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| Cab of Loram C21 DR79247 Rail Grinder Train, Northampton Station Sidings Photo: Charles Moorhen |
Partially obscured by the profusion of weeds growing in the semi-derelict railway sidings at Northampton station, an area that over many decades bustled with a host of examples of railway rolling stock, I was surprised to discover Network Rail's rail grinding train - Loram C21 DR79247 'Roger South' cab.
When I came upon this scene in the mid-2000s at Northampton station, my initial thought as I looked far across the tracks through the long lens of my camera, was that perhaps this railway track machine train was being temporarily stored prior to disposal. But, I was totally wrong.
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| Loram C21 Rail Grinding Machine Showin 'Roger South' Nameplate Photo: Charles Moorhen |
During a lull in activities at the station when my surroundings became surprisingly quiet, I realised that somewhere along the length of the train an engine of some description was running.
Unable to pinpoint exactly where the noise was coming from, I decided to take a few photos just in case DR79241/247 'Roger South' took it into its head to move off.
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| Loram C21 Begins To Move Out Of Northampton Station Sidings - (Class 350 EMU in the far distance) Photo: Charles Moorhen |
Ever since I started taking photos of railway rolling stock I had never seen a train such as this - or incidentally since. "Right place, right time" as the saying goes.
Network Rail grinding machines such as DR79241/247 are an important and integral part of passenger safety whilst running a busy railway network, such as addressing wear and tear on railway tracks known as Rolling Contact Fatigue (RCF).
The technicalities regarding the treatment of RCF is way beyond the scope of this blog. Therefore, I direct blog visitors to the Rail Engineer and Loram websites for detailed information.
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| Rail Grinder Train 'Roger South' About To Join Main Line Photo: Charles Moorhen |