Western Region 1980s freight - West of England Division, my photos

[Rivercider]

Whilst at Exeter I can illustrate some of the traffic heading to the west country.

Although there were never any Speedlink trunk trains to the west country there were a number of important feeder services.

6B39 05.40 Severn Tunnel Junction - St Blazey, and the 6C39 return were the first to be introduced.

These services called at Taunton, Exeter Riverside and Tavistock Junction. 

 

47381 heads 6B39 from Severn Tunnel Junction through Exeter St Davids, 

the first four vehicles are empty clay tigers, then a cargo wagon, a ferry van, another clay tiger.

50023 Howe heads towards the loco spur having arrived on the 06.41 from Salisbury, 31/0/83 

 

Another view at St Davids, this time in 1985 after the resignalling of the Exeter area.

47097 heads the weekday trip from Riverside - Heathfield.

Next to the loco are 2 clay tigers to be loaded at ECC Heathfield, these have been added to the front

of a set of loaded TTAs from the Gulf refinery at Waterston for the terminal at Heathfield.

These wagons all returned to Riverside later that day on a trip behind 33021, 9/7/85.

 

A special airbraked trip from Exeter Riverside to Tavistock Junction passes through platform 4 at Exeter St Davids behind 45034.

The first two vehicles look like PAA covhops which worked from Goonbarrow to Markinch with china clay for Tullis Russell.

Behind that are TTAs, would they be for ESSO at Cattewater, not sure about the first 3 or 4,  those towards the rear look like bitumen tanks.  

 

cheers

 

 

[Fat Controller]

Some lovely stuff there. With regard to the first few tankers in the last view; could they be TTAs carrying LPG to Esso Cattewater? I believethere were both LPG and bitumen terminals there.

[Rivercider]

Some lovely stuff there. With regard to the first few tankers in the last view; could they be TTAs carrying LPG to Esso Cattewater? I believethere were both LPG and bitumen terminals there.

That is what I was thinking Brian.

I have just looked at the Plymouth Cattewater Branch thread, and there is a picture with similar looking tanks in the terminal,

 

cheers

[deltic17]

Fantastic BR Blue photos!

[Rivercider]

Here are another couple of views from Exeter St Davids from 1980, though not the best quality I am afraid.

 

6V53 the empty clayliner from Stoke on Trent would sometimes attach other traffic at Exeter Riverside.

6V53 on the middle road at St Davids hauled by Laira's 46020 seems to have picked up two opens loaded with concrete,

possibly tube wagons loaded with cable troughing manufactured at Taunton Concrete Works. It is flanked by

50014 Warspite in platform 1, and 50010 Monarch in platform 3. 24/7/80

 

At Exeter City Basin there had been a Texaco oil terminal receiving train loads from Avonmouth 2 or 3 days a week

but the terminal closed around 1979.

KIngs Asphalt at Exeter City Basin received bitumen in tanks from a variety of locations over the years,

Ellesmere Port was sometimes the origin of the block train, it also came from Ripple Lane with pairs of Stratford 31s in charge,

Later in the 1980s the traffic came on Speedlink and the local 08 trip pilot delivered the tanks to City Basin. 

This may be 6E33 11.55 Exeter City Basin - Ripple Lane, the locos are 31138 and 31123, 24/7/80

 

cheers

 

 

 

 

 

[ChrisB]

Really enjoying this thread. Thanks for posting all these photos and keep them coming.

[ChrisB]

I should probably post this somewhere else but I would like to say that people's personal collections like this are absolute gold. They are of times and places that are long gone and can never be revisited. In a context like RMWeb, they provide evidence of all kinds of things large and small that may not exist elsewhere. There must be thousands of prints and slides in shoeboxes up and down the country with priceless images. I hate to think how many have been destroyed because their owners considered them to be of no value.

 

You don't ever need to apologise for lack of quality, just for not posting them fast enough !!! They are all gems.

 

Thanks again.

Edited March 25, 2014 by ChrisB

[Linners]

Rivercider,

 

Many thanks for posting these, they're fabulous, and having visited your FlickR site I was thrilled to see some from South Wales  and the Valleys, an area that seldom gets a look in. As to quality and composition, I'm sure that you would have found a willing buyer or publisher! That said, I think it's absolutely fantastic that you have chosen to share these with us.

