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Westbury freight flows Speedlink era


mabel
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Is 1985 too early?

 

If not, some lesser-known options:

Steel in various "tented" vacuum-braked wagons

post-6971-0-52320000-1389130599.jpg

post-6971-0-26322300-1389130601.jpg

 

Assorted AB freight including UKF fertiliser vans, VEAs

post-6971-0-16655200-1389130606.jpg

 

wagons for/from repair near Frome (can't recall the name of the wagon works offhand)

post-6971-0-83443300-1389130602.jpg

post-6971-0-60365000-1389130604.jpg

 

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The steel traffic shown was probably the Hamworthy flow, this lasted well into Railfreight days using a variety AB steel carriers.  The mixed freight looks like the Severn Tunnel / Eastleigh (normally lots of military traffic on that one).  The Rail Liner IIRC was used on traffic originating from a furniture manufacturer in the Froome area so it would have been a familiar sight around Westbury.???  Additionally there was (is) some flows of oil from Fawley.

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Excellent e/wdivide. Thats exactly the kind of info I am looking for. Nice pic of the unique Railiner ..... Another stalled project of mine! The period Im (trying) to model is mid to late 80's up to demise of Speedlink. Your '85 pics fit just nicely Ta

M

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griffgriff I think the oil was 6v62...... there is a website dedicated to that specific train logging all the motive power for each train from late 80's up to date....

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Another thought - wasn't there also bitumen or something similar to the Frome area, for treating stone to make tarmac?

During the 70s when I was working on the infant East Somerset Railway, there was a bitumen unloading facility at Cranmore station.My memory is hazy(surprise) but I seem to remember the tanks being hauled by class 25s.The facility had probably disappeared by the period in question.

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During the 70s when I was working on the infant East Somerset Railway, there was a bitumen unloading facility at Cranmore station.My memory is hazy(surprise) but I seem to remember the tanks being hauled by class 25s.The facility had probably disappeared by the period in question.

There were bitumen terminals at both Cranmore and Frome. Cranmore was Anglo-American Asphalt (lasting until at least 1984), whilst Frome was Mobil.

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Found some notes from my photos above, 19/7/1985:

Other freight trains included

56051 on Yeoman PHAs (178xx series)

56039 on Yeoman PGAs (140xx, 141xx, 143xx 144xx series)

47144+31108 arrived with engineers wagons, ZKV ex-iron ore tipplers, a crane, and some CPV presflos)

56068 with ARC PGAs (146xx series mostly)

47294 mixed AB freight: Esso TTAs 560xx series, PCAs incl some STS106xx series, BDAs, MOD flat and well wagons, a VEA, VDA, ODA, OAA, OCA and some HEA hoppers

on the avoiding line, 2x56s with Yeoman PTAs

The railiner was in a train with 47247, TRL6950 railiner, two Distillers CO2 STS53269/67, VTG bogie van DB 279 7 030 and another TTA STS53130 (one of the Sittingbourne Clayliner tanks). I'd guess this train came from the wagon works.

37154 with an engineers train: crane+match wagon and some Turbots

56057 on Yeoman PGAs

47242 on the Tilbury PGAs (TBR14500 series)

 

In the yard:

ARC PTA bogie wagons in the PR268xx series

ARC PGAs - various

cement tanks being shunted incl PCB APCM90xx and PCA STS10640/43

 

hope that helps.

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Concerning the Rail-liner: it may have just been for repair at Radstock, as it was mainly used for bagged china-clay traffic. 'Bent Chairs' of Frome did have a one-off air-braked van, but it had solid, rather than 'Tautliner' sides- these had an arrangement of cupboard doors, which apparently caused problems in the Severn Tunnel when they flew open.

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This search only finds a proportion of the westbury photos on my site http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/?q=westbury Some 117 163 photos to be getting on with.

 

Ben chairs here http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/benchairs

 

Railiner http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/trlrailiner

 

Regards

 

Paul

Edited by hmrspaul
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There were bitumen terminals at both Cranmore and Frome. Cranmore was Anglo-American Asphalt (lasting until at least 1984), whilst Frome was Mobil.

 

The Frome and Cranmore traffic originated at Thamesside/Ripple Lane and was tripped forward from Westbury with a drop at Frome enroute to Witham whence the Cranmore traffic was worked up the branch.  The reason for working forward from Witham was the need to split the train depending on whatever loco was used as both the Class 25s and Class 31s that got involved after the Hymeks had gone were relatively gutless machines which couldn't manage more than a (small) handful of tanks on the gradient up from Merehead Quarry Jcn,  Things worked far better when a Type 4 diesel was used although some of the curvature at Cranmore was rather unsuited to a Class45/46 and in any case it was an awkward place to shunt with tendency for tank cars to get derailed or even - on one occasion - finish up so far from the route one had supposed to take through the pointwork as to make it impossible to work out how it had got there.

