It’s a short blog from me tonight as I’m on nursing duty as Dee was truck down by a bad migraine this afternoon.
Today’s been another day of two halves. The morning was spent working from home, wading through yesterday’s picture haul whilst keeping on top of paperwork and household chores. The weather wasn’t brilliant and the temperature distinctly nippy, so much so I wasn’t sure I that was wasting my time when I pegged out a line full of washing. Despite the lack of sunshine I decided to nip out for a few hours to check on the Trans-Pennine route upgrade (TRU) work East of Huddersfield. Dawn was meant to be having an evening out with friends so I thought I’d get out too.
Luckily, by the time I got the train from Sowerby Bridge to Dewsbury the weather had changed and I was treated to some glorious sunshine, even if temperatures were still on the chilly side. I’m going to write about the TRU work in a separate blog as it deserves its own. I saw a lot of changes at the places I visited, some substantial. Here’s a couple of pictures to whet your appetite.
The new station at Morley begins to take shape. It’s being built a very short distance away from the original station which is just out of sight to the right. This view’s looking East.A TPE service races through Cottingley station. Opened in 1988 it’s being replaced by the new £26.5m ‘White Rose’ station built further West and will close as a consequence, probably at the timetable change in December 2023 if the new station’s ready in time. It wasn’t just new railways I looked at as I also stopped off to have a wander around Dewsbury, a town that used to have far more railways than the one it does now. Here’s the (sadly closed) Station hotel in the town centre. To the right was the site of the GNRs Dewsbury Central station which closed in 1964. The course of the railway is now part of the A638 ring road, hence the new bridge behind the hotel.Dewsbury still possesses some very grand buildings that reflect the towns Victorian wealth. Here’s the Town Hall. This Grade 2 listed building opened in 1889.
My day was cut short when Dee texted me to say she was unwell, but I’ve plenty of pictures to add to a blog tomorrow, and all taken in great weather too!
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Walking to Halifax station was enjoyable this morning. No rain for a change, even if the Calder valley was shrouded in mist.
Traffic was light too though dog-walkers were out in force. Having left the house at 06:50 I had time to spare to catch the 07:39. I ended up walking straight on to the 07:20 which was running 7 mins late due to a fault on one of the two Class 195/0s forming this four car train.
This service calls at Low Moor, the new (ish) intermediate station between Halifax and Bradford. I’m rarely on services that call here so I was impressed to see dozens of folk waiting to join us.
After a rapid exchange of passengers at Bradford Interchange and with enough time for the crew to swap ends we’re now on our way to Leeds. Looking around I’d say this car is 50-60% full. I’ve no doubt that’ll increase on our way into Leeds.
0755.
Sure enough, our call at New Pudsey resulted in one departing passenger replaced by seven joining – and that was just in my car. Passengers on this train are a mix of commuters and holiday-makers. I’m sharing a table with a couple in their mid 30s in high-vis cycling jackets and a young lad whom I’m assuming’s on his way to work.
08:45.
Being ahead of schedule has allowed me to get ahead of myself and take the scenic route. I had 6 minutes in Leeds to make a dash for LNER’s 08:15 to Kings Cross which I’m taking as far as Doncaster. Yes, Doncaster. OK, I lied about the ‘scenic’ bit! My trains formed of a 9-car Azuma and the loadings are healthy. Here’s coach H.
09:05.
My visit to Doncaster was brief. I had long enough to grab a couple of pictures and admire the varied collection of stock outside the Wabtec works (an AET ”Networker’ and Chiltern’s 165004 plus sundry Mk3 coaches) before it was time to jog over to platform 0, which I’ve never used before. I’m now on Northern’s 09:05 to Goole which is being worked by a 2-car class 158.
11:40.
S’cuse the gap. As soon as I arrived at RaiseE I was thrown into a round of introductions or discussions with old friends. Sadly, many of the conversations were pessimistic. Wether it’s Brexit or the shambles that’s government policy and rail finances (not to mention internal problems of some major players) the picture’s not a happy one.
However, the event focussed on the positive aspects and opportunities for the future. More of that later..
Harry Hill from Enable Ltd and Lucy Prior from Trough-Tec Systems Ltd with a joint presentation on collaborating with the supply chain to create a greener rail industry.
