Settle-Carlisle line: Tornado powers 12 scheduled services

Timetabled services on a world-famous railway line will be powered by steam for the first time in decades. Tornado, the newest steam locomotive in Britain, will pull 12 Northern services on the Settle-Carlisle line over three consecutive days.

It is part of celebrations to mark the upcoming re-opening of the line after landslides closed a long stretch. The line takes in the Yorkshire Dales and passes over the Ribblehead viaduct before entering Cumbria's Eden Valley. The steam-hauled, eight-carriage trains will run two return journeys a day between Appleby and Skipton from Tuesday to Thursday (14-16 February).

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Well as I haven't posted any grey and boring American trains recently thought I would post one today.



Well seems to have some "red" in it as well.

A rather sad looking F40PH NPCU(Non Powered Control Unit) 90213 passes Chesterton on the rear of Amtrak 29 today

The emblem is the Downeaster where these are used.

Shot from the other side when 29 turned on the wye at Chicago.



Hopefully all the red oxide on the rusty bits means it is due a repaint.

Yuck. Yes, I suppose and hope it's going to Beech Grove for paint.

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David
Sitting on my butt while others boldly go,
Waiting for a message from a small furry creature from Alpha Centauri.

I believe I posted this happening before.

What do you do when your train breaks down on the way to Chicago from Washington.

As did the Capitol Ltd train 29 today.

Well you wait till the handy Chicago bound train from New York arrives about an hour later and hitch a ride.





Those in the know will recognise the Viewliner sleepers of the Lake Shore Ltd 49 in front of P42 #95 and the Superliner behind.

I have no idea what exactly happened waiting to see if I have a email later.

I believe I posted this happening before.

What do you do when your train breaks down on the way to Chicago from Washington.

As did the Capitol Ltd train 29 today.

Well you wait till the handy Chicago bound train from New York arrives about an hour later and hitch a ride.

Those in the know will recognise the Viewliner sleepers of the Lake Shore Ltd 49 in front of P42 #95 and the Superliner behind.

I have no idea what exactly happened waiting to see if I have a email later.

I heard something about this. I think they said engine failure.

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David
Sitting on my butt while others boldly go,
Waiting for a message from a small furry creature from Alpha Centauri.

Back on the 4th December I posted this picture of 711



One of the ""East Coast" P32AC-DM's heading for Chicago.

Well it has been to Beech Grove Amtrak's maintenance facility in Indianapolis and returned today on the service train.



Resplendent in the "Empire Service" Phase III livery it joins 701, 704, 707 and 710.

I think you will agree it looks a bit better now!!

So that's where the last "711" went. ;)

Nice pics Bernie.

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

Back on the 4th December I posted this picture of 711

One of the ""East Coast" P32AC-DM's heading for Chicago.

Well it has been to Beech Grove Amtrak's maintenance facility in Indianapolis and returned today on the service train.



Resplendent in the "Empire Service" Phase III livery it joins 701, 704, 707 and 710.

I think you will agree it looks a bit better now!!

Spiffy.

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David
Sitting on my butt while others boldly go,
Waiting for a message from a small furry creature from Alpha Centauri.

Amtrak's Revenge!!

https://imgur.com/gallery/jZCWbFf

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Pardon the pun but that's very cool.

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I've just read your link and for fu##s sake fire these incompetant people , surly these people should be " put against the wall and shot " talk about " Numptyism " but that's taking the urine completly and won't even guess as to who may have tp " piick up " the bill for this crap :-( .

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Life is what you make of it :-)

When i'm good i'm very good , but when i'm bad i'm shi#eloads better ;-) In't I " buttercups " p.m.s.l at authoritie !!;-)

I think that former Prime Minister John Major should buy the trains out of his own pocket (he'll only have to pay scrap value - the trains are useless anywhere else in the world, because of the non-standard traction power system), and donate them to one of the southern franchises - whichever needs them most.

After all, this whole cack-handed privatisation was set up on his watch...

Meanwhile, Flying Scotsman is re-inaugurating the full Settle-Carlisle line today after landslip repairs - at the start of a 9-day residency at my local KWVR. I'll see if I can get some piccies next week, when it's quieter - the weekend will be heaving.

Great news about Scotsman, look forward to pics :-))

Being covered quite extensively on BBC TV news already - watch out for the KWVR headboard as it calls at Appleby.

More at Flying Scotsman marks Carlisle-to-Settle line reopening

While not of as great import as the Scotsman, I would like to point out to those in the area that Illinois Railway Museum is opening for the season tomorrow and will kick off its 52nd year of public operation on Sunday with North Shore Line 749.

I may or may not go out tomorrow to offer my assistance in the Electric Car Shop, but I have other train-related plans for Sunday. My first scheduled appearances will be on the 16th (Easter) and 30th as conductor on 749. (Although, checking the crew sheet, I see there is still no conductor for CA&E 431 on the 9th and I probably won't pursue my plans for that day.)

Also, if anybody in the Chicago area has little ones who like Thomas, he and Percy will be visiting us the 2nd and 3rd weekends in July this year, moved from August. (I will be dispatcher on the first day, July 8.) Advance tickets go on sale to the public next week.

Other special events this year include:

May 13: Scout Day
May 20: Chicago & North Western Day
May 27-29: Memorial Day weekend (I'll be dispatcher Sunday)
June 10-11: RPO Days
June 17: Chicago Day
July 1-4: Independence Day / Traction Weekend, featuring History of the Electrified "L" on Saturday (9 different electric trains) and the abandonment of the CA&E Sunday (1 day ahead of the anniversary). The only non-electric trains running will be the Zephyr Saturday and Frisco 1630 the other three days, plus a single trip by the C&NW bilevels Sunday to pick up passengers stranded by the CA&E. (I'm dispatcher Monday.)
August 6: Vintage Transport Extravaganza
August 12-13: Diesel Days (switching places on the calendar with Thomas).
September 2-4: Labor Day Weekend, with 1630 and the North Shore running until 9:30 p.m. Saturday, and CA&E and the Zephyr Sunday (I'm first shift dispatcher Sunday)
September 16-17: Showcase Weekend
September 30: Bus Day
October 7: Milwaukee Transit Day
Weekends November 25 through December 17: Happy Holiday Railway

I'm on the schedule for something or other almost every Saturday and Sunday in May and June. Other than those dispatching days, I haven't yet requested anything after Thomas.

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David
Sitting on my butt while others boldly go,
Waiting for a message from a small furry creature from Alpha Centauri.

Well, I can confirm that the Flying Scotsman has emigrated to Yorkshire for the duration - together with an enormous number of groupies. Every services she was scheduled to haul was booked solid weeks in advance. So I took the ordinary service train for a line survey...


...and settled on my viewing spot...


...where there's plenty of room...


...to wait...


...and wait...


...until eventually




It has to be said that Flying Scotsman was built, as her name implies, for flying along the straight and level track between London and Edinburgh at high speed. I could hear her struggling up our steep little branch line (rising 300 feet in less than five miles), with lots of wheel slip - and I think this banker at the rear was helping more than the passengers may have realised.

For modelers: scented smoke fluids

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David
Sitting on my butt while others boldly go,
Waiting for a message from a small furry creature from Alpha Centauri.

OK, a couple of pics of trains from last week:

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Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

Chinese CRH5, not sure which variant, they all look the same!

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Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

OK, a couple of pics of trains from last week:

Nice Pics Rob, Chinese HSR, wow, looks fast just sitting there.

@ Richard Haselgrove: Nice pics, I thought things from the Devonian Period were extinct, I guess at least one still exists.

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's