Tag Archives: Scotland

23rd September picture of the day…

23 Wednesday Sep 2020

Posted by in History, Musings, Picture of the day, RAIL magazine, Scotland, Travel

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The weather’s been stereotypically grim up North, with low cloud, wind and rain most of the day, so the Calder Valley – well, what you can see of it – hasn’t been at its best. My day’s been spent type-swiping, as an old girlfriend once described her secretarial duties! I’ve been busy writing up part 1 of my Railrover trilogy and (as usual) the problem isn’t what to write – it’s what to leave out. 12,000 words over 3 articles souns a lot until you realise that’s only 4,000 words per article and one of them is three days worth of travelling the country. To be honest I could easily fill a book.

Whilst I’ve been ‘type-swiping’ (copyright Mary Jones!) I’ve been bouyed by the reaction to an article that’s hit the bookstands today. I’d written an eight page piece on the Tay bridge disaster and Sir Thomas Bouch (the man who designed the structure) for RAIL magazine a couple of months ago. It was a complex article as it required a lot of technical research to tell a story many people weren’t aware of. So, when you see reactions like this from an expert in their field it makes you feel it was worth the effort…

Hopefully people will find my travels around the UK’s rail network as interesting!

All this brings me neatly to the picture of the day – which was used to illustrate my Tay Bridge article. This was taken on the 29th May 2019. It shows the new bridge with the piers of Bouch’s ill-fated structure in front.

It’s a fascinating story as this was (thankfully) the only major railway accident in which their were no survivors. You can read the full story in the latest copy of RAIL magazine which is on sale today (you can buy electronic copies by the way…)

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Rail Rover day 2 – and picture of the day…

08 Tuesday Sep 2020

Posted by in Picture of the day, Railways, Scotland, Travel

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Today’s been a fascinating one that’s taken me across a lot of lowland Scotland, from Kilmarnock to Girvan, to Stranraer, to Ayr and on to Glasgow before heading across to Edinburgh where I had a short time meeting up with an old friend. Times being what they are it’s not as if the pair of us could even go for a pint somewhere. Instead we stood chatting on the footbridge at Edinburgh Waverley station whilst putting the world to rights and watching the world go by. Not that much of the world was going by, well, not in comparison to pre Covid days. In fact, the station was still quiet – but then Scotland’s been stricter than England when it comes to trying to control Covid.

You’ll be able to read about all my adventures in future editions of RAIL magazine, but I can spill a couple of stories. If you ever need to socially Isolate, I know the perfect place, which is the picture of the day – and I never thought I’d end up saying that!…

Stranraer Harbour station. One slight problem – the last ferry left in 2011 and the stations nowhere near the town…

Sadly, I’ve had to say goodbye to Scotland as I’ve the whole of the country to criss-cross in the next five days. I’d loved to have stayed longer, but here’s where I am tonight. The railways built some brilliant station hotels. Some of them (including one I visited earlier today) have fallen on hard times. Mine’s come back from that era…

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Rolling blog: 3 peaks by rail, day 3.

15 Saturday Jun 2019

Posted by in Charities, Railways, Rolling blogs, Scotland, The Railway Children, Uncategorized

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03:48.

Here’s a bleary eyed good morning from the West Highlands! After a fitful night’s sleep we were woken up by the train crew volunteers who served tea, coffee and croissants along with hot bacon rolls. We’re due into Fort William at 04:19, when the fun begins. I’ll keep you posted…

05:33.

All the teams are on the mountain, the base camp is established and the banners and finishing line is being set up. Here’s some scenes at departure.

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The Rail Delivery Group team in good spirits as they begin their climb. From L-R Robert Nisbet, Jac Starr, Naomi Rial and Paul Plummer

The weather’s wet but the rain’s light and it’s forecast to cease later on. Now it’s just a question of waiting for anyone returning injured until the first teams make it back, which is normally around 10:00. That’s when my work starts as we get individual team photos one they’ve crossed the finish line, registered their time & checked in their kit.Here’s how the mountain looks right now.

Rather than hang around and be midge bait I’m going to walk into Fort William for a few hours.

07:07.

