Time to wipe the sleep from my eyes and prepare for day 2. This time I’m heading deep into the East – via Sheffield, so that I can pick up a very limited and rather special service to the coast. It’s a train I’ve been trying to catch for 20 years, but as it only used to run on Saturdays, that was impossible to plan. Feel free to pop back later and see what it is…
08:15.
Having left Halifax on Grand Central’s 07:12 to London I detrained at Buddleia Central – sorry – Wakefield Kirkgate, where I changed for a train to Sheffield. Now I’ve the mobile office set up on a busy 2-car Class 195 that’s forming the 07:56.
I’ve a while to kill at Sheffield as there’s not many options that would allow me to explore and get back in time for my next train, which is central to my plans.
19:00.
Sorry, that’s been a crap rolling blog. Today’s been difficult as I’ve been on a succession of absolutely rammed train with little time in between. The good thing is I achieved my two main aims. One was to traverse the Brigg line between Gainsborough and Barnetby for the first time in over 30 years – and the other was to include a trip on the Barton-on-Humber branch.
It’s amazing how many people you can fit in a 2-car train when needs must. Families from Sheffield arrive at Cleethorpes.
The day’s been hot and sticky due to the weather, which hasn’t helped. Then I was hit by a series of delays and cancellations on the way back which has meant I’ve not been able to include all the routes I’d intended without getting back late tonight. Instead, I’ve cur the trip short in order to get back at a sensible time as I need to pack for tomorrow and the next several days. I won’t be back home for another week now.
Luxury on the Barton-On-Humber branch! Air-conditioned Class 170s are a far cry from the single-car class 153s that used to operate the route. Here’s 170271 calling at Grimsby Town earlier today.
22:50.
I’ve had a busy evening completely rejigging tomorrow’s timetable and routes to take into account the past two days disappointments. I’ve also given myself a slightly later start. Wednesday will see me making my way to Cardiff via a rather curious route.
See you in the morning…
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Today’s the start of my bi-annual odyssey around the UK’s railways for RAIL magazine. I’ll be blogging (sporadically) throughout the day as I cover 15 trains and two countries on day 1. Right now I’m on my way to Manchester on the first of what will be around 80 trains in 7 days. I’ve picked a good week. The weather’s predicted to be some of the hottest of the year, it’s the holidays and train services are being cut in some areas – so there should be lots to write about!
150003? Not a train I’d expected to see at Halifax on the start of my trip.
0845.
The day’s turning into a fun one already. I was only on my 2nd train when we had a last-minute set swap at Manchester as the train I was due to catch was taken out of service with a faulty gearbox. Quick work by Northen staff saw an inbound 4-car set split and the rear Class 150 used as a replacement, returning the way it came with minimal delay – and from the same platform too!
Right now I’m on my way to Wigan aboard yet another old Class 150…
14:49.
Where’s the time gone? Since I was last able to post and update I’ve covered quite a few miles – mostly standing on trains which is why there’s been no updates! After leaving Manchester I sampled battery trains on Merseyrail, then old London Underground stock on the Welsh borders before heading along the North Wales coast on absolutely packed Transport for Wales trains as far as Llandudno Junction where the plan to get to Llandudno fell apart due to late running and the fact the train on the way back was one I *really* wanted to catch as it was a chance to sample one of Avanti West Coast’s new Class 805s. I can’t say that was a great success, for reasons you’ll be able to read about in RAIL magazine.
Hell old District line friend..
Now I’m heading back from Chester to Liverpool via TfW’s direct service via Runcorn. And I have a seat – and a table, and wifi…
18:00.
