New old tram track found in Salford

[roythebus1]

I've been driving tram replacement buses in Manchester for the last few months (not every week I hasten to add), mostly on the Eccles line from Media city. At Weeste the track has been replaced through the station and yesterday I happened to glance to my left down Hessel Street and noticed some original tram track.

 

There's the "blades" of a set of points leading onto the main New Eccles Road and about 200m of track leading down the cobbled street. I say blades, there's a moveable blade on the left hand rail and a cast fixed blade on the right hand rail, I don't know the term for it!

 

A google street view shows the track continues down the street and curves off to the right into what may well have been a tram depot many years ago. Incidentally, the Wetherspoons pub in Eccles has some intersting pictures of the town showing early tramcars.

 

GSV here:  53.48253, -2.30920

 

Edited April 29, 2022 by roythebus1

[BR60103]

Roy: Over here the movable part is called the Switch and the other casting is the Switch Mate.

 

[33C]

Post a pic in "Abandoned rails in the road" thread.......

[Moxy]

The brick and stone building opposite the tram stop is the frontage of the old tram depot, later the bus depot.  It was retained when they built a new building behind it (apartments I think).

 

Here is a link to it when it was being rebuilt http://www.britishtramsonline.co.uk/news/?p=34088

[woodenhead]

Here we go, they're not a secret to Mancunians and Salfordians

 

 

[roythebus1]

Thanks for the additional info, I did a quick internet search and it threw up a load of pictures and some historical stuff. As you say it is the Salford Corporation Tram Depot at Weaste, closed to trams 1947, converted to motor bus then close many years later. Partly demolished courtesy of Adolf, it's now luxury apartments retaining the frontage all tastefully restored.

[BR60103]

The little square box next to the point contains the mechanism.  I think it's a beefed up version of the spring that holds Peco points in place.

In Toronto, the point is changed by sticking the switch iron (a big crowbar) between the point and the rail and prying. There are also electric versions but they didn't adapt very well to the last 2 generations of streetcars.

 

Anecdote:  One of the motormen managed to drive his car into an area where they were doing major work on the track.  The track had been protected by jamming the switch mechanism. The motorman must have opened up the box and removed the hard rubber ball (or whatever) that was jamming the spring. 

 

[roythebus1]

On 29/04/2022 at 09:19, woodenhead said:

Here we go, they're not a secret to Mancunians and Salfordians

 

 

This certainly was to the other local bus drivers who had driven the route before! None of them even knew it used to be a bus garage.