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Fortnightly magazine and website covering news and views from Britain’s railway. The brand behind the RAIL100 business breakfast club and #NationalRailAwards
Peterborough
Joined May 2009
That is utterly extraordinary. I've picked up 100 followers in 15 minutes after doing the LBC interview with @mrjamesob. I suspect none are railway folk but the audience so poorly served by the MSM on rail matters - ordinary decent folk who just want to be better informed?.
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OMG. How good is this. ECS for ‘the’ farewell train. Looks absolutely beautiful.
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…. and once nature has done it’s thing it will be virtually invisible. Just like HS1 has been for years.
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Ref last tweet about Mali the explosives dog. This is amazing. If you can read this without a lump in your throat, you hv a heart of stone!
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Had to say goodbye to my 92 year old dad at the weekend. After a near 3-year debilitating illness which inflicted declining mobility and steadily increasing indignities, he left us at 1340 on Saturday. John Brian Harris: 11/3/31-11/2/23. RIP.
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Just agreed to talk to @mrjamesob LBC, 015. Having heard James' approach to recalcitrant guests I admit to a certain queasiness. but let's roll, as they say.🙄This is important!. I've never seem 100 faster 'likes' than appeared on James' tweet that I'd agreed to chat!.
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They asked me last night to do Today on precisely this Anna - but cancelled at 0646. Sure that's happened to you many times! Yet more evidence of really dire news editing - politics trumping specialist analysis on behalf of the ordinary folk most affected?.
Seriously?? #DominicRaab on #Today (in 5 mins) defending cancelling #HS2 East & Northern rail projects…. The man who didn’t understand the importance of Dover-Calais to British biz & who’s keen to stop misogyny against men …. Seriously?? #clueless.
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1/ An HS2 thread. Sitting comfortably? Good. I shall begin. You know how chefs make those very strongly flavoured 'reduction' sauces where they simmer and boil and reduce until you have a very thick, gloopy sauce whose flavour is intense? That's what I'm going to try and do here.
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Inconclusive?! . She received a text from a very senior manager saying “how about you and me in a hotel room?” . How ‘inconclusive’ or ambiguous is that?! . Unbelievable. Jo has put up with this for years.
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Dear national journalists, please put a sock in it, take a long look at this picture and think - just think - before your next story, link or intro. It’s appalling out there and thousands are grafting to keep things moving. I hope you have a better day than this driver. Thankyou.
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1/I've been giving more thought to media coverage which either at worst directly implies Driver Brett McCullough was going too fast (he wasn't) or at best leaves the unpleasant whiff of the question hanging in the air. It does come from judging rail speeds as road speeds are.
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We all come to forks in the road and this is a big one for me. This decision has been crystallising slowly since February and now is the right time for me to slip out of the RAIL driver’s seat. This announcement was circulated to my Bauer colleagues earlier today.
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I say again: @afneil at his most dangerous and lethal best! . Britain’s best political interviewer. End of.
Yowza. Tory Minister comes on to attack Labour's plans to build 100,000 Council Homes and walks straight into Andrew Neil's trap. Beautiful television.
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PS: Final very important thought. The fact that Brett McCullough was running at 72-73mph on section having a linespeed of 75mph is NOT indication he was 'pushing his luck' - it's clear proof of his professionalism. Running at or near the linespeed is a requirement, not a fault.
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@markantro That’s plain silly . look at all the stuff that the BBC does that Prime and NF don’t. I’m a BBC critic but that’s just a daft comparison.
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Sunak is emerging as a clear and present danger to all our railways.
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Can I suggest that we all save this picture and then RT the hell out of it whenever anyone makes a fuss about the requirement to remove trees from the lineside. It is this simple.
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Whatever your subject, this is why you do not go and sit in front of @afneil without having done your homework and mastered your numbers.
Andrew Neil at his best, forensically taking apart some of the alarmist scaremongering by Extinction Rebellion. Yes, we face some serious environmental challenges. But the world isn’t about to end. We should stop turning our kids into nervous wrecks.
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What an ill-informed and dangerous tweet. This horrific pic explains why this ignorant initiative must stop. Every signatory supports a major safety risk which puts not only every train driver at mortal risk, but also maybe 300 passengers in their trains, at up to 125mph.
Across the country Network Rail is massacring trees just to save on maintenance. So much for UK's COP26 commitments. Help shame Network Rail:sign the petition. UK Parliament: Stop Network Rail's Environmental Destruction - Sign the Petition! via @UKChange.
