The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR) operated two classes of twenty steam railmotors in total.
Kerr Stuart railmotors The first L&YR railmotors were two by Kerr Stuart, copies of a design that had already been supplied to the Taff Vale Railway. They were ordered by Hughes in 1904.
The locomotive units had transverse boilers of a type similar to the Yorkshire steam wagon, where a single central firebox fed extremely short fire-tubes to a smokebox at each side. Like the Yorkshire, these then returned to a central smokebox and chimney. The outside cylinders were rear-mounted and drove only the leading axle, without coupling rods. The locomotive units were dispatched separately to Newton Heath, where their semi-trailers were attached.
Their coaches were semi-trailers, with reversible seats for 48 passengers and electric lighting. There were also a luggage compartment and a driving compartment for use in reverse. Folding steps were provided at each of the two doors on each side. They were built by Bristol Wagon & Carriage Works.
+ Stock list L&YR No. Works No. Delivery Date Withdrawn Lot 54 1 904 7 June 1905 1909 2 905 28 June 1905 1909
Service Both railmotors worked the Bury-Holcombe Brook line at first. In 1906 they briefly worked at Southport, then between Burnley and Colne for their remaining years. They were both withdrawn in 1909.
Hughes railmotors
Hughes designed a further class of railmotors that were then built at Horwich and Newton Heath, in four batches over five years. They were of the "0-4-0T locomotive + semi-trailer type", with conventional locomotive boilers.
No 15, works number 983, was the 1,000th locomotive to be built at Horwich.
Service All were inherited by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) in 1923, who numbered the locomotives 10600-17 and gave the trailers separate numbers in the coaching stock series. These were the only self-propelled vehicles numbered in the LMS locomotive series rather than the coaching stock series. The first was withdrawn in 1927 and only one, LMS No. 10617, entered British Railways in 1948 and given the internal number 50617, but was withdrawn in March of the same year. None were preserved.
The best-remembered of these railmotors was the 'Altcar Bob' service from Southport to Barton railway station (also known as 'Downholland'), (before 1926) and the 'Horwich Jerk' service from Horwich to Blackrod. The latter became the last part of the L&Y System which made use of Hughes Railmotors.
+ Stock list L&YR No. Works No. Service Date LMS No. Withdrawn Lot 54 3 951 3 May 1906 10600 28 June 1947 4 952 17 May 1906 10601 20 February 1934 5 953 25 May 1906 10602 August 1927 6 954 1 June 1906 10603 May 1927 7 955 7 June 1906 10604 5 October 1929 8 956 22 May 1906 10605 June 1929 Lot 57 9 977 12 January 1907 10606 November 1943 10 978 19 January 1907 10607 27 November 1934 11 979 6 February 1907 10608 November 1935 12 980 16 February 1907 10609 June 1937 13 981 2 March 1907 10610 August 1937 14 982 9 March 1907 10611 October 1931 15 983 23 March 1907 10612 21 December 1934 Lot 63 1 1069 10 December 1909 10613 16 December 1931 2 1070 17 December 1909 10614 June 1937 16 1071 24 December 1909 10615 September 1928 Lot 69 17 1172 December 1911 10616 8 November 1933 18 1173 December 1911 10617 6 March 1948
See also Kerr Stuart steam railmotor
Notes and references Notes
References
Bibliography