[Rivercider]

Exmouth Junction Coal Concentration Depot opened in 1967 on the site of the former Concrete Works,

The 1 in 37 bank from Exeter St Davids to Exeter Central was a major obstacle to working heavy trains

and as a result many trip workings from Exeter Riverside required banking.

The 1975 local trip working booklet showed that 8B73 the 09.15 from Exeter Riverside trip no.4 worked by a  Laira class 25

was booked to be assisted in the rear by trip no.1 another Laira 25, similar working continued into the early 1980s.

I have included this badly faded shot from 1979 to illustrate the point.

Although the weight of the wagons is only around 290 tonnes 25223 has the assistance of 25057 to climb up to Exeter Central, 15/5/79

 

Four years later, and the Laira 25s have gone, local trip locos are now class 31s  usually from Bath Road.

Judging by the exhaust the driver of 31260 is preparing to make a spirited assault on the bank, the maximum load for a 31

unassisted up the bank was 340 tonnes including loco, which would equate to around only 7 loaded  21t hoppers (HTVs), 

On the right is 50044 Exeter which was working the 06.35 Bristol - Plymouth, which I had caught down from Weston-super-Mare, 31/10/83

 

cheers

Edited March 25, 2014 by Rivercider

[JohnH]

Brilliant! Great photo's and an excellent historical record.

 

Thanks for posting - please keep them coming.

[Rivercider]

The shunting locos for the Exeter area had been supplied by Newton Abbot until the depot closed in 1980,

after that time the class 08s in the Exeter area were Laira allocated locos.

There were usually 3 class 08s at Exeter in the early 1980s, the Exeter St. Davids passenger pilot,

the Riverside yard pilot which typically worked from 06.00 Monday until 14.00 Saturday, and the local trip 08.

 

The local trip 08 pilot was an important part of the freight scene for many years.

This itinerary is from 1975 though would have carried on for years with some variation to timing.

It departed St Davids at 05.15 to Exeter Riverside from where it worked booked trips until about 19.00.

A typical days work would include a 05.35 morning trip to Exmouth Junction with stores and crippled vehicles for the carriage and wagon shops.

After shunting it would return to Riverside, then work a 08.00 trip to City Basin with bitumen tanks, shunt and return to Riverside.

Then work 11.30 trip to Exmouth Junction, shunt as required and return to Riverside at 14.45.

Next was a 16.05 trip to City Basin to shunt to form up the empty bitumen train.

Then run 17.00 light (with brake van) to Exeter Central to shunt the Blue Circle cement sidings,

then return at 18.30 to Riverside with cement empties for Westbury, finally going light back to St Davids. 

 

Here are three photos from different years that show the local trip pilot in action passing through St Davids.

First a trip to Exmouth Junction with traffic for the Carriage & Wagon shops (coal for the CCD was worked up by a class 25 earlier)

The C&W shops repaired any defective vehicles in the area and could be a very mixed rake, good for the railway modeller to recreate if you like wagons. Coal wagons, clay wagons, engineers stock, even coaching stock could be seen at times. 

08479 on the middle road at St Davids heading for Exmouth Junction with traffic for the C&W shops.

Next to the loco is a syphon G(?) with stores, then a mixed rake of crippled wagons for repair with the brake van at the rear. 24/7/80

  

Next the trip to City Basin

Tanks of bitumen from Ellesmere Port are tripped to City Basin by 08955, 9/3/81

 

And finally the last trip of the day, empry cement wagons from Exeter Central Blue Circle depot.

08792 descends the last few yards of the bank from Exeter Central into St Davids with empty presflos for Westbury,

the train is fully fitted, but the brake van was for the guard and travelling shunter to ride in, 9/7/85

 

cheers 

[jonny777]

Exmouth Junction Coal Concentration Depot opened in 1967 on the site of the former Concrete Works,

The 1 in 37 bank from Exeter St Davids to Exeter Central was a major obstacle to working heavy trains

and as a result many trip workings from Exeter Riverside required banking.

The 1975 local trip working booklet showed that 8B73 the 09.15 from Exeter Riverside trip no.4 worked by a  Laira class 25

was booked to be assisted in the rear by trip no.1 another Laira 25, similar working continued into the early 1980s.

