Rivercider

Impressive work so far, and I like the cameos. I don't think you will need too many people for the lower yard area. I remember Avon Street as being quite busy with road traffic passing through, but not many pedestrians. Like many areas of city centre industrial decay it was probably not somewhere you visited unless you had business there! cheers

Could 8302 be on a local trip working to Foss Island Yard? Some of the wagons could be for onwards transit on the Derwent Valley Railway. I remember class 20s on the Foss Islands trip in the 1980s, but was never ready with my camera! cheers

Thanks Chris for taking the time to post these pictures, and thanks also to everyone who has contributed to make this a very interesting thread. I only made one visit to Saltburn in 1982, and as I recall I took one photo and returned on the same train! It is certainly not a 'now' shot, but here it is Another class 101 Met-Cam set at Saltburn, no.s 56219, 50233 wait at the stop blocks, 22/6/82 cheers

Now in order to have a look at the other freight traffic of the West of England Division we will have to retrace our route back to Bristol and then head via Bath and the Avon valley to Westbury. There was only a single freight terminal between Bristol and Westbury, it was the Avon County Council terminal at Bath Westmorland. Avon County Council introduced their refuse transfer train in November 1985, it immediately became known as the 'Binliner', The train initially ran five days a week with 15 flats each conveying 3 x 20' boxes and called at three terminals where the empty return boxes were exchanged for ones loaded with refuse for Calvert. Bath Westmorland loaded 4 wagons, Barrow Road terminal loaded 7 and the Westerleigh terminal loaded 4 flats. There was quite a lot of regular freight traffic over the Bristol - Westbury route, in the early 1980s vacuum braked services ran between Kingsland Road and Westbury, as well as inter-regional services between Severn Tunnel Junction and Eastleigh/Southampton. Later first one then a pair of Speedlink services operated between Severn Tunnel Junction and Eastleigh. There was also cement traffic from Westbury to Lawrence Hill, and stone empties to Barton Hill SHops for maintenance. There was also some petroleum traffic from Fawley and steel traffic to Southampton and Hamworthy. Moving on to Bath Spa here we see a couple of trains that regularly passed this way. Firstly is 6V83 which was the second Speedlink service introduced between Eastleigh and Severn Tunnel Junction 47140 heads west through Bath Spa with 6V83, behind the loco is an MOD warflat, the former BR ferryvan is in use as a barrier wagon, the VEA behind is probably carrying government stores, possibly explosives. Are the tanks discharged bitumen tanks? they may be from Cranmore or Frome and heading for somewhere like Stanlow. 16/6/86 Next another service that ran for some years, 6O99/6V99 ran from Llanwern/Severn Tunnel Junction - Southampton and Hamworthy and return, At times it conveyed both export steel and import steel in varying wagon types, and at one time ran via Swindon to convey coil for Pressed Steel. 47236 approaches Bath Spa with 6V99 Hamworthy - Severn Tunnel Junction, the traffic today is empty shoc-hoods which will have conveyed export traffic to Hamworthy, either coil, or possibly tinplate from BSC at Ebbw Vale, 16/6/86. We now head up the Avon valley to Bradford on Avon, and go back a few years to 1983 when the vacuum braked network still existed. 37282 disturbs the peace at Bradford on Avon as it rattles through with 6V26 from Southampton Bevois Park to East Usk, the majority of the traffic by this date is coal empties for the South Wales pits. This service had been used to convey fuel tanks from Fawley to Bath Road in the past, but by this date the tanks had been converted to air brake and passed on an air braked service, 23/8/83 cheers

