Railway Herald
Since the almost complete closure of deep coal mines in the UK the movement of coal (and returning empties) has changed dramatically: 40-years ago coal would have been mined at a colliery and taken to a power station, steel works or other end user and the empties returned to the mine for refilling. This unidentified working of empties had passed in the opposite direction about an hour before this image was taken, the same train is now seen heading east at Llandevenny, near Severn Tunnel Junction. The photographer presumes that the earlier working which headed in the Newport direction, went to either the yard at Llanwern steelworks, East Usk yard or Alexander Dock Junction yard; the locomotive then ran round the rake of HTAs and immediately returned east. The locomotive is EWS-liveried Class 66 No. 66060 and it is seen descending the Bishton flyover on 10th October 2012.
Stuart Warr
