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Paul Bigland

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Paul Bigland

Monthly Archives: January 2018

The changing face of the Great Western Main Line.

17 Wednesday Jan 2018

Posted by Paul Bigland in GWML, GWR franchise, Rail electrification, Rail Investment

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GWR franchise, Rail Investment, Rail Modernisation

I popped down to London yesterday to take a spin out to Reading on the Great Western Main Line from Paddington which has just seen electric services extended as far as Didcot Parkway.

The change at Paddington is noticeable for two reasons. Not only are there a lot more shiny new GWR green Electrostars in evidence, there’s also many more Hitachi Class 800s knocking around too. These trains are like a breath of fresh air – literally – as electric is replacing diesel traction, improving the atmosphere in the station and on into our capital, which has once again become notorious for poor air quality.

DG270157. 387136. Paddington 17.5.17

Goodbye ‘Thames Turbos’, hello ‘Electrostars’ – the future of suburban trains at Paddington.

That said, it was still one of the venerable HSTs that took me out to Reading as there’s  plenty of them still in service. Bowling along towards Reading I saw how much of the route has changed in the past year. The new tracks for Crossrail were very obvious around Westborne Park and Old Oak Common, along with the dive-under the yard entrance at Acton Main Line which has been commissioned. Platform extensions were another clear sign of change at several stations, not just on the Relief lines at places like West Ealing and Slough but also on some of the the Main lines.

Of course, Reading is the biggest change of all. Only the 1860 station building with its prominent clock tower survives, almost everything else is new. If it wasn’t for the fact I’ve got shots of the station going back to the 1980s I’d find it very difficult to picture how it used to be as the transformation’s so great. However, one thing that hasn’t changed is the biting wind, in fact the new design feels like its channelled it! I always remember how chilly it could be in winter and yesterday was no exception – even when the sun did break through! But that’s the price you pay for being stuck out on the end of platforms taking pictures rather then hiding in a warm waiting room like any sane passenger.

DG288463. 387148. Reading. 16.1.18

A GWR Class 387 weaves its way Westwards towards Didcot through an avenue of OHL masts and wires.

Photography’s a lot more challenging than in past years. Not only because of the plethora of masts wires and signal gantries casting shadows in the low sunlight but also because of the assortment of new office buildings which have risen up on the South side of the station over the past couple of decades. The length of the trains presents new challenges too – a 10 car Class 800 takes up most of the platform and the days of running down the ramp onto the ballast to find the space for a nose shot are long gone. Even the 4 car 387’s pull right up to the platform ends rather then stop on the middle of the station so you have to get used to how the new station & services operate to get the pictures you want. One thing I did notice is how quickly the Class 800s accelerate away from the station. After being used to HSTs they certainly seem quicker off the mark.

DG288441. 800023. Reading. 16.1.18

Two 5 car Class 800s with 800023 trailing call at Reading en-route to Paddington.

As the weather was closing in I opted to return to London and sample one of the Electrostar stopping services which are a step-change in quality from the old ‘Thames Turbo’ DMUs. They’re light, bright, clean and with plenty of space. They’re quiet and warm too as they’ve a modern HVAC system as opposed to hopper windows. Add in the fact they’ve tables and plug sockets and GWR are really onto a winner with them. They’re just about everything you could wish for in a modern train.

DG267563. Interior. 387130. Acton Main Line. 1.3.17

The Thames Turbo DMUs have been the staple of Thames Valley services since 1992 but the world’s moved on. Here’s the interior of a GWR Class 387 EMU.

I broke the return trip at Twyford so that I could get a few more pictures before the sun disappeared for the day. Installing overhead wires has altered the feel of the place, but not as much as some other stations which have lost their old GWR footbridges in order to provide the necessary clearance. Platform extensions were very much evident in Twyford, but on this occasion they were on the Main line, not the relief.

DG288483. 387159. Twyford. 16.1.18

387159 arrives at Twyford to carry me back to London.

On the final leg to Paddington I cast a critical eye over the new electrification masts which have been supplied by Furrer & Frey. They won’t win any awards for aesthetics, but they look like they’ll stand up to anything – including a nuclear attack!

