first PUBLISHED: by the Shropshire Star March 5, 2007 Forty years ago the end of an era was marked by the departure of the very last scheduled steam-hauled passenger journey from Shrewsbury station. Exactly 40 years ago today, the smoke-blackened ex-LMS loco 45116 made Shrewsbury stations last scheduled steam-hauled passenger journey.It was one of British Rails old faithfuls which had seen better days. It slipped quietly into the night on Sunday March 5, 1967, watched by a few diehard steam buffs who gathered on Platform Three. At 8.50 - 45 minutes late - it left Shrewsbury en route for Chester, and into the realms of history. Few of the Sunday night travellers waiting around the station realised the significance of that event, which marked the end of over 100 years of steam at Shrewsbury station. All the fanfare had come the previous day, when hundreds of enthusiasts thronged the station when two gleaming museum pieces chugged their way through, hauling special trains to mark the end of steam on the Paddington to Birkenhead line. Diesel locos present were reportedly booed. Unlike the spit and polish treatment that had been accorded on the Saturday to Clun Castle and Pendennis Castle as they took locomotive enthusiasts from Paddington to Birkenhead and back, there was nothing to highlight the last steam journey of all on the Sunday night. When the Paddington train steamed into the station, pulled by a massive diesel unit, it was replaced by 45116, a Stanier Black 5 loco, with driver Jim Davies, 63, of Smithfield Road, Oswestry, and fireman Barry Nightingale, 29, of Wilderley Crescent, Shrewsbury, on the footplate. As the door closed on steam, another opened. From that date Shrewsbury passengers to London took a diesel feeder service to Wolverhampton, where they joined a new electric service linking Wolverhampton to Euston.Therein lay a problem. Diesel to Wolverhampton. Electric to London. It meant for there to be a direct train from Shrewsbury to London, the diesel loco had to be switched at Wolverhampton to an electric one, which took an average of 15 minutes. The reason diesel locos were kept away from the electrified line was because they would hold up the faster electric trains. The awkwardness of this arrangement ultimately killed off Shropshires direct rail link to London. Another consequence of the death of steam was that Euston, rather than Paddington, became Shropshires gateway to the capital. Railways historian Chris Magner says: Up to March 6, 1967, Shrewsbury had an excellent service of trains to and from London Paddington. Before then trains from Shrewsbury went to Paddington - not Euston. From March 6, 1967, there was one train in each direction from Shrewsbury to Euston. Dr Beeching ruined the excellent Shrewsbury to London Paddington services by closing the line from Wolverhampton Low Level to Birmingham Snow Hill, which of course prevented trains from Shrewsbury travelling to London Paddington. Forty years on we are still suffering from this misguided decision. Compare the service from Shrewsbury to London before March 6, 1967, with what we have today. Also, the steam-hauled expresses from Gobowen to Shrewsbury up to March 6, 1967, were faster than todays service. Mr Magner, from Bridgnorth, is currently writing a book on the Paddington to Birkenhead line, which he hopes to complete by the end of the year. There is another 40th anniversary which has just passed, he points out - March 4 was the 40th anniversary of the ending of the last scheduled steam-hauled express trains in Britain timed at 60 mph from start to stop. The 14.45 and 16.30 Birkenhead Woodside to Paddington expresses were booked to cover the 18 miles, 4 chains, between Gobowen and Shrewsbury in 18 minutes.Fastest The fastest run in 1967 was on February 23, when Black 5 No. 44917 in the hands of Driver Bernard from Shrewsbury covered the distance in 16 minutes 15 seconds. When the new diesel railcar workings came in from March 6, 1967, the Gobowen to Shrewsbury trains were allowed three minutes more than the steam trains they replaced. Another railways historian, Keith Beddoes of Telford, has provided further details of the last days of Shropshire steam. On March 4, 1967, Shrewsbury class 4 4-6-0 loco 75021, especially adorned with a wreath, mainly made of leeks, worked the last steam-hauled Cambrian Coast express from Shrewsbury to Aberystwyth. This was the 9.10am Paddington to Aberystwyth service, he said. The following day, Sunday March 5, 1967, Shrewsbury closed to steam. Shrewsbury was one of the last ex-GWR sheds to close. And he confirmed that the Shrewsbury to Chester evening train, on that Sunday, was the last steam-hauled passenger train from Shrewsbury. There was virtually no fanfare. That had been reserved for the specials the previous day. The sun sets on steam hauled services as Stanier Black 5 class 4-6-0 No 45116 reverberates around Coton Hill as it slogs up the bank near Shrewsbury on the evening of 5 March 1967.
Posted on: Wed, 10 Dec 2014 19:24:39 +0000
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