As well as the goods yard at Hereford there were a number of private sidings still active in the 1980s, Bulmers forwarded large amounts of cider on Speedlink services, and Painter Bros received steel. There was also timber traffic handled in the yard, and also for Pontrilas Saw Mills, I think the timber traffic increased after the great storm of 1987. In the Speedlink era one train in each direction northbound and southbound called to detach and attach traffic, I don't have any photos of the traffic in Hereford Yard but I did photograph the trip returning from Moreton-on-Lugg and then ready to leave for Severn Tunnel Junction. 47285 has a single vanwide from the MOD at Moreton-on-Lugg as it approaches Hereford, 12/2/82 After attaching traffic from the yard at Hereford 47285 now waits to return to Severn Tunnel Junction Behind the vanwide there is now a tank and five empty BDAs which had delivered steel to Painter Brothers, 12/2/82 In 1982 there were still vacuum braked services between Severn Tunnel Junction and Warrington 47129 is working a southbound service into Hereford, among the traffic is a highfit, a hooded steel carrier and the rear of the train was made up of china clay empties, 12/2/82 Finally for here is a photo of the yard pilot Gloucester allocated 08646 rests after completing the days shunting, the only other loco stabled there at the time was 40074, 12/2/82 cheers

Our last location was Newland so I have carried on westwards to Hereford, the yard pilot here was another Gloucester allocated class 08 in the early 1980s. Hereford was another location that saw a lot of passing freight traffic in the 1980s, in the early part of the decade there were vacuum braked services from Severn Tunnel Junction to Warrington and Carlisle, which were later replaced by Speedlink services to Warrington Carlisle and Mossend. There were also company block trains and Freightliner services over the route. Also important was steel traffic running between British Steel plants, Margam and Llanwern in South Wales, Dee Marsh in North Wales and Ravenscraig in Scotland. I only called here on a couple of occasions and only took a handful of photos. 37308 stands on the through line either waiting traincrew relief, or waiting a margin between passenger services to head south, 12/2/82 The same engineers train with 37308 is seen in a general view of Hereford 12/2/82 cheers

On page 134 of Freight Only Vol 3, mentioned by Alan above, refers to aluminium ingots for the West Midlands loaded in OCAs from Lochaber. also mentioned is paper to Pensnett, Wolverton and elswhere from the Corpach paper mill, which would be in vans, cheers

Thanks for your help in trying to identify these pictures. I had assumed they were taken on the same day, but there is now no way of knowing. The earlier picture no 7 I have not posted is clearly at Gloucester station early in the morning, Steve and Vic may have changed trains for Worcester or visited Gloucester first. On Flickr I have received the suggestion that the track sections may possibly be at Over Junction. cheers

To finish off my little journey along the Portsmouth - Cardiff route behind class 31s, here are two from Salisbury. and one from Southampton. Firstly one showing a passenger train arriving on the former platform 1 at Salisbury, which after resignalling was no longer used by passenger services. this was also when a number of trains started or terminated at Bristol and not Cardiff. 31401 is in chage of the 15.14 Bristol Temple Meads - Portsmouth Harbour, 23/4/80 A rare Eastern Region 31/4 on the route this time. Approaching Salisbury 31418 working the 16.07 Portsmouth Harbour - Cardiff Central 23/4/80 And finally one at Southampton 31406 approaches Southampton Tunnel with a service for Portsmouth Harbour, 4/11/81 cheers

Still on the subject of engineers trains in the Worcester area here are two photos from 1979 at Newland to the south west of Worcester. Sidings at Newland were use as a PAD (Pre-Assembly Depot) from 1954 until the depot closed in late 1982. Sleepers and rails were received to be made up into pre-fabricated track sections for use on relaying jobs around the Western Region. PWM 654 was the regular yard pilot from 1964 until closure in late 1982. PWM 654 receives attention in the yard, 27/3/79. One of the local trip locos was allocated to the civil engineers for moving engineers wagons as required, this might be moving wagons to or from yards ready for weekend working, or, as in this case, a midweek ballast drop, An instamatic photo of 31258 witjh mini snow ploughs passing Newland PAD with loaded dogfish hoppers and plough van it is heasding from the Hereford direction towards Worcester, 17/3/79 cheers

