Sorry for the lack of blogs but I’ve both been busy and had the muse desert me. That’s not to imply there’s been nothing to write about – far from it, but I’ve struggled with the time and the inclination as there’s simply not enough hours in the day to do all the things that I want to achieve. Still, I’m back now and a new week begins tomorrow.
Thursday and Friday saw me back on the rails as the weather picked up. After our fortnight in Dorset I was keen to catch up with progress on some of the local rail improvements, so on Thursday afternoon I decided to go West and check on how electrification of the line from Lostock Junction (near Bolton) to Wigan was progressing. The answer is – very well. Much of the route has had masts installed although there are gaps, the biggest being from Crow Nest Junction to Hindley and also East of Westhoughton. Since my last visit in April many of the masts have had the horizontal beams and top ties added along with the registration bracket, as you can see in this picture from Hindley.
Hindley station garden’s recovering well considering its had mast bases sunk in prominent parts. The station friends have wasted no time in making temporary use of these surfaces…
Something else that’s getting renewed at Hindley is the life-expired signalling which dates from the early 1970s when the West Coast Main Line was electrified.
Friday saw me explore closer to home with a trip from Huddersfield to Leeds and back to Mirfield to have a look at Trans-Pennine Route upgrade (TRU) work. This was made harder by the fact trains were either replaced by buses, or diverted. One place I popped into was Wakefield Kirkgate, which is now on the Trans-Pennine route map. The only problem is that it’s now rendered hopeless for photography by the addition of a fence running along the tracks between the platforms. Well, that’s when you can see it as it’s mostly hidden by Buddleia!
The direct route between Huddersfield and Leeds via Dewsbury was closed with services replaced by buses, but I managed this shot from a diverted train on the line to Healy Mills. The bridge in the background carries the existing line over the River Calder. This whole section is going to be replaced with a new formation (and bridge) which will run in the foreground, roughly where the pile driver is in this image.
Having got a train to Mirfield the only way to get back to Halifax was on a rail replacement bus. Friday was the last day of the current blockade and not a great one to end on. Traffic through Mirfield was horrendous and my bus was almost an hour late.
Tomorrow a new week begins which will see me working from home. I’ve another RAIL magazine article to finish writing and lots of other stuff to prepare for later in the week – as well as plan my round Britain trip for RAIL (which I’ve had to postpone for a couple of weeks due to other pressures). Still, never a dull moment, eh?
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Paul Bigland 