All aboard the polar express: Steam locomotive takes home passengers stranded by snow-delayed modern trains



Passengers stranded when modern-day trains fell victim to the freezing weather have been rescued by the crew of a steam engine.

About 100 passengers climbed aboard the first mainline steam locomotive to be built in Britain for almost half a century at London Victoria when electric trains were delayed.



The 1940s technology used to power Tornado, a £3million Peppercorn class A1 Pacific, was able to withstand the snow and ice that brought much of the South East to a standstill on Monday night.

Historic solution: The Tornado A1 locomotive came to the aid of stranded passengers let down by modern trains in freezing conditions

The locomotive's 'Cathedrals Express' service was offering festive trips in the region when staff on board heard about the stranded passengers.



The travellers were offered free seats and were dropped off at stations as it chuffed through Kent, said Mark Allatt, chairman of the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust, the charity which built Tornado.

Mr Allatt said they were pleased to be able to help some of London's stranded commuters 'get home in style' and joked that rail operators could learn lessons from them.

'It's amusing because this engine is predominantly made up of 1940s' technology and we were able to keep running despite modern trains not being able to,' he said.

'If any of the rail operators would like to use this technology for themselves, we would be more than happy to build them an engine.'

Built partly by volunteers with donations collected over 19 years, the apple-green locomotive can reach a top speed of 100mph and is designed for long-distance express journeys.



In 1990, a band of enthusiasts came together to work on their ambition to construct a brand new Peppercorn A1 Pacific, and achieved their aim when that locomotive, No 60163 Tornado, moved under its own steam last year.



The A1 60163 Tornado is the 50th Peppercorn class A1 locomotive, all of which were designed to cope with the heaviest passenger trains on the East Coast Main Line.



The A1s were among the last steam engines to be withdrawn from service from British Rail in the late 1960s in favour of the more reliable diesel.



The locomotive was officially named Tornado by the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall earlier this year and has since entered regular service on excursion trains on the Network Rail main line.

