eastwestdivide

I've just posted three photos of 50s at Leicester in response to a question over on another thread:

Following up on the 50 working for parcels at Leicester, here are three more pics from 1983ish. As it was evening and poor light, the quality wasn't perfect, but not too bad for the conditions. 50022 at the head of the parcels train pointing south, very late evening (I think after we'd got back from a long trip somewhere): 50012 coming round the goods lines from the Birmingham direction and reversing by Leicester North signalbox to access the depot (maybe after 7pm?): And the same loco stabled on the depot with the Peterborough-Leic-Derby(?) TPO in the background. That would have been 8-9pm from memory:

Comparison shot from July 2022, with L-R container flats coming out of Tinsley yard, single line to Woodburn Junction, tram lines towards Sheffield. You can still just about see the pipe bridge over the canal on the far left:

Found one of my photos surviving on a previous thread, Class 50 Photos (scroll down a bit) https://www.rmweb.co.uk/topic/84437-class-50-photos/page/15/ where I said ”For a while (1983), there was a working for a 50 to come light engine from Saltley to Leicester in the evening, and take a parcels back in the Birmingham direction:”

I have photos! I thought it worked in light engine from the Birmingham direction, stabled on the depot and then worked some parcels or mail out very late (possibly back towards B’ham). Can’t check right now, but there might be an old thread mentioning this working.

PDF timetables available from here: http://kursbuch.bahn.de/hafas/kbview.exe you search (e.g. for a place) and it lists the route timetables available seems to cover only regional and S-Bahn routes, not IC/ICE, which probably suits your €49 ticket anyway. But the regional route timetables do include IC/ICE services. Slightly confusing

Nice to see a 71 on the move - I was just too late to the spotting party for those, seeing about half the class stored in various locations around Kent. Minor correction in C3720/1 Stone Crossing Halt. The same view today would have the Dartford bridge in the background in one direction and far fewer cement works chimneys in the other (or possibly none at all - I think they've all been demolished) . Plus, it's no longer a halt. Still loads of pylons though!

One of Northern's 3-car 150s, 150004, a common sight on Sheffield-Huddersfield services since the December 2022 timetable change, here at Denby Dale. They also turn up a fair bit on the Sheffield-Moorthorpe-Leeds stoppers. The impressive Denby Dale viaduct is just beyond the far end of the platform, Northern have six 3-cars, of which -001 and -002 were built as 3-car, while -003 to -006 each have one car from a split-up 150/2 (with gangways each end of the coach) inserted into the middle of a 2-car 150/1 (which don't have gangways at the driving ends). You can see the roof of the centre car is either painted or weathered (or both) differently. Former goods shed on the left by the look of it.

The wagon behind the loco is one of the 7 Sheerness Steel bogie flats (PR3001-3007) converted to box scrap wagons. Not long converted either, judging by the state of the paintwork!

Only time I ever properly used Folkestone Harbour was coming back from France about 1990-odd, and that was just the harbour, not the rail side, as we had to get across to Central for a domestic train to elsewhere in Kent rather than the boat train to London. The sickness only happened later due to dodgy sausage and chips on the boat (I fancied something less French after a couple of weeks there!). We'd gone out via the hover from Dover, on which my partner felt queasy, but I was fine. Oh, and also visited briefly on a railtour in 1984, "Southern Mariner" 33+TC all the way round the coast from Portsmouth-Dover-Ramsgate-N Kent. (see https://www.sixbellsjunction.co.uk/80s/840519de.htm)

It’s been on that channel the last few Sunday mornings. Still enjoyable

Just discovered Switzerland is Life, a youtube channel with plenty of transport, most vids 10-20 mins long. https://www.youtube.com/@SwitzerlandisLife/videos Some interesting train formations on the Arosa line in this one for example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6_YVVQzUJc Don't waste too much time!

Times are showing on realtimetrains for Wareham already, with operator code SP. Here's a sample day, 22 April 2023: https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/search/detailed/gb-nr:WRM/2023-04-22/0600-2000?stp=WVS&show=all&order=wtt&toc=SP Also, the regular Swanage/Norden trains are in RTT too (here the same day at Swanage): https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/search/detailed/gb-pt:SGE/2023-04-22/0600-2000?stp=WVS&show=all&order=wtt&toc=SP

Photos from yesterday: Station area track ripped up, archaeology notice The website link in the archaeology photo leads to 'page not found', but google has it cached at https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:osNIleLm3pUJ:https://www.elsecar-heritage.com/forging-ahead&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=uk quoted here: Loco Elizabeth by level crossing with brake van behind derelict wagon chassis Detail of wagon plate LNER standard 12 tons 1927 Darlington 95091 GW brake van 68499 next to loco

Dropped in at Elsecar today (12 March ‘23). Track mostly lifted in the station area, with notices explaining it’s for archaeological explorations. This newspaper article: https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/heritage-and-retro/heritage/elsecar-heritage-railway-track-to-be-lifted-at-scheduled-monument-site-in-yorkshire-but-sustainable-future-likely-for-attraction-3957274 explains that the station is now a scheduled ancient monument, hence the investigations. Also hints at future plans for the site. The only rail vehicles visible today were the Sentinel loco ‘Elizabeth’, a GW brake van and a wrecked wagon chassis. Photos later with a bit of luck.

I've also seen "Zug defekt" (train defective) in the side destination display of an ICE.

Those look to be taken from the edge of the "Great Lines", i.e. defensive lines for Chatham Dockyard, developed in the Napoleonic era, and taking advantage of the lie of the land.

I like the slightly chunky 60s/70s-style typeface above the ticket office window.

Abandoned sleeper+chair in use as a fence post at Sharnal Street on the Grain branch. 66 passing with an empty tunnel segment train from the Ruislip HS2 site. Once there were sidings here leading to Kingsnorth and the Army line to Lodge Hill

Rotherham doesn't look all that different nowadays compared to the 1989 picture (C12072), if a bit more vegetation. There's more of a change versus your 1970s photos, where everything's been rationalised. The station buildings are occupied, partly by a restaurant. Here's a diverted Hull Trains service coming from St Pancras via Toton and the Old Road just a couple of weekends ago:

Think the SR had a fair few air- or dual-braked GUVs, but still, if it was newly-overhauled stuff as @keefer a few posts above suggests, why are the few (5-set?) container wagons loaded with containers? Also a 4Z headcode, so [shrugging shoulders icon]

With a 50 headcode, and a long train, that MLV is more likely to be on the Ramsgate portion of a Ramsgate + Dover to Victoria combining at Faversham.

For comparison, Folkestone Harbour Nov 2022. They've done it up and added a venue for food etc, plus a bit of a walkway part way up the incline:

Never mind the quality, feel the atmosphere - from 1982 I think, between Leicester and Nottingham with the blinds up on a Tyseley-based Class 100 Gloucester DMU, and a Cravens (105) coming the other way. I like the reflections of the old-style lighting (which I hadn't planned when taking the photo!):

Here's one of Hessle and Hull in the background, taken from the cycle path across the bridge in 2007. I cycled to Barton: And the bridge from a bit further up the estuary, on a walk in 2018: