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Rolling blog: Coastaway…

19 Tuesday Oct 2021

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06:20.

Having slipped out of bed at 04:45 in order to beat the alarm clock and not disturb Dawn I’m currently on Northern’s 06:00 from Halifax to Leeds. My extra early start gave me plenty of time to walk to the station and the rain Gods smiled on me. So now today’s adventure starts. I’m heading for the South coast before a night in London. Stay tuned to see how the trip goes…

The 06:00’s the first train of the day towards Leeds and never the busiest as it’s only working from Hebden Bridge. That said, the 3-car Class 195 that’s working it today has (at a rough guess) loadings of between 20-25%. This time of day the passengers are all solitary folk on their way to work.

Early-birds off the 06:00 from Halifax at Leeds.

07:00.

I’ve transferred to the 07:00 to London Kings Cross. At this time of day Leeds is a hive of activity for LNER as trains from outlying towns and cities converge like Bradford and Skipton converge on the station before taking Yorkshire business folk down to the capital. The 07:00’s one example. Having started from Bradford Forster Square it reverses at Leeds, after which it makes one more stop at Wakefield Westgate before running non-stop to London, making the 185 miles and 70 chains trip from Leeds in 1 hour 59 minutes.

07:17.

We’ve just left Wakefield Westgate where several dozen passengers awaited our arrival. Needless to say, they’re almost exclusively business travellers. The tables in my car are now covered in laptops as people catch up on emails or other work. There’s a sea of red seat reservation lights in my coach, but a quick headcount reveals many seats are unoccupied. On a walk-through the car I count 31 people in a vehicle with 88 seats (27.3%) but as this is coach 9 of a 10 car set I know the cars that were nearer the Leeds gateline will be busier.

07:45.

We’re now flying down the East Cost Main Line, having just passed Retford. The day’s just beginning to dawn and I can see it’s wet. Very wet! Rain’s beating on the opposite side of the train so hard it’s making noise like a sizzling frying pan. I’m happy to be stuck inside this metal tube where it’s warm, dry and I can get on with some work.

08:20.

Fortified with a rather good coffee from the buffet (it’s strong and rich, unlike the dishwater you get on some trains) I’ve been occupied with researching today’s assignment whilst keeping one eye on the weather. The rain’s stopped for now but the low grey clouds look very uninviting. The forecast for the South coast is better, but we’ll have to see. We’re only 40 mins away from London now…

08:40.

Joy! Watery sunlight’s penetrated the murk here at Hitchin! Cloud level doesn’t seem to be changing, but it does appear to be thinning. On another note, I’ve just wandered through the car to the loo and observed that I’m the only person who’s still wearing a mask. Still, they don’t matter anymore now that Covid cases are dropping, do they? Oh, wait…

And the moral of the story is – wear a mask!

09:30.

I decided to take the ‘scenic’ route to the South coast which saved me having to cross London on the tube. I’m now on a Southeastern ‘Javelin’ service from St Pancras International to Ashford. I say ‘scenic’ but as much of it is in tunnels and it passes through Dagenham before it reaches the Rainham marshes that is somewhatof a misnomer! I’ve not been this aay since Covid kicked-off so I was amazed to see the amount of new housing neing built on brownfield sites on the ribbon of land North of the railways to Rainham.

I have to say it’s a pleasure to be able to speed between central London and Ashford in this fashion. As a former Londoner I remember what a schlep this was from our home in Crouch End, having to get the tube across to Charing Cross/London Bridge for the slow service.

10:40.

Having arrived at Ashford just 38 minutes after leaving St Pancras I’m now on the ‘Marshlink’ line on the non-electrified line between here and Ore. I’ve come this was as I’m hoping to kill two birds with one stone and get pictures around the area for another client. Fortunately, the weather’s playing ball. The skies are clearing, the sun’s appearing and the skies are turning blue! My luck might just have turned…

15:00.

Apologies for the gap in updates but I’ve been a busy bee. I took an hour-long break in the lovely town of Rye. Built on a hill and once famous as the nearby home of the comedian and author Spike Milligan (who lived close by in Udimore) it’s still a lovely place to visit as it has some fascinating old buildings. Here’s an example. That said, the place is starting to look a bit tatty. Many building are in need of quite a bit of TLC. Rotten window frames, peeling paintwork and closed shops are common. It’s a crying shame.

I was tempted to tarry but as the train service is hourly and I had a lot more to do I resisted the temptation. That said, I fitted a lot into the hour as the weather worked out for me which allowed me to get some half-decent pictures before moving on to my main destination. Eastbourne.

20:00.

I’m now back in London and winding down for the evening after a packed day. I struck lucky with the light as soon as I arrived in Eastbourne which allowed me to get shots in the bag sooner than I expected. Having done so I was able to have a wander around town, something I’ve never done before. Like many towns (seaside or otherwise) there’s a glut of empty shots as retail faces the forces of rising rents, online retail, Brexit and Covid. I saw a number of buildings that looked like they were once department stores but also a lot of smaller shops that were once eateries. It’s sad, but the world’s changing – as it always has.

Anyway, I’ll end this blog with a few pictures as I’m too knackered to write anymore after a 04:30 start and I’ve a busy day tomorrow.

The windmill at Rye, which is right next to the railway. Sadly, the classic shot of the two is now far too overgrown, but I’m tempted to do a wide-angle, higher level shot next time…
The frontage of Eastbourne station. The building itself is being restored and the local Council have helped by changing the roads outside.

Tomorrow I’m in search of the new rather than the old as I’ll be exploring the High-Speed 2 railway construction sites at Euston in London…

I’ve a favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this blog, 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 to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site – and right now (because of Covid), us freelances appreciate all the help that we can get to aid us in bouncing back from lockdowns. Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Thank you!

