BR Class 31
No. 31101

Built by Brush Traction in Loughborough, she entered service as D5518 on the 16th October 1958 based out of Stratford Shed. Being one of the original batch, D5518 was built without headcode boxes and non-standard electromagnetic multiple working equipment.

By a stroke of luck (good or bad?), she was involved in a serious collision in 1967 – after which she was rebuilt with standard blue star multiple working equipment and headcode boxes and therefore saved from withdrawal in the 1970s with the rest of the original (and non-standard) 31/0s.

The locos were originally fitted with Mirrlees JVS12T engines but these proved unsuccessful. After BR lost their patience with reliability issues, it was decided to fit a downrated version of the well-proven English Electric 12CSVT as found in the Class 37. Now rated at 1470hp, the English Electric 12SVT was about as much as the original electrical equipment could handle, but this proved successful and the Class 31 was reborn out of the increasingly unreliable Class 30. D5518 received this modification in August 1967.

In 1973, D5518 was renumbered 31101 to fit with the new(ish) TOPS system that had been introduced by British Rail.

The loco has had an interesting life, having being saved from scrapping twice, being the first Class 31 to work passenger services on the Southern Region and it did have a spell as a regular Royal Train Loco hauling the Royal Train conveying HM The Queen.

After working off Stratford for most of the late 60s/early 70s, 31101 was transferred away from East Anglia for the first time in January 1971 for a brief two month spell at Holbeck. Withdrawn from the Eastern Region operating stock on 3rd May 1981 it was moved to Swindon Works and then to Doncaster Works before being overhauled, converted to dual braked and boiler removed and reinstated to traffic at Thornaby Depot on 21st November 1982.

After over 34 years in service, 31101 was finally retired from main line duties on the 11th January 1993 from Bescot Depot and was purchased for preservation by Waterman Railways, initially spending time at the East Lancashire Railway. 31101 was then sold to Suburban Preservation and was moved to the Battlefield Line.

31101 arrived with us from the Battlefield Line on the 21st October 2014, before joining her sister locomotive 31130 here at Bitton. Since being with us, she’s been repainted, renumbered back to 5518 from 31101 and had a Spanner Mark 1 steam heat boiler fitted.

A splendid addition to the AVR fleet, D5518 is invaluable here providing steam heat services for Santa trains, off peak services and standing in if one of the steam locos is unavailable.