I have included this badly faded shot from 1979 to illustrate the point.

scan0040b.jpg

Although the weight of the wagons is only around 290 tonnes 25223 has the assistance of 25057 to climb up to Exeter Central, 15/5/79

 

scan0038a.jpg

Four years later, and the Laira 25s have gone, local trip locos are now class 31s  usually from Bath Road.

Judging by the exhaust the driver of 31260 is preparing to make a spirited assault on the bank, the maximum load for a 31

unassisted up the bank was 340 tonnes including loco, which would equate to around only 7 loaded  21t hoppers (HTVs), 

On the right is 50044 Exeter which was working the 06.35 Bristol - Plymouth, which I had caught down from Weston-super-Mare, 31/10/83

 

cheers

 

 

I hope you don't mind me adding this poor b/w photo of banking in the hydraulic era, Aug 1968, to your excellent thread.

 

In those days transfer freights were more common between the yards up and down the hill, and Warships were occasional banking engines back then. This is D821 giving a helping hand. Not visible in the photo is D7043 which on the front of the train and at a point somewhere beneath the church spire.

[Rivercider]

Lovely, I was 9 then, and living within sight of Exmouth Junction, close enough to hear the shunting.

Exmouth Junction had closed as a marshalling yard in January 1966 so where would that train be going?

Possibly cripples for Exmouth Junction C&W, or could it be the Newcourt trip?

 

cheers

[Rivercider]

What provided assistance to the trip 08 when it went up the hill to Central?

 

Yes, that is a Siphon G.

The 1987 Freight Train Loads booklet I have does not show an assisted load for a class 08.

The maximum load for a 08 up the bank is 265 tonnes including loco.

The train in the picture appears to have about 10 miscellaneous empty (?) wagons behind the syphon, say average 10 tonnes each (=100)

49 tonnes for the 08, 30 tonnes for the syphon (?), 20 tonnes for the brake van = 199 tonnes, so within weight limit.

 

I only remember seeing the 08 taking crippled wagons up the bank, coal for the CCD was normally worked by 25s or 31s. Though I never saw the early trip

to Exmouth Junction myself,  it may have taken coal for the CCD, at 32 tonnes for each loaded 21t hopper it would have managed about 6 of them plus brake van.

The cement I think was taken up by the loco that brought the train from Westbury with banking assistance, though I never saw or photographed that. 

 

cheers 

[jonny777]

Lovely, I was 9 then, and living within sight of Exmouth Junction, close enough to hear the shunting.

Exmouth Junction had closed as a marshalling yard in January 1966 so where would that train be going?

Possibly cripples for Exmouth Junction C&W, or could it be the Newcourt trip?

 

cheers

 

My hard to decipher notes from the time appear to suggest the headcode was 6B40, so I think that would rule out cripples, although not all headcodes were accurate in those days. I dont have a WTT for summer 1968 unfortunately.

Edited March 30, 2014 by jonny777

[Rivercider]

The former LSWR Salisbury - Exeter route was busy with passenger and freight traffic into the 1960s

but as with other areas freight traffic, which included much milk and agricultural produce, was in decline.

After the Western Region took over the route much of it was singled, leaving limited capacity for freight pathways, and thereafter very little through freight traffic remained.

At the Salisbury end there were local trips to MOD locations serving Dinton and Chilmark as well as fertilizer to the UKF depot at Gillingham.

One service which did run regularly over the route for many years was 7V08 the 05.00 Salisbury - Meldon Quarry with empty wagons to collect ballast for the Southern Region. The second empty train each day 7V80 and both return loaded wokings usually ran via Exeter Riverside and Westbury reversing at both places, this also avoided having to bank a heavy train up to Exeter Central.

33019 runs into Exeter Central with 7V08 05.00 Salisbury - Meldon Quarry, towards the front of the train are a number of Dace, former shochoods converted for engineers use, 11/3/83    Edited to put the correct photo here!

 

7V08 again, this time at Exeter St Davids, and 33021 is the loco, 5/11/81

 

At the Exeter end of the Salisbury - Exeter route there were a number of locations that survived to see freight traffic into the 1980s.