To illustrate more of the engineers traffic in the Worcester area here are more photos, though I am unsure of the exact locations. Here are five photos from a group of 13 taken by my late brother Steve. They were taken in the winter of 1980/81 or 1981/82 when my brother was working in the civil engineers office Bristol before he gained promotion and moved to Croydon. The visit to the Gloucester/Worcester area was made to either carry out a TOPS check, or wagon survey, he may have accompanied my dad, but another of my BR colleagues from Bristol appears in some of the photos. I recognise some of the locations, picture 7 was Gloucester Station on the journey up, picture 11 is at Evesham station with a passenger train approaching, pictures 18 and 19 are at Worcester Shrub Hill presumably when returning home. Picture 8 - now (in Jan 2021) confirmed as Sheenhill Sidings just west of Honeybourne station. It shows a train of new (?) track sections, Vic Bush from the Bristol Civil Engineers Office stands beside unfitted salmon DB 996493. Picture 9 - also confirmed as Sheenhill Sidings Honeybourne. Another salmon in the train, DB 996284. Picture 11 I now know is taken at Evesham Station, were the last two photos from Honeybourne? Picture 12 - where is this? Unfitted grampus DB 986036 loaded with some kind of cabinet, and sheeting, is this Worcester? Picture 14 - where is this? Vic Bush again, this time standing beside a piped gane DS 64640. Picture 17 - where is this? Three engineers ZTO TOPS coded brake vans, including DB 950385, is this Worcester? Picture 18 and 19 are at Worcester Shrub Hill. Any ideas please? cheers

Ah yes, I think I have misunderstood the caption, when it refers to the 'quay of the Sharpness Canal'. The Sharpness Canal, which of course ran from Sharpness Docks to Gloucester Docks. I did think a class 08 at Sharpness was a bit unusual! cheers

On one of my Flickr photos of Dingwall attracted a comment referring to the 'Achnasheen Bash', which I had never heard of It was a move to get maximum loco haulage, on the early morning services out of and into Inverness. cheers

Thanks Phil. I have been looking in 'Freight Only Vol 2 Southern & Central England ' by Rhodes and Shannon published July 1988. In the section on Gloucester & Worcester mention is made that Metal Box had just started to receive tinplate by rail from South Wales after a gap of three years, and that the famous Worcester pottery was receiving china clay from Cornwall in VDAs. The same chapter also has a December 1983 photo of 08836 at Sharpness with 3 polybulks of grain from East Anglia, and mentions SPA wagons being supplied to Sharpness to load scrap month earlier, cheers

In the list of Speedlink trains with effect from 17th May 1982 there is one shown to call at Worcester, I think the Metal Box tinplate was the only regular traffic detached 6E94 01.25 Severn Tunnel Junction - Immingham calls Worcester 03.04 - 03.27 (detach only), I don't see a southbound equivalent service to collect empties though, cheers

Yes Gary that was the place, I think the inwards tinplate lasted longer than the outward scrap, but maybe someone with local knowledge could shed some light? cheers

Hi David, there was a thread started earlier this year by P.C.M. to highlight the detail differences in the class. I am no expert on the class details so if it is just photos of them at work I'll add a few, are you looking for specific ones for your Prestatyn layout? Meanwhile here are three of them at Crewe, These are at Crewe Diesel Depot seen from the platform, and are 40013, 40126 and an unidentified one on the right, 14/6/83 cheers

Now a few views of the yard looking south. By the 1980s I think most freight remaining traffic here was for the engineers, with the exception of Metal Box which, I think, was located right at the south end of the yard. One traffic that was occasionally loaded here for the engineers was 'Stourport A' blanketing sand which came by road to be loaded here. I think this was the reason for my visit, I was accompanying my dad who was going to check and label some grampus loaded with sand. In these views of the yard engineers wagons predominate. 08778 is the yard pilot this day and is surrounded by engineers traffic, it is shunting a rake of grampus wagons. 11/2/82 The pilot is probably preparing trains for weekend engineering work, far side appear to be some loaded mermaids, and in the dutch livery are what must be brand new seacow hoppers. A closer view of 08778 at the south end of the station with the grampus wagons, 12/2/82. By 1982 the traditional vacuum braked wagon load network was very much in decline, the remaining traffic being mostly domestic coal, cement, scrap and steel products, here is a north bound service calling at Worcester. 31180, an Immingham allocated loco, is heading a service from Severn Tunnel Junction probably for Bescot, behind the loco is steel coil or wire, then 16 minerals of either coal or scrap, 12/2/82 cheers