I’m now sat at Fort William station (which has just opened), using their free wifi to update the blog after having had a wander around the town. It’s not exactly the most exciting place at the best of times, but at 06:30 it’s deserted. I did find one thing of interest. A statue dedicated to the name whom, in 1911 drove a model-T Ford to the top of Ben Nevis!

Once the station opened I had chance for a mooch around with the camera and caught one of the two Class 37s that are hauling our 3 peaks train. As there’s too many coaches to fit on the platform one of the loco’s is detached to create a bit of extra space.

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07:52.

I’ve moved on to the local McDonalds, which is where we take the walking wounded. There’s four of them from various teams, all somewhat dispirited, but not wanting to spoil their team-mates chance of succeeding. I’m sipping a much-needed caffeine (I got very little sleep last night) whilst I download a few more pictures to the blog. My time will be cut short as I’ve just had a call from Katie Mason, the Railway Children’s events organiser. The first team is expected down off the mountain by 09:30, so I need to head back in an hour.

09:56.

The first team (from DRS) crossed the finish line at 09:26.

19:54.

Sorry for the gap in blogging, but it’s been a day full of challenges for us all – not least physical one of the teams who’ve climbed the three peaks, but also the mental ones of the folk who’ve organised all the logistics. Either way, everyone’s knackered due to the level of commitment- and the lack of sleep!

We’ve had a fantastic day and we’ve got everyone off the mountain off safe – and raises a huge amount of money for the Railway Children. The different skill groups involved in such a complex event have worked brilliantly – and not for the first time

Rolling blog: wet, wet, wet!

30 Thursday May 2019

Posted by in Railways, Rolling blogs, Scotland, Scotrail

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07:10.

It’s a damp start here in Glasgow this morning. I’m sitting in my hotel room with a coffee, watching the TV weather forecast which really isn’t working in my favour today. If they’re right, it’s going to be raining all day here in this neck of the woods, which is going to cramp my photographic style as it’s not quite the impression of Scotland my client wants! Still, there are some things that I can do, but it might be an early finish to head home today. We shall see. My plans are fluid, so let’s see what happens.

07:44.

I didn’t go for the full Scottish breakfast this morning, I don’t think my arteries would take it two days in a row, although I did enjoy the haggis and scrambled eggs served by a woman who bore a striking resemblance (in face and voice) to ‘Mrs Brown’ from ‘Mrs Brown’s boys’. Now it’s time to head off and se what the day brings.

08:55.

It’s a busy time at Glasgow Central, with trains old and new filling every platform as they bring rush hour commuters into the heart of the city.

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Here’s a real mixture of trains. The old BR built Class 318s and Class 314s (many of which have already been withdrawn) and the brand new Hitachi Class 385s which have started working into Central following the timetable change.

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14:17.

It’s been a busy day – hence the lack of updates, but now I’m sat on LNER’s 14:00 Edinburgh – Kings Cross, heading back across the border as the rain really did settle in on the Scottish capital. When I first left Glasgow things were looking up. I caught one of the new Hitachi trains up to Stirling, where the weather was cloudy but dry. Stirling’s a station that’s changed hugely in the past couple of years. Most of the old semaphore signals have disappeared and replaced by modern LED ‘colour light’ signals. The whole station is now ‘under the wires’ as electrification’s spread upwards from Edinburgh and Glasgow to Dunblane and Alloa as part of the ‘EGIP’ programme. A ‘Caledonian Sleeper’ lounge has been added too, taking over formerly empty buildings on platform 2. The rebuilding is still ongoing as the old lattice footbridge across platforms 8-9 had to be removed so that the piers it sat on could be lengthened and the bridge raised to allow the wires to pass safely underneath. It’s been dropped back into place now but work continues to make it fit for the future by adding glass sides and accessible to all by adding a new lift tower.

The arrival of the wires has brought the new Class 385 EMU’s to the line as well as Scotrail HST’s working in four car formations, Sadly, all the ones I saw were un-refurbished sets in a variety of versions of First group, GWR and Scotrail liveries.

Having got the shots I needed I caught another Class 385 through to Edinburgh, another station that’s undergone major changes. I swear that the place grows another platform every time I visit! Since the last time I was here the new (full length) East facing bays numbered 5 and 6 have opened. These allow LNER to park a full length Mk4 set without clogging up any of the six through platforms. A lot of clutter’s also been removed from the area around platform 5, making that part of the station feel remarkably spacious, as you can see from this picture.