Rolling blog: Kicking off Community rail week…

18 Monday Oct 2021

Posted by in Community rail, Community Rail Network, Green issues, Photography, Railways, Rolling blogs

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It’s a reasonably early start for me as I’m off to Manchester to join colleagues from Community Rail network to kick off Community Rail week, a new event with an exciting range of activities taking place across community rail, this year championing the message Go Green by Train, as part of the build-up to COP26. The essential message is quite simple. Ditch the car and go by train. Here’s why;

Our opening event is at Manchester Piccadilly station from 10:00 – 15:00.

Community Rail Lancashire, Mid Cheshire CRP, Calder Valley CRP and Liverpool to Manchester CRP will be promoting the Go Green by Train message, highlighting how visitors can explore a wealth of attractions and activities by train.

I’ll be blogging and posting pictures through the day…

09:10.

I’m en-route to Manchester although my train’s running late. I was in plenty of time at Halifax so caught an earlier Blackpool bound train as far as Hebden Bridge in order to get a few library shots and admire the old pictures of the railway displayed in the waiting room.

The Manchester service was running behind us but was several minutes late. Made up of a pair of Class 195/0s the service lost even more time outside Todmorden as (I’m assuming) it was stuck behind another service). Having crossed over the border into Lancashire we’re now running 16 minutes late.

I finally arrived at Piccadilly ‘on time’ but 22 minutes later than I’d planned. The lateness of our train turned out to be because of signalling issues around Todmorden. ho hum! Still, I managed to get the pictures we needed, including this one for the official launch of Community Rail Week.

Meanwhile, on the concourse, various community rail groups (and Network Rail) had set up a stall filled with leaflets and various goodies to give away…

16:00.

Whist some of the CRN team stayed at Manchester some of us had another appointment back in West Yorkshire. The friends of Mytholmroyd station were unveiling artwork painted in conjunction with a local school, so I headed back across the Pennines with Jools Townsend and other CRN colleagues to cover the event. For once, the weather let us down! Rain had set in as we left Manchester and it followed us home. Even so, we had a station building in which to shelter from the rain and also some delicious food laid on for us to enjoy before the pupils of ‘Spider Class’ at Scout Road academy could join us. Here they are with the artwork they’d contributed to, which is on the theme of ‘Transport through the ages’.

20:30.

I’m now back home in the warm and dry, preparing my kit for the next few days adventures which will be a marked contrast to today. Early tomorrow I head down to London and (hopefully) the South coast for an assignment which will no doubt generate a rolling blog. On Wednesday I’ll be looking at the opposite end of the railway spectrum and checking out work on constructing Hight Speed 2 at Euston. There’s a massive amount of work going on on hundreds of sites along the HS2 route at the moment, and of course Euston is one of the main terminal stations, with the challenge of building complex tunnel approaches without disturbing the existing railway. It should be a very interesting visit…

I’ve a favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this blog, 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 to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site – and right now (because of Covid), us freelances appreciate all the help that we can get to aid us in bouncing back from lockdowns. Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Thank you!

Rolling blog. Go West…

15 Friday Oct 2021

Posted by in Food and drink, Manchester, Railways, Rolling blogs, Travel

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11:00

It’s a beautifully sunny day here in West Yorkshire, so after being cooped up in the office since Monday I’m venturing out and heading West to give myself and the camera an outing and make the most of the autumn light. I’ve also arranged to meet a friend who’s over from Ireland and pick up some exotic food shopping from Manchester’s Chinatown as I can’t get the ingredients in our neck of the woods. I’m hunting Kecap Manis, the Indonesian/Malaysian sweet soy sauce which is a staple of Asian cousine in that part of the world. Anyone who’s been to Indonesia and eaten locally will immediately know what I’m talking about. The little plastic bottles of sweet chili sauce and Kecap Manis are ever-present on the tables of Rumah Makan’s (food stalls) across the archipelago.

Right now I’m sitting on the 10:44 from Halifax to Manchester which is made up of a pair of CAF built 195/0s. It’s busy, but not overly so. Passenger numbers on the railways have really bounced back, especially leisure travel. Commuter and business numbers are still down but climbing. The bounce-back has confounded the sceptics who predicted a much slower recovery. I’ll be interested to see how busy Manchester’s main stations are later today…

Watch out for regular updates and pictures throughout the day…

20:33

Sorry! I take back (with embarrassment) what I said about regular updates. I’m now on my way home from Manchester after a really good day but one that went anything but to plan. I’d intended to head West to get pictures of the Porterbrook leasing Class 769 bi-mode trains and also get a few shots of the new Stadler Class 777s which are on test runs before being introduced into service on Merseyrail. But today was ‘one of those days’. For once I had company on my quest. I met an Irish friend who’s over in the UK for a break but who’d never explored the routes I was looking at, so it seemed like a natural synergy. Having hooked up at Victoria we headed West on a pair of 156s to Wigan with the intent of catching up with the 769s there. It wasn’t to be. On arrival we checked ‘Real ‘Time Trains’ only to find the bi-modes were few and far between and certainly not on any train we were waiting for. There was only one thing for it. Adjourn to the pub and plan..

The Swan and Railway is a great refurbished multi-room pub that’s kept all its original features. It also has a cracking range of real ales. You can find it opposite North Western railway station or two minutes down the hill from Wallgate station.

Admitting defeat when it came to finding Class 769s we moved on via old rattletraps (aka Class 150s) to Burscough Bridge where we stopped for a pint at the Hop Vine, a brew pub that’s well worth a visit. We’d held out a forlorn hope that we might find a 769 going our way, but it wasn’t to be. However, our cunning plan was that we’d arrive at our next destination (Southport) ahead of a test run of one of Merseyrail’s new Stadler built Class 777s. Like most plans that involve test trains, it soon fell apart as the train path wasn’t activated. So, yet again, there was only one thing to do – adjourn to the pub after a lightening tour of the town.

