Monthly Archives: September 2024

The green party vote to support building HS2.

09 Monday Sep 2024

Posted by in Climate Change, Hs2, Politics, Railways, The Green Party

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The green party of England and Wales that is. The Scottish greens (who already support building HS2) are a separate party.

This policy change came about yesterday at the party’s conference in Manchester, when a vote (previously delayed by several years) was held. The motion to support was passed by 52 to 48%. (hmm, where have I heard that ratio before? Ed). You can read the full details of the motion passed and the amendments agreed here on the Greens for HS2 website.

The motion ends 15 years of the party’s hypocritical opposition to building a new green railway which had left the party looking very silly. It simply wasn’t credible to say that they supported building high speed rail ‘in principle’ but then vehemently opposed it in practice.

The change is a credit to the hard-working members of the party who’ve spent years trying to get this policy altered and give the green party its credibility back when it comes to railways.

Now, a cynic might say that it’s funny how this has come about now that the opposition to HS2 in the wealthy South (where a lot of Green members live) is moot as the project is well on its way to completion, but that shouldn’t detract from the success of the pro-rail party members.

What effect will this policy change have? In some ways very little. Yes, it give the party its credibility back, but as the Greens now have 4 MPs in Parliament it adds another pro HS2 group to the Commons. This could put pressure on the new Labour Government to begin to undo the disastrous decisions by the previous Tory government to cancel the 2nd phases of HS2 that render what’s being built unable to deliver the capacity increase our railways so desperately need to get modal shift from road/air to rail. This chart sums things up in a nutshell.

This is why (despite my strong criticisms of the party in the past) I welcome the party’s change of heart.

However, I still have some concerns. It’s clear that some of the old guard in the party aren’t taking this well – especially those members in the Lords (Natalie Bennet and Jenny Jones) who’ve been such avid and intransigent opponents of HS2. They’re bound by party rules to support party policy but Bennett has already gone on record in saying she won’t do so on HS2. Not that it really matters as HS2 has massive support in the Lords so Jones and Bennett are in a tiny minority, but it does pose a problem for the party’s internal discipline. What matters more is that the green party leadership and its MPs support the policy. of course, there are the more ‘but, trees!’ eco-fundamentalists and the old hard-left who saw HS2 as an extension of fighting the class-war still in the party, but I’m optimistic that the Greens per se are starting to appreciate that the party’s position on HS2 was unsustainable.

All in all this is a very welcome move.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

8th September picture of the day…

08 Sunday Sep 2024

Posted by in Calder Valley, Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, West Yorkshire

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I felt sorry for the Rushbearers this morning. After having topped up the deficit to my sleep bank these past couple of days I was in the office at 8am – even though it’s a Sunday. The lack of light due to the gloomy skies outside would have convinced me that it was before dawn. Then the heavens opened – and stayed open for quite some time. I’d planned to do some work outside the cottage but there was no chance of that. Instead, most of the day’s been taken up stuck in the office, editing hundreds of the pictures I’ve taken over the past week. There’s far too many to post links to individual galleries, so here’s one to the ‘recent’ section of my website which will show you which galleries have been updated.

Finally, the rain eased but the clouds never released their grip on the valley. By this evening I was goggle-eyed so I sought refuge in cooking a new Indian vegetarian recipe, then getting out for a walk and a quick pint in my local – hence today’s picture.

Tomorrow’s the start of another week. Whilst Monday may be more of the same, on Tuesday I’ll be doing something completely different and a first for me. Watch this space…

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Sowerby Bridge rush bearing festival 2024.

07 Saturday Sep 2024

Posted by in Photography, Rushbearing, Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire

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This weekend is the annual rush-bearing festival here in Sowerby Bridge. So this afternoon I headed down into the valley with the cameras to document the event, which I’ve not been able to attend for the past couple of years. Here’s a small selection of pictures.

The event concludes tomorrow when the rushcart takes a more rural route. You can find all the details form the official website, which is here.

You can find the full selection (in hi-res) in this gallery on my Zenfolio website. Oh, what I should’ve mentioned is I’ve reactivated my old gallery of pictures from the festival that go back to 2010. You can find those by following this link.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Rolling blog. Colne valley completion…

05 Thursday Sep 2024

Posted by in Hs2, London, Photography, Railways, Rolling blogs, Travel

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05:50.

And no, I’m not talking about the Colne valley at home in Yorkshire, I’m talking about the one North of London where for the past few years High Speed 2 Ltd have been building a rather stunning viaduct which I’ll be visiting later this morning. Thankfully, the forecast we had for heavy rain all this morning has changed, so the day looks rather better than was predicted. But first, I’ve got to get there from my overnight base in Clapham.

See you later…

07:30.

I’ve made my way from Clapham and across London to Marylebone with time to spare. I was wandering up the platform when I came upon this sad soul – which I wasn’t expecting..

Talk about a fish out of water!

08:55.

