Waterloo to Windsor
steamtrainsvindicated
ByCedric JohnsSTEAMDreams’bold decisionto run four
steam tripstoWindsor everyTuesday
from June4uptoand includingTuesday,
September 3, has been vindicatedbyt he
publicresponse.
Both‘R oyalWindsorSteam Express’
departures fromWaterloo and the
evening‘SunsetStea mExpress’have seen
passenger numbersgrowing eachweek.
Thecompany’smajor shareholder
David Buckreiter ated his earlier statement
thatthe new programme will berepeated
nextyear.Hes aid thatpassenger
response indicatedthatthe current
oper ation would at least provetobe
financiallyviable.
Therefore, what be gan asanew venture
into the unknown has alreadyshown
thatrunning steam trains out ofWaterloo
on aregular basis has captured the
public’s imagination.
Formany, the noveltyoft ravelling to
Windsorby train has itsattraction,and for
others,the trips provideafirsttaste of a
shortened version ofmain line running
with steam.
As expected, the 8am departurefrom
platform19atthe heightoft he rush
hour is taking timeto build passenger
numbers, while the 11.10am and2.10pm
trains have quickly gained popularitywith
Londonersand tourists alike.
On ar rivalatWindsor&Eton
Riverside and free of passengers,the
accompanying dieselhauls the empty
stockto SouthWest Sidings,where
carriagesare preparedfor the nexttrip.
Motivepower is usuallyprovidedby
B1 4-6-0 No.61306Mayfloweror when
it requiresattention,‘BlackFive’4-6-0
No.44871has deputised.
Marcus Robertson, the man who
foundedStea mDreams andwho actsas
an ambassadorby talking to travelling
passengers,saidheisimpressedby the
concept and thewaythe newventure
hastaken off.“Itwasabold decisionto
suddenly add 56extratrainstoanalrea dy
busy rail tour programme”.
Parallel to daytime trains,the‘Sunset
Steam Expresswhich departsWaterloo
at 7pmhas equally developed a
following–somuch so thatDavid was
morethanpleasedto announcethat
seats inPullman classfor each ofthe
Tuesdayevening departures have beenfullybooked throughto andincluding
September 3.Forthcomingtours
Threedayslater,‘TheEmerald Isle Express’
begins whathas become an annual visit
to Ireland.
Thevisit, onSeptember6to1 1,starts
with atripfromDublinto Killarney behind
blue compound 4-4-0 No.85Merlin.
Following anovernightstop, options
includeasteam-hauled tripto Corkor a
coach journey around theRing ofKerry.
NCC2-6-4T No.4then enters thetour
with atriptoGalway,whereatwo-day
stopoveroffer smanyoptions.
Forthcoming daytrips include
BournemouthandWeymouthon
August 15,starting fromWest Br ompton.
DepartingKing’s Cross,Cambridge,
Ely andGrea tYarmouth will be the
destinations onAugust 31.
On September 14,a‘Cathedrals Express’
will makeforthe Settle andCarlisleline.It
will behauledbyaClass86t oCarnforth
and from BlackburntoL ondon on the
returnjourney.Asweclosedforpress,
no designatedlocomotivehadbeen
allo catedfor the aforementioned trips.NewVintage Trainsannouncestrips to Hereford, Bath,Yorkand Chester
VINT AGETrains hasannouncedaseries
of charters forthe rest of theyear in its
new brochure.
Theprogramme opens with, as
reportedlastissue,atriptoGloucester’s
August 24‘retro’event whichfeatures
music, vintagecarsand vehicles,
motorbikes and other cultural and
historicattractions.Starting fromSolihull,
the tour picksupatDorridge,Warwick
Parkwayand Banb ury.
An evening diner is dueto depart
Birmingham SnowHilland Moor Street
on September 5.
Twodayslater,No. 7029ClunCastle
is bookedto haul the‘WhiteRose’tour
toYork,starting fromDorr idge and
picking upat Solihul l,Tyseley(main line),
ColeshillParkway, Tamworth, Burton-on
Trentand Ilkeston.
Nextup comes arepeat of the‘Welsh
Marches’whichran earlier thisyear.
DepartingDorri dgeonSeptember 14,
the train stopsat Solihull ,Tyseley (main
line) Moor Street andSnow Hill,with a
passenger breakat Hereford.
Chester is the destination on
October 12, thetrain be ginning its
journeyat Dorri dge,callingat Solihull,
Tyseley (main line), NewStreet and
Wolverhampton.
ADecembertriptoBathChristmas
Market is also dueto run on adate yet
to co nfirmed.
Twovisits toYork wi ll be made on
Saturdays in th erun upto Christmas,
December 14 and21, withthe start/
pick-up points the same asforthe
September7trip. Stea m-hauled
throughoutbyClunCastle,heating
assi stance willbeprovidedby Class 47
No.47773.The routeavoidingDerb yand
up the ErewashValley willallowNo. 7029
to make it sinaugural stopat Ilkeston.
Weather permitting,itishopedto
includeashortphoto stop at Pontefrac t.ByGareth Evans
THEsightandsoundofdouble-headed
‘BlackFives’isset to returntot henorth
westofEnglandonNovember9when
‘TheCitadel’tourrunsfromManchester
Victoria to Carlisleandreturn.
Mirroringthetoursofthesamename
whichoperatedonNovember8and10,
2018andonApril13,th isWestCoasttrip
relivesthefamous‘FifteenGuineaSpecial’
runinAugust1968.Thetwolocomotives
willbechosenfromapoolofthree–
No.45212,44871or45157TheGlasgow
Highlander.No. 44871,wasusedforthe
returnlegof theoriginal‘FifteenGuinea
Special’, from Carlisleto Manchester
in1968.DepartingManchester,thetrainisdueto
headviaBolton,BlackburnandHellifield,
befor econtinuingthrou ghSettle.
Afte ratwo-hourbreakinCarlisle,the
trainisbookedto headbackalongthe
WestCoastMainLineoverthesummitof
Shap.Thesteamlocomotiveswillreturnto
thebaseatC arnforth,withheritagediesel
tractionroundingofftheday.‘The Citadel’toreturninNovemberwith‘BlackFives’
Tyseley’sflagshipWR4-6-0No. 7029ClunCastlefeatures heavilyinVintageTrains’
autumnandwintertourprogramme.The locomotiveisseenhere onMay23while
working aneveningdiningexcursionfromBirminghamtoWorcester. VTsays it
plansto use its‘REG’ watercarrier(thevehicle immediately behindtheengine)to
minimisewaterstops,thereforereducingthejourneytimes.ROBINCOOMBES/VT56 Heritagerailway.co.uk indusonwww.facebook.com/heritagerailway
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