Heritage/Enthusiast Railways Providing Functional Passenger/Freight Service

[Flying Phil]

The GCR(N) has run regular freight services of Gypsum trains from the Midland main line at Loughborough to East Leake. However they have been stopped due to repair work needed on the bridge over the A60 road.

 

[Townsend Hook]

The Bluebell Railway has been used for road delivery of RHTT (railhead treatment train) wagons a few years ago. Delivered by road from York to Sheffield Park, then stored at Horsted Keynes for a short time before being collected by GBRf 73s and taken to Tonbridge.

 

[dan4291]

A few old Mk3 Greater Anglia and Caledonian Sleeper carriages were (and possibly still are) stored at the Weardale Railway in Wolsingham. Back in the day there was also a freight service on the Weardale Railway to the old cement works at Eastgate.

 

[D6130]

Back in the day there was also a freight service on the Weardale Railway to the old cement works at Eastgate.

Did that actually operate after the line became a heritage railway? I was under the impression that the preservation group took over once the cement traffic had ceased.

 

[dan4291]

Did that actually operate after the line became a heritage railway? I was under the impression that the preservation group took over once the cement traffic had ceased.

You're probably right, I'm not too sure.

 

[Calthrop]

I think that when the TRPS took over the Talyllyn Railway, the initial service provided was the same as that provided in the immediately prior to the takeover.

According to Railway Adventure, in the final decade-odd of the railway's management by Sir Henry Haydn Jones: passenger services ran on two days a week in winter -- and by inference, anyway during World War II and after, three days a week in summer. After, in 1945 / 46, the prolonged break in passenger services while No.2 Dolgoch underwent an urgent overhaul, and abandonment of slate quarrying at Bryn Eglwys: there remained only the summer-only passenger service, with trains running three days per week. Upon the preservation society's taking over for the 1951 summer season, the new incumbents decided -- rather daringly -- to, in the hope of increasing receipts, run trains Mon. -- Fri. inclusive each week; leaving weekends free for urgently needed repair and maintenance work.

 

[Gloster]

...leaving weekends free for urgently needed repair and maintenance work.

Presumably in the hope that at weekends they would get larger groups of volunteers available to carry out the maintenance. In the week the few long-stay volunteers might only be sufficient to operate the trains.

 

[Calthrop]

That seems to have been pretty much the size of it -- essentially I think, corroborated by Railway Adventure. Happily, their gamble paid off !

 

[DelW]

Not recently, but

WWW.TAUNTONTRAINS.CO.UK - WSR ROLLING STONE

Stone trains carrying rock armour from the Mendips to sea defence works near Minehead have run more recently than that, as well. I can't put an exact date on them, but they'd have been after 2007 and probably before 2010. The stone was offloaded just east of Minehead, and moved to the site in off-highway dump trucks. (I had a small input into the operation, and it was definitely after I moved offices in 2007).

IIRC one of the mainline drivers on the stone trains actually drove on the WSR as a volunteer, despite which he had a conductor driver rostered to accompany him.

 

[geoffk]

Where certainly some people use them for routine trips, or to connect to/from NR.

especially on Boxing Day and New Year's Day, when there are no buses.

 

[UP13]

I'm guessing so. Going to school on a narrow gauge steamer is a nice idea and all, but I suspect it (a) no longer meets safety requirements for school transport and (b) now costs a lot more to provide than a bus/coach.

The RHDR school train AFAIK was always diesel hauled, or has been since the early 1980s.

Shalegh of Eskdale from the RER did trials at the RHDR, which then led to the council part funding the purchase of John Southland (now JB Snell). Number 14 (now Captain Howey) was later purchased to help with the school run but I think was entirely funded by the railway.

 

[pdeaves]

This old thread (now locked) may be of interest, too: https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/trivia-heritage-railways-that-run-trains-on-nr-lines.172122/ includes Bodmin & Wenford Railway (not mentioned so far in this thread).

 

[Alanko]

A few old Mk3 Greater Anglia and Caledonian Sleeper carriages were (and possibly still are) stored at the Weardale Railway in Wolsingham. Back in the day there was also a freight service on the Weardale Railway to the old cement works at Eastgate.

Continuing down this path, the Bo'ness railway have hosted experimental vehicles in the past. They also took in a number of DRS locos last year. I'm not sure if the exact nature of this relationship but 37025 has been away from the railway for some time, pressed into service on PLPR trains across the network.

