1371

X.35] BELOW: Reading West, two Grand Central Mk4 sets (ex-Euston to Bla

ackpool) going from Wembley to Eastleigh. (Stuart Hicks, Tue 16 Feb 2021.)

BELOW: (Item 581) The unusual sight of 66020 on the St

t Ives branch for relaying work recently. (Network Rail.)

570] Wokingham: (BLN 1364.3207) Extending the conductor rail on Wokingham Down Siding, from
61m 64ch to 61m 56ch (buffer stop end), will permit 12-car EMU access. This is associated with track
renewal from 61m 74ch to 61m 56ch. Close inspection of TRACKmaps 5 p28B Aug 2019 confirms that
the partial electrification is correctly shown. The points are also to be upgraded and the buffer stop
renewed. Enabling works started in Aug 2020 and the upgrade is expected to be completed by 8 Mar.

1371 SOUTH WEST (Darren Garnon) [email protected]
571] Lostwithiel: (TRACKmaps 3 p10B Jun 2018) From 27 Feb the Down Sidings were OOU for recovery.

572] Portbury: (BLN 1370.417) Motor Vessel 'Yeoman Bontrup' docked on 11 Jan with 55,000 tonnes
of high grade granite from Glensanda Quarry (Aggregate Industries), near Oban. It is understood that
the initial rail contract is for 90,000 tonnes; 60 trains over 13 weeks. At the end of Dec more new Class
196 CAF DMUs for West Midlands Railway (Hereford and Shrewsbury services) arrived from Spain at
the Automotive Terminal, as well as body shells for fitting out at CAF's new Llanwern assembly plant.

573] Class 143: (BLN 1370.428) The final GWR passenger workings (143617) were between Exmouth
and Paignton all day Mon 28 Dec. (Thanks to Cardiff & Avonside Railway Soc for help with SW news.)

574] Portway: (BLN 1360.2612) Devegetation work has started for the new 5-car one platform £3.5m
station. The Park & Ride site, served by bus to Bristol, opened in 2002, now with 500 car park spaces.

575] Swindon: As booked on Sats 9, 16 & 30 Jan for engineering work, Up trains from the Chippenham
line crossed from the Up Main to the Down Main at Wootton Bassett Jn, turning back in Swindon P4.
On Mon 8 Feb there was a fault in the pointwork on the Down Main at South Marston Jn. The 11.48
Paddington to Swansea (then 35 more trains) used the Up Main from Bourton (72m 24ch) to Swindon.

576] Avonmouth: (BLN 1370.424) In the Bulk Handling Terminal Roads 5, 6, 7 & 8 are now OOU as part
of the new Maritime Depot works. The former Fuel Road (Road 4) has had its buffer stop removed.

577] A boat signals SLW: On 12 Feb the driver of the 07.24 Exmouth to Paignton reported that the
high tide combined with heavy winds had resulted in
a boat mast striking signal DM203A, on the Down
Main line between Starcross and Dawlish Warren. It
was leaning towards the track such that trains might
strike it. (LEFT: NR.) All lines were closed. When the
high tide had receded enough, Single Line Working
operated over the Up Main between Teignmouth
and Exeter West until the signal was repaired.

578] Torre: (BLN 1369.242) On the Up platform of
the station, the Grade II listed signal box complete
with levers and full planning permission for
conversion into a holiday (but no work done),
recently sold at auction for £65,750. Interestingly it
was on the market for £85,000 to £115,000 guide
price originally in 2017.

579] Weymouth: (BLN 1367.3684) Work to remove
the Harbour Tramway has unearthed a second set of
rails on Custom House Quay. They were thought to
be part of the original line replaced in the 1930s to
ease the curvature allowing longer wheelbase
carriages to use it. The former alignment is on old
OS maps http://bit.ly/2Np85kz below Helen St, left
of 'MP'; move the 'blue spot' back & forth.

X.36] ABOVE: The completed part of the new Dawlish seawall (the rest is in the background) - NR.

580] Okehampton: (BLN 1370.426) A preliminary GWR timetable includes reference to a new seven
day 2-hourly passenger service, eight trains each way, from Exeter St Davids (although many might
prefer to go to Exeter Central). It is shown as beginning sometime during the May 2021 timetable.
In addition, several existing Barnstaple to St James' Park services are shown extended to/from Pinhoe.

581] St Ives: (BLN 1370.418) The 3 Jan to 7 Feb £3M branch closure for relaying of 1½ miles of track
(3,600 new sleepers - exactly double the last press release!) between St Ives and Carbis Bay was said
to be the largest track investment in Cornwall since the 1950s. There was the unusual sight of Class 66
locos working engineering trains on the branch. St Ives alone recorded 707,000 passengers in 2019-20.

1371 WEST MIDLANDS (Brian Schindler) [email protected]
582] Bescot: (BLN 1370.430) It has emerged that, between 20.00 and 22.00 on Mon 1 Feb, the two Up
and two Down passenger trains mentioned all used the bidirectional Down Goods line outside Down
P2 - even more interesting in the Up direction (from Walsall) and also unable to call at Bescot Stadium.

