BATH RAILWAY SOCIETY

President: Pete Waterman OBE DL

Chairman: John Froud    

 Email: bathrailwaysociety@gmail.com

APRIL  2025  NEWSLETTER

Dear Member, 

SOCIETY MATTERS

At our March meeting on Thursday 6, guest speaker Dr. Michael Bailey, gave us a most informative talk on ‘Locomotion No.1 – A Re-appraisal of the Locomotive and The Stockton & Darlington Railway. Michael has spent a considerable amount of time examining Locomotion No. 1 and also the beginnings of the S & D and his knowledge made for a most enjoyable evening which again was very well attended. 

Our next meeting will be on Thursday April 3 when we welcome guest speaker Neil Taylor. His subject will be ‘Building a New Steam Locomotive in the 21st Century’ Neil will be telling us all about the building of the 46th example of the BR Standard 82xxx Class 60 years on from when the first batches were built, with sadly all the class members being scrapped. You may recall members of this class were allocated to Bath Green Park and Bristol Barrow Road sheds working services over the old Midland Line between Bath and Bristol.

We have arranged a Society visit to the Western Locomotive Association Traction Maintenance Depot at Kidderminster for Wednesday June 11 starting at 1230pm. Those of you who wish to participate will have to make your own arrangements to travel to/from Kidderminster. The time of the visit has been arranged so any one travelling by train can get the cheaper fare, which would be around £30 with a rail card. If you wish to attend, please can you send your names in again, even if you have already indicated an interest in visiting to see the Class 52 ‘Westerns’. (Please use the email above). Please note, members of the Society will have priority bookings and if spaces then permit non-members may be added. There is no actual charge to visit the WLA, but we will have to make a donation.

In last month’s competition you had to find the name of the famous person who is a railway enthusiast. The answer was Elton John.

NEWS ITEMS

GWR are adding an additional 26 Class 175s to their fleets. These will be used in Devon and Cornwall and maintained at Laira Depot in Plymouth. Their introduction will provide the trains needed for the Mid-Cornwall Metro and MetroWest in the West of England and allow the withdrawal of the remaining Castle Class (old High-Speed Trains). There will be a period of driver and guard training and development, so their introduction into service will not be immediate.

Did you know that Great Western Railway has four Class 08 Shunters on its books. 08 645 ‘St Piran’ and 08 836 are based at Long Rock Depot at Penzance, while 08 641 and 08 644 are based at Plymouth’s Laira Depot for stock shunting duties.

The Avon Valley Railway are holding a Local Resident's Weekend on April 5 & 6. If you live in a BA or BS postcode, then you can enjoy half-price travel all weekend. Simply take some ID with you to the booking office at Bitton on the day you propose to travel. Train services should be steam hauled. Unfortunately, the AVR have been left devasted after discovering that a friend and employee they thought was called Matthew Smith was actually a conman on the run from police in the north of England. He is alleged to have conned £50,000 from the heritage railway and they only discovered Smith’s real identity when they reported him to the police. They were told he was actually a wanted fraudster called Nathan Hudson. The AVR has now launched a ‘bounce back’ fund raising appeal.

MEMBERS CONTRIBUTION  

Colin Maggs has kindly sent us some accident reports relating to the Somerset & Dorset Railway/Bath Green Park, which you should find interesting to read. We thank Colin for his input.

LOOKING BACK

60 years ago on April 4, 1965, the Locomotive Club of Great Britain organised the Wessex Downsman Rail Tour (No. 1) which went through both Bath Spa and Green Park stations. The train originated at London Waterloo and was taken to Reading General by 30837. Here 6963 'Throwley Hall' took over to Bristol running via Newbury, Patney, Devizes, Holt Junction and Bradford North & West Junctions. From Bristol Temple Meads the train ran to Bath Green Park via Mangotsfield with 44466 (assisted to Mangotsfield by D7007). At Bath Green Park, 8F 48309 took charge for a run over the Somerset & Dorset line to Bournemouth West where 34051 ‘Winston Churchill’ was waiting to return the special to London.

Ten years ago on April 18, 2015, Hastings Diesels Limited ran their DEMU 1001 from Hastings to Cardiff Central. The train departed at 0644 from Hastings taking a route via Tonbridge, Woking, Salisbury, Westbury and passing through Bath Spa at 1156. Arrival at Cardiff Central was at 1319. The return departure from Cardiff was at 1640, but the tour participants were then treated to running round all sides of the Maindee Triangle at Newport as power car 60116 had a defective horn and the unit had to be turned to enable 60118 to lead. Bath Spa was passed again at 1811 and final arrival at Hastings was at 2241.

MORE NEWS ITEMS

The Severn Valley Railway will open its doors on Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 April, for its annual Open House Weekend. This is a rare chance for visitors to access many areas not usually open to the public. They’ll also be able to meet volunteers and discover what goes on behind the scenes.  The Railway has also confirmed that GWR 6880 ‘Betton Grange’ will star at its Spring Steam Gala on 18 to 21 April + guest LMS Jubilee No 45596 ‘Bahamas’. Subject to availability, 7802 ‘Bradley Manor’ is expected to re-enter service at the Gala, alongside 7812 ‘Erlestoke Manor’.  BR 75069 and one more visiting main line locomotive, still to be announced, should see six locos in steam, operating a busy timetable between Kidderminster and Hampton Loade, supplemented by the DMU running shuttle services between Kidderminster and Highley. Trains will run from 7.55am until the evening, with later trains on the Friday and Saturday. The line is still severed due to a landslip, and limited activities will be taking place at Bridgnorth. See the SVR website for details of both events.