DG279884. GWML OLE masts. 24.7.17

Furrer & Frey electrification masts on the GWML. The word ‘butch’ springs to mind, but after suffering so many delayed journeys on the ECML due to the fragility of head-spans, I’m beginning to like them…

Back at Paddington I grabbed a few more pictures before heading to Kings Cross for the journey back to Yorkshire. The curse of the East Coast Main Line struck again as my return train was delayed near Huntingdon because we were requested to run at low speed to inspect the line ahead. As it was an OLE issue I couldn’t help wishing that the East Coast head-spans had been as bomb-proof as the equipment I’d seen on the GWML earlier!

DG288512. 800018. Paddington. 16.1.18

In with the new, out with the old. GWR Class 800 No 800018 at Paddington next to one of the venerable HSTs it will replace.

 

Hs2 and Twitter. Never a good mix. Add in Carillion and…

16 Tuesday Jan 2018

Posted by Paul Bigland in Anti Hs2 mob, Carillion, Hs2, StopHs2

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Carillion, Hs2, StopHs2

When major news stories break Twitter can be a very strange place. It can educate, amuse and frustrate all at the same time. It can also make you seriously wonder about the sanity of some of your fellow citizens – the one’s who never let the fact they know absolutely nothing about a subject and clearly have a tenuous grip on reality stop them sharing their ‘wisdom’.

The collapse of Carillion and the fact it had some contracts to build Hs2 is a classic example. If you believed some of the nonsense, Carillion was solely responsible for building the line which is now going to collapse as a result of them folding. Needless to say, those opposed to Hs2 have leapt on the story, grasping every straw they can find to claim that either this is the ‘end’ for Hs2, or that the Government should now cancel the scheme as a consequence. Here’s a superb example of the bat-shit crazy!

Lance-watkins. 16.1.18.PNG

Meanwhile, Joe Rukin of StopHs2 returned from semi-retirement (he’s not written anything since 22 Nov) to pen this on their website;

“Today, crisis-hit Carillion has gone into liquidation, less than six months after it was awarded the contract to design and build all the tunnels on Phase 1 of HS2.”

Carillion were designing and building all of the Hs2 tunnels? Really?

No. It’s Rukin lying through his teeth again. In fact, Carillion weren’t involved in any bored tunnels. Here’s are the details of the 3 construction contracts (that were divided into 7 lots) which were let to different Joint Ventures (JVs). The information comes from the official Government website.

HS JV contract details..PNG

Carillion were part of the CEK Joint venture, along with Eiffage Genie Civil and Kier Infrastructure and Overseas. They won lots C2 and C3 – neither of which involve boring tunnels. All the tunnelling sections were won by other JVs. The other members of the CEK JV have stated that they have contingency plans in place to deal with the collapse of Carillion, so it’s very likely they’ll continue without them whilst looking for a replacement.

Of course, none of this will stop the ill-informed frothing as people sound off, but eventually the penny will start to drop with some as it becomes obvious that Hs2 is continuing. One very public sign of this is all the work at Euston. The gardens at the front of the station closed yesterday. This led to a futile protest by three demonstrators who were quickly removed from the site before the fencing went up.

The other protest site further up the line at Harvil Rd isn’t exactly a hotbed of activity either. The protesters tweeted out this picture the other day. Four people corralled behind fencing, outnumbered by the people protecting them is more Watership Down than Twyford Down!

Harvil Rd 2.PNG

So, has the public furore over Carillion and the anti Hs2 protesters attempts to grab media attention by chaining a Vicar to a Euston tree helped their cause? Not in the slightest. Their petition on the Government website continues to underwhelm. By close of play yesterday it had garnered a grand total of 24,136 signatures since September 2017. The only problem is that to be in with a chance it needed 66,200 plus! The maths are inescapable. On average it needs over 1150 signatures per day until March 21st. Yesterday it managed 188. Today it has 10. Its average is dropping daily and currently stands just over the 200 mark. It’s toast.

Meanwhile, away from the doomed Stop Hs2 protests, I’m sure that some awkward questions will be asked about the failure of Carillion and the behaviour in the company’s boardroom. Once such question would be how is it that so many hedge funds had short positions on the companies shares, yet this wasn’t sounding alarm bells with others?