There’s an old military adage that no plan survives first contact with the enemy. I could say the same thing about my Rover plans! On arrival at Manchester Piccadilly everything went majorly tits up. I’d planned to catch a TPE service to Sheffield in order to make my way back to Halifax via the Penistone line and Huddersfield. The railway had other plans. Well, to be fair – it wasn’t the railways fault. A tree had come down on the Manchester Airport line at Gatley. This was fouling the overhead wires, so only diesel trains could run. No problem you think – except for the fact Manchester Airport is a terminal station and all the platforms were occupied by trapped electric trains! So, everything going to the airport was cancelled, causing a massive backlog on the Oxford Rd corridor as Network rail did its best to get trains out of the way. The station staff were excellent, both in the way they kept passengers informed and dealt with their problems as no-one wants to be delayed on the way to an airport.
Finally, my TPE service was freed from the jam and is now running roughly 30 mins late, which buggers up my connections at Sheffield. I may have to resort to plan B if I want to get home at a sensible time…
22:30.
Plan B it was. I missed my Penistone line connection at Sheffield so opted for the direct route to Leeds on a Cross-Country service, then a local train via Bradford to Halifax. It wasn’t what I’d planned, but I have another busy day tomorrow and will rejig my plans in the light of today’s events. The main this is that I’m now home, having showered and been fed (Dawn very kindly had food ready for when I got in).
Now to reset the alarm and prepare for day 2. This time I’ll be heading East…
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We’re about to depart Bigland Towers for a weekend in Cambridgeshire, driving down to Peterborough which we’ll be using as tonight’s base. But first, we’ve got to get there – and have a barbecue to attend. Let’s see how the trip goes. Updates and pictures to follow…
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Stop sniggering at the back! Yes, I know the name Penistone always attracts giggles from those who enjoy innuendo, but the Penistone line between Huddersfield and Barnsley is a very scenic railway. Today I’m off exploring in order to get some lineside shots. The weather’s not exactly wall to wall sunshine, but I should be able to play with the shadows and light if the weather plays ball.
Right now I’m sat at Huddersfield, getting a few pictures after catching the local service from Halifax. Sadly, the timing off the two services couldn’t be worse. We were scheduled to arrive at 10:12 – at exactly the same time the Sheffield train departs! Still, it gives me time to get some other shots. Here’s a few,
Moody skies over Halifax and the sun battles with the clouds whilst 195109 leaves with a service to Manchester Victoria.150211 is one of the units working today’s Bradford Interchange – Huddersfield shuttles.Due to having to label and catalogue every piece in order to aid rebuilding, progress on demolishing the tea rooms at Huddersfield was slow. Now work has stepped up a pace.
15:00.
Time for an update.
As I suspected, I’ve been playing hide ank seek with the sun. That and the fact I was an hour later than hoped so its position was getting quite acute to the viaduct I wanted to shoot trains on. In the end I managed a decent shot but know there’s others to be had earlier in the day and when clouds are in a minority.Having explored Penistone I moved back up the line to Denby Dale, where the cloud was even thicker! I did manage one decent shot as a train traversed the viaduct but it’s going to need tweaking. The bright side is that I’m putting today down to an exploring day. I’ve not been to Denby Dale for years. This trip’s given me chance to explore local footpaths and work out positions for some great scenic shots when the weather’s right. Oh, and I’ve already got 18,000 steps under my belt!
The first of its type. Class 150 number 150001 crosses the viaduct at Penisone with a service to Sheffield. The same unit cross the Denby Dale viaduct. Oh, for a bit of sunshine. The good news is that I’m now au-fait with the footpaths in the area (including the one in the foreground).
16:45.
I’m now kicking my heels back in Huddersfield. The train from Denby Dale was 20 minutes late, not that it mattered as my onward connection to Halifax was cancelled!
Better late than never! 150005 working 2B58, the 14:35 Sheffield to Huddersfield arrives at Denby Dale 22 minutes late. The service left Sheffield 11 down and lost more time en-route.
