The Strawberry Special

"It's nice to feel useful, isn't it?"

- Toby reminiscing The Strawberry Special is a 1984 annual story.

Plot
Toby tells Thomas and Percy a story from the times when he worked in East Anglia. It was nearly the end of the strawberry season, and the farmers wanted to move their fruit before it was too late. There were fourty-eight vans in the train, and Toby's driver riskily agreed to take them all in one train. Toby started to struggle when he reached a bridge across a canal, which had a steep hill up to it, but he was very glad when he managed to cross it. At last they reached a small station, where his driver stopped him. He said that there wasn't enough water to get Toby to get home, but he would be fine on his own. Then Toby had an idea. He would go and get some water at the sheds, then come back and get the train. It worked splendidly, and Toby's Controller thanked him for not letting the Tramway down.

Characters

 * Toby
 * Thomas
 * Percy

Trivia

 * This story was later adaped into a Railway Series story, Toby's Megatrain.