Misc steam railway, traction, station and rail-related news

[editor]

The Falkland Islands Railway:

 

[Roadkill]

Word on the street (well, RailUK forums, which are usually pretty well informed) is that Grand Central have abandoned the London-Blackpool service that was supposed to start next year. It had already been put back due to Covid and now they seem to have pulled the plug completely. No official confirmation yet, though.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Today went to Mount Pleasant, this is the centre of the Royal Mail’s London underground line where they used to run mail from Paddington to Whitechapel, with stops at the major sorting offices in between. The line ran from 1927 to 2003. In 2017 a small section opened as a tourist ride, however this is currently closed cos Covid. So that gave me the chance to walk through the tunnels...


The tourist train...



The tunnel entrance from the maintenance depot...



Inside the tunnels...




Mount Pleasant station...

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Mail train

 

[Spymaster]

Mail train
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Looks like a great day mate.

 

[StoneRoad]

Jealous of that editor - I really want to have a look at MailRail.

I've played with ex-mailrail vehicles, including a 5 and a bit miles ride up a 1 in 80 hill (average / ruling gradient).
Meet the "Gherkin" ...

TiG - Q&C gherkin1 par StoneRoad2013, on ipernity

 

[teuchter]

Jealous of that editor - I really want to have a look at MailRail.

Congratulations to Bahnhof Strasse on his promotion.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Congratulations to Bahnhof Strasse on his promotion.

Was only a matter of time. Now, where’s that ban hammer?

 

[StoneRoad]

Sorry Bahnhof Strasse and editor ; my bad.

I was distracted by trying to remember where I had put my photo of the Gherkin, so got a bit confused.

 

[editor]

The sound is annoying with loads of thumps and booms but there's some interesting drone footage tracking the old line and archive scenes from 4 mins.

 

[editor]

Behold the electric capstan!

 

[editor]

Oh to be able to travel along a Devon branch line behind a GWR tank engine!

 

[hash tag]

I hear hydrogen powered trains were being tested yesterday with a view to replacing diesels and to save on electrification.

Hydrogen-powered train on track to help sustainable green transport drive

Ground-breaking technology will be available by 2023 to retrofit current in-service trains to hydrogen and remove diesel-only trains from network

www.birminghammail.co.uk

Hydrogen-powered trains are coming to Germany in 2021

All aboard!

futurism.com

 

[teuchter]

Germany seem to be a bit ahead on this, as the UK version is basically an old Thameslink unit with the hydrogen tank and motor bodged into one of the carriages.

But it's certainly going to be interesting to see how this develops. If it proves successful in principle then I wonder what effect it'll have on decisions about electrifying certain lines.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

HS2 should throw a couple of billion on a feasibility study to see if they need the line to be electrified.

 

[Roadkill]

On a similar note to editor's last post, there's a load of Railway Roundabout stuff on Youtube now. It's not the original broadcasts, which don't exist any more, but the old films with new commentary:

 

[StoneRoad]

I'll have to bookmark those for later !

Thanks for the lead Roadkill

 

[Roadkill]

I'll have to bookmark those for later !

Thanks for the lead Roadkill

Put aside plenty of time. They're addictive!

I can't find the programmes 1959 or 1960 on there right now, but they've certainly been there in the recent past so may well come back, and there are clips, such as...

 

[Mumbles274]

This channel has some nice stuff on it, mixture of UK and elsewhere

Manu Guinarte

FROM 'AROUSA TREN' RAILROAD FRIENDS COLLECTION (AROSA BAY/GALICIA/SPAIN). Educational purposes only. Not monetized.

www.youtube.com

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

 

[StoneRoad]

Easily solved - look at the timetables / Real Train Times websites and work out if a service train is likely to photobomb. [assuming that goods trains and things like the NR recording HST aren't about].

A diverted HST almost photobombed "Duchess of Sutherland" but cleared the viewpoint with about a minute to spare ! A situation also know as "punkedatthebahnhof"


TiG - diverted HST par StoneRoad2013, on ipernity

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Easily solved - look at the timetables / Real Train Times websites and work out if a service train is likely to photobomb. [assuming that goods trains and things like the NR recording HST aren't about].

A diverted HST almost photobombed "Duchess of Sutherland" but cleared the viewpoint with about a minute to spare ! A situation also know as "punkedatthebahnhof"


TiG - diverted HST par StoneRoad2013, on ipernity

One of the comments was that that train hasn’t run in time once in the past two years.

I do love the trainspotter photobombing vids, something about the hours of waiting followed by the disappointment pleases me.

See also that Louisiana dome demolition.

And me photographing the red arrows flying up the Thames on an early camera phone, when Frau Bahn called with some inane shite just as I was pressing the shutter...

 

[Puddy_Tat]

some london commuting, 1941

City Bound | British Council

Filmed after the start of the Blitz, City Bound is an exploration of the daily commute into London from the suburbs in 1941.

film.britishcouncil.org

 

[hash tag]

Rip Geoffrey Parker, a tough life and has driven some of the greats.

Geoffrey Parker obituary

Other lives: Steam train driver whose generosity and self-effacing nature belonged to another era

www.theguardian.com

 

[Roadkill]

At Bristol Temple Meads this morning, apparently:

 

[editor]

What a beauty. Yours for just £1.6m

Unique, exciting and steeped in history - Country House Company

Unique exciting steeped in history Old Droxford Station The Country House Company

www.countryhousecompany.co.uk

 

[existentialist]

What a beauty. Yours for just £1.6m

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Unique, exciting and steeped in history - Country House Company

Unique exciting steeped in history Old Droxford Station The Country House Company

www.countryhousecompany.co.uk

That lawn could use a double slip, or something.

 

[StoneRoad]

What a beauty. Yours for just £1.6m

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Unique, exciting and steeped in history - Country House Company

Unique exciting steeped in history Old Droxford Station The Country House Company

www.countryhousecompany.co.uk

Needs a garden railway ...

 

[hash tag]

Needs a railway ...

corrected

 

[editor]

Only slightly rail related but fabulously quirky

Fingerpost signs and antiquated street furniture | Facebook

A group created to document the many fingerpost signs in our countryside & towns, plus any other interesting street furniture you may see.

www.facebook.com