2285] Society Officers' Annual Reports & 2022-23 Draft Accounts: These are included with paper BLN and as PDFs with e-BLN, in preparation for our 25 Nov AGM in Preston (BLN 1432.2059). Please note that doors will open at 13.15 rather than the previously indicated 13.00. The final AGM notice with the agenda, along with the draft 2022 (Bo'ness) AGM Minutes are scheduled to be with BLN 1435. In the interests of economy, printed copies will not be available at the AGM. Your Committee encourages as many members as possible to attend, meet the Committee and make your views known formally during the meeting or informally during the break/s and over the AGM weekend. A reminder that any paper subscriber who does not receive a particular BLN edition (or enclosure) should, after a suitable interval, notify membership secretary, Lisa Sheppard, as above, please. This is a very rare occurrence. Sat 28 Oct Midland Venturer main line HST trip 1433 MG OPEN Sun 29 Oct The 5.08 Sunset, Merseyrail EMU railtour 1432 MG FULL Wed 8 Nov *NEW* 16.00/16.30/17.00 Barrow Hill 08308 trips Website MG OPEN Fri 24 Nov *NEW* Manchester Mayfield mid-morning station tour Website MG OPEN Sat 25 Nov *NEW* AGM Ribble Steam Railway 'all line' tour BELOW MG OPEN Sat 25 Nov 2023 Annual General Meeting 13.30 1432 TW OPEN Sat 25 Nov *NEW* AGM buffet & presentation 17.00-21.00 BELOW MG OPEN Sun 26 Nov AGM Blackpool Heritage rare tram & track tour 1432 TBA Claimed Sat 6 Jan 2024 Scunthorpe Cold Steeler 27 (09.30-16.30) 1433 MG OPEN MG = Mark Gomm bookings.officer@branchline.uk 84 Mornington Rd, STOKE-ON-TRENT, ST1 6EL 07983 541887 2286] :Sat 25 Nov 08.00; AGM Ribble Nibble:: (TRACKmaps 4 p30C 2022) Ribble Steam Railway, Chain Caul Rd, Riversway, Preston, Lancashire, PR2 2PD. With thanks to Kev Adlam, join us for an all available lines, pre-AGM exploration of the wonderful Ribble Steam Railway. Traction will be the 4-wheel German built Waggon und Maschinenbau railbus 79960, ideal for branch lines! The day starts at 08.00 with a complimentary breakfast roll and hot drink. We then explore the railway in detail, considering tracks covered during our comprehensive 2015 visit but we may not be able to proceed beyond Strand Road Crossing. The Industrial Heritage Museum will be open. A complimentary heritage bus will be provided by Ribble Vehicle Preservation Trust from Butler St by Preston station at 07.45. When booking, please advise if you intend to use it. The café will be open to purchase lunch after the fixture, time to nibble before the heritage bus at 13.00, setting down near the AGM venue, a short walk to the station. Max 50; Members only, £44 (no reductions for U18 this time). Please book on our website or per BLN 1433.2186. 2287] :Sat 25 Nov 17.00-21.00; AGM Buffet & Presentation:: Following our afternoon AGM, Committee Member and Treasurer, Ian Mortimer, will present another fascinating slide show in the AGM meeting room at historic Cotton Court Business Centre, Church Street, Preston, PR1 3PY (near Preston station). A buffet, consisting of a selection of sandwiches (with vegetarian options), mini-sausage rolls, pork pies, pasta salad and quiche, will be served during an interval from 18.30 until 19.15. The slide show covers a variety of UK main line and industrial locations from the 1970s through to the early 1990s and a whistle stop tour of Europe. Members only, £17.50 (no reductions) to cover the cost of catering and room hire. Number 1434 (Items 2285 - 2380 & MR 195 - MR 201) (E-BLN 111 PAGES) 21 Oct 2023 BRANCH LINE NEWS Praeteritum, praesens et futurum ferriviaria [ISSN 1354-0947] Published 24 times a year by the Branch Line Society; founded 1955. branchline.uk https://www.facebook.com/BranchLineSociety/ Membership queries: Lisa Sheppard membership.secretary@branchline.uk 186 Anlaby membership.secretary@branchline.uk Park Road South, Hull, HU4 7BU. 07873 354464 British Isles news from members; an International section is available. Opinions are not necessarily those of the Compilers or of the Society. ciety. Society. …BLN 1435 is dated Sat 4 Nov; contributions by Wed 25 Oct please
1434 BLN GENERAL (Paul Stewart) bln.editor@branchline.uk 2288]Railway Memories (112); Isle of Man OURS Visit, 3-10 Jul 1964 (Part 1): Thanks to Peter Walker and Nigel Bird (member 952). E-BLN has some photos taken over 59 years ago, when the very run down, museum-like, steam railway was also operational to Peel and Ramsey with much more besides. By chance, your Editor had a two-week holiday on the IOM starting Sat 11 Jul 1964, a different world. Amid numerous passenger service Beeching era withdrawals on the UK mainland in 1964, the situation over the Irish Sea might have looked more positive, except that, under the guise of replacing steam with diesel traction in Northern Ireland, at least one main line would soon cease to run. The fact that Tynwald Day, 5 July, on the Isle of Man was only a week before Orangemen's Day, 12 July, in Northern Ireland gave us (Oxford University Railway Society - OURS) an excuse for a visit to cover both areas' special train workings with as little sea travel as possible. Different OURS members chose to join different stages of these visits; some went back home from the Isle of Man, others came to the Island a few days after the visit began and persevered throughout the Irish section, returning home via Dun Laoghaire and Holyhead, plus the British Railways links. The full itinerary saw a few of us joining the morning IoM Steam Packet boat from Liverpool on Fri 3 Jul 1964, reaching Douglas railway station in good time for the 15.40 to Port Erin, the last Isle of Man Railway train of the day. The station inspector, to my relief, assured us that permission's been granted for us to place the OURS headboard on the diminutive buffer beam of loco N o 10 'G H Wood'. We had checked in to the Port Erin Youth Hostel by 17.00, after our train had terminated 10 minutes late (as was typical). The next morning (Sat 4 Jul), we returned to Douglas by the first train, the 10.35 from Port Erin, again hauled by loco N o 10 but only losing five minutes on its way to Douglas. Loco N o 12 'Hutchinson', hauling our 12 noon connection, took us to Kirk Michael, on the Ramsey line, for a lunch at the café in nearby railway owned Glen Wyllin. [The railway crossed the Glen on a spectacular lofty viaduct.] After dining off railway crockery, we returned as far as St John's by the 14.12 (from Ramsey, its first train of the day!), hauled by loco N o 8 'Fenella'. At St John's, we changed for a Peel connection, scheduled to leave at 14.36 but needing a bit longer to load some meat and a sewing machine, transferred from our previous train. This connection was in the capable hands of Loco N o 5 'Mona', which had earlier run from St John's to Peel with two through coaches from Douglas as a portion of our 12.00 to Ramsey. Incredibly, this was the last train of the day to both Peel and Ramsey! We returned from Peel by the 16.25 to Douglas and then continued by a Manx Electric Railway tram along the east coast of the Island to the Youth Hostel at Laxey for the first of five nights, as there was no hostel in Douglas itself. The next day, 5 Jul 1964, was Tynwald Day but, as it was also a Sunday and parliaments on the Island did not meet on Sundays, we had to wait until the following day to visit St John's and the ceremonies on Tynwald Hill (BLN 1430.1922). Instead, we went to Douglas by Manx Electric and transferred (by horse tram, probably) to the steam railway to join the first local train to Kirk Braddan, where regular Sunday open air church services were held. Hauled by Loco 12 'Hutchinson', it boasted seven coaches, including F75, the Governor's Saloon, in which we rode the mile or so to the destination. As there was no loop there, we had obtained prior permission to stay on board while the train went on to the rarely used Union Mills loop, the first station on the Peel line. The loco duly ran round and then brought us back to Kirk Braddan to wait for the church service to finish. Normally this would occur nearer to midday but, as it began to rain quite heavily just after 11.10, the officiating clergyman brought proceedings to a close and many of the congregation made for the railway and a train back to Douglas. Besides our lengthy train, there were the ex-County Donegal railcars, which had followed us and, being coupled back to back, did not need to reverse. They set off back to Douglas at 11.25 and our steam train followed 15 minutes later - but not before the train personnel had handed each passenger an informative leaflet, detailing the rail services available to them during the rest of their stay on the Island. Opportunistic marketing indeed! The afternoon (presumably) saw us doing various things, mostly around the Manx Electric Railway, with some horse trams along Douglas promenade, perhaps. (I have no note of exactly what did happen.) Anyway, we certainly all made our way back to Laxey in time for an evening meal. [Adapted for BLN from an OURS report with permission, to be continued.]