Now I’ve over an hour to wait, so I’ve retreated to the ‘Kings Head’ on the station for a beer and a chance to update this blog. In passing I saw that staff from the Trans-Pennine Route Upgrade (TRU) had set up an information stall on platform 1. As well as useful information leaflets they’d a range of freebies, from pens to jelly-babies. I snaffled a pen…
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/
All good things come to an end and that’s what’s happened today with our Dorset holiday. It’s been a fabulous couple of weeks despite the mixed weather. So much so that I’ve not blogged as often as I’d planned as I’ve been too busy exploring and spending time with the family. Fromm my perspective it’s been a great opportunity to revisit some places and discover new ones due as I’ve not had to rely on public transport for a change. That said, public transport (well, buses anyway) seem to be very good down here. I wish I could say the same about the trains but their punctuality and reliability has been poor.
Right now I’m on a train heading to Waterloo as I’m making my own way back whilst the family go by car. Much as I’d have liked to have travelled together all my extra kit (and me) would have made Dawn’s Honda Civic rather ‘cosy’ and I preferred to let her folks have more room. There is a bonus for me – I can work on the train and edit pictures en-route.
The whole family have come away with some very positive impressions of Dorset. People have been very friendly and helpful, plus, the towns and villages are noticeably cleaner and better kept than back in West Yorkshire. As I walked to Wareham station this morning I passed several community volunteers litter picking On the downside, it’s much more expensive in Dorset, but money isn’t everything. Oh, they still love fish and chips in Dorset! Whilst many ‘chippies’ in Yorkshire have closed in recent years, they proliferate down here. When I first moved to West Yorkshire in 2010 Sowerby Bridge boasted 5 chip shops, now there’s just one left. Conversely (as I mentioned in a previous blog) it’s harder to find decent fishmongers down here than it is in land-locked West Yorkshire. Go figure!
Whilst the standard of living down in Dorset is good (you should see how many expensive yachts and floating gin-palaces are moored up around the harbours of Poole and Weymouth) there’s still issues. The railways suffere from vandalism (see my journey here) and antisocial behaviour. Unlike Northern, SWR have a recorded announcement about how violence towards staff won’t be tolerated, which is rather depressing.
12:00.
We’ve reached Bournemouth, where the 5-car Class 444 I’m travelling on has coupled to the rear of another classmate in order to form a 10 car service to Waterloo. The opposite happens with trains heading to Weymouth, which split here. Of all the old railway regions, this splitting/joining of trains en-route is still an everyday occurrence on the old ‘Southern’ whereas it’s a rarity on most other regions.
14:15.
I’ve eschewed the delights of crossing the capital to take a slightly more roundabout way home. Having changed at Southampton Central I’m now on a Cross-Country service to Manchester via Reading and Birmingham. I’ll take me longer than the ‘direct’ route via London but it allows me to travel on routes I don’t frequent as much, such as the one I’m traversing now, which is the line from Basingstoke to Reading. This service consists of a pair of four-car Class 220s and there’s been no problem in finding a seat. A lot were reserved from Southampton but never occupied. I had toyed with the idea of stopping off at Eastleigh en-route but as that railway town was being rained on as I approached I decided to keep going. Besides, the others are already way up the country, having recently passed the Brackley HS2 construction site in Northamptonshire!
One thing I’ve noticed on these railway travels are the amounts of cuttings and embankments Network Rail has installed remote monitoring sensors on in order to detect and predict movements. Most of these structures were built 150 or more years ago, in the days when soil engineering was unheard of. Now, with age and the advent of climate change they’re increasingly at risk.
14:50.
We’ve left Oxford, en-route to Banbury after a pootle at less than high-speed along the Great Western Main Line to Didcot. Seeing the half-completed electrification scheme along the line to Oxford made me think. It would be an easy win for the new Government to show its environmental credentials by finishing this project that was cancelled by ‘failing Grayling’, the Tory Transport Minister of the time. Much of piling work was done and the plans still exist, it wouldn’t take much to dust them off. Then we could get rid of the ridiculous situation where electric trains run from Paddington to Didcot, where passengers transfer to a DMU shuttle to get the last few miles to Oxford.
15:45.