583] West Midlands Metro: A planning application has been submitted to expand Wednesbury Depot
with extra outside stabling lines, track alterations, extensions to the buildings and a new wash plant.
If approved there would be space for 46 trams; the tram fleet is to double with 21 CAF third
generation Urbos trams on order and an option on up to 29 more, depending on the approval and
construction of further lines. E-BLN has the proposed Depot layout plan; of note is a new single track
third depot access northwest to southwest directly to/from the Brierley Hill extension.

NEXT PAGE: Wednesbury Tram Depot proposals, coloured areas are new/changed and white areas
are unchanged. Compare with TRACKmaps 4 p21A Dec 2018. (Public planning document.) The plan
shows the two new sides of the future Wednesbury triangle to the extension both with double track.









PREVIOUS: A bridge removed ready for replacement on the Brierley Hill e
Trust notices said that the canal stoppage was shorter than planned as delive

X.37] BELOW: On the North Cotswold Line a pair of Class 50s 'Top &
50007 was masquerading as 50014 on this si

X.38] NEXT TWO PHOTOS: 69001 (formerly 56031) was hau
Electro-motive Diesel Ltd by 66702 on Mon 15 Feb 2021 for initial dyn

extension over the Tame Valley Canal at Golds Hill Crossing. Canal & River
ery of the new steelwork is delayed. (Peter Humphries, Tue 23 Feb 2021.)

& Tail' a Long Marston to Newport train of coaches going for scrap.
ide at least. (Dave Gommersall, 4 Nov 2020.)

uled to Kidderminster Severn Valley Railway from Longport
namic tests under its own power on the Railway. (Dave Gommersall.)









X.39] BELOW: New DMU 196104 on a Tyseley Depot to Hereford and retu

urn ECS timing trial pauses at Malvern Link. (David Guy, Thur 25 Feb 2021.)

583] West Midlands Metro Cont: The staff employed at the Depot increases from 244 to 352, with 64
extra car parking spaces provided. On the extension, vegetation and ballast have been removed from
the track bed in the Great Bridge and Tipton areas. The bridge over the Walsall Canal at Eagle Crossing
signal box (2m 21ch NE of the site of Dudley Jn) that carried the Great Bridge Steel Terminal (Up side)
access line wasn't demolished with the rest of the separate, adjacent bridge that carried the Walsall to
Stourbridge line and will be rebuilt. (BELOW: The retained bridge section, Peter Humphries 17 Oct
2020.) Our member believes that the yard site will be a construction compound for the extension.
Work so far has involved utility diversion and demolition of life expired structures (mainly bridges) for
replacement. Canal bridges are to be demolished in Tipton and old mine shafts secured along the line.
Starting on 8 Mar, the road surface of Castle Hill in Dudley will be removed to install the first track.

584] Coventry: The new country end second station footbridge, directly out of the new multistorey car
park, was lifted into place in January. This involved the use of a massive crane which, at 98m tall, was
temporarily the tallest structure in Coventry (the Cathedral is 90m) and weighed 750 tonnes. It needed
permission from air traffic control apparently, (presumably due to its height as opposed to permission
to land‽). The crane made the current station look quite diminutive but the new behemoth of a station
(that will surely become something of a landmark) beyond vies with it to occupy the skyline. A local
member on a permitted walk craned his neck to take the e-BLN 1370 shots through a hole in the fence.
Work began on 15 Feb on road alterations for the station redevelopment, the new station building is
being clad, granite laid on the boulevard outside (which is being predestrianised) and trees planted.

X.40] BELOW: Is this built with engine-ering bricks? Seen at the entrance to a housing development at
Catesby View, Shut End, Kingswinford. The sales office lady said that it was in acknowledgement of the
railways of the area, but she didn't have any more information. Our member assumes that this would
be the Earl of Dudley's Railways as it looks a bit like 'Agenoria'. Haulage is not an option, but you could
sit on it. Being a steam engine of course it has a brick arch (a circle in fact) and surely it should be
shedded at Bricklayers Arms, or Trowell Junction! (Robert Moorcroft during essential travel for work.)

585] Leamington - Nuneaton: Half of the local West Midlands railway service was replaced by buses
from 20 Nov 2020 and 100% from 11 Jan. A local member noticed one with precisely zero passengers.
The Mayor of Kenilworth has written to West Midlands Railway on behalf the Town Council asking, in
synopsis, why they bothered to make the largest capital investment in the history of Kenilworth* in the
form of the new station if it's just to become a glorified bus stop. The cost of Kenilworth Castle Curtain
Wall - circa 1210 - alone (let alone the castle's subsequent development over 400 years!*) annualized
comes out at £18M compared with a mere £11.3M for the station, so even the ruins might arguably
still be worth more ... especially if the takings at English Heritage gift shop are taken into consideration.

In fairness to Kenilworth Town Council the Castle developers didn't have the foresight to locate it near
to the railway line. [*Those who lack a spirit of generosity say it took 400 years to open Kenilworth
station ... this, of course, is complete nonsense ... it just felt like 400 years getting it reopened.]