ABOVE: Douglas looking towards end of line, run down but with four platforms and canopies on 3 Jul 1964. The 15.40 to Port Erin carries the Oxford University Railway Society headboard. (All photos Peter Walker.) BELOW: The bisectional (read it carefully!) 12.00 to Ramsey and Peel at Douglas station on Sat 4 Jul 1964.
ABOVE: St John's the Ramsey 'section' is to the left and the Peel 'section' right; looking east towards Douglas. BELOW: Peel; a large sewing machine, which had come by rail from Ramsey (possibly taken there by lorry) and changed trains at St John's, is loaded into a lorry for final delivery - IOM intermodal transport 1960s style!
ABOVE: Sun 5 Jul 1964 at Douglas, N o 12 with seven coaches on the Kirk Bradden train, all of 1½ miles away. BELOW: At Kirk Braddan, looking towards Douglas with the A1 overbridge ahead. The man is Chris White, from OURS, running ahead to take a photograph.
ABOVE: The ECS continued another mile to Union Mills station for the locomotive to run round. BELOW: Inside the Governor's Saloon (carriage F75) which the OURS party rode in on 5 Jul 1964.
Oxford University Railway Society (OURS), founded in 1931, lasted for over six decades, with various activities on offer, from brakevan trips and railtours to visiting loco sheds, signal boxes, yards etc and photography competitions. It also hosted speakers such as John B Snell, Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway managing director, said to be the smallest main line railway in the world in terms of gauge. OURS had its own library and was even, occasionally, given permission to operate trains themselves, such as on the Radley to Abingdon branch in 1959 and the Oxford to Thame and Princes Risborough line in 1964. Despite unique events such as this, sadly, a lack of interest in the 1990s saw its demise, the final death knell being struck by a committee almost entirely composed of academics in 1996. When Graeme Easton was at Cambridge, he competed against OURS several times in the annual quiz (but hasn't said who won!). Cambridge University Railway Club https://curc.org.uk/ is hanging on by its fingertips and, established in 1911, was the third oldest railway club in the world, after The Railway Club (1899, now defunct) and the Stephenson Locomotive Society (1909). Thus it is now second oldest. 2289] Points & Slips: ●●BLN 1432.2067] Amending Points & Slips (a Double Slip), the 'Blue Train' AM3 EMUs ran off 6.25kV AC OHLE (not 62.5kV!) in Glasgow. The point was installed in the wrong place. ●●1433.2216] This item 'slipped' between the first and second paragraphs of the East West Rail item, 2215. Your Editor tracked this problem down to a faulty computer mouse which has been replaced. 2290] Keeping Track, passenger service suspensions (contributions welcomed by your Editor) *=new BLN Start (incl) Reopens Location (stations'exclusive'if bracketed) Bold = closed now 1434.2374 8 Oct 23 16 Oct 23 *(Pontypridd) - Abercynon - Aberdare/Merthyr Metro work - 16 Oct 23 21 Oct 23 *Greenwich Peninsula -Royal Docks cable car for maintenance 1434.2344 16 Oct 23 21 Oct 23 (Yeovil Pen Mill) - Dorchester Jn track relaying & tunnel work - 21 Oct 23 26 Oct 23 *(Thetford) - Trowse Jn, Wymondham station subway works - 23 Oct 23 27 Oct 23 *(Charlbury) - (Moreton-in-Marsh) Mon - Thur engineering wks 1434.2297 21 Oct 23 30 Oct 23 *London Trams, Croydon, (East Croydon) - Sandilands - .Beckenham Junction/Elmers End/New Adlington 1433.2227 21 Oct 23 30 Oct 23 (Guildford) - (Petersfield) and on 29th to (Havant) resignalling 1430.1883 7 Aug 23 30 Oct 23 Princes Risborough Jn-Aylesbury Jn culvert/HS2 underbridge 1434.2345 6 Nov 23 11 Nov 23 *(Yeovil Junction) - (Axminster) engineering work at four sites 1430.1885 1 Dec 22 4 Nov 23 (Bedford) P1A-(Bletchley) at 16.38 new date (was 2 Oct) - 31 Oct 23 13 Nov 23 *(St Austell) - (St Erth) and Truro - Falmouth Docks resignalling - 6 Nov 23 *(Liskeard) - St Austell - (St Erth) & Par - Newquay resignalling 1432.MR184 25 Aug 23 ? Nov 23 *Cairngorm Mountain Railway for tensioning of scarf joints - 11 Nov 23 18 Nov 23 *Shalford Jn, (Guildford) - (Reigate) North Downs Line works 1432.2177 2 Sep 23 3 Dec 23 Dovey Jn - Pwllheli for work on the real Barmouth Bridge 1433.2274 15 Nov 23 4 Dec 23 Ebbw Vale Town - Maindee East & West Jn; redoubling work 1434.2345 25 Nov 23 11 Dec 23 *Wilton Jn, (Salisbury) - Yeovil Jn relaying/embankment works 1421.947 29 Apr 23 Feb 24 Pontypridd N Jn - Treherbert plus other intermittent closures 1434.2363 25 Sep 23 unknown (Prestwick Town) - (Girvan) and (Kilmarnock) - Barassie Jn 1432.2141.1 29 Aug 23 unknown West Midland Metro; Wolverhampton St George's branch until Sat 16 Sep closure was from (The Royal) tram stop - 10 Oct 23 unknown *Luton Airport Parkway - Airport DART due to car park fire 1434 EAST MIDLANDS (Nick Garnham) east-midlands-news@branchline.uk 2291]Rectory Jn:(TRACKmaps 4 p13B 2022)(Nottingham to Grantham line, before Radcliffe)Work has started here on a new two road shed and a third siding has been laid. Now in use by Colas for stabling, this site was previously a rail served oil distribution depot for Total. It is the stub of the Great Northern Railway Derbyshire Extension Line and was part of the once extensive Colwick Yards closed in 1970. 2292] Swinderby: On the Newark to Lincoln line east of the station, the trailing crossover (24m 70ch), which was previously out of use, has been recovered. Resignalling is now expected from 30 Jun 2024.
2293] Lenton Curve: This, and the Down Nottingham Slow with its jointed track, was covered in both directions on Sat 14 Oct by 'The Hadrian' run by the Railway Touring Company from Derby, Long Eaton, Beeston then Ilkeston, Alfreton and Chesterfield. The tour also did the Down Shipley slow via Skipton P4; there are no booked passenger departures west towards Hellifield from P4. Norwood Jn to Low Fell Jn (the 'Low Fell Single' and 'Low Fell' lines avoiding the Royal Mail Terminal) was included. 1434 GREATER LONDON (Geoff Brockett) london-news@branchline.uk 2294] Wimbledon Area Signalling Centre: Our member Peter Mallory has supplied a report of a Southern Electric Group visit on 21 Sep, advertised in BLN, with several society members participating. An enthusiastic group of eight convened at Wimbledon station to visit the signalling centre on a wet and windy Thursday. Despite our guide expecting us to be a party of Norwegians(Norway!)who arrived later, we were made very welcome by NR; James Denny provided an interesting, comprehensive tour. We started in the small museum of artefacts with an eclectic selection of signal and general railway ephemera (including displays from the old Waterloo signal box), then moved into the control centre. The main section dating from 1990 is divided into four panels; a fifth separate panel on the far left side is known as 'the pit', as the operator is lower down and cannot be seen from the main operating floor. Panel 1 controls Waterloo P1-14 and the main lines to Queenstown Road. Panel 2 controls Waterloo P15-24 and the Windsor Lines to Wandsworth Town. The two panels have extensive interworking. James explained how the interlocking requires some routes to be set by both panels before the starting signal will clear. This was said to be the most difficult panel to operate and new recruits are normally taught Panel 2 last of all. Panel 3 has Clapham Junction as its main feature. Up Main P8 cannot be used for stopping trains except in an emergency due to the large gap. Some of us remember alighting there from slam door stock without an issue but such is progress. The panel also controls the start of the West London and Ludgate Lines used by London Overground and freight trains. Panel 4 takes in the Main Lines to the interface with Woking Area Signalling Centre beyond New Malden, plus the various suburban branches including to Chessington South with its freight terminal (reopened 10 Dec 2021), the Epsom area and Kingston Loop towards Norbiton. Panel 5 is the newest addition to Wimbledon control area. Installed in 1997 to replace the box at Barnes, it used to interface at the west on both the Richmond route and Hounslow Loop with Feltham Area Signalling Centre but the signalling at the latter has recently migrated to Basingstoke ROC. Due to the age of the panels, the Automatic Route Setting equipment is mostly no longer operational (only the Overground routes at Clapham Junction are worked this way). As a result, while the Fast Lines can generally look after themselves, each of the branches requires a manual intervention to correctly route each train. The system does generate a suggested platform destination at Waterloo for each Up train as a useful aide-mémoire. As well as the reporting code, a two digit platform number appears on the diagram but this can be overridden by the signaller. The Thameslink services that pass outside the signalling centre on the St Helier Lines do not show on the diagram as they are controlled by Three Bridges ROC. It is only when a service is being directed to or from this route at Wimbledon West Jn that the relevant section of the diagram illuminates. It is remarkable how many level crossings are controlled here. Most are 'high risk', so the signaller has to observe that the crossing is clear before releasing the route. Out of Wimbledon station, the London Underground District line is controlled by Wimbledon ASC to East Putney. Unlike National Rail, LUL trains maintain the same set number throughout the day. Rather than working to the timetable, LUL staff notify the panel by depressing the 'Train Ready To Start' button and the signaller then sets the route and clears the signals. There are timetabled South Western Railway services over the District line route to East Putney, rejoining or leaving National Rail via the now bidirectional single track connection to Point Pleasant Jn. Access to Wimbledon Depot is also required via this routeing, which can delay LUL trains, especially as National Rail trains are restricted to a slightly lower speed.
