own, as more and more of the Principality’s network falls under its control.

Situated in an anonymous and highly-fortified building, surrounded by razor wire and a bomb-proof wall, half a mile west of Cardiff Central and overlooking Canton depot, the WROC works round the clock 365 days a year, employing a total of around 180 Network Rail staff.

In addition, and in a separate first floor room from the signallers, the integrated control room sees a further 46 Arriva Trains Wales staff sitting opposite the NR team, overseeing operation of the whole Welsh network and stepping in to manage incidents as they arise. Continue reading “A look at the future of signalling in Wales”

There is something rather special about a trip to the Isle of Wight. For many it is the charming scenery and fine beaches, for others it is the glorious countryside and fine walks.

Having already appreciated it all by walking the 65-mile long coastal path, what continues to make the island so special for me is its quaint railway systems – as well as the thrill of being able to travel there on the world’s last commercial hovercraft service. Continue reading “Railway rambling on the Isle of Wight”

Control of colour lights by traditional lever frame is a reasonably common feature of Britain’s signalling infrastructure, but few signal boxes can surely match Haslemere, where 2018 marks 81 years since replacement of its semaphore signals by colour lights in 1937, to coincide with electrification of the Portsmouth Direct Line.

Haslemere is one of only three surviving signal boxes on the route, the others being at Farncombe and at Petersfield, with the latter also being Grade II Listed. What makes Haslemere unique among this trio, however, is in retaining its complete and original 47-lever frame, controlling signals and points between Liphook and Witley. Continue reading “Haslemere’s Grade II Listed Signal Box”

Okehampton is one of those places where the argument for reinstating train services seems to have been won in spades, yet time marches on and, in spite of the right noises being made, nothing actually seems to happen.

For more than two decades the residents of this Devon town, and those wishing to sample tourist attractions, like the Granite Way path leading south over the Grade I Listed Meldon Viaduct, have been tantalised by a seasonal service on one day a week. Continue reading “Waiting for that weekday train to Okehampton”

Returning to the 5¼-mile Lymington branch line this weekend, almost a decade after the end of heritage traction, I was interested to see how the designated community railway had fared in the absence of the slam-door stock that had made it an enthusiast mecca from 2005 until May 2010.

When the two 3-CIG slam-door units were finally stood down there were not sufficient electric units to replace them, so the line is worked from Mondays to Fridays by a Class 158 diesel unit and only sees electric traction at week-ends, when services are in the hands of a Class 450 Desiro unit. Continue reading “Lymington branch – then and now”

Membership of the Welsh Highland Railway Society (WHR Society) must rank as one of the greatest British travel bargains, since it offers a year’s free travel on this remarkable 25-mile long line for less than the cost of just one full round trip.

The annual fee of £39.00 compares to a Porthmadog-Caernarfon return fare of £39.80, with members not only getting unlimited free travel on Britain’s longest narrow gauge railway, but also three privilege rate (66% discount) tickets for family or friends and unlimited privilege rate travel on the Ffestiniog Railway. Continue reading “Railway rambling in Snowdonia”

Photographing trains on the Dudding Hill Line is no easy matter. For a start services on north-west London’s Cinderella route are few and far between, but then the combination of extensive line-side vegetation and high bridge parapets makes decent vantage points very hard to find.

As a reminder to those who may have missed my September 2017 post “Dudding Hill: the line that time forgot”, this is a four-mile long route from Acton to Cricklewood that is controlled by three mechanical signal boxes, and has a ruling 30mph speed restriction. It is a line which lost its passenger services in 1902 and has somehow missed out on the highly successful expansion of London’s Overground network. Continue reading “Dudding Hill freight action”