From the guard's van

Class 158/0 comes off the Leeds line into the station. This rather battered class 66 was on the binliner train today.  The southbound GBRf container train was powered by 66789 "British Rail 1948 - 1997" - last seen in Doncaster... see previous blog entry. 

Another TPE class 802/2 (802204) is being tested. These are 5 car bi-mode trains and this one was running between York and Darlington on electric power.  Entering platform 5 from the north.  At speed...

The new summer season of Scarborough Spa Express services has started. Today's train was powered by ex LMS Jubilee class no. 45699 named "Galatea".  The steam specials always attract a lot of attention from enthusiasts and the staff are very patient. 

Barnetby lies on the Immingham to Scunthorpe and Doncaster line. There is a regular procession of coal, biomass (mostly for Drax power station) and imported iron ore. East Midlands Trains from Lincoln leaves the station.  Modern colour light signals like this have recently replaced a large collection of semaphore signals. Iron ore is imported through the Port of Immingham for Scunthorpe. Coal empties head back to Immingham.  A loaded coal train is directed into the down loop to allow a couple of passenger trains to pass it.  A Trans Pennine Express train is ready to leave for Manchester airport. 

The class 66s look good in the new DB livery... ...even when at the head of a rubbish train. 

Today's test train was made up of  two Trans Pennine Express units .. both built in Japan. One was in base white livery but this one was in the TPE livery it will work in. They are bi modal units designed to allow Network Rail to quietly drop their plans to electrify the trans Pennine Route. There is no money for it... after all it is north of Watford so why would we need it? Note the absence of a yellow end on both sets. Note also that they are working from the overhead.

Whatever you think of the Pacers they have served their masters well for the past 30 years... amazing when you consider that they were designed only as a short lived stopgap. The class 144s (seen here) are better looking that the 141s were and the 142s are. Class 142. Face to face in platform 1 York.  A short time ago one class 144 was refurbished to see what was possible if the life of the class were to be prolonged. This is the result... better seats and a new livery. This is one of the replacements for the Pacers. It is a class 170 recently cascaded from Scotland. A huge improvement in quality and comfort. 

The class 800/2 units, illustrated here while on a Doncaster to Darlington return test run, are 5 car bi mode units capable of running off the 25kv overhead or via underfloor diesel engines. Up to this point they have always been seen in York on diesel power because of signal interface problems but a close look at these pictures show that they are now running north of Doncaster taking power from the overhead.  Limited services are being operated to Leeds with these units and as they are phased in so the class 91 and Mk 4 sets and the HSTs will be withdrawn.  On the north bound leg of the test the unit passes though platform 5 at York... it is not painted in zebra livery, they are the shadows from the roof!! Rounding the curve into platform 3 on its return from Darlington.  It stopped briefly in platform 3 before leaving for Doncaster where these units are based. 

York station is the place to be if you want to see the Trans Pennine Express liveried class 68s. The mark 5 coaching stock which will form the complete trains with these locos have been through to Scarborough (getting the heavy graffiti treatment from the local "artists" on one occasion) but I have not seen them yet.  68 032 named "Destroyer" (despite the text books telling us it should be named "Patriot") was resting in the sidings next to the signalling centre.  68 028 named "Lord President" was in use on the training/ route learning runs today and is seen here (and below) in platform 4 between trips. 68 028 joined another example of the class earlier in platform 2.

The daily engineers' train from Doncaster to Millerhill, which produced a class 56 a few days ago, passed through today with a class 70 at its head. This is the first time I have photographed a class 70 working a train. They may not be beautiful but the power...!  The train was a heavy one consisting of 4 wagons of concrete sleepers (you can see them in the pictures) and a number of bogie wagons loaded with ballast. It was slowed to a crawl in the platform and applied power when the signal came off. The whole place shook!!! Not sure which picture I like most so I put them all in... taken as the train passed through platform 5.

Living near to Taunton from 1995 until 2000 it was natural that the station was a favourite spot for watching the trains. Here are some of the class 37 powered freights of the time.  37 886 (named Sir Dyfed/ County of Dyfed in 1981) in EWS livery approaches the station from the west with an engineers train. The loco was originally D6880. 37 715 in grey with "Mainline" transfers approaches the station from the east with a rock armour train for the sea defences at Minehead. This loco was named "British Petroleum" from 1993 - 2000. It was originally numbered D6721. 37 719 (originally D6733) heads a loaded ballast train into the station from the west.  37 671 named "The Pol and Pen" in Transrail grey livery waits for the road in the centre platform road (then not used as a passenger platform). The road is set for a passenger train to leave the near platform out onto the main line. This loco was originally D6947 and served with the SNCF in

Entering Bescot up yard from the Walsall line... when you could still do that. Pleck Junction with a van train - the 1960s power box is no longer with us nor the overgrown track in the foreground... or the van trains for that matter!! Colwich on the WCML... coal trains are very rare these days and the four wheel MGR wagons are a thing of the past.  One of the later series of class 20 heads north through Bescot station.  A coal train heads through Rugeley Trent Valley station towards the power station at Rugeley. ...and still they soldier on. Two DRS examples at York station.