I'm turning my attention now to riding the lines of the UK and I've been doing odd curves in my local area but yesterday, I go out of Wigan to build on my work to the east...
I wake up at 5am and leave about 5.40am to beat the Manchester rush hour in order to park up at Wakefield Kirkgate. Here I pick up tickets and buy a sausage bap and coffee from the great breakfast bar here. I peer into the First Class lounge for Grand Central passengers whilst I await the 0744 to Doncaster. I tick off a new TOC here and it is the TOC with the most stylish livery in my opinion.
I notice the train travels achingly most of the way to Doncaster. However, a reddish sunrise brightens me up.
At Doncaster, I await the Goole service by finding Platform 0 first. It is a smart use of area but it does require effort to find it. I also pop into the shopping centre for the toilet to chew up the time.
The train to Goole crawls around the Hatfield area. I assume this is a restriction deriving from the massive landslip recently. I notice Thorne North has a staffed ticket office and indoor waiting room to my amazement.
At Goole, I limber up for a fast transfer for the return service on the other platform. I find out I didn't need to run when the display says 4 minutes to go. I also find out this is direct to Doncaster!
Back at Doncaster, I await another new TOC, Virgin Trains East Coast, and in 20 minutes, we depart for Leeds.
At Leeds, I walk up and over to platform 17b IIRC. It is half-drenched in rain. After a Knottingley services moves, our Nottingham bound train gets the signal and we thrash back to Wakefield Kirkgate. On this train, I deliberate between walking to Westgate and getting the train back, or driving to Normanton and ticking off the Castleford section. I find I'm not going to walk to Westgate in time and set off for Normanton.
At Normanton, the rain is never-ending and so I share this large shelter with several people before our train comes into view. I'm not daft enough to waste time in Castleford so I've already googled that the bus I need is every 10 minutes back to Normanton and move to this very clean and modern bus station. The bus has screens on the top deck that show you the CCTV feeds. The station has electronic timetables as well as a customer service desk. I am shocked at how far Wigan has fallen in comparison. I hope our new bus station will look as good as this.
No sooner am I back in Normanton than I am back driving on the roads and am aiming for Barton-upon-Humber for the 1350 service there. The M62 is sodden so I am ginger on the accelerator. Other cars are more bold. After an hour, I stop and reach into my pocket for the £1.50 to take me over the always impressive structure spanning the Humber.
Parking up in Barton, I am waiting for 15 minutes so I check out the basic station. The shelter doubles up as the bus stop shelter where two mid-20 somethings hold placards and magazines encouraging new members of their Christian denomination to join. The single unit rumbles into view and about 6 people get off. I get on with 5 people, 2 could be members of this forum as they had Northern-branded rucksacks (They weren't staff in casual gear before anyone asks!)
We pick up at every station apart from Thornton Abbey, Grimsby Docks and New Clee, which the driver speeds through. I'm surprised that a young woman and her child did a journey from Barton to Goxhill but it is good to see this line being used for journeys solely north of Habrough.
We arrive at about 2.40 which gives 15 minutes to find the toilets locked, pay 30p to use the ones in the amusement arcade, put a couple of pennies in a slot machine and be unlucky, walk over to the seafront, linger at the decay of the once fine resort of Cleethorpes, wait in a queue at a nearby chip shop before noticing time ebbing away and making do with the station's vending machine for crisps and a Bounty.
I notice our conductor is now a young Transpennine Express employee and not the previous Northern one.
I then think of some questions:
1) When will EMT run this service?
2) How exactly do Northern and TPE run the Barton line at present?
3) I notice the staff token being handed at Oxmarsh crossing but a short distance later is New Holland with manual gates. Is there a signaller/crossing keeper at New Holland?
4) Stallingborough signal box is new-ish and very large considering where it is. What does it cover?
5) I notice the token is a wooden bottle-shaped object. There are several of these tokens up and down the country. Is there a comprehensive picture gallery of these as they aren't all the same shape?
I return to my car about 3.40 pm and know that I am going to eat at Meadowhall as this is an hour away according to Google. I follow an A-road past South Ferriby and appreciate the views of the South Humber landscape as I'm stuck behind a truck in unknown territory. I also am taking this route so I can use the M181, another previously unsued Motorway for me (as well as the M2 (Kent) and M69).
