47 841 Spirit of Chester at Holywell Junction with the 09:19 Holyhead - London on 4 February. Yes, it's raining again! (Tim Rogers)

Regular Contributors: Dave Sallery , Alan Crawshaw, Rowan Crawshaw, Dave & John Skipsey, John Lewis, Tony Flusk,  Tony Miles, Ian Bowland,  Alastair Graham, Mike Stone,  'Concrete Bob'  George Jones, Selwyn Williams, Steve Vaughan, Dave Bramley and many others.

LAST UPDATE: 04 February 2002

To the North Wales Coast main page : To The previous Noticeboard

Tony Miles writes with more details and pictures regarding our puzzled item about Class 175 namings. 175 114 was "named" Commonwealth Cruiser at Manchester Airport station on 22 January. The name for the unit was the final winner of the Asda/FNW 'name a train' competition, with the name being suggested by Michaela Walker of Grosvenor Park Primary School,  Morecambe. In the picture above Michaela poses with Stuart Stokes - GB (England) 3000m steeplechase athlete from Bolton (left) and FNW Commercial Director Paul Bunting.

Unfortunately FNW had not prepared the official name "plates" and 114 will have the name applied shortly (pictures please!), but Michaela,  the visiting athlete and the Commonwealth Games baton had been booked already. Mr Miles also got chance to carry with the famous electronic baton! (below)

And yes, there is a train named (or about to be?) Mum ... - 4 February

The 'SCRUA Newsletter' is to hand and advises a public meeting on Monday 18 February 2002 at the Royal British Legion club, Chirk (Church St, rear of Hand Hotel) starting at 7.30 pm. Speaker is Mr James Widdowson, Mid Wales Area Manager for Wales & Borders Trains. To discuss the current and future rail issues. In view of the present state of affairs it could be lively. - 4 February

First Group management news - by Tony Miles

FNW Managing Director Dave Kaye has been appointed Managing Director of First Great Eastern on the retirement of MD Bob Breakwell in the summer of 2002. Dave had been appointed to the job over a year ago but Bob was asked to delay his retirement and Dave was asked to take over FNW from David Franks. Bob Breakwell has been one of the most respected senior railway figures still in the industry, ranking with Chris Green for his experience and expertise. For Dave Kaye it will be a challenge to move to a TOC which will be involved in bidding for the greater Anglia franchise, and a big personal wrench at leaving the North of England. (okay - he's a Yorkshireman and a Leeds supporter but he will still miss life up here!) - 4 February

Chester Fester - by Alan Crawshaw

We were up early on Saturday 2 February for a family weekend in London, which started well when 47 784 Condover Hall turned up on 1A13 rather than the expected HST. The 47 was detached efficiently at Crewe (see photo) but the replacement electric locomotive , EWS 86 261The Rail Charter Partnership, took a long time to arrive so we left 25 minutes late, losing a further quarter of an hour on our way to the capital.

We met our daughter for lunch ­ she’d left Lille on Eurostar an hour and three quarters after we’d left Bangor and still arrived in London 35 minutes before us! Once in the grip of our creaking network, her fortunes changed, all GNER services from Kings Cross being cancelled because of overhead wire trouble near Peterborough so she had to go via Midland Mainline to Sheffield, then on to Doncaster for a connection north.

We rode to Reading on Sunday’s 1S52, the 09:10 Paddington to Edinburgh. 47 287 was dragging a dead 47 840 and the front coach was dominated by 'bashers.' The Reading action featured several class 47 runrounds, including the XP64 repaint D1733. That evening 1D88 took us out of Euston on time at 17:05, tatty RES 86 430 Saint Edmund giving way to 47 841 Spirit of Chester at Crewe. The service had been retimed to run via Middlewich so we were surprised to reach Chester at the usual time by the usual route. Had the engineering work been cancelled or did it finish early? The train manager announced that we’d have to await our scheduled departure time of 20:50 but that we could cut the 40 minute wait by 13 if we took the  20:37 First North Western service. We saw no point in switching to a unit for such a small saving ­ and since we had Virgin Value tickets would they be valid? Eventually it was time to follow the all
stations stopper and we reached Bangor at 22:13, eight minutes adrift of the retimed schedule. - 4 February

Driver training runs are taking place on 4 - 8 February between Crewe and Cardiff, with Class 37 power; Ian Riley's green 37 197 was in use on the first day. 1Z39 departs Crewe at 09:45, arriving Cardiff at 12:20. 1Z38 northbound is booked to depart Cardiff at 13:16.