586] Aldridge: The West Midlands Combined Authority has recently purchased land from the NHS for
£400k (no doubt once railway owned and sold off cheaply) for access to the new station. The intention
is for the two local Walsall terminators each hour to be extended to Aldridge (CP 18 Jan 1965); about
50,000 passenger journeys a year are anticipated. This needs electrification of 3 miles of both tracks
from Ryecroft Jn and, due to the length of the 4-car Class 350 EMUs, resiting Aldridge Jn (44m 73ch) -
trailing crossover - further west. It is seen as a prelude to reopening more of the Sutton Park Line.

587] Bordesley chords: NR has taken over the planning of the chords from Midlands Connect and will
support the Council if an appeal is made to the Secretary of State for Transport. It is part of the plan to
extend Moor Street to six platforms and improve rail connections to Curzon Street HS2 station.

588] Darlaston: (BLN 1370.433) Class 350 EMUs are 4-cars, 82m long. The standard length of a new
platform for this length of stock would be 94m. Both Darlaston and Willenhall are shown as having
6-car platforms (=138m long) on the West Midlands Rail Executive website: http://bit.ly/3svkJh1

…. 1371 IRELAND (Martin Baumann) [email protected]
589] Underwater pie in the sky: The fantasy idea of building a 20 miles rail tunnel (⅔ the length of the
Channel Tunnel) from Stranraer (a long way round!) to Northern Ireland has recently been publicised,
and supported by Boris Johnson. At best the plan was met with scepticism in Northern Ireland. The
Conservative chairman of the Commons' Transport Committee said it was a 'hallucinogenic fantasy'.
Sammy Wilson, a Democratic Unionist party MP, did not ridicule the tunnel but said that it was more
important for Northern Ireland to be connected economically and constitutionally, not physically.

590] Trains are cool: The following lines have now been cleared for 45ft long, 9' 6" tall and 8' 4⅝" wide,
refrigerated 'reefer' containers (but not for growing or transporting cannabis): Ballina - Manulla Jn -
Portarlington - Phoenix Park - Dublin North Wall and Cherryville Jn - Lavistown Loop - Waterford
Belview Siding. 9' 6" high containers must NOT be allowed travel between Lavistown Jn and Kilkenny!

591] It can now be told (26); a memorable Sunday: By Phil Mason. Rail services in Ireland run by Córas
Iompair Eireann (CIÉ), although all loco-hauled (hooray!), were sparse in the 1980s especially Sundays
where most lines had only two trains each way. Thus on a Sunday you could really only go out to
somewhere in the morning and return in the afternoon. But there was one good move to be had…

There was much demand for people working in Dublin to return to the provinces to visit the folks at
weekends; thus on each route a relief train left Dublin on a Friday evening, returning early on Monday
morning. There was one crucial exception, Ballina, where the 17.10 FO (all times from the Working
Timetable for 1985) through train ran via Portarlington but returned as the 15.40 SuO via the Athlone
to Mullingar line. It was the only passenger train of the week to do this former Midland Great Western
main line, in daylight. Thus it was THE line to ride on a Sunday. It even called at Moate which was still
open, at least nominally. I cannot imagine that many passengers used it, as on weekdays then it was
only served by the Dublin to Galway mail trains which actually crossed there, giving it the unique
timetable of SuX, first departure of the day 23.48 to Dublin, second and final train 23.51 to Galway!

I had done this move twice before but now was on a 10 day holiday in May 1985 with a footplate pass
and determined to return for a proper front seat view of this rare track. It was to be a busy and
exciting week with railtours over three Bord na Móna bogs, an official visit to Dublin DART Fairview
depot and attempts at riding various freight lines. It was also the weekend of the annual RPSI multiday
steam tour although I had not booked on it. To cap it all I discovered that a pilgrimage special was to
run to Claremorris (for Knock Shrine) from the mothballed Youghal branch on the Sunday. This was
too good an opportunity to miss, although I had already been to Youghal (awkward to pronounce -
somewhere between Yarl and Yow-ell) on a CIÉ 'Sea Breeze Excursion' on my first Irish visit in 1977.

Thus on Sat 11 May 1985 I took the 07.30 Dublin to Cork (with a footplate ride) and enjoyed an RPSI
subsidiary steam excursion run, a 'pay on the day' trip for locals from Cork to Cobh behind J15 No184.
(In those days the Cork to Cobh service was all loco hauled, two or three coaches, running round each
end.) In the evening I found the inspector in charge of the Youghal special, having been told that the
ECS was booked to leave at 04.00. Lucky I did, as he said they were worried about the state of the
points and level crossings and had decided to go at 03.00! I found a B&B a couple of hundred yards
away and borrowed an alarm clock for my 02.30 wake up. So on Sun 12 May 1985, a very early start
and who should appear but well known BLS member, the late Peter Todd, neither of us knowing that
the other was in Ireland! We travelled out together in a passenger coach, half asleep of course, but
there did not seem to be any problems on the journey. At Youghal we swapped to the leading cab of
'A' class loco 014 for the run round, joined by the inevitable Irish enthusiasts. I think there were six of
us in the cab but I was the only one with a legitimate pass! Departing 06.25 in full daylight, the ride
back was enjoyable and problem free; I was able to photograph all the stations (CP 4 Feb 1963).

