Headline News
No end in sight for Southern driver dispute; £1bn train
order as Abellio retains Greater Anglia franchise; landslip
traps steam special at Mallaig; English coal for heritage
railways; Night Tube service begins; Network SouthEast
museum opens at Finmere; Island Line retained as
part of SWT franchise; redundant Douglas horse trams
auctioned off.

On the cover
MAIN IMAGE: After a 30-year
restoration by volunteers
at the Gloucestershire
Warwickshire Railway,
Bulleid 'Merchant Navy'
Pacific No. 35006 Peninsular
& Oriental Lines bursts
through Southam Lane road
bridge upon departure from
Cheltenham Racecourse on
August 8. JACK BOSKETT
INSET 1: No. 071 at Bray in
1995 – see p31.
COLM O'CALLGHAN
INSET 2: 40564 and 53810 at
Radstock North – see p20.
RAIL PHOTOPRINTS
INSET 3: Rail Operations Group in focus – see p14.
STEVE DONALD

Track Record The Railway Magazine’s monthly news digest
68 Steam & Heritage
Summer revival for BR Standards; North Norfolk
celebrates Cromer success; Southern livery for Martello;
No. 813’s Severn Valley return; ’County’ revealed as a
4-6-0; Thornbury Castle arrives in Somerset.
74 Industrial Steam
77 Steam Portfolio
78 Miniature News
80 Traction & Stock
First Crossrail EMU for Old Dalby testing; DRS reveals
Class 88 livery; Hitachi releases first Class 385 from
Japan; Class 700 tested through Thameslink core.
85 Traction Portfolio
86 Classic Traction
'Deltic' for Great Central gala; public access at Finmere
station; second ‘Thumper’ for Lavender Line.
89 Traction Portfolio
92 Network
Six-week closure for Severn Tunnel; London Bridge
concourse opens; green light for Cardiff improvements.
94 Metro
96 Railtours
100 Narrow Gauge
First trains for Pedemoura; three ‘Bears’ at Groudle Glen;
two more years for Douglas horse trams.
104 World
106 Operations
Our round-up of news from the train and freight
operating companies.

Regulars
12 Multiple Aspects
12 Railways in Parliament
26 Reviews
The latest railway books under the spotlight.
41 Readers’ Platform
Your thoughts on the topics that matter to you.
42 Subscription Offer
Subscribe today and receive your monthly copy of
The Railway Magazine for just £3.33 an issue!
57 Meetings
Details of railway society meetings near you.
60 Panorama
Our monthly gallery of the best railway photography.
64 From The RM Archives
What The RM was reporting 20, 50 and 100 years ago.
112 Heritage Diary
Full details of when heritage railway, steam centres and
museums are open.
122 Prize Crossword and Where Is It?

Features
14 Carving Out a Niche
RM editor Chris Milner goes behind the scenes
with the Rail Operations Group, which during the
18 months of its operating licence has secured a
niche market moving rolling stock for repair or
refurbishment.

20 Mastering the Mendips
In the first of a two-part Practice & Performance, Keith
Farr takes us back to the iconic Somerset & Dorset
Railway and some fine runs behind ex-LMS motive
power over its arduous route.

28 Forty Years of the ‘Big’ GMs
Gary Boyd-Hope explores the history of Irish Rail's
General Motors Class 071s, together with their
Northern Ireland counterparts, as these popular and
reliable workhorses celebrate their 40th anniversary as
a wholly intact fleet.

37 Quarry Hunslet Homecoming
Rob Gambrill tells the story of how he and others
tracked down and brought home the last of the
narrow gauge ex-pat Penrhyn Quarry Hunslets, Nesta,
after decades in exile in Puerto Rico.

44 Getting a Fare Deal
The myriad ticketing options available since
privatisation can often be confusing. Steven Knight
explains what the different classifications mean and
provides some top tips on how to get the best deals
available when it comes to prices.

51 All aboard ‘Le Truffadou’
John Hannavy visits one of France's few preserved
railways, l’Association du Chemin de fer Touristique
du Haut-Quercy, and looks into its fascinating history
which centres on, of all things, truffles!