I arrive at Meadowhall with 12 minutes to spare for a very busy service out of Sheffield to do the line just upto Barnsley and back stopping everywhere and climbing and descending on some punishing gradients as I note on leaving Wombwell. The conductor is efficient in ticket checking and operating the doors in a timely fashion. Soon, the Interchange comes into view. Here, I wait for only a short time until the fast service to Nottingham takes me back direct to Meadowhall.
I am pretty tired now and just stop in the food court at an empty table to check my phone and people watch as I decide between fast food, Wetherspoons, Five Guys and Nandos. I try Five Guys and am blown away at how much I've been ripped off for admittedly good food but for what is essentially McDonald's grub.
I further refresh myself in Wetherspoon's with a cup of tea and then check the times for the Wakefield Kirkgate-Westgate hop. It is hourly until 10pm so I make haste up the M1 and catch the one at 2005.
As I walk through Wakefield, I compare it to Wigan. We have two stations, a river, a pedestrianised area, a town centre on a hill, a big church, derelict/empty shops, a shopping centre and out of town shops nearby and a one-way system of sorts. I still wouldn't change being a Wiganer for anything.
I drive back through Dewsbury, Elland, Barkisland, Ripponden, Rochdale, Bury, Heywood, Bolton and Westhoughton along the A58 just for fun and am amused at the silly drivers racing around in built up areas as I just plod on home. There are splendid views as you drop into Elland and Littleborough which you must check out.
0744 Wakefield Kirkgate - Doncaster
0855 Doncaster - Goole
0924 Goole - Doncaster
1012 Doncaster - Leeds
1106 Leeds - Wakefield Kirkgate
1155 Normanton - Castleford
1350 Barton - Cleethorpes
1455 Cleethorpes - Barton
1712 Meadowhall - Barnsley
1740 Barnsley - Meadowhall
2002 Wakefield Kirkgate - Wakefield Westgate
Tickets
Wakefield - Doncaster return
Doncaster - Goole return
Wakefield - Leeds return
Normanton - Castleford single
Barton - Cleethorpes return
Meadowhall - Barnsley return
Wakefield Kirkgate - Wakefield Westgate single
Castleford - Normanton bus single
Humber Bridge ticket
Tickets - £47
Food and Drink - £25
Car Park - £2
Total = £74
I wake up at 5am and leave about 5.40am to beat the Manchester rush hour in order to park up at Wakefield Kirkgate. Here I pick up tickets and buy a sausage bap and coffee from the great breakfast bar here. I peer into the First Class lounge for Grand Central passengers whilst I await the 0744 to Doncaster. I tick off a new TOC here and it is the TOC with the most stylish livery in my opinion.
I notice the train travels achingly most of the way to Doncaster. However, a reddish sunrise brightens me up.
At Doncaster, I await the Goole service by finding Platform 0 first. It is a smart use of area but it does require effort to find it. I also pop into the shopping centre for the toilet to chew up the time.
The train to Goole crawls around the Hatfield area. I assume this is a restriction deriving from the massive landslip recently. I notice Thorne North has a staffed ticket office and indoor waiting room to my amazement.
At Goole, I limber up for a fast transfer for the return service on the other platform. I find out I didn't need to run when the display says 4 minutes to go. I also find out this is direct to Doncaster!
Back at Doncaster, I await another new TOC, Virgin Trains East Coast, and in 20 minutes, we depart for Leeds.
At Leeds, I walk up and over to platform 17b IIRC. It is half-drenched in rain. After a Knottingley services moves, our Nottingham bound train gets the signal and we thrash back to Wakefield Kirkgate. On this train, I deliberate between walking to Westgate and getting the train back, or driving to Normanton and ticking off the Castleford section. I find I'm not going to walk to Westgate in time and set off for Normanton.
At Normanton, the rain is never-ending and so I share this large shelter with several people before our train comes into view. I'm not daft enough to waste time in Castleford so I've already googled that the bus I need is every 10 minutes back to Normanton and move to this very clean and modern bus station. The bus has screens on the top deck that show you the CCTV feeds. The station has electronic timetables as well as a customer service desk. I am shocked at how far Wigan has fallen in comparison. I hope our new bus station will look as good as this.
No sooner am I back in Normanton than I am back driving on the roads and am aiming for Barton-upon-Humber for the 1350 service there. The M62 is sodden so I am ginger on the accelerator. Other cars are more bold. After an hour, I stop and reach into my pocket for the £1.50 to take me over the always impressive structure spanning the Humber.