Having arrived at (and departed) Coventry we’re on our way to Birmingham, and this is where Intercity trains on this busy local corridor fall down. Due to a lack of capacity services like this become rammed with people moving between to two conurbations. We become a local train between the two, which isn’t ideal for either set of passengers, although you can see why locals prefer the faster train between the two.
16:45.
Interestingly, the majority of people who boarded my coach in Coventry (Afro-Caribbean families on a day out) were travelling to Wolverhampton, not Birmingham. Having left Wolves the train’s pretty empty! This part of the trip raises my hackles because until the disastrous premiership of Rishi Sunak, I was looking forward to this route and these cramped Voyagers being replaced by a new high-speed railway (HS2). Now, a 90 minute journey between tow of our biggest cities is baked in for decades – unless the new Labour Government has the bravery and the common-sense to resurrect the project.
17:25.
I’m on the final approach to Manchester from Stockport and Manchester is living up to its reputation for rain. It’s grim up North! Now for the walk from Picc to Vic..
Meanwhile, the others are already back in West Yorkshire and half way from the M1 to Huddersfield…
22:15.
Home again! I got back to Sowerby Bridge just before 19:00. Dawn was waiting to pick me up from the station after depositing her folks at their home in Huddersfield. Now it’s time to relax after the long journey – we can finish unpacking tomorrow. In the meantime, here’s a small selection of pictures from the past couple of days.
Stop! Thief! As bold as brass, this cheeky seagull strolled into the cafe at Weymouth station, grabbed a packet of crisps off a stand and legged it without paying!With the earthworks of Maiden Castle in the foreground, 444039 works 1W23, the 11:35 London Waterloo to Weymouth. What’s the point of ‘Gatwick Express’ anymore? Here’s one of their branded units way off piste at Southampton earlier today, before working a service to – Brighton…Southwestern railway were in the football spirit today, with this massage displayed on many of their station displays…
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/
What a difference a decent night’s sleep and a shower makes! After two nights sleeping on the floor of a train having a bed was luxury. Mind you, when I first arrived at my hotel in Preston I thought I might end up sleeping rough. The place I was staying was a family business and unstaffed. There was a keysafe outside the front doo – but no key in it! A phone call to the number I’d been given by my hosts soon put that right. It turned out that another apologetic guest travelling as part of a group thought they’d been left two keys.
Now I’m on the move again. I didn’t hang around in Preston, instead I caught Avanti’s 10:01Pendolino to Euston. Despite it being a Sunday morning it’s a busy train. Thankfully, as it starts from Preston I’ve managed to blag a table seat and set up the mobile office. Not that I’m planning to do much work. I’m still suffering from a sleep deficit so relaxing and catching up with the world is more the order of the day and I suspect this train’s going to get busy. We’ve just pulled out of Wigan where confusion reins as people can’t find their reserved seats. This may not be the relaxing journey I’d hoped for…
Still, I’m on my way to a holiday, joining Dawn and her parents down in Wareham, Dorset – so my batteries will get recharged eventually!
14:45.
As expected, the Pendolino was packed by the time we left the North-West. There was no point in me trying to do any work so I dozed most of the way instead. It being a Sunday the timings weren’texactly sparkling either. We arrived at Euston just a few minutes before 13:00, having sat for ages at Rugby and Milton Keynes.
I’ve now travelled across busy London to Waterloo. The capital’s weather certainly better than ‘oop North’ as there’s sunshine and a hike of several degrees in temperature. I’m in no rush to get to Wareham, so I might stop off en-route. Right now I’m on the 14:35 to Weymouth, waiting departure form Waterloo…
18:25.
It’s turned into one of those days! The train from London was packed all the way to Southampton central, which is where things went belly up. My train onwards to Wareham was cancelled due to a previous service hitting a bike which had been thrown onto the line at Christchurch near Bournemouth. Chaos ensued as services through Southampton rapidly fell apart with knock-on cancellations following. Nothing was running between Southampton and Bournemouth, with staff being unable to say when services would resume. Some passengers were getting stroppy and one young woman member of staff fled to her office in tears.
