THE NORTH WALES COAST RAILWAY NOTICE
BOARD
Rheilffordd Arfordir Gogledd Cymru Bwrdd
hysbyseb
An extra stone train ran on 5 August, pictured at Llandulas headed by
66 607 at 14:40. This train returned from Penmaenmawr to Chesterton
Junction, Cambridge. Note the wagons in Freightliner Heavey Haul
livery. (Larry Goddard)
This site is dedicated to all our regular contributors and
supporters, and especially the rail staff of North Wales.
Edition of 09 August 2004
Ballast Train in trouble, 6 August
The Penmaenmawr - Crewe Basford Hall ballast train ran into locomotive
problems on Friday 6 August. Larry Goddard writes:
'A lucky shot of a ballast train passing a down passenger train at
Abergele? Well, not really. 66 520 failed in the
station around noon on 6 August while working the Penmaenmawr -
Basford Hall ballast, leading to single-line working. Although the big
yellow stone wagons occupied the length of the up platform, only a rail
enthusiast would realise the train wasn't going anywhere, so I did my
bit by redirecting passengers to the down platform.'
66 510 from Crewe came to the rescue and is attached while a
delayed 158 822 passes with a working to Manchester at
14:22.
The show gets on the road after a slow start and heads towards Chester.
The track layout at Rhyl requires any train running 'wrong line' from
the Abergele direction to run through on the centre road and then set
back into Platform 1, as 158 822 demonstrates in this picture by Simon
Yeomans.
And here's 175 103 doing the same.
The failed train with assisting loco finally rolls through Rhyl. -
9
August
175s - a personal view
by Kevin Melia
Yes, by all accounts the Class 175 fleet is playing up as suggested in
a recent Notice Board. Substitutions have been extremely common lately,
with classes 142, 153, 150, 156, 158 from both Arriva and hired
in FNW stock having been noticed passing on 175 diagrams. Plus failures
/ cancellations have been higher than since I can remember (unless its
just coincidence I am nearby when it has happened).
Unlike FNW, Arriva aren't really interested and we won't be seeing any
press releases like 'only a 175 or next best thing will acceptable on
these trains' - FNW was fairly content with reintroducing a hauled
diagram (albeit at an unacceptable financial cost) and even said it was
the next best rolling stock available to form the services after a 175.
I Doubt we will hear it even put above a 142 or 153 unit by Arriva who
haven't the money or time for such practices and instead wish to
downgrade many diagrams to 158 unit eventually when the bizarre
clockface timetable to Holyhead / Llandudno comes in later in the year.
With all these redundant locomotives, while Arriva drivers still sign
them, if done sensibly, the costs of a loco-hauled diagram could be
kept down. But that's in an ideal world. I am sure even the number of
failures experienced by Class 47s could be heavily reduced if the
locomotives had seen nearly as many travelling fitters as the 175 fleet
has since introduction. Many of the problems with locomotives
have been down to lack of mechanical knowledge of crews, and
predominantly new safety devices such as TPWS causing teething problems.
Sorry ... but all that involves more red tape being snipped, and
presumably now the approval / funding of Network Rail (if the SRA
ceases to exist)? In other words - dream on. - 9 August
Integration, or
confusion?
Many of the buses, as well as the trains, in North Wales are now
operated by Arriva, as our picture above of Arriva bus and Arriva train
at Prestatyn on 7 August illustrates. (When was that bridge last
painted?) Ben Davies, Arriva Trains Wales manager for the North wales
line, suggested in a recent radio interview that he 'was starting to
tank to' the bus side. Of course there are people in London who believe
that this is a monopoly to be discouraged, but on the other hand it
would seem to permit better connections between trains and buses.
Traditionally this works well anyway in North Wales, because Arriva
Cymru's bus ancestor Crosville was bought by the LMS railway back in
the 1930s,
which is why bus garages can be seen close to stations in a number of
places.
One recent idea which seems to have come from some 'marketing person'
rather than anyone who knows anything about transport is the numbering
of bus stops as though they were extra platforms at stations at
Llandudno Junction at Betwys-y-Coed and Llandudno Junction. We have
mentioned this confusing wheeze before, and here's an eye-witness
report from Gwyn Williams: 'Last Friday afternoon a group of
American visitors were wandering about the station in utter
bewilderment, with one of their number insisting, quite correctly, that
there was no Platform 5. With no member of staff within earshot, it was
left to me to put them out of their misery by directing them to the bus
stop. Let's hope common sense brings this silly situation to an end
before long.' Hear, Hear! - 9 August
Those Anglesey Shunters
Let's take a second look at this picture taken by Alan Crawshaw
passing the Anglesey Aluminium plant on 27 July, and Alan's question
about how the Petroleum Coke arrives at the plant now. First, thanks to
all who have written to remind us that the two yellow locos are the
former Associated Octel / Great Lakes shunters from
Amlwch which are being kept at Anglesey Aluminium on behalf of the Lein
Amlwch society, since the Amlwch plant is now closed. It is hoped
that they will be used on the Amlwch branch line which the society
hopes to restore as a heritage railway.
Regarding transport of the Petroleum Coke anode material to the plant,
the consensus of opionion is that this attievs by ship at the
aluminiuim company's private wharf in Holyhead and travels in the same
way as the bauxite ore, through conveyors in tunnel to the factory. The
setup has always allowed for delivery by sea as an alternative supply,
even during the time when the coke came by rail from a UK oil refinery.
If anyone has more detail on this, we'd be interested. - 9 August