13th March 2020

Guy  does us proud with two items from 
Westbury
Guy Vincent

1) Hawkeridge  East loop

Ex LMS 'Black Five' 45212 negotiates the little-used Westbury East Loop and approaches Hawkeridge Junction with Steam Dreams 1Z24 0751 Clapham Junction-Bath Spa 'London and the Surrey Hills to Bath' day excursion.  The train returned to London via Box and Swindon.      The land next to the loop line is used by Network Rail as a general dumping ground for materials and redundant scrap etc. hence the untidy state.  A general 'spring clean' of the entire rail network is surely long overdue with most lines I travel over littered with waste and unwanted debris, come on NR, please clear away your junk!

Guy Vincent

Hawkeridge Loop 45212 1Z24 12.th March 2020. Copyright Guy Vincent.

45212 Hawkeridge Jctn 1Z24 12th March 2020. Copyright Guy Vincent

2)  Westbury Station - Test Train.

When I arrived at Westbury at around 0615 this morning (12th March 2020) I was surprised to see a Network Rail test train running in with ex DRS loco 37612 in charge. According to a sticker on the nose end this loco is now owned by Harry Needle and is on hire to Colas for test train use.   Originally built in 1963 as D6879 it entered traffic in October of that year and under TOPS became 37179 in December 1973. In 1986 it entered Crewe Works for refurbishing and emerged in February 1987 as 37691. Much of it's British Rail career was spent in South Wales until it was transferred to Motherwell in 1992 then Thornaby and finally Immingham.   Following the opening of the Channel Tunnel in May 1994 European Passenger Services / Eurostar (EPS) took a batch of 12 class 37s and they were converted to work in pairs with special generator vans to power the UK portions of the proposed 'Night Star' passenger sleeper trains from Plymouth, Swansea and Manchester.  As it turned out the whole Night Star concept was eventually abandoned in 1999 and all 12 locos, fully refurbished and regeared to 80mph were eventually purchased by Direct Rail Services (DRS).  In more recent years the fleet has been partially run down with several locos being sold off or put into storage.   

For the record 37612 was working an overnight Ultrasonic Rail Test Train covering the route between Bristol TM-Cardiff Central-Bristol Parkway-Wootton Bassett Jctn-Lawrence Hill-Bath Spa-Westbury and back to Bristol.  It was about 2 hours late so I was pleased to have a chance to record it just prior to departure.  The full formation was: 37612 96608 (Brake Force Runner), 6263 (Generator Van),  999606 (Ultrasonic Test Unit),  9806 (ex Caledonian sleeper carriage) and 9702.  

One final note.  The section of platform 1 (formerly platforms 1 and 2)  next to the loco was at one time occupied by the former Westbury Middle Signal Box.  This dated from 1899 and closed in 1968 but was not demolished until 1973.  Platform 1 (on the right) closed in 1984 and the former platform 2 then became 1 and was extended to its current length in 1999. 

Regards, Guy Vincent.

The test train stands at Westbury 9702 3Q01 12th March .2020. Copyright Guy Vincent.

Westbury 37612 on the 3Q01 12.th March 2020. Copyright Guy Vincent.

It's a case of thank you and  thank you to Guy Vincent for two splendid items complete with much detail.

Bristol
Paul Barlow

Paul continues with the last of his current batch of night shots at Bristol Tmple Meads.  Many thanks Paul.

45005 pauses at Bristol on the 19.35 Exeter - Cardiff Note Lots of mail bags in evidence 3rd September 1982. Copyright Paul Barlow.