60s/70s Fluorescent train lighting

This was taken on the Llangollen heritage railway and is a steam hauled service in this case. Here we have a row of T12 4ft 40w tubes that started to appear in the late 60s on-wards and were retrofitted to many older trains during the 70s, replacing 60w 24v Tungsten filament lamps to improve light levels and also give a more modern appearance. The light level is much better than from the tungsten lights in the other carriages. There is also a small spot light to give extra light to the table though this didn't work. There is a battery pack under the carriage which is recharged by some kind of dynamo or alternator as the train moves. They are seen here running in a tunnel and are only fired up for the tunnel. These are single tube but there was also a twin tube version. These are lovely carriages, loads of room with deep comfy seats all aligned to a window unlike modern trains that all seem to be about getting as many people as possible into a space. Notice all the steam on the windows from the engine!