Chard Junction dispatched milk traffic from the Unigate depot on a trip to Exeter each day.

At Newcourt on the Exmouth branch was a MOD RN depot which was served as required by a trip from Exeter Riverside, traffic was sparse and after a last hurrah during the Falklands crisis the depot closed, it has recently become a housing estate.

PInhoe on the eastern outskirts of Exeter had a couple of sidings, there were silos that received occasional grain traffic and Westbrick also sent out wagons of bricks on the Speedlink network.

The final location was Whimple the home of Whiteways cider which had received much rail traffic over the years including coal and apples, by the 1980s traffic was confined to sending out loads of cider in Cov-ABs. The cider factory has also closed and is also now a housing estate.

Another of my poor 1970s photos illustrates the Whimple trip, 25057 comes up through Exeter Central with, what my notes tell me, was a couple of airbraked vans, with a brake van if I recall, 15/5/79.

 

cheers   

Edited April 11, 2014 by Rivercider

[stadman]

 

 

The final location was Whimple the home of Whiteways cider which had received much rail traffic over the years including coal and apples, by the 1980s traffic was confined to sending out loads of cider in Cov-ABs. The cider factory has also closed and is also now a housing estate.

 

Also wagon load of stones (Pebbles) which I think came from the beach at Beer. They were ground down for use in cosmetics.

Kev S

[Fat Controller]

Also wagon load of stones (Pebbles) which I think came from the beach at Beer. They were ground down for use in cosmetics.

Kev S

Is that why some people were referred to as 'stony-faced'..?

Similar pebbles were ground for use in ceramics (hence 'stone-ware'); as the material is too hard to crush as it comes, it's mixed with coke and fired in a kiln. When it's sufficently hot, the pebbles are plunged into cold water, causing them to shatter- the resultant shards are then crushed in a mill. I've done a stint at the bottom of the kiln, making sure the flow of stone doesn't back up- probably one of the least pleasant jobs I've done.

[Rivercider]

Moving north from Exeter onto former LSWR lines there was still freight traffic on the North Devon line which has been well covered

on the 'North Devon line freight in the 1980s' thread, as well as the traffic from Meldon Quarry.

 

Meldon dispatched 4 and sometimes 5 trains each weekday, usually 2 trains going to the Southern Region.

 

Meldon Quarry plant with a selection of wagons in the sidings. To the right are dogfish and sealions/seacows

and on the very left of the photo a shovel loader is waiting to load a rake of grampus being shunted by 08668, 9/7/81

 

50009 Conqueror approaches Crediton with 21 empty sealions/seacows for Meldon, 31/10/83

 

Traffic to and from North Devon included steel plate and cement to Barnstaple as well as china clay from Marland and Meeth.

The driver of 25225 crosses to rejoin his loco ready to work the 17.15 trip to Exeter Riverside. The clayfits had been collected from Marland or Meeth earlier and will be attached to 6M53 clayliner at Exeter, 

 

The other remaining traffic was fertilizer from Ince and Elton to Lapford. A block train of about 14 palvans (PWAs)  would run

once a week or so with portions for Lapford (3 or 4), Plymouth and Truro. The Lapford traffic was detached at Exeter Riverside and tripped to and from Lapford.

 

cheers

[Rivercider]

Now moving east from Exeter up the main line into Somerset.

Before leaving Devon the paper mill at Hele and Bradninch owned by Wiggins Teape

had been receiving coal in 16t minerals until the late 1970s, I am not sure if this traffic lasted into the 1980s

the unloading tippler at the paper mill can still be seen from the train today, though the goods loops and sidings

went when the Exeter Area resignalling scheme got this far.

 

At Tiverton  Junction was an ESSO oil terminal served from Bromford Bridge and Fawley,

I photoed a train of tanks that may well have been for this depot leaving Taunton

33003 makes a spirited departure from Taunton with a train of tanks from Fawley.

Viewed from Forty Steps Footbridge which has been demolished and a replacement is under construction, 24/8/81.

