NORTH WALES COAST RAILWAY:NOTICE BOARD
Rheilffordd arfordir gogledd Cymru: Hysbysfwrdd
17 October 2022
Contributions to the Notice Board are welcome, although they may not always be used, due to time constraints, especially if they don't follow the file name convention given on the Contributions Page.
Forthcoming events
Charter trains, and meetings, may be subject to cancellation or postponement. See our Calendar Page for Club and Society details.
November 2022
Friday 4 November Clwyd Railway Circle: A trip by Norwegian Railways to Hell (and back). Geoff Morris
Saturday 5 November Llangollen Railway Ride the Rocket Firework Train
December 2022
Friday 2 December Clwyd Railway Circle: Members Selections & Christmas Celebrations Members are invited to give a 15-minute presentation of their choice (Any format). Contact David Jones 01244 537440 to book a slot.
(see our Calendar page for meeting venues)
North Wales Coast Railway website created and compiled by Charlie Hulme
66 710 Phil Packer BRIT shunting slate wagons in Llandudno Junction sidings, 17 October. The loco was named in 2010 in recognition of Major Phil Packer and his charity work following his Armed Forces retirement. BRIT is the British Inspiration Trust. Picture by Garry Stroud.
Another week on the Coast - by Gary Thomas
Some different viewpoints. Above: The Llandudno Junction slate train reversing into the sidings having just arrived, 10 October, seen from the flyover.
Return Rail Head Treatment Train at Conwy station on Monday 10 October.
RHTT heading towards Holyhead at Cadnant Park, Conwy on Tuesday 11 October.
67 017 on arrival at Holyhead with the afternoon service from Cardiff, again 11 October.
In other news: 67 015 failed at Gaerwen with the morning WAG from Holyhead to Cardiff on Wednesday 12 October. It was rescued by 67 014 after about 7 hours!
Another historic building destroyed - report by Jim Johnson
Demolition of the old Goods Shed at Bangor started on Thursday, 13th October, 2022. Another iconic railway building lost to 'progress.' It is believed to be the original LNWR loco shed, before changing use to Goods Shed and latterly used by Network Rail.
At the time of writing I've no idea what is planned for the site.
The photographs were taken on Friday, 14 October, photos taken by myself, from legal locations.
For comparison, a picture taken in slightly happier times, on 8 July, 1980, when it was used as a depot by National Carriers. 40 106 is shunting the yard on the morning down 'Valley Goods' working.
Interlude at Shotton 10 August - by Chris Taylor
66 705 Golden Jubilee Passing Shotton on 4Z58 09:11 Wellingborough to Llandudno Junction empty slate train.
67 017 with a set of ex-LNER mark 4 coaches running 30 minutes late on 1V96 11:33 Holyhead to Cardiff passing Shotton.
On the North Wales line, RHTT with Colas Rail 56 105 and 56 049.
Crossing the River Dee on the Hawarden Bridge with ex -LT District Line stock 230 009 & 230 010 'going to bed' on a Chester to Birkenhead training working. The Borderlines service was running late that day with one train 15-20 minutes late & the other 45 minutes late so they cancelled two consecutive return trips in the afternoon.
Many more images on Chris's Flickr site.
Saturday 15 October at Holyhead - by Stuart Broome
Scaffolding has now gone from the station.
175 004 on 1V96 10:30 to Shrewsbury waits to depart.
56 105 and 56 049 on 3S71 21:13 Coleham to Coleham Railhead Treatment Train.
56 105 at the head of the Railhead Treatment Train.
56 049 Robin of Templecombe 1938-2013 on rear of the train.
The name of 56 049, note the Somerset and Dorset railway coat of arms.
The water tanks.
As an aside, I have never noticed this rather old building before, what was/is it used for, shutters perhaps?
Out and About
Shrewsbury from the end of platform 5 on Thursday 13 October afternoon (John Oates). West Midlands 2-car 170s 170 505 and 170 533 arrive on the stopper from New Street whilst Northern's 150 270 on hire to TfW rests in the carriage sidings, with behind it a West Midlands 196 in between crew training runs. The 170s have been repainted into East Midlands livery, though with West Midlands decals as they will transfer to East Midlands once the 196s are commissioned.
DC Rail 60 055 Thomas Barnado powers through Crewe light engine southbound on 10 October (Martin Evans).
TransPennine liveried 68 019 Brutus waits its next turn of duty at Manchester Piccadilly on 10 October (Martin Evans)
Northern 331 025 is ready to depart Liverpool Lime Street for Wigan North Western on 10 October (Martin Evans)
Flying Scotsman at Crewe en route from Bury to Southall on 12 October (Greg Mape).
