NORTH WALES COAST RAILWAY: NOTICE BOARD

Rheilffordd arfordir gogledd Cymru: Hysbysfwrdd

07 November 2011

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Forthcoming events

November 2011


Friday 11 November Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society "Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway Locomotives Part 1" by Paul Shackcloth, Photographic Officer, Manchester Locomotive Society
              
Thursday 10 November  Llandudno and Conwy Valley Railway Society    Larry Davies    "Summer Holidays by Train"

Monday 14 November.  Wrexham Railway Society A Colour Rail Journey - The new proprietor of Colour-Rail Paul Chancellor will talk about the difficulties of dealing with old colour slides and will present a UK wide journey with illustrations taken over the past 60 years.

Tuesday 15 November  North Wales Railway Circle David Jones and Brian Bollington have put together an interesting show on the Penrhyn Quarry Railway. This will be of great interest to local people, many of whom will remember these workings.

Monday 21 November  RCTS Chester  David Rapson - slides by Edgar Richards: North Eastern Part 1. Change of venue for this occasion only, to the Queen Hotel (adjacent to the usual venue, opposite Chester station.)

Thursday 24 November  Merseyside Railway History Group  Iain Henshaw     West Highland Rail Part 2

December 2011

Friday 2 December  Clwyd Railway Circle  Xmas Celebration –
A film show to whet your appetite before our interlude of festive goodies.

Saturday 3 December     Stephenson Locomotive Society -  Malcolm Dickin            THE CHAIRMAN’S CHRISTMAS QUIZ   

Tuesday 6 December   North Wales Railway Circle  Mr Ted Jones of the Conwy Valley Railway Society and the Prestatyn Railway Society is to give a show in 2 parts: 1.  Cambrian Coast Express 2.  Swiss Railways

Thursday 8 December Llandudno and Conwy Valley Railway Society Members Night/Xmas Social

Thursday 8 December   Merseyside Railway History Group    Ted Lloyd  The Last Big Adventure – Social evening

Friday 9 December  Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society "Current Developments on Metrolink" by Tony Williams, Manchester Area Officer, Light Rail Transit Association

Monday 12 December. Wrexham Railway Society AGM and Rail Review with members' material on show

Tuesday 13 December   North Wales Railway Circle  Christmas Buffet, Members Film and Photo Night

Tuesday 13 December 8E Railway Association  AGM followed by Steam Around Chester by Jon Penn
                              
Monday 19 December RCTS Chester    Members Evening:30 slides or digital images of your choice. Please advise Alan Donaldson if you intend to make a presentation and to what format you will be using.

January 2012
 
Friday 6 January  Clwyd Railway Circle  Brian Roberts: Reflections of the 1990s,  Brian’s presentation will visit many different locations across the national network, with some emphasis on the Merseyside area, in an attempt to portray a decade of considerable change.  Passenger operating companies will be reviewed, largely via their ever changing liveries, and there will be glimpses of some of our preserved lines. The freight scene will be recalled, too, not least by showing images taken on freight only lines, at industrial plants and at several collieries prior to closure.

Monday 9 January. Wrexham Railway Society The Many Varied Railways of Australia . Geoff Morris will show the great variety of rail action Down Under.
      
Tuesday 10 January 8E Railway Association  Karl Jauncey & Dave Richards from PSOV present Mainline Steam 2011

Thursday 12 January Llandudno and Conwy Valley Railway Society Society Tribute - the late Bill Rear       

Friday 13 January  Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society "Steam Across Java in 1980" by John Sloane
                                   
Monday 16  January  RCTS Chester  Barry Shore: Terminus Part 3
Barry continues his Terminus series, this time off the Network, The Preservation Scene and offshore including the Isle of Man and Ireland.

Saturday 21 January    Stephenson Locomotive Society    Area A G M followed by:  Professor Colin Divall   - Down the American Road? Industrial Research on the LMS, 1923-1947 The Big Four are often criticised for an over-reliance on traditional forms of engineering. However by the late 1930s the LMS had developed a sizeable Research Department dealing with a wide range of technical problems. This talk examines the Department's origins and activities, and asks how successful it was.

