The changing face of Bristol

[Vanders]

DB968001/D8233 lurking in the background in the 4th picture, I see!

[Darius43]

DB968001/D8233 lurking in the background in the 4th picture, I see!

I noticed this after I had scanned the image. Pity I didn’t realise this back in 1985 as I could have zoomed in on it. Although all I had zoom wise at the time was a 135mm lens so it might not have been that much bigger.

 

Cheers

 

Darius

[Andy Kirkham]

Travelling into Temple Meads from Redland yesterday I was rather surprised to see a pair of Tyne & Wear Metro cars standing at Barton Hill depot. They were sheeted over but enough was visible (including the distinctive M logo on the end) to make identification certain.

Edited December 9, 2018 by Andy Kirkham

[JZ]

Travelling into Temple Meads from Redland yesterday I was rather surprised to see a pair of Tyne & Wear Metro cars standing at Barton Hill depot. They were sheeted over but enough was visible (including the distinctive M logo on the end) to make identification certain.

They've been there for a few weeks, no idea why though.

 

Edit. It's been there since July, waiting for repairs following a derailment. Why it should be sent to an Arriva facility in Bristol is still a mystery.

Edited December 9, 2018 by JZ

[Fat Controller]

They've been there for a few weeks, no idea why though.

 

Edit. It's been there since July, waiting for repairs following a derailment. Why it should be sent to an Arriva facility in Bristol is still a mystery.

Aren't Nexus and Arriva part of the same conglomerate?

[Edwin_m]

Aren't Nexus and Arriva part of the same conglomerate?

Nexus is the public body responsible for the Metro.  Arriva operated it for a while but Nexus have recently taken it back in house. 

[KeithHC]

Has the four track come in to use yet. I thought it was meant to happen with the 8th December timetable change.

 

Keith

[JZ]

Has the four track come in to use yet. I thought it was meant to happen with the 8th December timetable change.

 

Keith

It's been running for weeks. And what 8 December tiimetable change was that?

[royaloak]

It's been running for weeks. And what 8 December tiimetable change was that?

Probably the one which took place on the 9th, close enough though.

[JZ]

Probably the one which took place on the 9th, close enough though.

Still scratching my head on this.

[royaloak]

Still scratching my head on this.

The Winter timetable started on Sunday 09th December.

[Captain Kernow]

I had the opportunity to travel on a few local trains between Bristol TM and Bristol Parkway today and took a few photos at various locations, showing the new quadrupling works in operation, plus some on-going footbridge construction at Stapleton Road:

 

 

[bgman]

CK- in the post today , dundid.

[Captain Kernow]

Apologies for the fact that they aren't in order, but I don't know how to caption photos on this new system.

 

Here are some more, anyway, these are of Filton Abbey Wood:

 

[Captain Kernow]

Another one taken from the overbridge at Lawrence Hill, looking back towards Bristol TM:

 

[Tim V]

That footbridge at Stapleton road is nearly as long as the platform!

[Captain Kernow]

A few taken at Bristol Parkway, showing the new platform 1 and a Class 800:

 

 

[Captain Kernow]

One of the new mid-platform signals at Bristol TM, which have replaced the St Andrews crosses:

 

 

[Captain Kernow]

3 minutes ago, Tim V said:

That footbridge at Stapleton road is nearly as long as the platform!

Sadly you are right, it's absolutely massive. I had no idea it was being put in there.

 

At least it's good to see serious money being spent on railway infrastructure west of Swindon.

 

[101]

17 minutes ago, Captain Kernow said:

Sadly you are right, it's absolutely massive. I had no idea it was being put in there.

 

 

 

 

I've not been up the bank since I retired - what a monstrosity that is 

[Mike Storey]

20 minutes ago, Captain Kernow said:

Apologies for the fact that they aren't in order, but I don't know how to caption photos on this new system.

 

Here are some more, anyway, these are of Filton Abbey Wood:

 

 

These photos are very meaningful for me. I was the Senior Programme Manager in Railtrack Major Projects for the third platform at Filton AW in 2003/04, funded mostly by the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA), although the works were delivered by our colleagues at Swindon. The embankment shown in your fourth photo was our nemesis. The local civil engineer declared this to be unstable, having been built in a time when minimum embankment gradients were more flexible, and the embankment was declared to be in significant danger of partial collapse if we built closer. We therefore had to slew existing tracks away in order to fit the third track at a minimum distance from the foot of the embankment, and we had to foreshorten the extent of the third track as a consequence. The new gabion base walls and the apparent re-profiling and new drainage routes of the embankment are exactly what we wanted to do, to allow passive provision for what we knew would be needed eventually. If only we had the money then, but SRA funds did not extend to that, at the time.

 

[Captain Kernow]

2 minutes ago, Mike Storey said:

 

These photos are very meaningful for me. I was the Senior Programme Manager in Railtrack Major Projects for the third platform at Filton AW in 2003/04, funded mostly by the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA), although the works were delivered by our colleagues at Swindon. The embankment shown in your fourth photo was our nemesis. The local civil engineer declared this to be unstable, having been built in a time when minimum embankment gradients were more flexible, and the embankment was declared to be in significant danger of partial collapse if we built closer. We therefore had to slew existing tracks away in order to fit the third track at a minimum distance from the foot of the embankment, and we had to foreshorten the extent of the third track as a consequence. The new gabion base walls and the apparent re-profiling and new drainage routes of the embankment are exactly what we wanted to do, to allow passive provision for what we knew would be needed eventually. If only we had the money then, but SRA funds did not extend to that, at the time.

 

How very interesting, Mike.

 

I was the operational lead at the time, working for the Area General Manager at Bristol.

 

Do you remember the 'Gold Control' we set up in Bristol Panel for the duration of the major blockade?

 

2004 was quite a busy year for engineering works, as I recall!

 

[ForestPines]

33 minutes ago, Captain Kernow said:

Sadly you are right, it's absolutely massive. I had no idea it was being put in there.

 

 

When I first saw it in reality, the bottom of the ramp looked so close to the platform end that I wondered how easy it would actually be to turn around a large pushchair or wheelchair in the space available

[101]

I can't get my head around that footbridge, I presume there will be a corresponding ramp on the up side but there hardly seems to be room, plus it is towering over the houses and looking straight into their windows, I'm surprised it was given planning permission.

Plus given where it is I can't see some of the locals bothering to walk all the way up there and then back down the other side when they can just cut across instead! 

 

Edit to add - thinking about it I guess there won't need to be a ramp on the up relief side just on the main line  side and pushchairs etc can leave via Stapleton road and under the bridge as previously

Edited February 7, 2019 by 101

[rodent279]

11 hours ago, Captain Kernow said:

A few taken at Bristol Parkway, showing the new platform 1 and a Class 800:

 

 

Electric trains at Parkway! Finally, God's Wonderful Railway joins the 20th century!

Edited February 7, 2019 by rodent279