(to be continued)…

Rolling blog: My mobile office for the day is?…

30 Thursday Sep 2021

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

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I’m taking an unplanned trip to London due to a problem with one of my cameras. My trusty Nikon D5 has taken a bit of a battering in recent weeks and has decided that enough is enough – so it’s gone on strike. It refuses to work in any mode other than manual, which is a bit of a bugger. So, it’s off on its holidays to Fixation for a bit of TLC. I’d intended dropping it in soon to have all the rubbers on it replaced. I bought the D5 in August 2016 and to be honest, it’s operated faultlessly for over five years since then, despite the amount of pictures it’s taken and the countries it’s been to. My cameras have a hard life as they’re tools, not toys, which means they don’t retain that much second-hand value – even on a £5,000 bit of kit as they really do look like they’ve been through the wars, even if mechanically and electronically they’re still sound. Fortunately,

I always have a back-up as I keep the camera’s predecessor, in this case, the Nikon D4., which is going to enjoy a brief spot in the limelight again. Of course, there’s never a good time for these things to happen, but tomorrow Dawn and I are taking a week’s holiday, so I’ve no commissions to worry about and can take pictures for pleasure. Hopefully, the D5 will be fighting fit by the time I return and need it again. Now maybe it’s time to think about one last upgrade and plan to acquire the D6 sometime next year…

Right now, I’m working from another mobile office. This time it’s another of LNER’s old Mk4 sets on a Leeds – London diagram. The train’s not as busy as my inbound TPE service from Huddersfield (which was packed) but the loadings are certainly in the profitable margin. I’ve a table bay, so I’m happily set up and working away – as I will be on my return. I won’t be hanging around in London once I’ve dropped off my camera it’ll be a quick turnaround, but that’s life. Catch you later…

17:15.

Having delivered my ‘baby’ to be repaired I’m now heading back North having taken a few shots at Kings Cross with the old D4 just to get used to using it in anger again. I’ve not handled it for years so I’m having to unlearn what I did when I switched to the D5. The ISO control switch was the only major button that moved. On the D4 it’s on the bottom of the backplate. On the D5 it was relocated onto the top plate so that you could press it with your finger and change to ISO with the rear control wheel without having to take your eye away from the viewfinder. It was a far better arrangement. You can still do it with the D4 but you need both hands and it leaves you holding the camera in a cumbersome way. Ah well, it’s only for a while and I’m sure I’ll still get used to it. The D4 sounds different too. The mirror and shutter mechanisms make a much louder ‘clunk’. I could literally tell the two cameras apart just by listening to it! Another thing’s the back screen. I’d forgotten just how much bigger and with better colour rendition the D5 has. I’m going to be doing a lot more histogram-checking again now.

Still, first world problems eh?

18:20.

We’re well on our way up the East Coast Main Line now, the weather’s looking pretty miserable with massive rain-clouds dominating the horizon although I’m warm and dry here. As well as ploughing through emails I’ve managed to download the pictures I took earlier to ensure the D4’s still working perfectly despite having been little more than an office ornament these past few years! Everything’s looking fine, much to my relief.

Rolling blog. Humberside haunting…

21 Tuesday Sep 2021

Posted by in Humberside, Railways, Rolling blogs, Travel

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09:15.

Having sorted out what I need to do today I’m off on another jaunt, this time over to Humberside to get some pictures for a client. I’ll update this blog as I go, right now, it’s time to head to the station and my first train of the day…

10:15.

After a brisk and breathless walk into Halifax I made the 09:53 to Leeds and York by the skin of my teeth. I really should have paid more attention to the clock but got diverted by stuff as usual.

This is another busy train despite it being a three-car Class 195. Here’s how it looks after calling at Bradford Interchange.

10:50.

Oh, bugger…

My connection off Leeds was meant to be LNER’s 10:45 to London Kings Cross but my suspicions were raised as we pulled in and it was nowhere in sight. Sure enough, it had been cancelled due to points failure, leaving my plans completely up the spout. The next service is the 11:15 which is running 20 mins late on its way in due to the same problem.

11:20.

Oh bugger (pt 2)…

The inbound LNER service turned out to be a vintage Class 91 and Mk 4 set short of coach E which has meant it’s quite cosy with two trainloads of people aboard. Needless to say, it’s late leaving as a 10 minute turnaround time was always going to be rather heroic as staff needed to replenish the catering and conduct a crew change.

91111 named ‘For the fallen’ to commemorate all those killed in World War 1.

I’ve given up any idea of trying yo find a seat, so i’ve done a Jeremy Corbyn and sat in a vestibule at the rear of the set by the loco.

We’re finally underway 7 mins late which the Train Manager announced was due to waiting for a path due to congestion. I may have to reassess my plans when we get to Doncaster as these delays are eating into my day…

13:00.

I’m now burbling my way across the flatlands towards the Humberside/Lincs coast aboard a TPE Class 185, one of a pair heading to Cleethorpes. Unlike most of the other trains I’ve travelled on recently this one’s very lightly loaded which is surprising as I thought the seaside was back in vogue. But then – Cleethorpes…

Despite running late I’ve decided to continue as it would be a tragedy to waste the good weather. Even if I can’t get all the pictures I wanted I’ll be able to get some and also recce other locations ready for another day. My stopover at Doncaster was fruitful as it gave me chance to get shots of the redeveloped station forecourt which has been wrested away from the motor car and pedestrianised, making it a much more attractive public space, complete with a water installation and monument to the town’s railway history.

