European Railroad Discussion > Spring is in the air

For the first time this year it has felt truly spring like here in London, here are three pictures to prove it

On Friday morning I stopped off at Caledonian Road & Barnsbury on the Overground's North London Line as the 4L91 Manchester Trafford Park to Felixstowe pulled up in the freight loop at Westbourne Road Junction for its scheduled 30 minute recess (07:40 to 08:10). Some 90s now bear an addition to the Freightliner brand, underneath it says 'a Genessee and Wyoming Company' but not 90016.

At lunchtime on Friday one of the new Gatwick Express 387/2s out on a mileage accumulation run from Three Bridges (Tilgate Sidings) to Stewarts Lane depot about to enter the 1.25 mile long Quarry Tunnel through the North Downs. The tunnel is on the Quarry Line, a kind of early high speed one built by the London, Brighton & South Coast Railway (opened in 1900) to expedite its express passenger trains around the Redhill Junction bottleneck. It still serves the same purpose today. The blackthorn is in blossom.

Yesterday 59201, sporting it's EMD fitted commemorative bell, exiting Brill Tunnel on Chiltern Railways former GWR Bicester cut-off (opened 1910) with a new train, the 6Z51 Oxford Banbury Road to Acton, which utilises the new railway from Oxford to Bicester where it joins the Chiltern mainline to South Ruislip and then via Greenford and West Ealing to Acton.

More spring pictures here https://nick86235.smugmug.com/Trains/2016/Spring-2016/i-4Bc5nhC

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Like all of your wonderful pictures.
Rode the Gatwick Express (First Class) quite a few time 1978-1997.  Always enjoyed the ride Victoria-Gatwick or reverse.
Also like the Class 59; not too many of those wonderful locomoptives are around.
ALLEN

I like #1!  Nice photo, and nice looking engine. 

Great weather, there Nik. Nice to see 59201 with bell. Was a favourite in Yorkshire back in the days of National Power. Chris.