Depot visits?

[James Vertigan]

Does anybody know if TOCs can allow members of the public to visit depots these days for a look around?

I know many, like Old Oak Common, used to hold Open Days a long time ago but it seems those days are long gone.

Living in Acton, OOC is about a mile from me and I often peer through the metal fencing that looks onto the railway near the depot when I'm walking the dogs at Wormwood Scrubs or have a look out of the train window as I pass between PAD and AML to see what's going on.

I know and fully understand it may not be possible in this day of health and safety/public liability etc, but I am a 28-year old responsible adult and not a minor, so it would be nice if anybody knew whether it was possible to arrange.

 

[455driver]

Easy answer is no they cant, the explosion in 'oh I stubbed my toe I am going to sue you' merchants put paid to them.

With all the hoops that have to be jumped through (how do you make a depot admissible to all?) mean it wouldnt be viable, if it cant be admissible to all then it cant be admissible to anyone.

Its a pity really, I used to enjoy visiting depots back in the 80s, the good news is, I only got caught once!

If you just wanted to visit them as an individual then send an email in to ask if it is possible, they can only say no.

 

[Alistair G.]

There are still the odd depot open days.

DRS hold one most years and alternate between Crewe and Carlisle kingmoor ( they are having on this year at Crewe I believe)

I know a Freightliner chap use to hold charity depot tours of Basford hall. Not sure if this still happens but I don't see why it wouldn't

And every now and again there are "special" open days, so just be on the look out, this forum is a good start, but for example the London Underground I believe we're to hold a depot open day neasden to celebrate 150 years, Neville hill recently had an open day (but I believe that was invert action only)

 

[swt_passenger]

Easy answer is no they can't...

Yet there have been two open days at Northam depot, the second not that long ago. There have also been open days at Kings Heath, the LM equivalent. That must be because all those issues don't apply to Siemens...

 

[455driver]

DRS also hold open days!

These are all quite modern depots which probably makes it easier than doing it at an older depot.

A depot is a working environment and stopping the day job so a bunch of trainspotters* can have a nose around isnt really an option because when are you going to do the deferred maintenance?

* Before anyone goes off the deep end, I include myself in that category and have got the platform 5s to prove it!

 

[Crossover]

I also think the simple answer is no

I was fortunate to get to Ardwick Depot a few years ago, which put on a day (or was it 2 days) of tours as part of the Manchester Science Week

Again, a new depot so access wasn't a problem, we went Sunday, so much quieter (and loads of stock on depot) and barriers naturally everywhere!

 

[Class 92]

I have been to a visit to Derby R.T.C earlier this year but cant remember who held it, it was this engineering website that does visits to different places over the country some are railway ones like Derby.

 

[theageofthetra]

Eastleigh had a cracking one a few years back. Great fun.

 

[RichmondCommu]

Back in the late 70's / 80's life was very different. Organised tours to the likes of Tinsley, Toton and Stratford. Not to mention Saturday morning trips round Derby Loco Works. And unofficial trips to Willesden on a Saturday morning with "for gawds sake don't go near the running lines" ringing in our ears! Memories!

 

[Katketty]

There are still the odd depot open days.

DRS hold one most years and alternate between Crewe and Carlisle kingmoor ( they are having on this year at Crewe I believe)

I know a Freightliner chap use to hold charity depot tours of Basford hall. Not sure if this still happens but I don't see why it wouldn't

DRS are indeed holding an open day this year at Gresty Bridge on the 19th of July. Information can be found here.

The Freightliner tours of Basford Hall do still happen but I believe the visits are allocated to certain groups or societies such as Phoenix RailTours, WNXX and the excellent resource that is Freightmaster!

 

[GRALISTAIR]

Back in the late 70's / 80's life was very different. Organised tours to the likes of Tinsley, Toton and Stratford. Not to mention Saturday morning trips round Derby Loco Works. And unofficial trips to Willesden on a Saturday morning with "for gawds sake don't go near the running lines" ringing in our ears! Memories!

Oh yes -and the first time I visited Westbury stabling point in 1971 - al those named class 47 City of Truro, North Star, IKB, Sir Daniel Gooch, George Jackson Churchward. An then I about exploded when on the Sunday afternoon on the way back Toton absolutely ram jam full of locos. Heaven, memories.

 

[Polarbear]

Back in the late 70's / 80's life was very different. Organised tours to the likes of Tinsley, Toton and Stratford. Not to mention Saturday morning trips round Derby Loco Works. And unofficial trips to Willesden on a Saturday morning with "for gawds sake don't go near the running lines" ringing in our ears! Memories!

Oh yes - it was a very different era then! Heaven only knows how many depot's & stabling points I managed to get around (mostly with permission).

