NORTH WALES COAST RAILWAY :NOTICE BOARD
Rheilffordd arfordir gogledd Cymru: Hysbysfwrdd
13 October 2023
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 advice and 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 2023
Friday 3 November Clwyd Railway Circle The Railway in Conway. Larry Davies
Friday 10 November. Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society Paul Shackcloth "People and Places 2". Images of the steam railway with at least one person visible.
Saturday 25 November Railway Touring Company 'The Christmas Cheshireman' steam hauled Bristol - Chester and return
December 2023
Friday 1 December Clwyd Railway Circle Members Night Presentations. Members are invited to give a 15-minute presentation of their choice.
Saturday 9 December Pathfinder Tours 'The Chester Christmas Cromptons.' WCRC Class 33 locos Eastleigh - Chester & return
January 2024
Friday 12 January. Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society Simon Temple on "South Asian Steam in 1982" - features India, Pakistan and Nepal.
February 2024
Friday 9 February. Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society John Hooley. "Euston and Destinations: the Potteries
and the North West". Steam in action on passengers and freight.
March 2024
Friday 1 March (note the first Friday of the month). Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society Dennis Flood. "Edge Hill Motive Power Depot". Dennis will entertain us with tales from his career on the footplate in the 1960s.
April 2014
Friday 12 April. Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society David Beilby. "Transport around the World by GEC and its predecessors". A joint meeting with the Irish Railway Record Society Manchester branch.
(see our Calendar page for meeting venues)
North Wales Coast Railway website created and compiled by Charlie Hulme
The view from Conwy Castle as 221 108 and 221 116 emerge from the Tubular Bridge with the 14:49 Holyhead - Euston on Thursday 5 October. Picture by Ian Pilkington.
This is an extra issue: don't miss the 9 October update. The next update will be on the evening of Tuesday 17 October. - Charlie
News pictures
The two photos attached are both of the 6C55 09:50 Aberystwyth to Chirk Kronospan log train at Welshpool station taken on 7 October with 97 303 Dave Berry leading 37 405.
They arrived at Welshpool approximately 33 minutes earlier than the scheduled 12:24, but then had to wait for the TfW 1J11 10:08 Birmingham International to Aberystwyth train to pass, so left 19 minutes early. Pictures by Paul Hajdasz.
Having been taken over by 56 096 at Shrewsbury, the log train passes Chester CAF depot (Dave Jepson).
Engineers' train at Buckley with panels of track for relaying at Bidston, loco 66 781 Darius Cheskin ( ex- DB Cargo 66 016). The name has been transferred from 66 778 for some reason (Bob Greenhalgh).
37 421 is at the rear of 1Q18 Holyhead-Derby RTC on Thursday 5 October (Ian Pilkington).
On 9 October 37 884 Cepheus comes through Penyffordd station with 5Q78, Birkenhead North (EMUD) to Newport Docks (Simsgroup), Merseyrail units 508 124 and 508 125 for disposal. On 29 October the Branch Line Society are running a 508 farewell tour: all the seats are taken.
On 11 October, a very dark and rainy day, an unadvertised express under the auspices of Locomotive Services ran from Stourbridge Junction, via Bristol Temple Meads and the Welsh Marches. Above, 46100 Royal Scot, with D1935 Roger Hoskins MA on the rear, is seen approaching Bayston Hill, just south of Shrewsbury (Graham Breakwell).
A very wet Wednesday for the passengers on a long-distance excursion trip from Stevenage which terminated short at Llandudno Junction due to 'extensive flooding between Llanrwst and Blaenau Ffestiniog'. The locos, seen at Flint, were 47 810 and 47 712.
Miscellany
TransPennine: Locomotive working of TPE services ceases with the December timetable change. This picture by Tim Singleton from 30 August 68 020 Reliance propelling set TP02 on the 15:35 from Manchester Piccadilly to Scarborough (1U63) taken from the footbridge at the bottom of New Earth Street in Mossley.
In practice the appearances of the locos is very patchy. In the week beginning 9 October locos worked 1U63 twice, the rest were Class 185. You can get advance info by checking Rail Time Trains the 12:48 from Scarborough. The 15:35 stops at Stalybridge, by the way.
Class 67: An additional loco, 67 016 has been equipped to work TfW passenger services.
Trees: Our question about the white trees at Llandudno Junction (image reprised by Garry Stroud above) generated some interesting replies. White Poplars are frequently planted in coastal areas, as they stand up well to salty conditions. They can be a nuisance, and hard to eradicate, due to their habit of suckering. The state of Connecticut in the USA has apparently banned them, due to their invasive habits. (Thanks to David Harrison and John Ainsworth),
Magazine watch: The October issue of Backtrack magazine includes an ineresting article about the Radio Land Cruise trains which ran around North Wales in the 1950s.
Dates: Chris Magner writes 'On Thursday 12 October the Shrewsbury & Chester Railway opened with a special traIn working 175 years ago. Regular traffic commenced on the 14th October'.
