Steam train's snow rescue 'glory' (the little engine that could)

[depakid]

Source: BBC


Darlington-built Tornado was unaffected by the freezing conditions
----------------

Passengers were rescued by a steam locomotive after modern rail services were brought to a halt by the snowy conditions in south-east England. Trains between Ashford and Dover were suspended on Monday when cold weather disabled the electric rail. Some commuters at London Victoria faced lengthy delays until Tornado - Britain's first mainline steam engine in 50 years - offered them a lift. They were taken home "in style", said the Darlington-built engine's owners....

...About 100 people were offered free seats, according to Mark Allatt, chairman of The A1 Steam Locomotive Trust - the charity which built Tornado.

He said: "It was a nice way to finish for Christmas, though I think some of the rescued passengers didn't realise they'd even been travelling on a steam train until they got off." Mr Allatt, who was on the service at the time, said he only saw a handful of other trains between London and Dover throughout Monday.

He added: "If any of the train operators want to modernise their services by using steam trains, I would be happy to give them a quote."



Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/8428097.stm

[FLPanhandle]

1. Nice.

I enjoyed this story. Sometimes our modern technology has too many points of failure.

[tiny elvis]

2. thomas the tank engine saves the day

[laststeamtrain]

3. I love steam train stories! n/t.

[kayakjohnny]

5. Well of course you do!

Cheers!

[tabasco]

4. Steam trains are cool.

Cass State Park in WV ha smore geared steam locomotives than anywhere in the world.

[SharonAnn]

11. They have the coolest Shay engine running on that old logging road.

Shay engines are "side-winders" that have a drive shaft on one side.

Probably not the correct terminology, but it's a really cool engine.

[tabasco]

17. Cass has six Shays.

They are rebuilding a second Climax engine, which is my favorite.

I think the big pistons mounted diagonally on the sides look awesome.

http://www.cassrailroad.com/locos.html

[bvar22]

6. Woo-Hoo...

Choo-Choo!

LOVE the old Steam Locomotives.

[high density]

7. This train as seen on Top Gear

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PgWFQxmAPYA

:)

[unkachuck]

8. I can still remember....

....the rumbling thunder of the one-eyed mechanical beast with gleaming chrome plated tires and connecting rods glistening in my fathers' headlights as one of the Nickel Plate Roads finest labored around the curve at 147th by Wyman and Gordan in Harvey....

....it was the early '50s and they were phasing out steam....as a matter of fact, I had an uncle that torched locomotives for a living....I know they were dirty, labor-intensive and expensive to operate but steam locomotives had class, personality and they could scare a kid....

[Odin2005]

9. I think I can, I think I can...

:D

[mahatmakanejeeves]

10. Great comment in the Daily Mail

All aboard the polar express: Steam locomotive takes home passengers stranded by snow-delayed modern trains

Brilliant, but I'm still reeling in shock that something is still being manufactured in Britain rather than China..Though if it had been Chinese it'd probably have snapped in two shortly after the warranty period.
- M Norris, Leeds, 24/12/2009 03:03

[PATRICK]

12. Canadian and Siberian rail

I suppose are not paralyzed by the cold so i suppose the technology simply did not take changing weather conditions in France and the UK into sufficient account(i.e. powdered ice working into the trains and melting into electronic problems). Is that easily fixed and did the cold weather nations clue them in?

[DavidDvorkin]

13. It might be a question of extra money

They could import the technology, but would it be worth the extra expense when it's so rarely needed in the UK and France?

Passengers might give a different answer than managers would!

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

14. In Canada the railroads are always paralyzed

Bad weather not required, VIA Rail makes Amtrak look like a marvel of our age.

[Vogon_Glory]

15. Please Note: Third Rail

Please note that those particular railway lines are electrified using a third rail as a power source, much like subway lines in New York City or the Long Island Railroad. Had the old Southern Railway opted for electrification using an overhead wire, there might not have been a need for a steam-powered rescue train.

Personally, I think that the US ought to rebuild its long-distance rail passenger network to at least the size and scope it had back in 1960 (That would mean more frequent and more reliable passenger trains than the US currently has with Amtrak outside the Northeast and Empire State corridors). Moreover, I think that the US should encourage the mainline freight railroads as well as Amtrak to switch from diesel to full-electric operation.

The technology for such a move is available right now, not in some politician's or journalist's vision. The difficulty would be in funding it.

[bemildred]

16. Would that be the last steam train? nt