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16:09.

After a brief but photograpically unproductive stop in Newcastle I’m heading South again on the LNER service from Edinburgh that was following my earlier one. The wet and miserable weather’s finally abated. We’ve enjoyed some rays of sunshine and broken blue skies now that the low heavy cloud’s finally in disarray.

17:24.

I’m now on my way from York towards Leeds after changing trains and enjoying another brief (and more fruitful) photographic stop. The weather’s improved too, the winds dropped and the mercury’s really climbed up the thermometer. It’s positively balmy compared to Edinburgh. I’m content as I’ve managed to secure a table bay on a TPE service as far as Leeds, which is akin to winning the lottery!

19:00.

It’s the final countdown now. I’m on a Leeds – Chester train that’s just pulling into Bradford Interchange, which is rather convenient as I had a picture request for this new service earlier today!

Rolling blog: North of the border…

29 Wednesday May 2019

Posted by in I love my job, Railways, Rolling blogs, Scotland, Scotrail, Travel

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06:45.It’s a beautiful morning here in Glasgow, a real contrast to the stormy weather I saw yesterday, although I’m not sure how long it will last. I’m about to head down for a quick breakfast before heading to Glasgow Queen St and my first train of the day. I’ll be catching the 08:00 to meet up with Pip Dunn in Falkirk. We’ll be heading to Edinburgh where we’ll be starting our Scottish train tests. I’ll update this blog throughout the day as we go…I rarely eat anything like this, so a full Scottish breakfast at my hotel is a treat. I justify it on the grounds that I’ll soon burn it off with the amount of walking I’ll be doing today!

07:59.Having walked to Charing Cross and caught a train to Queen St I had time to look around and grab a few pictures before catching the train I’m on now (the 08:00 to Edinburgh). Times have certainly changed here. Not only is the station undergoing another huge rebuild, the fleets using it have changed too.

I still can’t get used to seeing 4-car High Speed Trains! This is one of the unrefurbished sets. The power cars carry Scotrail branding but the coaches are still in the old First group ‘dynamic lines’ livery. Another noticeable difference at Queen St is how many services are operated by the Hitachi built Class 385s, including the recently electrified line to Alloa

09:33.

Having met up with Pip, we’re now on one of Scotrail’s refurbished HST sets. The 09:28 Edinburgh to Aberdeen. You’ll be able to read the full train tests in future editions of RAIL magazine. Here’s a couple of pictures for now.

10:05.

I’ve been kept busy photographing all the changes and features of the train whilst Pip’s been busy with his tape measure and notepad. Now I can relax for a bit and enjoy watching the beautiful Fife countryside flash past the window for a while.

11:01.

We only went as far North as Dundee, the town on the Tay that’s transforming itself. The waterfront around the station (and the station itself) are unrecognisable from just a few years ago. It also gives fantastic views of the famous Tay Bridge.

From here we picked up an unrefurbished HST to carry us to Stirling, another station that’s been transformed by electrifying the lines through the city to Dunblane and Alloa. Unfortunately we left the sunshine behind in Dundee. Perthshire’s covered in thick cloud and showers.

13:28.

We’ve been busy! After revamping from our HST in a soggy Sterling we caught up with another of our targets in the form of Hitachi’s new Class 385 electric trains. A quick trip to Dunblane and a return to Glasgow Queen St provided us with all the pictures, data and measurements we needed. We then walked through the rain to Glasgow Central, hoping to catch a Siemens built Class 380 over to Edinburgh. Disappointed, we found out that it was another Hitachi set, so we quickly changed plans and leapt on a 380 working the branch to Gourock, which us where we’re heading for now!

22:55

Sorry for the gaps in the blog but it’s been a very hectic day. After abandoning this train at Port Glasgow we made our way back to Glasgow, then crossed between Central and Queen St to head back out to Edinburgh for a final burst of pictures and note-taking. Pip headed off to prepare for another job whilst I had time to catch up with an old friend an colleague from RAIL days – Phil Haigh. After which I shuttled back to Glasgow to get a few more pictures, then bumped into these Gentlemen outside Central station. With all the political shit that’s going on right now and the disturbing rise in racism and intolerance it was an absolute pleasure to encounter these three guys from the local Guru Nanak Sikh temple who were out in the rain, distributing food to homeless people.

