Kent & East Sussex Railway

Have you seen the track the KESR has now? it's IMHO it better shape than some stretches of the main line, and has the advantage of professional PW engineers and mechanised machinery to keep it so, it should cope without issue, the worse culprit for track damage, is the USA tanks, 257 may be the first Bulleid , to visit the line, but i bet it won't be the last, especially when the missing bit gets built so whats next, Britannia, Blue Peter, or just to make big chuffer critics blow a cork, 92212

 

I'm sure railways throughout the country will be beating a path to your door for advice on whether they should run a particular loco.

 

As will scientists, desperate to know how it's possible to type without a brain....

 

If I am correct the unrebuilt locos have a bigger availability anyway as they are lighter.

 

Look I know you have Anxiety problems, so I’ll try not to be to hard on you, but what knowledge do you have regarding the state of the P-way and the infrastructure of the KESR?
You are doing some hard working people a massive disservice with a comment like that.

 

Jealousy will get you nowhere.

 

You are correct, it’s why unrebuilt example were kept to work the withered arm branches in N Devon and Cornwall. This doesn’t apply to MNs of course

 

I would like to make the following observations in response to some of the recent comment. While I agree that a Bulleid Pacific is not exactly correct for a Col Stephens railway we must remember this is 2023 and the railway cannot be viable running mixed trains with a single coach and locos like Hastings. The crucial point is that the K&ESR has retained the period structure of the rural branch line that the good Colonel would recognise today, no attempt to let the architects loose on building fancy glasshouse extensions as one other railway tried but thankfully didn't succeed and how did the WHR get away with that architectural vandalism at Caernarfon? They still have Terriers and other appropriate locos for off peak times and special occasions and they have wisely appointed a new general manager who is a railway enthusiast in addition to being a good businessman. The pictures and publicity the railway is putting out on FB is a lesson to others.
This picture is to me what the K&ESR is all about and they must be commended for retaining the possibility of still being able to replicate such a scene

 

Austerity on SR liveried four wheelers anyone?
Hardly heritage but IoWSR does what it needs to keep viable and so is the KESR (and others).

 

While an Austerity clearly isnt an authentic IoW loco, given what did run on the Island in pre grouping days I would say that it wasnt entirely inappropriate if that makes sense

 

She is being warmed this morning. https://www.facebook.com/1000014594...VtAsUqLLHmsr7ViQRkGtPrNQm445dl/?sfnsn=scwspmo



 

Think first before you write. Utter tribe. The track and infrastructure had been upgraded since the time U-class 1618 was there.

 

Firstly because the planning constraints of the site dictated what could be built. The council didn't want a pastiche, they wanted something that fits in with the other developments in that area. If you visit the site now it does that well.

Secondly the site is also an odd shape and a two story building has to have a flat roof so it doesn't obscure views from the terrace on the street above. So a traditional building makes very poor use of the space available.

Thirdly traditional WHR station buildings were either small tin huts or silghtly larger single story stone buildings. Neither of which would scale up well to provide the facilities required.

Fourthly there was never a station there before. The WHR finished 3 miles up the road and the LNWR station was on the other side of town.

So much like a Bullied Pacific, it may not be a perfect fit, but if it does what you need it to do to keep your business going it is a valuable asset.

 

A Bulleid Pacific on the KESR? I’ve been hoping to see someone do this for years! Fabulous. Wish I could go.

 

OK! I apologise!

 

Contrary to the hopes of those soothsayers that wanted this project to fail, it appears that 257's first operating day on the KESR has been a stunning success. The television news channels have also been out in force, covering the proceedings.

No broken rails, no derailments, no platform strikes, no point spreading, no overburdened bridges.

Here is a a video off Youtube.

 

Glorious weather, beautiful countryside, a superb locomotive. Perfect day out, thank you KESR!

Kent & East Sussex Railway - 07/04/2023 by SPINNER673, on Flickr

 

A wonderful sight. Puts me in mind of the prologue to Powell and Pressburger's "A Canterbury Tale";
"Gone are the ring of hooves, the creak of wheel,
Down in the valley runs our road of steel"

 

Who were they? Some of us have commented on the appropriateness or otherwise of that loco running on that line, but I don't recall anyone saying "and I hope the project fails".