WORLD’S FASTEST TRAIN

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LV, Issue 17067, 27 September 1929, Page 14

WORLD’S FASTEST TRAIN

77 MILES IN 70 MINUTES REMARKABLE ACHIEVEMENT LONDON, August 10. By setting a new timing for a regular train from Cheltenham, England, to London, accelerating it to cover the last stage of the journey—the 77j miles from Swindon to Paddington—in 70 minutes, the Great Western Railway has the fastest train in the world. Formerly this train was allowed 85 minutes between Swindon and Paddington, but a few years ago it was accelerated by 10 minutes, the average speed then becoming 61.8 miles an hour. On its first trip on the new timing on July 8 the train was composed of nine coaches, making a weight of 269 tons behind the engine. According to the official log, it left Swindon on time at 3.45 and covered tho 2A\ miles to Didcot in 22 minutes, at a mean speed of 66.14 miles an hour. The time taken for the 17 miles between Didcot and Reading was 14 minutes, the speed being 72.86 miles an hour, and for the 17j miles between Reading and Slough 14J, minutes, or 72.41 miles an hour. The final 186 miles from Slough to Paddington were covered in spite of the signal check at Acton in 18£ minutes, or exactly 60 miles an hour. The train stooped at Paddington one minute before time, having run the 77 J miles from Swindon in 69 minutes at sir nverage speed of 67.17 miles an hour, which is considered a remarkable achievement.