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The last quartet of main line HSTs stand on the blocks at Paddington, amidst lots of well-wishers and their Hitachi 800 series sucessors, at about 1745.
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Graphic illustration of the new leisure led railway. A fact which only some on the railway - and no-one in Govt - properly appreciates and is responding to. This lot are not commuters. They have a choice. And they will not continue to choose this. Urgent action is needed.
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I wonder how many folk are more upset right now than they either thought they would be, or are prepared to admit? . RIP Queen Elizabeth II.
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“The driver is thought to have been trying to use an alternative track. ”. BBC R4 Today flagship 0800 news bulletin a couple of minutes ago. Appalling to hear such ignorant, poorly researched, simply incorrect claptrap 24 hours after the event. Shame on you, BBC.
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Remember these . and the wonderful smell of caps. .
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I very rarely post pages from a RAIL which is still on-sale. But the high stakes for the UK about the threat to HS2E prompt me to do that here. This is from R397, replaced by 398 on Weds. Be in no doubt: scrapping HS2E will be catastrophic for transport and decarbonisation.
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A personal shout out to train drivers everywhere for an uneventful shift today. Be safe one and all and may there be no fallen trees. 🙏🙏🙏🤞🤞🤞.
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A bit personal, so please forgive me for sharing a Big Moment. I used to dread these stairs at St P -had to grit my teeth at knee discomfort. I just went to the top without touching handrail. I used to have to haul myself up. Thankyou Rupert Clifton, my ace surgeon. Life changing
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My apologies if I’m committing a copyright faux pas here, cos I’ve forgotten where I got this, but it’s a brilliant and - if you dont know - startling illustration of the difference in size between deep Tube and sub-surface stock. Certainly made me gawp when I first saw it!
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TPE Mk 5 coaches to be withdrawn and stored, maybe scrapped?. Utter madness. They should find a new home immediately! . Scotland, Wales and the South West spring to mind. ?m
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This why train designers need to think really carefully. One pax; three wheelie cases. Inconvenient truth: we need to bring back the van. Sorry - but we do. Tell me I’m wrong!!
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Wow! . Imagine such vehicles on the West Highland….the Kyle Line….the Highland main line….the S&C….in Cornwall….on the Norlthumberland Coast…the Cumbrian Coast…. Cambrian Coast….
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1/ Your periodic reminder about why we should have no line side trees at all between the boundary fences. RAIB concludes poor rail adhesion likely cause of wheel slide Salisbury SPAD by SWR driver. Tunnel pic by Jack Boskett - note leaves on the track. More pix on linked tweet.
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I thought you might all enjoy this super image of the Waterloo upgrade - in the 1980s. The PPE underwear bottom right is worth a mention!
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Quiet day today, after a very emotional week. We had to take the devastating decision to put this little chap to sleep. A lovely, affectionate pal, who leaves a huge void. RIP Bozzie, cDec 15 2005-April 26 2021, aged 16 yrs and 4 months . Bye l'il boy. till we meet again 😰💔
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As most of us prepare to eat, drink and be merry with our families and loved ones, please join me in thanking the 36,000 (yes, really) engineers out working over Christmas, on a massive programme of NR infrastructure upgrades. Likewise the @BTP officers out there on patrol.
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A quick reminder of classic crisis management, should anyone in Bu*y be interested. When you’ve badly got it wrong:. 1) Admit you made a mistake - and mean it. 2) Put it right - quickly. 3) Move on. But you only get to do 3) if you do 1) and 2) with sincerity. That is all.
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OK, good morning everyone 🙂 I'm back. so, did I miss anything during my four months away. ?! 🙄🤨.
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As KX has been in the news a lot, I thought I'd post this as a reminder of how far we've come, from the hell-hole it once was.
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1/ I'm tolerant of 'spin' - I understand that many organisations want to present their story in the best light. to highlight its advantages. It's my team''s job as journalists to set spin in context, so that readers are guided through the spin to see the facts as they are.
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Happy new year to all in team RAIL. May 2020 be kind to each and every one of you. Thankyou for all the friendship, engagement and support in 2019 - here’s lots more in 2020. It’s going to be an interesting year.
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I'm hearing whispers that LNER is under pressure from DfT to withdraw the entire Cl 91/Mk4 fleet simply to save money, regardless of their success and popularity with pax. See also GWR Cl 769s, Cross Country HSTs. .
I wonder for how much longer we’ll see Class 91s on East Coast services? I could see cost pressures forcing LNER to switch to using only IEP stock. Anyway, here’s 91105 just landed at York.