I’m asking for your help. Not for me, but for the Railway Children charity.

15 Monday Jan 2018

Posted by Paul Bigland in Charities, Ride India, The Railway Children, Travel

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Charities, Ride India, The Railway Children

In March I’ve signed up for a charity challenge. I’m going to be riding 450km across Northern India in 5 days to raise money for the Railway Children charity (you can read all about their fabulous work here). It’s going to be a tough challenge, but it’s great to be able to put something back and help those less fortunate.

So, I’m asking you all a favour. Help me to help them by donating to my charity challenge via my JustGiving page, which you can find here.

You can read more about the challenge via this link. 

I’ll be blogging about my training and the trip itself, so feel free to keep popping back and having a look. In the meantime, please, give as little (or as much as you can) to help.

Thank You all!

Paul

2019 is the start of the end for Pacer trains, so here’s a pictorial review.

12 Friday Jan 2018

Posted by Paul Bigland in Down memory lane, Pacers, Rail Investment, Railways

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Down memory lane, Pacers, Rail Investment, Railways

*NOTE*. This blog was updated with extra photos and notes on January 22nd and August 25th 2018 and again on December 4th 2019.

I’m not intending to go into a full history of the BR built Pacer trains as that’s been done many time before. Instead I’m going to go through my archive to illustrate their life and times whilst offering some personal recollections.

Pacers have been a feature of the railway scene since the mid 1980’s but now their time’s drawing to a close. The first sets will go off-lease after the May timetable change, then there’ll be a steady decline in the numbers until – one day – they’ll all be gone (which is due to be by 2020). Whilst disliked by many passengers (especially commuters) they’re not universally unpopular. Many train crews I’ve spoken to actually admit to liking them! I’ve a soft spot for them too – mainly because they allow you such good views of some of the scenic lines they’re used on. In that respect they’re far superior to the Class 150 fleet. Pacers have also earned their place in history. There’s little doubt that they helped save many a branch line from closure back in the 1980s so we should be grateful for them in some ways. Admittedly, they were far less fun when they were doing their maximum speed on jointed track. I’ve travelled on them coming back from Sheffield  to Huddersfield  several times when they were more like bucking bronco’s than nodding donkeys!

I’ve no recollection of travelling on the original narrow-bodied Class 141 Pacers, but I do remember encountering many of them during my travels around Yorkshire back in the 1980’s-90’s – especially around Leeds (they were based at the city’s Neville Hill depot) and Sheffield. Here’s a few memories.

01489. 141113. Sheffield. 16.9.90.

141113 stabled at Sheffield on the 16th September 1990. The unit’s sporting the West Yorkshire PTE livery that was applied to the 141s after they were rebuilt. This particular unit survives today. It’s preserved by the Llangollen Railcar Group.

13306. 55541 from 141120. Wolverton.15.12.03

Vehicle 55541 from unit 141120 awaits scrapping at Wolverton works on the 15th December 2003. It was cut up the following year.

Over the years the Pacers have carried a variety of liveries. There’s also a wide variation in their interiors and other detail differences. Here’s a look at a  few of them.

00487. 142015. Southport. 17.2.90.

142015 at Southport on the 17th February 1990. It’s still wearing the mock GWR livery that was applied to members of the fleet which had been operating in Cornwall and Devon. Branded as ‘skippers’ they were unsuited to the sharp branch line curves so were eventually transferred North. Unusually, the unit is seen on the Wall side siding. This has a pit, which suggests the set needed inspecting.

01250. 142002. Southport. 27.5.90.

142002 at Southport on the 27th May 1990. Its wearing the orange and brown livery and branding of Greater Manchester PTE.

02559. 142516. lime St. 17.6.91.

‘Skipper’ liveried 142516 at Liverpool Lime St on the 17th June 1991. I’m trying to remember why some of these units were briefly renumbered in the 1425xx series. If I remember correctly they were units allocated to Heaton depot in Newcastle.

02125. 142059. 1220 to Mcr. Blackburn. 3.4.91.

This scene is unrecognisable today! 142059 stands at the old Lancashire and Yorkshire railway station at Blackburn on the 3rd April 1991. 059 is one of two Class 142s to have been scrapped due to accidents. Later that year it ran-away and collided with the buffer stops at Liverpool Lime St, which led to it being withdrawn.

