1404

Number 1404 (Items 1602 - 1741 & MR 124 - MR 139) (E-BLN 105 PAGES) 9 Jul 2022

BRANCH LINE NEWS

Distribuendi notitia, verbi disseminandi [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 [email protected]
186 AnlabymPaermk bReorasdhiSpo.suethcr,eHtaurlly,@HUbr4a7nBchUl.ine.0u7k873 354464

British Isles news from members; an international section is available.
Opinions are not necessarilyathvaoislaebolef .the Compilers or the Society.

BLN 1405 is dated Sat 23 Jul; contributions by Wed 13 Jul please................

1602] A DBC Cab Ride for only £10, where would you like to go? https://bit.ly/3b16MDK is an online
charity raffle for a DBC cab ride for two, closes 21.00 Sun 10 Jul, all proceeds to Martin House Hospice.

ciety. Society.

1603] Book with confidence: Unions are required by law to give at least two weeks' notice of strikes.
If you book on a fixture, plan to travel by train and are unable to reach the fixture due to industrial
action, you can apply for a refund (less the usual administrative charge). Please apply to the Bookings
Officer as soon as you are aware of the problem and by SEVEN days before the fixture at the very
latest (14 days for International tours). A reminder that it is well worth going on the waiting list for
fully booked fixtures as places often become available and the party size can sometimes be increased.

Apart from below, later/more provisional railtour and fixture dates can be found on our website.
Please remember that bookings generally open on our website when e-BLN is released (short notice
ones may be notified by email if you have signed up for them), on our website and/or Facebook pages.

Date Event and details…... Please book online BLN Lead Status

Fri 8 Jul The Sandtoft Shuttle 1403 MG OPEN

Sat 9 Jul The Lackenby Looper - a few seats available 1402 MG OPEN

Sun 10 Jul Rossington branch all lines (with 08762) 1403 MG OPEN
22-24 Jul IOM minor railways (Fri-Sun) - see below 1403 MG OPEN

Tue 26 Jul *NEW* 16.00-18.00 Halton Miniature Railway BELOW MG NOW OPEN

Sat 20 Aug Island of Ireland V - Westport, Bog Train and Ballina 1403 MG OPEN

Sun 21 Aug Day 2: Irish Rail mainline railtour (Dublin) 1403 MG OPEN
1398 MG Waiting list
Sun 28 Aug Scunthorpe Steelworks No24 Summer Track Steeler

3 & 4 Sep *NEW* Mainline North West tour, 'top & tail' Class 37s BELOW TBA Claimed

9-11 Sep *NEW* Niedersachsen Explorer (NW Germany) BELOW PG NOW OPEN

10-11 Sep Scottish branches loco hauled tour (announced at AGM) Now postponed see below

Sun 18 Sep *NEW* Peak Rail comprehensive visit with rare track TBA TBA Claimed

1-2 Oct *NEW* Minor Railways in Suffolk - save the dates TBA TBA Claimed

Fri 11 Nov Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway railtour TBA TBA Claimed

18-20 Nov Proposed AGM weekend (Bo'ness & Kinneil Railway etc) TBA TBA Claimed

Bookings: MG = Mark Gomm [email protected] 84 Mornington Rd, STOKE-ON-TRENT, ST1 6EL 07983 541887.
PG = Paul Griffin [email protected] 7 School Bell Meadows, Church Lane, Stoneleigh, COVENTRY, CV8 3ZZ.

1604] :Fri 22-Sun 24 Jul; Isle of Man Minor Railways (UPDATE):: (MR p12) (BLN 1403.1479) On 25 Jun
the Crogga Valley Railway carried out successful gauging trials for our all line railtour later this month.
All lines were indeed covered (some never previously used by a passenger carrying train), except the
shed where the Garrett is stored. They are hoping to move it to ensure that they can really do all lines.
The train will be propelled into all sidings rather than hauled to maximise coverage. The lucky person
in the end seat will be able to travel beyond the rail end in the lean-to because the seat is beyond the
bogie. Those wanting to do the fire train siding will have to use the manually propelled brake van.





PREVIOUS, BELOW etc: Crogga Valley Railway, gauge testing ultra-rare track. (All Graeme Easton, 25 Jun 2022.)

BELOW: Presumably this must be the Wash Road (bottom right corner)?





[BLN 1404]

1605] :Tue 26 Jul; The Halton Short Circuit Breaker:: (MR p13) (BLN 1279.MR66 photo & 1327.MR60)
Thanks to Tim Wallis, we have private Society early evening all available lines operation at the 1 mile
long extensive 7¼'' gauge Halton Miniature Railway. Set in the delightful Town Park, Stockham Lane,
Palace Fields, Runcorn, WA7 6PT (free car park), it is less than ¾ mile walk from Runcorn East station.
This railway (see plan below) has significant sections not used by normal passenger services, including
a short, inner circuit, the link line between the inward and outward loops, the remains of Anstey's
Curve (once another circuit), various sidings and access to a significant locomotive and carriage shed.
This is due to be rebuilt with a layout change. The visit starts 16.00 and is expected to finish by 18.00.

The fare is only £8 (no reductions but available to non-members). Please indicate when booking if you
can provide lifts and, if so, how many and from where, or if you would like a lift (sharing costs) but this
cannot be guaranteed. Please book on our website or ask a member to do it. Cheques payee 'Branch
Line Society' with an SAE, (two for acknowledgement or queries) to our Bookings Officer, Mark Gomm
(above), who deals with all queries (emails preferred). The date and time will suit members returning
from our IOM fixtures and/or on the LSL INTERCITY tour from Crewe to Stranraer on Wed 27 Jul.
1606] :Sun 21 Aug; Island of Ireland V - Day 2 - The Emerald Explorer:: (BLN 1403.1481) To confirm
and clarify, the route of our railtour back to Dublin Connolly P7 in the afternoon from Maynooth is via
the Glasnevin Jn to Newcomen Jn PSUL route, which has no regular timetabled passenger service.
1607] :Sat 3 & Sun 4 Sep:: At last year's AGM and in BLN 1391.3179, this weekend was announced as
provisionally for a Felixstowe tour. Unfortunately this destination cannot be resourced and is deferred
to 2023. Instead, an interesting and unusual itinerary based in North West will take its place.
Our planned loco-hauled Scottish Branches tour on 10-11 Sep will be re-dated to later in the year.
1608] :Fri 9-Sun 11 Sep; Niedersachsen Explorer:: Three days of special trains in the Lüneburg Heath
area of northern Germany, featuring almost complete coverage of the Osthannoversche Eisenbahnen
network using a veteran diesel loco, and the two parts of the Lüneburger Industriebahn. This is all in
the company of other members (familiar faces to guide and assist if this is your first foreign railtour!).
Please note that our 10-11 Sep loco-hauled branch line tour in Scotland has now been postponed.
Details, advice and important booking conditions are on our website fixtures section where bookings
can be made. Direct flights are available from the UK to Hamburg, Bremen and Hannover and these
destinations have direct train connections to Lüneburg. Travel from London to Lüneburg by train is
easily possible. A guide on travelling to and from the tour will be prepared with general information on
accommodation, tourism and recommended railway lines. If you would like a copy, send a request for
the Niedersachsen Tour Guide to: [email protected]. It is anticipated that most, if not all,
participants will stay in Lüneburg, though other cities are possible with early starts. Hotel bookings can
be made on many websites, such as Hotels.com, Booking.com, TripAdvisor, HRS.de. It is strongly
advised that hotels should be booked as soon as possible, preferably refundable. NEXT: Route maps.





Those who take only paper BLN and are unable to access the internet can obtain printed details and
the guide from your Editor (back page). Please send a BLN sized A5 envelope (normal 2nd Class stamp).
There is no surcharge for not being a Society member. Discounts are available for group bookings of
20 people or more. Please contact our Bookings Officer (Mark Gomm; below fixtures grid) for details.

1404 BLN GENERAL (Paul Stewart) [email protected]
1609] Ladies only: (BLN 1403.1487) Until about 50 years ago coaches used on local and suburban
services had compartments that were completely isolated from each another without a corridor or
centre gangway. So, if you were alone in one of those compartments and an unsavoury looking person
joined at a station, you might be trapped with them until the next stop. The lurid popular press
occasionally carried sensational stories of ladies being molested or worse in such compartments, so it
seemed right to have a few ladies-only compartments on those trains as some form of protection.

In 1941 the Southern Railway - then still a private company not yet nationalised - built a series of ten
4-car suburban units for its third rail electrified suburban services in South London. These were at the
time a very modern design, with steel bodies, and made to cram as many passengers in as possible, so
they had bulging body sides to make six-a-side seating possible. They also had very stiff, upright seats,
forerunners of the ironing board seats we know today. The Southern called this configuration 4-SUB
(four-car suburban). Like the previous wooden-bodied designs, they were compartment-only, and had
a few ladies-only compartments. They were given the set numbers 4101 to 4110. The bulging bodyside
made them look huge and they were nicknamed 'Sheba' units, because in the King James' Bible it says:

..And when the Queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon... she came to Jerusalem with a very
great train. (1 Kings, x, 1-2)

The steel body design was a great success but the closed compartments were not favoured. (Maybe it
was easier to cram more standing passengers into an open seating layout?) The 4-SUB layout was kept
and became the mainstay of the third rail suburban system right up to 1983. Designated Class 405, the
ten 1941 units kept going until the early 1970s. A member occasionally used them in the East Croydon
area, although his physical configuration did not permit him to try out a ladies-only compartment.
A friendly guard told our member that, occasionally, men temporarily identifying as female used them.

1610] Points & Slips: ●●BLN 1403.1549] A collective name for cats is a chowder clouder (close).

