A train enthusiast has bought a 1970s train that once carried Queen Elizabeth II to Kirby for £1 to save it from the scrapyard. Robert Ham…
A train enthusiast has bought a 1970s train that once carried Queen Elizabeth II to Kirby for £1 to save it from the scrapyard.
Robert Hampton, 41, now hopes to raise £10,000 to move the Merseyrail Class 507 train to a museum after it gets retired within the next 12 months.
The Class 507 trains, which were first introduced in 1978, are being replaced by the Class 777 fleet.
But rail enthusiasts like Mr Hampton have launched a campaign to save the first train in the 507 class, the 507001, due to its place in Merseyside’s history.
The 507001 was the exact train the Queen travelled on from Moorfields station to Kirkby after she unveiled a plaque to open the Merseyrail network on October 25, 1978.
The entire fleet of trains inspire strong feeling in the area after they transported generations of Merseysiders — to work, to school, to days out at the seaside, to nights out on the town.
The 507001 was the first train of the fleet to enter service, making it the oldest train.
The special train was also recently restored to British Rail blue and grey livery to commemorate its long service, which Mr Hampton said has made it ‘something of a celebrity among rail enthusiasts’.
Mr Hampton told the BBC: ‘The Class 507 trains are our trains.
‘Lots of trains work all across the country but the 507… has only ever worked on the Merseyrail network.’
The IT consultant said that he had a ‘sentimental attachment’ to the fleet and associates them with the summer holidays.
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