LNER railway carriages saved for preservation

4 hours ago

Alice Cunningham

News image — The 225 Preservation CIC team plan to make any needed repairs on the carriages before using them in static events

225 Preservation CIC Five members of the 225 Preservation CIC team smile at the camera in front of one of their train passenger carriages. They all wear orange high-vis jackets and some of them hold cups of drinks. — The 225 Preservation CIC team plan to make any needed repairs on the carriages before using them in static events

Railway carriages that transported millions of passengers across the East of England and beyond have been saved for preservation.

The carriages, which were were constructed in October 1989 and February 1991, were used in LNER's InterCity 225 fleet between London King's Cross, Cambridgeshire and the North East.

They were withdrawn from service in November, but now an agreement has been reached with Beacon Rail for 225 Preservation CIC to purchase two Mark 4 coaches for preservation.

The carriages, which would frequently stop at Peterborough Station, were also a familiar sight to passengers in Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Lincolnshire and Yorkshire.

Jacob Baldwin, marketing director of 225 Preservation, said despite many years of continuous use the carriages were in "excellent condition" thanks to them being regularly maintained and refurbished.

They became redundant as part of the reduction in length of the InterCity 225 carriages, from nine to seven cars.

This enabled improvements in acceleration required for the implementation of the East Coast timetable revamp that took place in December.

225 Preservation CIC Two lorries, each with one of the train carriages on them, drive into a storage site. — The carriages are now in possession of the preservation group and will be kept in a secure location close to the East Coast Mainline

According to 225 Preservation, the coaches are an important part of the UK's railway heritage and are notable for their unique pressure ventilation compartments - originally designed to accommodate passengers who wished to smoke on board before changes to smoking laws came in.

"This project was turned around rapidly in just four months, and we are very grateful to the teams at Beacon Rail, Swietelsky UK, and RSS for their patience, kindness and support," Baldwin said.

"We would hope that by acquiring a pair of vehicles now, we can build resources, expertise and funds before the remainder of the fleet is retired in years to come."

225 Preservation CIC Inside one of the former LNER carriages. Passenger seats line either side of the carriage with tables in front of them. There is also LNER branding on the headrests of the seats. — The carriages were kept in excellent condition over the years by LNER

The preservation group, which is keeping the carriages in a secure location, intends to make any repairs with a long term goal of restoring them to operational condition once more of the carriages are acquired.

Ben Denton-Cardew, a specialist railway lawyer based in Suffolk, is the managing director of 225 Preservation, which aims to "preserve the legacy of the InterCity 225 for future generations".

"Not only were these among the last British Rail standalone inter-operable 'carriages' built, but we also believe they are the last specially designed smoking coaches built in Europe," he said.

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