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East West rail, Bletchley to oxford line


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On 16/12/2020 at 16:48, TylerTrainFan2001 said:


I heard behind the weldex crane they have a new white crane and piling machine in the site yard where the former telephone rental car park is? 

 

Pictures taken of the Water Eaton Road worksite around 1100 this morning.

 

A new tented structure has appeared in the last day or so. This is at end of the site nearest the former Telephone Rentals building.

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5 hours ago, TylerTrainFan2001 said:

The road has finally opened after closing in July to opening again back in December, in the new they might re close the road again to replace the bridge. 

Good, think I'll take a drive down there on Sun. Haven't driven along Buckingham Rd past my old office in about 10 years!

Edited by rodent279
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And, Weasel Lane is open again, so you can cycle (muddily) to Winslow that way (you may have). I had a poke round over there on Tuesday and the Sladen Wood worksite was very busy, my assumption being that they are getting ready to replace that bridge entirely, because the abutments are in terrible condition. Will be a pity, because it must be one of the last cobbled-road-surface bridges left in the wild.

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I didn't go all the way through on Tuesday, had already covered a fair distance and was beginning to get hungry, so can't speak from observation, but the guys told me that you can cycle all the way - which may not be the same as the road being open for cars, because back in the summer you could cycle through, but not drive, and that applied in several other places too, near Verney Junction for instance.

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12 hours ago, rodent279 said:

What's the situation at Swanbourne? Is there track still there? Is the road along the railway still accessible?

Cheers N

 

Station building and track has all been removed at Swanbourne, a large number of the platform bricks were donated and recovered by the GWSR - everything remaining has since been demolished. I don't know much more than that I'm afraid! 

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12 hours ago, 1E BoY said:

 

As we are now in Tier 4 no chance of a Sunday visit to find out.

 

These were taken in July 2019 courtesy of the owner of the station house who kept the track in good condition through the platform for many years after the last train passed by. The track was removed either side of the station so there was no likelihood of any train approaching when these were taken and the photographer still wore a hi-viz vest and safety boots!

 

 

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Hadn't realised the buildings at Swanbourne were wooden-that looks like the remains of an original coat of LM region maroon & cream.

BoJo's announcement has put paid to our planned visit with a van to clear furniture from my late father's house this week, so a drive down to Swanbourne, and along Buckingham Road will have to wait until January.

Edited by rodent279
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Only the station building was timber, the house was brick and tile, with add-ons.

 

In one of Bill Simpson’s books, he talks about a nasty accident, where a person walked out of the station door, which was right at the edge of the very low original platform, and straight under a train, in about 1900. That door was then sealed-up to avoid repetition, and it was still like that right to the end.

 

Where the maroon and cream paint was flaking-off, you could see the LNWR dark brown and buff underneath.

 

Very sad to see it go - it was a magic sort of place, frozen in time.

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The closure of Water Eaton Road between 11th - 15th January is to enable a new access road on to this site under construction. This is located between the narrow bridge carrying the four track West Coast Main Line and the remaining sections of flyover.

 

Pictures taken this morning.

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On 19/12/2020 at 20:20, 1E BoY said:

A couple of shots taken around 1500 this afternoon. The large 'corkscrew' was at the Telephone Rentals end of the site off Water Eaton Road no doubt being prepared for tonight's activities.

 

 

 

It's called an "Auger" but I only know that from my short time working for a plant hire company, so I guess "large corkscrew" may be more descriptive to many.

It is nice to see steady progress though.

 

On 20/12/2020 at 09:00, rodent279 said:

I have posted these before, but there's no harm in doing it again. These photos were taken on 12th November 1988. NSE ran Xmas Shopper specials from Aylesbury to MK, via Swanbourne & BY, using class 115 DMU's. These ran over a couple of weekends in the run up to Xmas, and I think happened for a couple of years, until the route's demise.

No idea of the set numbers, maybe @Southof1E top tmd can help, as we were both there that day?

 

 

A Shopper Special run by a TOC. Like a football special, that sounds like something which has now been consigned to history.

Other than railtours, does anyone run something like this now?

 

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On 22/12/2020 at 20:57, Pete the Elaner said:

 

 

A Shopper Special run by a TOC. Like a football special, that sounds like something which has now been consigned to history.

Other than railtours, does anyone run something like this now?

 

Also from the past the "day excursions" which utilised under used rolling stock, especially on a Saturday.

I remember a Birmingham-York trip in an HST, which on it's return missed out Sheffield by using a normally freight only alternative route.

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On 20/12/2020 at 09:00, rodent279 said:

on 12th November 1988. NSE ran Xmas Shopper specials from Aylesbury to MK, via Swanbourne & BY, using class 115 DMU's. These ran over a couple of weekends in the run up to Xmas, and I think happened for a couple of years, until the route's demise.

 

 

I went on one of those trips (can't remember the year) with my boss of the time who was a member of the Bletchey - Bedford rail users group, and I understood it was them, not Network SouthEast who were the organisers.

My lasting memory of the journey was the number of pheasants the train sent up as soon as it got beyond Aylesbury.  Every few seconds there was a russet whir as one took frantically to the air.

 

Edited to add a missing 'h'.  Thanks John!

Edited by mike morley
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Just now, mike morley said:

.... the number of peasants the train sent up ....

 

I thought that feudalism was abolished rather earlier than that - had the exploited peasants built their wattle and daub shacks actually on the trackbed?

 

John Isherwood.

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36 minutes ago, cctransuk said:

 

I thought that feudalism was abolished rather earlier than that - had the exploited peasants built their wattle and daub shacks actually on the trackbed?

 

John Isherwood.

Come and see the violence inherent in the system!

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