17:35.
The conference finished after lunch and after saying some goodbyes I left to make the most of the glorious sunshine. I realised I’d never really taken pictures around this way and that my ladt visit was in 2010 so I decided to make amends. The rail network’s a shadow of its former self as the dock lines are disused and the new Siemens factory – whilst rail connected – isn’t generating any traffic.
However, the docks are still used by shipping and the distinctive ‘salt and pepper’ buildings dominate the skyline nearby.
There’s also this rather interesting building that looks remarkably similar in style to certain London Underground stations. I’m guessing they were designed by the same architect.
Having spent an hour exploring I took a trip to the end of the line at Hull to add a few more library pictures. I’m glad I did. The classic view of the station throat is rapidly being closed off by tree growth.
22:00.
I’m now back at home after retracing my steps from Hull to Goole, back to Doncaster and thence on to Leeds and Bradford before arriving back in Halifax. The weather’s been glorious and the travel really interesting. I’ll flesh out more of this blog shortly but for now here’s a couple more pictures from my travels.
158853 works a Hull – Doncaster service past ‘salt and pepper’ the two water towers that dominate the Goole skyline. Hull has become a good place to find the seven members of Class 155. Built by British Leyland in 1988 for Calder valley services they’re rarely seen on their former home turf although they do put in appearances on the Hull – Halifax shuttles. Goole signalbox. It was built in 1909 by the North-Eastern railway to their standard ‘S4’ design. Over the years its lost the external wooden walkways with metal handrails that allowed access to clean the windows. The locking-room windows have also been bricked up which was probably done during World War 2 to add protection from bomb damage.
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Yesterday HS2 Ltd announced that they’d launched yet another Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) but this one had a couple of important differences to the five that are already in service.
Launched from the Atlas Rd construction site in North London by the Skanska Costain STRABAG joint venture (SCS JV), ‘Lydia’ is an upcycled TBM formerly known as ‘Ellie’. The TBM dug two sections of the Crossrail tunnels in the Capital – from Limmo Peninsula in Canning Town to Royal Victoria Dock, and between Pudding Mill Lane and Stepney Green completing a total of 2.23 miles.
Made redundant from that task the Shield head and cutting wheel along with other components were refurbished by the builder Herrenknecht. The 847m long TBM will now spend the next six months driving an 853 metre long tunnel to the Old Oak Common construction site. The TBM has an 6.2 metre internal diameter. Starting drilling at a depth of 5 metres below ground it will reach a maximum depth of 20 metres. 4,264 concrete segments will be used, forming 533 tunnel rings. The segments, each weighing over 3 tonnes, have been produced by Pacadar in Kent.
The new service tunnel will have two uses. The first is to be fitted with a conveyor belt that will connect with an existing conveyor at the Atlas Rd site to transport spoil to the HS2 London Logistics Hub at Willesden Euro Terminal where the spoil will be moved onwards to sites in Kent, Cambridgeshire (Foxton) and Rugby by rail. The second use will be to transport 8,010 tunnel segment rings to construct the HS2 tunnels from Old Oak Common to Euston. These segment rings are being manufactured by STRABAG in Hartlepool. Both sets of segments will be moved to sites by rail. HS2 Ltd estimate that the new service tunnel will save 70,000 lorry journeys being added to London’s roads. It’s an impressive commitment to making HS2 construction as green as possible, using rail and on-site services as much as possible to minimise disruption elsewhere.
The significance of this is that construction of the HS2 tunnels from Old Oak Common to Euston is still proceeding as planned – despite the delay to building Euston station itself. Let’s face it, if you’re not going to build Euston, you’re not going to need to build the expensive Euston tunnels!
Workers checking over ‘Lydia’ before yesterdays launch (pic c/o HS2 Ltd).
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On Friday I paid a visit to Stalybridge station to see the result of the engineering blockade that had transformed the stations Western junction. This is been totally remodelled and resignalled. The resignalling has extended to the Eastern side of the station although the track layout here remains unchanged. As well as track and signals a large number of overhead electrification masts and portals have appeared, although there’s still many more to be installed at further weekend engineering possessions before the wires can be extended.
