Llangollen Railway Railcar Gala June 11/12 (with guest)

A diminutive train that once was touted as the saviour of Britain’s branch lines but in the event only lasted in service for 10 years is to be the guest of honour at the Llangollen Railway’s annual railcar event, which takes place on June 10/11.
Railbus 79960 was built in Germany by Waggon Und Maschinenbau more than half a century ago as an experiment for British Railways to see if more traffic could be drawn to little used lines by the use of lightweight vehicles – a move that had been very successful in mainland Europe. Introduced to service in 1958 the tiny train, one of the smallest to operate in the UK, was used in East Anglia and in the North East before being laid aside as the lines for which it had been intended were closed under the Beeching programme.
Preserved as long ago as 1968 the train served the North Norfolk Railway for 44 years before moving on to the Ribble Steam Railway near Preston. It will visit Llangollen for one weekend only where it will run alongside the Llangollen Railway’s unique collection of 1950s railcar trains which include several rare or unique examples.
Railcars offer the travelling public unrivalled views of the surrounding countryside including the ability to see the line as the driver sees it, thanks to the provision of observation-style cab windows at each end of the train.
The weekend will see a very intensive timetable with departures from Llangollen and Carrog at half-hourly intervals and from Corwen every hour. Railcars will run in many different formations and there will be an opportunity for passengers to hop on and off at stations along the line thanks to the provision of rover tickets.
Prior to the event on the Friday evening there will be a photographic evening featuring the railbus during which it will stop at various locations all along the valley, while on the Saturday evening there will be a social event and barbecue.
Tickets for the event will be available on the day but can also be purchased in advance and at a discount by going to
http://www.llangollen-railway.co.uk/events/
More details can be found by visiting http://www.llangollenrailcars.co.uk or http://www.llangollen-railway.co.uk
Photo charter bookings at http://llangollenrailcars.co.uk/PhotoCharter.php
Timetables and Timing Graphs at http://llangollenrailcars.co.uk/Gala2016_Advert.php