Inside the main operating room is another railwayana collection, mostly totem/target station signs, on long term loan from a signaller there. We felt welcomed by the whole friendly team, an excellent visit. 2295] Greenford Branch: (BLN 1420.713) On 10 Oct two charging points were noted installed at track level in West Ealing bay P5. However, they had not yet been connected to a power source. 2296] HS2: (BLN 1429.1723) As part of the cutback of HS2, responsibility for construction of the station at Euston is to be removed from HS2 Ltd and the £6.5bn expected cost will be spent on transport projects in other parts of the country. A Euston Development Zone company will be set up with powers to construct the station, thousands of homes and new business opportunities. This will be modelled on the Battersea Power Station development with its associated station. Press reports suggest that this scheme will be wholly dependent on private funding and, if this is not forthcoming, the line will not be built beyond Old Oak Common. The new station is now down to six platforms (was 11 originally, reduced to 10 in 2020), which could prove inadequate for the required service levels. WCR operated an unusual train on 29 Sep formed of 33207 and 33029 'top&tailing' inspection saloon 999506. It conveyed staff from various companies assessing the feasibility of diverting GWR trains into Euston or Waterloo when the GWML is closed to construct Old Oak Common station. The route: ECS Southall Depot - Maidenhead P4 then, with passengers, to Euston P11 - Acton Yard - Waterloo P17 - with rare use of the connection from the West London Line into North Pole depot - Kensington (Olympia) P2 - Hayes & Harlington Up bay P5. The empty stock then returned to Southall Depot. (TRACKmaps 3 p3A 2018 & 2023) The trailing crossover between the Relief Lines at 3m 61ch will be taken out of use over the Christmas period to make way for track remodelling for Old Oak Common station. There are no booked moves over the crossover and it is not included in any operational contingency plan. A replacement facing crossover will be available from 2027. 2297] London Trams (Croydon): (BLN 1430.1856) 21-29 Oct (inclusive - half term) service is suspended from East Croydon to Elmers End/Beckenham Junction/New Addington due to engineering work. 2298] Industrial Action: (BLN 1433.2201) The 4 & 6 Oct LU strikes were suspended at the last minute following successful negotiations at ACAS. Agreement has been reached on the main elements of the dispute, although the RMT remains in dispute over some matters. 1434 NORTH EAST & YORKSHIRE (Geoff Blyth) north-east-news@branchline.uk 2299] Here Today, Gone Tomorrow OR Now You See It, Now You Don't! In the Government's hasty announcement on the cancellation of HS2 to Manchester, one compensating project listed for the North East was reopening of the Leamside Line (Ferryhill - Pelaw). However, by the next day it had vanished from the government website - the shortest lived railway 'project' ever? Transport Minister Richard Holden said it had only committed to 'looking into' the scheme. Furthermore, any decision to reopen the line 'could be made by local leaders', using the £1.8bn granted to the North East. At today's prices, even the entire £1.8bn would probably be insufficient for this one line which is 21 miles long. 2300] Northumberland Line: ❶For passenger reopening, signalling will be controlled by Bedlington South box, which has to remain as it controls a level crossing which cannot be automated as it is very close to a road junction. (It was originally intended to transfer all control to Tyneside ROC.) Bedlington South will interface with Tyneside ROC at Northumberland Park and with Morpeth box between Choppington and Hepscott, as now. The Morpeth line is signalled to passenger standards, so available for diversions. Supervision of Choppington AHB crossing moves from Bedlington North to Bedlington South. Newsham, Bedlington North and Marchey's House boxes plus North Seaton gate box will be abolished. Winning Junction and Freemans boxes (North Blyth branch) plus Hurst Lane gate box (past Ashington, to Lynemouth) are not closing, being outside the passenger line upgrade. It is understood that Winning will have a block indicator to Freemans and fringe arrangements with Bedlington South. ❷(BLN 1418.449.3) Lynemouth Power Station has restarted generating, so presumably this is now economical. The first biomass train since 27 May came from the coal-less Tyne Coal Terminal on 6 Oct. ❸Ground stabilisation seems to have started at Northumberland Park, the only station where work hadn't started. The road in front of the Metro stop entrance is now occupied by contractor's cabins.
BELOW: Winning Junction box from the crossing, North Blyth to the left, the a
actual junction is the other way. (Rodger Wilkinson 28 Sep 2023 and next two.)
BELOW: In the other direction, Winning Jn; Newcastle straight on; the curve
e, right, to Ashington has no booked traffic (Wot no weedkiller train even?).
BELOW: (Item 2300.3) The site of the new bidirectional Northumberland Line platform at Northumberland Park on 28 Sep 2023. The inhabitants of those maisonettes won't have far to go to catch a train! The T&W Metro line and platform is bottom left corner .
ABOVE: (Item 2301) Newcastle east end in 1960. The 4EPB class EMU departs for South Shields over High Level Bridge (left). P8 (then) is above the third carriage. A BR 9F 2-10-0 waits on the Down Goods line for a path north. Note the ex-NER J71 0-6-0T station pilot far right and the triple crossing below the first carriage of the EMU. Anyone fancy building an OO gauge model? (Ben Brooksbank.) BELOW: Aerial view looking east; the west end bays are lower left. The goods lines are along the right.