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OK, I’m off to bed. It’s going to be another long day tomorrow and a busy few days after that. G’night!

Rolling blog: the Talgo tango…

09 Tuesday Oct 2018

Posted by in I love my job, Railways, Rolling blogs, Scotland, Talgo, Travel, Wales

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It’s going to be a looong couple of days that will take in Wales, England and Scotland, but I’m here in Cardiff ready for the first press conference where Spanish train builder Talgo are ready to announce the shortlisted sites for the factory they intend to build here in the UK. I’ll be blogging throughout the day, so stay tuned.

Here’s the view from the room in the St David’s hotel where we’re holding the event.

The shortlisted site in Wales is at Mostyn, a port on the North Wales coast.

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From L-R, Jim o’ Toole, MD of Mostyn port. Jon Veitch, UK MD, Talgo and Carlos de Palacio, President of Talgo

You can read more about what we’re up to in this article on the RAIL website. Here’s Rail’s Richard Clinnick having an exclusive interview with Jon Veitch.

11:34

Phew! We’re all packed up and the 5 of us are off to the second event of the day. We’re travelling on a Cross-country service to Birmingham, where the English part of the shortlist will be announced. These are sites at Chesterfield, St Helens and Leeds

Whilst we’ve been travelling, the news has broken that two sites in Scotland have been shortlisted, these are Longannet and Hunterston.

13:50.

We’re ready to rock and roll in Birmingham now. The stage has been set..

Oh, and the views out of the windows are amazing!

Now we’re waiting for the rest of the guests to arrive. Here’s material produced by two of the potential English sites. St Helens and Chesterfield.

17:10.

The Birmingham event was very well received. Here’s a couple of pictures.

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Carlos de Palacio, President of Talgo, speaking in Birmingham

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L-R Sir Simon Hughes, Talgo Strategic UK Advisor, Jon Veitch, UK MD, Talgo and Carlos de Palacio, President of Talgo

19:23.

We’re now over the border and heading for Edinburgh aboard a Virgin Pendolino. It’s been a fascinating day but we’re all looking forward to getting to our hotel. Tomorrow the fun and games starts again with a series of radio interviews before the main event.

Because of this – and for the sake of continuity I’m going to roll this blog over into tomorrow. Right now I’m going to enjoy a glass of wine and catch up with the world..

Meanwhile, next to me, Carlos, Simon and Jon are doing the same and chatting about the day.

Day 2

10:00

We’re all set up and ready for the Scottish event which is being held in a hotel with a fabulous view. I took this from the balcony of my room this morning!

Here’s the event set up to go. As well as being the Talgo photographer I’ve been mucking in to do the stage setting. Here’s one I made earlier…

11:57

Phew! Event over!

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It’s been a very hectic few days but also hugely enjoyable. I’ve learned a lot about Talgo and I’m looking forward to visiting their Spanish factories in the future. Right now I’m looking forward to a few days at home in order to catch up with some writing and picture editing.

Pausing for breath – but only momentarily…

07 Sunday Oct 2018

Posted by in ACoRP, Railways, Scotland, Travel

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After a fantastic few days up in Scotland at the ACoRP awards and some of the wonderful events that Scotrail (and Abellio) arranged for us I’m back at home for a night. The awards was a brilliant showcase for community rail that attracted the biggest audience since its inception in 2005 with over 470 folk attending. I’ll blog about it in greater detail soon, but for now, here’s a few pictures from the night.

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The tables are set, ready for the 470 guests to arrive…

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Just some of the people who won awards that night…

I’m now back in the bosom of West Yorkshire – but not for long! Whilst I was in Scotland I was commissioned for a new project that will see me on the road again tomorrow. I’ve got to be in Cardiff tomorrow evening ready for an event on Tuesday morning. After that, we head up to Birmingham, then I’m back in Glasgow before finally getting home on Wednesday. I’ll flesh out more detail later. In the meantime, here’s a few other shots from Scotland after a trip out to Gourock and the ferry across to Kilcreggan.