Here’s a selection of pictures showing how the place looks now.
Looking West to Stalybridge Junction from the end of platform 3. This junction was remodelled as recently as 2011. This time some of the switches have been removed and replaced with a flat crossing (just out of sight around the curve). The formations been expanded by the removal of the old ATO oil siding in the far left, which has allowed tracks to be slewed. The remodelling appears to remove conflicts and certainly allows for faster line speeds across the junction. Bi-mode 769424 pulls into the bay platform 5 with a Southport-Stalybridge service. 185151 approaches platform 3 working 2E73, the 1158 Manchester Piccadilly to Huddersfield.185151 sits waiting time in platform 3. The newly installed portals are very much in evidence. 802208 approaches from the East whilst working 9M10, the 1006 Newcastle to Liverpool Lime Street. The new portals have usurped the signal gantry that was installed (at great expense) at this location in 2012. And there it was – gone! The substantial signal gantry that was installed as part of the original Trans-Pennine electrification scheme but (apparently) was now in the way of the revised scheme for some reason. It’s no wonder many rail improvements cost so much money when plans constantly change and investment like this is wasted. It’s seen here in 2016.New signalling and OLE masts that have been installed at the East end of the station between platforms 3 and 4.Looking East along platforms 5 and 4 with new masts and portals in place where the former through tracks were situated. Looking along the railway viaducts by Waterloo Road. The bracket where the 2012 signal gantry was fixed to the side of the piers remains. 185107 calls at platform 4 outside the famous buffet bar whilst working 1K23, the 1354 Liverpool Lime Street to Hull.
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Finally, the Chair of the ELR board, Mike Kelly, has responded to the shit-storm that’s enveloped the railway (and reflected on the wider preservation movement) following the sacking of respected volunteer Joanne Crompton. You can find it on the ELR website here.
To say it’s anodyne and bland would be an understatement. It answers no questions. In fact the opposite, it poses more. Here’s what it says.
“We concluded two independent investigations as a result of grievances raised by Joanne Crompton and have just received an appeal which means we are limited in what we can share.
The first was about our processes used for all volunteers going through steam driver training. The investigation highlighted a deficiency in the steam driver training assessment and is subject to a review. We are now in the process of doing this, however, this was not a case of discrimination against Joanne, but a general problem that needed fixing.
Our exhaustive independent investigation into Joanne’s second grievance was inconclusive.
We understand that this has been difficult for Joanne – this has also taken an emotional toll on our volunteer community.
We’ve asked Joanne to no longer actively volunteer at the railway. We share her sadness that it has come to this but wish her all the best for the future.”
The first question that occurs is – if the first investigation was merely about a training issue, why does this warrant a sacking? And, if the “exhaustive independent investigation” was inconclusive – why was Joanne still sacked? Neither of these events suggest why such a draconian course of events as ‘sacking’ a volunteer is warranted.
Nor does is explain the bizarre actions of the ELR chairman in blanket banning people on social media, a ban that included a very large proportion of the railway press, railway staff and even (at least) one TOC MD! This isn’t even mentioned, never mind explained or apologised for. I wonder why?
Frankly, this is no more an explanation than it is an apology for dragging the reputation of the preservation movement through the mud. Nor is this going to make things go away or rescue the ELR’s credibility. Far from it as people are already drawing their own conclusions.
What happens next will be interesting to watch, but I foresee the ripples from this debacle to continue spreading…
8th April update.
Kelly has just posted this unbelievable excuse for his blocking spree on Twitter.
It ranks with (and is as believable as) ‘a big boy did it and ran away’.
Needless to say, a story that was full of more holes than Swiss cheese soon began to unravel as Twitter users reacted with both derision, disbelief and more contradictory background information – like this, from Angus Duncan…
A “simple user error”? That’s not what he claimed on Twitter! The idea that this ‘error’ just happened to coincide with Joanne’s sacking is laughable. Kelly hardly ever used Twitter. He only had around 300 followers. This has now mushroomed to 900 plus as people have signed up to listen to the excuses and watch the car-crash. He has no idea how Twitter works, so has made a complete fool of himself – as many more savvy people have pointed out. Some of the the responses have been savage. And the longer this drags on the more damage it does to the East Lanc’s Railway’s reputation and credibility.