 

Taunton had a number of freight locations in the 1980s, Taunton Cider, Fairwater PAD, East Yard freight depot, and Taunton Concrete Works

 

From the west Taunton Cider was the first to be encountered, located at Norton Fitzwarren, the sidings came off the start of the West Somerset branch Taunton Cider had a road-rail Unimog for shunting. Traffic started up from here in the Speedlink era and was quite important, the Taunton 08 pilot would deliver and collect traffic, Law Junction in Scotland was one of the main forwarding locations.

 

EDIT - I have just found a photo at Norton Fitzwarren with the Taunton Cider siding in the background.

The photo was taken on a summer Saturday of a passing passenger train but behind the train vehicles can be seen stabled 

the CAR (air piped brake van) used for the propelling move, a Procor curtain sided van and 2 VGA vans are stabled for the weekend.

50048 Dauntless speeds west past Norton Fitwarren with a service for the west country, 23/7/83 

 

Next, just to the west of Taunton was the engineers Fairwater PAD (Pre-Assembley Depot) where track sections would be made up ready for relaying work. Incoming traffic was rails from Workington, concrete sleepers in tube wagons from Dowmac at Quedgeley and wood sleepers from the Ditton creosoting plant. Scrap rail from recovered track sections was also sent out. The site has now been relayed and is currently being used by Freightliner Heavyhaul for their engineering train operations.

37s were very rare in this area unless on engineering trains, 37204 was one of the first 37s allocated to Bath Road

and is working 8X06  a 12.00 special from Bristol East Depot with empty wagons and loaded wagons of 'out of gauge'

track sections to be dismantled at Fairwater, it is just approaching the yard.

On the former up relief appears to be a rake of 21t hoppers, these are probably stored out of use. 24/8/81.

 

Taunton East Yard was the freight yard handling cement from Aberthaw, 21t hoppers of coal in the CCD and various other traffic. 

In the early 1980s it also acted as the local sorting sidings and the pilot worked across the main line to shunt the Concrete Works on the up side

of the main line. In the late 1970s/early 1980s the weekday trip to Bridgwater worked by a class 09 or 08 from Bath Road also started from here.

In this view of Taunton East single power car L103 is on driver training duty, 45012 is working 7B54 14.00 Bristol East Depot - Meldon Quarry and the yard pilot is 08955. Presflos from Aberthaw and one of their lorries can be seen in the yard. On the very left of shot are the sidings outside the concrete works. 9/7/85

 

cheers

Edited May 23, 2014 by Rivercider

[Rivercider]

Taking the Bristol route  at Cogload Junction we next arrive at Bridgwater.

The yard at Bridgwater was awkward to work with a very short head shunt behind the up platform,

I think this stemmed from the fact that a large portion of the north or Bristol end of the yard had been

removed to make way for the UKF/Shellstar fertilizer depot that occupied much of the area.

Bridgwater yard could be a busy place on weekdays.

In the early 1980s a trip left Taunton at 06.55, worked by a class 08 conveying general traffic including discharged flask wagons from Sellafield,

this train was booked to carry water containers for the signal box at Cogload Junction. Traffic included occasional wagons of scrap to be weighed on the weighbridge in the yard, also wire from GKN at Cardiff for North Somerset Wire. A Exeter Riverside - London Midland Region freight called to attach the loaded flask later each day apart from Fridays.

There was also a lot of traffic for the Royal Ordnance Factory at Puriton, coal in 16t minerals, tanks of acid, explosive materials and empty vanwides for loading with explosives.

The UKF/Shellstar siding received a block train from Ince and Elton once a week, and British Cellophane received block trains of caustic soda tanks, and later tanks of heating oil.

 

To start with here are some shots from 1980 when the Taunton trip was still running hauled by a class 08, Bath Road had received two class 09s 09024 and 09025 for this work, but they had gone elsewhere by the time I was taking photos.  

08281 has just arrived with the 06.55 trip from Taunton, I think the headcode was 8B04.

Traffic today is a brake van, possibly as a front barrier, a discharged flask, a tank of acid for the ROF, a 16t of scrap to be weighed, and unusually a long raft of empty engineers wagons. The engineers empties were backed off and left in the RSD sidings at the west end of the station. 12/9/80

 

The yard looks deceptively busy, but the grey unfitted 16t minerals, from the ROF, were stored out of use, during the steel strike earlier that year coal traffic dramatically declined and to free up space in yards in the coal fields unfitted coal wagons 16t and 21t were held at various locations around the network, many never saw further use and were scrapped. 