We believe the next public 37-hauled trains on this route will be on Sunday 24 February for the Worthington Cup football: see the Wales and Borders website for details. - 4 February

Among the interesting special trains being run by Green Express this year is their Tour 175 on Saturday 27 April  From: Llandudno Junction, Colwyn Bay, Abergele, Rhyl, Prestatyn, Flint, Chester, Frodsham & Warrington    To Grange over Sands & Ravenglass for the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway. Tel: 01484 422920 for booking information. - 4 February

Crewe Saturday 2 February - by Ian Bowland

The 7.20 London-Holyhead arrived on time behind 90 008 The Birmingham Royal Ballet which is seen here waiting to be detached from the train at Platform 11.  In the background is 47 772 waiting to take over.

47 772 leaving Crewe for Holyhead.

The 9.19 ex-Holyhead, the second Class 47 coastal working of the day, arrived in a tremendous downpour behind 47 841 Spirit of Chester which handed over to 87 012 Coeur de Lion for the run South. (See heading picture)

158 755 was working the Crewe-Chester-Crewe shuttle. - 3 February

From Dave Sallery: 'A revised application for a slate waste loading point has been deposited by Macalpines.  I understand that the reason is a listed building is affected.

'The scheme uses the Oakley tip which is largely out of sight.  It will be crushed on site, brought down on a conveyor on the track of the old incline, adjacent to the miner's path, over both the FR Dinas branch
trackbed and the standard gauge to a site to the east of the standard gauge where the remains of the 'landscaped' tip are.

The conveyor would be on the incline just to the right of 101 685 in the picture.  The class 101 is seen passing the platform of the disused Blaenau Ffestiniog North Station on the 14th June 1994 just after it was repainted into BR green livery.  The photo is taken from my Conwy Valley line website - www.penmorfa.com/Conwy '

From Alastair Graham:  'Planning notices have been placed in Blaenau (dated Jan 21):
 Rhiwbryfdir scheme

Notice is hereby given [etc]
Town and Country Planning Act
Planning (listed buildings and conservation areas) Act 1990

Outline planning application for construction of aggregate loading and multi-use facility (revised plans and additional information) Land at Rhiwbryfdir Blaenau Ffestiniog. Application is a major development and affects the setting of a Listed Building. Copies of the applications, plans and other documents submitte may be inspected at the planning and economic development department Gwynedd C Cae Penarlag Dolgellau for ... 21 days from the .appearance of this  notice may also be inspected at the Council Offices High Street Blaenau Ffestiniog [etc]

'In the valley bottom are on the west the dismantled Dinas Branch of the FR, on the east the Blaenau standard guage branch (ex LNWR) with the Barlwyd  intertwined around the two railway routes.  On the eastern (and shallower)  shoulder of the valley is the site of the Scheme.  The Scheme also involves a conveyor belt from high up on the western side of the valley which passes  over the two railways and the river and ending on the site.  According to the original plans, the supports for this conveyor will not affect the Dinas branch.' (Information from the Ffestiniog Railway Newsgroup.)  - 3 February

Several reports received describe Class 101 units back working services to Chester, a practice which officially ceased a few weeks ago. On 1 February, for example, 2H89 07:45 Chester - Manchester Piccaddily was worked by 101 692 to Manchester, and later that day the same unit ran the 17:56 Manchester Piccadilly to Chester and 19:30 Chester - Manchester Airport and return. The evening workings had seen 101 678 the previous evening 31 January.

Clearly there is shortage of trains: we hear that 175 005 & 175 105 are currently at Wolverton works, 175 003 & 007 at Longsight Eurostar while 175 101 is still 'in bits' at Eastleigh and now 175 107 has a damaged cab from the recent pantograph incident.  Meanwhile 175 008 is out (still I think with wiring faults) and now the wiring compatability issues... - 3 February

A windy day - Friday 1 February

This action-packed picture from the BBC Website's news item shows a street scene in Conwy on 1 February; the North Wales Coast main line seems to have weathered the wind, rain, and high tides well enough. The wind caused a few problems with branches being blown onto the railway at a couple of spots. The 07:49 Holyhead-Crewe was delayed near Conwy and the 12:22 Crewe-Holyhead near Chester causing delay to following trains ... but not quite as much delay as if you were sailing to Ireland for a Rugby match that is. Only the "conventional" ferries were sailing and they were late and going up and down like the proverbial yo-yo. Virgin were having problems with the closing of the West Coast Main Line for a time in several places due to flooding or a risk of trees falling. The M6 on the other hand ground to a halt as soon as it rained, never mind the wind. If ever there was an advert to travel by rail its on days like today where rail gets through when cars can't.