Kelly’s position is now untenable. Either he jumps or the board need to push him. Either way, the ELR board have a mountain to climb to restore the railways reputation.
Update. 20th April.
We’re almost two weeks away from Joanne’s sacking and the ripples are still spreading. The issue made it into national attention when the Daily Telegraph carried an article regarding the matter. The readers responses said far more about the Telegraph’s demographic than anything else, being overwhelmingly misogynistic. The gist of many being criticism of ‘troublesome’ women bringing these things on themselves by having the temerity to speak out, so highlighting the very issue Joanne’s been talking about!
Meanwhile, the social media responses to PR tweets from the ELR are both savage and embarrassing to the railway. Here’s an example.
I really feel for the people in the ELR publicity department as they’re having to bare the brunt of this whilst the Chair, General Manager and Board continue to stick their fingers in their ears and hide, pretending nothing’s happened and it’s business as usual. They’ve all gone to ground since 7th April, Kelly’s said nothing since his risible attempt at defending blocking people on Twitter (many of whom remain blocked) whilst nothing has been heard from the rest of the board, or the General Manager…
I wonder what passenger numbers will be like over the coming Easter and Bank Holidays?
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Today’s been another glued to my office chair sort of day as I’ve waded through various files, folders and general paperwork whilst trying to clear my desk of various old tasks as well as book some new ones. The diary’s now looking fuller as a consequence. The day started off as miserable as yesterday weather-wise but picked up by the afternoon, although the sun was beaten back by a cold wind so temperatures remained on the chilly side – something I really noticed when Dee and I broke away from or desks to venture into Halifax in order to sort out various chores. Dawn dropped me off in the town centre so I could pick up a parcel and wend my way back via my bank. Gone are the days when I was a regular at my old bank in Crouch End in North London, paying in a stream of cheques from various clients. Not only is the Crouch End branch of Natwest now history but I can’t think of the last time I was paid by cheque. I visit the Halifax branch around once a year and that’s only to deal with issues with bank cards as I happen to be in town. Even they can be dealt with online nowadays either via the internet or banking apps on one’s phone. The days of imposing (and busy) bank branches are long gone. Sowerby Bridge doesn’t have a single bank left and Halifax is losing many – including branches of the Halifax! Walking home in order to boost my daily steps gave me time to reflect on these things. I’ve only lived here for 13 years but the changes I’ve seen in that time are many. Talk about time flying…
One change that seems to be taking one step forward and two steps is the treatment of women in the railway preservation movement. Today, Twitter has been all aflutter over the treatment of a well-known woman fireman (Joanne Crompton) who’s up for a Women In Rail award due to her fight against discrimination in the preservation movement and to improve the lot of female volunteers. Having won a case for unfair treatment and unacceptable behavior against the East Lancashire Railway she was promptly sacked as a volunteer.
The news soon went viral. The negative reaction to the news was compounded when it was discovered that the Chair of the ELR board had been on a pre-emptive spree on Twitter, blocking dozens of people in the rail industry and rail media, many of whom had never interacted with him or even heard of him. The block list even includes rail company MDs! Talk about an own goal!
The ELR have yet to make any public statement about the matter (unless you count the Chair of the board frantically blocking people as a statement) which has compounded the problem – and outrage. Of course, every story has two sides – as Joanne herself has said – but many of us who have been involved in railway preservation in the past feel uneasy about this, because we know what it can be like.
I was a teenage volunteer in railway preservation back in the 1970s when the landscape for women was bleak. If you volunteered you’d end up in the shop or the cafe – forget about getting anywhere near the footplate. Misogyny was commonplace, as was racism. I’d hoped times had changed but I know the problem with the ‘nostalgia’ sector is that sometimes it isn’t just about recreating the positive things about the past, there’s a hard-core who want to preserve less inclusive social attitudes too.
Joanne is one of those people whose been brave enough to challenge these attitudes and even gave a speech about her experiences to the Railway Heritage Association in 2021. Here’s a link via Youtube.