1611] Sleepwalking gricing: (BLN 1403.1501) A member confesses to falling asleep and missing his
stop twice! In Nov 1975, after a boozy night at University, he boarded the last train to Rochdale from
Manchester Victoria, the 23.30 all stations via Oldham. A combination of the alcohol and fumes from
the Cravens Class 105 DMU sent him off to sleep so he missed his intended stop of Oldham Mumps.
Our member awoke just before New Hey and walked the six miles home, somewhat chastened.

The last time (for now) was somewhere in Spain in the mid 1990s. He only realised he had missed his
stop when another passenger woke him up and said that our member was sitting in his reserved seat!
All was not lost as fortunately he was able to replan the day without missing any required track.

1612] SALES NEWS :Birmingham & West Midlands Railway Atlas:: A fully revised, updated 2022
edition by our well known member, Joe Brown. The previous edition was 2016. It covers the West
Midlands, Birmingham, Walsall, Wolverhampton, West Bromwich, Stourbridge & Dudley. Included
are Stafford, Lichfield, Tamworth, Nuneaton, Leamington Spa, Stratford-upon-Avon, Bromsgrove,
Kidderminster, Coventry, & Rugby. As well as dealing with the complex railway system that served
the area, the entire historic passenger tramway network of the region is mapped, with opening and
closing details provided in an Appendix. The West Midlands Metro system is shown with extensions
that have been announced as well as the planned Coventry 'Very Light Rail' system. The numerous
detailed industrial and colliery railways are included. Intricate and finely drawn mapping shows
individual track and platforms for all lines whether open or closed, with stations, changes of name,
opening/closing dates etc. 128 A4 pages hardback, printed paper cased. Cover price £25; only £21 to
members including P&P. Those with a first edition will want to buy this and those without should.
Email Graeme Jolley for an e-invoice or send a cheque payee 'Branch Line Society' - per back page.

1613] Platform 5 Locomotives & Coaching Stock 2022: The Sales Officer is now out of stock, with no
more stock expected of this edition but it is available directly from Platform 5, online outlets etc.

1614] The Railway Club Directory: https://www.railwayclubdirectory.com/ is a new very interesting
website with about 200 entries (we are the first one) promoting the interests of:

●National railway societies/clubs (7, including us) ●Historical railway societies (28)
●UK based international railway societies (9) ●Local railway clubs (63)
●Specialised national railway societies (18) ●Rail user groups (≈75)

The Railway Club Directory covers all such societies and clubs that are believed to exist (about 125).
They range from British societies with dozens of branches throughout the country, to small local
village clubs. Some Rail User Groups, currently around 75, are also listed. The Railway Club Directory is
dedicated to railway societies and clubs of the type categorised above. Other types of railway related
organisations are not included as they are adequately covered elsewhere. The Directory comprises:

(1): A categorised list of all such clubs and societies (including the Branch Line Society, of course).
(2): A page dedicated to each club/society, containing pertinent information about
….. them, what they do, the benefits offered, membership fees and how to join.
(3): A comprehensive 'weekly posting' of all meetings and events organised by
….. each club/society the following week (typically 40 to 50 events a week).
(4): A weekly posting of all Zoom presentations being held online which members, and often
….. non-members, can join. The website (above) lets you click straight into the meeting.

Our railway societies and clubs have much to offer, many issue high quality magazines and organise a
frequent programme of illustrated talks and presentations. The rail user groups offer the opportunity
to campaign for and improve rail services. The Railway Club Directory website is a place to find details
of all these. The sole aim is to encourage membership of railway societies, clubs and groups. Each club
entry has a direct link to the membership page of that club's website (where it has one). If you don't
use it, you lose it. Our railway clubs need your support to thrive and survive. Many clubs cost as little
as £10 to £20 per year to join, an extraordinary bargain. Why not enjoy the benefits?

A Railway Club Directory book has been published with 250 A4 pages, about 100 colour pictures, a
Foreword by Christian Wolmar and all the above details. Your Sales Officer, Graeme Jolley, wishes to
assess demand for this book from our members - the 'indicative price' is about £20 plus P&P (£3.50)
but may be less. At this stage, please just email Graeme at [email protected] if you are
interested or text/write per back page (no obligation). A further announcement will be made in BLN.

1615] Saint gender: (BLN 1403.1482) As well as St Erth to St Ives, London St Pancras to
Glasgow St Enoch and St James's Park to St Marys Whitechapel Road (on the Met & District
lines in London) had through trains from stations named after a male saint to female ones.

1616] Early Railway Memories (82) 1959: (BLN 1402.1331) Martin Connop Price, Member 815, Part 4.
The first week of the year was excellent. On New Year's Day I took the train from Alton to Winchester
(CP 5 Feb 1973) and then Eastleigh, travelling in one of the recently introduced 'Hampshire' diesel sets
(which saw the end of through services at Alton, except diversions). South of Winchester, Collet 0-6-0,
2246, was waiting at Shawford Jn on a goods train. Here the London & South Western line towards
Winchester Chesil trailed in; just before the latter station, it made an end on connection with the
Didcot, Newbury & Southampton Railway, which itself did not extend as far south as Shawford Jn.

On arrival at Eastleigh, I made my way to the bridge over the main line south of the station to gain a
view into the west end of the works. The yard was not packed but I did see three or four gleaming
machines, perhaps fresh from the works. The tally of 'namers' that day was six Bulleid Pacifics, three
'Arthurs', a 'Nelson' and two 'Halls'; there were ten other Southern locos, six Standards and one Ivatt
2-6-2T. The following day we had to go back to Staffordshire by road and apparently observed 1442 at
Newbury - 14xx locos were seldom used on the Lambourn branch (CP 4 Jan 1960), so why was it
there? 'Grange' class 6877 was seen at Oxford and then, closer to home, numbers 48397 and 42667.

That autumn I had to pass an exam to enable the educational plans to proceed. For better or worse, I
did so and my reward the following Jan was a day trip from Stoke to York and back. My father knew
someone who knew someone and the day included a visit to the original railway museum, a short visit
to '50A' - York shed - and also a brief visit to the then 'state of the art' power box there, accessed from
the station footbridge. This programme necessitated an early start and it was dark when we left home
for Stoke station. There we took a BRC&W (Birmingham Railway Carriage & Wagon Company) DMU to
Derby, arriving in time for a service to Sheffield (Midland) hauled by 45701. I must have had a hand in
planning this outing, because then we walked across to Sheffield (Victoria) for a train to Doncaster.

In those days, Sheffield, rather like Stoke, was not a beauty spot but it did provide the sight of several
DC electric locos built for use on the Woodhead route. Our progress eastwards was conducted by 'B1',
61114. The many yards and colliery sidings around Doncaster provided plenty of interest, including a
glimpse of a 'Director', 62662, but on a January morning the visibility was not outstanding. Several of
Gresley's finest could be seen near Doncaster works and at the station we had to change for York;
to my surprise this train was pulled by 61476 - the only time I was ever hauled by a 'B16'.

York was brilliant. The old railway museum was extremely cramped and some of the exhibits seemed
ungainly compared to Gresley's handsome designs. Our brief visit to the shed (50A) was worthwhile
but slightly frustrating as our guide didn't allow us to wander around freely. It was especially annoying
to miss a couple of green V2s, just too remote for their numbers to be noted. The new signal box was
very impressive, at a time when mechanical signalling was the norm. Here the main line and various
platform roads were depicted fully, with the progress of each train indicated by a series of lights.
Occasionally a service would be checked awaiting a platform and, as soon as one train left, a green
light was shown to bring the next one in. Naturally the box was always busy but by the standards of
the time the operation appeared amazingly modern and controlled by three men I seem to remember.

After this glimpse of the future, it was time to head for home. From York to Leeds, we rode in a
recently delivered DMU and on the way we passed three or four WDs on coal trains. By the time we
arrived, the light was going but we transferred to a four or five coach stopping train running directly to
Huddersfield, Stalybridge and Stockport. At the time (1959), regrettably, I was unaware of the other
routes then available between Leeds and Huddersfield and sadly did not record the way our train ran.
All I do recall is passing in the dark through a succession of places with distinctly northern names.
Cleckheaton, Heckmondwike and Liversedge could very easily have been amongst them but I cannot
say with total confidence that those names did not include Batley and Dewsbury. If any reader has
access to an appropriate timetable for the period, naturally I would be glad to have their comments!

At Huddersfield, some delay ensued as the 'Black Five' at the head of the train was replaced by a
Fairbairn 2-6-4 tank engine. It was freezing and had started to snow. Undaunted, the train pulled away
into the snowy night to call at Golcar and Slaithwaite. The next matter arising was the need for a toilet
and, as we were in non-corridor stock, the toilet could only be accessed from a different compartment
in our ageing rolling stock. (I have been told since that these carriages were probably ex-L&YR but
cannot confirm it.) Accordingly, I jumped out at Marsden, slid along the platform and found the
appropriate compartment. When we stopped at Diggle, this procedure was performed in the other
direction and I rejoined my father, shaking the snow out of my hair. In due course we juddered to a
halt at Stalybridge, before rattling on to Stockport. At a guess, it was now after 7pm and my father
had had enough. He retired to the waiting room to finish his book but years later liked to recall that his
schoolboy son was still scampering all over Stockport station and checking out anything of interest.
To his undoubted relief, the DMU to Stoke soon appeared and we were on the final leg of our journey.

After this epic excursion I had one day trip from Stoke to Crewe and back, before cold reality kicked in.
My local friends had gone back to the grammar school and I had to pack a trunk to forward to Surrey,
'Passenger's Luggage in Advance'. On 16 Jan 1959, the dreaded day arrived and my father and I went
from Stoke to London behind 46155. We continued to the school, by way of Southern electric and,
after a whirlwind couple of hours of introductions and the like, my father was gone. The school policy
was to keep new boys on the premises for six weeks, to help them 'to settle in'. A description of the
process isn't necessary here but much of it would now be deemed out of order.

