An Introduction
The first steam railmotors date back to the mid 19th century, but the idea came of age in the early years of the 20th century, when a vehicle capable of being reversed quickly, and designed for local trains making frequent stops was required.
Since then a succession of railcars and multiple units, powered by steam, diesel and electricity, have come to dominate the branch line and local services of our railways. In the 21st century, with the introduction of Voyagers, Pendelino's and Adelante's, those elite of all trains - the inter-city expresses, have also been taken over by the descendants of the humble steam railmotor
In the early 1970's the Great Western Society acquired Auto Trailer No. 212 which had been rebuilt from the original Steam Railmotor vehicle No. 93 in the 1930's, together with Auto Trailer No. 92, with the dream that one day they might be returned to operational condition, in original form as a steam railmotor and trailer combination.
Now, in the 21st century, that dream is starting to become reality.
History of the Railmotors - Now on DVD.
Part One of the DVD produced by the Project detailing the history of Railmotors is now available from the Great Western Society shop at Didcot Railway Centre.
It is also available by mail order from:
Great Western Retail Sales,
Didcot Railway Centre,
Didcot. OX11 7NJ.
Price £13.95 inc post & packing.
Part two covering the restoration of 92 and 93 will be issued later.
Remarkable Progress
Since the project was officially launched in 1998, remarkable progress has already been made.
A brand new power bogie has been constructed at Tyseley Locomotive Works. The mainframe was erected in November 2000, since when the wheels have been manufactured and a rolling chassis produced. The cylinder blocks and many other parts have been cast and fitted.
The upright boiler has been manufactured by Israel Newton of Bradford, and was steamed, on their premises, for the first time in January 2007. The boiler was subsequently moved to Tyseley and was mounted on the power bogie in November 2007.
The power bogie and boiler unit was moved to Didcot Railway Centre in March 2008, where it was on display throughout the rest of that season, before being transported to Llangollen to join the rest of the vehicle in early 2009.
Work continues to complete the motion and various other fittings.
Meanwhile the coach body has not been neglected either. During a series of working weekends in 1999 a team of volunteers stripped the steel paneling from the outside of autotrailer 212 to reveal that most of the timber dates from the construction of the vehicle in 1908. Since then a full assessment of the state of the bodywork has been completed and a detailed specification of the work required to return both Railmotor No. 93 and Trailer No. 92 to full working order has been compiled. In June 2007 we were delighted to learn that the Heritage Lottery Fund had awarded £768,500 to the project to allow us to restore the original timber bodies and steel underframes of both vehicles. Both vehicles were duly transported to the Llangollen Railway in September 2007, where their restoration is now under way.
This website contains a brief history or Railmotor No. 93 and Trailer No. 92, as well as the story of the restoration, including the latest news and information on how you can get involved with this exciting and historically significant project.
