Manchester Victoria's roof has sprung a leak

[Baxenden Bank]

According to AI, you need to install a white-tailed eagle or peregrine falcon in the nearby cathedral close. Mind, if the falcon dived and missed, it could bring the whole roof down.

In other locations imitation birds of prey have been placed high on a building, then later photographed with pigeons sat on them. Real birds of prey do the trick when brought in occasionally with a handler. Or you can install a speaker which broadcasts the sound of a bird of prey. There are other more controversial techniques, navy types (merchant or royal) have one but it would be a bit messy in an urban area. Finally, 'the internet' comes up with baking soda, spread thickly on roosting areas. How does baking soda keep birds away.

 

[takno]

In other locations imitation birds of prey have been placed high on a building, then later photographed with pigeons sat on them. Real birds of prey do the trick when brought in occasionally with a handler. Or you can install a speaker which broadcasts the sound of a bird of prey. There are other more controversial techniques, navy types (merchant or royal) have one but it would be a bit messy in an urban area. Finally, 'the internet' comes up with baking soda, spread thickly on roosting areas. How does baking soda keep birds away.

The kites you get which look a bit like a bird of prey can be surprisingly effective against seagulls. Ironically pigeons are a bit less gullible, and are afraid of gulls, so they can make a pigeon problem worse.

One alternative might be to keep throwing chips all over the ground in Salford, and hope the seagulls move over there.

 

[Baxenden Bank]

The kites you get which look a bit like a bird of prey can be surprisingly effective against seagulls. Ironically pigeons are a bit less gullible, and are afraid of gulls, so they can make a pigeon problem worse.

One alternative might be to keep throwing chips all over the ground in Salford, and hope the seagulls move over there.

Indirectly you hit the nail on the head.

Remove the food source and you remove the pests - pigeons (flying rats), rats themselves and lovely squirrels (tree rats). If only the two legged pests would stop dropping food everywhere. Don't get me started on people leaving bread everywhere, crumbed or whole slices straight out of the bag.

 

[504]

I will happily sit up there all day no problem at all!! Ha

Most at vic hope you stay on the roof !

 

[RikGarner]

Some chaps are on the roof having a look this morning. Yesterday there were a couple of what looked like portable pumps on there for a while.

 

[Geeves]

Great photo! I will show them tomorrow they will love it

There were actually two groups out today one on the old building roof and one as photoed on the new section. It's all go!

 

[RikGarner]

Repairs were underway today - workers on the roof, the large blue tarpaulin has gone and hopefully the water deflection structure on the bridge won't be needed for much longer.

 

[Acathater]

Seagulls?
Warfarin laced chips should cure them.

 

[Bantamzen]

My money is on the gulls coming back and pecking more holes in it, because there is clearly something that makes them think there's something there for them. So unless the reason they do have a go at it is figured out and resolved, they'll be back time and again.

 

[Acathater]

They are probably pecking / attacking their own reflections. Or else there are insects getting stuck on the roof and getting pecked

 

[Geeves]

Network rail sacked the hawk guy and sacked the original folks who were looking after the roof because they apparently found someone cheaper

The original folks are now back...

 

[Dazza12]

Hi,

The fundamental issue is that someone has made the decision to replace part of a capital cost with a maintenance cost without ensuring that the maintenance budget is ringfenced for the life of the structure.

The big problem is that if you do factor the maintenance cost in then suddenly the whole job looks more expensive, which might be a problem.

This is a modern malaise. More and more we are seeing things which traditionally required little or no maintenance now requiring significant maintenance expenditure, often because the people designing them were under pressure to reduce initial cost and had no stake in the maintenance costs.

 

[Forty29]

Repairs were underway today - workers on the roof, the large blue tarpaulin has gone and hopefully the water deflection structure on the bridge won't be needed for much longer.

The first picture post number #37 looks like a massive roof has been placed over Manchester with sky light's!
The small figures working on the roof shows what a large area this roof covers. A big maintenance job l would imagine!

 

[Recessio]

Network rail sacked the hawk guy and sacked the original folks who were looking after the roof because they apparently found someone cheaper

The original folks are now back...

The circle of life...

 

[Leslie Fletcher]

The circle of life...

 

[Scouseinmanc]

Minus the stunning facade, tiled map & booking office. The rest of the place is a dump. A glorified tram stop with a couple of national rail platforms tacked alongside. A far cry from what it was before it was downgraded in the 90s (& yes it was no stunner then, but it had character).
I remember spitting out my coffee when I heard that only £50M was being spent on the upgrade. Can someone remind me what was spent on upgrading London Bridge?
I’m hopeful though, that at some point in the future, that awful roof is pulled down & replaced with something far more fitting. Maybe even using glass?!?! Oh & while we’re at it, get rid of the Arena & rebuild the lost platforms.
Pie in the sky though, I know!!

 

[Sir Felix Pole]

Minus the stunning facade, tiled map & booking office. The rest of the place is a dump. A glorified tram stop with a couple of national rail platforms tacked alongside. A far cry from what it was before it was downgraded in the 90s (& yes it was no stunner then, but it had character).
I remember spitting out my coffee when I heard that only £50M was being spent on the upgrade. Can someone remind me what was spent on upgrading London Bridge?
I’m hopeful though, that at some point in the future, that awful roof is pulled down & replaced with something far more fitting. Maybe even using glass?!?! Oh & while we’re at it, get rid of the Arena & rebuild the lost platforms.
Pie in the sky though, I know!!

To be fair the pre-1990 station was a dump too - badly damaged in WW2 and never fully repaired. The far through platforms were dangerously curved - and wooden over the subway! The surviving Edwardian roof over the terminal platforms were what we would call today 'bog standard' and of no architectural merit whatsoever - and equally as leaky. I'm not a fan of the facade either - now that the old roof has gone you can see how cheaply built the rear was. I always though it a pity that a new through station couldn't have been built on the Exchange site but that opportunity has now been lost.

The new roof structures at Victoria are not strong enough to support glass so you would have to basically start again. I was hoping that Coop Live would see off the Arena but both seem to be flourishing. Maybe if Metrolink is ever put underground there might be a chance to rework things?