We reached Cork at 07.33 where I left the train and bade farewell to Peter. Although I actually needed
to go to Claremorris, I decided for some reason I cannot remember not to stay with the special which
was routed over normal passenger lines via Portarlington and follow up by normal service trains.

If it had gone via Limerick and Athenry (as they sometimes did), I would certainly have stayed but you
can't have everything. Departing 08.40 and changing at Portarlington, Athlone and Claremorris saw
arrival in Ballina at 15.00, the last portion by cab ride on loco 144 over this very scenic branch with the
same driver and train to form the 15.40 to Dublin. A little extra track running round and we departed
for the long haul including the desired forward view over the Athlone to Mullingar section. And then it
got really interesting. After passing Castletown box a red light on the dashboard called a 'grid relay' lit
up and the driver pressed a button to cancel it. A few minutes later it lit up again and was cancelled.

What's a grid relay? I asked. Pray it doesn't come on a third time or the engine has failed. Well, it did
and the engine cut out. Most drivers would have braked to a stop but this one let the train continue
hoping to get as far as possible. On and on we rolled on sheer momentum, obviously slowing down
and just crawling over the summits of hills but then picking up speed on the following down gradients
just enough for the next hill. Pray we get to the home signal so the guard doesn't have to walk back a
mile with the detonators said the driver. Well, the distant appeared then the home, then the station
and miraculously we rolled to a stand in the platform at Mullingar. Thar's a beautiful engine said the
driver as he leaned forward and solemnly kissed the dashboard. I don't know how many miles we
rolled with no power but utterly improbable as it seems I think it was 5 or 6! A conflab ensued on the
platform between the driver, guard and signalman who mentioned that one of the old Metrovick 'A'
class was parked on some cement empties in the sidings. Sure and oi'll take any engine said the driver.

The junction at Mullingar is immediately east of the station so the platforms are 'V' shaped with the
(No1) signal box on the platform on the 'V'. Before we could move the loco, a football special came
through nonstop for the Sligo line with raucous 'customers' shouting and leaning out the windows, an
empty beer bottle came flying over my head to smash against the stone wall of the signal box. This was
followed by the regular 19.15 to Sligo, both trains double headed by locos of the original General
Motors single cabbed 121 Class that were such a feature of the Sligo line.

[BLN 1371]
After that was clear, the driver and I walked over to the 'A' No017, started it up, moved out of the
siding (rare track), shunted the miscreant '144' back to the siding and coupled up to our train. We
were now very late and the driver hit the throttle, determined to make up some time. The 50 miles of
single track on to Dublin running alongside the Royal Military canal was once famous for being the
longest stretch of passenger line between open stations in the British Isles. I think it also once had
mechanical token exchange equipment fitted but that had gone by 1985, so it was by hand. Readers
will be familiar with single line tokens being placed in a leather pouch attached to a hoop to be caught
on the outstretched arms of signalman/footplate crew. In Ireland it was slightly different, a
simultaneous double handover was not attempted, the driver or secondman if present (known as a
'snatcherman') would fling out the rear section token onto the platform and then take up the forward
token from the signalman's raised hand.

The driver was doing this himself but one of the intermediate signal boxes, possibly Hill of Down, was
on the right and he asked me to be snatcherman. The maximum speed for this was 30mph but the
driver was taking no prisoners and I did it at a full 50 which was exhilarating! Anyway we eventually
pulled into Dublin Connolly, still very late after a very long but memorable Sunday.

The 27¼ mile Mullingar - Athlone line was part of the Midland Great Western Railway mainline from
Dublin Broadstone to Galway, OP Aug 1851. From 2 Apr 1973 most Dublin to Athlone, Westport,
Ballina & Galway services were diverted from Dublin Pearse to Heuston using the Great Southern
Western Railway route via Portarlington. Remaining passenger services were withdrawn 11 May 1987
but specials continued. The final passenger train was the Irish Traction Group tour of 15 Jul 1995.

592] Dublin Broadstone: (BLNs 1284.1407 & 1285.1469) The station did close for passenger traffic and
for its limited remaining revenue earning freight (as opposed to Great Southern Railway (GSR) and
later CIÉ's own traffic carried 'free') from Mon 18 Jan 1937. However, the last passenger train was
actually a return cattle fair special departing on the afternoon of Sun 17 Jan 1937. All goods and most
livestock had transferred to North Wall as long ago as Tue 1 Mar 1864, but an exception was made for
the Wednesday livestock market (later also on a Tuesday) because it was easier to walk the beasts
from Broadstone than North Wall. So this was the only 'goods' traffic thereafter handled at
Broadstone until Jan 1937 when it, too, ceased; transferred to Liffey Junction instead. Parcels traffic
was handled by the passenger trains, and transferred to Westland Row when they did on 18 Jan 1937.

What happened from Mon 10 Jul 1944 was that Broadstone signal cabin closed completely (GSR
Circular No2927). Tapper Key working was discontinued between the station and Liffey Jn. Each of the
two tracks from Liffey Jn was then treated as a one way siding with a speed restriction of 10mph and
the remaining points and Up Home Signal at Broadstone were worked by two small ground frames.