13:55.

Oh, bugger (pt 3).

We’re now sat outside Grimsby Town station waiting (and waiting) to get in, apparently due to signal failure in the area. We’ve had a TPE and East Midlands service pass us heading West, but we remain stuck.

14:30.

Made it – finally, now to take myself and the camera for a walk. As you can see, the weather’s not bad at all…

18:00.

Well, that was an interestin (if sometimes depressing) stroll. After bagging the shots I needed in Cleethorpes I elected to walk back along the coast to Grimsby in order to examine some other photographic locations and explore new territory. The weather was ideal and visibility excellent. Sure enough, I managed to find a couple of new locations for rail shots but it was the tall Italianate tower in Grimsby docks that intrigued. It dominates the skyline and looks far to grand for Grimsby. It’s actually an accumulator tower which was built in 1852 to supply the hydraulic pressure to power dock machinery. I’ll add a link and pctures later.

Trying to get a decent shot of it was a challenge. I spent ages wandering around the old dock area which is a derlict shadow of its former self. To alter the old joke – if Typhoo put the T in Britain, who put the Grim in Grimsby?

The irony? Grimsby is a very Brexity area. Many in the town were conned into believing that if they voted to leave the EU their fishing industry would regain its former glory. It was always a fantasy and now reality is hitting home as the opposite is true. Brexit has been a disaster for UK fishing and that’s before the full impact of restrictions kicks in. In a double irony, a deprived area like Grimsby would have been entitled to EU funding. Will the UK government replace such funding? Will it hell. Grimsby’s yet another victim of the lies that Brexit was built on.

Despite the decline there’s still one smell that pervades the old docks (even if some of it is now a marina) and that’s the smell of fish. It’s omnipresent. The area retains numerous businesses (large and small) that depend on fishing for their existence. Mind you, it’s not just the smell that’s the telltale – it’s the seagulls that gather on their roofs like seawater Vultures.

Despite the decay, I’d have hung around for longer if I’d had time as there’s plenty to photograph if you like architecture (good or bad), urban decay and social commentary. Oh, there’s the railway angle too, although that mirrors the decline of the docks and the English seaside. As it was I ran out of time so I’m now on another quiet TPE service heading back to Doncaster. I could do with at least another day in this neck of the woods but that’s looking unlikely now as plans change. Earlier I was asked if I could double the word count of an article there was ‘no rush’ for – and get it in by Friday at the latest!

19:45.

I’m now on another LNER Azuma heading back to Leeds after a brief interlude at Doncaster. This is quite frustrating as the sky has been absolutely on fire tonight. The sunset has been glorious in colour and intensity but I’ve been in no position to capture a single image. I only hope we get the same tomorrow as I’ll be working from home so can always nip out with the camera.

20:12.

Oh, bugger (pt 5)…

We’ve been stuck outside Leeds station for the past 15 mins without any idea why as the crew have nade no announcements. In frustration, I tweeted LNER. Just as soon as I did (and no doubt by pure coincidence) the Train Manager came on the PA to announce that points failure was blocking platforms 0-6 so a large chunk of the station was unusable. He’d no idea when we might get a path into the station. My connection left at 20:12, so that’s screwed…

20:45.

We finally arrived into Leeds 36 mins late. On the ‘bright’ side, that gave me planty of time to catch the 20:42 to Halifax, especially as it didn’t depart until 20:44. I even had time for a dash to Sainsbury’s to buy some muscle relaxant. I wasn’t going to drink today, but what the hell..

My day’s began and ended the same way, with a points failure. These critical bits of equipment are robust, but when they fail (especially the more crucial switches at busy locations) they really can cause havoc. At hubs like Leeds the ripples can spread right across the network, delaying trains from Scotland to the South-West and all points East – or West. It’s difficult for the lay person to understand just how dependent the railways are on trains running to time and how what can seem sometimes insignificant delays on long-haul services can have such a knock-on effect.

21:10.

We’ve now left Bradford and I’m on the final leg home. Time permitting I’ll round this blog off with a couple of extra pictures later. But first I need a bath! Walking miles carrying a heavy camera bag whilst wearing a black ‘3 Peaks by Rail’ T-shirt in today’s heat wasn’t my brightest idea…

22:40.

Time to call it a day. The bath was lovely – a soak with a glass of red wine just to relax the muscles even more has left me feeling very mellow, but not so mellow that I couldn’t post a last couple of pictures as promised.

It’s not *all* grim in Grimsby. Here’s the 300ft Italianate Dock Tower which was modeled on the tower of Siena’s Palazzo Pubblico in Italy. You can read more about it and why it was built here.

This picture’s of the Victoria Flour Mill and Corporation Bridge. The Grade 2 listed flour mill flourmill, warehouses & offices was built between 1889 & 1906. Constructed out of red brick, it also has blue bricks plus stone & terrracota dressings and welsh slate roofs with stone-coped gables & parapets. It’s magnificent in size and stature.

Corporation Bridge is a Scherzer rolling lift bascule bridge dating from 1925 which was designed by Alfred C. Gardner, docks engineer of the London and North Eastern Railway. You can learn more about it here.

I’ve a favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this blog, 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 to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site – and right now (because of Covid), us freelances appreciate all the help that we can get to aid us in bouncing back from lockdowns. Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Thank you!

Rolling blog. Anglian assignment…

15 Wednesday Sep 2021

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10:15.

After yesterday’s early start today’s assignment has allowed me the luxury of a later start. I’m currently in transit from Halifax to Leeds aboard the 09:52 to York in order to head to the Fens for a job at a station near Ely.