The staff weren't callous but many had seen quite tough wartime service and it was simply assumed
that we would metaphorically learn to swim and not sink. Many have said that an English boarding
school provides an excellent preparation for a stretch in jail and I know why. Suffice to say that I didn't
see a railway again until I was released into my father's care for the journey home by road on 25 Mar.

On 26 Mar I was back on the embankment above the main line at Whitmore, where 10000 and 10001
swept through, in tandem. After a few days with my Hampshire grandparents (sightings of 700 class
0-6-0s on the Farringdon goods (from Alton) but also 33023 on 8 Apr), I was back at Whitmore on the
14th and 20th and at Crewe on 17th. The choir outing the previous year had been so enjoyable, that it
had stirred up the idea of a return visit to Colwyn Bay. This destination was much more distant than
Crewe and initially my parents objected. Eventually, though, they relented and on 22 Apr I set off.

As my parents had predicted, it was a very different experience without companions but I enjoyed it
none the less and certainly saw more of the North Wales coastline. Once again, Chester provided a
wonderful mix of British Railways London Midland and Western Region machinery, not to mention
Standard 4-6-0s with Caprotti valve gear and a couple of the thuggish looking 'Black Fives' with
massive steam pipes to the cylinders. At Rhyl the shed retained much interest, still having 2P 4-4-0s
and pre-grouping 0-6-0s in the yard. With hindsight it seems a pity I didn't travel on to see the activity
at Llandudno Junction but at least three trains observed at Colwyn Bay were double-headed.

On 27 Apr I bought a day return from Stoke to Derby, breaking my outward journey at Uttoxeter to
visit the steam shed, located within the triangle east of the station. At first sight this place seemed to
be a dump for withdrawn locomotives, because there were two or three lines of rusting 2Ps, Midland
Compounds and some of the older 4Fs. Beyond them, the shed contained an out of use ex-LNW 0-8-0,
with three 2-6-4 tanks and a 4F in steam. Although the (Great Northern) Stafford & Uttoxeter line had
closed several years earlier, at this period Bromshall Junction signal box was still in situ and Egginton
Junction still had polished track running in the direction of Derby Friargate. The most pleasing sighting
of the day was 'Britannia' 70004, which I had last seen on display at the Festival of Britain.

The next day I visited Crewe, probably standing on the footbridge at the north end which gave access
to Crewe North Shed. The advantage of this spot was that occasional glimpses could be gained of
freight trains using the diversionary line beneath the junctions on the north side of Crewe. Admittedly,
as most freight engines were extremely dirty, the chance of catching a number was slight but this
location did demonstrate the huge importance of Crewe on the railway network. The following day my
father had a meeting at Whitchurch (Shropshire), which allowed me to spend about an hour and a half
on that station. This not only provided a glimpse of the eastern extremity of the Cambrian system but
also an opportunity to 'footplate' 7823. A kindly driver provided some additional entertainment by
running his engine up and down an otherwise empty platform. The very next day I was put on a train
from Stoke to Euston and so returned to boarding school.

The fact that my new school provided bursaries for the sons of clergy had been a significant factor in
the decision taken to send me there. This advantage was offset by the culture clash it created. About a
third of the boys came from vicarages, households not usually much driven by money and (most) were
sane and civilised. The remainder were the sons of Surrey professional men, City stockbrokers and
assorted upwardly mobile capitalists and, while some were likeable characters, others were distinctly
alpha male in outlook, if not in achievement. The result was rampant bullying, poorly policed, not least
in my boarding house. Further description is not needed but in what could be an alarming and tense
environment, more robust boys sometimes became thugs and gentler souls slipped into different
degrees of unhappiness. At least two ran away, never to be seen again. One lapsed into kleptomania.

In the hot summer of 1959, the unpredictability was eased by long hours on the sports field and my
only rail trip occurred on the school's traditional Ascension Day holiday. I was given permission to visit
my Hampshire grandparents. The route wasn't specified, so after checking my funds, I decided to
reach Guildford via Horsham, rather than Effingham Junction. This proved to be well worthwhile,
because at Horsham I discovered the branch train had the appropriate ex-London, Brighton & South
Coast Railway motive power in the shape of E4 class, 32506, one of several of this type to be used in
France in WWI. After leaving the junction station of Christ's Hospital, the train wandered lazily

through rural Sussex until the tunnel between Rudgwick and Baynards took us through to a slightly
busier world at Cranleigh. After the essential water stop, we continued to Peasmarsh Jn, where the
single line token was handed in and we returned to the world of Southern electric. A change at
Guildford followed and then there was another change of train at Aldershot. At this time, the partially
closed line by way of Tongham (BLN 1326.930) was still intact, as was the branch line from Bordon to
Bentley, where 30699 was shunting. At Alton my grandparents were waiting with their ancient Austin.

ABOVE: New Popular (6th Series) 1940 one-inch, Alton and Winchester are off bottom left where
Farnham Jn is shown, from where the then single track Tongham line runs northeast to Ash Jn on the
line to Guildford (off right). The branch north at Tongham was to Aldershot Gas Works. Aldershot
station is upper centre left; top centre the lines run northeast to Waterloo and northwest to Reading.

1404 EAST MIDLANDS (Graeme Jolley) [email protected]
1617] West Burton 'A' Power Station: (BLN 1400.1098) EDF has agreed a deal with the government to
retain the remaining 2 x 500MW operational coal fired units (that were to close on 30 Sep) until Mar
2023, with no extension. It is understood that discussions to keep two other plants open are 'ongoing'.
1618] Lindsey: (BLN 1403.1489) Colas took over the oil traffic from 1 Jul but are unable to resource it
so have subcontracted DBC to continue supplying locos and drivers until the winter! (Industry sources)
1619] East Midlands Gateway: (BLN 1375.1103) This has been a big success and now the rail facility is
to be enlarged (passive provision was provided with construction) to double terminal capacity.
This follows its designation as East Midlands Freeport, the UK's only inland freeport. The first trial train
ran on 17 Dec 2019 and commercial traffic began 6 Jan 2020. The branch is 2¼ miles long but has only
been railtoured once, so far, when our Sat 3 Jul 2021 'Sinfin Syphon' tour reached the terminal.

1620] Northampton Gateway: (BLN 1382.236) Now known as SEGRO Logistics Park Northampton
(SEGRO = Slough Estates Group), between the railway and the M1 by Jn 15, it is accessed by rail from
the east side of the Northampton Loop north of Roade. DBC Maritime has agreed a long lease of this
17-acre intermodal rail terminal which now under construction. The open access terminal will have
capacity for 16 x 775m intermodal trains a day, storage for 2,500 TEU (20ft equivalent unit - a standard
20ft x 8ft x 8ft shipping container), parking for over 125 trucks and 5million ft2 of warehouse space.

1621] Leicester: On Sat 4 Jun the 14.37 Buxton to Ealing Broadway 'The Jubilee Buxton Spa Express'
traversed the remodelled Up & Down Goods from Humberstone Road to Leicester P1 in the Down
direction following a change from steam to diesel traction there. The first passenger train to use this
new link to/from P1 (in the other direction) was the 14 May 2022 UK Railtours 'Powerful Pieman' tour.

1622] Nuneaton: On 30 Jun the 07.41 Norwich to Chester Northern Belle excursion ran via the Down
Hinckley, Nuneaton P7 and Nuneaton North Chord to join the Down Trent Valley Slow. This is the
preferred route for passenger (and of course freight) from the Leicester direction going north on the
Trent Valley Line to avoid crossing the other three Trent Valley tracks on the level. When it happens,
trains from Birmingham via Nuneaton can, if necessary, use the facing crossover before Midland Yard
Jn to call at Nuneaton P6 instead of P7 to avoid conflict and delay (both platforms are bidirectional).

1623] ECML: Lengthened for Azumas in 2014-15, Grantham P4 - Down/Up Slow is 263m operational
length now; Newark Northgate P2 (Up Main) is 261m and P3 (Down/Up passenger Loop) 276m.

1624] Crowle: Due to major problems with Keadby Canal Swing Bridge (not for the first or last time!)
on Tue 16 Jun, DMU 185145 on the 14.18 TPE service from Manchester to Cleethorpes terminated at
Crowle P1 at 16.15. As it was unable to proceed, it eventually departed back to Doncaster at 17.41 via
the very rare trailing crossover. Crowle normally has one (TPE) train a day each way SuX plus buses.
Later trains from the west turned back at Doncaster all day. Weirdly, on Sat 2 Jul TPE treated Crowle
Althorpe, Thorne South and Stainforth & Hatfield to an unheard of all day almost hourly Doncaster -
Cleethorpes train service - why? - (both directions, even) when TPE didn't venture past Doncaster.
The 2-hourly long term Northern Doncaster to Scunthorpe rail replacement coach service ran as well!!

1625] Market Harborough: The station renovation, due for completion by 30 Jun, is further delayed as
the toilets have been built the wrong size. A NR spokesperson said that adjustments would need to be
made before the loos could open to the public, adding: We need a little more room to allow people to
walk past the cubicles while the cubicle doors are open. So much for that BOGOF offer to cut costs…

1404 GREATER LONDON (Geoff Brockett) [email protected]
1626] Acton Yard: The only Mendips aggregates train now using the yard is the 07.12 from Merehead
Quarry. After taking over the trains, Freightliner (FHH) has been reducing their use of the yard, as DBC
charges them to do so. Other loaded trains are split in Southall Yard, Hanwell Loop or on Acton Main
Line Goods Lines. Empties are increasingly being worked via Wembley Yard. Acton Lane sidings are
used and FHH stables wagons on Didcot Milton Siding (BLN 1401.1283). ('Freightmaster Interactive')

1627] GNR Suburban stations: New Southgate booking office is now a portable cabin in the station
forecourt on the Up side. Oakleigh Park retains its lovely wooden booking office perched above the
Up island platform. New Barnet, with separate gate lines each side at platform level, has a newer office
on the Down side. The station retains its old footbridge; part of the structure is marked as 'dangerous'.

