Purpose of the trip
I have previously been advised that T3 563 will be in service today on the Swanage Railway. I first saw this locomotive in (I think) the very early 70’s at Clapham Transport Museum – certainly before I went to University in 1972. A stylish Victorian product by William Adams (built in the long closed Nine Elms locomotive works) most of the class had been withdrawn by 1933 but three survivors soldiered on with 563 being refettled for light steaming duties at the 100th anniversary celebrations at Waterloo Station in 1948.
Then as part of the National Collection the locomotive was loaned for stage productions of “The Railway Children” making it to Canada before return to the UK and a decision by the Science Museum that it could be transferred to the ownership of the Swanage Railway Trust in 2017 after three years of negotiation. Subsequently the locomotive underwent a very full overhaul and rebuilding at the Flour Mill in South Wales and I have made very modest contributions to the work undertaken leading to the locomotive returning to active service in October 2023. I was unable to participate in the launch then and I have been waiting for a date when I am able to travel behind the locomotive.
Use in recent months has allegedly been limited as 563 was unable to leave the Swanage loco shed as the turntable immediately outside the shed had been damaged when being used by a Bulleid Pacific and the turntable needed repairs before it could be crossed. However given the age of the locomotive it cannot be expected to be in regular service compared to more modern locos – and at the moment the Swanage Railway works on a one engine in steam service with the second service being provided by either a DMU or class 33 on a rake of coaches. No doubt the economics limit the use of steam.
Factually I do know that in early 2024 563 caused some lineside fires and a spark arrestor was to be added before it could return to active service – so it may be a combination of reasons has been responsible for it being a rare sight in recent months. Today it is so wet that the chance of a lineside fire even without a spark arrestor must be close to nil!
Operations on the Day
I join the 10:40 train at Norden (the station closest to Wareham and where there is extensive parking as there is no longer a service to and from Wareham unlike my last [undocumented] visit, aided by the service being 5 minutes or so late as the timing was a bit close!
South of Corfe Castle there is a rising gradient of 1 in 80 heading towards Swanage and the loco briefly loses her footing on the damp rails and slips but it is soon brought under control. The steam service operates between 5 and 10 minutes late for the rest of the day whilst I am travelling and this imposes a similar delay on the diesel service as they cross at Harmans Cross.
At Swanage there is a rapid run around and we head back along the line and with a load of five well occupied coaches the locomotive certainly seems to be able to cope well. We do not get any later – although it is steadily getting wetter. I hop off at Corfe Castle to take some photos and then take the return trip to Swanage where this time I leave the station to go to the nearby overbridge to be able to take some photos as it departs on the 12:40 service. As 563 departs a brake van trip also leaves the other platform which to my mind does not enhance the photographs – but in reality a sunny day is needed for that.
I take the next diesel service to Corfe and await 563 arriving from Swanage for some final photos then take the service to Norden where I leave the train and after some final photos head for home.
Costs / Ticket Checks
£27.50 for the line rover plus £4 for parking – with a need to return to the car to put the ticket in the window. Ticket checked on the first train but no further inspections thereafter.
Rolling Stock
Mark 1s throughout. A number of toilets were out of use – that may have just been my bad luck – the stock on this line has a problem in that they do not have any significant under cover storage. A few years ago there was a plan to provide a facility at the Wytch Farm oil facility at Furzebrook which had closed for rail extraction being replaced by pipelines. However the site is protected by various conservation laws and the planning permission for the site required the removal of the rail facilities when no longer needed and no new permission could be granted to the railway for much needed coach storage (and potentially locomotive works which are currently “off-railway”. So stock maintenance is very difficult for the line.
Summary