06602. 142020. Middlesborough. 30.4.97.

142020 along with a ‘Skipper’ liveried set stands at Middlesbrough on the 30th April 1997. It’s wearing Tyne and Wear as well as Regional Railways branding.

11551. FNW Class 142 passes over the Leeds and Liverpool canal. Wigan. 28.11.2002

Operated by First NorthWestern but wearing a revised Greater Manchester PTE livery, an unknown 142 passes over the Leeds and Liverpool canal on the approach to Wigan Wallgate station on the 28th November 2002.

DG05344. 142044. Hoscar. 9.2.06.

142044 speeds past Hoscar on the Southport-Wigan line on the 9th February 2006. This unit carries Merseyrail livery. These sets had been refurbished with a new interior and better destination blinds. The small bus-type ones were replaced with a much larger dot-matrix type.

DG05341. Northern 142. Hoscar. 9.2.06.

Also seen at Hoscar on the same day in 2006 was this First NorthWestern, blue and gold liveried Class 142

DG08772. 142015. Newcastle upon Tyne. 12.12.06.

On the 12th December 2006 Arriva liveried 142015 crosses the Tyne at Newcastle

DG10626. Northern class 142. Burnley. 25.5.07.

A Merseyrail liveried 142 crosses the Burnley viaduct whilst working a Colne to Blackpool South service on the 25th of May 2007

DG12553. Northern 142. Parton. 22.9.07.

An Arriva liveried 142 passes the Cumbrian coast at Parton on the 22nd September 2007. This beautiful line is a delight to explore on a Pacer because of their big windows and all round views.

DG45979. Interior. 142052. 12.3.10.

The refurbished interior of Merseyrail’s 142056, showing the low-backed replacement for the original bus-style bench seats and the new PIS screen at the back of the cab bulkhead.

DG12880. 142014. 142094. Wigan Wallgate. 2.10.07.

142014 (with white numbers) and 142094 pass at Wigan Wallgate on the 2nd October 2007

DG192563. Northern Class 142. Edale. 7.9.14.

A Northern 42 heads through the beautiful Hope valley at Edale whilst working a service from Sheffield to Manchester Piccadilly on the 7th September 2014.

DG18202. 142064. Dawlish. 4.8.08.

142064 leads a classmate along the beach at Dawlish on the 4th August 2008. A dozen Class 142s were loaned to First Great Western from Northern in 2007. The last ones returned in 2011. All were based at Exeter, which was nicknamed ‘the Donkey Sanctuary’ by some FGW staff.

DG55897. FGW 142 and Lympstone. 22.6.10.

A FGW 142 passes the Swan Inn at Lympstone on the Exmouth branch on the 22nd June 2010.

DG56173. 142001. Exeter Riverside. 23.6.10.

The first built Class 142 was one of those loaned to First Great Western. Here it is climbing the bank between Exeter St David’s and Exeter Central on the 23rd June 2010

DG199592. 142038. Summit tunnel. 31.10.14.

142038 is about to enter the Summit tunnel on the Calder Valley line on the 31st October 2014

DG214110. 142029. 150137. Todmordon. 17.5.15

A Class 150 and 142 in multiple are seen from across the rooftops in Todmordon whilst working through the Calder Valley on the 17th May 2015.

DG14628. Northern conductor at work. 29.2.08.

A Northern conductor prepares to open the doors on a Pacer

A good place see to find Pacers nowadays are the lines from Manchester Piccadilly out to New Mills Central and Rose Hill Marple. Not only is it an intensive service but services are usually operated by pairs of Pacers like this.

DG305742. 142033. 142057. Romily. 21.8.18

142033 and 142057 leave Romiley with a service to Manchester Piccadilly

I’ve blogged about the lines in detail here.

As well as the British-Leyland/BREL Class 142s, BR also purchased a different design from Andrew Barclay. These were based on an Alexander bus body and were built at Kilmarnock between 1985-86. They were originally put into service in the North-East before being transferred to South Wales and the South-West. After privatisation the Class was split between Arriva Trains Wales and Wessex trains (later First Great Western)

DG277275. 143601. Cardiff Queen St. 24.7.17

First of the class 143601, sporting the original Arriva Trains Wales livery leaves Cardiff Queen St for Cardiff Central on the 24th July 2017.

