Recent content by Brian1947

There were certainly no extra trains/eight car train when I got to Sandhills at 20-00 yesterday. 30 minute wait for an Ormskirk train then everyone had to squash into a four car. Pathetic. You could see from RTT what was likely to happen and it did. I am not normally one to criticise Merseyrail...

The word “undercut” comes to mind, and am not talking Formula One pit stops!

I remember the first round of the FA cup in, I think, 1959 and seeing the away fans excursion train arrive hauled by a Royal Scot. One of the papers was quoted as saying something like - “Crewe fans drawn on mystery trip”. Pretty sure it was the Express.

The case for extending to Skem is not helped if you look at the daytime loadings on the 319 bus link service. Peak times may be better. Any appeal the service should have is somewhat negated by its route that basically passes through the old town, and arguably serving those with the least...

According to a Youtube video posted 4 hours ago 050 is to be removed by road and taken to an undisclosed location for cosmetic restoration. Any guesses?

I was in the area a week ago, only a couple of guys appeared to be on site. Still lots of work required in the car park though the station looks ready to go. The pedestrian exit on the south side is still the road to nowhere. Quite embarrassing, and cannot understand why the authorities cannot...

Apologies, got my calculations totally wrong.

At the end of March when construction of the platforms must have well advanced I did a railtour that took us right into the waste facility. Access to it has not changed, and I doubt there is any need to change it. I do not know the length of the siding but our train was 12 or 13 Mark II’s and...

Looking at the Knowsley BC planning website the operational length of the Wigan platform is 150m, slightly longer than the Liverpool platform which is quoted as 139m. looking at that photo again there is an apparent absence of lighting on the Wigan platform. Assume they will be installed by winter!

There is an excellent video on Youtube by Don Coffey named, I believe, Wakefield to Knowsley Binliner that shows the detailed workings of this service and how it operates on the single line section beyond Rainford. AFAIK there will be no need for any operational changes once Headbolt Lane...

For an official statement I find the use of the English language more like how Del Boy would have pronounced it. Perhaps they‘ll be millionaires this time next year!

AIUI the tour is steam hauled throughout, though there may be a diesel on the rear in order to move the train into Buxton station. Not sure about extra mileage (kilometreage?), but line speeds may be limited to 20mph on the Great Rocks to Buxton section much of which is on an ascending incline...

I suspect the revised route was always on the cards, and probably awaiting confirmation from NR. The previous return route timing certainly appeared to have some slack in it. However, as the tour already included some freight routes with the chance to go through Toton we booked it about a month...

According to my family contacts in Skem the proposed link to the town has been cancelled. An irate MP Rosie Cooper confirmed this earlier today on BBC 1’s regional politics programme. It looks like the extension to Headbolt Lane will extend no further. By its design you have to assume an...

I posted the paragraph below a couple of months ago - how much echoing across the Douglas Valley there would be is anyone’s guess. A quick 5 minute reversal in Parbold is the least of the potential noise problems. The railway is also on a rising gradient at the point where I believe any routine...