Crewe Heritage Centre

The Crewe Heritage Centre
	'Get On Track For A Great Day Out'
Former name	Crewe Railway Age
Established	24 July 1987; 37 years ago
Location	Vernon Way, Crewe, Cheshire, England
Type	Railway museum
Visitors	c30,000 annually
Chairperson	Gordon Heddon
Owner	Crewe Heritage Trust Limited
Website	https://www.crewehc.co.uk

53°05′41″N 2°26′17″W / 53.0946°N 2.43818°W / 53.0946; -2.43818

Crewe Heritage Centre is a railway museum located in Crewe, England. Managed by the Crewe Heritage Trust, the museum is located between the railway station and the town centre; the site was the location of the 'Old Works' which was demolished in the early 1980s.

History

The centre was established in the old London, Midland and Scottish Railway yard, which was once part of Crewe Works, between the junction to Chester and the West Coast Main Line. It was officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, on 24 July 1987.^[1] It was renamed in 1992 as Crewe Railway Age by the owning registered charity^[2] but, after the management of the centre was taken over by a new group of volunteers, the museum returned to its original name of Crewe Heritage Centre in early 2008.^[3]

Exhibits

The centre has a series of exhibits, ranging from the only surviving APT-P train, miniature railways, three open signal boxes (Crewe Station A, Crewe North Junction and Exeter West) and a varied collection of standard gauge steam, diesel and electric locomotives, as well as occasional visiting locomotives. The Main Exhibition Hall features many artefacts and exhibits associated with Crewe, from its locomotive and carriage construction to its famous junction railway station. Brake Van rides are available to the public during special events.

Advanced Passenger Train

Built by British Rail (BR) the 1970s and 1980s, this Class 370 Advanced Passenger Train (APT) is the only surviving APT set. Numbered 370 003/006, it is open at all times with an occasional cafe run from the original buffet car (selected days only). The APT-P museum can be found inside one of the carriages, with photographs on display from the APT project. The set was tilted for the first time in preservation in 2013. In early 2018, an additional surviving APT powercar (M49006) arrived at the museum. It is displayed separately alongside the main set.

Miniature Railway

Constructed in 1992, the Crewe Heritage Centre Miniature Railway is a 600 metre long 184mm (7.25 in) gauge ride, the railway takes visitors on a trip from ‘Crewe Old Works’ station to ‘Spider Bridge’ station and the optional return journey. The railway includes a mixture of Steam, Petrol and Battery Electric locomotives; rides on this attraction are included in the museum admission price.

Exhibition Hall

The Heritage Centre is also home to a 1,000m2 Exhibition Hall, which doubles both as an event space and as the main museum building. It features displays and exhibits about the town of Crewe. During the 2018/19 closed season, the building underwent a light refurbishment; this included replacement of the original 1987 entrance doors and a full internal repaint.

Signal boxes

Crewe Station A: Open for display purposes, this box was moved onto the site after closure in 1985.
Crewe North Junction: Built in 1939 and designed to withstand the Luftwaffe bombs of World War II, the box is constructed out of concrete and has an 46 cm (18") thick roof and 38 cm (15") thick walls. Located between the West Coast Main Line and Crewe-Chester line, its location is perfect for viewing passing mainline trains. Demonstrations of how the box was used often take place and are linked to a simulator. In 1987, the building was extended to provide more room for the Heritage Centre, including a cafe and small shop, and to include a large U.S. model railway.

Exeter West: Used to control the split at Exeter between the Great Western Railway and the Southern Railway. With 131 levers, it was a Special Class A signal box, with only the best signalmen authorised to operate it. Since being rebuilt at Crewe, volunteers operate it on every weekend using a demonstration 1960s timetable; this includes the hectic Summer Saturday service, which saw famous expresses such as the Torbay Express, Atlantic Coast Express and the Cornishman.