DG277341. 142076. 143625. Cardiff Queen St. 24.5.17

Two varieties of Pacer pass at Cardiff Central on the 24th May 2017. Leyland/BREL 142076 in old Arriva livery and Barclay/Alexander 143625 in revised Arriva livery.

DG10460. 143603. Standish Jn. 2.5.07.

On the 2nd May 2007 143603 passes Standish Junction whilst working a Gloucester to Swindon service.

DG19110. 143621. Bristol Temple Meads. 3.10.08.

On the 30th October 2008 a rather tatty 143621 approaches Bristol Temple Meads. Many 143s had been given different advertising liveries. In this case ‘Visit Bristol’ – although I’m not entirely sure the train or the state of it was a great  advert for the city!

DG249998. 143619. Copplestone. 15.8.16

143619 Calls at Copplestone on the Barnstaple branch whilst en-route to the end of the line on the 15th August 2016. By this time all the units were in the attractive First Great Western ‘Dynamic lines’ livery (with the lines made up of place names on the network).

Two of the Class 143 sets gave themselves Viking funerals back in the early 2000’s, these were sets 143613 and 143615. The effects of the fires were rather spectacular, as these two pictures show.

DG04501. 143613. Crewe works open day. 10.9.05

The fire had been so severe on this car of set 143613 that the underframe has buckled and drooped. The unit was at Crewe works and could be viewed at the open day on the 10th September 2005.

DG04505. 143615. Crewe works open day. 10.9.05

143615, bearing Valley lines livery was the other member of the class that self-combusted. It’s also seen at Crewe works open day in 2005.

The final batch of Pacers are the Class 144. These were Alexander bodies on BREL underframes. They now operate across Yorkshire, especially around Leeds which is where they’re based. At one time they did used to have diagrams which took them across the border into Lancashire.

DG204045. 144022. Huddersfield. 6.1.15

Northern liveried 144022 crosses Paddock viaduct in Huddersfield whilst working a Huddersfield to Sheffield (via Penistone) service on the 6th January 2015

DG160605. 142091. 142018. 144012. Huddersfield. 22.9.13.

A trio of Pacers stabled for the weekend in the yard at Huddersfield. Along with their Class 15x brothers, the units work services to Sheffield, Leeds, Bradford and Wakefield

DG83479. 144015. Neville Hill. 3.6.11.

144015 sits inside Leeds Neville Hill depot on the 3rd June 2011. The fleet are based at and maintained by the depot.

DG12743. Northern 144s. Halifax. 25.9.07.

A pair of Class 144 Pacers arrive at Halifax, West Yorkshire on the 25th September 2007.

DG255134. Interior. 144021. 15.9.16

High backed Richmond seating as fitted to refurbished Pacer 144021, seen on the 15th September 2016

DG255574. Driver and passengers. Sheffield.16.9.16

A driver waits to take 144023 on a service from Sheffield on the 16th September 2016

Of course, no mention of the Pacers would be complete without a look at the sole 144e (E for Evolution) number 144012. This unit was rebuilt by Porterbrook at the RVEL workshop in Derby back in 2015. Here it is in service at Huddersfield in 2016.

DG242334. 144012. Huddersfield. 8.4.16

I wrote about the launch and published a series of internal views of the unit in this blog

UPDATE: 25th August 2018

The letting of the new Welsh rail franchise has spelled the death knell of Pacers in Wales. It’s been announced that they’ll be replaced from next year by older DMUs which will be cascaded to the franchise from elsewhere.

Update: 12th August 2019

The first of the Pacers has been ceremonially withdrawn today. 142005 was adorned with banners announcing its ‘retirement’ and shown off to the press at Manchester Victoria before working a final service to Stalybridge. Expect many more to follow now…

Update 4th December 2019.

Yesterday the first Pacer began its final journey to the scrapyard. 142005, which was withdrawn in August become the first Pacer to meet this fate. It’s being moved by road to Booths, Rotherham in two parts. It’s seen here at Rainford Junction whilst working an Ormskirk to Manchester Victoria service along with classmate 142051 on the 27th September 2018.

