Railways Illustrated

The best coverage of today's railway scene. Each issue of Railways Illustrated offers a comprehensive round-up of the latest news and topical events from the UK across the present-day railway, including heritage traction in operation on the main lines. Railways Illustrated reflects the energy and vitality of the present-day railway scene.

Welcome

Railways Illustrated

New 810 Aurora units to start passenger work ‘in December’

End looms for GWR HSTs

UK Railtours to take Class 50s to the Lancs

GBRf’s Class 99s now passed for nationwide use

Test train woe for Class 37s in East Anglia

IN BRIEF

Contract changes to East and West Coast Thunderbirds

RTC to take Class 33s to York in place of steam

Government’s Railways Bill is finally published

New trains in the pipeline for ScotRail

Rail 200 bookazine highlights the year of celebration

First main line passenger ‘slug’ for 27 years

Off-lease stored Midland units on the move

Virgin gains access to Temple Mills to launch Channel Tunnel trains

Beaulieu Park station opens on Great Eastern line

£70m upgrade completed at Tyseley depot

SVR Class 37 running day set for December 27

More redundant EMUs heads for the scrapyard

ROG Class 93 undergoes tests with Freightliner

WCML enjoys unplanned EE heritage day

Freightliner continues pool swaps

The ACMU Society and Fife Heritage Railway partnership

The rumour mill

And the news you probably haven’t heard yet…

Coaching Stock News

Liveries

Wagon News

Shunter News

Unit Focus

Unit News

Names

After 40 years, it’s game over for 45015

37003 returns home after eight years

Class 47 and 56s support South Devon gala

End-of-year GWR diesels

Another Class 20 is bought for preservation

Class 03 arrives ‘home’ on the Isle of Wight

Two Class 37s for SVR December diesel day

Classic WCML run for 40

Lancs February gala day

DEPG acquires Class 08 and moves it to the WSR

Llangollen stages evacuation test with local fire brigade

A Euro success story • Europhoenix started as a loco exporter, diversified into a traction hire company, and now has its own train operating licence and a growing customer base. Pip Dunn went to meet managing director Glenn Edwards to find out more.

In pole position on the Grid • Next year sees the Class 56 fleet reach its 50th birthday, but of the 135 built, just a handful remain. Pip Dunn went out for the day on a Colas RHTT with a pair of these veteran locos.

What’s happening to… • Our monthly round-up of restoration projects around the country, compiled by Pip Dunn.

LIVING LIFE IN THE PAST LANE • They were a diminutive shunter, but the Class 03s were great machines which broke up the monotony of Class 08s when it came to shunting locos. And you could see them at Newcastle station, on the Burry Port & Gwendreath Railway, or at Lowestoft, Boston, Bradford, Hull, Scarborough…

PICTORIAL

Where is there left to go?

They tried to run a railway • Ian Mclean turns back the clock almost 40 years to look at the control logs for a week on February 1986 and the challenges operating staff had in keeping trains run amid a plethora of loco failures.

Love for the little locos • The BR shunting fleet of the 1970s was massive, but during the following decade, as the railway sought to cut costs, the fleet was dramatically cut back as rationalisation rendered many of their jobs redundant. Paul Shannon provides a pictorial look back the 03s, 08s and 13s at work in their heyday and Pip Dunn adds the captions.

10 PICTURES • In each issue of...