The Conwy Valley branch fared less well than the main line as usual, suffering a wash-out which is going to require a trainload of ballast to repair. The service was shown as suspended at 16:40 on Friday. Information on hand suggests 6Z66 20:00 Saturday 2 February, Crewe Basford Hall - Llanwrst, with a Freightliner 47 and a 57 'topping and tailing' 22 'seacows' hopper wagons.The Cambrian Coast line was badly hit at the usual places, notably Dover Junction which is often submerged, and Llanaber where 150 metres of line is said to have been washed out, no doubt with caravans bobbing about in the water nearby. As Radio 5 has it, the line between Porthmadog and "Poo-Wellie" is also damaged. Buses will be running in place of the trains on these routes.

Special thanks to Dave Bramley, Ian Bowland, Bruce Garbutt and the North West Gen List. - 2 February

Chester goings-on - by Dave Bramley

Wagon movements first, and 37 688 ran light 0L33 Arpley-Chester to shunt some wagons in the Chester area on 30 January. It first ran light through the station in the coast direction, returning with two 4 axle ballast wagons which were shunted on top of the identical wagon in the yard, which I reckon has been there for at least 2 or 3 years! It dragged all three out, ran round and heading back to whence it came Coast bound I assume to the wagon shops (?) Next time 688 returned it had the rake of vans and open wagons from the siding next to the triangle line next to the Chester avoiding line. Again it ran round and disappeared to the wagon shops (?). 688 ran light as 0L33 back to Warrington Arpley an hour later. The reason for the sort out is anyone's guess.

Wales and Borders had a now rare cancellation on the same day with the 18:35 Shrewsbury starting from Wrexham due to late running. They are starting to turn a once-neglected line around with the new timetable working well. - 1 February

From the Daily Post:

Students at a North Wales College will have a special reason for train spotting from now on. [Hmm... - C.H.] One of First North Western's new fleet of Class 175 Coradia trains was named after their college, Pengwern College of Rhyl, in a ceremony at Chester yesterday [30 January]. The 100 mph train mainly travels on the North Wales line from Holyhead to Chester and on to Crewe and Birmingham or Manchester. Naming the train after the college, which caters for students with special needs, was the idea of Francis Phillips.

A keen member of the North Wales Railway Heritage Society, Mr Phillips thought it appropriate to name the train after the college because many students travel along the line regularly. FNW Commercial Director Paul Bunting thought the idea was wonderful and the train was specially prepared for the ceremony at Chester yesterday. "We now have 5 Class 175s named and 3 have been suggested by young people." he said. "Now train 175 004 will be seen by hundreds of people every day who will become aware of the good work being done at Pengwern College."

More information about the North Wales Railway Heritage Society would be welcome, too. Thanks to George Jones, and Eryl Crump of the Daily Post, for help with this item. - 2 February

Here's a press release from the Strategic Rail Authority

Steps to establish a new Wales & Borders rail franchise were resumed today with the
announcement by the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) of eight pre-qualified parties, listed
below:

Arriva Trains Ltd
Connex Transport UK Ltd
FirstGroup plc
GB Railways Group plc [operator of Anglia Railways]
National Express Group plc
NS / Dutch Railways
Serco Ltd [operator Manchester Metrolink]
Keolis SA [French company, currently partner in Thameslink and South Central]

The franchise comprises local and regional passenger rail services in Wales and in the
border counties. Pre-qualified companies will have 60 days from mid-February to prepare detailed proposals, from which a shortlist will be chosen. These shortlisted counterparties will then be invited to submit their best and final offers, from which a preferred counterparty will be selected.

The SRA expects to announce its preferred counterparty in Autumn 2002 and to have a
new franchise in place by early 2003.

Richard Bowker, SRA Chairman, said:

"I am delighted by the strong field that has assembled to bid for the franchise, which, yet again, illustrates the keen private sector interest in the railway. Having formed much of the Wales & Borders franchise in interim form last year from existing franchises, it is now for the SRA to deliver a new, long-term, all-Wales rail franchise. We are pleased to have the strong support of the Welsh Assembly Government and the Rail Passengers Committee for Wales in making this a reality. This long-term franchise will provide a new focus and identity for the railway in Wales."

Notes to Editors

1. The SRA announced on 19 December 2001 that it was pressing ahead with the new Wales & Borders franchise, but would be restarting the competition, reflecting the new policy of refranchising agreed with the Secretary of State for Transport.

2. The franchise will include all local and regional passenger rail services within Wales, services from Cardiff to Hereford, Shrewsbury and Manchester, and those from Wales to Birmingham, North West England and the West Country. The services are currently operated under a number of existing franchise agreements by National Express Group plc, using the 'Wales &  Borders' branding - with the exception of services in North Wales and parts of
the North West of England, currently operated by First North Western.

 3. The new franchise will include the operation of all stations in Wales, and those predominantly served by the new franchise in the border counties, including Chester, Shrewsbury and Hereford.

 4. Long-distance high-speed services to and from Wales will continue to be operated by First Great Western, Virgin CrossCountry and Virgin West Coast.

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