The 09:52’s worked by a 3-car Class 195 and it’s busy with people having a day out to either Leeds or York. Many of the passengers are either holidaymakers, retired (or both).

Admittedly, when we stopped at New Pudsey the throng of younger shoppers who joined us did take the average age down a notch or two!

In contrast to yesterday’s appalling weather we’ve actually got some blue skies and sunshine today which should make my job easier later. I’ve given myself plenty of time to get there so that I can enjoy a stop or two en-route.

11:00.

I didn’t hang around in Leeds as my next train was already in and a short stroll over the footbridge soon deposited me on LNER’s 10:45 Leeds to London Kings Cross which is worked by a 9-car ‘Azuma’. I made a beeline for the rear coach (A) which is normally quieter. It contained a few reservations but I’d no problem finding a free bay of four where I’ve set up the ‘mobile office’ for the trip to Peterborough. Heading down the East coast feels like a novelty as most of my recent journeys South have been down my old stamping ground of the West Coast or even Midland main lines. This journey’s going to be easy, so I’ll be back soon after I’ve cracked on with some work..

12:40.

I’m changing trains again. This time at another old haunt. Back in the late 1980’s when I was living in London I was up here nearly every other weekend, spending time with a friend from my Southport days. The station’s changed dramatically since then, having gained three through platforms, had others extended and lost one South-facing bay which was too short for the new Thameslink fleet.

The island platform to the left is new as is the platform face to the very right which was built up to the Up fast line to London. The footbridges at either end of the platforms have been extended too. Mind you, it’s not just the station that’s changed. The Crescent Rd wagon repair shops are gone, as are many of the sidings as the locomotive fleet’s shrunk. Nene sidings to the South are too small for 12 car trains so new ones have been laid to the North-East. New England yard is deserted but the nearby GBRf depot has grown. I really should do a ‘down memory lane’ blog on the area…

12:50.

I’m now en-route to Ely on a 2-car East Midlands Railway Class 170 cascaded from West Midlands services. Working to Norwich, the trains reasonably loaded and even has the luxury of a trolley service!

I always enjoy a trip across the flatlands of the fens. Maybe it’s because it’s such a contrast to where I live now – high up on the side of the Calder Valley in the Pennines. It’s the ‘big skies’ that catch my attention as well as the acres of vegetable and cereal crops.

13:45.

I’m now taking a break in the Cathedral town of Ely where there’s sunshine occasionally interrupted by cloud. The peace is sometimes interrupted by massive military transport aircraft or pairs of fighter jets lazily circling around the city.

Ely is yet another location that’s changed in recent years due to the introduction of new train fleets. Anglia’s replaced their entire diesel fleet with Stadler built bi-modes. Great Northern have disposed of my old favourites (the BR built Class 365s) in favour of Bombardier built Class 387s, East Midlands now have cascaded Class 170s, leaving Cross-Country with the only original fleet since it took over Stansted Airport services from Central trains back in 2007.

Even so, it’s a bit of a surprise to see ex-Gatwick Express stock in its distinctive red livery working GN services to/from Kings Lynn!

18:30.

I’m heading home again after attending a lovely event at pretty Downham Market station, where various groups celebrated the achievements of the local community in improving and tending the station. The WI have been looking after maintaining the gardens and planters on the platforms whilst pupils from Downham Market Academy and Athena Sith Form College have designed and produced flower themed artwork which has been fixed to platform fencing (pictures later). The station cafe was kept open especially to cater for guests which was also nice touch. The whole event was well patronised with between 30-40 people attending.

Now I’m on a Cross-Country service from Ely heading back to Peterborough then Northwards to home via a couple of changes.

20:32.

Well, that was a bonus! I made a very tight connection at Peterborough that’s slashed my journey home by 30 mins as I no longer had to change twice. Instead I made an LNER service to Skipton that’s delivered me to Leeds. In a double bonus it gave me enough uninterrupted time to get the pictures I’d taken at Downham Market edited and resized all ready to send off tonight when I get home!

Now all I have to do is relax on the final train home, which is yet another Northern Class 195, which is keeping company with this interloper at Leeds …

Tomorrow’s going to be a rather different day. I’m back in London again but this time it’s for pleasure, not business. Dawn and I are attending the National Rail Awards as guests of an old friend, so there’ll be no rolling blog tomorrow – although there might be a few pictures. Right now, it’s time to pack the Tuxedo which hasn’t seen the light of day since the last NRA back in 2019. Thankfully, it still fits!

I’ve a favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this blog, 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 to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site – and right now (because of Covid), us freelances appreciate all the help that we can get to aid us in bouncing back from lockdowns. Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Thank you!

Rolling blog. A day return to London…

14 Tuesday Sep 2021

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

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05:30.

It’s another silly o’ clock start for me. I was already up before my alarm which was set for 04:45. Now I’m putting the finishing touches to my packing before heading down to London.

06:02.

Despite my best efforts to creep around the house I woke Dawn who (bless her) offered to give me a lift to the station, so here I am, waiting for the first Westbound train of the day, the 06:04 to Wigan North Western. In the week since I last caught this service the days have got noticeably shorter. The day was just beginning to break, now it’s much darker.

I joined the front car which already had half a dozen occupants which isn’t bad for this unconsciable time of day! Almost immediately on departure a rather jolly Conductor came around to check tickets and we chatted for a few minutes about the merits and demerits of shift work and early starts. Having posted this on social media a friend tweeted and trumped my early start by saying he was already leaving his front door on the South coast at 04:45 to head into London!

06:40.

We’ve just left Rochdale where we picked up more than a dozen folk as well as depositing the Royal Mail workers I observed last week. My car now has 15 people aboard for the run to Manchester Victoria, not a bad number for the first train. Sunrise has finally arrived although the day’s looking gloomy.

