Re: Pendennis Castle

[James Brook <ajmbrook@ozemail.com.au>]

Stuart Thyer wrote:

> ----------
> In article <388FF08B.29482BC9@ozemail.com.au>, James Brook
> <ajmbrook@ozemail.com.au> wrote:
>
>  As for the A4s in North America, they should be sent back as
> >well, but just because they
> >won't do it, it doesn't mean that we shouldn't.
>
> But James, this is the kind of woolly logic applied by the National trust to
> the W class trams, let's preserve them, lets preserve them all.......in a
> shed.......where no-one can see them.  Me, I figure that we selectively sell
> them off around Australia and the world, tramways are crying out for W2's,
> no mistaking they are a sought after item. The National trust figures to
> preseve them all in their native home where quite frankly, most people have
> seen them and ridden them before and don't need to be reminded. If we send
> out our W2's around the world, they're a kind of roving ambassador for
> Australia, especially Melbourne, a bit like Barry Humpheries.
>
> So why can't the same logic be applied to the A4, it's a representative of
> what is great about British steam. To see it running on Australian mainline
> metals would be great. I'm not saying it is the right thing to do, but it's
> worth thinking about.

The biggest difference between the W class trams and the Pendennis Castle is
that we still have a number of W class trams running on our network. I agree
that the W's in storage should be sold off and the site at Newport could be used
for something better, ie: a proper railway museum. The Pendennis Castle is one
of Britain's most famous locos, it isn't just another member of the class. You
do have a point about the A4's but if I remember correctly isn't one of them
sitting in a storage shed at a Canadian railway museum. If someone in England
wanted to return it to mainline service in the UK then it would be the best
place for it. What would we think if someone in the UK had 3801? It is one of
our most famous locomotives and I'm sure we would want it back, especially if it
could no longer run in the UK.

--
- James Brook -

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