#railway preservation

[weirdowithaquill]

Traintober 2023: Day 1 - Free Day

Preservation on Sodor:

Sodor must be one of the most interesting places to look at when it comes to railway preservation, if not also road, sea and air preservation. For starters, the island’s railways are all still primarily run by vintage steam traction – but there’s also Harold, who is in his 60s or 70s at this point, Bertie the bus (who is nearing 100), Trevor and Terrence and George – not to mention the fact that the island seems to continue to have antique ships within its waters, including steam ships and fishing trawlers.

But of course, I want to focus on the railways – and in particular how Sodor must be the British hub for heritage railways, museums and other attractions. For starters, Sodor has by far the largest heritage railway system in the world for its size, with over 80 miles of mainline, several branchlines, a narrow-gauge railway, a mountain railway and a miniature gauge railway. It also has a massive fleet of engines – 80 by the Reverend’s count on the NWR alone – making it possibly the single largest working heritage railway in the UK, if not Europe. This would instantly attract many preservationists wishing to run their locomotives, meaning that mainline excursions and visitors would be a frequent sight on the island. This in turn would bring in tourists, who would make money for the NWR and the railway the engines belong to, as well as helping the Fat Controller if one of his enignes is unable to work. It would also give us as railfans the chance to see unique motive power on a variety of trains - like a Coronation Class pulling a slow goods, or a Hughes Crab on a China Clay train - things we don't get to see anymore. 

Furthermore, Sodor is home to Crovan’s Gate Works, the largest steamworks of its kind in Britain. For its influence, I am going to turn to 60163 Tornado. When Tornado was built, her boiler had to be manufactured in Germany because there was just no one in the UK able to produce a boiler of the type, while the superheater header needed to be attempted by three foundries before it was assembled correctly. Crovan’s Gate Works, which is able to maintain a full fleet of engines including Gordon – who is also an A1 with many similarities – would have been able to do both in a far timelier manner. The same would go for all locomotive repair programs in the UK. Crovan’s Gate would either host locomotives or manufacture parts for them, becoming a hub for preservation across the country. Engines like Stepney or Green Arrow would be able to be overhauled at the Works, rather than be taken out of service. This would effect how many steam engines are in working order in Britain, if not Europe, as the refurbishment time would be significantly shortened - something that is compounded if said locomotive shares any components with a Sodor engine - like Talyllyn, Dolgoch, Flying Scotsman or any of the Black 5s, Panniers or Autotanks in preservation. 

This brings me on to the last point: International Tourism. Sodor must be one of the most visited locations in Britain in this universe. For starters, there’s all the fans of the book and TV series (which are both canon and referenced in the books). This means that Sodor would have tens of thousands of families coming to the island from around the world annually to see the ‘Eight Famous Engines’ or the ‘Steam Team’, bringing in a massive amount of revenue for hotels, local businesses and the railways themselves. But there would also be the railfans who come with the aforementioned railtours, as well as international railfans who want to see steam in action in a mainline setting – something nearly impossible anywhere on the planet. Sodor has at least one airport (and probably two, considering in real life there is an airport on Walney Island near the real-life Vickerstown), six ports connected to the NWR, and a rail and road link to the UK. The island has the infrastructure to handle the flocks of tourists, and this would in turn benefit much of the rest of Northern England. This would majorly benefit the preservation world by bringing in funding for Sodor, which is in turn able to fund things like track upgrades, or overhauls for engines beyond their own railway. It also gives other railways a good place to promote themselves, as Sodor has a guaranteed market for tourists who may travel to these other railways. 

You cannot understate how much these books have done for Sodor, and for railway preservation as a whole.

So, Sodor is at the very least a centre for preservation in the UK, with railtours, overhauls and masses of international tourists – but it’s also where a lot of engines were likely rescued from. We see it in Oliver and Douglas, but engines know of Sodor and its safety. I can imagine an alternate universe in which engines keep turning up throughout the 1960s, being brought to safety on Sodor and then sold to heritage railways, being overhauled at Crovan’s Gate before moving to their new homes. Sodor would act as an intermediate in this era, being able to do the paperwork to preserve engines due to its position in the national network while also being aligned with the cause of the heritage railways. Sodor is a safe haven for steam, and this would have a significant impact on its position as a preservation hub for the UK.

