If you register, you can do a lot more. And become an active part of our growing community. You'll have access to hidden forums, and enjoy the ability of replying and starting conversations.

Toddington...an observation

Discussion in 'Heritage Railways & Centres in the UK' started by Reading General, Jun 12, 2013.

  1. Reading General

    Reading General Part of the furniture

    Joined:
    May 18, 2011
    Messages:
    6,081
    Likes Received:
    2,217
    I visited briefly the G&WR at Toddington the other day en route to friends and was quite pleased to see things had devloped a lot since my last visit many years ago.

    However several things didn't impress me....DMU with no running numbers (Class 117 I assume)..[​IMG]..drab maroon coaches that weren't at all inviting..... very odd livery on the 4575 class [​IMG] but mostly what struck me as astounding was a van and sales stall selling books DVDs etc (and no indication that it was for the benefit of the Railway) which took up the two Disabled parking spaces closest to the Station. This surely is an own-goal in terms of the Railway's reputation. Is this stall official or was the guy just a chancer?

    8f and csarmine and cream set looked good though [​IMG]

    Station furniture and ambiance good (except for the very modern aluminum trolleys in use for various purposes. No access to Shed (although probably had I had time and asked, it may have been possible
    [​IMG]

    I'l be back for a longer visit shortly
     
    GNRI SLieveGullion71 likes this.
  2. Bean-counter

    Bean-counter Part of the furniture

    Joined:
    Jul 21, 2007
    Messages:
    5,844
    Likes Received:
    7,688
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Former NP Member
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    No I do not currently volunteer
    I am sure that looks like a running number on the leading power car under the first window. I could be wrong, but I don't think DMUs had set number when introduced - that came much later in BR days (although I am quite prepared to be told that the WR used such numbers)

    Being super picky - the 8F's train looks WR Chocolate & Cream!

    Steven
     
  3. Reading General

    Reading General Part of the furniture

    Joined:
    May 18, 2011
    Messages:
    6,081
    Likes Received:
    2,217
     
  4. simon

    simon Resident of Nat Pres

    Joined:
    Jun 26, 2006
    Messages:
    11,567
    Likes Received:
    5,224

    Looks like pre-TOPs livery so I think you are correct.
     
  5. Reading General

    Reading General Part of the furniture

    Joined:
    May 18, 2011
    Messages:
    6,081
    Likes Received:
    2,217
    looks like it doesn't it!don't know how I missed that! Sorry G&WR was a bit of a whistle stop tour!

    Prob was choc and cream, I'm colour blind! (Csarmine and cream only used on Russian Stock obviously!)

    Set numbers .off topic but..you are right about set numbers painted o the units HOWEVER they did use set numbers on little plates in slots on the underfames on the power cars....these were originally in the 300 series preceded by depot (RDG in my case ) and later were reversed with 400 numbers on them...i think i have one somewhere...
     
  6. Sidmouth

    Sidmouth Resident of Nat Pres Staff Member Moderator

    Joined:
    Sep 12, 2005
    Messages:
    9,635
    Likes Received:
    8,303
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Alderan !
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    Yes I am an active volunteer
    the railway's focus has been on the rebuilding of the line following the very well publicised embankment slips . niceties like carriage paint are not the priority with two very expensive gaping holes in the formation

    Locomotive 5542 is not owned by the railway and the livery is the owners choice , similar the DMU was aquired from elsewhere and pressed into service . I'm not sure again that it is not railway owned as well

    As for your comment re the stall did you not enquire rather than casting aspertions on an internet forum

    Body armour and disguise may be of benefit for your next visit me thinks
     
  7. Reading General

    Reading General Part of the furniture

    Joined:
    May 18, 2011
    Messages:
    6,081
    Likes Received:
    2,217
    other observations.
    very spacious site,good car parking
    seperate cafe/lavatory facilites a good move as it keeps the station more authentic
    Gents spotless
    viewing very good
    overall appearance excellent
    timetable quite intensive (3 train operation..red timetable)
     
  8. Reading General

    Reading General Part of the furniture

    Joined:
    May 18, 2011
    Messages:
    6,081
    Likes Received:
    2,217
    merely observations, a casual visitor would not be aware of the reasons you state. Disabled spaces anywhere taken up by non-disabled creates a bad impression.
     
  9. Bean-counter

    Bean-counter Part of the furniture

    Joined:
    Jul 21, 2007
    Messages:
    5,844
    Likes Received:
    7,688
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Former NP Member
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    No I do not currently volunteer

    I suspected the WR "did its own thing" (again!) on this matter, which is why I was a bit vague!

    I remember seeing an exchange many years ago in a carriage defect book which shows the perils of no running number:

    Defect Reported

    C & W Response "Would help if guard reported vehicle number on which defect exists"

    Guard replied "Would help if C & W applied numbers to carriages".

    The problem has been a mixture of awaiting a supply of authentic transfers and 2 seemingly identical vehicles being repainted (in the same colour) while numbers awaited. But some of us knew how to tell the difference (and won;t tell those who didn't).....!