Shrewsbury 7 October - report by Graham Breakwell
Here is a selection of images taken between 12:30 and 14:00 on Saturday 7 October at Sutton Bridge Junction. At 12:31 (above) 97 303 and 37 405 bring the Aberystwyth to Chirk Kronospan train into Sutton Bridhe Junction ...
...then reverse the train into the headshunt, uncouple and move into Coleham depot.
At 12:50 56 096 takes over...
... and heads off to Chirk at 13:35.
13:31 and 56 049 brings up the rear on the RHTT.
13:32 and 197 104 slips past recessed logs train on 1W93 11:23 Cardiff to Holyhead.
13:42 sees 158 825 and 158 823 take the Cambrian line with 1J15 12:08 Birmingham International to Aberystwyth.
13:44 and 56 078 is on the other end of the RHTT heading into Coleham depot.
13:54 – 197 013 on the rear of the 4-car 1V42 13:10 Crewe to Cardiff, which started from Crewe due to the inbound service being cancelled between Crewe and Manchester.
13:59 just south of Sutton Bridge at Montague Street bridge 66 427, on DRS Tesco service 4V38 from Daventry to Wentloog, diverted via Crewe due to engineering work in the Birmingham area.
Alongside, in the Sutton Bridge loop,are the wagons from the Margam to Dee Marsh service that were involved in an incident just north of Church Stretton on Saturday 29 September. A Network Rail statement in the local newspaper quoted “The incident was reported at 06:00 on Saturday 30 September, with a freight train stopping on the line due to an uncoupling. A subsequent passenger train has hit debris on the line rupturing its fuel tank.”
The steel train was removed at slow speed later in the day arriving into the loop some 12 hours later. Overnight on 9 October 66 756 took the train onwards, firstly as 8M76 from Sutton Bridge Junction to Coton Hill sidings and then on to Dee Marsh as 6M77, due to depart at 03:15 but actually setting off at 05:45.
Crewe Heritage Centre images by Greg Mape
The Crewe North signalbox now forms part of the Heritage Centre, and offers a good view of trains from the Chester direction rounding the curve into the station. Above, on 7 October the Rail Head Treatment Train led by 56 078 passes Crewe for the second time in its daily round 53 minutes early at 12:33, It will continue to Shrewsbury and its base at Coleham.
Above, 197 002 on the Chester - Crewe shuttle service, brings the 12:54 from Chester about to pass the Centre's main line connection. The signalbox on the right is 'Crewe Station A' which was moved from its position in the the station.
Among the exhibits is Manchester Metrolink first-generation tram 1023, moved here in 2020, and is cared for by members of the Manchester Tramway Museum Society. Built in 1992, it was withdrawn in 2004. It is hoped to run it at the Heaton Park tramway, when it can be accommodated there.
A long-time resident at the Centre are parts of the ill-fated Advanced Passenger Train, seen in the background the passengers of an example of a successful tilting train in the shape of an Avanti West Coast Pendolino.
Visitors enjoy a ride on the 7¼ inch gauge Miniature Railway.
From Dave Sallery's archive
'Daisy' 101 685 heads down the Lledr valley near Dolwyddelan in 1994; this unit was painted in original green livery in conjunction with a poster campaign promoting the line. It went on to be one of the last first-generation DMUs to operated by the train companies. Entering preservation in 2003, it has been used by a number of railways; at present it is at the North York Moors Railway, but not in service.
153 307 at Trawsfynydd on 1 April 1992. This was the only visit of a 153 to the line. It was a Regional Railways gauging and testing run.
31 224 and 31 134 on a flask train to Sellafield near Llanrwst, May 1994.
31 456 pushes an inspection saloon up the valley at Roman Bridge, 10 February 1994. The 'star and scroll' plate denoted allocation to Immingham depot on the east coast.
Wirral Transport Show, 1 October - report by George Jones
The 2023 Wirral Transport Show was held in reduced circumstances this year with the Wirral tramway being non operational. It was a vintage bus affair with the tramcar aspect reduced to the static display of the Liverpool Horse tram No.43 outside Pacific Wharf (above) and the Birkenhead example No.7 within the exhibition hall, the Wirral Transport Museum being closed.
Heavy rain in the morning may have frustrated some participants from attending, but the star of the show was the recently restored Crosville double decker Bristol KSW OFM634.
Showing a Welsh connection was Crosville RE UFM52F with Llandudno destination blind, see pics
Those taking advantage of demonstration bus rides around the docks and through to New Brighton experienced the newly introduced residential 20 mph limit and a lot of third gear driving to stay within the new regulation. Visitors from Wales are now getting used to this restriction!
With the operation of the Transport Museum now in the hands of Big Heritage, the future of the vintage trams owned by Merseyside Tramway Preservation Society is open to discussion with the single deck Lisbon car apparently going to Beamish Museum. It was disappointing that closure of the Museum in Taylor Street prevented the display of the recently restored Warrington car No.28 which was rolled out earlier in the season.
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