2301] Newcastle Central: BLN 1430.1865.2 remarked on platform capacity being mitigated by the bay P11 extension, enabling its use by trains which had to use through platforms before. It may be worth explaining how the station has changed since the lines to Blyth etc CP from 2 Nov 1964. Prior to the Metro opening, there was a frequent suburban service to the east, in particular the Tyneside Loop to the coast via Wallsend and via Jesmond (the 'via' designations in passenger timetable), as well as some Riverside Loop (infrequent), also to Sunderland and to South Shields. The coast lines were electrified 600V DC third rail in 1904 and the South Shields branch in Mar 1938. The need to renew life expired infrastructure and stock resulted in de-electrification; South Shields in 1963 and the coast line in 1967. [60 years is a good life span for conductor rail with head wear also the cables and lineside equipment.] Carlisle passenger services used to run from Blaydon via Scotswood and along the north bank of the River Tyne to the west end bays (the Paradise Branch is all that remains of it). King Edward Bridge South Jn to Blaydon (the present route) was a freight line with occasional Sunday diversions. Newcastle Central east end had eight bays, on what is now the car park, seven passenger platforms and an unnumbered 'Horse Dock' north of P1 [Perhaps for trains to Bay Horse, south of Lancaster?] P1-3, with their own entrance and ticket office, were used for North Tyneside and some Riverside Loop services. That office still exists and has been used for various purposes over the years. It is now a cocktail bar called appropriately 'Tickets'. P4-7 were used by Sunderland, Middlesbrough, South Shields and the few Morpeth trains. The present bay P1 was P7, which usually handled Middlesbrough trains and sometimes local or semi-fast trains to Edinburgh in the late 1970s and early 1980s. After Tyneside Loop services ended (Newcastle to Tynemouth via Jesmond 23 Jan 1978; Newcastle to Tynemouth via Wallsend 11 Aug 1980) for conversion to the T&W Metro, P1-3 were no longer used, so the roof was removed and the platforms filled in for car parking during the late 1980s. P4-7 were still used by Sunderland, Middlesbrough and Morpeth trains. There were only three through platforms in Nov 1964; P8-10 (present P2-4). However, in Nov 1964 there were only eight weekday daytime trains each way between Newcastle and Berwick/Edinburgh and two were local/semi-fast. No cross-country or trans-Pennine trains ran north of Newcastle and local trains started/terminated there, so ECML services were the only ones to run through the station. (This included the Leeds to Aberdeen 'North Briton' and an overnight Colchester to Glasgow train.) There were seven bay platforms at the west end, P11-17. From the early 1960s, P15-17 were only used by parcels trains. During the 1980s they were infilled for staff car parking use. In the late 1970s/early 1980s, P11 was used for Hexham/Carlisle trains (occasionally P12) and P13&14 for parcels trains. The connections from P1-P7 to the High Level Bridge crossed the ECML on the flat at the east end of the station in a very complex set of curved fixed diamond crossings, claimed to be the 'greatest' such crossing in the world. (Members will no doubt suggest other claimants!) Present day NR engineers would probably tear their hair out at the number of bespoke crossings this required.
PREVIOUS: 25'' map; Newcastle Central east end in the 1950s. https://bit.ly/3LVLaZ0 (10¾ min) gives a fascinating view of relaying the crossings in 1949 and their pre-assembly at Hadfields Ltd in Sheffield. The end of Tyneside Loop services enabled removal of many of the diamond crossings leading to the High Level Bridge (bottom right). Much of this was done in 1988-89 - remodelling and resignalling for ECML electrification. The new P5-8 were built between 1989 and 1991, either side of the wall on the south side of the train shed. P5/6 were on the site of the five parcels sidings south of the former P10. P7/8 were on the site of two of the four goods lines south of the train shed wall. The bridge accessing them was designed to look old and similar to the existing bridge to the former P9& 10. As the trains using these platforms are relatively short, the platform faces were divided (P5/6 north side and P7/8 south side), providing four numbered platforms. Once these new platforms opened in 1991 there was no need for the former P4-6, so they were also infilled during 1991/92 and the car park extended. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdLW3h9yY-s (video) shows views of the east end over the years. 2302] Our First High Speed Line: We are now celebrating the 40th anniversary of the opening of the UK's first purpose built high speed line, the East Coast Main line (ECML) from Temple Hirst Jn to Colton Jn. High speed lines are defined internationally as ones fit for speeds over 200kph (124mph, so it just scrapes in by 1mph!). Apparently in the episode of 'The Architecture the Railways Built' that includes the line, an engineer claims the alignment is suitable for 170mph. That seems not unreasonable; after all, much of the line between York and Darlington, opened in 1841, is said to be suitable for 140mph. In the 1970s, the ECML ran from Doncaster to York via Selby. Almost all of the section between Barlby North Jn (where the line to Hull diverged at Selby) and Chaloners Whin Jn (before York where the line from Church Fenton converged), which OA 2 Jan 1871, was passed for 100mph running. In the late 1970s, when the new Selby Coalfield was planned, it became clear that there would be considerable implications for the ECML. Mining beneath the route around Barlby and Riccall would have caused serious subsidence and hence no doubt severe speed restrictions. The National Coal Board (NCB) was faced with the prospect of leaving thousands of tonnes of coal in place to support the line. This would have cost it some £500-£800M but a new line would cost about £60M (=£425M now). This sounds unbelievably cheap in comparison with HS2 for about 14 miles of line but, quite apart from the much lower prices in those days, it had the advantage of running through flat agricultural land with no centres of population and only one structure of any note - the Ryther Viaduct over the River Wharfe. The NCB therefore agreed to fund a new line from Temple Hirst Jn to Colton Jn. It was a considerable bonus for the railway as it also bypassed the 40mph restricted Selby Swing Bridge, at no cost to British Rail. Naburn Bridge, over the River Ouse further north, had once been a swing bridge. The boilers that powered it were kept in steam until 1954, when it was clear that the bridge no longer needed to open. Parliamentary authority was therefore obtained to fix it permanently. This was done in 1967 and the control cabin on top of the bridge removed. Some sources state that the NCB agreed to fund just a 'like for like replacement' of the line. Presumably this didn't mean an artificial 40mph curve (!) but that they were not prepared to fund grade separated junctions etc but that would still have been cheaper than leaving coal in the ground. It is hard to see how a lower speed line would have meant lower cost. The first section, from Hambleton East Jn to Colton Jn was commissioned on 10 Apr 1983 and officially opened 16 May 1983. However, according to BLN 467, p134/83 47A, York - Hull trains used the line before this; there was one on 7 May and there may have been even earlier ones. Barlby North Jn - Chaloners Whin Jn was taken OOU on 25 Sep 1983 and Chaloners Whin Jn was severed. All ECML services were diverted via Askern Jn (then, now Shaftholme Jn) to Knottingley. According to BLN 477, p250/83 2A, contrary to expectations, Temple Hirst Jn - Hambleton North Jn OA on Fri 30 Sep 1983 (officially 2 Oct) and the Askern diversions booked that weekend did not take place. [Now it would be a long blockade.] After closure, the ballast from the former Selby to York direct line ended up under Clifton Moor Retail Park. The alignment between Barlby North Jn and Riccall is now occupied by the A19 and onwards to Askham Bar (a short distance south of Chaloners Whin) is a Sustrans cycle path. https://tinyurl.com/2earmj4c (click 'browse') has views of Naburn bridge and a recreation of the ECML. This one is where the line goes under Bishopthorpe bridge, south of York: https://tinyurl.com/4zfsjrca
BELOW: (Item 2303) Morpeth, the 07.52 Aberdeen to King's Cross crosses Up M
Main to Down Main P2. (All Mark Fishlock, who avoided the buses, 11 Oct 2023.)
BELOW: The 11.23 Edinburgh to King's Cross Lumo crosses from the Down to
Up and calls at Morpeth P2. INSET: Only one London departure in two hours.
ABOVE: The Up side of Plessey Viaduct is down after the parapet collapse. (Social Media.) BELOW: The 12.00 Morpeth to Newcastle coach which left with two passengers, both rail staff! (Mark Fishlock, 11 Oct 2023.)