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A reminder to those who get angry about the removal of line side trees - the driver sits immediately behind this window.
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‘Do you want to come up, son?’ - a long and noble tradition. I always do it when I’m on steam. I cannot tell you the feel good I get from the thrill kids and parents get from climbing into a cub. It can be life changing - and even industry changing, in due course.
Amazing gesture from the driver of a HST into York earlier. My son was just looking over and got invited in! Thanks so much @LNER
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Assuming HS2 is approved tomorrow, can I make a plea? . I urge supporters do NOT follow the appalling example set by bile-driven ‘Leavers’ who sneered endlessly at ‘Remainers’ like me that “You lost! Get over it!”. Magnanimity in victory is so much more grown-up and effective.
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This is beyond outrageous. It’s not you who is dragging the ELR into disrepute, Jo.
This ones going to be a long one kids, so sit down and grab a brew and read. Unfortuntley its a sad tale, let's give it a happy ending for the future generations. Please read the attached statement because it's really, really important.
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They shall not grow old as we that are left grow old,.Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn, .At the going down of the sun, and in the morning,.We will remember them. Lest we forget.
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A lot of interest in HS2 today, so here's my last Comment Special about it, actually in the current issue, which goes off sale tomorrow. We don't normally post material currently on the news stand but I'm making an exception today, to help inform thinking more widely.
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This should be a contractual obligation during WCML disruption - no more replacement buses!.
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How many times? There should be no trees inside the boundary fences. End of. We’ve been saying it for many years now.
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Ready to leave Newcastle at 0240 for the first 100mph pax train since the end of SR steam in 1967. Well done all!
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Dear NR/GBRTT, RIBs are for pax info and imho are NOT a sponsorship opportunity. Can we PLEASE stop this pernicious practice, which is taking ever more space, now 50%. Thankyou.
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Southeastern Javelin unit remains in stranded six weeks after going through end of siding.
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My most surreal driving turn ever. Ancient engines gala on the GCR. I'm driving cabless FR 20, in pouring rain, for the full 1860s experience, on a main line opened in 1899, 30 years after my engine was built. Then, 1829 vintage Stephenson's Rocket comes t'other way. Beat that!
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I really, really REALLY hate adverts on station name boards. Just put ‘Peterborough’ twice the size. That is all.
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Just a quick festive shout out to Network Rail and it’s contractors who are out working improving our railway. I hope the jobs go well and please, stay safe.
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@mrjamesob @LBC If you’re genuinely interested in the real issues James, yes, because this is too important to millions of people for anything else.
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I am sitting on a bench at Machynlleth station enjoying the tranquillity and awaiting a train. From somewhere within the station building the silence has just been broken by a Welsh male voice shouting: “Aaahhhh. BOLLOCKS!”. Just that. Silence has now returned.
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This utter BS from Shapps is contemptible. And towering ignorance in TV and other newsrooms means it is broadcast unchallenged.
As union bosses waste time touring television studios, I'm getting on with the job at hand and modernising our railway. This £1bn investment will replace outdated Victorian infrastructure with cutting edge digital signalling on the East Coast Main Line.
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About once a decade I’m rushing for a train at KX for P’bro - and end up in Grantham, Doncaster, or York. Guess what? . Tonight’s the night. And it would be the most irksome option 🤬🤬. Quiet at the back! 🙄🙄🙄
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Ok. Look at the shape of the front of the A4, from either side of the chimney, to where it narrows between the lamps. Now look at the yellow panel and above on the Azuma, as defined by the grey strips flanking the windscreen. Sorry, but I don’t buy that that is a coincidence!.
New+old at Darlington!.800103 works @LNER 0648 Glasgow Ctl-London KX +60009 'Union of South Africa' on 5Z60 transfer from the NYMR-ELR.
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You know, I’d forgotten the bufffets were branded like this. Wonderful to see again.
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1/ Found a few mins before dashing out so here's my personal reflections on the deplorable failure of the Government to use the Royal Train for the Queen's last journey from Scotland to London. I'll post some vids to go with it separately.
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1/ Thanks to a superb collaborative effort between QRTC, Vivarail, Network Rail and Transport for Wales, I am delighted to announce that we are able to offer a rail connection into RAIL LIVE 2021 this week (Wed/Thurs June 16/17) from Honeybourne.
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5/is more sneakily worded & says the Leeds "upgrade was completed following publication of Government's £96bn IRP. " . That is not what its tweet says & DfT should withdraw that untruthful tweet immediately. The press release qualifies as heavy spin. The tweet is dishonest.