Back to the Master Post

[mrtheengie]

Do you ever get lost on your way to McDonald’s and end up in West Yorkshire?

[trainmaniac]

J17 BR 65567 at Doncaster Works being cosmetically restored for preservation in the National Collection 04-06-1963 by Paul Kearley Via Flickr: The photographer is unknown. A digitally restored image from an original negative in my collection.

[lomotunes2008]

We're now running substantially less colourful trains 🎉

[aneverydaything]

Day 1849, 16 July 2023

[richwall101]

Corfe Railway Station and Corfe Castle on the Preserved Swanage Railway Line in Dorset UK.

[opelman]

But if I should become a stranger you know that it would make me more than sad... by Treflyn Lloyd-Roberts Via Flickr: Caledonian Railway pair 419 and 828 steam south over Avon Viaduct on the Bo'ness and Kinneil Railway under gloomy skies at the end of an "In Search of Steam"/Scottish Railway Preservation Society photo charter. Locomotives: Caledonian Railway 439 Class 0-4-4T 419 and 812 Class 0-6-0 828. Location: Avon Viaduct, Bo'ness and Kinneil Railway, Falkirk, Scotland.

[mean-scarlet-deceiver]

Very cool pics by David Christie from his visit to Clapham Transport Museum in 1968.

[8thsniper]

[guerrerense]

Vordernberg Styria Austria 14th July 2024 por loose_grip_99 Por Flickr: Vordernberg was a hub of the Erzbergbahn steam operations with the standard gauge rack railway to Eizenerz and the Iron Mountain starting here. ÖBB class 97 0-6-2T 97.217 was built in 1908 by the Floridsdorf Locomotive Works. It was withdrawn from service on 25th May 1978 at the end of steam working and mounted here as a reminder of the intensive iron ore trains in 1980.

[passengerpigeons]

stealth camping

[hazel-of-sodor]

Its 4/4, it just so happens I just finished the A1/A3 Pacifc, including an updated pre-rebuild Gordon. I didn’t plan to post this on Gordon Day, it just worked out this way. Representing the A1, is 4480 Enterprise, who is Gordon’s running mate on the Wild Nor’Western in my AU. Representing the A3, is Flying Scotsman himself. I will be making more liveries and variant for these, as they are one of my favorite engines of all time.

[graintrainbrain]

The life of a locomotive. This GMD-1 unit has worn a few faces since it was first built in the late 50s:

1) In as-delivered Northern Alberta Railways livery, leading the last passenger train from Dawson Creek to Dunvegan Station in Edmonton, 1974.

2) Working behind CN 1069 on the Coronado Subdivision near Redwater, Alberta, renumbered 1079 and wearing a fresh coat of CN red and black following CN’s acquisition of NAR, 1985.

3) Looking rough and ready to retire in Edmonton in 2013, around twenty-five years after a significant rebuild and another renumbering, this time to 1179.

4) Sitting on display at the Alberta Railway Museum in 2018, after a cosmetic restoration including a the return of number 302 and the name "Chief Moostoos", which the locomotive was given for NAR’s 50th anniversary in 1979.

[i-have-funny-hat]

Went to Barrow Hill for the small model railway show the Deltic Preservation Society was hosting.

Almost got caught in heavy rain but it gave me some great photos!

[supertrainstationh]

RD15742. GER Wisbech & Upwell Tramway No.7. by Ron Fisher Via Flickr: RD15742. One of the most interesting carriages in the North Norfolk Railway's vintage train is this Great Eastern Railway bogie composite No.7 built for the Wisbech & Upwell Tramway in 1884. Sister carriage No.8 found fame in the 1952 Ealing Comedy 'The Titfield Thunderbolt', but its fame was short lived as it came to a sticky end when it was derailed by the baddies( Pearce and Crump who ran the local bus service) and it crashed down an embankment. It had been fitted with a bar so that Mr. Valentine, the rich old soak that had financed the purchase of the line from BR, could get a drink without waiting for the pubs to open. No.7 has been fitted out with a bar in a similar fashion. Sheringham, North Norfolk, Wednesday, 23rd August, 2017. Copyright © Ron Fisher.

[eltristanexplicitcontent]

The most attractive #steam #locomotive in Preservation?