Thursday 26 January     Merseyside Railway History Group            Allan Moore :  Lost Stations of St. Helens

February 2012

Friday 3 February  Clwyd Railway Circle  Geoff Morris: Australian Railways Today. A digital presentation of Geoff's visits to Australia in 2009 and 2010 featuring main line and preserved steam in South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland and also a look at the some of the modern scene.

Thursday 9 February  Llandudno and Conwy Valley Railway Society Ron Watson Jones"Irish Mail Crash Penmaenmawr - Aug 50"/"A Ron Miscellany"   

Friday 10 February  Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society "Great Western Railway Lines in South and Mid-Wales" by Tony Icke

Monday 13 February. Wrexham Railway Society Sixties Steam on Steam - Barry Shore will give a digital presentation based on his b&w negatives from the 60s with shed visits around the UK and the final days of steam at Lostock Hall.

Tuesday 14 February 8E Railway Association  Colin White from B&R Video presents Archive Cine Film from 50's & 60's

Saturday 18 February    Stephenson Locomotive Society   Bob Barnard  The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway – Then & Now. From 1898 this well-equipped 2 foot gauge line climbed into the foothills of Exmoor, initially independent but later under the Southern Railway, until its sudden closure in 1935.  Since 2004, trains have run on a section again.  Bob Barnard, a local L&B enthusiast and North West group organiser, will tell the line's story in pictures old and new.
                                                    
Monday 20  February RCTS Chester  Stephen Gay: Walking the line, discovering lost railways. Stephen travels from Sheffield with a slide 
show on walking old railways with his faithful  German Shepherd dog Wrawby. The show includes the S&D, Scarborough to Whitby, rambling in Scotland to glorious Devon plus a very varied local selection

Thursday 23 February   Merseyside Railway History Group     Graham Briggs:   Steaming Through Britain




















44806 leaves Llangollen with the 11am 'Poppy Appeal Special' on 5 November (John Beresford). See article below.


Crimewatch

The British Transport Police  have released a CCTV image of a man they believe 'may have information about' an incident which happened between Penmaenmawr and Conwy on Saturday 8 October.

According to Investigating officer PC Neal Lindskog, who is based at BTP Rhyl: 'A man boarded the 07:09 Birmingham International to Holyhead at Llandudno Junction at around 10:10. When the train passed Conwy rail station, the man approached the train guard and asked why it didn’t stop there. He was told it was an express service and the next stop was Bangor. The man then stated he was getting off anyway and a few moments later he hit the emergency stop button. The train came to a halt between Conwy and Penmaenmawr stations.

'When the guard walked back through the train he saw the man forcing the train doors open before jumping off and running down the track. This man's actions were foolish in the extreme. Not only did he delay the train, he took an enormous risk by jumping onto the tracks. If a train had been coming in the opposite direction, he would have been killed instantly.

'I would urge anyone who recognises this person, or who has any information in relation to this investigation, to come forward. Anyone with any information about the incident should contact British Transport Police on Freefone 0800 40 50 40 quoting background reference B9/WUA of 07/11/11. Alternatively, call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.'


Monday 7 November events



97 304 and 97 303 waited at Llandudno Junction with the Rail Head Treatment Train (RHTT) to let passenger train 1W82 to pass: Peter Lloyd took a couple of views of the locos having a rest at 09:10. Above, 97 302.



97 304 John Tiley (Peter Lloyd)


RCTS Meeting change: Monday 21 November

The Railway Correspondence and Travel Society meets for this time only at the Queen Hotel opposite Chester railway station on Monday 21st November at 7.30 p.m.

The topic is North Eastern part 1 covering the railway scene in the Northumberland, Tyneside and Durham region.  The slides are those of Edgar Richards of Bebington but due to Edgar’s present ill health they will be presented for him by David Rapson of Connah's Quay.

