My other half lives in south Leeds and in the course of conversation today said she remembers seeing the Middleton Railway run trains (she mentioned a Thomas replica) up the section of the Leeds - Sheffield mainline where it crosses under the start of Dewsbury Rd near Jack Lane & Parkfield Street (near the Balm Rd Freightliner Depot for those who use such things to get their bearings!) You can see the tracks as you go over the bridge by Eiger Studios and she swore that she'd seen steam trains from Middleton running under there.
Now, there are a number of reasons why I was sure this couldn't be the case - firstly that whilst the Middleton does have a physical mainline connection facing the correct way to theoretically allow that to happen, it's my understanding that it has been locked out of use since 1990 - meaning that neither of us were even born the last time it was used (I'm sorry ifthat makes anyone feel old!)
Furthermore, I can't recall Middleton holding any kind of Day Out With Thomas events in the time I've been aware of them, and whilst it's entirely possible I could have missed hearing about such an event, it's not something that I've ever heard mentioned or pictured in their archive photos. That isn't concrete though and I could well be wrong about that.
Even so, the practicalities, legalities and administrative issues with running onto the mainline are massively complicated, and the disruption it'd cause to the 'big railway' would be significant too.
I simply can't see this being possible for so many reasons; can someone please put me out of my misery and confirm whether they ever have or haven't done this?
(Based on the timescale given I'd guess that it would have had to have happened no earlier than about 1999/2000)
Cheers!
Now, there are a number of reasons why I was sure this couldn't be the case - firstly that whilst the Middleton does have a physical mainline connection facing the correct way to theoretically allow that to happen, it's my understanding that it has been locked out of use since 1990 - meaning that neither of us were even born the last time it was used (I'm sorry ifthat makes anyone feel old!)
Furthermore, I can't recall Middleton holding any kind of Day Out With Thomas events in the time I've been aware of them, and whilst it's entirely possible I could have missed hearing about such an event, it's not something that I've ever heard mentioned or pictured in their archive photos. That isn't concrete though and I could well be wrong about that.
Even so, the practicalities, legalities and administrative issues with running onto the mainline are massively complicated, and the disruption it'd cause to the 'big railway' would be significant too.
I simply can't see this being possible for so many reasons; can someone please put me out of my misery and confirm whether they ever have or haven't done this?
(Based on the timescale given I'd guess that it would have had to have happened no earlier than about 1999/2000)
Cheers!
