47 750 (ex-Atlas) shows the EWS wagon-style logos which have been added to its Virgin livery as it awaits departure from Manchester Oxford Road with the 17:19 Manchester Piccadilly - Holyhead, 16 April (Charlie Hulme)
It's easy to criticise the people who run the railway, and we try not to be unfair, but it would be very interesting (for the train crew as well as the passengers, I feel) to hear someone's explanation of the events relating to the the 12:21 Birmingham - Holyhead on 16 April. The train left Birmingham just five minutes late, but was delayed by a wayward Pendolino, slow station times, and other problems, and by 13:30 it was displayed at Chester as 15 minutes late on its booked 13:38 departure from there.
14:03 came and went, and the passengers waited on platform 3 as directed. Nothing much happened, and there were no announcements after a 17-minutes late one. Then a Class 158 appeared in the distance, instead of the expected Class 47 ...and ran into bay platform 1 because it was the 13:46 Crewe - Chester which had been sent out from Crewe just ahead of the Holyhead train, causing certain delays to the latter because of the long block sections between Crewe and Chester. More time passes, and we see a 3-car 175 approaching. Funny, we think ... but this rolls in to the west end of platform 3 and turns out to be the 13:17 Manchester - Llandudno, due Chester at 14:19.
This train stops at all stations to Llandudno, whilst the Holyhead is first stop Rhyl. Surely the 175 will be held here while the 47 gets ahead? "This is a platform alteration ...." says the tannoy. Great, must be coming into platform 4 to get past, we think ...
... but no, it rolls into the east end of platform 3 behind the waiting 175, a position from which it cannot overtake. The picture shows 47 789 Lindisfarne arrived and the assembled backpackers making their way down the platform. Needless to say, even when after getting away from Chester, we suffered a long signal stop at Mold Junction and a check at Prestatyn, and it was 15:02 instead of 14:14 when the weary travellers finally arrived at Rhyl, and your writer and several other railfans were forced to run like stink across the footbridge, catching the other 47-hauled train which leaves Rhyl at 15:01 only by virtue of a disabled person being helped aboard by the station staff.
Here we are back at Crewe, with 47 770 Reserved about to depart for Birmingham. The question that arises, especially relating to the trains that have ferry connections at Holyhead: is it really so important to stick so rigidly to the rule that on-time trains should take priority over late-running ones, even when it means sending out a stopping train right in front of a 'fast' one? It must be really frustrating for the train drivers, who can see that there is no point at all in making any effort to make up time as it will just result in a signal stop. Even if it was really necessary for the local shuttle to leave Crewe on time, surely the Llandudno train could have been stopped in platform 3a, and the Holyhead could have passed it and crossed over into its booked platform 3b, and total delay would have been minimised. Cock-up or policy? And is it really necessary for the approach control signalling to enforce quite such a slow crawl into Rhyl station? Comments welcome.
Not helping anyone's temper was the fact that this was a very hot day, and the air-conditioning on both sets of Great Western coaches had apparently given up the ghost. An enterprising train guard decided to try turning off the air-con in our coach. so see if it helped, and the general view was that it did cool down a little. Are these vehicles getting any maintenance at all?
Special thanks to the long-suffering train crews and station staff of North Wales, who must often feel they are just pawns in somebody's game ... and yes, I did get to travel behind all three locos in one afternoon! - 16 April
An interesting working planned for Thursday 17 April brings refurbished Merseyrail electric units back to their home depot.
5X47, 07:40 Eastleigh - Birkenhead North, due past Chester ca 18:00.
Class 47 + 2 x 508s + 2 barrier vehicles
5X48, Birkenhead North - Crewe Basford Hall. 47 + 2 barrier vehicles.