Visitors are more than welcome to attend this meeting but hopefully they would each contribute a £2 voluntary donation.  Such donations enable the Society to continue its regularity of such meetings. Further inquiries about this meeting can be made by telephoning 0151–608 4296.


40 years ago:A photographic memory - by Roger Carvell



This November marks 40 years since I bought my first SLR camera
in Chester, a Praktica Super TL. A good robust East German-made camera to start photographing railways with although I was to learn the hard way that accurate exposures could be tricky, due to its rather basic through the lens metering system. However, all that was all in the future. With new purchase in hand, loaded with Ilford FP4 film, I walked back to Chester General eager to start recording the railway scene.

Just as the late morning November sun cast its long shadows across
Platform 9, I captured a Holyhead-Euston express (note restaurant car fourth from the front),  Class 40 whistling away at the head under the long-surviving L&NWR bracket signals. Everyone is aboard and the train
crew await the guard's tip. When looking at this picture I do wonder what has happened since to all the people on the platform - a sobering moment. So much has changed here since.

Anyway, I offer it up as one of those 'atmosphere' shots we all strive to take from time to time. November 1971 - November 2011.


Saturday 5 November events


57 309 Brains departs Rhyl with the Saturdays Only 08:50 Euston-Holyhead (Larry Goddard.)



57 309, with 390 014 in tow, calls at Bangor with the 08:50 London Euston to Holyhead (Rowan Crawshaw).



97 304 arrives at Bangor with the RHTT for Holyhead (Rowan Crawshaw).



97 302 arrives at Bangor with the return RHTT (Rowan Crawshaw).



The return train to London calls at Rhyl (Darren Durrant).


Chester free bus no more - report by Dave Sallery

From November 21st the currently free 'City Rail Link bus' in Chester will start charging £1 each way for adults.  This service operates between Chester Station and the city centre. Up to two children will be able to travel free if travelling with an adult, otherwise the child fare will be 65p. Free or reduced fare travel will be available for those customers who are eligible and have valid concessionary travel, which does not, of course, include pensioners from over the Welsh border

I understand this is because the council has withdrawn their funding. I have had a look on the council website for details without success Public transport can be found under 'Parking, Roads and Travel' which seems to explain their priorities.


Thursday 4 October events



Rail Heat Treatment Train 3S71 passing Llandudno Junction at 10:01  with 97 303 and 97302 (Peter Lloyd).



Passing Llandudno Junction at 10:20 is 6D44 with 66 544 on route to Penmaenmawr for loading (Peter Lloyd).


A trip to Birkenhead - report by Alan Crawshaw



Rowan and I had time to inspect the new glazing on platform 1 at Bangor on Sunday 30 October, one section of scaffolding having been removed. It feels so much brighter, a great improvement, and should look good when the job is complete.

We caught the 09:13 from Bangor to Chester (the 08:45 Holyhead to Crewe) on Sunday, an interesting working as it combined with another 175 at Llandudno Junction and at Chester the units were split, one going to Crewe and the other to Manchester. The Arriva timetable shows only the Holyhead to Crewe at this time so we were rather puzzled, the five cars were certainly needed though, it was standing room only on the latter part of the journey.



We just missed the 10:30 to Liverpool. While we waited, a double voyager set arrived empty, the set on the left of the photo (above) formed the 11:28 to London while the other unit continued empty along the North Wales Coast.



The 11:00 Merseyrail service was also well patronised, and we alighted at Birkenhead Central, still sporting the name of the company that built it (photo). This was our first visit to Birkenhead and I was very pleasantly surprised, I subsequently learned that Hamilton Square is second only to Trafalgar Square in its concentration of grade 1 listed buildings.



A return visit is required, the purpose of this one was the tramway and after a quick look round this fascinating town (the picture above shows former Cheshire Lines warehouse, now used by Wirral Council) we boarded tram 70.



This and 69 (above) look authentically old but were built specifically for the Tramway by Hong Kong Tramways in 1992.



70 (above) took us to the Wirral Transport Museum, a wonderful collection of road transport vehicles, mainly trams and buses. Volunteers were working on restoration projects, which lent the feeling of being in a depot rather an a museum.



