THE NORTH WALES COAST RAILWAY NOTICE
BOARD
Rheilffordd Arfordir Gogledd Cymru Bwrdd
hysbyseb
47 826
Springburn stands at a rather wet Crewe station with the 09:20
Holyhead - London on 8 July, with a Pendolino unit as a backdrop. (Rowan
Crawshaw)
This site is dedicated to all our regular contributors and
supporters, and especially the rail staff of North Wales.
Edition of 13 July 2004
Follow-ups
Some interesting letters about the various items in the last Notice
Board: thanks as always to everyone who takes the time to write.
(It's pleasing to see that the Notice Board continues to get well over
3000 visits every week.) Here's Larry Goddard on the
subject of the open-top Snowdon Sherpa bus: 'When I drove for Gold Star
of St.Asaph I suggested to the owner, Oswyn Blythin, that he run
open top buses on this corridor. (Coincidently, Gold Star was the first
operator to use turquoise blue in this area from 1972). He said he was
reluctant to take up the idea due to the risk of top deck passengers
being injured by overhanging trees in Snowdonia. Good luck to the
present bus operator...'
Thanks too to John Lancaster and everyone else who wrote in
about the four-wheeled adaptor vans used by Regional Railways to move
the Class 151s to and from storage at Llandudno Junction: These
two vans do indeed still exist, in Brook Sidings at the south end of
the L&NWR depot at Crewe. They are both easily visible from passing
WCML trains. These vehicles are fitted at one with the Bergische Stahl
Industrie coupler as used on Classes 142 to 158, but it seems to be
very rare for these types of trains to be hauled to and from works
overhaul by a locomotive, as they are usually able to be moved under
their own power.Additionally, Sprinters and Pacers generally carry an
emergency coupling device which can be used to connect to a loco.
More commonly seen are the bogie adaptor vans which can be seen each
end of Virgin Pendolino units on their way to and from test track runs.
Alastair Graham writes about our Class 150 at Bangor:
'Interesting comment about having to endure a 150 for the three
hours to Bangor or Holyhead, but that is exactly what happens in other
parts of the region. The 16:42 Sellafield to Preston (2hrs 45 mins) was
a 150 on a recent journey I made. It totally spoils the scenic journey
especially as it was just like rush hour out of Manchester Piccadilly,
being well crammed with workers from BNFL, and the first ones did not
get off for almost an hour!
Bloody awful units but the Cumbrian Coast line is really scenic, a good
service and well worth the effort to travel on it as there good places
to stop off en route too - as well as plenty of 87s on the WCML over
Shap.'
As for the information screens at Chester - we understand
from those legendary 'informed sources' that these have failed with
exactly the same fault that those at Crewe had; Crewe's were out for
around four months. There are no spares, apparently so they need
a replacement server and software. There is allegedly a "discussion"
going on about which company has to fund the replacement of the system
- Arriva Trains Wales (they say not), Network Rail from whom the system
is leased (they say not), First North Western (they say not, since it
was handed over in working order), the SRA (not known what they say) or
the Welsh Assembly (yes, it's not in Wales). Whilst all this
"discussion" is taking place (at slower than a snail's pace), the
customers suffer. Perhaps we should see if Arriva have anything
to say to us on this?
Back to that bad evening connection at Chester. Alec Fuller
writes: 'Thanks for the continued discussion about my trip from
Manchester. To avoid doubt I knew it was not an advertised connection,
but no harm in trying. As you said, my normal alternative was not
available ... I have to go from Holyhead to Macclesfield soon,
the Network Rail website tells me to go via Crewe and get the bus from
Wilmslow. As an enthusiast I might have tried it, but not when I am
going to work!.
'Many years ago, probably in the late 1950s, I was coming back from
London to Rhyl, and I had to change at Crewe. As usual I allowed time
for a cuppa, and browse. In the Midlands a fog had descended. I had
intended getting a Birmingham - Chester train which was an
advertised connection with the Manchester 'Mail' at Chester about
11.45pm. This was a good train, stopping at main stations to Holyhead.
It included a buffet, and I used it regularly. On this occasion the
Birmingham train was advertised as being 180 minutes late. It made up
quite a lot of time, but arrived in Chester around 2.00am. We
approached the Down Side Inspector, and asked optimistically, 'where is
the Holyhead train?' He said it left at 11.45. More in hope than in
anger I said that I thought it was an advertised connection with
the train from Birmingham. Yes he said it is, so we said that it had
just arrived. He uttered a short four letter word and rang Control who
confirmed what we had said. They arranged for the Mail, which was also
delayed by the fog, to call additionally at Rhyl and Colwyn Bay. I
assume they held the Mail Boat! Ah happy days! Mind you even with the
current hassle, I would not wish to return to the conditions at
prevailed when I first travelled to London from Bangor in January
1945...' - 13 July
Chester Peak - by Dave Bramley
7 July's surprise visitor to Chester station was 45 112 Royal
Army Ordnance Corps on 2Z01 Crewe to Carlisle Network Rail saloon.
It ran through the Middle road before heading past the depot to turn
via the triangle before another run through the station and off up the
Warrington line to Carlisle. It's been quite a while since a 45 was at
Chester.