2303] Morpeth: On Sat 7 Oct, when track was removed from Plessey Viaduct to relay the Up line, it was found that the concrete slabs supporting the Up side parapet had moved, part of it later collapsed into the river. The viaduct (12m 17ch to 12m 23ch) carries the ECML over the River Blyth, south of Morpeth station. The work was cancelled and solutions were examined to secure the Viaduct on the Down side and protect the OHLE spans. Buses were in use already between Newcastle and Morpeth and arrangements were made to open Bedlington North, Bedlington South and Newsham boxes the next day for possible diversions via the Blyth & Tyne (B&T), with all Northern local services to Morpeth cancelled. As a precaution, buses were booked for Mon 9 and Tues 10 Oct. The only B&T diversions on Sun 8 Oct were two engineers' trains from possessions further north on the ECML On Mon 9th Oct only the Down line was available, with the installed Simplified Bidirectional Signalling (SIMBIDS) between Plessey Crossovers (11m 51ch) and Morpeth Jn (16m 50ch). The facing crossover at the latter is used by traffic/railtours off the B&T towards Newcastle. Fortunately, the initial 10mph restriction on the Viaduct was soon eased to 50mph. Service pattern: ●LNER - 2tph (trains per hour), ●Cross-Country - 1tph, ●TPE - no services north of Newcastle, ●Lumo - all run ●Northern - all services withdrawn except the morning and evening Chathill trains. As the facing crossover at Morpeth is actually in the station, Up trains use the Down P2 but only part of it at the southern end. As the trains do not have selective door opening in operation, only short trains could call in the Up direction, two Cross-Country services, all Lumo trains and the solitary morning Northern service from Chathill. Trains have run quite well with no major delays. The only identified B&T diversion was 12.26 from Joppa Straight (at Portobello Jn, TRACKmaps 1 p11A 2021) to York (National) Railway Museum, WCR ECS on Wed 11 Oct. NR expects normal running to resume Mon 6 Nov. It is unlikely there will be many B&T diversions as this would conflict with work for passenger reopening to Ashington next summer. 2304] Kirkburton: (Map BLN 1433.2203) The branch was OA by the London & North Western Railway (L&NWR) on 7 Oct 1867; it ran 4m 566yd from Kirkburton Jn on their main line between Manchester and Leeds. Sufficient land was acquired to allow for double track, although mostly only one was laid. It had been intended to extend the line to Barnsley but it never progressed beyond Kirkburton. The present Deighton station (OP 26 Apr 1982) is on the main line at the former Kirkburton Jn but the original Deighton station was just round the corner on the branch only, north of Whitacre Street; it OP later on 1 Sep 1871. The branch was two tracks to Deighton signal box, 313yd from Kirkburton Jn. About ¼ mile further south, the branch to the ICI Dalton works (originally owned by British Dyes Ltd) diverged on the west side; it probably opened during WWI. The layout past Deighton box was peculiar. It appeared to be double track but the branch proper was on the east side with a through siding to the west. Where the ICI line diverged, there was a facing crossover from the branch, controlled by a ground frame. Any train using this crossover to access the ICI line would need the branch staff. It is a mystery why this access was provided as the train could surely have used the through siding without needing the staff. The dye works had an extensive internal railway https://maps.nls.uk/view/125645996 [and no doubt a colourful history - the workforce there all dyed to live and lived to dye]. The Kirkburton branch CP 28 Jul 1930; it was traversed by the 6 Sep 1964 RCTS 'West Riding' tour and CA 4 Apr 1965 past the dye works. Kirkburton Jn box was abolished 20 Sep 1970,with resignalling from Huddersfield to Heaton Lodge Jn. However, on 31 Jan 1971 the final train ran from the ICI dye works (BLN 185 p115) but BLN 244, p23 has 1 Feb 1971 and gives 12 Dec 1971 for the date the junction was taken out of use. Kirkburton Jn box was demolished week commencing 13 Dec 1971 (weekly notices). 2305] Shipley: An 101 page Environmental Impact Assessment has been submitted to Bradford Council for the depot at the Crossley Evans Scrapyard site (TRACKmaps 2 p41 2020; BLN 1406.1889). It is needed to stable stock when Neville Hill has reduced capacity due to its partial closure during 2026 and into 2027 for the Trans-Pennine Upgrade (BLN 1431.1976). The last train of scrap left here on Fri 24 Jun 2016 (to Cardiff Tidal Sidings); the connection was severed by 30 Sep 2016. Shipley Depot will have a 4-road shed, each track will hold a 4 car EMU. A 275kV cable and a sewer need to be diverterd. A 'Northern Siemens Office' is included. The depot may be permanent, to serve the Airedale (Skipton) and Wharfedale (Ilkley) EMU routes. NEXT: Depot plan (NR), Bradford FS off bottom, Shipley off top.
2306] The Oldest Station Building in the World: When the Stockton & Darlington Railway (S&DR) opened in 1825, there was no such concept as a railway station (or even that dreaded Americanism train station!). The Company commissioned a pub at Aycliffe Lane (now Heighington, BLN 1377.1351) in 1826-27, which it owned (BLN 1415.61). Its original purpose was as a tavern to provide shelter and refreshment for workers and customers at the adjacent coal and goods depot. For a long time, the building was thought to date from the mid-1830s. It was given a Grade II listing in 1980 in recognition of its role within the early development of the S&DR. However, research by 'Friends of the S&DR' and Historic England has established that it was completed in 1827. A Sep 1827 newspaper report shows it was fulfilling the main functions of what later came to be recognised as a railway station; a stopping point for trains, a building providing shelter for passengers and a receiving point for unaccompanied parcels and goods being transported by rail. There is even evidence of its being used by someone commuting to work! It is therefore considered to be the earliest surviving station building in the world, although it was not officially referred to as a station building until the late 1830s. It has now been upgraded to Grade II* by the Department for Culture, Media & Sport on the advice of Historic England. More recently it was the 'Locomotion One' pub, commemorating where 'Locomotion N o 1' first took to the rails, after arriving from Newcastle in pieces on horse drawn carts for assembly (BLN 1415.61). Sadly, the pub has been closed for a long time, is in poor internal condition and was put up for sale in 2017. Hopefully, its enhanced status means that greater attention will now be paid to its preservation. The earliest surviving station building in the world still in use as a station seems to be either Hexham (1835), although the building has been much altered and extended, or Edge Hill (15 Aug 1836), which probably has the better claim, as being unaltered. It is not certain when Earlestown station opened, the railway there opened on 17 Sep 1830 but the building dates from the late 1830s. 2307] Hartlepool: (BLN 1433.2207) No sooner did we say that no trains with precast tunnel segments for HS2 had run by 4 Oct, than route learning specials began! 09.36 Tees Dock (FHH) to Hartlepool PD Ports 10.39½/11.49½; Tees Dock 13.22 on 2&4 Oct. On the return it was booked via Eaglescliffe (rev) and Stockton (rev), presumably to provide route knowledge of all three sides of the Hartburn triangle. [where Gaviscon may be useful.] FHH drivers may not know Stockton Cut Jn to Hartburn Jn (64ch)! 1434 NORTH WEST (John Cameron) north-west-news@branchline.uk (Some items here are repeated updated from e-BLN 1433 because they were not in paper BLN 1433.) 2308] Great [expense] Musgrave: (BLN 1431.1986) This infamous overbridge has been closed to road traffic for 13 weeks while 1,600 tonnes of totally unnecessary stone and concrete were removed from under and around it. This was to comply with an enforcement notice (deadline 11 Oct) after National Highways arranged infilling under emergency powers which expired after 12 months. They were then refused retrospective planning permission for the infilling to be made permanent. The revelation is that the road has reopened without any weight restriction or any strengthening being needed. National Highways claimed the infill had been needed because the bridge was being overloaded and that works were required to prevent the failure of the bridge and avert a collapse. As recently as six weeks earlier, they claimed that strengthening would be needed. However, after a new capacity assessment had been completed, the company admitted that its 'refurbishment work' - which has only involved localised re-pointing and repairs to stonework damage caused by excavation of the concrete infill - will remove the need for a weight restriction, restoring the bridge to full capacity. The removal of the infill without any strengthening means that the bridge retains its gauge and it will be possible to relay the track under it in future, to reconnect Warcop and Kirkby Stephen East. Infilling cost £124,000 originally. £431,000 was set aside to remove it and strengthen the bridge; the actual cost of removal and the minor refurbishment has not been revealed. If anyone would like more details of this waste of public money (with six images), by email only, please email: bln.editor@branchline.uk 2309] Ellesmere Port - Helsby: (BLN 1432.2108) Hooton to Helsby, now down to two trains a day each way SuX past Ellesmere Port and first in line for cancellation, once had half-hourly DMUs to/ from Rock Ferry (and before that, roughly hourly Birkenhead Woodside services). A member wonders if this is the most dramatic reduction in service, other than by complete withdrawal, in modern times.
ABOVE: (Item 2310) Wigan Wallgate waiting room Passenger Information Display on Headbolt Lane's first day. LEFT: Opening day tickets, note that they are valid from/to Wigan North Western or Wigan Wallgate. All images in this section by member Tim Hall Smith on Thur 5 Oct 2023. Tim and Liz's interesting website: www.theghoststationhunters.smugmug.com
BELOW: (Item 2310) A Northern DMU in Headbolt LanNEXT: P3 again, the track left is the headshunt for trains of compacted house
e P3 on opening day, looking towards the buffer stops. ehold waste for incineration to reverse in/out of Knowsley Freight Terminal.
BELOW: The third rail-less P1 (left) & P2; P2 aligns with P3 track the other sid
e of the fence but the chances of them ever being reconnected are very slim.
BELOW: Hopefully the Class 777/1 units have been fitted
d with three dimensional batteries rather than flat ones.