No prizes for guessing where I am…

Here we are on site as the last section is moved into place.

12:50.

It fits!

Despite the weather, that was an amazing event. The rain arrived whilst we were waiting for the last section to be brought into position but it cleared before the main event. I’ll add some camera pictures later. We had a grandstand view of proceedings, which was excellent.

It’s ‘selfie’ time for just some of the many women who’ve worked on the site.
Time to revel in a job well done. HS2 workers who’ve been involved in building the viaduct have chance to celebrate their achievement.

Afterwards, Richard Bowker kindly gave me a lift into Denham. Now I’m drying off on a train to High Wycombe.

15:30.

I’m well on the way to home. Having changed at High Wycombe, Banbury and Coventry I’m now on a Glasgow bound Pendolino as far as Warrington Bank Quay where I can catch a direct train to Halifax. My Chiltern trains were quiet. The Cross-Country Voyager from Banbury to Coventry was anything but, leaving me to listen to the latest excellent ‘Green Signals’ podcast in the vestibule. My train was late into Coventry, pulling in just before the Pendolino I’m on now, so there was no time to get pictures. Besides, conditions are hardly conducive as the sky’s a uniform gray. 

16:20.

I’d hoped to have done some work on the train but after Birmingham it was absolutely rammed. I had just enough tome to download today’s pictures from the camera but as the wifi was on the blink and tethering my mobile was proving troublsome I gave up trying to upload any more pictures here. Maybe when I get to Warrington as I have time between trains.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Rolling blog. Two city travels…

04 Wednesday Sep 2024

Posted by in Greater Manchester, London, Manchester, Photography, Railways, Rolling blogs, Travel

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11:10.

I’m on the move – again. I have to be in London tonight in order to get to a rather special HS2 railway media event tomorrow morning, but more about that nearer the time. Right now I’m waving goodbye to the Calder Valley as I’m on my way to Manchester in order to ‘tick off’ another couple of stations that are on my commission list before heading down to the capital. As usual, I’ll be blogging on and off throughout the day so you’ll be able to see what I get up to – and where.

Today I caught the train from Sowerby Bridge rather than Halifax, which made a pleasant change as it’s downhill all the way! Now I’m on a Northern 3-car 158 running the Leeds – Brighouse – Manchester route. There’s no power sockets on these sets and the tables double as leg-clamps as they’re that low, but at least it’s running on time.

11:45.

Bugger! We’ve crossed the Pennines and the sunshine we’d been enjoying in Yorkshire has vanished. Instead we have a collection of ominous looking clouds that appear ready to bombard us with rain at any moment. Ah well – at least I’m equipped with a brolley and waterproof as the forecast for tomorrow’s event is even worse! 

12:20.

After a dash across Manchester city centre from Vic to Picc I have a different type of conveyance. One of Washwood Heath’s finest..

14:15.

My Manchester jaunt took me out to Davenport station which is the first stop on the route to Buxton. I had 30 mins to explore and found it an interesting place. Mainly due to the fine old elevated ticket office and the passage underneath (pic later). I’d have like to hang around but the weather was looking distinctly ‘iffy’ so I returned to Piccadilly via Stockport. In doing so I found the latest of the ex-West Midlands Class 323s which have been cascaded to Northern. It’s seen between trips to Stoke-on-Trent.

Talking of Stoke, that’s where I’m headed now. I’d have headed on but the Pendolino I’m on has no working power sockets so I’ll catch the one behind.

15:45.

My brief sojourn at Stoke was useful in that I managed to get a couple of good pictures. I also bumped into an old friend and fellow Community Rail awards judge (Andy Savage), who pointed out to me the additions and restorations to the WW1 memorial that forms the entrance to platform 1. Now I’m aboard another Euston bound Pendolino with the full range of services (power sockets and wifi). Now that I spend so much time up and down the East Coat I’d forgotten how much fun tilting around the curvaceous West Coast Main Line in a Pendolino is!

Whilst on the train I’ve had chance to catch up on the news. It seems that the man who insisted that a mural in a child asylum unit be painted over as it was ‘too welcoming’ is front runner to lead the Tory party. Figures. www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-poli…

18:15.

I made it to London without incident. Having arrived at Euston my first mission was to explore a station I’ve known since the 1970s and examine it under a critical eye considering recent accusations that it’s ‘unsafe’. My impression? It’s far better than it used to be 20 years ago (excerable LED main board aside). But, it’s clear passenger numbers have outgrown the original design and the station needs rebuilding for the future. The rest is just down to crowd management, just as it has been at many London underground stations like Victoria, Covent Garden and Camden town. No-one claims they’re ‘unsafe’.

Right now I’m enjoying people-watching on the piazza outside Kings Cross. It’s another London station I’ve known since the 1970s and my – how it’s changed in the past 10 years.

19:30.

Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the Thames, these old beasts are soldiering on…

23;45.