(Was the RSD sidings the site of the original Bristol and Exeter Carriage and wagon works?)

 

After detaching the engineers wagons 08281 is preparing to get the 16t mineral wagon weighed, the acid tank and brake van

are now formed up ready for the trip up the main line to Huntspill ground frame to hand over the acid tank to the ROF shunt loco to take into Puriton, 12/9/80  

 

Later that day 47335 calls with 7M22 09.05 Exeter Riverside - Bescot service, the flask wagon by now loaded with a flask of nuclear waste has been attached to the train. In the formation are 3 empty explosives vans probably from Truro, 3 clayfits, some vanfits and what look like tubes which may be empty from Taunton Fairwater. The loaded flask wagon was always shunted into the spur behind the up platform by the trip pilot 08 ready for the train engine from 7M22 to collect. 12/9/80

 

cheers

Edited April 20, 2014 by Rivercider

[ullypug]

Really fascinating to see freight operation in this part of the world. I was only in my early teens when these pictures were taken and I can just about remember some of the freight working at Taunton.

Thank you for posting!

[andy stroud]

Hi. Thanks for posting all your pictures, I am really enjoying them. They cover the very same areas and periods which interest me most. Just out of interest, as you are now covering the Somerset area, do you have any pictures or knowledge of workings on the Huntspill branch? I think of this line every time I drive down the M5, just to the north of Bridgwater and see the bridge still spanning the motorway. I think it was a fairly late closure (late 80's?) but pictures are almost non existent. I'm not even sure if it was BR worked or privately although I suspect privately, as there were some sort of interchange sidings at the junction.

Edited April 20, 2014 by andy stroud

[Rivercider]

Hi. Thanks for posting all your pictures, I am really enjoying them. They cover the very same areas and periods which interest me most. Just out of interest, as you are now covering the Somerset area, do you have any pictures or knowledge of workings on the Huntspill branch? I think of this line every time I drive down the M5, just to the north of Bridgwater and see the bridge still spanning the motorway. I think it was a fairly late closure (late 80's?) but pictures are almost non existent. I'm not even sure if it was BR worked or privately although I suspect privately, as there were some sort of interchange sidings at the junction.

Hi Andy

 

I presume you are referring to the line into the Royal Ordnance Factory at Puriton, there was a ground frame on the down side at Huntspill just west of Highbridge with a set of three exchange sidings. The line from there into the ROF climbed steeply to cross the M5 on a bridge. BR locos left the traffic in the sidings, the ROF had a loco which would bring out traffic to exchange in the sidings once a day on weekdays. I never went up to Huntspill, I do not think there was road access anywhere near it, and of course the ROF was very secure, I believe armed MOD police would ride out with their loco when bringing  explosives out for BR to collect.  In the picture above of Bridgwater yard 08281 has a sulphuric acid tank from ISC Chemicals at Hallen Marsh and brake van ready for the Huntspill trip which ran mid morning. The main traffic was empty vanwides in and explosives out, though sometimes explosives came in as well. Explosives were dispatched every week day apart from friday as the wagons needed to reach their destination before the weekend as they could not be left in unattended yards. Usual destinations for the vans were KIneton, Glascoed, East Riggs, and Longtown, they would send between 1 - 6 a day. The acid tank arrived about one a week and could not be conveyed on the same train as the explosives due to the dangerous goods regulations, the discharged empty tank therefore was usually sent out on fridays when there were no explosives to go. Coal was received in 16t minerals, I think from Gedling Colliery, very occasionally the coal arrived in 24t MEOs which I think was a colliery error as they were rarely seen on the Western. Coal traffic was sporadic, none for  couple of weeks, then perhaps 25 or 30 wagons would turn up over the course of a week. 

I have more photos at Bridgwater on Flickr, including a couple of the trip going to or from Huntspill,  will post a few more on this thread including later in the 1980s when the traffic was passing in airbraked VEAs,

 

cheers

Edited April 21, 2014 by Rivercider

[andy stroud]

Many  thanks, Rivercider, for your detailed and very informative reply. Much appreciated.