DORSET COAST EXPRESS - WEDNESDAY 16th AUGUST.

This Steam service is organised by the Railway Touring Company, and should be steam hauled from London Victoria. The service leaves London Victoria station at around 08:45 and travels westwards, crossing the River Thames at Barnes Bridge, through Kew and Feltham. 


Further stops at Staines and Woking to pick up further passengers. At Winchfield, a pause for our steam locomotive to take on water before continuing to our final pick up point at Basingstoke. We leave the South Western Main Line at Worting Junction and take the Bournemouth Line, heading south through Winchester and Southampton.

Next stop at Bournemouth to set down those passengers wishing to visit this coastal resort, a spa town famous for its parks and pine trees. After leaving Bournemouth, there are spectacular views of Poole Harbour. We continue to Wareham and Dorchester travelling through classic Dorset countryside and delightful scenery. We arrive at Weymouth around 13:45 and have almost three hours there to discover much of what this seaside town has to offer. The railway station is close to the beach and shops.

We return from Weymouth diesel hauled at around 16:35 with the steam locomotive at the rear of the train. We return through the Dorset countryside to Bournemouth where we stop to collect those passengers who left the train there on the outward journey. We continue to Southampton, where the steam locomotive takes over the hauling of the train again, and then through Andover to Basingstoke, where we stop to set down passengers and for our steam locomotive to take on water. We can expect a fast run along the main line from Basingstoke to Woking, where we stop to set down passengers, and on to our final destination at London Waterloo.

The following steam locomotives will be used on this day trip:

No. 60009 Union of South Africa [Left] an ex LNER A4 class steam locomotive, built in 1937.   


These trains provide plenty of opportunity to visit the beautiful Dorset coast and relive the ‘golden age’ of steam. Passengers have the option of spending time at the celebrated seaside resorts of either Bournemouth or Weymouth, where both have fine sandy beaches. Each train will be hauled by a steam locomotive that was built for express passenger train work.

Train Timings;

Station Outward Return
London Victoria 08:43 21:18*
Staines 09:35 -------**
Woking 10:06 20:42
Basingstoke 10:53 19:52
Bournemouth 12:51 17:50
Weymouth 13:45 16:35