S.Wales - Didcot MGRs via Malvern

[a good off]

One of my colleagues has hazy 1970s/80s recollections of MGR trains taking coal from S.Wales to Didcot PS but booked via Abergavenny, Hereford, Malvern, Worcester and Evesham. Can anyone else remember this?

 

[eastwestdivide]

Didn't most of Didcot's coal back then come from the Midlands via Banbury?

 

[ChiefPlanner]

It did - there was more or less a train every hour from the Toton area via Washwood Heath and Oxford + return empties.

A variation kicked in around 1980 when some USA coal was source for Didcot - which came into Newport Docks (before the Avonmouth dock upgrade) - this was newsworthy for several reasons , from a railway point of view it was "double headed" with a 56 from origin to Stoke Gifford to get it through the Severn Tunnel quicker. Via Malvern would be extremely unlikely - partly due to the indifferent track quality on the route at the time..

 

[onein37]

There was definately a picture in a magazine of the time showing an MGR on the Malvern line. Loaded or empty I can't remember. 47 hauled I think.

 

[158747]

One of my colleagues has hazy 1970s/80s recollections of MGR trains taking coal from S.Wales to Didcot PS but booked via Abergavenny, Hereford, Malvern, Worcester and Evesham. Can anyone else remember this?

Could this have been in 1975? In that year the Badminton line between Wootton Bassett Junction and Westerleigh Junction was closed between May and October for upgrading prior to the introduction of HSTs the following year.