Rail Express

RAIL EXPRESS is Britain's favourite modern rail enthusiast title. Undoubtedly the best for modern traction photography, the magazine keeps readers informed and entertained with undiluted coverage of Britain's railways in the diesel and electric era. First produced in 1996, RE has set a new standard for the hobby, with a clean design, high quality paper and the best reproduction. January 2008 saw the magazine relaunched in an innovative 'supersize' format, showing off the ground-breaking contents to the best advantage. Every issue includes news and analysis covering the present day railway scene, plus the latest preservation developments. Also inside: RAIL EXPRESS Modeler - Diesel & Electric era modeling magazine

Rail Express

A new dawn as South Western Railway is renationalised

Lumo secures five Class 222s for Stirling operation • Alstom wins £50 million refresh and maintenance contract.

LNW launches Class 730/2s into service

First Class 67 finally sent for scrap • Notably the first of the 125mph Alstom/GM locomotives to arrive in the UK, No. 67003 was dismantled at EMR Kingsbury within a few days of arriving at the end of June.

More ‘Networkers’ sent for scrap • The first Class 465/9 disposal takes place

West Coast Railways acquires former GWR HST stock • The ‘Castle’ fleet of HST coaches is put in the spotlight

Powerscene • Our authoritative class-by-class review of newsworthy locomotive workings.

‘Peak’ to return to Butterley from ELR • Class 45 to return to its home base after almost a decade away from East Midlands

Diesel gala pictorial • Two of the country’s most popular heritage railways, the Severn Valley and Swanage, held diesel galas during May, and with many visiting locomotives or units they have become must-visit events in the enthusiast calendar. RE presents a round-up of the action.

New CIMC container tanks from C-Rail

East Coast traction in ‘OO’

News from around the hobby

Hornby delivers the Lumo Class 803/0

Railway 200 ‘Javelin’

Mail train modelling in ‘N’

Southern Railway classics in ‘O’ • Heljan delivers its latest ‘O’ gauge rolling stock, the Southern Railway PMV/CCT utility vans.

Irish 35t tank wagons

Fish tales from Hornby: The YMO/YMA ‘Salmon’ • Hornby has added a useful engineers’ wagon type with huge potential to its range, and has done it well

Scenic details from styrene • In this episode of our mini-series on making the best use of styrene material in modelling, its versatility in layout detailing is discussed with a potpourri of ideas and techniques.

How Network SouthEast changed the face of travel • In the rail industry’s 200th anniversary year, Steven Knight chats to former NSE supremo Chris Green about all things Network SouthEast, which was launched in 1986

TIME TRAVELLER

Last Class 08s finish at Celsa • The protracted changeover in shunter power at the Cardiff steelworks has finally been completed, with Zephirs now in full control

DB Cargo sends Skako ballast train for scrap • Originally built for Network SouthEast in the early 1990s, the innovative ‘Octopus’ hoppers with onboard conveyor belts have been withdrawn from their latter-day role in Scotland.

Tour cancellation rises a worrying development • Plethora of choice and cost of living take their toll on tour market

Two major framework agreements signed but retrenchment for rail at Dublin Port

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