Joanne’s no wrecker. Her passion and commitment shine through, as does her sense of justice. If it’s to survive, the railway preservation movement needs to listen to Joanne and all those other people who want to volunteer but who feel excluded for a number of reasons (including gender, and sexuality) because in voicing these problems Jo is not alone.
So, today’s picture is another video – and it’s dedicated to Joanne and the work people like her who to try and drag railway preservation into the modern era…
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Yesterday we had wall-to-wall sunshine, today we’ve had wall-to-wall rain! It’s been a thoroughly miserable one here in the Calder valley. Half the time you couldn’t even see the valley tops. Still, I had plenty to keep me at home today so the my time wasn’t wasted. I managed to finish editing all my pictures from last weeks trips to Nottingham and the various HS2 sites – as well as yesterday’s jaunt over to Manchester and Stalybridge. I’ve also made a serious dent in some paperwork as well as getting another selection of recent eBay sales off to the successful bidders. So, all in all – not a bad day. The eBay sales involved a trip down to the post office in Sowerby Bridge so I still managed to get in my daily constitutional, even if I was looking rather soggy by the time I returned. I’m missing the warm rain of SE-Asia!
Another day working from home beckons tomorrow as I’ve a load more stuff to stick on eBay as well as adjusting the postage rates for the previous batch of stuff that remains unsold. It’s a chore but it has to be done. Hopefully, by Friday I’ll be free to sally forth once more…
Yesterday’s pictures can have been divided between several galleries. There’s Northern rail services here, Trans-Pennine services here and infrastructure and engineering pictures here.
Now, having cooked a meal for the pair of us (Dee’s still slaving away over her keyboard downstairs. The end of the financial year’s a mad time for her work, which involves long hours) it’s time for me to switch off at least. Therefore I’ll leave you with today’s picture which features on of the current crop of Trans-Pennine express services diverted via the Calder Valley. The Diggle route via Stalybridge reopens on the 7th April so these trains will revert to their normal paths during the week until the next blockade takes place. I’ll bring you pictures of the rebuilt Stalybridge station just as soon as I can.
TPE’s Hitachi built unit 802209 speeds through the classic old station at Hebden Bridge with 1P32, the 1543 Newcastle to Liverpool Lime Street, making an interesting contrast from the staple diet of Northern DMUs which work the line.
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Only a short blog from me today, but I hope you enjoy it. Today was another one of those that didn’t quite go to plan as I was busy slaving away in the office this morning then thought ‘bugger it, this weather is too good to waste’ so I packed my kit and headed over to Manchester via the Calder Valley to catch some of the last Stalybridge blockade diverts and also visit Stalybridge itself – which was a bit of a time-consuming faff on rail replacement buses. On the bright side I got to see parts of Manchester I’ve never seen before – and some that I never want to see again!
I’ll write more about this at a later date. But the most surreal part of the trip was when I stopped off at Todmorden on the return. As I wandered along the Leeds bound platform I heard a quacking noise from the other side of the platform fence. When I looked I realised I was being accosted by two ducks. Said ducks then stuck to me like glue all the way along to the end of the platform. They wouldn’t leave me alone and even started pecking at my boots through the fence. I get the impression that some kind soul has been feeding them and now any passenger is seen as a meal ticket! In all my time travelling the railways I’ve never seen anything like it! So, here’s a short video of my two feathered assailants…
If you ever go to Tod’ – take food!
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After my last few days travels today’s very much been a lazy Sunday. I’ve travelled nowhere – unless you count a trip up the hill to the local pub! Dawn’s been full on at work so has really kicked back whilst I’ve got stuck into home projects. After the miserable weather I’d experienced in the Chilterns I was relieved to enjoy a sunny Sunday in the Pennines which encouraged me to get out in the garden and deal with some of the unwanted stuff that’s sprung up. We have a row of Sycamore trees on the opposite side of the road to us and this year their offspring have been as invasive as an invading army. I’ve never known a year like it in the 13 years I’ve been here but I’m assuming conditions must have been perfect for them this winter. De-weeding done I spent more time splitting up a yellow Iris I rescued from canal dredging many years ago. I planted some in our front garden but it’s extended its underground tentacles so far I’ve had no option but to sever them and chop it back. They won’t be wasted. I’ve potted some, other bits have gone to grateful neighbours. All I have to do is work out what I’ll plant in the space.