Palmers Green (1.78M passengers 2019-20) and Winchmore Hill (with 1.61M) are both busy stations.
The former has retained much of its previous character, although the Down side canopy appears to
have been shortened. There are toilets here on the Up side and a peak hour exit still exists on the
Down side. Winchmore Hill has replacement 1970s(?) canopies but retains an older entrance and
booking office. Enfield Chase (another on the branch with toilets, and adjacent café, on the Up side)
continues to look good at platform level. Downstairs in the booking hall is less exciting. Gordon Hill
currently has a small exhibition on the history of the station in the Up side waiting room. It retains its
Up buildings, waiting room and multiuse toilet but the Down side buildings have been demolished.
There is still a lengthy covered characterful footbridge and walkway up to the gate line, booking office,
shop and exit. The station entrance is anything but attractive though.

1628] Crossrail/Elizabeth Line: (BLN 1403.1490) To clarify the reason for the delayed start of Bond
Street station construction, the main problem was the time it took to clear the site after the TBMs
were relaunched from there. Contractors had to wait until the TBMs had cleared Farringdon before
they could take away all the staging at Bond Street, as the site of the station was used for the gantries
and supply chain for the TBMs. The BBC's £15bn Railway documentary also said that the cutters had to
be changed on a TBM (they say this took a year) after old building foundations were encountered.
In addition, some electrical systems had to be redesigned. Some of the total delay has been caught up.

A member involved with Crossrail planning and design in the 1980s and 1990s comments that the
original designs for Tottenham Court Road did include a direct Central Line to Crossrail interchange
and also a connection from the west end of the Central Line platforms to the Dean Street ticket hall.
However, these were both victims of cost cutting with expected interchange between the Elizabeth
and Central Lines being relatively small. The wide platform spacing is not only dictated by alignment
constraints (mainly existing building foundations) but also to allow for future connections to Crossrail
2, including, hopefully, a direct Central Line to Crossrail 2 via Crossrail 1 platform level interchange.

The new stations described Part 2:
Whitechapel: There is just one exit from the platforms, with a bank of escalators near the west

end leading to the new walkway above the East London Line. Stairs lead down from here to the
London Overground and LU platforms and further stairs lead up to the new ticket hall. The east side of
the walkway is outside the ticket barriered area and leads to a new entrance on Durward Street.

Canary Wharf: This station is different, as it was built by Canary Wharf Group. A wide island
platform has three banks of escalators to an intermediate level. Here two gate lines lead to further
escalators to street level. The west end exit is signed to Crossrail Place, the name of the entire building.
This entrance is near West India Quay DLR stop. The east end entrance leads to Canada Place with
portable signs to the Jubilee Line station. There are catering outlets between the two entrances. On
the floor above is a health centre, also a bar & grill, with a roof garden and restaurant on the top floor.

Custom House: This is the only one of the completely new stations to be above ground. The main
entrance and gate line is at the west end and leads to an existing overbridge giving access to the
street, the Excel Centre and the DLR stop. Escalators from the east end of the DLR stop access the
Excel Centre and Elizabeth Line station but the gate line here is way in only. The two gate lines lead to
a semi open concourse, from where steps and two single escalators lead down to the island platform.

Woolwich: From a wide island platform, escalators at the west end emerge in the booking hall on
Dial Square. Woolwich Arsenal station is two to three minutes' walk away. Since the new station is in
the Arsenal site (and the old one isn't), the two station names are actually the wrong way round!

Abbey Wood: The new island P3 & 4 is alongside Southeastern P1 & 2. To maximise your Elizabeth
Line mileage, trains in P3 stop nearer to Dartford, this track continues to the connection with NR at
Alsike Road Jn. Trains are booked to use each platform alternately and lay over for about 8 minutes.
At the west end, a footbridge gives interchange with Southeastern and there is another footbridge
with escalator in the middle of the platforms. Stairs at the east end lead to the booking hall.

1629] Imperial Wharf: A second entrance and gate line has been opened at the north end of Down
(northbound) P2. This was funded by the DfT and uses a staircase that was previously a fire escape.

1430] LU strikes: (BLN 1403.1497) Only the Central, District and Northern Lines ran on Tue 21 Jun and
then just a partial service. The strike was more disruptive than the last, as more staff were involved.
There was a later start the next morning, as Unite members in the Power Supply Control Centre joined
the strike. Services were affected on 23rd and 25th by the NR signallers' strike. The Bakerloo Line did
not operate north of Queen's Park but London Overground ran a reduced service between Kilburn
High Road and Watford Junction, with trains to Euston at the start and end of a shortened operating
day. The District Line only ran to Wimbledon and Richmond between 07.30 and 18.30. The RMT has a
renewed mandate to continue strike action on London Underground until 23 Dec.

1631] Waterloo & City Line: (BLN 1403.1500) To correct the previous item, the line remains closed on
Saturdays when demand has been low so it will not be a 'drain' on TfL resources.

1632] Freight on the Underground - our ultimate 'Metro': (BLN 1402.1354) The table shows London
Underground stations that had a freight service. Closure details are mostly from 'Clinker', so treat with
caution. Details of the traffic that could be handled are from the 1956 Hand-Book of Stations.

G: Goods traffic 'C' in this column indicated that only coal traffic was handled.
F: Furniture vans, carriages, motor cars, portable engines and machines on wheels.
L: Livestock. H: Horseboxes and prize cattle vans.
C: Carriages & motor cars by parcels train. If a crane was available, capacity is shown in brackets.

Station Line Closed G F L H C Notes and (crane capacity)
Amersham Metropolitan
Baker Street Metropolitan 4 Jul 66 Y Y Y Y Y (1 ton 10 cwt)
Barkingside
Blake Hall Central ???? siding for Chiltern Court (see text)
Buckhurst Hill Central
Chalfont & Latimer Central 4 Oct 65 Y
Chesham Metropolitan
Chorleywood Metropolitan 18 Apr 66 Y
Cranley Gardens Metropolitan
Croxley Northern* 6 Jan 64 Y
Debden Metropolitan
Eagle Lane Central 14 Nov 66 Y
East Finchley Central
Eastcote Northern 4 Jul 66 Y Y Y Y Y (8 ton 0 cwt)
Metropolitan
Edgware (ex-GNR) 14 Nov 66 Y
Northern*
Epping 18 May 57 C *not opened
Fairlop Central
Finchley Central Central 14 Nov 66 Y
Finchley Road Northern
Hammersmith Metropolitan 18 Apr 66 Y Y Y
Harrow-on-the-Hill H&C
High Barnet Metropolitan 18 Apr 66 C
High St Kensington Northern
Hillingdon District 1 Oct 66 Y Y Y Y (5 ton 0 cwt)
Leytonstone Metropolitan
Loughton Central 10 Aug 64 C
Mill Hill (The Hale) Central
Mill Hill East Northern* 1 Jun 64 Y Y YY ex-GNR station via Finsbury Park
Moor Park Northern *not opened (5 ton 0 cwt)
Muswell Hill Metropolitan
Neasden Northern* 18 Apr 66 Y Y Y (1 ton 10 cwt)
Newbury Park Metropolitan
North Weald Central 24 Mar 58 Y Y Y (3 ton 0 cwt)
Northwood Central
Ongar Metropolitan 1 Oct 62 Y Y Y Y Y (5 ton 0 cwt)
Pinner Central
Rayners Lane Metropolitan 1 Aug 41
Rickmansworth Metropolitan
Ruislip Metropolitan 1 Feb 60 C
Snaresbrook Metropolitan
South Harrow Central 3 Apr 67 Y Y Y Y Y (5 ton 0 cwt)
Metropolitan
1 Oct 62 Y Y Y Y Y

25 Nov 63 Y Midland Railway goods station

10 Aug 64 C

02 Sep 55 Y but still shown in 1956 Hand-Book

18 Apr 66 Y

29 Feb 64 *not opened

1 Oct 62 Y also gas works & War Dept sidings

Jul 38

14 Jun 56 *not opened

Apr 58 C plus a separate ex-GCR coal depot

4 Oct 65 Y

6 Jan 64 Y Y

14 Nov 66 Y Y Y Y Y (1 ton 10 cwt)

18 Apr 66 Y Y Y (2 ton 0 cwt)

3 Apr 67 Y Y Y Y

10 Aug 64 C

14 Nov 66 YY

10 Aug 64 C

1 Aug 49

4 Apr 54 Gas works private siding only

South Woodford Central 6 Jan 64 Y
Stanmore Metropolitan 31 Mar 36
Theydon Bois 18 Apr 66 Y Y Y
Totteridge & Central
Whetstone 1 Oct 62 Y Y Y Y Y
Uxbridge Northern
Watford 1 May 39
Wellington Sidings Metropolitan
Wembley Park Metropolitan 14 Nov 66 Y Y Y Y (7 ton 0 cwt)
West Kensington
Willesden Green Northern 1 Oct 62 C
Woodford Metropolitan
Woodside Park 5 Jul 65 C
District
Metropolitan 14 Jul 65 Y Midland Railway goods station

Central 3 Jan 66 C
Northern
18 Apr 66 Y (2 ton 0 cwt)

1 Oct 62 Y Y Y Y Y

The Metropolitan Railway ran goods trains like most other railway companies but London Passenger
Transport Board passed responsibility for this to the L&NER in 1937 when ownership of the Met steam
locomotives was transferred. Met electric locos worked freight south of Finchley Road to Chiltern
Court and Vine Street. Chiltern Court is a block of flats over Baker Street station and short trains of
inwards coal and outwards refuse ran, the final one on 3 Aug 1961. Another source gives the siding as
disused from 11 Sep 1961. Vine Street was a small goods yard (CG 1 Jul 1936) at Farringdon, just two
sidings each able to hold about seven wagons. The Great Northern Railway also had a Farringdon
freight depot (CG 16 Jan 1956). The GWR, as a joint owner of the Hammersmith & City Joint Railway,
worked goods trains to Hammersmith. The GWR also worked freight, mainly meat carcases, to the
depot under Smithfield Market, accessed from the City Widened Lines. At one time, there was
substantial freight traffic between the Midland and Great Northern Railways and south London,
running via the Metropolitan City Widened Lines and what is now the Thameslink route to Blackfriars.