Work has commenced on building the new station at Okehampton Parkway. A week line closure took place in March so groundworks could start. The station is east of the existing Okehampton Station and near the busy A30 road. Overnight possessions have also been taking place on the Bristol – Gloucester line to clear the trackside ready for the starting of construction of the new Charfield Station, although Gloucestershire C C still have not yet given final planning permission. 

Work has started on another new train station for North Bristol. Brabazon Station will serve the new neighbourhood being built on the former Filton airfield, plus the 19,500-capacity YTL Bristol Arena still to be constructed.

The West Somerset Railway are running Fish and Chip Plus Cream Tea Specials on April 10, 18, 24 & 30, departing from Bishops Lydeard at 1225 with the fish and chips being served. After having time in Minehead, departure back is at 16:35 with Cream Tea being served on the journey to Bishops Lydeard.

The Somerset & Dorset Railway at Midsomer Norton are running their popular Wickham Trolley Rides on Wednesdays April 9 & 16. See https://sdjr.co.uk/events/view/wickham-wednesdays for full details. A standard train service will be operating on April 6, with trains departing at 10:30, 11:30, 12:30, 14:00 and 15:00. Easter services will then be operating on April 20 & 21. 

We have been invited to join the Bristol Branch of the RCTS’s to visit to Somerset & Dorset Railway at Midsomer Norton for, ‘The Wickham Wanderer’ on Friday June 20 (Fri.) from 18.00. Jacky Newman will be serving Pimm’s on the platform and from 18.30 rides of the line in a Wickham Trolley will be running @ £5 each. The Emporium & Museum should be open, and the Buffet will serve drinks & snacks. Details from Paul Udey, Tel: 01225 427779, e-mail: bristol@rcts.org.uk. Please advise Paul directly if you would like to attend.

The next RCTS Bristol Group meeting is on Friday April 4 at 7.30pm, at St Teresa’s Church Hall, 71 Gloucester Road North Filton, BS34 7PL. The subject is ‘My Father’s Pictures – Bristol, Bath, & the S&D’ by David Cross.

The London Transport Museum are holding one of their Depot Open Days at Acton on April 4, 5 & 6. The depot will be open from 1000 to 1730 (1700 on the Friday 4). The nearest tube station is Acton Town, two minutes’ walk away. There will be thousands of artifacts on display, including rolling stock, signs and posters/timetables etc.

On Saturday April 5 the North Dorset Railway will be holding an Open Day and Model Railway Show at Shillingstone Station, Station Road, Shillingstone, Dorset, (off A357). There will be at least 10 layouts (possibly more) on display and the cafe, will be open. In addition, there will be a book sale, signal box tours, guided tours, museum open and a cinema wagon. Open 10am-4pm

The Hornby Railway Collectors' Association Ltd are holding a Vintage Hornby Collectors' Spring Exhibition at the Steam - Museum of the GWR, Fire Fly Avenue, Swindon on April 26. This event will showcase model railway products made by the Meccano Company from the 1920s to 1960s including Hornby 0 gauge, Hornby Dublo and Hornby AcHo. There will be 17 working layouts, displays, and over 20 trade stalls. Open 10am-4pm.

From April 12 to 20, engineering works will be taking place in the Southampton area. The GWR Cardiff – Portsmouth services are being diverted via Eastleigh and will not call at Southampton Central. SWR will be providing connections from Eastleigh to Southampton Central + buses. Further works will take place in the area on April 27 with the Cardiff to Portsmouth, and vice versa services again diverted. On April 20 & 21, track renewal will be taking place at Frome, and services will not be calling at Frome Station. Buses will replace trains between Westbury and Frome. If you intend travelling in these areas on these dates, do check train times before travelling.

The South Devon Railway are offering the chance to take a unique journey in a traditional guard’s Brake Van for a return trip between Buckfastleigh and Totnes. You will travel on the open veranda of a 1930s ‘Toad’ or 1950s ‘Shark’, providing unrivalled views of the countryside. On one leg of the journey you will be at the rear of the train and on the other, directly behind the locomotive. Your ticket also includes unlimited travel on other passenger services during the day. Other dates are also available through the year. See the SDR website for further details.

COMPETITION  

The Northern line of the London Underground runs between North and South London and is shown in black on the Tube map. It is the busiest tube line in London and is unique in having two different routes through central London, two southern branches and two northern branches. In this month’s competition you have to find the name of one of the Northern Line stations. Just take the first letter of each answer and unscramble the letters to give you the name. No prizes given; it’s just for fun.

• Waverley station is situated in this Scottish City

• The name of the engine used in the Class 55 Deltics (and also in naval applications)

• This Berkshire market town has a station in its centre and another at its racecourse

• The name of Peak Class 44 – 44007 (D7), withdrawn from service in 1980 and scrapped in 1981

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• The Great Western Railway telegraphic code for a bogie milk carrier classified as a type of coach

• Name of the Mendip summit on the Somerset & Dorset which had a station of the same name nearby

• This City has stations at St James Park, St Thomas, St Davids and Central

• Name of West Country Class 34029

LOOKING FORWARD

Our next meeting will be on Thursday May 1. Julie Gregory will be telling us all about Network Rail’s ‘Western Route Resilience Programme, covering the South and South West of the country. 

This is to give notice that on June 5, we will be holding our Annual General Meeting, which we always keep as short as possible. If you have any nominations for the committee or you wish to raise any points to have discussed at the AGM, you now have ample time to get them into the Secretary at the address on page one.

More stories required for our MEMBERS CONTRIBUTION section. Please do send them in.

Bob Bunyar

Newsletter Editor

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