LMS Route: Nuneaton to Leamington

Gibbet Hill Signal Cabin: lnwrgh3766

The Daimler experimental railcar is returning to Coventry, stopped with engine running to pose for the camera, between Gibbet Hill Signal Cabin and Kenilworth Junction. The line between the two locations was single track, said to be a device to stop the GWR obtaining running powers over the line. The roof vents show that this is the opposite end of the vehicle to that seen in 'lnwrk3767' The lamp on the bufferbeam, with a red lens, would indicate that the railcar returning to Coventry. Despite the railcar having integral head and tail lamps at each end, railway regulations stipulated an oil tail lamp must be carried. The railcar accommodated sixty seated passengers or one hundred and three with standing passengers. Entering service in April 1913, it was hampered by only having enough power to propel itself. As was later found to be the case, such designs needed have the flexibility to have a trailer attached in order to accommodate peak loadings. It is believed that the use of the railcar was suspended with the outbreak of the First World War but its eventual fate is unknown.

Photograph courtesy of the LNWR Society. To order a copy please visit LNWR Society Photograph Orders and quote reference 'LNWRS 0047'.

An historical article written by Ron Cadman and first published in Model Railway News, 1968 and then in the Daimler Owner's Club Newsletter can be read here

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