Light Rail Vehicles

In 2021, former Manchester Metrolink T68 tram 1023 arrived on loan from the Heaton Park Tramway; the vehicle will stay until construction of a new depot at Heaton Park is completed to cater for it.

Locomotives

Both mainline and miniature railways operate on most weekends. The standard gauge railway uses either the Class 03 03073 or Class 47 D1842 (47192). A cylinder and Caprotti valve gear from the locomotive, Duke of Gloucester, forms part of a permanent display. There may also be occasional visiting locomotives. The centre has its own Depot Code, CQ, but only 87035 and 82118+12114 are officially classed as being a resident of this depot.

86247 Cab

This cab was acquired in early 2020 by a private owner and moved on site as a permanent exhibit. 86247's number 2 end cab arrived at the centre in Europhoenix livery and has been restored to early 2000s condition externally in Anglia Railways livery, with the refitting of marker, tail and head lights.

Previously in its life, it was a demonstrator loco for the Bulgarian/Hungary exports of the class 86. Eventually it came into the hands of Freightliner for spares recovery after it was not exported. In 2015, it was cut up at Crewe Basford Hall with both cabs at the time going to the South Wales Loco Cab Preservation Group.

Locomotives and rolling stock

Class	Number	Pictures of the same/similar exhibits.	Previous Number	Built	Owner	Type	Livery	Status
AnsaldoBreda T-68	1023	A similar example in use on the Metrolink network in Manchester.	N/A	1991	Heaton Park Tramway	Light Rail vehicle	Metrolink blue, white & grey	Static exhibit
British Rail Class 03	03 073	A similar example to the one at CHC.	D2073	1959	Crewe Heritage Trust	Diesel shunter	BR Blue	In use
British Rail Class 37	37 108	The livery 37108 is currently in.	D6808	1961	Private owner	Diesel locomotive	BR Blue	Static exhibit
British Rail Class 37	37 423		D6996 37296	1965	Direct Rail Services	Diesel locomotive	DRS Blue	Static exhibition On loan from DRS^[4]
British Rail Class 43 (HST)	43 018	43018 has been repainted and restored into the old, timeless classic BR Blue livery and has even had the original headlight configuration installed	N/A	1976	Crewe Heritage Trust	Diesel locomotive	BR Blue	Under restoration
British Rail Class 43 (HST)	43 081	The livery 43081 is in now. It is NOT currently scheduled for a repaint into a heritage livery just yet.	N/A	1978	Crewe Heritage Trust	Diesel locomotive	East Midlands Trains (logo removed)	Working exhibit
British Rail Class 47	47 192	The livery 47192 graces after her recent overhaul.	D1842	1965	Crewe Heritage Trust	Diesel locomotive	BR Green	Working exhibit - currently on loan to the Weardale Railway^[4]
British Rail Class 86	86 622		E3174 / 86422	1966	Freightliner	Electric (AC) locomotive	Freightliner Powerhaul	Static Exhibit - on long-term loan
British Rail Class 87	87 035	87035 Robert Burns at Crewe Heritage Centre. She was repainted into Virgin Trains' West Coast livery in 2021.	N/A	1974	Crewe Heritage Trust	Electric (AC) locomotive	Virgin Trains	Static exhibit
British Rail Class 91	91120		91020	1980	Europheonix	Electric (AC) Locomotives	Europheonix	Static Exhibit - on long-term loan
British Rail Class 370	370 003/006	The APT at Crewe Heritage Centre.	N/A	1980	Crewe Heritage Trust	Electric (AC) multiple unit	InterCity	Static exhibit
Mark 3B Driving Van Trailer	82118	The livery 82118 wears, but without the Greater Anglia lettering and stainless steel light surrounds.	N/A	1988	Crewe Heritage Trust	Driving Van Trailer	ex-Greater Anglia	Under restoration
Mark 3A TSO	12114	A similar example to TS0 12114.	N/A	1975-1984	Crewe Heritage Trust	Standard Open Coach	ex-Greater Anglia	Under restoration