Stoke West

The asthectics of that looks good can see that taking on , waiting for the chelsea tractor version

Trains now take the same time or quicker as 60 years ago serving a much larger selection and frequency of journey opertunities . 1030 off Exeter Central called Sidmouth Jn and Templecombe only , missing out every where else , slow connecting train , then Salisbury , Waterloo arr 1415

In todays world far from how people travelled or didnt in the 60's , yes 60 years ago , its an ideal railway linking a string of towns and ending up filling trains to its far terminus with local traffic . All it needs is reliability , and that applies to the rest of the system as well .

In the 60's there was only Newbury and Westbury stops for a few express's between Reading and Taunton and for the rest of the stations a crap service . Until 1973 Castle Cary was not a call for WofE express's .On the Southern most stations were served by slow stoppers picking up putting off milk tanks , going into and out of Yeovil Town , with express's stopping adhoc at Yeovil jn , Axminster , Seaton jn , Sidmouth jn connecting with branches and the other odd call . The main towns ended up with a much better and faster service of through trains more in keeping with the times and good first class loadings . Ever since singling stations have reopened and service and station calls expanded and up to SWT all the trains looking clean and welcoming , then SWR took over dirty dull depressing trains and a downward spiral . There was never a good north south connection at Yeovil changes being required at Junction , Town and Pen Mill except for about 18 months 67/68 with a single unit between Junction and Pen mill .

The S&D was a basket case in the 1930's and the LMS were looking for a solution then and even complete closure of the Highland line north of Stanley Junction but something intervened . Apart from Bath traffic most of it went to Templecombe and then onto the SR the only other route was via London and congestion or hand over to the GWR at Bristol . There was a lot of concrete sleeper and flat bottom rail installed by the WR on the S&D . Trains had to be banked to Combe Down then Masbury , shunted at Evercreech and Templecombe , come September 64 thro traffic was diverted , much of the Withered arm closed to goods , and traffic sent via Bristol and further afield direct to Exeter . Actually the WR spent a lot on signalling from their boundary at Selly Oak down distant , boundary moved to Linthurst 1958 ,down to Cole on the S&D , the MR equipment being life expired , new boxes at Selly Oak and Ashchurch and a lot of signalling , lower quadrant around Halesowen Jn and upper quadrant on WR posts and brackets , look at photographs of Lansdown and Eastgate stations .

Highfits at Eastleigh full loads with copper ingots for Pirrelli cables . late 60's RTZ had 4W wagons for zinc ingots between Avonmouth / Bloxwich and another destination on a triangular service . Wagons need access for cranage so vanfits not suitable later air brake had wider doors for forks to load . West highland used early air brake OAA then OBA probably tubes or bolsters before

Wasnt there something about locked doors after the Taunton sleeping coach fire

There have been problems there over the years , im sure there has been temporary single line working set up thro the tunnel more than once

Sutton on Trent is actually Grassthorpe crossing and it is still manned gates , spent about four hours there about four years ago and not one vehicle crossed , i presume busy during agricultural peaks . Your contributions are fantastic keep it up .

Theres been a broken sleeper under a rail , running line 90 mph , near cheltenham for five years , its got a yellow cross on it . Get round to to fixing it one day

Trying to work the top one then sussed it was Lawrence Hill , its all the trees that didnt use to be there plus in the bottom one theres more rail getting buried to join the thousands of miles else where

Got it going the wrong way its the 1755 Barnstaple to Exeter , 2B99 was the reporting number for Barnstaple trains

Would that be a non passenger train carrying mails etc , use to get these into and out of Paddington , not the parcel units but passenger units not in service 117's , turn the seats up throw the mail bags in and away , seen it done at Reading.

1558 St Davids to Barnstaple

Last job i seen down that way was Broom Crossing , after relaying a ballast drop 37 dogfish and plough van , tamper was broke down pway having to pack every six by hand with less blokes than todays sites with loads of plant . I think the only plant on site was two ackermans . Its more mechanised now but it seams to take longer . Basic relaying use to be after lifting out track , was two 951's or 110's digging out onto grampus then level bottom ballast tipped off mermaids winched up by hand and dust everywhere if dry

Barnstaple line had a loco hauled Exeter 1558 to Barnstaple 1755 return forming the 1955 to Basingstoke returning on the 0645 Salisbury . On summer saturdays several workings were loco hauled , one busy day (1977 i think) at St Davids a class 25 hauled train load 4 or 5 from Barnstaple ran through on the down main to Exeter West then propelled into platform 4 , seeing as the train ran through , without stopping to question the signalled route it would seem to be an expected if not regular move . When i used it last mk1 tso's in the 5xxx series were on it

Just getting a bit of old age memory or lack of and being an enthusiast on the outside taking an interest . There were no three letter wagon codes at that time anyway , to input into a system . Even the new air braked vans and opens were just branded COV AB , OPEN AB etc .

The first tops office was set up in 1971 at Stoke Gifford sending consists to Exeter Riverside , one of the staff to man it moving down from Worcester . The building was prefabricted , looking like a summer house located on top of the bank behind the downside shunters cabin (only space for it) its in one of davef photos . When it closed 4th October 1971 it lay empty until 1980 when the C&W examiners moved down from Tytherington and it became their office . I think the Tops was then located at West Depot for about a year and then to the Royal Edward Yard .

Made for a good weekend at Yeovil Junction with Waterloo's terminating there and running around , it was like a class 50 gala . Back on topic what about the Fawley to Bromford Bridge workings remember seeing pairs of Cromptons struggling through Eastleigh

J5763 must be the Gunnie to Penyffordd (Padeswood cement works)

I was thinking of trunk hauls such as Toton to Brent on which garretts later worked . The S&D 7F worked to and from Derby on there own later on as restrictions became less i think Stonehouse viaduct rebuild was the final one

Because they already had 2-8-0's so knew their worth . Logically they would have been suitable on the Midland

VoR was diverted into a totally different terminus , its facilities are far more than its origins and its moved again

1A45 is west of Totnes dropping down from Tigley

I reckon #6 is at Greskine