    Steven
     
  10. Reading General

    Reading General Part of the furniture

    Joined:
    May 18, 2011
    Messages:
    6,081
    Likes Received:
    2,217
    i think it was at Swanage that my eyebrows went up a bit at non-standard lettering, maybe the delay you mention applies to them also...
     
  11. Corbs

    Corbs Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jul 17, 2008
    Messages:
    1,713
    Likes Received:
    727
  12. 5944

    5944 Resident of Nat Pres

    Joined:
    Jan 14, 2006
    Messages:
    8,031
    Likes Received:
    7,605
    Gender:
    Male
    Occupation:
    Train Maintainer for GTR at Hornsey
    Location:
    Letchworth
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    No I do not currently volunteer
    The GWR "shirtbutton" is the size of a dustbin lid. It should be about half that size.
     
  13. Corbs

    Corbs Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jul 17, 2008
    Messages:
    1,713
    Likes Received:
    727
    I'm sure I read about that, and why the owners chose to do it. Will see if I can dig it out.
     
  14. Corbs

    Corbs Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jul 17, 2008
    Messages:
    1,713
    Likes Received:
    727
  15. Premier.Prairie

    Premier.Prairie New Member

    Joined:
    Aug 22, 2009
    Messages:
    193
    Likes Received:
    120
    Any problems with the 5542 livery can be sorted for a donation of Circa £7,000 until then ..............................

    John
     
  16. Reading General

    Reading General Part of the furniture

    Joined:
    May 18, 2011
    Messages:
    6,081
    Likes Received:
    2,217
    i don't have a problem with it, I just said it looks strange, which it does
     
  17. louis.pole

    louis.pole New Member

    Joined:
    Feb 14, 2013
    Messages:
    144
    Likes Received:
    19
    Location:
    To use a wartime phrase "Somewhere in England"
    Having followed the link I think "but we felt it would look better like this!" is a very lame excuse for non-authenticity. The GWR did things in a genteel refined manner and didn't need to shout. I'm sure Adrian Vaughan would be horrified.
     
  18. Kinghambranch

    Kinghambranch Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Dec 20, 2006
    Messages:
    1,868
    Likes Received:
    1,588
    Gender:
    Male
    Occupation:
    Retired
    Location:
    White Rose County
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    No I do not currently volunteer
    The "drab maroon" livery of the maroon Mk 1 coach set you observed is in that state as these coaches were indeed "marooned" (sorry) at Toddington during the landslip from Hell and were not able to be maintained to the standard the GWSR wanted at the time. Visit Winchcombe now and see the generous legacy which has enabled the Railway to build a dedicated paint shop and store (which is being built now) so that coaches can be painted in correct conditions and at greater speed although it takes time to "do" a coach of course - see the excellent GWSR C&W blog). Currently, there is a major effort to tidy up the railway, especially regarding some of the more dilapidated or surplus stock which has appeared over the years although where possible its sold on to other railways such as the BG that has gone to the Yorkshire Wolds Rly (and this has apparently ruffled a few peoples' feathers I might add as everything should be preserved should it not?). However the maroon coaches will be repainted as soon as practicable (there is a sparkling maroon Mk 1 CK in Winchcombe works at the moment almost ready to join the rake and the work that's been done on it, well, a few years ago I suppose people would not have even bothered) . I presume it must cost quite a lot of money to repaint a BR Mk 1 coach let alone restore it to a good state. What is needed, of course, is a carriage storage shed as well, at least for some of the coaches, and the GWSR is intending to build one so wallets out people please!
    The second photo taken by Reading General, looking south from Toddington platform is particularly outstanding as far as I'm concerned as I stood at that spot and took some photos of the site in 1980, when work parties were just starting. I thought at the time that these people were really wasting their time as all the track had gone and there was no way on earth that Toddington Station would ever look like it did and of course there isn't, its much, much better. I'm glad I joined them.
     
  19. Reading General

    Reading General Part of the furniture

    Joined:
    May 18, 2011
    Messages:
    6,081
    Likes Received:
    2,217
    it wasn't much on from that the last time I visited, although it did have track but no buildings. The whole site was pretty much immaculate that why the disabled bays being misused surprised me. (I spent ages on that shot, trying to get rid of the modern lightbulb in the lamp standard, I think it worked!)
    [​IMG]

    the other way, definitely a "prize length"

    [​IMG]

    I struck lucky, three trains in the half hour I was there, as you may tell from my photos, I like the whole scene to look right and it certainly did at Toddington (except those aluminium trolleys) (even the drab maroon coaches lookes "real") I shall be planning a weekend there very soon.
     
  20. nigelss

    nigelss Member

    Joined:
    Aug 20, 2007
    Messages:
    260
    Likes Received:
    150
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Essex
    Nice to see the pictures. Would love to get there again one of these days. The last time I was there was for the sponsered walk to Broadway back in 2010. I think the DMU in the first picture looks really nice and well looked after. I cannot understand how anyone could complain about it as most visitors will be like me - interested in trains but unlikely to notice the lack of a running number.
     

Share This Page