ColinW

Have just had a chance to have a catch up, and have to say your buildings look superb, but that is not a surprise to me. I particularly like the engine shed. Colin

Thank you for informing me yesterday, at the Tonbridge exhibition, of Tony's passing. It was a shock to hear the sad news. Condolences to his family. Colin

I always seeing Canute Road Quay, at an exhibition. Glad you enjoyed the Tonbridge show yesterday Graham. Colin

As the show has now finished and the equipment put away, the club would like to thank the layout owners & operators, traders, Demonstrators, neighbouring club members, and our members wives for helping to make a successful show. The weather and the A21 closure did not help us. Next year will be the club's 40th, and the date will be Saturday 20th February, 2021. Colin

Just 40 minutes to opening the show. I am upstairs on the club display stand, so will be discussing anything to do with the club. Any RMWeb members around, do come and say hello. Colin

On behalf of Tonbridge MRC, we are sorry to hear the sad news of Vernon's passing and would like to send our condolences to Kerry and family. Colin

Unfortunately Ville a La Champagne have had to withdraw from the show. Colin

Will be starting a busy day shortly, collecting barriers and moving our equipment, before starting to set up the show this evening. For the layout owners and trader's travelling to us today, have a safe journey and we look forward to seeing you later on. Colin

That was before Christmas. The river is nowhere near as high to cause this over the weekend.

Unfortunately Roxey Mouldings have had to withdraw due to family member's poor health. The club would like to wish them a quick recovery. It is club night tonight, and we shall be getting some of the equipment we use out of its store, ready to be moved to the Angel Centre tomorrow. Colin

We look forward to seeing you at Tonbridge this Saturday Graham. Colin

In recent years, we have been fortunate in that there have been long queues of people waiting to get into the show, as we opened. We do try and get people into the show as fast as we can, but if you are attending you can help as well. If you do not wish to spend a long time queueing (and I believe the weather for Saturday is not great), then can I suggest delaying turning up until late morning/lunchtime, as the queue should have gone by then. If you do want to get into the show at 10.00am (-ish) then can I please ask that you have the correct admission money with you. PLEASE NOTE WE CANNOT ACCEPT CREDIT OR DEBIT CARDS FOR PAYMENT ON ADMISSION, OR ON THE CLUB'S SECOND HAND STAND. There are several ATM's available close to the Angel Centre, should you need to get some money out. Colin

We have now had confirmation from the Highways Agency, that the A21 will be closed in both directions, from the Sevenoaks Weald (Morleys) Roundabout and the Vauxhall lane exit. I have added a PDF from the Highways Agency showing the diversions they will be putting in place, whilst avoiding Tonbridge High Street, the road traffic around Tonbridge will be increased. If you wish to drive into Tonbridge and want to avoid using the A21, you can either take the M20, exit at Junction 2, and take the A227 to Tonbridge, or M26, exiting at Junction 2a and follow the B2016 and A26 to Tonbridge. Alternatively, you could park in a neighbouring area and take a train into Tonbridge, as there will be regular services from the areas I mentioned in the 7th posting on here. There will be direct services to Tonbridge from London Victoria as well as London Charing Cross on the Saturday because of the engineering works already mentioned. Unfortunately Simply Southern have had to withdraw from the show due to Ill health. We hope they recover quickly. Colin GFD20_0010 A21 Improvement Scheme A4 leaflet Engage Van_Revised 2020.pdf

We have received information that the Highways Agency are planning to do some repairs to the A21 from Morleys roundabout to Vauxhall Lane exit, between 14th-24th February. It is possible that they are planning on closing the road completely ( we are trying to clarify the situation) and as such the road traffic is likely to be diverted through Tonbridge, so for anyone planning to drive to the show please be aware of this. Once we have clarified what is happening I will up date this thread. Colin

AS I mentioned in the travel details, there has been a landslip on the Tonbridge to Redhill line. Network Rail have now stated that this should be completed by the end of March. Because of this, there will be a replacement bus service between Redhill and Edenbridge. Colin

With 4 weeks to go to the exhibition, we have unfortunately had Polcombe Depot (layout) and Roneo Models (trader) withdraw from the show. We have been able to bring in 2 more layouts and another trader. Layouts: Docklands O BR East London 1957-1964 Lynsford OO BR Southern region South Coast Trader: Doug's model trains & tools. More information will be given when I have it. Colin

Some travel information. Travelling by road: Please note that there will be no specific road signs for the exhibition itself. People are advised to follow road signs to the railway station, which is a 5 minute walk away. As they get closer, the road signs will start to show Sainsbury's or the Angel Centre. There are several Pay & Display car parks close by, both short and long term, the long term ones are mainly the smaller ones just away from Sainsbury's. Travelling by rail: Tonbridge station is served by trains coming from Hastings, Tunbridge Wells, Ashford International, Folkestone, Dover, Canterbury, Ramsgate, Redhill, and from London Charing Cross, Waterloo East & London Bridge. At the moment there are planned engineering works between Hither Green and Chislehurst, which means that Tonbridge services may be diverted or slightly delayed. Also the Tonbridge - Redhill line is partly closed, between Edenbridge and Redhill because of a landslide. It is hoped that this should be repaired and opened by the time of the exhibition. On arrival at Tonbridge station, People should leave by the main entrance, turning left and walk down to the roundabout. As soon as you leave the station you should be able to see Sainsbury's. As you get to the roundabout, you need to cross over the road, (please note there are pedestrian crossings just to the right of the station entrance) and then follow the road round to the right. You will see Sainsbury's petrol garage. Walk towards this, again crossing over the road. As you get to the mini roundabout by the petrol station, turn left and walk towards the car park. The Angel Centre is at the far end of this car park. Colin

Unfortunately The End of the line and Lower Exbury have had to withdraw from attending the show. More information will be given when I have it Colin

Despite all of the work that has been carried out on Avon Junction, this week we have taken the decision to retire the layout, as we cannot guarantee operational reliability. The layout was first exhibited by its previous owner & builder in 1998, and I have been fortunate enough to have been involved with it since then, and it has been a great layout to operate. Unfortunately the last couple of years have seen it blighted by electrical problems, and despite continual rectification, they kept appearing. Since its first exhibition (Tonbridge 1998) the layout has appeared at about 20+ shows, and was continuing to receive some good comments, especially various parts of the scenery. Thank you to everyone who has commented on the layout either at a show or on here, and to the people who have assisted with the layout over the years, and to the exhibitions that have had the layout at their shows. It is possible that we will start another layout in the near future. Colin

A quick update. Unfortunately Rectory Grove to West Park is no longer attending, but we have several confirmations to add to the exhibits. Layouts: Coffee table layout N gauge Trams to the park O gauge Traders: Severn Models Societies: Colonel Stephens railway museum More information will be given when I have it. Colin

I will be helping to operate Southbridge, so come and say hello. Colin

Some excellent layouts on display today, meant it was well worth the trip round the M25 in the horrendous rain this morning. Hopefully the weather and the rugby didn't affect the numbers through the door too much. Colin

Hi Dave I am a member of Tonbridge MRC. Colin

Thanks for the replies, I believe we will do some test pieces before we start fixing the backscene to the layout. Colin

Thanks for that, something for us to consider. Colin