LE movements, ECS and test runs 2026

Hoping for a great New Year.

 

A post on Railcam's Facebook page made on Friday, shows 2 WCRC class 47 locos and 2 MLVs on the way to Ripple Lane Exchange Sidings to recover the 4TC set. The post reports that the DTSOs will leave by road and the TBSK & TFK will leave by rail.

 

3 ex First GW HST power cars running from Laira to Carnforth. The units were booked to call at the South Devon Railway to collect 4 mk.1 coaches but the points failed. Soon after, the units continued on their way without the coaches. <BJ>

0Z43 0853 Laira TMD. to Totnes
Realtime Trains | 0Z43 0853 Laira T.& R.S.M.D. to Totnes | 21/01/2026

0Z43 Totnes to Carnforth dep 112 mins early
Realtime Trains | 0Z43 1134 Totnes to Carnforth Steamtown | 21/01/2026

 

Could have been interesting as HST' power cars are AB only and I suspect that the WCRC mark 1's were vacuum brake for use on the heritage railway. Do WCRC have any dual braked coaches??

Cheers, Neil

 

Post#1234 by @torgormaig from yesterday gives some more detail

https://www.national-preservation.c...he-use-of-diesels.757898/page-62#post-2966634

 

Lots of hot air being produced about the price of this. Personally I believe it is up to LSL to charge what they want. Maybe they just want to keep the "great unwashed" away.
65 minutes in Euston seems about 60 minutes too long to me as well.
But disregarding all that I thought HST's used to run on the WCML at 125 in days past. Why would it now need approval to do so?
https://midlandpullman.com/journey/the-capital-flyer/

 

I don't think so - the uplift from 110 to 125 was at "EPS" speeds, which required tilt. That is now being relaxed with the introduction of Hitachi units, which need to be able to perform at the same level as the cl. 221s that they are replacing.

 

In this modern H & S world seems strange to allow pax on board then.
Mind you, we & CAA allowed staff on a Concorde CAA air test for the Concorde that had been used as a Christmas Tree for about 6 years. All went well until the stall at just under 60ooo ft apparently! Many were less keen on after that I was told.

 

I heard tell of the Concorde that went to 85 degrees on a ferry flight to Gatwick - with much the same result.

The WCML is passed for 125mph, but some proving is required - if I had that kind of money spare, I'd be tempted for what will I suspect be a fast run.