Nene Valley Railway

Talk of the Swedish railcar's toilet reminds me of a trip on the German narrow gauge in the late 90s. I think it may have been the Zittau line, although not sure about that. I was standing on the end verandah looking down at the track (as you do) when we went over a bridge, which basically allowed you to see straight through to the road below. Never having seen this setup before I mentioned it to my travel companion, who said "interesting... have you seen the toilet? All you need is for an open top car to be going under the bridge..."

 

Great video.

Glad you enjoyed your day with us!

 

https://www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk...XwCSHOYCXt6RAR7UHY_aem_mQ5Zi2NqftpMeJN9j087-g

73050 now on a 20 year rolling contract from the council rather than 10 years, allowing further fundraising for the overhaul to take place.

 

Was there a notice like this in the toilet?

 

Interesting piece on Sky News this evening about Community Payback PW workers on the railway.
I did wonder if some might find their presence a reason not to visit, although they may of course not be there on operating days, that was not mentioned in the piece.

 

They’ve been no problem at all when I’ve been there on their working days. It’s not as though they walk around with a big flashing sign saying “criminal”.

 

They certainly do a good job of clearing the crap deposited by "law abiding citizens" on the trackbed of the Fletton branch where it runs behind the houses...

Whilst we're on the subject of the NVR, I've noticed that the loco rosters have disappeared from their website?

 

It's still there, just hidden away a bit.

Menu - what's on - calendar - locomotive.

https://nvr.org.uk/article.php/9/loco-roster

 

How does it differ from Manpower Services? Obviously that was a good before I was aware of the world but every reference I've seen of it in railway circles does seem quite glowing about it.

 

On the contrary, they usually have hi vis on saying 'community payback' on, so it shouldn't take a wordsmith to work out what they are!

They have been down as long as I've been involved at the place, either clearing line side vegetation, or digging, and make a good job of it. The key has been having good supervisors (from the probation service, rather than NVR) to motivate theore reticent guys into working!

Most of the guys I've chatted to over the years have been polite , and generally finding the novelty of being around a steam train softens the blow of manual labour!

 

With the fabric of the building just about complete, the contractor's plant and offices has been cleared from the front and the solid fencing replaced with mesh-style so that the front of the building can be seen to full effect. In the last posting, we mentioned the need for match funding to release a grant that should cover the cost of fitting out the insides. It's great to report that we've found that money and are now moving forward with the project. We expect to have the internal designs ready early in September and will be looking for people to turn them into reality.



https://www.facebook.com/story.php?...t21TFTqjBWxYdR4ZPjdrN6dt7cNmizqzQRS1oGNBs4qDl

Looks very impressive, they've done well to transport and rebuild it without it looking toylike or a replica, like some rebuilt buildings do.

 

But with other folk around the railway wearing hi-viz, they don't exactly stand out like a sore thumb.

 

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1ByisjwTyu/

Going to be weird not seeing it dumped round the back of Hornsey depot where it's been for the last few months after arrival from Selhurst. Very handy addition for the railway, meaning they can move vehicles around without having to start up a diesel shunter.

Nene Valley Railway would like to thank Trackwork Limited (Hornsey Depot) for their kind donation of a NITEQ Mini Mover, which arrived by road yesterday. This will no doubt be a valuable addition to NVR!. The Mini mover once checked over and charged will be used for small shunting operations in the yard at Wansford, with it being electrically powered it’s a great green machine and will save diesel shunting.

 

Now that I like

(I'd like an 08 in BR black even more, but no - this is good.)

 

It's a fraction of the power of an 08 (15kN tractive effort rather than 160kN), but it'll move a couple of coaches without any effort. The wheel lathe one at Hornsey is the 5000E version which is still only 50kN, but is still capable of moving a 400 tonne class 700 with ease. Just don't expect to do it quickly!

 

How close is it to "switch on and go"?

Does an 08 need much warming up/prep?

Most 1950s engine tech needs a bit of pre-start prep and oil pressurising

 

Unplug the charger, switch it on, switch on the remote control, away you go.

 

Ah yes, I recall the joy of hand pumping up the oil pressure on D0226 at the WV in the 70s. No idea if that’s still the case.

 

Gosh! Must make it very handy for ad hoc small moves. Is it allowed out on the main line? If so, and range permitting, it could presumably do small pw jobs as well

 

Unlikely - I believe it's top speed is around 1mph!