22:30.
Well, I *did* make it to Wareham in the end, but it was by taxi, not train.
I ended up being stuck at Southampton for a few hours as SouthWestern Railway effectively gave up on trying to run trains West of the city. Every time one arrived from London with the idea of it heading West it was cancelled by SWR control. Even the station staff were getting fed up of it. Thankfully, Cross-Country were made of sterner stuff and kept their Bournemouth bound trains running. I managed to get aboard a packed 18:50 which was standing room only. On arrival at Bournemouth I found SWR were running trains back to London but nothing was going West. After quizzing a couple of different members of staff myself and three other passengers were loaded into a taxi which took me to Wareham and them to Weymouth. Not the railway’s finest hour at all.
Thank you, Cross-Country, at least you ran trains to Bournemouth this afternoon. Here’s 221124 after depositing me, ready to leave on its return trip to Manchester Piccadilly.
Still, I’m here now and the holiday can begin…
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/
I’m not sure how rolling this blog will be because when we get to Cumbria phone reception will be patchy at best, but I’ll do what I can. Right now we’re winding our way along the North Wales coast after picking up the walkers at Bangor. The weather on Snowdon was windy but (mostly) dry and almost all of the walkers managed to reach the summit.
Those of us onboard the train were woken just before 04:00 as the train left Holyhead. A welcome cup of coffee was provided by the kitchen staff who were already awake. Now the train’s quiet as people try and get some sleep wherever they can before we arrive at Ravenglass at 08:47, where the next leg of the challenge begins. Here’s a few pictures from the train.
Breakfast’s already being prepared in the kitchen car.Walkers leave the coaches that have ferried them from Snowdon to rejoin the train at Bangor.Time to catch some sleep, bedded down wherever you can.
06:15.
We’re just North of Wigan now and whilst the walkers coaches look like someone’s set off a hand-grenade the kitchen car’s a hive of activity as the onboard crew have formed a production line to make and bag fresh sandwiches for everyone to take with them on Scafell.
Talk about a hive of activity…This is only part of what’s going on behind the scenes…
07:30.
The train’s awake as breakfast is served. First course is orange juice and chocolate croissants and/or porridge.
Right now we’re heading along the Cumbrian coast, having just passed Arnside. The weather’s mixed here, with moody skies and the threat of rain. It’s certainly a lot colder than it has been which is no bad thing when you’re walking. Thankfully, there was only one minor injury amongst the walkers on Snowden so we should have a full complement on Scafell. But first we have to get to Ravenglass and a trip along the Ravenglass and Eskdale railway to Dalegarth, where the teams will walk 5 miles to the start of the climb up Scafell. When we reach Ravenglass I’ll lose contact for while, but I’ll be back this evening. with an update.
21:00.
I’m back! It’s been a long old day so here’s an update from the train as we head up the Cumbrian coast towards Carlisle.
Folks old and new enjoyed the trip on the Ravenglass and Eskdale railway up to Dalegarth. It’s such a pretty trip and for those who’d never explored this part of the world it was a revelation. That said, some of the old hands were very happy to use their cameras too (hello Sam D!)
At Dalegarth the teams were registered and their trackers logged in to Satlink, then they were off to walk the 5 miles to the start of the Scafell ascent. I couldn’t accompany them this year as it was arranged that some of the event team were bussed to Wasdale in order to set up the next tracking station. On the bright side this allowed my to climb Scafell ahead of the teams so that I could get pictures like this.
By late afternoon the weather on Scafell turned from dry to a series of showers and hail further towards the summit. Some teams got soaked, which wasn’t ideal due to the high winds and wind-chill. To add to the ‘fun’ many people (to their credit) made the trip ahead of time, but we couldn’t provide coaches to ferry them back to Ravenglass any earlier as the vehicles aren’t freed up until after the local school run. So, we got a double-soaking!
Back at Ravenglass the weather finally smiled upon us as we had a couple of hours of sunshine which helped people dray out. Well, mostly! Several people were reduced to wandering around in bare feet in order to allow their footwear to dry out!