Even less in scope for this thread, I did the SRPS Fife/Forth circle rail tour behind Tornado a couple of weeks ago. Colas were also running a light 70 at the same time, from Grangemouth round to Dunfermline via Longannet etc. Apparently Colas and SRPS came to some agreement over sharing the pathing for the Alloa to Dunfermline leg to mutually save costs.

 

[70014IronDuke]

At the risk of "splitting hairs" here (I just find the doings of the Talyllyn in its first most-of-a-century, fascinating); my understanding from Rolt's Railway Adventure is that in the first couple of years of the preservation society's running the line (1951 / 52) -- the limited period when Rolt was himself "at the helm" -- there could be no question of a Fridays-only service throughout the year; that, I believe, came a little later. In the very early 1950s, with the railway and its equipment in poor condition and stretched to their limits just to run a couple of trains per day during the summer season: passenger workings year-round, even just one return train per week, could not be thought of.

I'm sure you are correct. I was just trying to answer with a hazy memory of the issue.

Per Railway Adventure: Rolt did indeed feel great respect and affection for the locals who -- especially in the lower reaches of the line, further from the parallel road -- for sure, made some use of the railway to travel into Tywyn for shopping, especially on Fridays, their favourite day for same (so far as I know, at that time anyway they were charged fares the same as anyone else); and he went to considerable lengths to try to make sure that in the summer operating season, Friday's scheduled trains ran -- whatever problems might be being had with motive power / stock / infrastructure. In the book he makes -- between the "salt-of-the-earth" local folk, and the holidaymaking "uncouth hordes" who made up the great majority of the trains' passenger complement -- comparisons unfavourable to the latter. This somewhat snotty attitude on his part toward the "trippers" whose fares made it possible for the railway to continue running, does a bit to lessen the overall liking which I entertain for the guy.

Yes, indeed. Uncouth or not, without them the TR would surely not have survived. A bit like the "Thomas the Tank Engine" syndrome of the past two decades or so.

 

[Deepgreen]

I remember a holiday staying in a camping coach at Goathland on the NYMR in April 1980 when a snow storm caused local road problems. The NYMR laid on a few DMU workings for locals.

 

[Sean Emmett]

The Welsh Highland Railway has operated a bus replacement rail service, from Pont Croesor to Porthmadog.

FfR/WHR are also included in the National All-Line and Wales rover areas, and must get some usage accordingly.

They also do local residents railcards, and I have certainly seen locals returning from Port and Caernarfon with shopping bags.

 

[E759]

Used to use the Wensleydale to go shopping when they ran a more frequent service. They also ran trains to Redmire for the military, although not recently I think.

Think it was 2019, there is a thread somewhere, the MoD did indeed run a train from Redmire loaded with armoured vehicles down to Dollands Moor where they were then off-loaded/on-loaded to European gauge flats then sent through the Tunnel ending up in eastern Europe. Part of a massive NATO exercise involving trains, ships, planes and road. Not sure if it put the wind up Putin though!?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 2 Sep 2021 ==

Where certainly some people use them for routine trips, or to connect to/from NR.

Somewhat surprising given the frequency and speed of the busses (50mph vs 25mph) is considerable better that the K&WVR! At the March 2020 Steam Gala I had to take the bus from Oxenhope to Keighley when returning home as the K&WVR wasn't running early enough.

 

[D6130]

Somewhat surprising given the frequency and speed of the busses (50mph vs 25mph) is considerable better that the K&WVR!

TBH, there aren't many places that a bus can get reach 50mph between Oxenhope and Keighley. Most of the way it's 20-30 mph and in pretty heavy traffic for much of the day.

 

[E759]

TBH, there aren't many places that a bus can get reach 50mph between Oxenhope and Keighley. Most of the way it's 20-30 mph and in pretty heavy traffic for much of the day.

Your right, my memory playing tricks again! Just checked and both the B3 and steam trains are both scheduled to take 25 minutes

 

[Alan Warren]

The MNR still sees occasional military traffic off the main line

 

[D6975]

This old thread (now locked) may be of interest, too: https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/trivia-heritage-railways-that-run-trains-on-nr-lines.172122/ includes Bodmin & Wenford Railway (not mentioned so far in this thread).

Except in post#12 that is....

 

[30907]

TBH, there aren't many places that a bus can get reach 50mph between Oxenhope and Keighley.

Only on the back road from Oxenhope to Haworth - in theory. 40 in theory from Cross Roads to Ingrow. And you end up at the bus station which is in the town centre - not so good if you want the station!