DG309910. 142005. 142051. Rainford. 27.9.18crop

Who nicked the sunshine?

08 Monday Jan 2018

Posted by Paul Bigland in Grand Central trains, Transport, Travel

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Grand Central, Travel

It’s been one of those days! I’m heading to London but the trip’s not been without hiccups. The day started well. Despite all the cars on our road being covered in frost the temperature seemed quite mild and my walk to the station was slip-free and pleasant. Halifax is quiet at 06:30, so there’s little to disturb your thoughts – which makes a nice change! The station was quieter than normal too, mainly because it’s another Northern Rail strike day, but as I was using Grand Central I wasn’t bothered. One of their ‘new’ ex-GWR sets arrived (on time) to take me South but my plans were immediately thrown into confusion as the wifi was up the spout.

I normally use trains as mobile offices as much as anything else and factor in wifi as a vital part of the service. However, every cloud has a silver lining, so not being glued to my laptop screen meant I could savour the view from the window. Yorkshire looked beautiful. The landscape was covered in thick frost, lakes were frozen and a sense of stillness was palpable. To cap it off the sunrise through a cloudless sky was sublime, it illuminated the contrails of a gaggle of airliners all heading East towards Europe, leaving me wondering where each one was actually heading for. Sadly, the experience was marred when I got to Doncaster as a cab fault led to my train being cancelled! Grand Central did their best to provide an alternative by arranging for a Sunderland – Kings Cross service running 10 mins behind us to stop & scoop everyone up but I decided to wait for an hour and catch the next Southbound Bradford. My unexpected break gave me time to use the station internet access which was just as well as the 08:31 was another former GWR 180 without wifi! 

Now I’m heading through Cambridgeshire, typing this on my phone. The stunning weather we had up North came to an abrupt end when we met a solid wall of cloud North of Peterborough. It’s dull misty and rather depressing here, which is a shame. Still, let’s see what London brings…

The winter blues…

06 Saturday Jan 2018

Posted by Paul Bigland in Donald Trump, Doomed, Politics

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Donald Trump, Doomed, Politics

“I woke up this morning” – is the opening line of many a blues song – only in my case this morning was more like being wrenched into wakefulness by a paroxysm of coughing and spluttering. Like many people, Dawn and I have gone down with the traditional post-Christmas bug so it’s been a much more laid back Saturday then I intended. The pair of us have been coughing and hacking so much anyone walking past the house would be forgiven for mistaking it for a TB clinic.

The winter blues are one of the reasons I normally go abroad this time of the year. Everything seems subdued and miserable after the festive season, many people rein their horns in and count the pennies they haven’t got after overspending on Christmas so towns and pubs seem quiet. Even the weather has done it’s best to contribute to the general air of doom and gloom by pissing down for most of the 2018 we’ve had so far. A brief break in London helped lift my spirits but I’ll be glad when this damned cold’s buggered off – for both of us.

Meanwhile, in the spirit of a surreal age, when an American President takes to Twitter to assure everyone he’s not nuts but one of the smartest people on the planet – I’m heading for the drinks cabinet – whilst it and I still exist. Because, when this is the infantile level of the President of the United States – and supposedly the leader of the free world, we are all, deeply, deeply f****d.

trump 1trump 2

 

A look at Huddersfield station

05 Friday Jan 2018

Posted by Paul Bigland in Architecture, Food and drink, History, Huddersfield, Railways, Travel

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Food and drink. Pubs, History, Huddersfield, Railways, Travel

Don’t ask me about best laid plans, mine seem to change all the time! It’s one of the beauties and frustrations of being freelance! Today I’ve found myself working from the ACoRP (Association of Community Rail Partnerships) water tower cum office in Huddersfield which is part of the superb grade 1 listed station. How’s this for a place to work?

DG138747. ACoRP Office. Huddersfield. 17.2.13.

The water tower stands in what’s now a car park but in the 1960’s it was a locomotive stabling yard, complete with a turntable which was situated right outside the building.

I love Huddersfield’s architecture. Well, most of it anyway. George Square outside the station is surrounded by a selection of stunning Victorian buildings that make a fantastic backdrop for the annual food and drink festival which is held over 4 days in August.

