IanD
Established Member
Another early start. Up at 0545 to head down the wooden hill from Bedfordshire, as my old grandmother (as opposed to my new grandmother, but that’s a very different story!) used to say, to jump in the car for the 30 minute drive along the tarmac road to Bedfordshire. It’s a cold morning and the meadow at the end of my close is obscured by the mist rising off the river. Traffic is so light I make it in 20 mins. I find a parking spot in the council run car park next Bedford station which is £2 cheaper for the day than the FCC station car park (as I found out whilst doing an East Midlands Rover earlier in the year shameless plug). I’m actually starting my trip proper by bus today but as I’m due back on the train quite late, I figure it’s better to park close to the train station to avoid a midnight walk across town. Instead I make a much more pleasant dawn walk across town. Still no sign of a cheap bacon butty though!
I get to the bus station at 0650 in plenty of time for 0735 X5 Stagecoach service to Cambridge. In fact, I’m so early that I can catch the 0700. This is great service – it even carries bikes in the boot! The terminus is reached at 0810, 10 mins ahead of the bus’ schedule and 55 mins ahead of mine. I probably should head straight to the train station and start my travels an hour early but instead I decide to have a wander around the city as I’ve never been before.
After a whistle stop tour of most of the main sights I head back towards the station. My supposedly great sense of direction has deserted me, I seem to take a weird route as a couple of times I approach the same buildings from different directions. I make mental note to check a map when I get home (or take one with me next time!).
Anyhoo, back to the proper trip report. I reach the station with 10 minutes to spare and there’s a huge queue at the ticket windows. Thankfully, the staff here are pretty efficient and in only a couple of minutes I have my Anglia Plus 1 Day Pass in hand and I’m sitting in 170271 on the 0943 to Ipswich.
I’ve an hour in Ipswich so I take a stroll out of the station to see what remains of the old dock branch at the other side of the Orwell. That didn’t take long so I spend the rest of the time on the station watching the myriad passenger and freight movements. I also spy 153335 in the sidings which I’m sure I’d seen leaving Wolverton works in its new ghostly livery a couple of months back whilst on a trip to Tesco (me not the train).
It’s now 1200 and I’m backtracking all the way to Chippenham junction heading to Ely on board 170205. There’s some sort of problem on the way and I’m sweating my 22 minute connection as we’re 18 minutes down. Not to worry though as the 1320 EMT service to Norwich is showing as running 8 minutes late. Then 9, then 10. Then there’s an announcement that passengers for Norwich and beyond should ”take the 1327 GA service instead as it will get you there quicker” – fair enough, it still gives me a 6 min connection in Norwich. It duly turns up and we all duly pile on (me in the front carriage for a swift exit) and off we go. 2 minutes outside the station I see red light ahead and we stop for a while. I then see the red light on the adjacent track turn green and I take a quick guess at what’s coming next. The driver comes on the tannoy and informs us that we are being held to allow a late-running Cross Country [sic] train to pass. Bum. (I think the platform staff at Ely were informed at the last minute that this was the plan as, just before we left and after the doors had closed, one of them shouted down the platform asking if they should get everyone off again!) By the time we restart, we’re over 10 minutes down. The guard comes through and is greeted by a number of unhappy passengers who are now going to miss their connection – we’d have all been better off waiting for the EMT service (unless it had traversed the Ely West curve to by-pass Ely altogether!). The guard says we’ll have to wait until after we leave Wymondham to see if we’ve made up enough time for connections to be held but with no slack in the WTT, I’m not convinced. Sure enough, as we approach Norwich, I glimpse the 1436 on its way to Yarmouth. We hit Norwich still 10 mins down but only 4 mins after the Yarmouth’s scheduled departure. Hmm – methinks they could have done something.
I’m going to have to miss out the round trip to Yarmouth (both routes – shame as I’d been looking forward to Berney Arms) so now I find I have half an hour to while away before the 1506 to Lowestoft - 156407. As we pass Reedham junction I ponder what might have been
Due to the early arrival I have to spend 90 minutes in the UKs most easterly town (it could really do with an hourly service to Ipswich as the 30 minutes I’d originally planned would have been plenty!). However, as I’m at the seaside and the sun is shining I head to the seafront. My innate sense of direction lets me down again and I end up wandering round the docks area (discovering that it’s not called Lowestoft for nothing!) and looping back through the town to the station. Still 45 minutes to wait so this time I head to the more attractive (in relative terms!) touristy seafront.
