It’s just over a year since we reported an historic moment for The Great Central Railway – when a new bridge rejoining two sections of the line divided for almost half a century was lowered into place.
This structure (right) bridges the gap over the Midland Mainline. However, in order for trains to begin running all the way from Ruddington to Birstall again, there is still much work to be done. That includes repairing the existing canal bridge at Loughborough (GCR’s top photo) for which a fundraising milestone has just been achieved.
GCR says: “We’re delighted to announce that our ‘Crossing the Canal’ appeal is now more than half way towards the goal of £475,000 for this phase of the project, with the total now standing at over £250,000. We are hopeful that work on the bridge will start before the end of this year. We are working with two main contractors to assess the best pricing to repair the existing bridge in situ, with half of the canal being closed at a time, allowing single-file canal traffic to continue whilst the bridge repair work is being completed.”
Further donations are being welcomed >>HERE<<.
Meanwhile, back in Ruddington, a separate appeal to raise funds for a new depot at Great Central Railway (Nottingham) to house their prototype High Speed Train is now a third of the way there.
As winter approaches, £100,000 is needed to enable the 125 Group to build a secure, all-weather, facility for the 41001 Power Car and six Mk3 coaches. It will also provide a dedicated under-cover space for their volunteers to carry out preservation work on these and new acquisitions. Donations for the depot now stand at £37,500.
The unique prototype HST 41001 train has become a familiar sight running passenger trips at GCR(N) – particularly this summer when their usual steam services were suspended due to the risk of fire. Additionally, the 125 Group has announced a special depot fundraising event here on the 17th November when TWO “Screaming Valentas” will be brought together for the day during a rare passenger service which has been organised by The Branch Line Society to from Derby to Ruddington and back! As part of this very special trip, iconic industrial designer Sir Kenneth Grange will be on hand to autograph passengers’ souvenirs and memorabilia.
125 Group Chairman, Gary Heelas, said: “We’ve been blown away by the fantastic start to our depot appeal. To raise so much in such a short time is a testament to our dedicated members and generous supporters. Without a depot, we will have nowhere to protect any future HST vehicles that we acquire, and going without simply isn’t an option.”
You can read more at: www.125group.org.uk/depot
