Passenger 37's Swansong

37401 'Mary Queen of Scots' leads 2C45 09:18 Barrow-in-Furness - Carlisle away from St Bees. 15/11/2018.

In fading light 37409 'Lord Hinton' arrives into Seascale
working 2C33 15:31 Barrow - Carlisle. 15/11/2018

In years to come will we look upon autumn 2018 as the swansong of class 37 passenger operation in the UK? Right now there are two areas of passenger operation using veteran class 37/4's; in Cumbrian and in Norfolk. Each weekday four class 37's are available to travel behind on two scenic (but very different) routes. New orders of DMU's are on their way however and by this time next year both of these operations are likely to have finished- potentially also bringing the end of booked mainline passenger trains with the popular class 37's. Both routes offer some stunning journeys and great photographic opportunities but those wishing to enjoy these trains need to act fast!

37401 complete with enthusiastic driver leads 2C59 14:52 Barrow - Carlisle away from Seascale and towards Sellafield. This is the only northbound train (with loco leading) that can be photographed by the sea at this time of year in reasonable light- and then only on the brightest of days. 15/11/2018

In less bright conditions 37409 works 2C59 the following day seen near
Kirby in Furness. The namesake of the locomotive 'Lord Hinton' was a
nuclear scientist and engineer responsible for the construction of Calder
Hall Power Station, the first large-scale commercial Nuclear Power Station
and today part of the complex at Sellafield which provides much trade to
the route and employment in the area. 16/11/2018

In Cumbria class 37's have worked some services between Carlisle and Barrow-in-Furness (and previously Preston) over the spectacular Cumbrian Coast line since 2015. For a period this year complaints about the class 37's resulted in one of the two diagrams switching to more modern class 68 operation, but increased loco requirements during autumn have led to the 37's being back firmly in charge for the final months of this operation. In January 2019 the class 37's are scheduled to disappear for good on passenger trains on this line, replaced by DMU's which will be displaced from electrification project and the first deliveries of class 195 DMU's from CAF. I was lucky to spend 3 days on the line during November, with 37401 and 37409, both now resplendent in heritage BR Large Logo blue providing power for the trains. This is certainly not the best time of year for photography, but even on the dullest of days this route has a certain beauty. If you have not yet enjoyed the ride around the coast behind a loud class 37 then time is really running out!

2C46 09:03 Carlisle - Barrow-in-Furness is pushed by 37409 'Lord Hinton' on the approach to St Bees. This is a higher vantage point in the same area as that used for the photo of 37401 at the top of the page. Both 37 hauled trains will pass at St Bees at the end of this single line section. After a brief inland interlude southbound trains again hug the Irish Sea between St Bees and Seascale.

37419 leads the Anglian 'Short Set' into Brundall working 2P20 12:36
Norwich - Great Yarmouth on a beautiful autumn day. The semaphore
signals as well as the manually controlled crossing gates here will be
swept away by the current re-signalling scheme. 13/11/2018.

The loco hauled operation in Norfolk running on the Wherry lines between Norwich and Great Yarmouth / Lowestoft has a little longer left to run than it's northern counterpart. Greater Anglia anticipate using their 'short set' top and tailed by class 37's for the duration of 2019 until new class 755 Bi-mode DMU's arrive to work regional services. These trains have been running on and off for an extended period, originally with class 47's providing the power and covering for poor availability of DMU's. The operation here is very different to that in Cumbria with two locos top and tailing the train instead of the push-pull operation used by Northern. The length of the journey is significantly less and the scenery an awful lot flatter! (No mountains out on the Norfolk Broads!). Like Cumbria this railway has a lot of charm complete semaphore signals controlled from manual signal boxes- though these are due to be swept away in a re-signalling scheme in early 2019. Certainly the Wherry Lines will be changing over the next couple of years- again time is running out to sample this fantastic loco hauled operation, which will certainly be missed by the enthusiasts.

'Heavyweight' 37716 breaks the monopoly of 37/4's on the passenger workings as it leads 2P21 13:17 Great Yarmouth - Norwich away from Brundall Gardens. 37/4's are required on all trains for their train supply, however the top and tail set can use one 'no heat' locomotive and 37719 has been modified for these operations accordingly. 13/11/2018