Richard Clinnick shares what’s coming up in the May issue of Rail Express when it hits shelves next week.
Welcome to the May edition of Rail Express, and what a month it has been!
Our news coverage is packed with 33 pages, bringing you right up-to-date with everything you need to know about what is happening on the railway.
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DB Cargo UK has issued two separate tenders with a total of 47 Class 60s now available. Should DBC sell all these Type 5s, then it will have only six on its books, which are also likely to be made available at some point. At one point it had all 100 locomotives!
Elsewhere, West Coast Railways (WCR) has applied for another exemption to use coaching stock without central door locking (CDL) on the main line. Eight MPs have backed WCR’s case. The ORR, however, has said it could take as long as four months to assess the application. In the meantime, Locomotive Services was asked to run trains for two days between Fort William and Mallaig on the ‘Jacobite’ route, and on the same days LS ran its trains, WCR sent two ‘37s’ and a rake of Mk.1s out on the same route!
At Derby Litchurch Lane, Alstom has ceased production and is now consulting with staff and unions regarding the future, and yet the government has, in a letter, suggested that while at least four operators are in the market for new fleets, the situation is a ‘short-term shortage’ of orders.
East Midlands Railway is planning a £60 million refurbishment of its Regional and Connect fleets while Grand Union Trains has received ORR approval to run trains between London Euston and Stirling.
In our feature pages, we have images of High Speed Trains being prepared for operation in Nigeria, Andy Flowers looks at the TransPennine Express Class 397 fleet while Richard Clinnick reports on Varamis Rail’s ambitious electric rail freight plans and Great Western Railway’s Class 230 battery train trials.
Rail Express Modeller looks at EFE Rail’s Class 70 Southern Electric, new ‘TT:120’ High Speed Trains are revealed by Hornby and Bachmann announces new wagons. Hornby’s Ruston & Hornsby 88DS and Bachmann’s Baguley-Drewery locomotives are reviewed while in Modelling, a little known range of printed resin kits prompts a test build of the 4mm scale ZCV ‘Dace’ ballast wagon including where to find some of the parts needed to finish it.
I think you can agree this issue is packed with fascinating stories and features. I hope you enjoy it.
Richard Clinnick
Rail Express editor
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