Freight was discontinued from the Eastern Region in 1965 and the London Midland Region in 1968.
The final working was a parcels train from Holloway to London Bridge and return on 23 Mar 1969.

The East London Railway was jointly owned by the Great Eastern, London Brighton & South Coast,
Metropolitan, Metropolitan District and South Eastern Railways. Through freight operated but was
constrained by having to reverse in Liverpool Street station and by the steep gradients in and out of
the Thames Tunnel. The junction with the GE Main Line at Wheeler Street was severed 17 Apr 1966.
Until 1955, there was also a hoist connection to Bishopsgate Goods Depot, near Shoreditch station.

Midland Railway (and later LMS and BR) trains to West Kensington and High Street Kensington ran
from Cricklewood via the curve from Bollo Lane Jn to Acton Lane West Jn, officially CA 13 Sep 1965.
Borley's 'Chronology of London Railways' quotes the last coal train as running on 13 Jul 1965, with
return empties on 29 Jul 1965. There is still a gap between the Eastbound District and Piccadilly lines
between Turnham Green and Stamford Brook, where there used to be a loop to recess goods trains.

Alan A Jackson in London's Local Railways says that High Street Kensington yard OG 4 Mar 1878 and
West Kensington OG 25 Mar 1878. …another yard at South Kensington...was never built. Midland coal
trains were the only regular freight traffic ever worked over the [Kensington & Richmond Railway],
which had no goods yards along its route. The 1910 OS shows sidings at Kew Gardens but they had
gone by the 1933 survey and were presumably used for other purposes. Clinker does not record the
station at all. The London Railway Atlas records the sidings and bay platform as in use until 4 Jul 1931.

The L&NER and BR continued to operate goods trains to stations on the Central and Northern Lines
after London Transport took over passenger services. The GWR and Central London Railway had a joint
section of track between North Acton and White City and freight operated over this from 1920 until
19 Jun 1938, when parallel lines were opened connecting to the West London Line.

At many stations, coal merchants continued using the yards after BR withdrew rail services. This was
on condition that they obtained coal from a rail served coal concentration depot not too far away.
There were still some yards occupied by coal merchants into the 1980s, Loughton was among the last.

It is possible that L&SWR/SR/BR freight trains sometimes worked over the line between Wimbledon
and Point Pleasant Jn via East Putney but there were no goods yards at the intermediate stations.
Note that this section only transferred to LU in 1994 with privatisation. On both the Bakerloo Line to
Watford and the District to Upminster, the Underground was intruding on main lines. The Bakerloo
would have shared tracks with goods trains at least between Watford Junction and Watford West Jn
(to which Bakerloo trains ran empty to stable at Croxley Depot). Most goods yards were on the south
side of the line between Bromley-by-Bow and Upminster but there was also some freight use of the
tracks used by District trains until they were disconnected from the main lines.

With thanks to Greg Beecroft. Additional information has been taken from 'Underground News' and
further information on the subject would be welcomed by your Greater London Regional Editor.

1633] London Trams (Croydon): (BLN 1399.971) TfL and Tram Operations Ltd are to plead guilty to
health and safety charges arising from the Sandilands accident in 2016 in which seven people died.
The tram driver involved will plead not guilty to failing to take reasonable care of passengers.

1634] Northern Line Microgricing: (BLN 1388.2829) Apart from the resumption of Night Tube, the
main effect of WTT 59 http://bit.ly/2Y5VTVD dated 27 Jun 2022, on the microgricer is that Golders
Green Northbound Loop regains a booked working at a civilised hour! However, enough other details
have changed to justify this update, showing train running numbers in [square brackets] where most
helpful. Fuller information is available on our website under Members Archive LUL rare moves.

•Golders Green southbound
P3 (=P4) arrivals: SSuX 05.45¾ [020], 20.22 [032]; TWThFO 00.23¾ [036];

..SO all terminators, ie seven until 04.04, 23.35½; SuO all terminators, ie five until 04.34.
P3 departures: SSuX 05.38¾, 05.46¼, 08.45½, 08.58, six trains 17.18¼-18.28¼, 23.37¼, 24.00; SO

..05.38¼, 05.50½; SuO 07.14. They (believed) always take the leftmost platform end route (17 points).
P2 (=P1) departures: ECS only (in opposite direction).

•Golders Green northbound
P2 (=P1) arrivals via Northbound Loop: no booked use.
P3 arrivals via Northbound Loop: SSuX 10.13 [023].
P3 arrivals via platform-end crossover (22 points): All terminators: Daily several around midnight;

..SSuX several 08.39-10.32½, several 17.06-19.35; SuO six from 21.47½.
P3 departures: SSuX 05.57¾, 06.06¾, 06.18.

•Finchley Central P2 departures towards Mill Hill East: SuX 05.16½, 05.50½.

•East Finchley
P3 arrivals: All Southbound terminators: Daily plenty around midnight;

..SSuX four 09.27½-10.21½, 20.03½, 20.18¼.
P2 departures: All northbound starters: SSuX several until 07.45¾, 16.14, 16.26, 16.41½, 16.56¾;

..SO several 05.12-06.55¾; SuO plenty until 08.40¼, 09.27.

•Camden Town northbound
P1 arrivals via Charing Cross: gap SSuX 06.37¾-11.13½.
P3 arrivals via Bank: gap SSuX 06.30¼-11.13¾ (except 08.56¼, 09.35).

•Kennington
P2 departures towards Oval: SSuX plenty until 09.54¼, plenty 16.50½-19.46¼, plenty from 22.47;

. SO plenty until 06.01, 23.23¼, 23.35; SuO plenty until 07.32¼, five from 23.23.
P1 arrivals from Oval direction: SSuX plenty until 09.29¼, plenty 16.27-19.45¼;

. SO plenty until 06.45¼; SuO plenty until 08.09.
Reversing loop: P2 terminators continue unadvertised but reportedly not forbidden, to form P1

..departures (BLN 1392.30). In the standard off peak timetable pattern, Charing Cross Branch trains

..run alternately to Kennington (generally 10tph off-peak) and Battersea Power Station (also 10tph)

•Morden
P2 departures: gaps SSuX 08.43½-10.23, 17.06½-20.23; SSuO most of night.
P2 (=P1) arrivals: gaps SSuX 07.02¼ [066]-09.10¼ [110], 15.57½ [071]-19.02½ [116FX, 115FO];

..SSuO most of night. [Thanks, as always, to Bill Lynch for his time and work on this item.]

1635] Night Tube: (BLN 1403.1489) ●The second paragraph in the previous item should of course
refer to the Piccadilly Line. As before, the overnight service will run between Cockfosters and
Heathrow T5, with 20 trains providing a 6tph (six trains per hour) service. ●The RMT has a renewed
mandate for Night Tube strike action by Train Operators and this will now continue until 4 Dec.

1636] Camden Town - Euston: Delkor fastenings will replace track fastenings on this section of the
Northern Line. This follows pre-Pandemic trials on the Jubilee Line. The Northern Line has been the
subject of the most residential complaints relating to noise and vibrations. Further installation will be
limited unless a long term funding settlement is reached with the Government. ('Evening Standard')

1637] Euston: (BLN 1392.33) Two prints of the Doric Arch, funded by the Railway Heritage Trust, have
been installed on the widened ramp to P8-11, at the exact location where the arch stood. There is also
a large video screen showing a series of ten images from its construction through to its demolition.

1638] Barking Riverside: (BLN 1402.1340) The branch is to open this summer. The TfL press release
announced that this was ahead of schedule, as it had been planned to open in the autumn. This was
widely reported in the media but overlooks that pre-Pandemic it was intended to open in May 2021!

1639] (Not) Restoring Your Railways Fund: Funding has been refused for reopening Southall to
Brentford to passengers and the West London Orbital Line. Development under the Ideas Fund has
been refused for step free access at Carshalton Beeches and reopening of Camberwell station.

1640] TfL Finances: At the last minute, the DfT agreed to extend funding from 24 Jun until 13 Jul.

1641] South Harrow: (BLN 1380.1800) The 12 new sidings will be numbered from 1, furthest from the
running lines. 1, 3, 4 & 5 will be brought into use from 17 Jul. 2 and 6 are laid but not commissioned
and Siding 7 is to be a non-electrified engineering siding for the project to construct Sidings 8-12.

1642] Waterloo: (BLN 1398.852) The national monument to the Windrush Generation, a statue, was
unveiled on the former International side on 22 Jun. Although the Empire Windrush docked in Tilbury,
many of the immigrants from the Caribbean travelled to Waterloo after arriving in Southampton.

1404 NORTH EAST & YORKSHIRE (Geoff Blyth) [email protected]

1643] Blyth & Tyne: The Transport & Works Act Order required for reopening was made on 27 Jun.

