Steaming in for Weymouth Carnival
Steaming in for Weymouth Carnival
11:00am Saturday 14th August 2010
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IT’S full steam ahead for Weymouth Carnival.
Hundreds of people have booked their seats for a carnival steam train special from London on Wednesday.
The Dorset Coast Express is a weekly summer service from the capital organised by the Railway Touring Company and by a happy coincidence one of the trains is running on carnival day.
The 400 seats were sold out well in advance as passengers were thrilled at the prospect of travelling to the resort in style for one of the best days of the year.
Locomotives taking charge are expected to be King Arthur Class 30777 Sir Lamiel and one of the Gresley A4’s 4464 Bittern.
The carnival committee says the train is an unexpected bonus as it will bring in extra visitors and will be an attraction for enthusiasts.
The last steam train of the summer had been due to run on September 1 but the service has proved so popular that the Railway Touring Company is laying on an extra one on September 8.
It is also running the Seaside Express from Bristol to Weymouth tomorrow and that too has sold out.
Railway Touring Company managing director Nigel Dobbing says Weymouth’s popularity as a resort and the chance to travel in style have made the services a hit.
Mr Dobbing said one hurdle at Weymouth for steam trains was the fact the town has no turntable. This means the company has to fork out an additional £6,000 for an extra locomotive to haul the train back to London.
He said: “We’ve got a turntable, we just need the land at Weymouth on which to put it and would be happy to talk to the authorities about this.
“We’d be able to run more trains through the summer if we had a turntable in there.”
Tomorrow’s steam train is due to arrive in Weymouth at 12.53pm and depart at 5.10pm.
The Dorset Coast Express is scheduled to arrive at 1.38pm on carnival day and depart at 4.35pm.
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Genghis, Portland says…
11:20am Sat 14 Aug 10
Come on the various Local Authorities, committees, Tourist bods how about a bit of Olympic cash for the turntable? Steam train to the seaside for the Olympics would be a big hit. A little bit of fishing for me – how about a steam train along Commercial Road as well? 
uluru, Portland says…
12:54pm Sat 14 Aug 10
I agree with Genghis this a a fantastic opportunity for Weymouth and could be a great resource for the Olympics and many years to come, but time is short and a lot of different bodies involved but every effort should be made to secure the turntable and promote Weymouth as a steam friendly town.
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