Crewe - Shrewsbury DMU Service - 1977

[NeilH]

Hi

 

I was wondering if anyone could help me with information relating to the DMU service from Crewe to Shrewsbury in 1977 (formations, types, depots etc). Any information gratefully recieved.

 

I am planning a layout based on south of Crewe and this information will be used for obtaining prototype stock for the layout.

 

Many thanks

 

Kind regards

 

Neil.

[woodenhead]

Generally they were formed of Swindon class 120 DMUs, these were 3 car units.

 

Not available RTR.

 

EDIT: DOH - I was thinking Crewe to Cardiff, don't know what was on the Shrewsbury service, sorry.

[johnw1]

Class 108 2 car power/trailer would do. Although a couple of years past your target date here is an example at Crewe

 

 

M56213 was in 1977 allocated to Allerton and transfered to Chester sometime in 1978 however M56214/21/68/69 were all allocated to Chester in 1977.

[andymozza]

Hi. i think all crewe - shrewsbury services were part of the crewe - cardiff timetable, from 74 to may 77 they were mainly Swindon Inter-city units class 124 displaced from paddington services, from May 77 they were replaced by class 25 loco haulage with 5/6 mk 1 coaches, please anyone with more accurate information please amend, this is purely from my memory.

[Pennine MC]

Hi. i think all crewe - shrewsbury services were part of the crewe - cardiff timetable, from 74 to may 77 they were mainly Swindon Inter-city units class 124 displaced from paddington services, from May 77 they were replaced by class 25 loco haulage with 5/6 mk 1 coaches, please anyone with more accurate information please amend, this is purely from my memory.

 

The Inter-Citys were class 123, not 124, and I dont think they were used for as long as three years; possibly as little as one. I'd also be surprised if there were no genuine 'locals' just running from Crewe to Shrewsbury - John's link certainly suggests there were, and I'd expect any Chester twin set could turn up (Met Cam, Derby, Park Royal).

[Nick G]

Have a look here Shrewsbury

[Gwiwer]

Crewe - Shrewsbury has had a 2-tier service for many years. As noted above the Crewe - Cardiff trains, which generally ran non-stop to Shrewsbury or had only 1 or 2 intermediate stops, were formed of both LMR and WR stock. The all-stations "local" service to Shrewsbury (which didn't always stop at every station) was formed of LMR units only.

 

Cardiff - Crewe workings were in the hands of 3-car class120 and 123 dmmu units (occasionally paired to form 6-car trains), then class 25 with around 5 Mk1 coaches which in turn were replaced by class 33 with 5 or 6 Mk1s and with some workings extended to Holyhead or Manchester. There was a Sunday Manchester - Cardiff duty which produced 2x33 on a 6-set to balance the loco positions.

 

Locals on the Crewe - Shrewsbury section would have ben provided by class 108 sets which were also used on the Cambrian and Shrewsbury - Chester routes and were nominally at least based at Chester. I'm sure other types would have filled in as required and as available.

[Guest Phil]

Personal experience dates from 1978.

2 car power trailer sets allocated to Chester, but mostly Derby class 108s from personal observation, although Park Royals and Met Camms would also have worked these services.

 

As Gwiwer said, there was a kind of two tier service, with the "express" Crewe-Cardiff service not calling all stations, sometimes no intermediate stations - certainly not the kind of clockface service of other routes. An odd Cambrian line service went through to Crewe / Chester and the Up evening mail from Aberystwyth went through to York when it was loco hauled, but truncated at Crewe when it turned over to DMU operation. Some of these ex Cambrian trains were formed of 3 car Swindon Cross Country units (120) but 2 car Chester sets also worked through. These services were also used as a means of getting "due exam" sets back to Chester depot from local Cambrian diagrams so much set juggling was arranged by the fleet controllers.

 

The one on topic memory I particularly hold is that some Salop-Crewe trains started from the Crewe end of platform 7 at Salop, behind a train already in the platform. I recall this because of the station announcements which often advised passengers that the train at the north end of platform 7 was for all stations to Crewe, whilst the train at the south end of the platform was for stations to Cardiff. It occurred to me that unless passengers were carrying a boy scout compass, they just might not know where north or south were !!!

 

In summary a 2car 108 or 101 would be just fine- plain blue or refurbished blue and white.

 

 

h

[Gwiwer]

Glad you mentioned the York - Aberystwyth "mails" Phil. That has brought back some good memories of rail roving in the 70s in the period under discussion. I made several trips on the service which was always a "Passenger and News" service at the time. It was a handy way of spending the night railroving without making an Anglo-Scottish journey and also, at the time, was the only service which could be used if one hoped to "bash" Aberystwyth, Devils Bridge and Pwllheli in one day and get back beyond Machynlleth at night. The VoR was still BR in those days and accepted LMR and All-Line railrovers; the timetable allowed York (overnight) - Aberystwyth - Devil's Bridge - Aberystwyth - Dovey Junction - Pwllheli - Machynlleth - Shrewsbury - Wolverhampton - Euston to be completed in around 23 hours.

 

Always a "rat" duty, and from my records as often a 24 as a 25, it was formed of four 4-wheel "Insulfish" vans which had been painted blue and converted for parcels traffic, followed by as many Mk1 coaches. As such it would make an interesting train to represent on a model of the Crewe - Shrewsbury line.

 

There was something distinctly surreal about dozing off in a beautifully-warm (steam-heated) compartment amid the Yorkshire accents of Huddersfield and waking to the entirely different accent and language of passengers boarding at Welshpool.

[Pennine MC]

 

Cardiff - Crewe workings were in the hands of 3-car class120 and 123 dmmu units (occasionally paired to form 6-car trains),

 

Not sure what you're saying here, are you suggesting that 120s and 123s worked together?

 

My recollections of the 120 era on Crewe - Cardiffs are that 2 x 120 sets were routinely - not occasionally - paired, with a (usually locked) 121 bubblecar in the middle to improve the power/weight ratio of the formation). That recollection is AFAIR borne out by previous threads we've had on this subject. I didnt see the 123 interlude but similarly, I'd expect 6 or 7 cars to be the norm.

[Gwiwer]

120 or 123 but not one of each that I can ever recall. The 123 stay was as brief as it was anywhere else they worked.

[NeilH]

Many thanks to everyone for the information.

 

This gives me all the information I need to model the service.

 

Kind Regards,

 

Neil.

[Guest Phil]

Oh and don't forget occasionally to mix and match your DMU cars. You can prototypically chuck out class 108 DMBS with a class 101 DTCL for a change. Chester depot were good at that !!!

[johnw1]

Just come across this from the Railway Observer:

 

The Cardiff Crewe service currently rostered for class 123 Intercity DMU's is suffering from a lack of available units. On the 30th July 1976 the service was formed as follows:

 

11.34 Cardiff - Crewe 2x 3 car class 123 DMU's

15.10 Cardiff - Crewe 47238 + 3x class 123 trailer vehicles + Mark I BSO

10.00 Crewe - Cardiff 1x class 123 DMU + 1x class 120 Cross Country DMU

12.08 Crewe - Cardiff 1x 3 car class 116 suburban DMU