Some people did pick up injuries – almost all minor, but safety comes first, so they weren’t always allowed to complete that days challenge.
Now, after a couple of hours rest and relaxation in the pubs of Ravenglass we’ve been fed and watered on the train and we’re heading for Ben Nevis – where the conditions are looking good…
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We’re being treated to glorious sunshine here in the Calder valley this morning, although I’m not going to be around to enjoy it as I’m on my way to Manchester for another visit to Manchester’s Newton Heath depot in order to get the pictures and info I need for a future RAIL article.
My fellow passengers on the 09:02 from Sowerby Bridge are all dressed for the summer as everyone’s making the most of the good weather whilst it lasts. Finally, the winter layers and rainwear have been discarded – for now at least. The Class 158 I’m travelling on is in summer mode too – all the windows are open as the air-conditioning is struggling already!
After my depot visit’s concluded I’ll be spending some time exploring the railways around Manchester and making the most of the sunshine. Feel free to pop back later and see what I get up to….
16:00.
Sorry for the gap but things haven’t gone entirely to plan! My visit to Newton Heath was excellent. I was given a full tour, learned a lot more about operations and future plans whilst also getting pictures of different depot facilities.
An empty ‘parlour’. This is the only part of the 1876 steam shed that remains. Note the WW1 memorial which has been installed at the end. Here’s a look inside the new St Mary’s building which is a world apart from the old steam shed.
It was only afterwards that things went a bit ‘Pete Tong’. I’d decided to make the most of the weather and explore the old ‘Oldham Loop’ rail line to Rochdale which is now part of the Manchester Metrolink tram network. I’ve not travelled this line for several years so today seemed like an ideal opportunity. I traversed Oldham on foot to get pictures then caught a tram out to an old haunt – Shaw and Crompton.
Tram 3097 calls at Oldham Central tram stop in Union St. To the left the old Prudential building is slowly reclaimed by nature. Tram 3139 leaves Oldham Mumps tram stop on its way into Manchester. There’s a lot of regeneration happening around here but the amount of empty commercial properties is depressing. The old mainline station was down the hill to the right. It’s changed a bit since I first got to know the area! The Metrolink station has been built to the South of the level crossing and site of the national rail station.
It was then I became aware of an issue with my footwear. I was wearing a pair of safety shoes with steel toecaps – sensible and required footwear for wandering around a depot – but I’d not worn them for a while as most of the jobs I do require safety boots, not shoes. As I walked along the platform at Shaw and Crompton I became aware of a flapping sound. Looking down I realised my shoe soles were very rapidly disintegrating as well as coming away from the uppers! There was nothing for it to head back home for a change of footwear and hope they’d last long enough to walk back in. Thankfully Dawn had a free moment and was a star. She drove down to Halifax station to deliver me spare shoes in order that I could complete my explorations. Talk about a life-saver. Needless to say, she now has even more credit in the bank!
I wasn’t expecting this!
Leaving Halifax I caught the local shuttle down to Huddersfield in order to check out TRU work. Since my last visit one of the platform shelters has vanished, while the scaffold and crash deck that’s being built under the existing roof has extended even further Eastwards. The wooden waiting room on the island platform is slowly disappearing too. It’s being dismantled piece by piece so that it can be stored before being re-erected on the station at a later date. The interior’s now been stripped out and the windows have all disappeared.
Notice anything missing?
Right now I’m on a TPE service back to Manchester to pick up where I left off. The weather’s changed with cloud building up but I’m optimistic I’ll still be able to get some good library shots.
22:15.
I’m back home after a busy but productive day. I did manage some extra library shots but for once the weather changed for the worse in the evening, meaning we lost the sun and gained low cloud instead so I called it a day earlier than planned and made my way home.
Having been transferred to Northern from the West Midlands, 323220 has become a common sight in Manchester. It was at Piccadilly this evening before working a service to Crewe.
