A workshop at the Southall Railway Centre (geograph 3485854)

Southall Railway Centre is a non-publicised railway heritage centre at

Southall Southall () is a large suburban county of West London, England, part of the London Borough of Ealing and is one of its seven major towns. It is situated west of Charing Cross and had a population of 69,857 as of 2011. It is generally divided ...

in west

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, near to

Southall railway station Southall is a railway station on the Great Western Main Line in Southall, London, England. It is in Travelcard Zone 4 and passenger services are provided by Great Western Railway and the Elizabeth line from . It is down the line from Paddi ...

and the

Grand Union Canal The Grand Union Canal in England is part of the British canal system. It is the principal navigable waterway between London and the Midlands. Starting in London, one arm runs to Leicester and another ends in Birmingham, with the latter st ...

. Formerly of the

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...

the site is now run partly by

Locomotive Services Locomotive Services Limited is a train operating company in Great Britain. The company operates rail tours using heritage steam, diesel and electric locomotives with support from associated companies and trusts. History In August 2017, Locomo ...

and

West Coast Railways West Coast Railways (WCR) is a railway spot-hire company and charter train operator based at Carnforth MPD in Lancashire. Using buildings and other facilities previously owned by the Steamtown Carnforth visitor attraction, in June 1998 the com ...

, both of whom lease the site from

Network Rail Network Rail Limited is the owner (via its subsidiary Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, which was known as Railtrack plc before 2002) and infrastructure manager of most of the railway network in Great Britain. Network Rail is an "arm's leng ...

. The location is not open to the public. Until 2021, the Great Western Railway Preservation Group (GWRPG) leased part of the West Coast Railway section of the site for their own use.

History

Southall Locomotive Depot geograph-2499450-by-Ben-Brooksbank

There has been a locomotive shed at Southall since 1859. Originally a

shed (Code: SHL), it was rebuilt as a six-road shed in 1884. Demolished in 1953, it was replaced by a more modern

British Rail British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most of the overground rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the Big Four British rai ...

ways constructed steam shed (Code: 81C). Southall was the last London steam depot on the

Western Region of British Railways The Western Region was a region of British Railways from 1948. The region ceased to be an operating unit in its own right on completion of the "Organising for Quality" initiative on 6 April 1992. The Region consisted principally of ex- Great ...

, outlasting

Old Oak Common Old Oak Common is an area of Hammersmith, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, West London. Together with neighbouring Park Royal, the area is intended to become the UK's largest regeneration scheme, the scale of which has led to ...

and finally closing to steam in December 1965. The depot was later used for DMU maintenance for ten years before final operational closure under British Rail. From 1993 to 1998, it was use as a base for the electrification programme for the

Heathrow Express Heathrow Express is a high-frequency airport rail link operating between London Heathrow Airport and . Opened in 1998, trains run non-stop, with a journey time of 15 minutes. The service is operated jointly by Great Western Railway and Heathrow ...

Current use

Currently the site, now referred to as the Southall Railway Centre, is used by three independent groups: *

: Owned by

Jeremy Hosking Jeremy John Hosking (born 20 July 1958) is a British businessman and political donor. Ranked number 351 in the Sunday Times Rich List 2019, with a net worth of £375 million, he is a shareholder in Crystal Palace F.C. and a noted railway e ...

, the company maintains and operates several locomotives including those owned by the

Royal Scot Locomotive and General Trust The Royal Scot Locomotive and General Trust (RSL>) is a charitable trust set up in 2009, to enable ownership and restoration to mainline running condition of the London Midland and Scottish Railway Royal Scot Class locomotive No. 6100 ''Royal ...

. It leases Roads 1 and 2 (those closest to the mainline) from Network Rail. *

: operational base for several of its preserved mainline-registered steam locomotives. Great Western Railway Preservation Group previously operated at the site. However, it formally liquidated in September 2021.

Former GWRPG locomotives

Due to GWPRG's closure in 2021, all the following locomotives have transferred to new owners. *

Peckett and Sons Peckett and Sons was a locomotive manufacturer at the Atlas Locomotive Works on Deep Pit Road between Fishponds and St. George, Bristol, England. Fox, Walker and Company The company began trading in 1864 at the Atlas Engine Works, St. George, ...

No. 2100 ''William Murdoch'' Built in 1949. At

Helston Railway The Helston Railway is a heritage railway in Cornwall which aims to rebuild and preserve as much as possible of the former GWR Helston Railway between Nancegollen and Water-Ma-Trout on the outskirts of Helston. It is operated by the Helston ...

as of 2017, owned by

Portsmouth City Council Portsmouth City Council is the local authority of the city of Portsmouth, Hampshire, England. It is a unitary authority, having the powers of a non-metropolitan county and district council combined. It provides a full range of local government s ...

. *

Robert Stephenson and Hawthorns Robert Stephenson and Hawthorns Ltd (RSH) was a locomotive builder with works in North East England. History The company was formed in September 1937 when Robert Stephenson and Company, which was based in Darlington, took over the locomotive ...

No. 7386 ''Birkenhead'' Built in 1948. At

Elsecar Heritage Railway The Elsecar Heritage Railway (EHR) is located on the southern part of the former South Yorkshire Railway freight-only branch which ran from Elsecar Junction on its Mexborough to Barnsley Line. The Elsecar Heritage Railway operated an out and b ...

as of 2017. * AEC Shunter built in 1938 and remained at the AEC Works until the factory closed. The only one of its kind to be built. During its life it was used to haul a number of test trains along the Brentford Branch Line. *

Ruston Hornsby Ruston may refer to: Place names ;United States * Ruston, Louisiana * Ruston, Washington ;United Kingdom * East Ruston, Norfolk, England * Ruston, North Yorkshire, England * Ruston Parva, East Riding of Yorkshire, England Companies * Ruston (e ...

Class 165 DS No. AD251 ''Francis Baily of Thatcham''. Flameproof

diesel locomotive A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotives have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is conveyed to the driving whee ...

, ex

RAF Welford Royal Air Force Welford or more simply RAF Welford is an active Royal Air Force station in Berkshire, England. The station is located approximately northwest of Newbury; about west-southwest of London Opened in 1943, it was used during the Se ...

. * Baguley Drewry Railcar No. AD9117. Built 1975, ex

Bicester Military Railway The Bicester Military Railway (BMR) is a railway in Oxfordshire, England belonging to the Ministry of Defence. It links military depots at Piddington, Arncott and Graven Hill with the Oxford to Bicester Line. History The Bicester Military R ...

. Some of these locomotives are at Southall, some are stored at other locations. There is also an assortment of goods and passenger rolling stock at Southall.

References

External links

Southall Railway Centre
- official site Heritage railways in London Railway museums in England Museums in the London Borough of Ealing Transport museums in London Railway depots in London Defunct museums in London Railway Centre {{England-rail-transport-stub