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Rolling blog: the fun begins…

03 Wednesday Oct 2018

Posted by in ACoRP, Railways, Rolling blogs, Scotland, Travel

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I’m currently sat on a Pendolino heading for Glasgow in readiness for tomorrow’s annual ACoRP awards. We’ve got a hectic programme of events over the next few days which have been laid on by our friends at Scotrail and Transport Scotland. First up is a civic reception at Glasgow city chambers this evening. Tomorrow we’re on one of the fabulous Glasgow Central station tours (a real must if you’re ever in the city) before the main event – the awards ceremony itself.

On Friday we’re off for a trip on the Borders railway, so you’ll be seeing plenty of pictures in the next few days. Here’s the first one, taken when we changed trains at Preston – I wasn’t expecting this!

‘Black 5’ 44871 was one of the locomotives used to haul the last steam service on British Railways, the Fifteen Guinea Special on 11th August 1968. It was withdrawn from service the following day.

14:48.

Well, we’ve arrived in Glasgow and picked up our Scotrail passes, goody bags and guides.

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16:20

Plans have changed slightly due to a technical issue, so I’ve had some free time and chance to wander down to Glasgow Queen St station. Like many in the UK. it’s undergoing extensive modernisation. Now it’s also the place to find the latest Scotrail EMU’s, Hitachi’s Class 385s. Here’s a couple of shots.

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This evening we went on to a civic reception hosted by the Deputy Lord Provost of Glasgow, Bailie Philip Braat, who welcomed us to the city. This was held at the magnificent Glasgow City chambers. Here’s a few photos from the event.

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From L-R James Ledgerwood, Head of Economic & Community Development at Scotrail, Deputy Lord Provost of Glasgow, Bailie Philip Braat and Brian Barnsley, Deputy Chief Exec of ACoRP at the reception.

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The end of the line beckons for Scotrail’s Class 314 EMUs

26 Wednesday Sep 2018

Posted by in Class 314s, Rail Moderinsation, Railways, Scotland, Scotrail

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*Blog updated on 12th December 2019*.

This week Scotrail have announced the withdrawal of three of their fleet of sixteen BR built Class 314 3-car EMUs that have been a familiar sight around Glasgow for the past 38 years, 314207, 314212 and 314213 are now off-lease and will be returned to their ROSCO for disposal. The rest of the Class will follow as soon as they can be released by the arrival of more Hitachi Class 385 EMUs, which will allow other vehicles to be cascaded

The 314s were constructed at York in 1979-80 to the same design as the earlier Class 313s and 315s plus the 750v 3rd rail Class 507s and 508s. What was unique is that unlike the others, they have a top speed of 70mph rather than 75. Built with aluminium bodies and roofs on a steel underframes they were a step change from earlier BR design EMUs. The design followed on from the experimental PEP units of the 1970s. Here’s a look back at each member of the class and some of the places they visited.

DG108144. 314201. Mount Florida. 29.3.12.

On the 29th March 2012 the first of the class approaches Mount Florida station on the Cathcart circle in South Glasgow

DG21205. 314202. Cathcart. 8.4.09.

Back on the 8th April 2009 314202 calls at Cathcart, heading anti-clockwise on the circle.

DG108141. 314203. Mount Florida. 29.3.12.

On the 29th March 2012 314203 in the new Saltire livery leaves Mount Florida with a service to Neilston. This unit’s unusual in that the lead car was rebuilt from a Class 507 vehicle (no 64426) in 1996 as the original 64588 was scrapped after being written off in the Newton rail crash of 1991.

DG150985. 314204. Paisley Canal. 14.6.13.

14th June 2013. 314204 stands at the end of the Paisley Canal branch with a service to Glasgow Central.

DG147891. 314205. Glasgow Central. 15.5.13.

It’s the 15th May 2013 ad 314205 waits to leave the magnificent Glasgow Central station with a Cathcart circle service via Maxwell Park.

DG21295. 314206. Glasgow Central. 9.4.09.

A busy time at Glasgow Central on the 9th April 2009 as 314206 arrives with a service from Neilston.

DG21211. 314207. Cathcart. 8.4.09.

Back to the 8th April 2009 when 314207 is dropping off passengers at Cathcart station on its way to Neilston. As one of the first three sets to come off-lease its next journey is likely to be to the scrapyard.

DG147965. 314208. Glasgow Central. 15.5.13.