I’ve still got over 27,000 steps in the bank, which isn’t bad when all I’d had to eat was 3 bits of bacon and an egg for breakfast and an apple for lunch. Mind you, I’ve been guzzling water like it’s going out of fashion, so that’s helped fill the gaps. I’m surprised (and rather relived) that my fasting regime isn’t more challenging, although I was looking forward to getting home and consuming my last allowance. I’ve found baked beans fill you up nicely – and so far, there’s been no unfortunate side effects…
Tomorrow I’ll be working from home all day and prepping for both 3 Peaks by rail and the holiday afterwards, so expect a picture dump and a few other bits on the blog. Until then, goodnight!
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/
Ugh! The alarm went off at 04:15 and I’m now showered and on mt first cup of coffee – but it won’t be my last. Today’s going to be a long day. But first things first, which is a long walk to the station, which should get the blood pumping. On the bright side (literally) is the weather’s fine and the sun’s almost up. Let’s see how things go…
05:55.
The walk to Halifax station was very pleasant. The town’s not woken up yet and the streets were deserted. Plus, the slight chill in the air meant there was no danger of overheating. Now I’m on Northern’s 05:45 heading for Manchester on the first leg of the route. Today it’s a 4-car and at the moment pretty quiet with just half a dozen of us in the front car.
07:45.
When we passed Newton Heath depot in Manchester I had to do a double-take as the ranks of Northern liveried trains was broken by a pair of interlopers. A pair of Transport for Wales class 150/2s occupied one of the sidings. Made surplus by Wales’s investment in new trains they’ve been cascaded to Northern. I wonder if they’ll be pressed into service before they’re reliveried?
On arrival at Victoria another unusual sight greeted me. A rake of Pullman liveried MK3’s, top and tailed by a pair of Class 47s sat in Platform 4. It turns out this was a West Coast railways dining train heading down to Ascot for the races. The return working gets back to Victoria after 1 AM tomorrow, by which time I expect the occupants will be very wined and very dined!
I didn’t have time to get a picture as I needed to hotfoot it across the city to get to Piccadilly in order to catch my next train. I’m now aboard Cross-Country’s 07:03 to Bristol, which I’m using to get to Birmingham New St. The service was quiet leaving Manchester but we’re now South of Stoke and the 5-car units filled up considerably en-route.
09:30.
Well, that was fun! On arrival at Wolverhampton we got told that – due to a ‘train in difficulty’ ahead of us we were being diverted via Bescot and Soho Junction. Passing Bescot was sad. Most of the old freight yard’s abandoned with all the overhead wires stripped out, only the skeletal portals tell the tale of how how many freight trains used to be electric hauled. The rest is just fans of rusting, weed-strewn sidings. The once-busy loco depot disappeared years ago, to be replaced with a wagon repair shops. The area’s a world away from the incredibly busy site I first visited way back in 1977.
We arrived at New St 15 minutes late but that still gave me time to walk over the Moor St where I picked up my scheduled connection. I’m now aboard Chiltern’s 09:15 heading to Warwick Parkway where I can catch the free coach service to Long Marston.
18:00.
I’m back! Sorry for the interlude but not only is Long Marston difficult to get to but the phone reception is awful. Plus, I didn’t have a spare minute to blog as there was too much to see/photograph and people to catch up with.
If you’ve never been to RAIL live you won’t appreciate just how much shoe-leather you wear through. It’s a huge site and it’s getting bigger each year. But then it has a 3.5km long test track, miles of storage sidings and the event brings in 100s of stalls and outdoor displays. I’ll add some pictures later, but to give you an idea. There’s 100s of millions pf pounds of new (or nearly new) trains in store on the site, as welll as re-engineered Porterbrook Class 769s rendered surplus before they were even introduced by GWR. Then there’s the exhibition stands. Ever seen a ‘robo-dog’? There were several on site. These incredible automatons that look like they’re out of ‘Star Wars’ are used for surveys and inspections. Then there’s some cutting-edge Road Rail Vehicles (RRVs) that look like spiders because of their flexibility. They can literally crawl across the land through their use independently wheeled arms. The first to be registered on the UK rail network was on display.