This as also been reported on mailing lists as one 508 - the drivers 'chitty' from Crewe has it as 2 x 508 but tomorrow will tell. I believe these are Silver with the Merseyrail M logo on the front. There is a photo in 16 April's Wirral News which shows a 508 in this livery, same article says they will be in service next month on the Northern and Wirral lines (that's one each then) with more refurbishment to follow soon. - 16 April
The owners of the Crewe World open day on 31 May/1 June have set up a website at www.creweopendays.co.uk which will carry all the news and details of what's going to be happening at what should be a very entertaining event. Thanks to John Lancaster for pointing us at this interesting site. - 16 April
Temperatures reached 26 degrees on Wednesday 16 April: here are a few summery pictures for you. First, 47 789 Lindisfarne leaving Shotton on 1G95 the 08:52 Holyhead to Birmingham. (Tim E. Rogers)
On the 'top line' 56 059 approaches Shotton on 6F58 09:10 Warrington Arpley to Dee Marsh pick-up freight (Tim E. Rogers)
14:00, and 56 068 rolls through Chester station with empty timber wagons; picture by Charlie Hulme. Is this train from Chirk?
In the relative shade of platform 3 at Crewe, what we think is the the route-learning special rests between trips on the Alsager line. Locomotive is 47 756 Royal Mail Tyneside; the officer's saloon is DB999504. Does the loco push the coach, or does it have to run round? (Charlie Hulme)
As exclusively predicted in these pages (as they say) 101 685 has been fitted with TPWS equipment at returned to traffic. This is the scene at Manchester Piccadilly on the morning of 16 April. On the left is 'Daisy' on the 08:16 to Rose Hill, and on the right 101 693 with the 08:21 express to Marple. With so few 101s left, and very short turnrounds, pictures like this have become rare; a 101 was also noted later in the day at Stockport, so it looks like while the 175 improvement programme proceeds they may stray away from the ex-Great Central lines, although a return to Wales is unlikely, which seems a shame in view of our Top Line report below.
A portrait of 101 685 as she pulls away from Platform 2. Much showing of our ticket was involved in getting these pictures! - 16 April
Many thanks to Neil Kennedy for these two splendid views of 6201Princess Elizabeth passing through Helsby station with Saturday 12 April's charter from Bangor to Carlisle.
Yet again another failure on the Top Line - report by Alastair Graham
On Monday 14 April the 16:32 from Bidston (153 330) failed at Caergwrle at 17:15 on its inward journey. It was rescued by the 17:32 from Bidston (153:316) which was running some 15 minutes late due to being in poor condition The units then continued to Wrexham where the failed one was manoeuvred into the headshunt at Wrexham General which in itself took close on 40 minutes and 153 316 then left for Bidston (the 19:02, running 40 minutes late.) I realise that when units do fail on that line that there are problems rescuing them, but my point is that First North Western are using units which are just unsuitable for that line, not having the power to keep to times unless they are in first class order (which very few of them are) due to the steep gradients encountered either side of Buckley, and also they do not have the capacity to cope with the number of bikes and prams/pushchairs which people try to take on the trains on that particular line.
We are being badly let down here on what is usually quite a busy and important route. Some years ago the line was operated by Heritage 101 units which were much more reliable and occasionally we see 142 pacer railbuses which at least do the job and do keep to time. Maybe the maintenance schedule needs a closer examination? - 16 April
15 April's Class 47s - by Rowan Crawshaw
47 635 calls at Bangor with the 14:00 Holyhead - Birmingham. So much for Mystic Charlie's prediction that this would not be used on the Birmingham diagrams due to its limited fuel capacity...
47 757 Capability Brown calls at Bangor on 15 April with the 12:21 Birmingham - Holyhead and poses for my new camera. - 16 April
Commenting on our recent picture (by Alan Crawshaw, repeated above) of antimacassars labelled 'standard class' on the seatbacks of a First Great Western coach in North Wales service, Tim Vince writes: These are probably available because Great Western have got a whole load of new antimacassars advertising the Heathrow-Reading RailLink bus. So I suspect they may not be around forever.' Shame! They have not spread to the earlier batch of FGW vehicles, which makes us think perhaps there is no stock available in Wales to change them anyway.
There was an earlier antimacassar controversy on First Great Western
when the a previous design only carried the 'flying f' symbol and the
word
'First' causing some people to think the whole train was first class!
May
they should now be called anti-gels, since macassar
oil is no longer the essential man's hair accessory? - 16 April