Heritage-liveried 66 693 crosses the Timperley/Baguley border on 17 October with empty wagons from Bescot to Hindlow (Greg Mape).
Making a surprise appearance in the rain at Manchester Oxford Road on 15 October: 37 510 pulling an empty TransPennine loco-hauled set complete with loco on the other end from Scarborough to Longsight depot.
From Dave Sallery's archive
In the notes on Colas 37 099 in the last issue, we mentioned a run on the North Wales line. Here's a picture: then named Clydebridge, 37 099 approaching Prestatyn on, 24 June 1995. It seems to have made just one return run: 1D64 09:55 Crewe - Bangor, and 1K67 13:23 Bangor - Crewe as seen in the picture (unless readers know of another.)
Tyseley-based Class 118 unit T316 (51306 - 59473 - 51321) leaves Blaenau Ffestiniog on a 'Sunday Shuttle' to Trawsfynydd, 2 September 1990. Built in 1960, this unit was withdrawn in 1991; the two outer cars became a 'Sandite' unit to spread that material on the rails to avoid slipping; this lasted until c.1993, followed by scrapping.
A memory of those wintry last days of the full Class 37 services, 37 421 at Chester, 28 December 2000. EWS had removed its nameplates The Kingsman and its regimental crests - we wonder what happened to them?
The morning Birmingham - Holyhead service, worked by 37 421, had been terminated at Chester that day as the coast line was blocked by snow. Happily, this loco is still in service today, with Colas.
In more clement weather, 37 422 Robert F. Fairlie heads to Holyhead near Gaerwen, 3 May 1999.
[Thanks to superb websites Class37.co.uk and Railcar.co.uk for the detailed information above.]
Looking back: Steam and Diesels 2008 part 2 - by David Pool
Single car Derby Lightweight unit M 79900 was visiting the Llangollen Railway on 18 May 2008. After withdrawal from passenger service in BR days, it had become DB 975010 Iris at the Railway Technical Centre, Derby, and eventually moved to the Midland Railway Centre, where it was restored. It is currently based at the Ecclesbourne Valley Railway.
47 851 Traction Magazine at Warrington Bank Quay on the morning of 14 June 2008. The train was the 'Ynys Mon Express' 07:00 from Lancaster to Holyhead via a reversal at Manchester Victoria which required it to have locos each end; at Warrington 47 851 was on the rear and 47 787 was on the other end of the train providing the power. The Crewe to Holyhead and return part of the intinerary was steam-hauled by LMS pacific 6233 Duchess of Sutherland. Did one of the diesels travel on the rear to Holyhead and back?
On 10 August 2008 a Steam Special from Lime Street to Holyhead was headed by 60009 Union of South Africa and is at Helsby Junction. The location of the whistle just in front of the chimney on the A4s is sometimes a problem for photographers, as in this case! 60009 has worked recently on the East Lancashire Railway, where it is now on static display.
A few weeks later on 6 September 2008 another visitor to Helsby was 46115 Scots Guardsman, working 1Z65, the 07:25 Carnforth to Chester, an annual Steam Special organised by the Lune River Trust. The headboard is “The Lune Habitat”.
There were some interesting trains due to pass through Wrexham on 13 September 2008, but first there was the afternoon train from Dee Marsh Junction to South Wales. This arrived at Croes Newydd behind a rather work stained 66 164 and an interesting mixture of KIA steel conveying wagons.
The next arrival was what I had come to see. Class 59s 59 005 and 59 104 were double heading 1Z59, 07:00 Cranmore to Sheffield. 59 005 Kenneth J. Painter was built in 1989 by General Motors in the U.S.A. for Foster Yeoman, which became Aggregate Industries in 2006. At that time 59 005 was repainted in a blue and turquoise livery. 59 104 Village of Great Elm was at first an Amey Roadstone Construction locomotive, and had been repainted in Hanson livery when ARC was taken over by that company. Both these locomotives are today in the Mendip Rail fleet, 59 005 in Aggregate Industries livery and 59 104 retaining its Hanson livery.
In the 1990s 59 104 was in the familiar ARC mustard yellow livery. On a sunny late afternoon of 10 August 1993 it was working hard through Narroways Junction in Bristol with a train from Merehead. It would have come via Westbury and Bath, but I did not identify the destination.
Another double headed Mendip Rail combination occurred on 27 April 1996, when Pathfinder Tours 1Z59, 06:55 Westbury to Sheffield, was worked by 59 005 and 59 103 Village of Mells to a Tinsley Open Day. At this time 59 005 was in Foster Yeoman livery, while 59 103 was in ARC yellow. The train is passing Clay Cross South Junction, heading for Chesterfield.
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