2310] Headbolt Lane: (BLN 1424.1248) (TRACKmaps 4 p40A 2022) Kirkby to Rainford, closed to passengers since Fri 7 Apr 2023, reopened from start of service Thur 5 Oct 2023. The new, £80M+, Headbolt Lane station at 28m 55ch also opened that day, initially with just hourly Merseyrail Class 777/1 EMUs to/from Liverpool Central, reportedly running on battery to/from Fazakerley (with some cancellations). Between Kirkby and Liverpool, they were supplemented by hourly EMUs. (Kirkby had a reduced half-hourly service to create half-hourly ECS driver training paths between Walton Jn and Headbolt Lane, which continued until 6 Oct but didn't always run.) It is intended to build up to a 15-min frequency and, from 12 Oct, Headbolt Lane to Central became half-hourly with no extras from Kirkby.Hourly Northern DMUs run to Headbolt Lane with one minute (XX.38/XX.39) 'connections' between the two towards Liverpool, often missed (better the other way)! Passenger trains run through Kirkby for the first time since the line was severed for the 18 May 1977 timetable. The Society was well represented at Headbolt Lane on its opening day. One member was curious to see if he could purchase a ticket from the Northern ticket machine at Wigan Wallgate to the new station and was pleased to find that he could. The return was valid to/from either Wigan station - the route from Wigan NW could be debatable! He caught the 10.12 departure (08.25 ex-Blackburn via Manchester Victoria) to Headbolt Lane. Wallgate passenger information screens (PIS) still showed it terminating at Rainford. A poster at the customer information point window on P1 still said that rail replacement buses were operating, with no confirmed opening date for Headbolt Lane. It was a 4-car DMU, 156429 (front) + 150128 (rear). The on board PIS showed it as the 10.12 to Rainford. Luckily the guard announced that the train was going to Headbolt Lane station and today was its first day in use. At stops the guard had to manually open the Class 150 doors that were platformed from the outside. Arrival at Headbolt Lane was into the Wigan end P3 (TRACKmaps 4 p40A 2022) from which a short path leads to Merseyrail P1 & 2. It was odd to see no electric third rail alongside the tracks. The main station building on P1 has a double ticket window office and a ticket machine but no PIS. A discovery was that the machine sells tickets to Teesside Airport where no trains have called since 24 Apr 2023! The new platforms have waiting shelters and contractors were attaching bins to the fences. The overall impression was that the station is very well laid out, although some landscaping and car park finishing work was needed. Merseyrail had laid on a relief coach which both arrived and left empty. Another member went to Headbolt Lane from Liverpool Central, where the tunnel wall route maps showed an unnamed station 20 mins away. In some cases, it appeared there had been an unsuccessful attempt to remove a sticker covering up the station name. By chance, the same day at about 07.30, 777008 on an ECS working ran into the buffer stops at Rock Ferry bay P3. The unit was superficially damaged and the buffer stops more so. A temporary buffer stop was erected by 15.30 and the platform then returned to use. It occurs to your Editor that Sandhills would be a nice place for a bay. 2311] Smardale Gill Viaduct is smarter: (BLN 1430.1973) Resurfacing is complete. The next stage is repair and restoration of the stonework, planned to start in late spring. Listed planning permission is required from Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, as is a survey of any local protected species that might be affected by the work. Any lesser spotted gricers in the area, make yourself known. 2312] Windermere: On Sat 16 Sep, twenty seven of the thirty three branch trains were cancelled, the reason given was 'a member of train crew being unavailable'. Question: How can one unavailable person cause this many cancellations in one day; did they mean a member on each cancelled service? Passengers could use Northern tickets on TPE services between Oxenholme and Manchester Airport or between Oxenholme and Liverpool Lime Street as well as Avanti services between Oxenholme and Preston. No rail replacement buses were provided for Windermere branch stations. Passengers were just advised not to travel, or if they insisted on doing so, to use the local bus service, with ticket acceptance NOT in place. This was in the context of four cancellations on Monday 11 Sep, three on Tuesday 12th , two on Wednesday 13th and seven on Friday 15th during the week before. Bus services are at least hourly during core hours, serving Staveley and changing vehicles in Kendal but not with any specific connections, and there are no very early or evening buses between Oxenholme and Kendal. Burneside would be much more awkward, with less frequent services just from Kendal.
2313] Metrolink: ❶A MediaCityUK to Etihad Campus 'peak' service was restored from Mon 25 Sep, following completion of engineering works between Eccles and Weaste (which was closed Sat 15 Jul until Thur 21 Sep inclusive for relaying). Metrolink 'peak' is 07.00-20.00 SSuX and 09.00-18.00 SO, when the service runs every 12 mins. The Eccles to Ashton-under-Lyne service runs as normal but without reversing at MediaCityUK during 'peak' times. This means there will be a six min frequency at 'peak' times between Harbour City and Etihad Campus. Passenger numbers between Etihad Campus and MediaCityUK have recently returned to pre-pandemic levels. Core service hours are unaffected, with trams operating from 06.00-00.00* Mon-Thur, 06.00-01.00 (next day) FSO and 07.00-00.00 SuO. The result is that the MediaCityUK - Broadway curve becomes rarer with off-peak use only, while the Harbour City - Broadway curve avoiding MediaCityUK has a much improved service; until Sun 24 Sep only the first four trams of the day to Eccles, and the last four from Eccles, were booked to use it. *Metrolink refer to midnight as 00.00 but West Midlands Metro use 24.00. According to one member, British Rail used 00.00 in Working Timetables as it is followed by 00.01 but advertised this as 23.59 in Public Timetables. Another member advises that when British Railways became British Rail in 1964 and first introduced the 24-hour clock, midnight arrivals were to be shown as 24.00 and departures as 00.00. When this member later became a train planner, midnight was not shown at all in the public timetables but train planning systems showed it as 00.00 (only) in online systems and WTTs. Public departures are always shown as 23.59. Public arrivals are 00.01 if final or separate arrival times. So, before anyone asks, no, they didn't ever show a train departing from a station before it had arrived. BR specifically announced that, to avoid confusion, they would not use midnight as a public time. ❷On the Bury Line criminal incidents caused over 22 hours of disruption from Jan to Aug 2023, making it the most prevalent reason for disruption. In terms of hours of disruption, three OHLE issues caused 87 hours of disruption, 80 attributed to the Manchester Victoria incident in Jun. A further four hours of disruption were caused by four points failures. Other incidents were categorised as tram faults, driver error, electrical error and signal error. Interventions are being made over the next two years to improve the service, including extra security patrols and CCTV. The context is that the Bury line has over 6,000,000 journeys every year, with 94% of services arriving within two minutes of time. ❸From 24 Sep penalty fares for ticketless travel increased from £100 to £120 (£60 if paid within two weeks; was £50 before). Dozens of additional Customer Services Representatives are being employed on ticket inspection and plain clothes officers will be deployed to catch fare dodgers. This year up to Sep, Metrolink issued almost 55,000 penalty fares and took nearly 6,000 cases to court; fines of up to £450 have been imposed. There are a staggering 3,800 CCTV cameras on Metrolink, monitored 24/7. 2314] Maghull: On Thur 14 Sep, an incident at Ormskirk meant that the third rail power had to be isolated between Ormskirk and Maghull North. Trains from Liverpool Central turned back at Maghull. 2315] Cliburn: The former station, which has been converted into a characterful 6-bed, 5-bathroom house with 4½ acres of land is on the market at offers over £1.4M. https://bit.ly/3RUbKFN has plans, 82 photos and details. The sale also includes a one bedroom converted signal box, which retains original features and further accommodation in the converted weigh office. Both have been used as https://cliburnstation.co.uk/ holiday accommodation. This remarkably large station house has many original features including Victorian cast iron pillars in one of the bedrooms and in a bathroom. Cliburn was on the Eden Valley Railway which opened on 9 Jun 1862 from Clifton & Lowther station (facing south), south of Penrith on the WCML, to Kirkby Stephen (East from 1958) via Appleby (East from 1952). Just weeks later, on 30 Jun 1862, the Eden Valley Railway was amalgamated into the Stockton & Darlington Railway, becoming part of the North Eastern Railway in 1863. Eden Valley Jn (facing north, opened that year as Clifton North Jn and the south curve Clifton South Jn - Wetheriggs Jn where the curves met, to the east, closed in Apr 1875). Cliburn closed to passengers 17 Sep 1956. After the line closed completely, the station was sold in 1964 and the main building converted into accommodation. Total renovation of the station house, signal box and weigh office was made in 2004. 2316] Newton-le-Willows: NR is to extend P1 from 107m to 131m and P2 from 109m to 147m by Dec to ensure accessible doors are platformed on TPE Nova fleets, regardless of which way round they are.
