Great Western Coffee Shop

Sideshoots - associated subjects => Railway History and related topics => Topic started by: grahame on January 28, 2022, 21:46:21



Title: OTD - 29th January (1977) - Excursion, Paddington to Crewe via Hereford
Post by: grahame on January 28, 2022, 21:46:21
Rail Tours and excursions started from the early days of railways - with Thomas Cook arranging the very first one in the summer of 1841 - see ((here)) (https://www.timetravel-britain.com/articles/history/cook.shtml) for the story of the first excusion from Leicester to Loughborough to take his supporters to a temperance meeting.

Over the years, excursions and special trips have blossomed - taking people to specil events (though temperance meetings seem to have faded out) and to interesting destinations - even "mystery trips" which were a personal favourite.  Other trips were run for railway advocates and enthusisast to lines rarely used for passenger trains (some, sadly, as a final train before complete closure) or using unusual motive power, or even running part of their route over heritage lines.

From 29th January 1977 - Railway Pictorial Publications Railtours - "Western Memorial" from Paddington to Crewe via the Severn Tunnel - as logged on Six Bells Junction (https://www.sixbellsjunction.co.uk/70s/770129rp.html) - 10 hours of travel for just 2 hours at destination.

"Specials" carry on to this day - at one time very big business but with the reduction in spare trains they are just a shadow of their former selves. They have for the most part moved from being really good value for all with Merrymaker (see ((here)) (http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/2016)) to being still good value but for a premium product, catered now far better than standard scheduled trains, and with rolling stock to modern standard but often of heritage derivation and using historic technology



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