1644] T&W Metro: ❶(BLN 1389.2988) At Gosforth Depot Phase 2 of demolition of the old buildings
was completed in time for the Jubilee weekend and three new lines were installed. These stages
involved demolition of the stabling sheds to the west of the depot and partial demolition of the main
depot buildings. Phase 3 of the demolition, with a further three lines, should be complete by October.
The project has been planned to enable most of the current Metro fleet to continue operating from
Gosforth Depot while construction work takes place, with some using the temporary Howdon Depot
(BLN 1366.3464). The first new unit (BLN 1370.363.2) is scheduled to arrive at Howdon in Nov.

❷(BLN 1399.978.2) From Sat 16 Jul until Fri 29 Jul (incl), there will be a 14 day line closure between
St James (incl) and Tynemouth (excl) for the removal and replacement of Tanners Bank bridge along
with vegetation and OHLE work. Tynemouth trailing crossover will be in use on departure from P2.

❸Nexus had planned £57M of renewal work between 2023-25 but has only been allocated £23.8M
by the DfT. Many projects will be put on hold, although passengers will not see an immediate impact.
However, the effects could eventually include speed restrictions, more frequent disruption to services
due to failures, and ultimately more drastic measures such as the closure of stops or withdrawal of
services. According to a strategy presented to council leaders, the first section to be shut in a worst
case scenario, if repair work was to cease, would be Regent Centre to Newcastle Airport, followed by
the entire coastal loop from St James to South Gosforth. The strategy adds that the works required
during this decade include a new signalling system, a 'significant overhaul' of lifts and escalators,
refurbishment of 13 stops, painting the QEII Bridge over the Tyne, and work on Howdon Viaduct.

❹The Metro has become England's first rail network to have tactile paving on every platform edge.
The final stations were Whitley Bay and Tynemouth, both of which needed listed building consent.

❺The historic glass canopy roof at Whitley Bay will be restored this summer at a cost of £2M.

1645] Doncaster: BLN 1403.1511 stated that Potteric Carr Jn is now Decoy North Jn, prompted by BLN
1402.1359, mentioning 'Decoy Yard to Low Ellers'. Wondering if the whole area (both sides of the
main line) was now deemed to be Decoy Yard, and Potteric Carr Jn no longer existed officially, the
Sectional Appendix was consulted. The diagram is somewhat misleading as it appears to show the line
to Low Ellers diverging from Decoy North Jn. This is incorrect as Potteric Carr, on the east side of the
Fast lines, is still the junction, with Decoy North Jn being on the west side. The line tables are correct.

1646] Hawes - Garsdale: (BLN 1399.993) Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority has carried out an
online public survey after its members recommended creation of a 'multi-user route' (bridleway) on
the trackbed. 2,261 responses were received, 'one of the most engaged surveys the authority has
undertaken in recent years'. 77% were in favour of the proposal and only 19% against (presumably the
4% were ambivalent?), so the Upper Wensleydale Railway Association has finally lost the battle.

1647] Teesside Airport: ①(BLN 1401.1249) On 2 May a member of the public submitted a Freedom
of Information (FOI) request for documentation on the sudden decision on 29 Apr to close this station.
This revealed that, on 9 Jan, an independent contractor had examined the platforms and footbridge.

The footbridge (which had already been closed to the public) was found to be severely corroded in
several places, although the supporting columns were not leaning significantly. However, there is a
severe loss of section (the metal has corroded) in the horizontal beam spanning the line and the
supporting intermediate beams. These need to be replaced or treated and redecorated. The timber
deck boards were found to have minor surface wet rot. The footbridge is being temporarily supported
by scaffolding. Your NE Editor sent the report to a member who is a structural engineer; he described
the main girders as 'abysmal'. He doubts the bridge will collapse under 'deadload' (nobody on it) but
any 'liveloading' by pedestrians would 'probably not end well'! [When our 15 Nov 2015 TPE Tyne &
Tees Tracker tour had a photo stop, only a few were allowed on the bridge at a time. A sign on it then
read: WEAK BRIDGE NO STANDING ON THE FOOTBRIDGE PLEASE CROSS OVER ONTO PLATFORM!!
So, just how could people (in 2015) cross to the other platform via the bridge without standing on it?]

The FOI request also revealed that the platforms were found to be in a poor state of repair and require
a 'vast amount of remedial work' to bring them up to a safe standard. The most immediate cause for
concern is the possible movement and distortion of the platform concrete piers, which in a worst case
scenario could lead to a structural collapse. There is severe wet rot to the plywood platform surface,
which has not been appropriately repaired on P2. The defective deck on both platforms needs to be
replaced as soon as possible. All timber beams suffering from wet rot should be replaced. A pier on P2
and the supporting brick wall section, also two piers on P1, need to be taken down and rebuilt.

A further survey carried out on 20 Mar was reviewed by our member: 'It seems there is ongoing minor
deterioration to the defects highlighted by the surveyor from the last inspection. The surveyor has
attempted to carry out a good and thorough inspection and also identified some further defects.
It is highly recommended to continue inspection and monitoring to establish condition and potential
further deterioration until defects within the report are repaired or renewed'. However, it was
presumably decided a month later that the station had finally passed the point of no return.

Our member said 'the station needs rebuilding to standard rather than bodging'. There can't be any
present justification whatsoever for rebuilding it. In contrast, British Steel Redcar looked to be in
reasonably good condition during our 'Men of Steel' fixture on 14 Dec 2019, its final day of passenger
service, and the Tees Valley Combined Authority has hopes of reopening it as part of the 'Teesworks'
industrial zone and Freeport being developed on the site of the Lackenby and Redcar works.

BELOW: (Item 1647) Teesside Airport P1 (then in use) looking towards Midd

dlesbrough; note the ticket is 'via Eaglescliffe'. (Tim Hall-Smith, 12 May 2019.)

BELOW: The only access to/from Teesside Airport station and in fact the

e station wasn't closed to passengers then. (Tim Hall-Smith, 12 May 2019.)

②National Rail website (PRE-PHOTOS) still thinks that trains call (the last was on Sun 24 Apr 2022),
advising that Teesside Airport is served by one train a week in one direction. The bus from Darlington
station ceased running in late 2009! As for a bus from Middlesbrough station… is there a mysterious
ghost bus service that nobody knows about (it would certainly make a change from a ghost train‽).

③A member and his girlfriend visited Teesside Airport station by train in May 2019 and took some
photos from the (one) platform then in use. As they descended the only exit ramp, they noticed a chain
across its end blocking their way which had a sign attached to it, facing the other way to potential
passengers. On turning the sign over, it read 'Closed to Passengers'! Luckily they were able to unclip
the chain, as it was clipped to a hook on one side of the fence post, so didn't have to crawl under it!

1648] York - Scarborough: In 2021 NR investigated possible journey time improvements that could be
delivered by line speed easements (not specified in the report) recommended by NR's Design Delivery
Team. Theoretical run times in both directions were calculated for a 3-car Class 150 DMU (max speed
75mph), a 2-car Class 158 (90mph), Class 68 with 5 x Mk5a coaches and a Class 185 (both 100mph).

No meaningful journey time improvements were possible for Classes 150 and 158 but these units do
not run on this line. In the Down direction, there was a 2 min improvement for a Class 185 and 3½ min
for a Class 68. In the Up direction, there was a 4½ min improvement for Class 68 Locos and Class 185.

The effect of the new Haxby station (BLN 1391.3216) was investigated. At the time, it was not known
which of the two possible sites (BLN 1387.2728) would be chosen but the difference in extra journey
time was 2 sec! Even with speed improvements, the journey time would increase for Classes 150 and
158 but not for Classes 185 and 68, although this analysis may not include 'dwell time' at the station.

East of Malton it is proposed to increase line speed from 75mph to 90mph in the Down direction only,
between 29m 40ch (east of the former Heslerton station) and 35m 40ch, with a gap from 32m 00ch to
32m 77ch (east of Weaverthorpe Box). However, 90mph is already allowed on most of this section for
'Sprinter' DMUs; hence no journey time improvements for 150s and 158s. Clearly this is a 'levelling up'
(!) to enable stock which does run on this line to achieve the same speeds. The choice of the Down
direction may be because Haxby station will apparently affect Down trains more than Up trains.

Regarding further improvements, the corresponding Up Line seems an obvious choice. Similarly the
first 12 miles or so out of York is a candidate, before the series of very sharp curves around Kirkham
Abbey, where the line follows the narrow valley of the River Derwent and the line speed drops to
40mph in places. However, Haxby station is in the middle of this potentially faster section near York.

As for other similar lines with low restrictions by modern standards, Micklefield - Selby - Hull is almost
dead straight, except through Selby. It is mostly only 70/75 mph but with 'Sprinters' allowed 90mph in
many sections. Northallerton - Eaglescliffe has mostly a good alignment and is traversed by Classes
180 & 185 and diverted ECML services, but with a line limit of only 70 mph. There are a quite a lot of
user worked crossings south of Yarm, which may be a factor of that line.

1649] East of Leeds Upgrade: (BLN 1403.1506) A member who works in the industry comments:
The new Leeds to Neville Hill layout seems to improve the way the line will operate. A Neville Hill
departure is very problematic at present. The new Neville Hill Relief Line is particularly well laid out
and would add useful flexibility during disruption and for peak hours movements to/from the Depot.

The platform extensions are significant: Cross Gates 149/159m to 200m; Thorpe Park 150m; (new
station) Garforth 150m to 200m; East Garforth 102m to 150m; Micklefield 100/101m to 160/165m.
Church Fenton (118 & 132m) and Ulleskelf (105m) are unchanged. 150m platforms suggest 6-car
trains are envisaged; 200m allows for 8-cars. Our member thinks it odd that this is seen as necessary,
Leeds to York stoppers are 2-3 cars, Hull to Halifax 3-4 cars and Leeds east bays P7 & P14 hold 4-cars
(no change). BLN 1386.2612 pointed out that if projected demand at Thorpe Park is realised and pre-
Covid passenger numbers return, it will be impossible to board some trains at Cross Gates unless they
are strengthened (hence the lengthening?). If so they would have to use a through platform at Leeds.

