floss_4

Falmouth fish - open possibly 16t minerals but definitely stank! Lostwithiel powdered milk - van VBA or similar usually just one MOD St Austell - flat or well wagon for a vehicle usually just one - Truro may have had more van traffic

These ran in the 80's Coal to St Austell/Ponsandane. Fish from Falmouth Seaweed from Nanpean Fuel to St Blazey Powdered milk from Lostwithiel MOD to St Austell/(Truro?) Was Fitzgerald lighting just in the 80s first time round with BR or early 90's? I know EWS revived it mid 90's. Did any traffic from Hayle, Roskear, Drump Lane exist into the 80's? Didn't know about scrap from St Erth except the EWS trial in the 90's

As well as commercial aggregate traffic ARCs Whatley Quarry also supplied ballast for the Southern Region. Looks like some wouldn't have gone amiss in the station at the time!

I suppose one consolation is that the West Depot is open again and available for other traffic. Avonmouth would have seemed the better option all round though.

Do you know if the wine warehouse now in this area considered reusing the rail connection rather than re opening the Bristol Freightliner Terminal for this traffic?

Thanks for some excellent photos/info. Do you know what traffic is handled in this area today? I know the coal is a big part of it.

Hopefully. If they do not use the railway themselves they will at least benefit from the scheme e.g. A386 being less busy than it would have been, house value boost due to reduced/easier commuting to Plymouth, visitors that support business/jobs in Tavistock etc.

Somebody on the signalling side may put me right but I believe as these are full barriers the crossing must be checked as clear (in this case by the driver) before proceeding. If they were lowered by a treadle further out the train would still have to stop and carry out this check as there is no signaller/CCTV + signals here to do this. This is different to automatic half barriers where there is always an "escape route" for road users.These are treadle/track circuit operated and taken at line speed if the system is fault free (as indicated to supervising signal box or locally by drivers white light).

The signal box closed in 1980 but the yard remained open via the ground frame which is still there today. It received traffic such as the 1982 coal working shown during the early 80s. It was also the only run around facility post 1980 for the motorail carriages which were backed out there after a pilot (usually 37) had released the flats and put them in the siding at the back of the up platform. I don't know if there was any use of the yard by the motorail service when it went 'flats only' for it's last year or 2 of operation up to about 1985? I would guess this would be about the time it ceased having any regular use. I'm not sure when the track was lifted but it was still a derelict site in 2000 shortly after which I think the current development was started.

Had a work visit out there the other day. The track to Friary then off to Cattewater past the former UKF depot, and the 3 remaining roads look to be in fairly good condition considering they haven't had regular use since about 2008. M Thomas did operate this facility along with the similar ones at Truro and Bridgwater. From what I can gather there was some occasional rail traffic their Friary site after the UKF traffic finished in the 90's. They subsequently moved to another location in Plymouth and sold the site next to Friary which is now a housing development. I think they ceased operating 2 or 3 years ago though some one is still operating M Thomas trailers.

The Fowey trips are still running (using the one marooned 66 I believe). I don't know how/if Stoke is being supplied. Would be interested to know if any of the road hauliers are able to carry the tonnage/distance required.

They may have been but are well past it now. Hopefully they were emptied a long time ago. Vegetation and waste spoil have taken over most of the track work in the yard.

Already covered in other threads but 2x bogie tanks at Ponsandane Penzance (for 20+ years?)

Yes probably something like that. I don't think there was any revenue traffic that far west by then.

What was the traffic in the single van coming into St Erth at that time?

Appreciate the hard work being done CK. What's the current situation with this new traffic? I know some work was done to get Truro ready but heard there had been a setback?

Yes but would be even better if some could develop further west such as scrap from Plymouth(again) or the on/off intermodals to Plymouth/Truro.

What's the current situation with this? I notice Exeter and Truro sidings have been 'tidied up' but nothing at Tavistock Jn yet.

Why via Newton Abbot? Is Riverside still DBS infrastructure?

The local staff are aware of this. A major deveg would also be required before attempting to use those sidngs. Apparently there are one or two flows in the pipeline, but nothing seems to be happening at the moment.

Presumably the volumes which I believe were around 26000 tpa were not sufficient to warrant investment in new wagons anyhow (unless there was another flow that could use them). I wonder how long the remaining fuel to Laira and Penzance will last. This used to share the train with the bitumen tanks.

IIRC this train used to be twice a week with approx 20 PCAs and 8 cargowagons. This was following the closure of Plymstock cement works. It used to split at Hackney for the loaded down run with the empties going back as one train following the moves described above. I think some of the local cement distributors are now using sea and road to bring in their product resulting in the lower rail volumes. At least it is still running though albeit from Westbury though I think the cement originates from Hope still. Going back further (pre 1986?) there was a weeklyish service fron Plymstock to Chasewater which could call into St Blazey Yard.

I think it went back to DBS for maybe one train only but nothing else since. Perhaps someone could confirm?