For me, the most surprising one was the St Rollox works in Glasgow. Around 1982, I was on a "spotting" trip with a friend in the Glasgow area & we discussed the possibility of getting anywhere near the works. On a whim, my mate found the telephone number in the directory & called the depot to ask if we could have a look around. The reply was, "yes, sure -turn up at the entrance at 10:00 & we'll give you a guided tour"...!!

With some doubt as to whether we'd spoken to a wind up merchant, we turned up at the gate at the appointed time and lo & behold, they were serious! Following a quick safety brief, we were allowed to wander at will around the works and around the assorted sidings outside.

No way would that happen in today's Health & Safety crazed world. :roll:

 

[Eng274]

Was that the springburn works or some other defunct works nearby? I know a few guys that used to work there, sounds very much like the attitude of 25 years ago! Some of the anecdotes I've heard are both startling and heartwarming, real sense of camaraderie back then.

 

[CC 72100]

This has been a big difference that I've found in the past 7 months - in France, the concept of health and safety does not seem to exist.

- Back in February I had a cab ride on the RER A, Europe's busiest railway line. Every month the line's blog offers this type of visits, and so 25 minutes later than planned and having narrowly missed a suicide, off we set from Nanterre Prefecture to Cergy (suburb of Western Paris). Cab ride was about 30 minutes - me, driver, other blog follower, the blog 'host' and the RER A 'Responsable Traction'. Really interesting to see what happens 'at the front' but also to discuss to the future of the (SNCF part of) line.

- Also in February, I went round a metro station/ mini-depot, in service at La Courneuve (Northern Paris). This was organised through Seine-St Denis Tourisme, who do a variety of 'behind the scenes' visits, also organising visits to the Air France cargo centre at CDG, and sessions on the driving simulators at 3 or 4 locations around Paris.

We had an hour and a half talk on the set-up of the line, how everything is organised, then went to the 'departure control room' before taking a train that had just terminated into the sidings/ mini-depot just beyond the station. There we were asked to cross running rails 'without stepping on the live power rail if we could help it' before another hour or so talking to a few of the maintenance guys, and then having a tour of the driving cab and relevant controls on a powered down train in the siding.

Next week I'm off on a guided tour of the RER A / Transilien L & J control room at Paris St Lazare. Once again, through the blog. Crazy that they do this type of visits!

 

[hairyhandedfool]

There are still the odd depot open days....

Yet there have been two open days at Northam depot, the second not that long ago...

Open days, where areas of the depot are fenced off so that people can 'safely' make their way around the depot, are slightly different to Joe Bloggs walking around a live railway enviroment.

So, I believe the answer is, if it is not an open day and you are not an authorised member of railway staff, it is unlikely that you would be given permission to enter a depot.

 

[Oswyntail]

My fondest memories come from a trip to Eastfield in Glasgow in the early 80's. Armed with my permit, I turn up at the gate and the depot manager hands me over to an apprentice who acts as my guide throughout. Obviously loved the place, and talked non-stop about everything that was going on in great detail. The trouble was that his Glasgow accent was so broad I could not understand more than about a tenth of what he was saying. Conversation carried on mainly in facial expressions and "Great" on my part.
[The bus trip from Central was also memorable. Sitting alone on the top deck of the bus, I was joined by two charming girls, who couldn't have been much more than 13 (weekday, schoolday, work it out). They started by asking where I came from, and where I was going, and then proceeded to suggest that I might accompany them home, where they would entertain me quite enthusiastically, so long as I was out of the house by the time their mother came home. They obviously knew what they were talking about! I declined their kind attentions, and they waved me goodbye when I got off the bus, just like normal young girls]

 

[CC 72100]

[The bus trip from Central was also memorable. Sitting alone on the top deck of the bus, I was joined by two charming girls, who couldn't have been much more than 13 (weekday, schoolday, work it out). They started by asking where I came from, and where I was going, and then proceeded to suggest that I might accompany them home, where they would entertain me quite enthusiastically, so long as I was out of the house by the time their mother came home. They obviously knew what they were talking about! I declined their kind attentions, and they waved me goodbye when I got off the bus, just like normal young girls]

Should have said "not today loves. Got a trip round a train depot, haven't I?".

That line would melt any young girls heart!

 

[neilmc]

A mate and I did a Scottish Railrover bashing trip in the early 1970s and got round every single depot except Townhill with no permits whatsoever. We "did" Eastfield just about every day and nobody blinked an eye, although the Ayr shed foreman was a bit surprised when we turned up off of the Stranraer boat train to bunk his shed at about 3 in the morning!

There was a really nice "live and let live" attitude to rail fans in those days, especially in Scotland.