Back at the station I take the obligatory shots of the old station signs before boarding 170270 for the run to Ipswich. As we pass through Beccles I look out for the giant pygmies 1 but am again disappointed - they’re such an elusive bunch. However, there is a woman on board with a dog (could this be Gladys and Stig??2) who thinks nothing of having to stump up about £100 for a return to London having failed to pay at Lowestoft.
Another 22 minute wait at Ipswich before 153322 (maybe it was this one I sw at Wolverton, my notes are all over the place!) takes me on the round trip to Felixstowe. The 153 really puts on a show for the 30+ mile round trip - great acceleration and a rattling good run at speed between stops. It’s quite full on the outward journey – shame there’s no quiet coach to escape from the mobile-phone bellowings of the annoying woman sitting right in the middle of the train! The return is much more serene.
Third time at Ipswich today and I’d booked some advances for the 2109 to Liverpool Street as the original plan was to get some food before heading home. Instead, I decide I’ll ask the TM on the 2009 if I can jump on that. Whilst I’m waiting, a unit comes in and it’s only when it appears to be 3 units joined together that I realise that this is the 2009! I’d forgotten it wasn’t a loco hauled service which was probably the reason there were no advances available for it. I have to dash down the platform as the TM is in the middle unit. He says that “as there is nobody else on board then you might as well get on”! Everything happened so quickly I forgot to take the number or a photo.
Liverpool Street is reached slightly early and I make a swift dash across the concourse and reach the subsurface platforms just as a Circle line train arrives. Farringdon is reached at 2129 and I see what I think is the 2130 to Bedford in the NR platforms so dash across the bridge only to find it’s the late running 2123 to St Albans. The 2130 arrives at 2133 and I’m back in Bedford about 2230 and home by 2300, an hour and a half ahead of schedule. Time for a cuppa and a Corrie catch up.
I realised when I got home that I’d gone the whole day without coffee so my Pumpkin card remained unstamped! On the plus side, I wrote to Greater Anglia about the shambles at Ely and they sent me £26 in vouchers as compensation. No idea how they got to that figure but it’s almost enough to get me a repeat (though hopefully not exact) trip this year
Notes
1 See Monty Python’s Contractural Obligation Album, The Booshop Sketch
2 See note 1
I get to the bus station at 0650 in plenty of time for 0735 X5 Stagecoach service to Cambridge. In fact, I’m so early that I can catch the 0700. This is great service – it even carries bikes in the boot! The terminus is reached at 0810, 10 mins ahead of the bus’ schedule and 55 mins ahead of mine. I probably should head straight to the train station and start my travels an hour early but instead I decide to have a wander around the city as I’ve never been before.
After a whistle stop tour of most of the main sights I head back towards the station. My supposedly great sense of direction has deserted me, I seem to take a weird route as a couple of times I approach the same buildings from different directions. I make mental note to check a map when I get home (or take one with me next time!).
Anyhoo, back to the proper trip report. I reach the station with 10 minutes to spare and there’s a huge queue at the ticket windows. Thankfully, the staff here are pretty efficient and in only a couple of minutes I have my Anglia Plus 1 Day Pass in hand and I’m sitting in 170271 on the 0943 to Ipswich.
I’ve an hour in Ipswich so I take a stroll out of the station to see what remains of the old dock branch at the other side of the Orwell. That didn’t take long so I spend the rest of the time on the station watching the myriad passenger and freight movements. I also spy 153335 in the sidings which I’m sure I’d seen leaving Wolverton works in its new ghostly livery a couple of months back whilst on a trip to Tesco (me not the train).