Right, enough from me tonight. There’s plenty to read and see in my past few blogs. Right now – as It’s Sunday – I’m going to have a night off after leaving you with the picture of the day which is something chosen at random from my Zenfolio website. I put in flora into search and came up with this. I spotted these Ceanothus flowers on one of my local walks during the early days of the Covid lockdown. What a weird time that feels now.
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Hooray! The rain’s stopped here in the Chilterns. Instead (according to the forecast) we’re in for a day full of dull cloud and no sunshine. Looking out of the skylight in my room in the pub we stayed in last night that certainly seems to be the case. Even so, there’s plenty of HS2 sites to see in the area and as we travel Northwards so I’ll post a few pictures through the day as we visit places. But first, it’s time for breakfast then to find somewhere to charge up Penny’s electric car. Charging EVs is a logistical exercise in itself and adds a whole new dimension to travel planning.
As well as HS2 construction sites one thing we’ll be looking at is the ecological work and mitigation planting. If you believed the scaremongering nonsense the opponents of HS2 put out tree planting either doesn’t happen or the ones planted are all dead. Nothing could be further from the truth. Here’s a (large) site on the South edge of the West Hyde construction site that we visited yesterday. Do these look imaginary or dead to you?
I’ve many more close-up shots of the impressive growth of this recently planted (2017) wood that I’ll add to my Zenfolio gallery on HS2 construction.
11:10.
Well, we’re not doing much exploring righ now but I am learning a lot about the pros and cons of electric cars! We’re currently in the car park at Morrisons in Aylesbury, waiting for the car to charge. There was no charging point at the pub, so we couldn’t charge the car overnight so we only had 30 miles left on the battery. Not enough to get anywhere. The nearest chargers were in Aylesbury. Then it’s a question of finding a fast (50kw) charger and pray no-one else is using it. So, you spend a lot of time faffing around because the last thing you want to do is run out of juice in the middle of nowhere. You can’t exactly walk with a Jerry can to the nearest garage for a bucket of electricity! Penny’s car is currently charging at 1 mile oer minute. There’s another complication. This charger has 3 charger cables. Only two are compatible with the car and one of them (the fastest) is knackered. It’s a common problem apparently. So, if you don’t want to suffer ‘power anxiety’ – buy a hybrid. This car (a Renault Zoe) has a real maximum range of +/- 200 miles so 100 miles range out and back before you need to think about finding a charging station. Oh, and that’s without driving too fast or using stuff like heaters etc..
Time to sit and compose a few emails and blog whilst watching the miles build up.
19:30.
Another day that didn’t quite go to plan but was still an excellent one anyway. Well, until I ended up on a train full of pissed-up Stoke City fans on their way back from Coventry (but more of that later).
Having charged up the car enough to do what we wanted to do (with a margin of error) we headed back to the infamous Jones’ Hill wood, scene of some of the most dishonest anti HS2 protests. I’ve blogged before about the lie that the wood had anything to do with Roald Dahl. This area (between Wendover and Great Missenden) is ‘nimby central’, not that any of their scaremongering achieved anything but it’s very interesting to compare the reality with the hype.
Whilst a Western edge of Jones’ Hill woods has been sliced off to make way for HS2 there’s a huge amount of new tree planting to the East which is doing really well. This will link the isolated Jones’ Hill with nearby woods to create a much larger wildlife habitat.
One of two ponds on the new mitigation planting site at Jones’ Hill woods with the wood in the background and new planting in the foreground. Behind me is another wood which the planting will link to Jones’ Hill. The HS2 trace is below Jones’ hill to the left .The Southern edge of Jones’ hill wood. Part of the wood had to be taken to build HS2. This picture was taken from the middle of the haul road. A footpath crosses the road and security staff let you across when it’s safe to do so. Looking North from Bowood Lane along the route of HS2 towards Wendover. So much for the ‘outstanding natural beauty’ of the Chilterns! To the left is the noisy A413 whilst the row of ugly pylons stretches the length of the valley. In contrast, when HS2’s completed most of it will be hidden from view.