07:10.

I’m on the move again but not via my normal route across the city centre. It’s said that a change is as good as a rest, so I hung around at Victoria long enough to grab a few pictures, observe passenger numbers (continuing to build) and waited for the train that was following mine across the Pennines in the shape of a Leeds – Chester service which I’m catching as far as Warrington Bank Quay. Reliability of this service can be patchy so I hedged my bets by waiting at Manchester in order to keep my options open. As it is, it’s on time. This route’s normally worked by Class 195s so it’s a comfortable alternative option with cross platform interchange at Warrington. Admittedly, with getting a lift earlier and not schlepping across Manchester on foot my daily step count is less than stellar so far, but I’m hoping to make that up later.

08:50.

The weather in Warrington was just as grey as the rest of my travels so far today – only wetter! Rain had set in which didn’t make a great backdrop for the few pictures I managed to take. The only highlight was observing a Northbound charter train from Chester to Carlisle via the Settle and Carlisle line run by West Coast railways. Whilst ‘standard’ seats were fairly quiet, Premier Dining seemed to be near full. Top and tailed by another pair of Class 47s, the train made a smoky departure North.

Shortly afterwards my service arrived in the shape of the 08:00 from Preston to London Euston. Warrington Bank Quay is its last stop. From here it runs fast to London, a distance of 182 miles, 11 chains. Capacity-busting, long- distance, non-stop services like these will transfer to High Speed 2 when it opens, freeing paths on existing lines for more regional, local and commuter services as well as freight – all the real winners from HS2.

Out of curiosity I walked through Standard just to see how many people were aboard. I counted 72 people, not a huge amount although this is a premium (full price ticket) service, so perhaps understandable. Now, if only we could persuade the Dept of Transport and the Treasury to stop trying to use the farebox as a cash-cow and start charging realistic ticket prices we could soon see this train full again.

09:10.

We’re now going ‘full tilt’ (if you’ll pardon the pun) down the Trent Valley with rain streaming along the windows as the weather hasn’t improved one jot. The sky is a uniform battleship grey with no sign of any breaks. Looks like I’m just going to have to get used to getting wet…

10:00.

We’ve just passed Harrow and Wealdstone in North London where the weather’s still grey and miserable, but the rain’s stopped. My event’s not far away between 11:00 -13:00. Will my luck hold?

17:00.

Well, that was a busy few hours. The job I couldn’t talk about was the official opening of HS2’s new 30-acre logistics hub near Willesden Junction on the site of the former Willesden Euroterminal on the West side of the West Coast Main Line. Some of the event took place in the pouring rain when one of GB Railfreight’s Class 66s (66796) imported from Europe was named ‘The Green Progressor’, by a young HS2 fan. 15 year old Jermaine Allen from Leeds and HS2 CEO Mark Thurston.

Jermaine (@Jermain37354962 on Twitter) has been a supporter of the project since he was 5. This bright and personable young man is also a knowledgeable ambassador for the project. What Jermaine didn’t know was that there was a second locomotive to be named today – and that second one (GBRF Class 08 shunter 08703) was named after him! It was hidden behind the Class 66 and rolled out after the first naming…
L-R, Karen (Jermaine’s Mum), Jermaine. HS2 CEO Mark Thurston, Nigel (Jermaine’s Dad) and James Richardson, Managing Director, SCS JV.

Here’s the two locos in full.

After the naming we were treated to a tour of the control tower and given a briefing on of how the site is the hub for processing spoil from the 26 miles of London tunnelling undertaken by several tunnel boring machines and removing it to disposal sites at Barrington (Cambs) and Rugby (Warks) as well as being a future arrival site for tunnel segments that will be manufactured in Kent. The control centre’s a fascinating place because of the sheer amount of data it collects and collates on HS2 activity on the sites the SCS joint venture works on around London. As well as managing train movements in and out it also controls HGV and other road vehicle traffic. The data helps to streamline the activities to make them more efficient. This has a threefold impact. On costs, carbon and impact on the communities around the worksites. The data is displayed on two massive boards in the centre of one of the rooms. This one deals with rail traffic.

In another room were given the run-down on two other monitoring systems, but I won’t go into too much detail about them. One controls security around the site and monitors protester activity (what’s left of it) whilst the other looks at staff training and competencies and a whole range of statistics that help the JV and HS2 Ltd to assess that they’re hitting various targets and commitments. There’s also a system that monitors all HGV and LGV vehicles to ensure that they stick to agreed routes and don’t ‘stray’ plus a new system that’s being developed called ‘mudcam’. This camera system ensures that mud on the entrances/exits to HS2 compounds is monitored and dealt with as quickly and efficiently as possible.

Loading spoil from the Old Oak Common station construction site. Currently, this is being moved by road and stored in the background before being loaded onto the train for movement to Barrington. Soon, the spoil will be moved between the Old Oak and Willesden sites by an overhead conveyor. I’ll be making another visit to Willesden hub once this is in operation. I’ll write that up as a separate blog.

17:00

Right now I’m back on yet another Pendolino heading Northwards towards home. The brief dry spell that enabled me to get decent pictures of the loco’s soon vanished and I’m back in the gloom and murk as we speed North. In fact, the rain seems to be getting heavier again as I pass through Staffs. There’s certainly no incentive to hang around with the camera anywhere, that’s for sure…

20:33.

Home again! The weather defeated me and I’ve another busy day tomorrow so apart from getting a few shots of the dereliction and decay at Crewe station I only stayed long enough to change trains and head into Manchester before performing my usual traverse of the city centre from Piccadilly to Victoria to come home in order to have a quiet evening picture editing.