But RAIL live isn’t all about technology. There’s three stages where discussions take place with humans. One of the most powerful was with Ukrainian railways, who explained how they keep the network running amidst the biggest European war since World War 2. Whilst we’re all dressed in lightweight high-vis jackets one of their number talked about trying to raise funds so that Ukrainian rail workers can wear the version they need. Bullet-proof high-vis. Sobering…
I left the site around 1500 as I was offered a lift with old friends (other RAIL magazine alumni) who dropped me off at Stratford-upon-Avon where I caught a train to Birmingham. It’s such a lovely evening I’d have been tempted to stay for a pint in Birmingham, but the journey back to Halifax is long and slow – and will be for decades – thanks to Rishi Sunak’s capricious decision to scrap HS2 to Manchester. Now I’m on a busy 5-car Cross-Country service to Manchester Piccadilly. Fortunately, I’ve managed to blag a free table seat to set up the mobile office and begin downloading today’s pictures.
22:50.
I’m home – and knackered after a long day in which I’ve walked over 14 miles with a camera pack on my back on one of the warmest days of the year so far. Despite that, it’s been a really good day. There’s lots of photos to sort out tomorrow, but right now I’ll leave you with these.
A line-up of Class 701s. A lot of very expensive, brand-new (but stored) trains. Most will be over four years old before they turn a wheel in revenue service. No, it’s not out of ‘Transformers’ – this is real! These flexible machines are incredible bits of kit. I’ll add more details tomorrow.More futuristic kit. ‘Robo-dogs’. They’re house-trained and they don’t shed hair. But they’re not pets either. They’re a very flexible tool for carrying out inspections and diagnostic work in dangerous and/or confined spaces – or even in the open air. – and here’s one that we made earlier… These bi-mode Class 769s were due to be used by GWR. Instead they’ve ended up in store here at Long Marston.
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I’m currently in Huddersfield, having travelled in with Dawn in order for the two of us to work from the Community Rail Network office in the old water tower at the station. Getting in to the office is ‘fun’ nowadays as it sits inside a fenced off TRU compound!
The CRN water tower surrounded by building materials and plant. We have to skirt the edge of this lot to get into the office…
My morning’s been spent on a couple of ‘teams’ calls with some Northern Rail staff as background for a forthcoming RAIL magazine article. The chats were really informative, which will really help the article. Now, they’re finished I’m heading out to have a look at some more upgrade work on the line from here to Leeds. Feel free to pop back and see what I get up to…
14:20.
Platforms at Huddersfield slowly disappear under scaffolding.
I’m currently at Mirfield, where the new platform 2 is really starting to take shape.
Earlier I popped in at Ravensthorpe where an awful lot of earth is being moved around.
The new alignment is going to pass through the middle of this picture taken from the existing Ravensthorpe station. The existing alignment to the left will be abandoned.
17:30.
After a very long diversion at Ravensthorpe due to a footpath closure, I made it to the bridge West of Ravensthorpe where I got these pictures (captions later). As you can see there’s going to need to be some tree trimming before the line’s electrified!
185134 passes the site of the new Ravensthorpe station whilst working 2M78, the 1458 York to Manchester Piccadilly which is routed via Castleford and Healey Mills. Whilst the other side of the line at Ravensthorpe has had vegetation cut back, the Eastbound side is in serious need of the same treatment.
21:45.
I’m back at home on what’s turned out (weatherwise) to be a lovely evening – something all too rare this year. Now it’s time to bring this rolling blog to an end with a couple more pictures from my TRU travels.
This scene will change dramatically over the next few years. Here’s 66847 approaching Thornhill LNW Jn from Healey Mills. The site of the new Ravensthorpe station slowly takes shape. The bridge some of the other pictures were taken from is seen in the background.
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/
Paul Bigland 