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Every weekend. discretionary travel is booming. Key word: discretionary. They will not continue to choose this. Problem: Treasury and DfT simply don't care. Obsessed only with cost.
Why do I get the feeling TOCs simply aren't adapting to changing travel patterns? £20 each for the privilege of standing for an hour. And we wonder why people drive. @tfwrail
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3+2 seating is an utter aberration and should be banned!.
Not impressed with these @greateranglia due to narrowness between seats making it uncomfortable to walk through. Basically designed for human crabs…. Should be 2 + 2 seating IMHO
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The last main line HST leaves Swindon for the West. And it’s all over.
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Oh no! Bernard Cribbins has died, aged . He was omnipresent in my childhood. And a legend in The Railway Children. “Rightaway, Mr Perks!”. RIP.
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Farewell, old friend.
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As I pour my first Christmas Eve drink, I'd just like to wish all members of twitter team RAIL a very happy and peaceful Christmas and a prosperous and, above all, a healthy new year. Thankyou for your engagement and friendship in 2019. Here's a few of my seasonal snaps.
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WHAAAAAAT?! 😳.
🇨🇳 China may have the world’s biggest high speed rail network, but it’s reliant on guys sat on top of a train with wooden sticks to de-ice the overhead power lines in winter! @25kV .
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@SimonWeller @LUCYLucyprior @stephbreakfast Cheers Simon - seen it now. She's gutsy - at a NRA she hosted for me she told of a bloke who'd made some comment about her appearance and she retorted: "Have you looked in the mirror lately yourself, you fat twat?" Brought the house down. The crowd of 1,200 loved her for it.
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Blood moilingly annoying. Having spent years fielding criticism that HS2 is all about shorter journey times, Government is now extolling the view that NOT building HS2 will. improve journey times. You couldn't make this up.
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OMG….how mad is this?!.
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Courageous beyond words: RNLI nearly rolling over looking for a complete nob who chose to go surfing in today’s high seas. Volunteers all. I pray they returned safely.
Brave boys from @RNLI off out to rescue some idiot surfer off Hastings in #StormCiara. Come home safe boys
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This pic of HS1 from Brian Stephenson dispels the BS from HS2 ‘antis’ about how it will ‘destroy’ the countryside visually and aurally. Tosh. This 300kph train is passing a perfectly relaxed and undisturbed calf or ten.
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The railway surely needs to get a grip on jargon……what on Earth is wrong with ‘cleaning.’? . I’d wager most non-industry pax have no clue what this means….
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Delighted to see this letter, in today's Financial Times, regarding the crucial importance of HS2 East, from Professor McNaughton.
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Oooooooo. I like this!.
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This, this and thrice this! 👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇.
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My sincere apologies for misleading folk here. Memories played tricks. The DB ICE visit to St Pancras was not 13 years ago, as I said here a couple of days ago, but 11, as the pix make clear. The point holds good though: this should be a common sight by now!
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David, HS2 isn’t, wasn’t ever and never will be primarily about reduced journey times. It’s about creating capacity on WCML/MML/ECML by taking the expressed off and onto HS2. You then use that released capacity for inter urban fast pax to all stations, plus freight.
2/2 whether we should commit to tens of billions more. My real worry is the business case. Your excellent @RAIL has reported how season ticket sales have collapsed on rail. With Zoom and online meetings, is 30 min time saving now so valuable? I support high speed rail but HS2?.
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…but we’ll still keep raising rail fares every year….🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬.
From tomorrow, tax will be slashed on flights within the UK, a move that will help boost UK-wide connectivity. #AirPassengerDuty #Aviation
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I’ve just made a decision. I support and engage with honest, balanced campaigners. But I’m utterly sick of no-pic, no-details trolls with a handful of followers who simply snipe & sneer at the railway just for the hell of it. All blocked henceforth. There are too many decent folk.
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Other TOCs please note this fine example. This is how to do it.
Well done @LNER for running Edinburgh services via Carlisle and avoiding buses. Comfortable ride, and never travelled the Carlisle-Newcastle line before - stunning scenery! Fantastic train crew to Newcastle too @DavidHorne @RAIL
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I know the old BR brigade will pile in, but yet another example of how resolutely grim our railways were. Yes, I know why. and that’s why ‘nationalisation’ should never be an option. (Pulls tin hat on).
#ThrowbackThursday another shot from the ancient otters past. demise of a London terminal- Broad Street 1984 @thelostrailways @railscot @BroadgateLondon
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