This locomotive is operated by Fragonset Railways from their Derby
base. It made history on 8 April by being the last of its type to haul
a train out of the old London St Pancras station, long-time stamping
ground of the class. - 13 July
Freight notes
This picture from 5 July by John Myers shows 66 519
approaching Prestatyn with the 6D21 stone empties to Penmaenmawr, now
featuring a new type of wagon in Network Rail yellow livery.
Here's a close-up of one of these JNA vehicles taken by Dave Bramley
at Chester. They have much lower sides than some of the other wagons
used on this traffic in the past: can anyone cast any light on the
reason for this change?
The Valley flask traffic continues on its way: Hers are 20 314
+ 20 308 passing Abergele on 2 July with 6D41, unusually formed
of three wagons. (John Myers)
News of the Duke
We asked if anyone had any information about the progress of the work
in Bombardier Crewe works on steam loco 71000 Duke of
Gloucester, which is booked to work a charter from Nottingham to
Holyhead on 30 August for the Railway Touring
Company. Glynne Henshall writes: ' The paint job was
finished at the end of June, apart from the lion and wheel on the
tender which has still to be applied, since then the Duke of Gloucester
society volunteers have been refitting the various parts that were
removed to assist with the painting, touching up the frames and
wheels,etc. The Loco and Tender were re-coupled over the weekend of 2/3
July, so it now looks complete. They expect to have it in steam within
the next two weeks after which they will book the test runs. Let's just
hope that they are not held to the usual 12-week booking period
otherwise it'll be October before we see it on the mainline.' -
13 July
Safer stations
Attempts to free the Coast line stations of trouble-makers
continue: Rhyl station has now been designated an 'Anti-Social
Behaviour Zone, which will allow British Transport Police, with the
support of North Wales Police and Denbighshire County Council, to
'tackle nuisance behaviour head-on.' The scheme, the first if its kind
at a railway station, will run from July 11 to September 30, and
officers have the power to remove people from the area, including the
bus and railway stations, Bodfor Street, Kinmel Street and South Kinmel
Street, if they believe they are acting in an anti-social manner. Let's
hope that the Police can manage to be there at the same time the
anti-social behaviour is being perpetrated.
Thanks to a £750,000, 12-month, Welsh Assembly funding package,
lighting is to be improved at Abergele and Pensarn, Deganwy, Colwyn
Bay, Rhyl, Prestatyn, Flint, Shotton and Wrexham. Closed-circuit TV
security cameras are to be provided at Holyhead, Bangor, Llandudno
Junction, Colwyn Bay, Rhyl, Prestatyn, Shotton and Wrexham General. -
13 July
A Blast from the Past -
by Darryl Thomas
Due to a lot of excitement with 'no-heat' 47 197 working the
Coast on Sunday 3 July, I've had a dip into the archive and found this
photo of 47 050 working an 'Inter-City' service at
Chester. It was on the 09:30 Llandudno - Euston 'Holiday Maker Express'
(what happened to them?) and it was on Saturday 30 July 1988. - 13
July
Cows come home
Visitors to Manchester this summer can't fail to notice the
artistic glass-fibre cows which have appeared on the stations and in
many other places as part of a globe-trotting art event known as Cow Parade.
One of the herd, 'Illuminata the Bovine Bibliophile' made a foray of
its own from outside the front door of the John Rylands University
Library to a nearby patch of grass one dark night, but this one on
Platform 1 at Crewe station (picture by Ian Bowland) has made a
more official sort of journey. Ian suggests, in the spirit of punning
which surrounds this event like a miasma, that it might be a
Doctor of Bovinity, but its actual name is "MMMoo Cheeshire" by Tim
Marsden and is sponsored by the college once known as 'Crewe and
Alsager.'. "The cow design reflects the new faculty name, its image and
its location as part of Manchester Metropolitan University but in
Cheshire."
An interesting fact about the Blues Brothers -sty;e black 'Cow Noir' to
be found at Manchester Oxford Road, is that it was painted by Cath
Staincliffe, writer of fine crime novels set in Manchester There
are well over 100 of these beasts altogether: collect the set! - 13
July
'Traction in Transition'
Rowan Crawshaw sends these fine pictures of the 'Traction
Transition' event at the Llangollen Railway on 3 July.
D8142 at Llangollen with the 12:30 from Carrog with the
nose leading
Note the familiar to North Wales headcode of 1K73. D8142 at Llangollen
with the 14:45 to Carrog.
7822 Foxcote Manor and 5199 at Glyndyfrdwy with
the 16:15 Carrog to Llangollen. 7822 was removed for a 'rescue'
mission.
D1566 being rescued by 7822 at Glyndyfrdwy with the 16:00 from
Llangollen.
Simon Yeomans also wrote to tell us of some pictures of the same
even on his fotopic
site. We especially like the Black 5 with the 'weeping eyes'
chalked on the smokebox! - 13 July
Problems at Rhymney
Here's a note for anyone thinking of travelling south to Rhymney to
photograph the 37-hauled trains. It appears that
the British Transport Police are taking a hard line on railfans taking
a short cut off the end of the platform to teach the public footpath
crossing which crosses the line not far from the platform end. As the
recent picture sent by Steve Jones shows, names and details are
being taken and the officers are telling people they will be liable to
prosecution. - 13 July