It is odd that platform extensions are not planned at Church Fenton (119,332 passengers 2019-20)
and Ulleskelf (13,236). This will fix the current service pattern (Leeds - York stoppers not stopping!).

The TPE Scarborough train was always 'breathing down the neck of' (our member's words) the Leeds
to York local, so the latter cannot call without delaying the TPE. In the other direction the local is
followed by the TPE service from Redcar, but not as closely, and in there is Church Fenton P3 loop.

When the current timetable was developed, the intention was for York - Blackpool services to be non-
stop between York and Leeds but this could not be pathed. To maintain West Yorkshire connections,
the Church Fenton call was moved to the Blackpool service. It was applied to all these trains, rather
than the specified one every three hours, to maintain a consistent timetable and reduce the risk of a
driver forgetting to stop. It may be that local trains becoming EMUs will resolve this problem or that a
decision has been taken to keep this calling pattern. It seems odd not to extend Church Fenton P1
from 5-cars when other stations will be to 6 or 8 cars; P1 is actually long enough but part is out of use.

Church Fenton The station saw a big increase in service in the May 2018 timetable, which was
reflected in the usage (LEFT) with interchanges increasing from about 1,000 to
2016-17 71,180 6,020. It is only a small village (population about 1,400) but can be considered
2017-18 75,946 the railhead for Tadcaster (pop 6,675) although it has only a small car park too.
2018-19 93,088 This village is quite affluent, with commuters to Leeds and York, so the increase
2019-20 119,332 in services seems to have made rail more attractive to these commuters.
2020-21 21,492

The first OHLE has been erected on the Down Normanton Line just north of Church Fenton. This is part

of the earlier Church Fenton - Colton Jn electrification (BLN 1346.539), of course, not Project E234.

1650] Trans-Pennine Route Upgrade: (BLN 1325.679) Proposals have been published for Project W3,
Huddersfield to Westtown (Dewsbury) (BLN 1335.2169). The Key Target Programme Outcomes are:

Electrification from Manchester to Leeds, with a 43 min journey time (the best is currently 50 min).
Bimode rolling stock with electric stopping services between Huddersfield and Leeds.
92.5% of trains arriving within four minutes of booked time at four key stations. Project W3 includes:

►Huddersfield - Westtown line speed increases from 75mph to 110mph; the Fast Lines from 75mph
….to 100/110mph, with the Slows designed for 75mph to accommodate freight train braking distances.
►Journey time improvement of 117 sec (Down direction) and 96 sec (Up) over the W3 section.
►Four through platforms are required at Huddersfield (which also provides maintenance flexibility)
….with quadrupling and grade separation at Ravensthorpe to relieve a significant bottleneck there.
►Electrification of the complete W3 route.

►Platform lengthening at Deighton, Mirfield and Ravensthorpe to 150m, with
….passive provision for an additional 50m. Platform lengthening at Huddersfield.
►Improved station facilities and stations fully accessible to all.
►Closure of the existing Ravensthorpe station and construction of a new, relocated station.
►The project re-controls current signalling to York ROC and decommissions Diggle box in May 2024,
….when the North West & Central/Eastern regional boundaries will be moved to match operational
….and maintenance functions. The current 15m 11ch boundary (the west portal of Standedge Tunnel)
….will then move to the eastern end of Greenfield station at 12m 76ch.
►The existing interlocking (a mix of Solid State Interlocking and relay) will be replaced by Computer-
….Based Interlocking (CBI). The Central Interlocking Processor (CIP) name for the CBI controlling the
….Huddersfield area is reportedly 'HUDDLESFIELD' (sic!!!). This may have started life as a typo which
….was missed but has now been incorporated into the plans and might be too costly to correct!

STAGE 3a: 29 Mar to 1 May 2024 Mirfield station Phase 1, diversion of Up and Down Main Lines.
….Project W2B (Stalybridge - Huddersfield) resignalling & W3 Huddersfield Phase 1, realignment of Up
….and Down Huddersfield Slow Lines, Hillhouse Sidings & Huddersfield station works. The station will
….operate as a two track railway for a year with a 31 day Easter 2024 blockade (temporary platform).
STAGE 3b: 25-27 Dec 2024 Mirfield station Phase 2 commissioning; a 52 hour Christmas blockade.
STAGE 3c: 13-22 Jul 2024 Bradley Jn remodelling (with a 9 day blockade) to install the new Up Slow
….and Down Slow Lines between the A62 and Colne Road. 7-11 Feb 2025 Deighton station works.
STAGE 3d: 19 Apr to 19 May 2025 Huddersfield station Phase 2, P5 & P6 canopy erection and fit out
….of platform furniture, mechanical and electrical services etc (with a 30 day Easter blockade).

STAGE 3e: 19 Jul to 11 Sep 2025 (with 23 day blockade) to remodel Thornhill LNW Jn/Ravensthorpe.
STAGE 3f: 3-7 Apr 2026 (if your diaries go that far…) removal of Mirfield Loop (100 hour blockade).
STAGE 3g: 9-13 Apr 2026, commission Fast Lines and Deighton station.
STAGE 3h: 12-14 Sep 2026, prove/commission OHLE on Fast & Slow Lines and Hillhouse Sidings 1-4.

Electrification, line speed changes and station improvements in the area will be delivered later.

A member comments that this confirms the plan for Ravensthorpe, with the new Fast Lines flying over
the L&Y lines and one of the L&NWR slows, and that a few miles of the Calder Valley line proper will
have a limit of 110mph, not just 100. Huddersfield is interesting suggesting that long term thinking is
for all services to stop there. The Fast and Slow Lines are now to be paired by use through the station,
which is thought to be different from the original plan. The Down Fast becomes only 30mph through
the West Jn although the Up Fast stays at the 40mph in the original plan. How do they plan to achieve
high reliability on the future two-track railway between Ravensthorpe East and Micklefield, with six
fast trains an hour each way and a more frequent Leeds suburban service (assuming no freight)?

Activity (Hartlepool) Date 1651] Hartlepool: (BLN 1402.1355) At the station (which is
Start early enabling works Aug 22 not NR's busiest with one platform), plans have been issued
Start main works Sep 22 to reinstate and lengthen disused Up P3 and build a fully
Replace disused platform Oct 22 accessible footbridge from P2. The present situation, where

Main footbridge span Jan 23 all through services must use the Down P2, is an operating

Install stairs Feb 23 constraint which will probably be intolerable if there is heavy

Install new platform canopy Mar 23 traffic for the Tall Ships Race in Aug 2023. P3 will be 157m

Enter service/clear site Jul 23 long when reconstructed, with an 18m extension at the

Stockton (east) end. 55m of the existing disused platform will remain at the Sunderland (west) end.

P2 operational length is 153m in the Down direction and 137m in the Up, which will be unchanged.
There will be a non-operational 22m extension to accommodate the new station footbridge and lifts.
Minor signalling enhancements are a double sided 'OFF' indicator on P3 and a banner repeater at the
west end of P2. Northern has a franchise commitment to an additional (semi-fast) train each hour
between Middlesbrough and Newcastle, (assuming it still goes ahead) with the May 2023 timetable.

This is an inferior replacement for the direct Northern Connect fast service via Durham, planned by
Northern Rail but could not be pathed reliably by NR. As Up P3 will not have been reinstated then, the
Nunthorpe to Newcastle service will incur a temporary 12 min delay northbound for pathing. This will
result in a short term non-compliant turnaround of 9 min at Newcastle Central (minimum 10 min),
which will be resolved once P3 is reinstated in Jul 2023. The business case will focus on delay minutes
saved by reducing conflicts between Up and Down services and elimination of the 12 min delay.

1652] Darlington: (BLN 1397.736.3) The Borough Council has appointed a main contractor for the
£35M Railway Heritage Quarter project with work due to be completed in 2024 for the Stockton &
Darlington Railway bicentenary in 2025. County Durham failed in its bid to be UK City of Culture 2025,
which would have put considerable emphasis on the bicentenary, losing out to Bradford.

1653] Howden: (TRACKmaps 2 p38A 2020) Following assessment of all points with timber sleepers on
lines passed for 90mph and above, it is proposed to remove and plain line the trailing crossover here
at 22m 27ch on the Selby - Hull line. It is in an awkward position in relation to Howden Up P1.
The crossover was clipped OOU on 13 Feb 2020 after a run through and not signed back into use until
6 Aug 2021. It has had little use and removal will have insignificant operational impact, Gilberdyke
(17m 7ch) crossover can be used instead. Why was it kept (and motorised) with the 1997 resignalling?

1404 NORTH WEST (John Cameron) [email protected]
1654] Merseyrail: ①(BLN 1403.1520.1) From 20 Jun most routes returned to their normal 15 min
service, following a temporary reduction caused by bearing faults on the Class 507 and 508s. ②Most
platforms have now been adapted for level boarding and to accommodate the fold out steps on the
new Class 777 EMUs. Some have had extensions such as Formby; this is still outstanding at Southport
where, due to the track layout, curvature and available space, unusually the platforms have to be
extended back into the concourse, lengthening the griceable track for the new units when in multiple.

1655] Metrolink: ❶Over the 11-12 Jun weekend a new record number of 211,900 journeys were
made on the Metrolink network; 82,000 were by contactless payments, which was also a new record.
❷ MediaCityUK/Broadway - Eccles: This section is TCP for 14 weeks from Sat 16 Jul until Fri 21 Oct
(both inclusive), with five stops, to replace badly of worn 22 years old rails in various locations (evident
from the noise trams make on them). Trams will run between MediaCityUK and Ashton-under-Lyne.