Tomorrow I’m off on a very different job compared to today. I’m heading to Norfolk with more of a Community Rail hat on to look at a project involving young artists and the redevelopment of a local station, so watch out for tomorrow’s rolling blog to see how I get on. Thankfully, the weather prospects are far better than what we had today so I’m hoping to stay dry…

I’ve a favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this blog, 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 to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site – and right now (because of Covid), us freelances appreciate all the help that we can get to aid us in bouncing back from lockdowns. Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Thank you!

Rolling blog. 3 Peaks by rail – day 2.

10 Friday Sep 2021

Posted by in 3 peaks by rail, Railways, Rolling blogs, The Railway Children, Travel

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03.55.

Morning folks. The teams are on their way down from Snowdon and en-route to Bangor whilst the train is on its way from Holyhead where it was stabled overnight. We’re due in at 04:20 and the coaches carrying the teams should arrive shortly afterwards.

We’ve heard from staff with the teams that fog was a real issue on Snowdon and that’s delayed some of the climbers. We’re hoping to delay the trains departure from Bangor in order to ensure we can collect everyone. The problem is we’re occupying the only Westbound platform. We’re due to leave at 04:38 and the first service train from Holyhead is due to arrive at 04:55. To add to the fun, it’s started raining!

05:10.

Due to the wet and slippy conditions on Snowdon the coaches bringing everyone back from were late and there were a few anxious moments as we waited and clock-watched. The first arrived, then there was a gap before the other three turned up. A rapid unloading ensued with volunteers shepherding the tired walkers onto the train as quickly as possible. Even so, we left 9 minutes late but the main thing was we didn’t get in the way of the service train. Now we’re en-route to Scafell.

Walkers arrive back at Bangor in typical Snowdonia weather!
Time to sleep before the next challenge.
Whilst the walkers sleep, the onboard crew are busy. One group are busy making sandwiches for the packed lunches people will take with them on to Scafell.
Another team are assembling the packed lunches, adding fruit and other goodies to go with the sandwiches.

06:00.

It’s time for some sleep as I’ll be joining the walkers climbing Scafell later today…

08:00. I managed an hours sleep and now everyone’s up and being fed and watered. The bacon roll delivery was especially well received.

Sadly, the weather’s not the best we’ve ever had. There’s low mist and cloud, with rain forecast.

09:00.

We’re on lil’ Ratty..

22:00.

Sorry for the gap in blogging but the area around Wasdale and Scafell is a notorious phone blackspot. One of our number discovered that you could only get phone reception if you stood on a metal cattle-grid!

Today’s been both amazing and frustrating at the same time. Unlike previous years it wasn’t possible for me to get ahead of the teams ascending Scafell in order to get pictures of them doing so. Instead I joined the others from the Railway Children to walk the 8 miles across country from Dalegarth to the start of the climb up Scafell. It was an enjoyable walk despite the misty rain we encountered at the top and the boggy conditions underfoot.

The vast majority of teams did brilliantly on Scafell and the minibus and coach operation that got us back to Ravenglass worked really well (I’ll elaborate later when I’ve downloaded the pictures). Our evening meal was served by the cafe on the narrow gauge railway station. They served a humongous Baked potato and Chilli combo that would’ve filled almost any walker.

Sadly, it was after that things started to go a bit ”Pete Tong’. We were informed that the lead Class 37 on our train had failed at Barrow due to a defective starter motor. This meant shunting the train to detach is. The delays this (and another incident) incurred meant that our 19:30 departure became a 20:40 departure. As all the walkers were in the two pubs the first announcement was received with cheers!

Now we’re on our way to Fort William with some real pressures on our timetable. We have two fixed times, the amont it takes to climb and descend from Ben Nevis and the time our train has to leave Fort William to make our connections and get everyone home.

But, right now the most impoertant thing is – sleep. I’ll blog more about our adventures in the morning

Rolling blog. A game of two halves…

09 Thursday Sep 2021

Posted by in 3 peaks by rail, Birmingham, Infrarail, Photography, Rolling blogs, The Railway Children

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09:00.

I’m enjoying a slower start to today than the past couple in order to get some sleep in the bank as I’m going to need it over the next few days. I had a lie-in until 07:00 today – luxury! Now I’m enjoying topping up my caffeine levels whilst repacking all the kit need for for Infrarail plus all the stuff I’ve brought with me for the next few days volunteering for the Railway Children and their epic ‘3 Peaks by Rail’ challenge which starts this evening. But first, I’m heading back the NEC and Infrarail for a last session of photography. Feel free to keep popping back during the day to see how things unfold…

11:15.

It’s much quieter here at Infrarail today. The Seminars all finish before lunch so I’m planning to make a break for it by then.

13:30.

Job done! The final speakers have finished and all the pictures are ‘in the can’ as it were. The irony? I’ve spent the best part of two and a half days stuck indoors whilst the sun’s been beating down on us and the place has been red-hot. As soon as I pack up and leave to get the train to Crewe the heavens have opened and it’s raining cats and dogs!

Still, here’s a couple of pictures from Infrarail taken just before I left…

I’ll try and catch up with some blogging on my way up to Crewe and fill out some more details of the final day of Infrarail.

15:00.

I’ve finally left Birmingham to make my way (in fits and starts) to Crewe to join the rest of the Railway Children volunteers, staff and entrants to this years 3 Peaks by rail. Thankfully, the torrential rain we had earlier has passed. Now the skies are a multitude of shades of grey with the odd snatch of blue. It’s also very humid. I must admit it was great to be back at Infrarail even if it was hard work. Covering three seminar theatres spread over two halls plus the traipsing around after politicians and VIPs certainly kept me fit! Even so, seeing so many familiar faces again after such a long gap made it all worthwhile. Then there’s the new contacts and offers of work which you can only get face to face. Zoom and the interweb will never be a substitute for that.

