25th September 2018

Westerns in the Westcountry
The 1970s
Roger Winnen

730600 An express from Newquay to the North of England hauled by a Western passes through Quintrell Downs. Its June 1973. Copyright Roger Winnen

740615a Most probably D1028 Western Hussar approaching St Dennis Junction with the 10.05 ex Newquay on Saturday 15th June 1074. Copyright Roger Winnen

740414a D1045 Western Viscount heads the 10.30 Paddington Penzance through Defiance Platform on 14th April 1974. Copyright Roger Winnen

740209a D1072 Western Glory passes through St Budeaux Ferry Road on 9th February 1974. Copyright Roger Winnen

740411a D1029 Western Legionnaire in a rather run down condition at Chyandour, Penzance. 11th April 1974. Copyright Roger Winnen

Exeter and Teign Valley Ralway
​More Exhibits
​at Christow
Colin Burges

New exhibits at Christow. May 2018 Copyright Colin Burges

Finished in May were two buildings of which there must once have been thousands around the railway system in various sizes and shapes.

The small Samuel Taylor lamp hut came from Teignbridge Crossing and the Joseph Ash hut stood above the well here at Christow.
  
​The Pumphouse is to be the annex of the exhibition for those items not needing to be kept warm and dry.

The explanatory label to the left of the poster board is available in the PDF below.

The blurb on the poster board, including the reproduction Teign Valley closure notice and a map of what an extensive local public transport system looks like, can be found a little way down on the E. & T.V.R. "The Railway" pages:

http://www.teignrail.co.uk/the-railway.php

Some pictures of the Pumphouse being erected can be seen here:

http://www.teignrail.co.uk/production.php#1928

              Cheers,  Colin     Many thanks indeed Colin

Barton Hill Visitor
Guy Vincent and Karl Hewlett

Bristol Barton Hill 994022 19th September 2018 Copyright Guy Vincent

​For some time Tyne & Wear Metro 2-car unit 994022 has been visible from passing trains outside Bristol's Barton Hill depot, now used by Arriva Traincare as a stabling and servicing point. Contract refurbishment on a variety of stock is also undertaken here with GWR's class 158 sets currently being attended to.  Information on the Tyneside unit is sketchy but it seems it arrived by road during the first week of July 2017 reportedly for derailment repairs.  The unit was built by Metro Cammell at Washwood Heath, Birmingham in 1978 but quite what the future holds is unclear.    Gale force winds on 19th blew off one of the tarpaulins covering the set but once the weather improved this was quickly replaced during the afternoon. A rare chance to see the 40 year old veteran from a passing train temporarily halted at signals next to the depot.
               Guy Vincent   22nd September 2018

​ Many thanks to Karl Hewlett for this very detailed additional information :- In response to Guy Vincent's question about Tyne and Wear Metrocar 994022 being at Barton Hill Depot Bristol, this unit received accident damage just outside of their South Gosforth Depot in a shunting manoeuvre coupled with other sets 4002 and 4072, although only 4022 received damage.  The centre section of this unit is where the damage is and apparently quite severe, the unit almost ended up on its side with one part wanting to go the opposite direction from the other.  I believe the most damage and perhaps not visible in Guys image is on the other side, but I know there is damage to its bodywork panels, rubber interconnector (the gangway connection between the two coaches), plus damage to its central bogie.

The sketchy part is what happened and what is its fate.  I did find out that a circular going around the depot was the driver did a SPAD and then tried to rectify this by reversing it and then derailed on a point, whether this point was in the process of being cleared and if this was a routine clearing or if someone had realised what had just happened and tried to advert disaster further is not known, but it did a Long Rock depot HST on it anyway.  The unit at one point was going for repairs at Wabtec but this has obviously changed, it is known that DB Regio a subsidiary of Arriva are footing the bill if repairs are done as the incident happened before they handed over the reigns back to Nexus.  I'm not sure if that has anything to do with its move further south perhaps eventually going to Arriva's depot at Canton, but others are now saying it has been officially withdrawn being beyond economical repair.  Tyne and Wear's sole depot of South Gosforth has got space issues and there has been rumour the repairs are beyond the depots capability, but these sets are supposed to be gradually withdrawn in the near future as Nexus are currently in the process of getting tenders for new sets in the 2020's with Bombardier being one of the bidders.

             Regards,  Karl (Friends Of Penmere Station).
​
​Many thanks to both Guy Vincent and Karl Hewlett for your time and trouble. We await further news of 994022.