It’s time to say goodnight. I’m embedded in Clapham Junction for the night at an old friends, but normal service will be resumed at roundabout 06:00 as tomorrow should prove to be an interesting day…

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Rolling blog. More Mancunian travels…

03 Tuesday Sep 2024

Posted by in Greater Manchester, Manchester, Photography, Railways, Rolling blogs, Travel

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07:00

Morning has broken here in the Calder valley and I can actually see the other side today, which is nice. However, the forecast for Manchester is even better, meaning today’s going to be spent exploring more stations on the city’s East side as I’ve a lot to tick off but little time to do it now my diary’s getting crowded.

Expect pictures and details of my explorations to appear throughout the day whilst I’m out and about.

08:55.

I’m on my way aboard the modern mainstay of Northern’s train fleet through the Calder valley – a Class 195 bound for Manchester Victoria. This one’s only a 2-car, but I’ve managed to find a spare table seat in order to set up the ‘mobile office’ on the way. Now to get some work done…

With the famous sweet factory as background 195006 arrives to carry me from Halifax to Manchester.

10:30.

My first proper station stop is at Fairfield between Gorton and Guide Bridge. I’ve not been here since the 1970s. In those days it boasted four platforms as well as being the junction for the Fallowfield loop and line to Reddish depot and workshop. Now only the the masts remain of the loop, hidden in the bushes.

11:50.

I’ve never stoppe here before. Woodley station is a junction for a freight only branch which still sees regular waste trains to Bredbury. The station build’s been converted into homes.

12:20.

I’m now at Romily, which possesses the most substantial station on the lines around here. It’s also the junction for servives via Guide Bride or Bredbury. It’s the latter route I’ll be exploring next. Trains are only hourly, so there’s time to have a wander and grab a sandwich as I exxoect to be doing plenty of walking on this next section.

13:45.

Two more stations ticked off the list. One name is eponymous with speedway, the other with – not a lot really! Ryder Brow is a basic station with no facilities at all beyond a couple of (mostly) wooden platforms. Waiting shelters are promised, but right now there’s no shelter, no seats, no ticket machines – nothing. Although thanks to the inclines from the main road it does (almost) have step free access.

19:50.

Another busy day! I fitted in several other stations after Ryder Brow but the walking I exoected to do to a couple of lineside locations never happened as the view from the train allowed me to see the flaws that a map didn’t. Mind you, If I’d had a drone…

Right now I’m heading home across the Peenines aboard a pair of Class 158s – which are unusual traction via Halifax nowadays. I’d have stayed longer but clouds rolled in and the nights are drawing in. Those long summer evenings are already history. I’ll had a couple of camera pictures later if I have time.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

2nd September picture of the day…

02 Monday Sep 2024

Posted by in Community rail, Greater Manchester, Manchester, Photography, Picture of the day, Railways

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Alright, I know it’s almost officially autumn, but who ordered such crap weather already? I thought yesterday was bad, but today? Sheesh! The Calder valley’s been coated in mist and rain for much of the day. We couldn’t even see the other side of the valley, far less the sun! There was no point in me thinking of going anywhere with the camera. Instead the day’s been spent picture editing, clearing out a burgeoning email inbox and slotting a couple of new jobs and invitations into the diary. Not a bad day all in all. That said, today’s a fasting day. I could have done with being able to consume a few more calories, just to make the day more interesting, but that’s life.

Poor Dawn’s been chained to her computer even longer than I’ve been. At least I still managed to get a walk, in order to pick up some low-calorie food shopping. Still, tomorrow’s another day and the forecast suggests the weather will improve, which would be good as I need to make another trip to Manchester to tick off some more locations for a commission. I thought I might have had more time this week but I’ve another HS2 press invite later in the week which I really don’t want to miss as it’s a bit of a milestone – as you’ll see soon…

But for now, I’ll leave you with today’s picture, which is one from Saturday’s trip. The friends of Romiley station have some rather colourful planters on the platforms and the sunshine showed them off to their best.

Expect another rolling blog tomorrow from some different stations in S-E Manchester…

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

1st September picture of the day…

01 Sunday Sep 2024

Posted by in Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, West Yorkshire

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As the old song says – what a difference a day makes. Yesterday I was basking in the sun as I explored the railway highways and byways of Manchester. Today? Most of my times been spent sheltering from weather conditions that are more suited to October than the first day of September. So much for our plans to enjoy the great outdoors – most of what we’ve seen is the not so great indoors. Dawn’s kept her self occupied with work, family business and knitting whilst I’ve been wading through the mountain of pictures from yesterday, where the blue skies in each image have just added insult to injury!

Ah well, tomorrow’s another day – although I’m not sure how that’s going to play out as I’ve a lot of things to juggle in my diary. Until then, I’ll leave you with today’s picture, which was taken earlier this afternoon as I walked home from my daily perambulations…

Nice view. Shame about the weather. Looking across the Calder valley (taken on a phone I’m afraid)…

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312