Outside, former Birkenhead bus FBG 910 was waiting to take us on a tour of the docks, on our return we switched to tram 20, which was built by the Birkenhead firm of Milnes in 1900 and ran in the town for 37 years. In the 1920s it was fitted with a wooden upper saloon.



Since 1937 it had rested on the banks of the Dee as a potting shed. Identified by MTPS members and swapped for a real shed in 1983, the long restoration was completed for Good Friday April 2 1999 when Birkenhead 20 joined the operational fleet. Lisbon 730, dating from 1930, came out to play later in the afternoon but we had only time to photograph it alongside 20 (above) before joining the Merseyrail system to connect with our train home from Chester.

Blackpool tram 626 (picture in left margin) was on open display but is not yet operational. As a council supported venture, the tramway is currently under threat from cutbacks, the story is related at this link.  It will be a great pity if the operation suffers from financial constraints, it's a wonderful asset to a town which is remarkably modest about its many attractions.


Wednesday 2 November



Taken at Conwy against a rather black and menacing sky, the foreground is illuminated by bright autumnal sunshine, highlighting the scene as 221 106 with 221 105 behind crosses Conwy Cob with the 9:10 Euston to Holyhead service (Garry Stroud).


 
Still in Arriva grey livery (for how long?) 158 830  crosses Conwy Cob with the 09:09 Birmingham International to Holyhead service (Garry Stroud).



The view from Queens Road Bridge at Llandudno Junction (above) with the westbound RHTT approaching headed 97 303 (clean) and 97 302 (filthy) (Geraint Jones).



The train heads through Llandudno Junction station (Geraint Jones).


Remembrance at Llangollen



Above, 44806 preparing to run round at Llangollen on 5 November with the 'Support the Poppy Appeal' headboard. The 3pm departure was the last train of the 2011 public timetable season. The next trains are Santa Specials from 26 November. Picture by George Jones.
 
The Poppy Appeal headboard attracted a lot of attention and thanks are due to the Army cadets of the Llangollen platoon for supporting the occasion with a Poppy Collection at the station and on the trains. Members of the Royal British Legion and Piper Colin Hughes in Scottish dress also attended to help raise the awareness of the weekend.



The train out on the line, departing Carrog (Glyn Jones). More pictures from this event in the next issue.


Tuesday 1 November events



Voyagers and wind farms, as seen at Penmaenbach with the Virgin 10-coach train working the 09:10 Euston - Holyhead (Larry Goddard).



97 302 speeds along the coast near Penmaenmawr with the weekday Rail Head Treatment train with 97 304 bringing up the rear (Larry Goddard).



'Tail-end Charlie' No. 97 304 passing beneath the 'Iron Bridge' at Penmaenmawr. The window cleaner did his best....! (Larry Goddard).


Monday 31 October events



67 030 arrives at Bangor with the 'Majestic Snowdonian' excursion (Rowan Crawshaw).



67 030 stabled with the train at Holyhead while the passengers visit the narrow-gauge lines (M.Lloyd Davies)



Flashback - 67 030 is, as indicated by the St Andrews Cross sticker, fitted for operation on the Highland routes in Scotland. Above, it is seen  working on the Far North Line at Invergordon working the Lairg fuel Tanks on 23 April 2011. (M.Lloyd Davies)





97 304 passes Bangor with the 3S71 RHTT for Holyhead (Rowan Crawshaw).



97 302 passes Bangor with the 3S71 eastbound RHTT (Rowan Crawshaw).


Bird's eye view - by Garry Stroud



Three shots  on a theme of Bird's eye view from Conwy, taken on Friday 28 October, all within one hour of each other. Working the return RHTT  that day (above) were 97 304 and 97 302, from Holyhead back to Crewe.



The pictures were taken on a rather high autumn tide, as the shot with the 97s passing the River Gyffin approaching Conwy tube shows.



On the 09:10  London Euston to Holyhead service were Voyager units 221 101 and 221 143.


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