This article was closed on 8 December 2002
At 1500 on Friday 18 October 2002, we received the completed certification for our third motor coach, 60116 Mountfield, for use on Railtrack lines. This was the culmination of thousands of hours of overhaul and restoration work by staff at St. Leonards depot, plus paperwork carried out with the help of our colleagues at Engineering Link (the certification body) and at the Railtrack Acceptance Board.
Mountfield was taken on a test run in the afternoon of Sunday 17 November 2002; 1001, formed as a 7-car train, worked from St. Leonards depot to Hastings station, out to Eastbourne and return, then back into the depot. No problems were encountered and Mountfield operated correctly.
Its return to passenger use on the main line was, as anticipated, on HDL's Cambridge Cracker railtour on 7 December 2002; the extra power-to-weight ratio ensured early running throughout the day.