The terminus was retained as a depot for steam locos and road motor vehicles (buses and lorries), so
the layout was simplified. As there was no goods traffic, there is no mention in any Circular of 'closure
to traffic' on 8 Apr 1961; the BLN 1284.1407 CA date was that of the steam loco depot. Then, one of
the sidings - the former Down, (to Liffey Jn) - was taken out of use, and only the old Up line remained.

On and from Mon 24 Jul 1961, the Down Line, Broadstone to Liffey Junction will be closed to traffic.
The connection at the Broadstone end will be removed. The connection at the Liffey Jn end will be set
permanently for the Cattle Siding. (From CIÉ Circular No856 for the week ending Sat 29 Jul 1961.)

BLN 1285.1469 mentions this notice, but its heading refers to the loco depot closure, not goods depot!
Nov 1970 Irish Railfan' News stated that the former Up line …remains as a very rarely used connection
to the station which nowadays serves only as depot for provincial buses and road freight vehicles.

The last railtours were 11 Sep 1971 http://bit.ly/2Zs2UTf (about 300yd along the branch, the track
beyond was deemed unfit - a senior member observes: We were lucky to get that far, it hadn't been
included in the schedule!) and 7 Oct 1972 http://bit.ly/3jYAKsx which seems to have done no better.

[BLN 1371]
The Journal of the Irish Railway Record Society recorded that, during Mar 1977, the last remnants of
the branch were removed, remarking that after the closure of the loco depot in 1961 all tracks in the
yard were lifted, excepting one spur, which was used to bring in fuel oil and remove waste. At some
date after 1970 even this ceased and the track became a mass of vegetation; part was 'lifted' by local
residents and what was left had eventually to be recovered by road vehicles. [See also Broadstone and
Liffey Jn illustrations, and location plan, with BLN 1303.878.] Thanks to Richard Maund, 16 Jan 2021.

593] Expansion: Irish Rail is eager to expand and improve the national rail network and has put
forward detailed proposals to various State agencies, according to the Chief Executive Jim Meade.
Addressing the Oireachtas (Irish Parliament) Committee on Transport recently, he said that the
company could rebuild the railway from Dublin to Navan in just three years. (From M3 Parkway rather
than 'Dublin'!) He said it had put forward proposals to open stations between Ennis and Limerick, as
well as the Limerick to Foynes line, and wanted to increase commuter train frequency to 15 minutes
on the Cork to Midleton line. Mr Meade told the committee that Irish Rail had Highlighted further
opportunities to develop the role of rail as part of its engagement with the Department of Transport:

Cork: Commuter Rail higher frequency and new stations (Cork metropolitan area transport strategy).
Ennis - Limerick: New stations for Limerick Institute of Technology, the University of Limerick,

….Shannon & other areas around Limerick City (part of Limerick-Shannon metropolitan area strategy).

Waterford: Relocated Plunkett passenger station. Develop further electrification proposals.
'Climate resilience' - focusing on coastal protection for the vunerable Dublin to Rosslare line.
Double tracking eg: Athenry - Galway, Portarlington - Athlone and Limerick- Limerick Junction.

….Most of these would restore double track removed by the Great Southern Railway in the 1920s.

594] Rosslare Europort: (BLN 1370.441) On Thur 4 Feb Brittany Ferries began a further weekly service
to and from St Malo and Roscoff in Brittany. Including all ship operators, there are now 16 direct
weekly services each way between Rosslare and the European Union, justifying its 'Europort' suffix.

595] Culleybackey, a moving experience: Translink has submitted a planning application to convert the
three level crossings to CCTV, shorten the platform by 40m at the Coleraine end and lengthen it 40m
at the Ballymena end. That would 'move' the station to 36m 35ch which is 2ch closer to Ballymena.

596] Belturbet: This station in County Cavan, close to the Northern Ireland border, was terminus of a
5' 3" gauge 4¼ mile Great Northern Railway (Ireland) branch, OP 29 Jun 1885 from the southeast at
Ballyhaise (on the Clones to Cavan line). It was also the eastern terminus of the 3ft gauge Cavan &
Leitrim Railway (OP 17 Oct 1887). For many years, the station was rather derelict but in 1993 it was
purchased by Belturbet Community Development Association and, from 1996 to 1999, the buildings
were restored. This included the main building and Stationmaster's house, now available to rent.

The station is now a museum. The platform is extant with a short length of 5' 3" track reinstated and
some rolling stock. Belturbet Heritage Railway is now fundraising to purchase 35lb per foot track from
Bord na Móna. They have been offered 1km and intend to start with 100m, expanding to 600m. They
also intend to operate narrow gauge Velocipede rides. €20,000 is required for the track but €1,000 was
raised on the first day. If you need the lines then now is the time to donate, see http://bit.ly/3atSmcJ .
Bord na Móna is supplying wagons to be converted into open sided carriages and has offered 60lb per
foot rail for the broad gauge section. The 5' 3" branch CP 14 Oct 1957 and CG 1 Apr 1959; the narrow
gauge CA 1 Apr 1959. http://bit.ly/3qtrFdV has more. It is hoped to offer rides on both gauges.