DG160608. Wilson statue outside the station. Huddersfield. 22.9.13..JPG

The grand entrance to Huddersfield station seen from the square, complete with statue of former Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson, who was born in the town in 1916

 

DG60541. Crowds. Huddersfield food drink festival. 14.8.10.

The food and drink festival in the square outside the station. The building on the left is the (closed) George Hotel which was the place where Rugby league was born.

The station’s a real community hub. Not only is it the gateway to the town, it’s also a destination in its own right. It’s most well-known for its two pubs (The Head of Steam and the Kings Head) and Felix, the station cat (who even has its own Facebook page). But there’s a lot more too – as well as having a warm and welcoming café on the island platforms which does a mean bacon teacake (as they call them in these parts) the lobby hosts a range of food providers on different days of the week. For example, on Wednesdays you can buy artisan breads from this stall. The area also doubles as an exhibition space for local artists.

DG176254. Handmade bakery selling loaves at Huddersfield station. 16.4.14

Here’s a look inside the Kings Head pub on the Leeds end of the station. It’s undergone a fantastic restoration job in the past few years, which has exposed the wonderful ceiling and reopened side rooms. The work’s led to it winning a Railway Heritage award.

DG283267. Interior of the Kings Head on the station. Huddersfield. 4.10.17

So, what’s not to like? Trains, food, beer and architecture. If you’ve never been to Huddersfield station before – why not pay a visit? But beware, because it’s on the Rail Ale trail it can get extremely busy at weekends – and if Huddersfield Town are playing at home it can be bonkers, so I’d recommend a weekday if you can make it.

Heading South…

03 Wednesday Jan 2018

Posted by Paul Bigland in Railways, Travel

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I’ve managed to escape Yorkshire today and take a break (away from the gales and dismal, wet weather) in London to catch up with some of the exciting new rail developments in the capital. Network Rail have been busy over the holiday period. London Bridge station now has all its platforms open and the capital’s weather’s meant to be good – so it’s time to take my camera for its first outing of 2018.

Despite the gales, the East Coast Main Line’s running OK, the ‘knitting’ (or overhead electric power lines as they’re known as by non rail folk) has remained in place for a change and my Grand Central service is powering South at a rate of knots.

It feels a little odd to still be in the UK in January, knowing I’m not going to be feeling the warm sun on my skin for a few months yet, but there’s a lot for me to do over the next few weeks. Watch this space tomorrow when I’ll be explaining what I’m up to and asking for your help…

In the meantime, expect some pictures to arrive on my photo website later today.

2018 and the usual rail fares furore…

02 Tuesday Jan 2018

Posted by Paul Bigland in Rail fares, Rail Investment, Railways, Uncategorized

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Rail fares, Rail Investment, Railways

Normality has resumed after the New Year holiday. Train services are running as per the usual timetable (with the odd exception) and some of the major investment projects carried out over the holiday period have borne fruit. London Bridge station’s seen the last 5 rebuilt platforms open, The GWML has seen electric train services extended from Reading to Didcot and more works been completed on the EGIP project in Scotland. Oh, and we’ve had the annual fare increase kick-in, which has produced the usual gush of uninformed comment and politicking over railway nationalisation from the Labour party.

What’s lost in this mass of misinformation is the facts around the fare increases. They’re calculated on the basis of the Retail Price Index – which has shot up in the part year due to Brexit and the fall in the pound leading to inflation. Also, let’s not forget that this isn’t ‘profiteering’ by the Train operators, but a rise in fares regulated by the Government. It’s a political decision. In fact, I’m told the unregulated fares (those set by the train operators themselves) have risen by less than the 3.6% regulated fares have.

I’ve got to give a hat-tip to @DirectorSERG for supplying this handy little chart which details BR fare increases from 1972 until 1994.

BR fares increases

As you can see, the majority were all well above the rate of inflation and there were some eye-watering ones of 50.7% in 1975 and 42.1% in 1980. It’s a rather useful antidote to the rose-tinted views of some that BR = good, Privatisation = bad. Quite how nationalisation is meant to cut rail fares whilst guaranteeing the levels of investment we’re seeing in the railways is a question Labour don’t seem too keen on answering.

