Almond Valley Light Railway
| Almond Valley Light Railway | |
|---|---|
|
Barclay diesel loco with passenger train at Heritage Centre Station. The line's loco shed is to the right. | |
| Locale | Livingston, Scotland |
| Terminus | Heritage Cenre Station |
| Preserved operations | |
| Operated by | Almond Valley Heritage Centre |
| Stations | 2 |
| Length | 500m |
| Preserved gauge | 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) |
| Commercial history | |
| Opened | 1993 |
| Preservation history | |
| 1993 | Railway begins operating using second hand military equipment |
| 2006 | Extension towards river almond proposed |
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The Almond Valley Light Railway is a 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) narrow gauge heritage railway running at the Almond Valley Heritage Trust site at Livingston, Scotland. The railway operates at weekends between Easter and the end of September and daily during some school holiday periods. There are two stations, both with waiting shelters and run round loops. A small two-road loco shed is provided at the Heritage centre end of the line. There is a storage siding here also.
Locomotives
The line uses only internal combustion locomotives. It has never intended to use steam locomotives and therefore has no facilities for them. The railway is home to a number of electric locomotives (five battery, one overhead); however, these are not used. All of the battery locomotives are likely to require new batteries before being used again.[1]
| Name | Builder | Type | Date | Works number | Livery | Notes/Current Status | Photo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oakbank No.2 | Baldwin | 4wWE | 1902 | unknown | (black) | Worked at the Oakbank Oil Company on one of the first electric railways in Scotland. Museum exhibit inside heritage centre building. Fitted with trolley pole to collect current from the Oakbank System's overhead wires. On loan from National Museums of Scotland. |  |
| Hunslet | Hunslet Engine Company | 0-4-0DM | 1940 | 2270 | Green. | Worked at the RNAD Broughton Moor depot in Cumberland. Fitted with air braking. Occasionally used on passenger train. | |
| Greenwood | 4wBE | 1941 | 1698 | Green. | Flameproof "steeple cab" battery electric. Worked at ROF Bishopton and ROF Bridgwater (fleet no.B3583). Has been cosmetically restored. Stored. | ||
| Barclay | Andrew Barclay | 4wDM | 1970 | 557 | Blue. | ex-ICI explosives factories at Ardeer and Powfoot. Fitted with air braking. This locomotive is in full working order and usually operates the passenger train. |  |
| Brook Victor | 4wBE | 1972 | ? | Yellow (weathered) | Worked at ROF Bishopton (fleet no.18). Lightweight battery locomotive for moving explosive products around within the storage bunkers. These locos were referred to at Bishopton as "tractors". Stored. | ||
| Brook Victor | 4wBE | 1972 | 612 | Yellow (weathered) | Worked at ROF Bishopton (fleet no.20). Lightweight battery locomotive for moving explosive products around within the storage bunkers. These locos were referred to at Bishopton as "tractors". Stored. | ||
| Brook Victor | 4wBE | 1974 | 698 | Yellow (weathered) | Worked at ROF Bishopton (fleet no.38). Lightweight battery locomotive for moving explosive products around within the storage bunkers. These locos were referred to at Bishopton as "tractors". Stored. | ||
| Brook Victor | 4wBE | 1974 | 700 | Yellow (weathered) | Worked at ROF Bishopton (fleet no.42). Lightweight battery locomotive for moving explosive products around within the storage bunkers. These locos were referred to at Bishopton as "tractors". Stored. | ||
| Scruffy | Hunslet Engine Company | 4wDM | 1973 | 7330 | Red | Stored. Worked at ROF Bishopton. |  |
| Baguley-Drewry | 4wDM | 1980 | 3572 | Yellow | Acquired in February 2004. Previously worked at the RNAD Dean Hill naval depot in Hampshire. Fitted with air braking. Undergoing overhaul. |  | |
| Simplex | Motor Rail | 4wDM | 1981 | 40SPF522 | Yellow (weathered) | Worked at ROF Bishopton and ROF Bridgwater. Latterly cannibalised for spares at Bishopton. Stored. |
Rolling stock
The railway's passenger stock consists of three air braked coaches constructed on-site using ex-RNAD wagon underframes. An ex-RNAD all steel bogie brake van also forms part of the passenger train. In addition to this, the railway has a small selection of ex-RNAD wagons (two tank wagons, a covered van and an open wagon).
Track
The railway's 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge trackwork consists of flat-bottomed rail mounted using pandrol clips onto Costain concrete sleepers (wooden sleepers are used for pointwork). All track is ex-RNAD. There are some seven sets of points on the route, all of which are manually controlled by an adjacent lever.
Signalling
The railway operates on the "one engine in steam" principle and has no signals. A single line token is carried by the locomotive using the line.
See also
References
External links
Coordinates: 55°53′07″N 3°32′55″W / 55.8853°N 3.5485°W