 

[David57]

I always used to find Scottish sheds were very good with enthusiasts!

A question that has bugged me for years, a shed in Edinburgh (Leith Walk)?, an old station, filled with DMU's?

Am I imagining this, as I have never seen anything printed about it!

 

[Crossover]

This has been a big difference that I've found in the past 7 months - in France, the concept of health and safety does not seem to exist.

I don't think it is just France. I was in Slovenia the other week and visited the Railway Museum in Ljubljana. We were told the locos were in "this shed", signalling stuff, uniforms, comms etc in the other one and the turntable was "just round the back"

We left the turntable til last, and it felt very much like we shouldn't have been there. Just had to mind you didn't fall over a track or fall down an inspection pit We also walked across said turntable

It appeared the area was still used by track machines, which were dotted round in various sidings, which we were able to walk round. We also saw the main line, which was just a stones throw away.

I was chatting to an American whilst in Ljubljana and they were saying that the US has a H&S mad culture like we have in the UK - I kind of like the European way in a sense myself...puts more onus on the general public not to be stupid!

 

[gazr]

I fondly remember as a teenager walking freely around OOC. The hill down to the turntable filled with Class 50s, 47s and the occasional 37. In the 90s they started getting shirty and had a hut at the top of the hill, but that didn't stop people using the public footpath around the back that ends up at main shed/scrap line

Getting into the HST shed was harder, but possible depending on who was working at the time. The sidings outside the shed filled to the brim with MK 1s and MK 3s were creepy!

After OOC, it was a brisk walk to Willesden. Getting in there was harder as you have to walk all the way up the drive to the shed, which has the offices facing the road. Being polite and saying you'll only be 5 minutes or so collecting numbers usually got you in the door!

Since '98 I've being living in the USA... I'm looking forward to coming home one day and doing railtouring again (if I can afford it...the prices are CRAZY now). Which reminds me of the OOC Open Days where they shuttled you to the depot from Padddington. Good days

 

[leightonbd]

I always used to find Scottish sheds were very good with enthusiasts!

A question that has bugged me for years, a shed in Edinburgh (Leith Walk)?, an old station, filled with DMU's?

Am I imagining this, as I have never seen anything printed about it!

Leith Central is probably what you are thinking of:

http://www.edinphoto.org.uk/0_edin_...rt_-_railways_leith.htm#leith_central_station


In 'Trainspotting' the young junkies hang out in the disused station - hence the title of the book/ film.

 

[GRALISTAIR]

A mate and I did a Scottish Railrover bashing trip in the early 1970s and got round every single depot except Townhill with no permits whatsoever. We "did" Eastfield just about every day and nobody blinked an eye, although the Ayr shed foreman was a bit surprised when we turned up off of the Stranraer boat train to bunk his shed at about 3 in the morning!

There was a really nice "live and let live" attitude to rail fans in those days, especially in Scotland.

Yes Dunfermiline Townhill was always difficult and eventually did it with NCTS on a Grand Scottish tour with a permit. They had 02 or was it 04 or 06shunters in the early 1970's.

 

[theblackwatch]

Even into the early 90s you could get round some depots quite easily. I remember Hither Green, even though it was on 'third rail' territory, being quite good if one particular chap was on. He wasn't even bothered about you letting him know when you were leaving. I also recall a visit to Old Oak Common around the same time - upon asking if I could go round, the response was something like "I can't give you permission to look round, but I haven't seen you".

Marylebone was an amusing one, as the foreman's office was at the far end of the shed. You could walk up one row of units to get there, get told you couldn't go round, and walk down another row to leave. By then, you had seen about 80% of the units on shed.

 

[IanXC]

The regular places I'd go as a child (not alone you understand!) were industrial estates next to Bescot and St Blazey (when on holiday). Nice quiet place to park up at weekends, with good sight of most of the depots. The other gem was (is) the coaling stage embankmemt at Tysley

 

[Katketty]

Tickets are now on sale for the DRS Open Day at the Gresty Bridge Depot, Crewe on the 19th of July. They are priced at £5 and can be bought here.

 

[455driver]

Tickets are now on sale for the DRS Open Day at the Gresty Bridge Depot, Crewe on the 19th of July. They are priced at £5 and can be bought here.

Done and leave is booked and already granted!

 

[coxy]

Tickets are now on sale for the DRS Open Day at the Gresty Bridge Depot, Crewe on the 19th of July. They are priced at £5 and can be bought here.

Just wondering if you have to buy a ticket in advance, or can you simply turn up on the day and "pay on the door" ??

 

[Katketty]

I'm afraid I can't answer that question. No information was given regarding "at the door" tickets in the news post.

 

[table38]

Poster here says you can pay on the gate