On the 15th May 2013 314208 has just arrived at Glasgow Central from Paisley Canal. This line had only been electrified the previous year, allowing the 314s to add it to their sphere of operation.

DG21410. 314209. Glasgow Shields Rd. 9.4.09.

The 314s have spent their life based at Glasgow’s Shields Rd depot. Here’s 314209 receiving an exam inside the depot on the 9th April 2009.

DG107942. 314210. Wemyss Bay. 28.3.12.

The 314s did sometimes venture outside Glasgow, one such place was the superb station at Wemyss Bay, to the West of the city on the coast of the Firth of Clyde.  Here’s 314210 at the town on the 28th March 2012.

DG147810. 314211. Glasgow Central. 15.5.13.

Another of the class that lost the attractive Carmine and Cream livery for the Saltire livery is 314211. Here it is leaving Glasgow Central with a Cathcart circle working on the 15th May 2013.

DG21192. 314212. Patterton. 8.4.09.

The second of the off-lease trio is 314212. Here it is at Patterton on the Neilston branch on the 8th April 2009 whilst working back to Glasgow.

DG107825. 314213. Glasgow Central. 28.3.12.

Also off-lease now is 314213. On the 28th March 2012 it could be found threading its way through the maze of tracks on the approach to Glasgow Central whilst working a Neilston branch service.

DG108133. 314214. Newton. 29.3.12.

Another service covered by 314s was the route from Central to Newton on the East side of Glasgow. Here’s 314214 at the end of the route on the 29th March 2012.

DG121362. 314215. Glasgow Central. 16.8.12.

After being a familiar scene for nearly 40 years, this sight will soon be history. On the 16th August 2012, 314215 approaches Glasgow Central.

DG258538. 314216. Glasgow Central. 9.10.16

The final member of the Class, 314216 at Glasgow Central on the 9th October 2016

Here’s a couple of internal views of the 314s, which were very much in original form. The yellow panelling was shared throughout the various classes from the 313s onwards. The seating has changed in other units but the 314s retained their original low-back 3+2 seating arrangement. These views date from April 2009.

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DG21185. Interior. Scotrail Class 314. 8.4.09..JPG

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19th December 2019.

Scotrail have now confirmed that there will be a day of farewells to the Class 314’s on Wednesday 18th December when a pair will work the following services.

  • 1010 Glasgow Central – Ayr return (limited customer capacity).
  • 1230 Glasgow Central – Glasgow Central via Motherwell / Carstairs / Cumbernauld.
  • 1610 Glasgow Central – Helensburgh return.

Time to get my breath back – if only for a moment.

10 Monday Sep 2018

Posted by in Musings, Railways, Scotland, Travel

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Phew! After 8 days continuous travel around the UK by train it felt rather odd to be sleeping in our own bed and not having to head off anywhere this morning. Instead, the furthest I’ve had to travel has been from the bedroom to the kitchen and then my office at the back of the house. I’ve spent the day writing the first of the trilogy from my trip, plus editing the pictures and catching up on all the bits of life I couldn’t whilst out on the rails. It’s also great to be eating home-cooked food again, rather than living off sandwiches and supermarket meals.

I’ll be trying to get back to blogging again ASAP. It’s not that I’ve nothing to talk about or pictures to show – anything but as yesterday was a fascinating trip down the Fife coast after leaving Perth. Here’s a couple of shots to whet your appetites.

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Harvest time in the kingdom of Fife.

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Crossing the River Tay on the railway bridge

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A lovely poem on display at Kirkcaldy railway station

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The original Burntisland railway station. Opened in 1847 it was the site of the worlds first train ferry until it was made redundant by the opening of the Forth Rail bridge in 1890. Derelict for many years, it now houses artist studios and community groups. 

The difficulty (as always) is time. I’ve got the next two days at home, then Dawn and I are off to the National Rail Awards in London as VIP guests. After working there since 2003 as the event photographer, that’s going to feel very different. On Friday we’ll return home for some time with friends back in Halifax, but I’ll be on the road again later on Saturday as I’m off to Innotrans, the massive rail trade show in Germany from Sunday – Friday. Expect a few blogs from there!

In the meantime, I’ll be finishing my RAIL articles, doing my best to add all the recent pictures to my Zenfolio website – and also have some down time – somewhere (somehow).