The railway has a grey blue Ruston Hornsby narrow gauge engine, purchased in 2018 for €500, and
already owned a broad gauge Ruston Engine, which arrived in the early 1990s from Mallow in Co Cork,
complete with flatbed carriage and a unique Guard's Van. The group also has a wagon, the shell of a
good's van ready for renovation and a Royal Carriage. The scheme looks like a belter of a bet!

BELOW: (Item 596) Belturbet station on 23 Aug 1948. Left is a Cavan &
(ex-Cork, Bandon & South Coast Railway). The other platform face on th

from Clones which went off in the opposite direction, away from

Leitrim (3ft gauge) train for Dromod or Arigna, headed by 2-4-2T No12L
he right served the Great Northern (Ireland) Railway (5' 3" gauge) branch
m the photographer. (Walter Dendy, deceased / CC BY-SA 2.0 )

1371 ISLE OF MAN (Graeme Jolley) [email protected]
597] Horse Tramway: (BLN 1371.447) 100m of recently installed rail has been removed from Central
Promenade after it failed quality control tests. Another 20m could go in May when traffic management
changes so it can be safely assessed. It is a different type of rail (for switches and crossings), from that
used previously. The area, where the double track singles and crosses from the centre of the road to
the promenade, has been infilled to road height as there is no immediate plan to relay it. Although
originally due to be interlaced, it was actually installed as double track, said to be a 'simpler' design.
The Department for Infrastructure said that the work to replace it will be at the contractor's expense.

The Department also insisted that their plans for the Tramway have not changed. Those plans were for
the Tramway to terminate at Broadway by March this year. However, after the 16 Feb Manx budget,
another vote in the IOM Parliament (Tynwald) is needed to release £1.2M funding. Work to continue
the line across the road to the War Memorial and then on to the Sea Terminal will not now go ahead
until after the 23 Sep general election. Despite previous commitments from Ministers and a Tynwald
resolution, this will be a matter for the next administration - reliant on a vote to approve this funding.
So at minimum there will be a significant delay to the southern extension and at worst its cancellation.

Questions have been raised in Tynwald about the current progress and several pointed comments
were made about the planned spend including that, once complete, it will have cost more per mile
than HS2! [But less than the Cairngorm Mountain Railway…] The original £21M budget was to
complete the whole promenade scheme; the Treasury and Government now say that this £1.2M to
extend the tram tracks will be the final amount needed to complete the promenade. Automatic
systems have been considered for signalling and working this crossing. The project team was looking
for a supplier of a holistic tram crossing control, detected by ground loop transponders, and automatic
operation with points triggered by line side tag readers! [Maybe they need a horse named 'Trigger'?]

598] Ramsey Queens Pier: (BLN 1346.597) Restoration work is progressing well; the Trust hopes to
hold a public open day in the summer (date to be fixed) to show off what has been achieved so far and
encourage fundraising. It is hoped that the original 3ft gauge Pier Tramway (31½ch long) stock may be
brought from Jurby to take to the track again. The stock is in full working order except the rail luggage
wagon which is pending axle box attention and, while there is no prospect of passenger workings,
there is every possibility of demonstration runs on the open day. By Mon 22 Feb the track so far relaid
had seen use. A pneumatic tyred luggage trolley is used to carry materials for the Pier reconstruction.

PREVIOUS PAGE BOTTOM: (Item 598) The 3ft
gauge Queens Pier Tramway on the lengthy
Ramsey pier, Sat 26 May 1979; a Society IOM
weekend organised by Angus McDougall. Nigel
Eacock is looking out (Ian Mortimer.)

ABOVE: (Item 597) Site of the recently lifted
defective Horse Tramway track with the level
built up afterwards. (Jenny Williamson, 9 Feb.)

599] Steam Railway: 'F62', one of the
pairs coaches recently returned from Stanegate
Restorations & Replicas, Haltwhistle, on the Big
Island (that's Britain). The return load was 'F63'
going to Stanegate for restoration.

LEFT & NEXT TWO PHOTOS: (Item 599) 'Pairs'
Coach (two original coach bodies now joined
together) 'F63' is loaded at Douglas ready to be
transported to Haltwhistle (Graeme Easton,
Wed 17 Feb 2021 - the first two photos are
courtesy of JCK Transport Ltd via Graeme.)





BELO

OW:

X.41] BELOW: Manx Electric Railway, Wed 24 Feb, Car 33 propels '52' throu
'52' (riding shotgun?) is needed for propelling due to the driver's restricted v

gh Laxey heading for Dhoon, where OHLE is being replaced. The lookout on
vision. NEXT: Stabled north of Bulgham on 22 Feb. (Both Jenny Williamson.)





BELOW: No railways or trains but a view of 'The Calf of Man', a small islan
Looking across Calf Sound, taken by local member Graeme Easton on Mon

nd off the southwest corner of the IOM, on a lovely day earlier this week.
n 22 Feb 2021. (There are no pandemic restrictions within the Island now.)

BELOW: (Item 598) Ramsey Queen's Pier and its 3ft gauge tramway are bei
the BLN 1345.458 photo in Jan 2020. Left is the rail luggage trolley await

ing restored to a high standard, but there is a long way to go! Compare with
ting axle boxes and wheels. (Both Jenny Williamson, Mon 22 Feb 2021.)







