Powerscene
CLASS 20
HAVING moved No. 20142 from Derby RTC to Tyseley on December 1, Nos. 20007+20205 hauled the 6Z79 11.03 Derby RTC-Toton Yard the following morning, before taking HOBC wagons on the 6Z75 10.41 Sandiacre-High Marnham on December 3, recorded passing Shirebrook Junction at 11.40. Both Type 1s worked back from High Marnham on December 10, before taking up stock transfers 10 days later. With Nos. 20205+20189 at one end and Nos. 20007+20142 at the other, the quartet powered the 6Z20 20.55 Crewe DRS-Kirkdale TMD with brake force wagons, and next morning (December 21) formed the 5Q20 05.18 Kirkdale TMD-Crewe CS, before returning to Liverpool late that night.
On December 22 the locomotives ‘top and tailed’ three barrier wagons on the 6Z20 04.18 Kirkdale TMD-Leicester routed via Crewe, Shrewsbury, Wolverhampton, Walsall and Nuneaton, prior to Nos. 20007+20142 heading off light to Eastleigh the next day.
CLASS 31
UNDERTAKING one last trip in 2021, Brush Type 2 No. 31128 ran light from Burton Wetmore (Nemesis Rail) to Lichfield Trent Valley on December 21, to collect AC electric No. 86259 Les Ross/Peter Pan. No. 31128 hauled 86259, which itself had run light from Rugby to Lichfield, to Burton Wetmore for attention prior to the electric locomotive operating railtours in 2022.
CLASS 33
STEAM Dreams operated several ‘Santa Steam Express’ circular tours during December, starting at London Victoria. The steam locomotive hauled the 1Z70 09.31 departure from Victoria via Kensington Olympia, South Acton and Twickenham, while the 12.01 and 14.35 departures were diesel hauled to Willesden sidings, where each train reversed allowing the steam engine to head back to Victoria. Finally, following an empty trip, the evening service ran as the 1Z73 19.30 Victoria-St Margarets, continuing as the 20.30 from St Margarets via North Pole Junction, Hounslow and Barnes. Class 33 ‘Crompton’ No. 33207 accompanied LNER ‘B1’ 4-6-0 No. 61306 on December 13 and Bulleid ‘Pacific’ No. 35028 the following day.
CLASS 37
THREE different West Coast Railways
