West Coast Railways has purchased all the remaining coaches owned by Riviera Trains, giving it at least three further full sets of coaches fitted with Central Door Locking (CDL).
The company has been short of coaching stock for several months, after losing an injunction with the Office of Rail and Road over fitting CDL to its Mk 1 fleet.
WCR owner David Smith has refused to fit CDL to the company’s Mk 1 stock and has had to use what few CDL Mk 2s it has, alongside hiring in coaches from Riviera, to run its ‘Jacobite’ steam trips from Fort William to Mallaig and other charters (RAIL 1006).
The deal will allow WCR to return to the market for taking on more third-party work. It does not mean the end of Riviera Trains, which still owns charter promoter Pathfinder Railtours.
However, all the newly acquired vehicles are air-braked only. WCR currently only has one dual-braked steam locomotive, 34067 Tangmere, and has to hire in locomotives from other parties to run the ‘Jacobite’, although that was also sometimes the case before the Mk 1 ‘ban’ affected its business.
Riviera Trains said: “We have entered into a rolling stock sale agreement with Carnforth-based West Coast Railway Company (WCR). As the leading operator of charter services in Great Britain, WCR will acquire all of the current Riviera Trains coaching stock assets with effect from September 30, strengthening its position in the charter train industry.
“The sale covers 57 coaches, including both of the operational and CDL-fitted BR blue and grey Mk 2 sets that are extensively used by a wide number of railtour promoters and other train operators.
“It is expected that the whole fleet will move from its current base at Burton-on-Trent to Carnforth in due course, with future operations being handled out of Carnforth and Southall.”
Riviera Trains owner Barry Cordell and Operations Manager Charles Paget said they were “pleased to secure the future of the vehicles, having played a pivotal role in the provision of locomotive-hauled coaching stock for ad hoc operations and special trains for many years”.
This sale allows Cordell, who is now 87, to step back from main line operations.
Paget, who has been an integral part of Riviera Trains for the past three decades, will join WCR as its Business Manager. He will play a key role in ensuring continuity, managing relationships with Riviera Trains’ customers and overseeing the ongoing operations of the additional coaches.
Cordell said: “After 30 years’ involvement in the operation of individual special trains, I am pleased to be handing over the baton of providing rolling stock to the rail industry, to WCR. This agreement will provide stability for the charter industry going forward.”
He added that his “partial retirement” will allow him to focus on the Pathfinder business, which will continue to operate as before, with its team in Stroud. Pathfinder will continue to use the former Riviera Trains rolling stock, under WCR ownership, in its ongoing excursion programme.
WCR’s David Smith added: “Acquiring the Riviera Trains fleet will add security to WCR charter train operations. I look forward to working with Charles Paget in the coming years to enhance the relationships with its existing customers.”
What this deal means for WCR in terms of its Mk 1 coaches is unclear, with suggestions that they might be made available for hire to heritage railways.
Longer term, WCR will also have to either fit dual brakes to (some of) its steam locomotives or acquire suitable dual-braked locomotives either on hire or by purchase.
Shunter 08704 is not included in the deal. It is owned by Paget and is understood to be available for sale.
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