2317] Royal Seaforth Container Terminal: Peel Ports has invited tenders for a £12M upgrade of the Terminal 1 Railhead at the Port of Liverpool. The aim of the project is to 'facilitate a shift from road to rail and manage the increased throughput of containers in the port due to the redevelopment of Terminal 2 (Liverpool 2)'. The three through sidings (TRACKmaps 4 p40A 2022) will be lengthened from 400m to 800m, to allow 750m trains to run without splitting them. They will be extended towards Edge Hill, rather than the branch being lengthened (which would require demolition of quite a few dwellings and diversion of a public road). Extra container storage will also be provided, as well as upgraded lighting, surfacing and drainage work with diversion of 400m of the existing perimeter road. 2318] Crewe: A local member was walking to Eagle Bridge Health Centre (on part of the site of Crewe Works and named after a bridge within it) when he noticed a plaque on the former Webb Orphanage proclaiming 'The Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light, based out of the United States of America'. Francis William Webb was the London & North Western Railway (L&NWR) Chief Mechanical Engineer, responsible for the design and manufacture of their engines. When he died in 1906, he left £53,857 (worth £8.4M nowadays) in his will for the Webb Orphanage Fund, to build an orphanage for children of L&NWR workers who had lost one or both parents due to an accident at work. The foundation stone of the orphanage was laid in 1909 and it opened in 1911 in Victoria Avenue near to Queens Park. The orphanage, designed by John Brooke, a Manchester architect, consisted of a large main block, an isolation block (in case of infectious illnesses), covered play houses, a covered yard, a kitchen garden and two lodges - one for the gardener and one for the nurse. It closed in 1961 and The Webb Orphans' Fund was wound up in 2004, with its assets and charitable activities passing to Railway Benefit Fund. After closure, the buildings were renamed Webb House and used as British Rail Board's Operations Training Centre. The building was Grade II listed in 1989. From 1997 until 2008 it was a specialist NHS mental health hospital facility, providing a residential service for people with personality disorders. More recently, there was a planning application to extend the then empty buildings and convert them to residential use but this never happened. The Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light, a religious order based in the USA, moved into Webb House, Victoria Avenue, in Sep 2022. In June this year the organisation applied for permission to remove historic railings from the perimeter and install a security fence around the site but they withdrew this planning application after objections from local residents. 2319] Did Muriel Paint it? On Salford Central P1, the large mural has been updated following changes in Northern's train fleet. The Class 142 DMU and 319 EMU are now a Class 195 DMU and 331 EMU. 2320] Salford: Salford City Council has recently approved plans to convert ten railway arches in the 'Greengate' area (Norton St) near the River Irwell between Manchester Victoria and Salford Central into bars, microbreweries, restaurants and workshops (bespoke woodwork/furniture manufacturing, glass/ceramic production and bicycle repairs, all with retail floor space). The plans were submitted by The Arch Company which says there are already 5,200 railway arches in such use. It is wondered if the company might have a monopoly on these conversions or if it has any arch-rivals. 2321] Manchester Red Bank: A member walked to the Lowry Footbridge off Collyhurst Road east of Manchester Victoria that used to span the once extensive Red Bank Carriage Sidings and the route via Cheetham Hill from Manchester Victoria to Newton Heath. The concrete floor and foundations of the carriage shed remain and there is evidence of recent ground excavations/sampling nearby. The track bed is currently covered in the ubiquitous silver birch trees. Beyond these, part of the Queen's Road Metrolink depot could just be seen. Far East Consortium (it's not that 'far east' of Victoria!) and Manchester City Council are developing plans to redevelop the Red Bank area to create a 'sustainable residential led neighbourhood which reinvigorates the green spaces along the River Irk Valley and brings nature into the city etc, etc, etc. This is part of the wider 'Victoria North' redevelopment. 2322] Clifton: (BLN 1432.2102) The report of the new waiting shelters prompted two members to share their observations of the current ones. Each platform has a different style. P1 (to Manchester) a more modern open style shelter, complete with a telephone, which proved to be unusable, as it was an old style card phone call box which didn't work even when rung from a mobile phone. P2 (to infinity and beyond to Bolton) has a fibreglass shelter more like a bus stop shelter than a waiting shelter.
2323] Manchester Piccadilly: NR is modernising the lounge and waiting area above island P13 & 14. The £1.67M of investment includes: Two retail units, replacing the current one. New seating. New charging points for mobiles and laptops. An accessible waiting area for the mobility impaired. 2324] Carlisle: (BLN 1414.2879) The Rail Accident Investigation Branch has released their report (on RAIB website for anyone to see) into the derailment at Petteril Bridge Jn on 19 Oct 2022. Five tank wagons, loaded with cement and travelling from Clitheroe to Mossend, derailed; some fell off the bridge into the River Petteril and there was significant damage to the track and to the bridge. It resulted in closure of the routes from Carlisle towards Newcastle and Settle here for seven weeks. The derailment occurred because a set of wheels on the ninth wagon stopped rotating up to 55 miles before the derailment and just slid along the railhead causing damage to the wheel profile. This meant that these wheels were unable to safely negotiate the points just before Petteril Bridge Jn, damaging the points, derailing the wagon and the others involved. The report says that the initial wheelslide was probably due to a normal brake application in low adhesion conditions. The wheelslide continued because the adhesion between the wheels and the rails was then insufficient for the wheels to restart rotation. The non-rotating wheels were not identified by the signallers on the route, by the train driver or any engineered system. Of particular interest is the large number of photos of the actual train en route that RAIB obtained from different sources, some showing sparks coming from the wheels. 2325] Accrington: New artwork 'Steam to Green' at the station documents the history of the railway. It is by artist Karen Allerton and students at 'The Hollins', a local secondary school in the town. 2326] Blackpool: (BLN 1420.731) Rigby Road (heritage) Depot is undergoing major redevelopment to create a new electric bus engineering and servicing facility on the site of the paint shop, body shop and fitting shop, which will be demolished. The workshop equipment will be relocated to the tram shed. A full structural survey of all buildings on site is required and,while this takes place,access to the depot is restricted, with all Tramtown tours cancelled until 2024. Some heritage trams, including the Western Train and HMS Blackpool, have been moved to Starr Gate Depot to allow them to continue operating Heritage Tours on the tramway. They will run from Starr Gate to Foxhall and then reverse to Pleasure Beach to start the illumination tours. There are no Heritage Tram Tours in January to allow intensive maintenance and repair work to take place on some of the Heritage Trams ahead of the 2024 season. 2327] Online Leaves: From 9 Oct the usual Merseyrail leaf fall timetable began with minor retimings to mitigate against delays from wheelslip. SuX Chester line trains depart up to four min earlier. For Ellesmere Port and trains between Southport and Bank Hall it is three. Why are Sundays exempted? 2328] Hope Valley: Some line speed improvements have been descoped to save money, due the DfT ordering NR to re-evaluate all existing Advanced GRIP 4 design and line speed increase proposals. The changes are scaling back line speed increases at Chinley station, Chinley North Jn West, and Edale to Hope. Costs will be cut by not reballasting and/or re-railing these sections. Commissioning is expected to be Mar 2024 now. NR has reportedly said (separately) that, once the scheme is commissioned, they cannot accommodate a third fast train on the Hope Valley line due to capacity constraints elsewhere!! A member has traversed the line recently. Bamford Loop is connected both ends but there are gaps in the formation. No signalling is evident for it, except cabling and the entrance signal base (almost right in front of the existing Earles signal). The new facing crossover at Totley Tunnel East is clipped but not padlocked. Widening the cutting to accommodate the lengthened Dore South Curve appears to still have a considerable way to go. The north curve (Dore & Totley station) was not yet slewed. 2329] Carlisle: Locomotive Services Ltd has opened a depot at Carlisle Upperby CE Sidings additional to its depots at Crewe and Southall to service its locomotives and trains. On Mon 25 Sep 37667 ran light engine from Carlisle High Wapping Sidings to Carlisle Upperby CE Sidings, presumably as a test. 2330] Kents Bank: Between Carnforth and Barrow, a library dedicated to local and rural railways, with an emphasis on social history is to open in part of the station building. Sat 21 Oct (13.00-16.30) is an open day; the Beach Hut Gallery will also open next door. A library trust is being established and book donations are welcome. The collection includes rare bound volumes of TSSA precursor 'RCA Railway Service Journal' also the 'ASLEF Locomotive Journal' and a complete set of 'Railway Magazines'.