1371 SCOTLAND (Mike McCabe) [email protected]

X.42] PREVIOUS PAGE, BOTH: (Item 499) Craigendoran Pier (which had seen better days) was visited
by a Society River Clyde cruise on Mon 26 Aug 1984 (English Bank Holiday). Our second cruise visited it,
and many others, on Sat 24 Aug 1991. In the top picture Greenock is in the distance. (Ian Mortimer.)

600] Electrification: Mast foundation piling has begun between Muirhouse Central Jn and Busby Jn
consistent with reports that Barrhead will be electrified before East Kilbride. NR is consulting on how
passengers would like branch electrification to proceed; an option is one closure of several months.

601] 55 Minutes at Forsinard: By Martin Connop Price. The isolated hamlet of Forsinard consists of
about a dozen cottages on the A897, near the level crossing taking the road over the long, sinuous
single track railway running north from Inverness to Wick and also (reversing at Georgemas Junction)
Thurso. This remote stretch of line through Caithness was built by the Highland Railway, and opened
north of Helmsdale on 28 Jul 1874. It required some substantial civil engineering, with gradients as
severe as 1:60. Passing loops were provided at a number of wayside stations, and line capacity was
further enhanced during WWI, when there was a need to accommodate significant traffic in men and
materials to and from the naval base at Scapa Flow, and other military establishments on the Orkney
Islands. One of the passing loops was installed at Forsinard, and it exists to this day, still in regular use.

By rail the distance from Inverness to Wick is over 161 miles, and the journey usually takes about
230 minutes. Forsinard with 2,866 passengers recorded 2019-20 (a record in recent years) is about
35 miles from the terminus (but 70 minutes as the journey is via Thurso). The station car park with
seven spaces (two accessible) is free incidentally and there are stands for six bicycles! If it is known for
anything it is probably for the nearby RSPB Nature Reserve. Not universally admired by local people,
this Reserve is advertised at the station, but extends over a vast tract (38,000 acres, over 60 square
miles) of nearby peat bog, offering a home to deer and other wildlife, as well as many species of birds.

One day in July, 2016, I arrived at Forsinard on a northbound train, one of the customary ScotRail Class
158 DMUs, and there we waited, and we waited, for a southbound train to pass. As so often in cases of
difficulty and delay, strangers started talking to one another, exchanging extraordinary tales of travel
misfortune. The discussion embraced homes, families, careers and interests, and soon we were
strangers no longer. I found myself talking with a well travelled American couple in their sixties who
lived in Seattle, but adored northern Scotland. They loved it so much that they had already sold both
their home and their business, in the hope of being able to settle in Caithness. Somehow the Brexit
referendum and the implications for immigration seemed irrelevant! I suggested that there was some
wonderful country in Washington State, some of which would resemble Scotland. They smiled, but
made it clear that this wasn't a good option; far too many places in rural America were occupied by
survivalists, and other gun toting 'crazies'. If Donald Trump became President, it would only get worse.

In contrast, whilst some Scots were dour, they were also sensible and straightforward. This year they
had the resources to pursue their dream, and now they were hoping to achieve it. This fascinating
conversation was interrupted by the arrival of the southbound train (another Class 158) which had
really struggled on the long uphill climb from Georgemas Junction. The unhappy DMU appeared about
40 minutes late, emitting a strange and obviously unhealthy rasping sound. The two train crews
promptly conferred, and came up with an enterprising and original plan. They referred their ideas to
Control in Inverness and, as Control had no better proposal, the plan was approved. The waiting
passengers were soon informed. As the sick DMU could not cope with gradients it had been decided to
send it downhill back to Wick, carrying the northbound passengers. Meanwhile the travellers heading
south would transfer to the healthy DMU, quietly confident that their train would be able to manage
the several severe gradients on the line to Inverness. The plan was duly implemented, and the level
crossing at Forsinard then witnessed possibly its busiest moment since the heyday of traffic in WWII.

Indeed, the Dunkirk spirit flourished in adversity, as train crew and numerous others assisted some of
the elderly and disabled. For perhaps 10 minutes the place was thronged with well over a hundred
passengers and their luggage changing trains, before the fit DMU suddenly disappeared towards
Inverness. The Americans from Seattle were impressed: There you are, what a sensible solution!
Meanwhile some of us travelling north just hoped that our DMU could actually complete its journey!

Eventually, about 55 minutes after reaching Forsinard, we set off. By now the delay had provoked
another problem. Some of us wanted to catch the Northlink ferry from Scrabster, near Thurso, to
Stromness on the Orkneys, but there was a real risk that the necessary connections would not be
made. To save time, and to avoid reversal at Georgemas, the conductor arranged for two minibuses to
meet the train at Georgemas Junction to convey travellers directly to Thurso, or to the ferry. Happily
this arrangement worked. Saying a hasty farewell to new found friends, we grabbed our bags at
Georgemas, leapt out of the train, and piled into the appropriate minibus. The driver set off with all
the enthusiasm and verve of Lewis Hamilton, and after one or two heart stopping moments as we
passed through Thurso, we reached the open road to Scrabster. Soon the ship was in sight across the
bay, boarding the last cars in the queue for Stromness. Our minibus zipped around the back of the
queue and dropped us off at the terminal building. Five minutes later, with a sweaty hand clutching a
boarding pass, I ran down the walkway and onto Deck 5 of the good ship 'Hamnavoe'. The doors
promptly closed, and we were off! A ScotRail train may have caused the problem at Forsinard, but at
least ScotRail staff had made a real effort to put matters right, and deserved every credit for doing so.

