3CIG 1498

3CIG 1498 has left the EOR and is going to Ireland. Info from https://www.facebook.com/Eppingongarlocodept/posts/1884586935096208

 

going to be Glamping accommodation , sad day really for anyone who has put their time and energy into saving it.

 

What will Stuarts next project be? What have Hornby planned for next year...?

 

He was asking the price of the old Mk1 camping coaches at Dawlish Warren somewhere ...

 

He also asked how much the 35011 group paid for their loco...


Keith

 

It was out of operation at Epping Ongar for a number of years and with no means to power it properly, couldn't really be used for anything other than hauled stock.

 

better kept intact than converted to a glamp imo

 

Sadly it'll keep happening unless someone bites the bullet and tries to get a stretch of 3rd rail put down somewhere, the Mk1 and earlier regs make mainline running difficult, otherwise it's just air braked stock that looks odd with anything other than a 33/73.

 

But it is possible under current regulations to lay and energise a new length of 3rd rail? Never mind the cost and engineering involved in providing the power.

 

I think the answer is that it may be possible, but that there are high hurdles that any would be operator would have to surmount. As for the cost and engineering, that is an argument that could have been used against any number of preservation projects.

 

Never said it would be easy, but in the meantime, you can see why pres lines are not rushing to take on traction units incapable of moving themselves.

 

And these units don't add much themselves to the attraction of a heritage railway for normal visitors, as they appear to be the same as what is running on the mainline today. So there is no financial gain in making them operational. You are going to need an EMU enthusiast with particularly deep pockets, excellent negotiating skills and years of patience to get anything working "live" on a heritage railway.

 

There is nothing in law that prevents such a thing happening, so it remains a theoretical possibility.

However every single body that would need to give statutory approval in some way to such a scheme (from the ORR to the HSE) has made it abundantly clear that they won't accept it - which is easy to enforce by the simple expedient of specifying requirements / safety standards which are impossible for anyone outside NR or LUL to comply with due to the resources, etc involved.

 

Or a very decent set of batteries to power the thing without a third rail.

 

That was what I thought. Therefore EMU owners can only hope to "operate" their units if they get them on to the mainline or LUL - which itself bring all sorts of requirements. Until then, they are left as loco-hauled rolling stock, which isn't necessarily of the best internal layout for a heritage railway, and looks "wrong" for the enthusiasts.

 

I don't care that much as an EMU enthusiast; I just want to ride them.

 

you're forgetting the battery powered luggage vans

 

How many scrap Toyota Prius would it take?

 

I can't see enough work for 3rd rail units on any preserved line with or without a 3rd rail. There are plenty of diesel locos just standing around switched off because there isn't enough people wanting to ride behind them apart from at diesel galas.