Milton Keynes
Railway Activity in Our Area - Part 2
FREIGHT TRAFFIC - All five freight operating companies now run services through Milton Keynes. With the southern end of the WCML being cleared for 9’ 6” containers most of the traffic from the Anglian East Coast ports travels this way and including other freight movements this can add up to 90 trains in each 24 hour period, but like other routes there are quiet periods when nearly an hour can go by without a freight train being seen. With the WCML being four track throughout the Branch area, the majority of the freight services use the Slow lines, but on occasion one can be seen using the Fast lines. It is not the intention here to give times for all the freight movements in the area as they are simply too numerous to list plus individual timings are often altered at short notice. The best way of keeping up to date is to refer to the FREIGHTMASTER book which is published by Mark Rawlinson and shows Watford Jc or Rugby as timing points.Turning now to each operator`s services:-
A) FREIGHTLINER
This Companies services comprise about a third of all freight trains passing through the area.
Freightliner services include:-
CONTAINER TRAINS
These are hauled by the entire spectrum of Freightliner main line motive power, electric and diesel - Class 90, 86/5, 86/6 and 66/5. Services link Coatbridge/Garston/Ditton/Trafford Park/Crewe Basford Hall/Lawley Street, Hams Hall/Daventry with Felixstowe/Tilbury/Thamesport (Grain).
Motive Power is normally:-
Electric Class 90 or 2xClass 86/6 on trains between Coatbridge/Garston/Trafford Park/Crewe and Ipswich Yard/Tilbury. In addition 86501 can be seen fairly regularly working singly on the shorter trains.
Class 66/5 work the trains between Lawley Street/Hams Hall/Daventry and Felixstowe/Tilbury.
INFRASTRUCTURE TRAINS
These are the hardest to observe as they are even more liable to cancellation/variation than normal freight services, depending on the volume/location of track renewal work. These trains are normally seen either in the evenings or at weekends prior to engineering work and work principally out of Forders Sidings on the Bedford Branch.
Motive power for all Freightliner`s Infrastructure services are either Class 66/5 or /6s
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Whilst Freightliner services tend to be reasonably reliable runners, there is much more variation with EWS trainload services, however Enterprise trains are much more predictable and run three times a day along the WCML.
ENTERPRISE
The EWS wagonload network uses the WCML as it`s “spine” and the major Anglo - Scottish Enterprise services pass through the area. Unfortunately much of the activity is during the night with just 1 or 2 daytime workings between Wembley and Mossend via Bescot Motive power is a mixture of Class 66s and 92s.
INTERMODAL
All of EWS`s Intermodal services from the Continent that go north of Wembley pass here. These comprise of services to Daventry/Hams Hall/Trafford Park/Mossend, and the trains are hauled by a mixture of Class 66s and 92s.
EWS internal Intermodal services now run between their main yards such as Warrington to Wembley with trip workings serving such places as Purfleet/Tilbury/Ely.
BLOCK TRAINS
The only example to visit the line is the Peak Forest - Bletchley stone train and return empties which conveys roadstone for the RMC Depot and runs three times a week. The current routing of this train is via the MML and the Bedford Branch.
INFRASTRUCTURE TRAINS
With the local “virtual quarry” being located at Forders Sidings at Stewartby loaded trains of ballast are now being worked in on a daily basis via Bedford which originate from either Toton or Stud Farm. The outgoing loaded trains required for relaying work on the WCML go out via Bletchley and are principally hauled by Class 66s, although Class 60s can turn up on occasion. There is a daily trip between Willesden Brent and Forders again principally worked by a Class 66.
AUTOMOTIVE TRAINS
In the late afternoon 6X77 Wembley-Mossend and runs “out of gauge” due to the different types of road vehicles it conveys amongst it`s load. EWS works the Dagenham – Garston car traffic and 6L48 can be seen going South in the early evening usually behind a Class 90, one of the few workings by the EWS examples of this class.
(C) DRS
The main sphere of work for this Company along the south end of the WCML has been the movement of nuclear flasks from Sellafield to the power stations at Bradwell and Leiston in East Anglia plus Dungeness in Kent. These trains are normally routed via Basford Hall and pass through the area during the hours of darkness. Their motive power is now more often a pair of Class 37s but the Class 20s can still be seen on occasion.
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| Class 66/7 66713 'Forest City' passing Denbigh Hall with the 4M23 (GBRf) 09.48 Felixstowe - Hams Hall. |
(D) GB RAILFREIGHT
This Company has a fleet of Class 66/7 locos which are now regularly used to work the twice daily service between Felixstowe and Hams Hall. The class is also seen from time to time hauling one off special freight or Infrastructure movements.
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| 66708 passing Wolverton Station |
(D) FASTLINE
This fairly new Company runs one inter modal service a day from Doncaster and/or Birch Coppice to Grain in Kent using principally their Class 56/3 locos but their new Class 66/3 locos are now starting to appear when a 56 is not available.
01/10/08