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Westbury was, and is, one of the most interesting locations in the West Country for freight traffic.

Many of the traffic flows from the 1980s have been mentioned.

 

The Furzebrook - Avonmouth LPG trains of TTA tanks were sometimes routed that way.

 

Here are a few more pictures of freight passing through Westbury.  

 

post-7081-0-46158800-1389187463_thumb.jpg

Seen arriving at Salisbury is 7O42 Severn Tunnel Junction - Eastleigh Speedlink, which had previously called at Westbury.

The formation is 47235, 2 warwells (?), 5 VEAs, 2 TTAs, 2 OBAs, 3 HEAs, etc,  17/7/85

 

post-7081-0-91489300-1389187480.jpg

08949 heads back to Westbury with a trip from the cement works,

some of the PCAs may be flyash empties heading for Longannet, 17/7/85 

 

post-7081-0-77387900-1389187509.jpg

47192 passes through Westbury with BPO tanks, 17/7/85

 

cheers

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Westbury was, and is, one of the most interesting locations in the West Country for freight traffic.

 

Seen arriving at Salisbury is 7O42 Severn Tunnel Junction - Eastleigh Speedlink, which had previously called at Westbury.

The formation is 47235, 2 warwells (?), 5 VEAs, 2 TTAs, 2 OBAs, 3 HEAs, etc,  17/7/85

 

...

 

Just two days before me!

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Just two days before me!

There was good weather that week, I was on leave taking photos, on the Friday I went to Knottingley. 

 

Here is another, later, shot of the steel train taken in 1986 at Salisbury.

post-7081-0-46786400-1389268540.jpg

6O99 Llanwern - Hamworthy is seen at Salisbury East approaching Fisherton Tunnel behind 47236.

Over the years various steel carrying wagons appeared on this service, these are shochoods, 16/6/86

 

And 3 views of 6V79 Eastleigh - Severn Tunnel Junction Speedlink service, first arriving at Westbury behind 47156

and then after remarshalling it is seen departing Westbury at Hawkeridge, 16/6/86.

post-7081-0-59694500-1389269010.jpg

6V79 arrives at Westbury,

the wagons appear to be 5 PCAs, 3 ??? with military vehicles, 1 BDA, 1 VEA, etc

 

post-7081-0-88047100-1389270416.jpg

post-7081-0-26877400-1389269204.jpg

6V79  departs Westbury after remarshalling, passing Hawkeridge Junction.

Formed 1 BDA, 1 VEA, 1 ODA(?), 1 BDA, 4 ODA, 1 VEA, 1 VDA, 6 TTAs ex Quidhampton (?), 4 TTAs  discharged bitumen ex Frome,  16/6/86

 

can anyone ID any other traffic on 6V79? 

 

cheers

 

edit  - to add an extre photo

Edited by Rivercider
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Paul, thanks for posting the links, unfortunately the computer at work wont let me view your site(s)...... Must get internet sorted at home!

Thanks to everyone for taking the time to post pics and details. Big help.

M

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There was good weather that week, I was on leave taking photos, on the Friday I went to Knottingley. 

 

Here is another, later, shot of the steel train taken in 1986 at Salisbury.

attachicon.gifscan0025a.jpg

6O99 Llanwern - Hamworthy is seen at Salisbury East approaching Fisherton Tunnel behind 47236.

Over the years various steel carrying wagons appeared on this service, these are shochoods, 16/6/86

 

And 3 views of 6V79 Eastleigh - Severn Tunnel Junction Speedlink service, first arriving at Westbury behind 47156

and then after remarshalling it is seen departing Westbury at Hawkeridge, 16/6/86.

attachicon.gifscan0026a.jpg

6V79 arrives at Westbury,

the wagons appear to be 5 PCAs, 3 ??? with military vehicles, 1 BDA, 1 VEA, etc

 

attachicon.gifscan0028a.jpg

attachicon.gifscan0027a.jpg

6V79  departs Westbury after remarshalling, passing Hawkeridge Junction.

Formed 1 BDA, 1 VEA, 1 ODA(?), 1 BDA, 4 ODA, 1 VEA, 1 VDA, 6 TTAs ex Quidhampton (?), 4 TTAs  discharged bitumen ex Frome,  16/6/86

 

can anyone ID any other traffic on 6V79? 

 

cheers

 

edit  - to add an extre photo

 

The china clay slurry  TTA's ex-Quidhampton (or possibly Burngallow) were probably heading for Bowaters at Sittingbourne, which was a weekly, sometimes twice-weekly flow.

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With regards to military traffic, it might be worth mentioning that Issue 2 of Military Vehicle Magazine priced at £2.99 contains a 1/72 model of a Warrior MCV80.  Although the model enclosed in the magazine carries sand camo circa 2003 Iraq, it's still quite good value and should be an easy enough job to repaint, whilst it saves having to make a kit?

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