As Storm Garetti closed in on the UK last night [8 January], a diesel locomotive from the Severn Valley Railway heeded a call from Network Rail to help clear snow and debris from the West Midlands main line overnight.
With an amber weather warning in place and the storm about to strike, the SVR made available one of its heritage locomotives, Class 50 50049 ‘Defiance’. Fitted with mini snow ploughs, the loco’s task was to assist with route proving and snow clearance across the West Midlands network.
SVR managing director Gus Dunster explained more:
“Some of our heritage diesels still have clearance to operate on the main line. The Class 50 Alliance-owned 50049 was an ideal candidate for the task, and thanks to a very quick response from their volunteers to get the locomotive ready, it was out on the main line by 11pm last night, under the control of a crew from operators Hanson & Hall.
“The SVR has a full-on partnership and collaboration agreement with Network Rail, and this is a classic example of that partnership agreement working actively. Thanks to the co-operation of both the Class 50 Alliance and other volunteers and staff on the SVR, we were able to respond to their call for assistance very quickly. I’m extremely proud of and grateful to the SVR team who were involved last night.”
Martin Colmey, operations director at Network Rail’s Central route, said: “This is a great example of the strength of our partnership with Severn Valley Railway and we’d like to thank them for their support with responding to the impacts from Storm Goretti.
“The way our teams work together – sharing expertise, resources, and a genuine commitment to keeping passengers safe – demonstrates exactly why this partnership is so brilliant.
“We urge passengers to check before they travel while Storm Goretti continues to cause disruption across the West Midlands and beyond.”
After working overnight across the West Midlands network, 50059 returned to base at Kidderminster just before 9am today [9 January].