Ironically, the ‘eco-warriors’ who were supposedly ‘protecting’ Jones’ hill woods have left their abandoned camp cluttering the woods.
Moving on from Jones’ Hill we headed back to Wendover to look at HS2 construction work nearby. Quite how HS2 was meant to cause so much disturbance to the village when it’ll pass in a green tunnel with the incredibly noisy A413 and Chiltern railway in-between has always been one of life’s mysteries. At the moment work isn’t as advanced as on other parts of the route so it’s hard to make out the trace of HS2, although this will change over the course of 2023. Funny, the local Nimbys have never complained about the unsightly line of high-voltage pylons that parallel the HS2 route in these parts!
Odd how those who tell us the Chilterns AONB is pristine and stunning fail to mention this row of plyons that dominate the valley between Gt Missenden and Wendover – or mention the persistent traffic noise from the A413! Here’s the view from above Wendover (off to the left) looking South towards Great Missenden. The trace of HS2 is starting to take shape. It will pass between the two nearest pylons, having crossed over the A413 and Chiltern railway at the bottom of the valley here.
Another place we visited was the small Wendover memorial wood for people who passed away at a local hospice. You may remember HS2 antis and media opportunists exploited this place in a disgraceful attempt to smear HS2 for desecrating a “childrens memorial” when it was nothing of the sort.
To be honest, it’s a sad, neglected place that looks pretty much abandoned. The memorial trees are too densely planted and look awful as no-one ever looked after them once they were planted, which is why many have their protective sheath still wrapped around them long after they matured. The place is unkempt, overgrown and covered with litter and other detritus. There’s little sign of the work HS2 carried out there, other than what likes a narrow path through some of the trees. The place doesn’t look like many people visit.
Moving on we bypassed Aylesbury and headed towards Quainton, stopping en-route to admire another mitigation site where (on first glance) tree- planting appeared to be less successful than other sites. On closer examination this proved to be untrue as many trees had been replanted, they simply hadn’t stuck their heads above their protective tubes yet! The trace of HS2 was very evident at this point.
North of Quainton we crossed the former route of the Great Central railway which (until recently) carried waste trains and HS2 construction trains as far as Calvert. Now the sites been transformed into a construction site as the old road bridge is being replaced and the road diverted (pics later).
The view from Whitehills bridge looking towards Quainton. The Calvert binliners and HS2 materials trains used this part of the old Great Central until recently. In the foreground excavations have begun for the piles for the replacement for the bridge I’m standing on. Whitehills bridge looking North towards Calvert.
Our final visit was to Calvert itself. The place has changed a lot since my last visit with the E-W rail line embankments taking shape either side of the HS2 overbridge. Several other E-W bridges are being replaced as part of the same contract whilst roads are being diverted and the site of the HS2 Infrastructure Maintenance Depot (IMD) is being laid out. Whilst we were here we were blessed with some lovely low sunlight whic made a real change from the dull day we’d had up to that point.
The site of the old Calvert station looking South. HS2 tracks will occupy this site in a few years time. Looking North from the same bridge. This site was a major railhead for bringing HS2 construction material in by rail. The new E-W rail overbridge at Calvert under very moody skies.The site of the Calvert HS2 Infrastructure Maintenance depot is beginning to be laid out. To the right is the route of E-W rail whilst the new bridge in the background is the remodelled Addison Rd.
Both of us would’ve loved to have lingered longer but when I checked train times back home we realised we’d need to make a dash for Banbury in time for me to make a sensible connection. This got a bit fraught when we got into Banbury as their was traffic chaos because the police had the main road towards the station blocked off. Instead Penny drove back to Leamington where I made my train by the skin of my teeth – but only because it was running five minutes late.
I was breathing a sigh of relief and considering staying on this Cross-County service all the way to Manchester until we pulled into Coventry where my coach was invaded by Stoke City fans. Their behaviour was appalling. They kept up a stream of foul-mouthed, misogynistic and borderline racist chants all the way to New St, at which point I’d had enough of too much testosterone and too few brain cells (as had many others in the coach). I baled and caught my original connection, the 19:03 Cross-Country service direct to Leeds. This is much quieter and far more pleasant – and neither sight nor sound of a football bore.
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Paul Bigland 