Preserved railway loco driving

[southy39]

iv been looking at the websites for several of the preserved railways and see that many offer driving experience days...

i was wondering if anyone could recomend a good one...

currently im drawn to the GCR cos i quite fancy the chance to drive a class 73...
but so far iv only seen the GCR and the NVR offering such courses and wondered about who has been to which line and what is availbel to learn to drive

 

[matt]

http://forums.railuk.org/showthread.php?t=7320

 

[taw valley]

hmmm depends on what you can sort out as i think its only footplate courses at MHR but if you can get a drive in one of the diesels then you could trash it up a 1:60 bank for around the 2 mile mark

www.watercressline.co.uk

 

[Coxster]

The Severn Valley Railway offer four experience courses. There is the diesel one that julian did, plus three steam ones - Introductory, Intermediate and Advanced. See http://www.svr.co.uk/footplate.php

 

[Nick]

It depends on what you want, double track main line or single track branch experience.

"You will be in the cab for 12 miles, both driving and acting as second man"

How much of that is actually driving, thats a maximum of 12 miles for £180 (so thats £15 a mile)
GCR is 30miles+ for £450, you get to drive Light engine and with carriages (GCR is £14 a mile) plus you can drive a 73

 

[tramboy]

If you want something different, and something that I'm waiting patiently for (cos it's just under two years away), Crick Tramway Village do a tram driving course...£200 for about three round trips on the handles as well as conductor duties at other times. Liverpool 869 and Glasgow 1297 allocated this year. I know what I'm saving for!

Regards

Dave

 

[Tom B]

Of course you could become a volunteer, help the railway and get it for free .

 

[AlexS]

Bear in mind the 73 isn't in action at the Great Central at the moment 'cause it ain't got no cab roofs. So if you're looking at the then and now, 73 is out.

 

[Beaker]

Of course you could become a volunteer, help the railway and get it for free .

Now Now dont be silly...

Swanage did one a week back or so with 37099

 

[960012]

37324!! the swanage one is quite rubbish u only get two coaches hardly a load to make the engine work!!!

 

[Techniquest]

I did indeed do the 52 driving experience course last week. VERY enjoyable!!! There is a 50 driving experience too, but 52s win every time for me!

For £180, it was exceptionally great fun! There is nothing more fun than sitting in the driving seat of a twin-engine 52 with it at full wang! Of course, you don't hit full power for too long, but it's exceptionally great whilst you are. The horn is beasty too, I could not help but sound that at all of the crossings we ran over! HUGE grins over my face all of the time!

In short, if you're interested in one, I would go for it! It's a lot of money, but it's brilliant.

EDIT: Oh, and we had a good load of 5 MK1s. Would normally be 6, but the last one was out somewhere!

 

[ChrisCooper]

I keep meaning to do a diesel driving experiance at a preserved railway, but time and money are very thinly spread at the moment. It's also difficult to decide which one, since there are so many railways offering very different experiances (anything from "mainline" but flat and pretty boring GCR to small brach lines with some serious hills). Ovioiusly traction available is a big factor too. As far as tram driving, I'm currently passed as a conductor at the East Anglia Transport Museum and have done enough hours to start driver training, so hopefully I'll begin this summer. I have had an unnoficial drive of one of their 2ft gauge industrial locos, only running around the carriages after closing though. Still wouldn't mind a drive at Crich one day though, since they get a very good run, wheras ours is quite short, although more complicated due to sharing the road with trolleybuses.

 

[Beaker]

37324!! the swanage one is quite rubbish u only get two coaches hardly a load to make the engine work!!!

Im not sure if your aware that 37324 is 37099. If more people volenteered more coaches would be fixed , more coaches for driver ex.

 

[960012]

Im not sure if your aware that 37324 is 37099. If more people volenteered more coaches would be fixed , more coaches for driver ex.

They usually do Driver ex wen its a one train serive or when the 108 is out thus leaving a spare set of 4 coaches!!

 

[Beaker]

umm thats why there has been 3 train running for the past year