It’s now 1200 and I’m backtracking all the way to Chippenham junction heading to Ely on board 170205. There’s some sort of problem on the way and I’m sweating my 22 minute connection as we’re 18 minutes down. Not to worry though as the 1320 EMT service to Norwich is showing as running 8 minutes late. Then 9, then 10. Then there’s an announcement that passengers for Norwich and beyond should ”take the 1327 GA service instead as it will get you there quicker” – fair enough, it still gives me a 6 min connection in Norwich. It duly turns up and we all duly pile on (me in the front carriage for a swift exit) and off we go. 2 minutes outside the station I see red light ahead and we stop for a while. I then see the red light on the adjacent track turn green and I take a quick guess at what’s coming next. The driver comes on the tannoy and informs us that we are being held to allow a late-running Cross Country [sic] train to pass. Bum. (I think the platform staff at Ely were informed at the last minute that this was the plan as, just before we left and after the doors had closed, one of them shouted down the platform asking if they should get everyone off again!) By the time we restart, we’re over 10 minutes down. The guard comes through and is greeted by a number of unhappy passengers who are now going to miss their connection – we’d have all been better off waiting for the EMT service (unless it had traversed the Ely West curve to by-pass Ely altogether!). The guard says we’ll have to wait until after we leave Wymondham to see if we’ve made up enough time for connections to be held but with no slack in the WTT, I’m not convinced. Sure enough, as we approach Norwich, I glimpse the 1436 on its way to Yarmouth. We hit Norwich still 10 mins down but only 4 mins after the Yarmouth’s scheduled departure. Hmm – methinks they could have done something.
I’m going to have to miss out the round trip to Yarmouth (both routes – shame as I’d been looking forward to Berney Arms) so now I find I have half an hour to while away before the 1506 to Lowestoft - 156407. As we pass Reedham junction I ponder what might have been
Due to the early arrival I have to spend 90 minutes in the UKs most easterly town (it could really do with an hourly service to Ipswich as the 30 minutes I’d originally planned would have been plenty!). However, as I’m at the seaside and the sun is shining I head to the seafront. My innate sense of direction lets me down again and I end up wandering round the docks area (discovering that it’s not called Lowestoft for nothing!) and looping back through the town to the station. Still 45 minutes to wait so this time I head to the more attractive (in relative terms!) touristy seafront.Back at the station I take the obligatory shots of the old station signs before boarding 170270 for the run to Ipswich. As we pass through Beccles I look out for the giant pygmies 1 but am again disappointed - they’re such an elusive bunch. However, there is a woman on board with a dog (could this be Gladys and Stig??2) who thinks nothing of having to stump up about £100 for a return to London having failed to pay at Lowestoft.
Another 22 minute wait at Ipswich before 153322 (maybe it was this one I sw at Wolverton, my notes are all over the place!) takes me on the round trip to Felixstowe. The 153 really puts on a show for the 30+ mile round trip - great acceleration and a rattling good run at speed between stops. It’s quite full on the outward journey – shame there’s no quiet coach to escape from the mobile-phone bellowings of the annoying woman sitting right in the middle of the train! The return is much more serene.
Third time at Ipswich today and I’d booked some advances for the 2109 to Liverpool Street as the original plan was to get some food before heading home. Instead, I decide I’ll ask the TM on the 2009 if I can jump on that. Whilst I’m waiting, a unit comes in and it’s only when it appears to be 3 units joined together that I realise that this is the 2009! I’d forgotten it wasn’t a loco hauled service which was probably the reason there were no advances available for it. I have to dash down the platform as the TM is in the middle unit. He says that “as there is nobody else on board then you might as well get on”! Everything happened so quickly I forgot to take the number or a photo.
Liverpool Street is reached slightly early and I make a swift dash across the concourse and reach the subsurface platforms just as a Circle line train arrives. Farringdon is reached at 2129 and I see what I think is the 2130 to Bedford in the NR platforms so dash across the bridge only to find it’s the late running 2123 to St Albans. The 2130 arrives at 2133 and I’m back in Bedford about 2230 and home by 2300, an hour and a half ahead of schedule. Time for a cuppa and a Corrie catch up.
I realised when I got home that I’d gone the whole day without coffee so my Pumpkin card remained unstamped! On the plus side, I wrote to Greater Anglia about the shambles at Ely and they sent me £26 in vouchers as compensation. No idea how they got to that figure but it’s almost enough to get me a repeat (though hopefully not exact) trip this year
Notes
1 See Monty Python’s Contractural Obligation Album, The Booshop Sketch
2 See note 1
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