Parking up in Barton, I am waiting for 15 minutes so I check out the basic station. The shelter doubles up as the bus stop shelter where two mid-20 somethings hold placards and magazines encouraging new members of their Christian denomination to join. The single unit rumbles into view and about 6 people get off. I get on with 5 people, 2 could be members of this forum as they had Northern-branded rucksacks (They weren't staff in casual gear before anyone asks!)
We pick up at every station apart from Thornton Abbey, Grimsby Docks and New Clee, which the driver speeds through. I'm surprised that a young woman and her child did a journey from Barton to Goxhill but it is good to see this line being used for journeys solely north of Habrough.
We arrive at about 2.40 which gives 15 minutes to find the toilets locked, pay 30p to use the ones in the amusement arcade, put a couple of pennies in a slot machine and be unlucky, walk over to the seafront, linger at the decay of the once fine resort of Cleethorpes, wait in a queue at a nearby chip shop before noticing time ebbing away and making do with the station's vending machine for crisps and a Bounty.
I notice our conductor is now a young Transpennine Express employee and not the previous Northern one.
I then think of some questions:
1) When will EMT run this service?
2) How exactly do Northern and TPE run the Barton line at present?
3) I notice the staff token being handed at Oxmarsh crossing but a short distance later is New Holland with manual gates. Is there a signaller/crossing keeper at New Holland?
4) Stallingborough signal box is new-ish and very large considering where it is. What does it cover?
5) I notice the token is a wooden bottle-shaped object. There are several of these tokens up and down the country. Is there a comprehensive picture gallery of these as they aren't all the same shape?
I return to my car about 3.40 pm and know that I am going to eat at Meadowhall as this is an hour away according to Google. I follow an A-road past South Ferriby and appreciate the views of the South Humber landscape as I'm stuck behind a truck in unknown territory. I also am taking this route so I can use the M181, another previously unsued Motorway for me (as well as the M2 (Kent) and M69).
I arrive at Meadowhall with 12 minutes to spare for a very busy service out of Sheffield to do the line just upto Barnsley and back stopping everywhere and climbing and descending on some punishing gradients as I note on leaving Wombwell. The conductor is efficient in ticket checking and operating the doors in a timely fashion. Soon, the Interchange comes into view. Here, I wait for only a short time until the fast service to Nottingham takes me back direct to Meadowhall.
I am pretty tired now and just stop in the food court at an empty table to check my phone and people watch as I decide between fast food, Wetherspoons, Five Guys and Nandos. I try Five Guys and am blown away at how much I've been ripped off for admittedly good food but for what is essentially McDonald's grub.
I further refresh myself in Wetherspoon's with a cup of tea and then check the times for the Wakefield Kirkgate-Westgate hop. It is hourly until 10pm so I make haste up the M1 and catch the one at 2005.
As I walk through Wakefield, I compare it to Wigan. We have two stations, a river, a pedestrianised area, a town centre on a hill, a big church, derelict/empty shops, a shopping centre and out of town shops nearby and a one-way system of sorts. I still wouldn't change being a Wiganer for anything.
I drive back through Dewsbury, Elland, Barkisland, Ripponden, Rochdale, Bury, Heywood, Bolton and Westhoughton along the A58 just for fun and am amused at the silly drivers racing around in built up areas as I just plod on home. There are splendid views as you drop into Elland and Littleborough which you must check out.
0744 Wakefield Kirkgate - Doncaster
0855 Doncaster - Goole
0924 Goole - Doncaster
1012 Doncaster - Leeds
1106 Leeds - Wakefield Kirkgate
1155 Normanton - Castleford
1350 Barton - Cleethorpes
1455 Cleethorpes - Barton
1712 Meadowhall - Barnsley
1740 Barnsley - Meadowhall
2002 Wakefield Kirkgate - Wakefield Westgate
Tickets
Wakefield - Doncaster return
Doncaster - Goole return
Wakefield - Leeds return
Normanton - Castleford single
Barton - Cleethorpes return
Meadowhall - Barnsley return
Wakefield Kirkgate - Wakefield Westgate single
Castleford - Normanton bus single
Humber Bridge ticket
Tickets - £47
Food and Drink - £25
Car Park - £2
Total = £74