As I have mentioned Worcester was not a location I visited often, I have gleaned a little information from some publications and maps I have to add to the few photos. The 1975 trip booklet refers to three 08 pilots, one station/parcels pilot and one in the yard more or less continuously apart from Sunday and a third pilot that shunted the engineers yard in the morning and was a second parcels pilot in the afternoon. The additional parcels pilot was because there was significant catalogue traffic loaded into vans from Worcester. The 1979 Shunter Duties booklet showed that by then there were only two pilots, one passenger and one freight, and on my two visits in the 1980s there was but a single class 08 at work at Worcester. Gloucester allocated 08796 is seen at the north end of the yard. 25/3/80. Active freight locations in the Worcester area were Droitwich CCD to the north, Newland Pre-Assembly Depot on the Hereford line. There was also Long Marston, and the civil engineers tip at Honeybourne, they had all been shunted by local trips based at Worcester in 1975, though I am unsure how they were served by the 1980s. Metal Box to the south of Worcester continued to receive traffic, tinplate from Ebbw Vale BSC in VCAs, well into the Speedlink era. The yard at Worcester was served by trains between Severn Tunnel Junction and Bescot, here is a southbound working calling in 1980, 8V61 from Bescot to Severn Tunnel Junction calls at Worcester behind 46035, 25/3/80 cheers

Hi Jeff, I hope you won't be too disappointed, there are only five shots of freight traffic, plus possibly a couple of my brothers photos may be. To be honest as the cross-country services mostly went up the main line I have rarely, to this day, visited Worcester. cheers

Here is the last group of photos from that afternoon at Gloucester in 1985 Following 6Z45 to Cardiff Tidal is another steel train, this time of loaded BDAs. 47060 is on the through line at Gloucester with 6Z20 from Tinsley to Cardiff Tidal, 10/7/85 The BDAs are loaded with billets of steel for Allied Steel and Wire at Cardiff, on the right 08799 lurks in the Old Yard, 10/7/85 After a succession of southbound freights we now see another service heading north. 47014 passes through with an unidentified Freightliner service from South Wales, 10/7/85 In the 1980s a variety of non-revenue earning stock was routinely moved on ordinary wagonload services. Shunting locos en-route to or from works were regularly moved as well as engineering equipment like cranes and ballast cleaners. 37189 lifts its train up over London Road railway bridge and into Gloucester station with a service from Severn Tunnel Junction, the front portion of the train includes a variety of stock including mess and tool vans. 10/7/85 cheers

Yes I noticed that. I did think about cropping the photo tighter into the train, but that would have lost some interest. From memory there were often lorries parked there, including wrecks or scrappers, cheers

Here are two trains passing Gloucester heading from the Midlands towards South Wales. Steel traffic was important and the first train was a special working 20115 and 20022 at Gloucester with 6Z45 from Wednesbury to Cardiff Tidal, 10/7/85 The wagons are SPAs, presumably empties for Cardiff Allied Steel and Wire? 10/7/85 Later at about 16.30 an unidentified Speedlink working passes in the same direction. 37172 passes Gloucester on the through line, presumably heading for Severn Tunnel Junction 10/7/85 cheers

I've only a four or five more from Gloucester, plus a similar number from Worcester which I am making a start on. I also have a few taken by my late brother Steve, some of which are (to me) mystery locations, they are of engineers wagons, in the Gloucester/Worcester area from the eary 1980s, I will add a couple of them as well, cheers

Welcome to the forum John. That looks very nice. I am another member local to the line, I live in Weston, cheers