2331] Manchester Airport: Members will be delighted to hear that, according to the Government, one of the projects that could be funded by the £36bn from the scrapped HS2 Manchester extension is a Metrolink line to Manchester Airport! In fact, it opened on 3 Nov 2014. On a more serious note, it is worth recording that the £36bn is the original budget for HS2 Phases 2a (Lichfield - Crewe) and 2b (to Manchester), not the current budget or, of course, how much it would have actually cost. A significant portion is being diverted to new road building schemes and 'upgrading'/repairing existing roads. 2332] Mossley: A 'Tameside Correspondent' article suggests that this station, north of Stalybridge, may be relocated for electrification. The paper has 'learned' that it may be more cost effective to build a new station than to install OHLE, lengthen the platforms and make them accessible with a lift. More than one possible location for a new station has apparently been identified. No source is given but the station is on a very constricted site, so electrification and other improvements would be challenging. 1434 SOUTH EAST - NORTH & EAST ANGLIA (Julian James) south-east-news@branchline.uk 2333] Congham Road Bridge: (BLN 1426.1489) On 2 Oct King's Lynn & West Norfolk Borough Council Planning Committee refused the retrospective planning application by National Highways for its 1,000 tonne infill of this bridge on the ex-Midland & Great Northern Joint line between South Lynn and Melton Constable. Highways England say that they will appeal, although they did not in the case of the Great Musgrave bridge decision (item 2308). National Highways has said that it will ensure it seeks full planning permission before carrying out work like this in the future. [Lesson learnt, finally, perhaps] There were 360 public objections and only five representations of support. The Council's conservation officer said: The design of a bridge in the Marriott style so close to the end of his involvement with the railway and the systems involved in its construction as well as the architectural details underneath the bridge span and the superstructure do give it some evidential, architectural and communal interest. We appreciate that other methods of repair were considered. Although the method undertaken may be the most cost effective, the long term impact upon the structure underneath needs more detail. Save Britain's Heritage conservation officer Ben Dewfield-Oakley stated: The bridge is a nondesignated heritage asset of high local importance and the impact of the infilling is substantially harmful in heritage terms. Burying both superstructure and substructure has effectively annulled any visual appreciation of the bridge, its historical significance and its contribution to the area's landscape quality and railway heritage. The total infilling without planning permission is poor planning practice, reflecting widespread concern over the applicant's unjustified and unsympathetic approach to managing and maintaining historic structures like this and elsewhere in the country. Congham Parish Council also lodged an objection to the retrospective planning application due to the bridge being a natural corridor for wildlife, it being an unlisted heritage asset and that infilling of the bridge has blocked an opportunity for walking and cycling along the area. Jacobs carried out structural assessments in 2019 and concluded: The edge girders are restricted to a 7.5 tonne Gross Vehicle Weight. Furthermore, the eastern abutment is exhibiting indications of movement, resulting in numerous cracks appearing beneath the edge girders and along the abutment faces. The faces of the longitudinal girders are also showing defects with some beam exposure in some instances. The wingwall coping courses and southwest newel [central support pillar] are demonstrating minor failure and collapse, which could be caused by the dense vegetation on all the embankments. However, a 2003 assessment of the bridge said that the girders under the carriageway had a capacity of 40 tonnes. Campaigners from the Historical Railways Estate (HRE) Group have stated they believe these points were misrepresented in National Highways' application. HRE Group member Graeme Bickerdike said: The risks presented by this bridge - which National Highways has misrepresented - could have been managed through repairs and the installation of crash barriers to protect the parapets, following dialogue with the local highway authority. Instead, the company's response was characteristically disproportionate. It continues to downplay the bridge's historic importance as an early modular concrete structure and no ecological evidence was sought regarding the possible transitory use of the bridge by wildlife for migration or foraging. There was no consultation with Congham Parish Council - a mistake which National Highways has since apologised for.
Major repairs were carried out in Dec 2009 and Feb 2010, including propping; the fractured area was also cut out and repaired. Contractors reported that the bridge still moved when HGVs used it. National Highways head of the Historical Railways Estate Hélène Rossiter said: We are continuing to work with the Borough Council of King's Lynn & West Norfolk as we seek planning permission to retain the strengthening works at Congham bridge, which we believe is in the public interest. We infilled the bridge in 2021 under permitted [emergency] development powers as we deemed there was a risk to public safety. When we took over management of the bridge it was in a very poor condition and was showing signs of ongoing movement. We consulted with the local planning and highway authorities before commencing work, and they confirmed they had no objection to the works and that the scheme didn't impact any of their active travel plans. [Readers may have had their fill of this material by now.] 2334] Manningtree: (BLN 1432.2117) On 27 Sep your Regional Editor was able to confirm that bay P1 has been relaid and has a new buffer stop; hence Up trains running through Down P3 on Sun 24 Sep. 2335] Oxford: (BLN 1413.2764) The Oxford Preservation Trust has been awarded a National Railway Heritage Award for railway heritage conservation with its work in saving and restoring the railway swing bridge at Rewley Road. A plaque was unveiled by the bridge (OK, 'near' then) in early Oct. 2336] Bedford - Bletchley: (BLN 1428.1623) The Class 150 DMUs have begun testing and training over the line, the first run on 22 Sep from Bletchley with two return trips then on 27 and 28 Sep, all after the morning peak. The railhead treatment train has also run. LNwR remains vague about when enough drivers would be passed out but a limited passenger service is shown to resume from Mon 4 Nov. 2337] Wixams: (BLN 1425.1372) The new station site is confirmed as just on the Bedford side of MP 46½. 2338] Peterborough: (BLN 1414.2896) GBRf has opened a £5.75M (up from £4.7M in BLN 1414) rail vehicle maintenance facility here, on Maskew Avenue off Lincoln Road near the ECML. Taking just 10 months to build, and expected to create up to 20 jobs, it is able to 'analyse' four wagons per shift, 2339] Princes Risborough - Aylesbury: (BLN 1432.2121) The new bridge taking the single line over HS2 has been built for double track, with the new single track positioned for later installation of a second track alongside, a dynamic loop is envisaged. The realigned track for the bridge extends over1.8km and will be passed for 90mph running in place of the 45mph previously with old jointed track. Marsh Lane Level Crossing (47m 00ch) has been upgraded to full barrier, controlled from Marylebone Integrated Electronic Control Centre with its previous 20mph speed restriction for passenger trains and 10mph for freight eliminated. Princes Risborough to Aylesbury is due to reopen on 30 Oct. The new bridge is of Corten steel construction (rust faced, so never needs painting) with a ballasted deck. 75 bullhead railed track panels have been donated to the Chinnor & Princes Risborough Railway. They intend to reinstate the original Chinnor branch track to avoid having to run over the NR Thame Branch Siding (as now) - microgricers please note. Further track panels went to the Buckinghamshire Railway Centre. 2340] Amersham - Aylesbury Vale Parkway: Due to testing new Metropolitan line signalling on 7 & 8 Oct, no Chiltern services operated between Marylebone and Aylesbury Vale Parkway. Services were already suspended between Princes Risborough and Aylesbury. Replacement buses from Beaconsfield called at Amersham then all stations to Aylesbury Vale Parkway. An overnight road closure between Wendover and Great Missenden for HS2 complicated this after 20.00 both days. As it was possible that the road closure might not occur, Chiltern prepared various elaborate route options for the buses. 1434 SOUTH EAST - SOUTH (Julian James) south-east-news@branchline.uk 2341] Ryde Pier Head: (BLN 1429.1773) On 4 Oct your Regional Editor inspected the new weather screen along the platform track on the water side, a day when ASLEF were on strike. It certainly is an improvement over the previous, which had become rather tatty. Of note is the new raised platform surfacing on top of the old one to achieve standard step heights. However, the overall appearance is spartan. The walk along the pier is now interspersed with several shelters similar to bus shelters, though the excellent and still weather made the walk pleasant on this occasion. The furthest west of the three Piers is for road vehicles, it has a 5mph limit with average speed cameras [can't they get some good ones?] that flash up the average speed afterwards; it is not known if fines are issued.
X.102] BELOW: Bulk Carrier 'Bontrup Amsterdam' at Tilbury2 CMAthe repurposed former Tilbury Power Stations coal unloading jetty
AT (Construction Materials & Aggregates Terminal) berth, which is y, with stone from Brevik in Norway. (Iain Scotchman, 14 Oct 2023.)
BELOW: Another view from a different angle, noSome aggregate trains may now run from CMAT - but n