Railways in Worcestershire

RAILWAYS IN WORCESTERSHIRE
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Special trains in 2015

SPECIAL TRAINS IN WORCESTERSHIRE IN 2016

The first special train through Worcester in 2016 was Pathfinder's "Mini Tug" tour which ran in very dull & raining conditions.
The requested routing validated by Network Rail was:
Bristol Parkway to Stourbridge Junction stations as above plus Haresfield Up Goods Loop, then via Stourbridge Junction Down Goods Loop - Round Oak (reverse) - Stourbridge Junction - Worcester Up Through Sidings - Evesham - Oxford Up & Down Loop (reverse) - Oxford (break) - Kennington Up Goods Loop - Morris Cowley BMW (reverse) - Hinksey Yard (reverse) - Kennington Down Goods Loop - Didcot Foxhall Curve -  Steventon Down Goods Loop - Swindon Down Goods Loop - Bath Down Goods Loop - Bristol East Down Goods Loop - Bristol Parkway and set down as above back to Birmingham New Street including traversal of Goods Loops at Charfield, Haresfield, Cheltenham High Street and Eckington.
One of the highlights of the tour was running through Worcester yard instead of the station. The photographs show the tour running through Worcester yard with class 60 diesel Locomotive No. 60020 top and tail with class 66 No.66001. Photographs taken by Steve Widdowson.
On 4th March 2016 class 57 diesel locomotives Nos.57310 and 57312 top and tailed the 11:55 (1Z20) from Coventry and Birmingham International via Kemble & Swindon on a "Northern Belle " service. Photographed at Abbotswood by Steve Widdowson.
On Saturday 18th June 2016 Steve Widdowson was at Eckington to photograph a movement of HST carriages from Kilmarnock to Laira. The carriages had been oushopped in Great Western Railways's green livery. Traction for the move was provided by class 47 diesel locomotives No.47848 and 47812. Amazingly these lcomotives were still in use nearly fourteen years after a pair of sister engines headed the "Cross Country Locomoive Farewell" special train.
 
Above: Class 47 diesel locomotive No.47760 in West Coast Trains livery getting ready to move the stock of train code No.1Z27 to Worcester Shrub Hill Long Siding at Worcester Shrub Hill, after arriving from Southend Victoria. Also seen is 172218 is the middle siding. Photograph taken by Owen Morris on 9th July 2016.
Below: On the same day class 67 diesel locomotives Nos.67018 and 67015 (at the other end of the train) bought the VSOE train to Worcester. The train returned to London at 16.29. Photograph taken by Steve Widdowson.

On 23rd October 2016 Owen Harris was on hand to photograph a pair of class 37/7 diesel locomotives Nos.37800 and 37884 (above) arriving at Worcester Shrub Hill on 1Z37 'The Thrash Bash' from Derby, organised by Rail Operations Group.  No.47815 which was on the other end of the train was photographed by Steve Widdowson on Worcester Depot (below).
B-BRUA ( Bedford – Bletchley User’s Association ) celebrated the 170th anniversary of the opening of the Bedford – Bletchley railway, which was opened on 17th November 1846. As part of their events to mark the anniversary B-BRUA chartered a Class 150 diesel multiple unit from London Midland from Bedford to Kidderminster, for a steam train trip to Bridgnorth on Saturday 19th November, the nearest Saturday to the day of the opening in 1846. Their chartered unit 150105 was stabled at Worcester Shrub Hill until its return back to Kidderminster to pick them up, note the headboard. 19th November 2016. Photograph taken by Steve Widdowson.


To close out the 2016 season here is the Severn Valley Railway's class 52 diesel locomotive D1015 'Western Champion' arriving at Kidderminster on train code No.1Z17 'Yuletide East Yorkshireman' from Swindon to Scarborough, operated by Pathfinder Tours.
The charter arrived 38 minutes late at 0855 due to an issue with the points on the  connection with the mainline that required Network Rail attention. Observed by Owen Morris on 17th December 2016.
 
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