Next day there was a curious sequel to this. The Scapa Flow Visitor Centre, at Lyness, on the island of
Hoy, can only be reached by ferry from a jetty at Houton, six or seven miles east of Stromness. About
half a dozen of us boarded the morning bus from Stromness to Houton, and all went well until we
were within sight the ferry. Suddenly the bus gave a groan, and gave up. The driver pulled over, looked
at his dashboard, shrugged, and said: That's it. We're done. We need another bus! Once again time was
of the essence, and the intending ferry passengers had to leap off the bus, and run the last half mile to
the jetty. Your contributor was not the youngest or the fastest in this race, but he did get aboard, and
immediately the ramp came up behind him! There were some small military and industrial railways on
the Orkneys, the best remains being at Lyness, but that is really another story, and for another day.

602] Largs: On Fri 5 Feb six landslips in heavy rain blocked the branch (four south of West Kilbride; two
between there and Fairlie). The first was late afternoon about halfway between Ardrossan and West
Kilbride; the slope supporting the single track collapsed. It was supported (just), but troughing and
cables were hanging in the air. The last train was the 16.48 ex-Largs, cautioned to examine the line.

A second major slip occurred just after 22.00 between 38m 52ch and 38m 54ch, south of Fairlie.
Here the slope above the railway collapsed onto the line, burying it for a distance of about 50m. Trees
and an electrification mast were brought down, starting a fire. The incident was detected at the West
of Scotland Signalling Centre through all track circuits showing occupied. Largs trains terminated and
started at Kilwinning on Saturday. From Sun 7 until Tue 8 Feb they ran to Ardrossan South Beach, but
almost at once had to return to Kilwinning so as not to block the Ardrossan Harbour line. Only the
bidirectional former Down line is electrified between Ardrossan (30m 57ch) and Hunterston. The
trailing crossover used by EMUs to reach the Up line is between South Beach and Saltcoats (Ardrossan
South Beach just has one bidirectional platform). After terminating at Kilwinning P1, trains recessed in
the Up Goods Loop before restarting to the normal schedule on to Glasgow, but from P3 (up Ayr).

That resulted in trains from Ardrossan to Kilwinning running 10 and 50 mins apart. On Wed 9 (Largs)
trains from Glasgow stabled ECS on the Largs line beyond Ardrossan South Beach allowing a more
even service. From 10 Feb NR reactivated the disused 8ch long Ardrossan South Beach EMU reversing
siding, so instead of running to Largs, trains could clear the line for Ardrossan Harbour services and
run to the normal (Largs) times both ways between Ardrossan and Glasgow. Passengers hoping to sit
in a warm train in the siding rather than on the platform waiting for the service to Glasgow were
disappointed as drivers were instructed to ensure that the train was empty before entering the siding.

[BLN 1371]
A local member is not sure that Ardrossan South Beach reversing siding has ever been in regular use.
It may be a legacy of the original plan to electrify only as far as Ardrossan and have a diesel shuttle to
Largs. It is on an alignment of its own through the middle of the former triangle. With the OHLE power
isolated it would also be interesting to know if the 'Largs Hum' ceased (BLN 1369.268). EMU 380101
was trapped at Largs and is expected to enjoy a holiday there until 29 Mar, as the landslip at Fairlie is a
'fairly' big job with much material to clear. From 15 Feb Hunterston freight could run under caution
(nuclear flasks ran on 18th Feb). Passenger services were restored to West Kilbride from Mon 22 Feb.

ABOVE: Ardrossan, a Class 08 brings tanks from the Shell Oil Terminal, which was
on the former Caledonian Railway coal yard line. (Ian Mortimer, 9 Apr 1980.)

NEXT PHOTO: Holm Jn, this EMU would normally run to Largs but has terminated in Ardrossan South
Beach platform. Far left across to right is the single line to Ardrossan Harbour, next is the EMU
Reversing Siding (the road is already set for the EMU to run into it), then the bidirectional Up & Down
Largs passenger line and far right is the Up direction Freight line (electrified to 30m 57ch only). The
scrubby ground adjacent to the EMU siding is the site of the former Ardrossan engine shed.
SECOND PHOTO: The Glasgow Central to Ardrossan South Beach service entering the EMU siding.
According to Realtime Trains, this should have been a 7-car service. However, 3-cars were more than
adequate for the 10 passengers alighting at Ardrossan South Beach station. Anything longer than
4-cars looks as though it may obstruct the junction here.

(Both by our local member Chris Hawksworth on a permitted walk.)





BELOW: (item 602) The significant landslip just south of Fairlie station o