Meanwhile, it’s worth remembering that the TOC’s aren’t exactly ‘fat cats’. Their margins are around 3%, which compares very favourably with other state-owned railways like the Netherlands, which would expect a 7% return.

 

Welcome to 2018 and my first blog on an old subject – Hs2

01 Monday Jan 2018

Posted by Paul Bigland in Hs2, Railways, StopHs2

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Hs2, Politics, Railways, StopHs2

I’m kick-starting the new year with a bit of number-crunching and a look at the stophs2 campaign, which hasn’t had a great 2017 and which is set to have an even lousier 2018! their last remaining umbrella group (Stophs2) is hanging on by the skin of it’s teeth but if it survives the year in anything but name it’ll be a minor miracle. There’s really nothing going on.

The political campaign has skidded to a stop and apart from a few ineffectual protesters shuffling around the pavement at the Harvil Rd protest there’s very little happening on the ground. A few local action groups are trying to keep up local pressure, but as the number of signatures on the latest Stophs2 petition show, there’s not much support for them outside the small number of people directly affected by the Hs2 routes.

So, lets have a look at that petition. I’ve broken it down into phase 1 and the two legs to Manchester and Leeds. Here’s phase 1.

petition phase 1 1 Jan

The numbers that are most significant are the percentages of all constituents who’ve signed. As you can see, they’re tiny, even in the campaign’s ‘heartlands’. Only two constituencies have more than 1%. What’s also significant is the numbers who’ve signed in December. None are in triple figures.

Of course, this petitions pretty pointless on phase 1 anyway as Hs2’s a done-deal here and it’s being built. Now let’s have a look at The leg to Manchester.

petition phase 2 M'cr 1 Jan

The figures here are appalling. 7 constituencies had no-one signing in December and the one’s that did get them never got into double figures! What this betrays is the lack of organised stophs2 ‘action’ groups on this stretch of Hs2. Apart from on in Mid-Cheshire and another around Stone, there’s bugger-all going on. No groups exist in Manchester at all. As the phase 2a Hybrid Bill is due to start its passage through Parliament this month it will be interesting to see how the lack of any organised opposition affects its progress.

Next up – the route to Leeds.

Petition phase 2 Leeds. 1 jan

The numbers are little better here. Only 3 constituencies have got into double figures and the percentages are tiny. Only one stands out – Rother valley. But even here the percentage signing is still under 1.5% of constituents. Clearly, there are more ‘action’ groups here, but they’re not achieving much and they’re having no impact on a national scale.

Here’s some more number-crunching. This is the numbers of people signing the petition by month.

signs

As you can see, the monthly average is dropping like a stone. The petition’s clearly doomed. It’s already more than 35,500 behind target. Put simply, they’re running out of Nimbys or those folks allied to groups opposed to Hs2 like the Green party of right-wing organisations like the TPA, IEA or what’s left of UKIP. In other words, they’re stuffed as they have no political clout.

There’s another interesting number too. Stophs2 claim 5901 followers on Twitter, so how many of those followers have retweeted and spread the petition? Just 94 in 96 days. So much for their social media campaign!

stophs2 31 dec

Notice the hollow boast about the number of people signing? Today (96 days later) they’re on 22,882! The story of apathy and inaction is the same on their Facebook page and website. They’ve run out of steam and support everywhere.

I can’t see The Dept of Transport or Government  being too worried about their campaign nowadays as it’s pretty much ceased to exist. Rent-a-quote Joe Rukin, their ‘grandly titled ‘Campaign Manager’ has been looking for a proper job for some time. If and when he goes the game’s up as Stophs2 is pretty much a one man & his dog operation. The group’s Chair, Penny Gaines, decamped to the South-West some years ago. In November 2017 Stophs2 lost two out of its five Directors, including Roger Waller who’d allowed his home address in Dunsmore, Aylesbury to be used as the groups registered office. The registered address has now moved to Rukin’s in Caesar Rd, Kenilworth (although Rukin resigned as a Director as long ago as January 2011). The remaining Directors are Gaines, Rae Sloan and Richard Lloyd – although how long they’ll hang on is anyone’s guess.

Somehow, I doubt I’ll be spending much time blogging about Stophs2 in future.

 

 

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