15:35.

After a brief stop at Wolverhampton to change trains and grab a couple of pictures I’m on the move again, this time on another West Midlands Class 350. It’s hard to keep track of this fleet as not only do they have three sub-classes, they’re also a mix of refurbished and refurbished sets. The first train had tables and power sockets, this one (350235) doesn’t. Outside there’s some impressively moody and thunderous looking skies which could make for some great pictures if only I was in the right place!

20:00.

We’re on our way! Everyone came together in Crewe without any major difficulties. The teams assembled, registered and received their briefings, the volunteers stocked up the train (a job and a half) and then – we were off. Here’s everyone ready and raring to go.

For the enthusiasts out there, the train’s made up of LSL Mk3 coaches and triple headed by two Class 37s and a Class 47.

21:20.

We’ve just left Llandudno Junction after a 50 minute layover which gave the on-board team the chance to serve everyone with a hot meal. Now we’re heading for Bangor where the walkers will transfer to coaches for the trip to the base of Snowdon.

22:10.

We’ve deposited the teams, the guides and some RC staff and volunteers at Bangor where they’re being bussed to the base of Snowdon. Before they left they were provided with plenty of fresh fruit and other snacks to makes sure they weren’t short of energy.

Meanwhile, the train and the onboard crew are heading to Holyhead where the train will be serviced overnight and prepared for picking up the walkers when it returns to Bangor at 04:21.

23:15.

Whilst the teams climb Snowdon the train and its crew are at Holyhead where they’ve been busy unpacking and storing all the food and drink that was loaded aboard at Crewe. Meanwhile, chef Nick Hebborn and Alison are rustling up a meal of sausage stew on a bed of rice for them in one of the buffet cars. We don’t have a kitchen car this year, so facilities are limited.

Rolling blog. Infrarail day 2…

08 Wednesday Sep 2021

Posted by in Birmingham, Infrarail, Photography, Railways, Rolling blogs

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07:45.

Suitably rested after a good night’s sleep here in Birmingham I’m ready for day 2 of Infrarail. As there’s not so many keynote speakers today the pace should be a little more relaxed, which will give me time to blog through the event and also get to listen to some of the seminars. One I’m particularly interested in is a bit niche (hey, I’m at a rail event, isn’t it all ‘niche’?) as it’s about composite masts for greener electrification projects, given by Noel Dolphin of Furrer+Frey. The railways have picked up the ‘green’ ball and are running with it. Already the greenest form of land travel, rail is determined to stay that way, so is constantly looking at ways of doing so. Of course, electrification’s a big part of that and it’s the area where the UK (thanks to Government policies) lags way behind Europe. We have the lowest electrified route miles, so anything that will help keep costs down and aid decarbonisation is of value.

Right, I’d better finish packing my kit and head off to the NEC. I’ll update this blog en-route…

08:30.

Much as I like Birmingham I have to admit the walk from my hotel to the station was rather depressin due to the sheer amount of rubbish and litter I encountered en-route. The area by the car parks adjacent to the O2 arena is an utter shit-tip. Presumably a lot of it is discarded by people queuing to get into the venue like the ones I passed last night. Civic pride seems to be a thing of the past.

I’m now on Avanti West Coast’s 08:30 to Euston which will take me back to the NEC. New St station was busy, but it’s clear the recovery us still in progress. My train’s busy but there was no problem finding a seat in the rear of the set.

As we pulled out of Birmingham we passed the huge HS2 construction site at Curzon St, the site of the line’s cuty terminus. Work’s really progressed since my last visit so if I have time when I finish today I’ll pop by to get a few shots. Besides, the weather’s far too good to stay cooped up inside for longer than I have to!

13:45.

I’ve finally had chance to stop and sit down for five minutes and blog. So much for thinking today would be quiet, Infrarail’s been far busier today than yesterday. There’s a lot more visitors so I’m glad I arrived early and gad chance to check out some of the stands before they became busy. There’s some interesting stuff to be seen. I could do with one of these for a start. It’s an exoskeleton that’s designed to take the strain off older workers! Sadly, it won’t work with the camera bag…

21:30.

The end of another busy day, far busier than I expected but then not only were the crowds greater but I ended up covering three separate seminar stands. Not that I’m complaining as I got to hear some really interesting discussions as well as amass a huge amount of library shots and network with lots of people that I haven’t seen for ages. I’m not going to blog at length about the day, instead I’ll add a few more pictures and hope that tomorrow I can pause for breath long enough to give an overview of the show. What was great about the end of day 2 was the fact their were two drinks receptions. One on the RailBusinessDaily stand which promoted the activities of the Railway Children charity and another on the Alstom stand. Both allowed us to talk about more than just the day jobs and relax a bit more.

Network Rail allowed a lot of apprentices to attend the event. Here’s on of a cohort competing to see just how much weight (and bottles of water) he can balance on the sandcastle he’s made. A fun game with a serious message…

One of today’s important guests and keynote speaker was Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi MP, the Shadow Transport Minister, who spent a lot of time afterwards touring the event and talking to companies involved in the railway supply chain. Here he is delivering his keynote address.

I’ll try and add a few more pictures tomorrow if I get a break at the event. That said, I have to leave just after lunchtime in order to make my way to Crewe to join the rest of the volunteers working the Railway Children’s ‘3 Peaks by Rail’ marathon fundraiser. No doubt I’ll be blogging from the trip as long as the phone reception holds. If not, you’ll be able to read all about it in some rail publications soon….

I’ve a favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this blog, 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 to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site – and right now (because of Covid), us freelances appreciate all the help that we can get to aid us in bouncing back from lockdowns. Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Thank you!