1656] Dore: (BLN 1402.1374) On 4 Jul, new points were installed (out of use for later commissioning)
at 154m 48ch on the Down Main at Dore Station Jn for redoubling. On 14 Jun a member noticed that
preparation for remodelling had started - some work on the formation and bits of S&C lying about.

1657] Rochdale - Whitworth - Bacup: (BLN 1352.1439) A reader has sent in his memories of this line.
Wed 15 Jun was the 75th anniversary of the last passenger train. Freight continued; coal to Facit from
the south until CG 12 Aug 1963, then Rochdale East Jn - Whitworth CG 21 Aug 1967 (intermediately,
asbestos traffic to Shawclough ceased in Jan 1967). Rail traffic north of Facit to Bacup Engine Shed
probably ended with withdrawal of passenger services from 16 Jun 1947 but light engine movements
continued. Closure was from 5 May 1952 but it was retained for wagon storage until about 1963.

Until Nov 1941 our member lived in Brunswick Street, near Wardleworth station and he has a clear
memory of going for passenger trains. He and his mother walked over the footbridge to the Rochdale
bound platform but his father had to wheel the pram with his two year old sister in it over the barrow
crossing. He was very frightened that the train may come and run them over and their assisting porter.
From their house in Brunswick St, they could hear trains at Wardleworth station, especially climbing up
from the 'eighteen arches', the viaduct crossing the River Roch and Entwisle Road. Also, the sound of
shunting engines 24 hours a day in the goods yard and coal yard up Milnrow Road was ever present.

1658] Friction at Hunts Cross: From 4 Jul the fixed P3 buffer stop for P3 was to be replaced by a
friction sliding type 7yd closer to Hunts Cross West Jn with its TPWS over speed sensor repositioned.

1659] The Battle of Great Musgrave Bridge Bodge: (BLN 1400.1128) On 16 Jun Eden District Council
planning committee unanimously refused National Highways (HE) retrospective planning permission
for the infilling project. This was despite Highways England offering £450k to repair other structures
along the 7 miles of disused track north between Warcop and Appleby to allow its opening to walkers.
This might be considered a questionable offer to try and influence the result for HE to save face?

National Highways said that it will not appeal, so will have to remove the infill that submerged the
1862 bridge arch near Kirkby Stephen in 1,644 tonnes of ugly gravel and concrete at a cost of £124k.
The council said it will now serve an enforcement notice to restore the bridge to its previous state,
which it is estimated will cost National Highways £431k. The Council received over 900 objections to
the scheme (many from our members) and only two in support. It is a victory for campaigners who
argued that the bridge was structurally sound and required only inexpensive repointing to make it
safe. They also argued that infilling the bridge over the disused line would end plans to reconnect the
two heritage railways in the Eden Valley. Hopefully National Highways will learn their lesson here -
Queensbury Tunnel next? The interesting report to the Planning Committee is available with e-BLN.

1660] Blackpool Trams: (BLN 1403.1523) On Mon 27 Jun testing began on the North Station extension.
This revealed problems with the signalling not coordinating with the points, so had to be curtailed.

1661] Stockport: (BLN 1403.1517) A member's first railway job in Apr 1967 was Junior Porter and
Telegraph Messenger based in the Telegraph Office at the station. There were then booking offices on
the Up side (P1 & 2) and Down side (P3 & 4). The long thin waiting rooms above the stairs on both sides
were then the public access to the ticket windows. During the course of his work, he delivered
telegrams to all the various offices/departments then active on the station, including both booking
offices. They were very busy, the Up side dealing mainly with longer distance journeys and train
enquiries so was usually regarded as the main booking office. Entrance to the station from either end
of the subway was through one of the ticket barriers mentioned in BLN 1402, then up the stairs to the
booking office. Looking back now, this all seems incredibly labour intensive. Our member moved from
Stockport in Jun 1974 to work in Birmingham Control Office and these arrangements were still in
place then, as far as he remembers. When he returned to Stockport in 1981, he found it had all
changed. The 2022 booking office is where the Telegraph Office was when he first started work there.

BELOW: (Item 1653) The doomed trailing crossover and staggered platforms

s at Howden station looking east towards Hull. (©Andy Overton, 3 Jun 2010.)

X.145] BELOW & TO FOLLOW: Brewery Sidings Box, (BLN 1399.995 has Dav

ve Lemmings' report). This is the box diagram after the Oct 1987 alterations.

These additional photographs are all ©Andy Overton;

; the previous and this one were taken on 13 Aug 1991.

BELOW: Brewery Sidings Down Branch, (Brewery Curve) home bracket signal on 6 Aug 1988.
NEXT: The Down Goods (far left) and bracketed Down Main home signals (13 Aug 1991).



BELOW: The Down Goods Connecting lines (also known as Brewery Curve) home signals.

BELOW: Brewery Sidings signal box and layout looking towards Rochdale on 6 Aug 1988.

BELOW: Brewery Sidings signal box and layout looking towards
Left are the Manchester Up Main and Up Goods colour light home signals wi

s Miles Platting station and Manchester Victoria (13 Aug 1991).
ith route position indicators for the Down Connecting Goods (Brewery Curve).

BELOW: Brewery Jn looking towards Rochdale with Brewery Sidings sig

gnal box. Right is the Up (and far right the Down) Connecting Goods lines.

X.146] BELOW & NEXT: The Trafford Centre; double trams ran on Wed 6 Jul f

for a football match at Old Trafford, reaching the platform end. (Ian Mortimer.)





1662] Cottam Parkway: (BLN 1392.71) The Lancashire CC cabinet has sanctioned advertising for a
contractor for the primary elements of this £24M Park & Ride station near Preston; funding is in place.
Planning permission has yet to be granted but the Council wants to progress the scheme to save on
the overall cost. The station will be built over the next three years. It includes a 250 space Park & Ride,
bike storage, a staffed booking and information office, toilets, waiting area and ticket machines. The
catchment area is about 12,000 households. The population North of Preston is rapidly growing, with
over 6,000 new homes expected to be built in the two decades. A planning application is expected to
be submitted later this year and construction work is forecast to take around 18 months to complete

1404 SOUTH EAST - NORTH & EAST ANGLIA (Julian James) [email protected]
1663] Bushey: Signs are being provided for a trial until Jul 2025 on Up Slow P6 (also Leighton Buzzard
P4 and possibly other locations) to assist LNwR Senior Conductors [has anyone ever encountered any
other sort of conductors?] opening Class 350 EMU doors. They have 'Cab 2, 3, 4 or 5; Class 350; 12-car'
across three lines of text and are mounted on the platform such that Senior Conductors releasing
doors from those cabs of 12-car trains alone can tell by alignment with the signs that the whole train
length is correctly berthed. 4 and 8-car trains are clearly less of a problem on the 12-car platforms.

1664] Diving at Werrington: (BLN 1394.348) SSuX the 14.54 Doncaster to Peterborough (2K17) and
the return, 17.10 Peterborough to Lincoln (2K24) are booked to use the Diveunder from Mon 13 Jun
and Peterborough P7. However, on 13 & 14 Jun they did not and turned back in P2 but have on
other days. Local information suggests this change is to facilitate better regulation of a particular
LNER service and it also results in the 16.54 CrossCountry to Birmingham being booked to use P6.

1665] Knebworth: A desire to study railway infrastructure can take a long time to emerge. Three NR
workers recently found a tortoise that had been missing for eight months walking alongside the track
(perhaps in a race to Hare Park Jn?), while they were carrying out inspections at Knebworth. They
took it to a vet to have it checked over and see if it was microchipped. It wasn't, so they were unable
to locate the owner. They looked after the tortoise overnight and the next day one worker visited
shops and cafés to see if anyone had lost a tortoise. Although this didn't bring any joy, a café owner
agreed to post an item about the tortoise on their Facebook page to help spread the word. The owner
spotted the post and made contact. The tortoise, now being looked after in Welwyn Garden City, was
driven five miles back to Knebworth. The family have another tortoise with whom the missing animal
has lived since 1952. Your Regional Editor first had a tortoise around that time. It didn't stay a month.

1666] Henley-on-Thames branch: (BLN 1402.1393) A member with a special interest in the Reading
area signalling, having worked on it for 45 years, kindly dug out notes he made when Reading Panel
closed. Henley - Shiplake was singled Wed 14 Jun 1961 and Shiplake - Twyford Tue 20 Jun 1961, with
the loop provided at Shiplake. The last Shiplake box (its third!) opened 14 Jun 1961. It was a Western
Region 'plywood wonder' (like Evesham). The new Twyford box opened on 21 Oct 1961 (a mechanical
frame with Integra mosaic panel). Henley-on-Thames was converted to full colour light signalling in
Dec 1961, with a standard British Railways (BR) Western Region (WR) panel entrance/exit (turn/push).
The points and facing point locks were still worked from the existing frame. It had experimental solid
state transistorised interlocking, developed by Mullard Equipment Limited under a contract from the
British Transport Commission and was the first of its type ever in the world. The new signalling was
scheduled to have come into use on 11 Dec 1961 but was actually brought into use 25 Dec 1961.

On 20 Mar 1972 Henley and Twyford* signal boxes closed with control transferred to Reading Power
Box via the F1 Westinghouse TDM (Time-division Multiplexing) system. Shiplake box was converted to
a Ground Frame (crossing box) then closed 14 Mar 1973, when the crossing became an Automatic
Open Crossing Locally Monitored (AOCL). The notes suggest that Shiplake must have ceased being a
passing loop by Mar 1972 - possibly from 20th when control transferred to Reading PSB.

[*With typical BR economy, the main frame work at Twyford was reused for Oxford PSB - unique on
the WR for being 'push-push', as opposed to all the others of 1950s-70s period which were turn-push.
Oxford Panel was unusually small for the size of area; its second hand components may explain this.]