Bluebell Railway General Discussion

Excellent. 847 was one of the first locos I rode behind on the Bluebell along with 92240. Will definately try to get down to the line for that weekend. Not been down for a while so haven't seen the Taffy tank yet and not seen L150 yet either or 847 since she returned.

 

Still not getting automatic quotes, so again apologies if they're messed up.
Jamessquared said:

Obviously the invisible smiley didn't register, sorry. Though I think you'll find that availability of a well-maintained EMU is far higher than that. But I wasn't envisaging that you would attempt to run a reliable service with a single unit, I would imagine that if you became the centre of excellence for EMU preservation then you'd hope to have half a dozen to choose from (and top & tailed 71/73s on Mk.1s as an option too). You seen to be thinking of them as coaches, you need to think of them as motive power, and look how many spare locos the Bluebell has (albeit not all working at any one time).

Getting a fleet of heritage EMUs up and running wouldn't be easy and you'd probably have to start with the VEP and perhaps a CIG/BIG, but wouldn't it be lovely if something like the 2HAP I saw at Shildon the other day could be made to work, that would be totally in keeping with the rest of the Bluebell. Add a couple more like that (there can't be many) and you have something totally unique. Which I'm sure will never be seen on the main line, by the way.

Clearly you're not a tram enthusiast then, but there are lots of folks who are. The attraction of old electric traction is in the whining of the gears and clunking of the switchgear and rattling of the compressors - and modern units sound nothing like it. There are plenty of preserved electric trains and trams in mainland Europe and you can travel on some of them; we have trams at a few places in the UK, and people pay to ride on them. There's no reason why it wouldn't work with trains in the UK, but it would have to be bolted onto an existing line like the Bluebell to get the numbers of visitors - yes, many would be going there for steam trains, but that's just the same as on many railways with a DMU - the DMU is rarely the main attraction, but people come over all nostalgic when they travel on them and find that they actually rather like them. Plus, once you have the infrastructure in place, EMUs are incredibly cheap to run.

I think that part of the reason for the lack of enthusiasm for EMU preservation is the lack of anywhere to run them. The same argument applies - there are plenty of people prepared to restore trams. So I would hope that an electrified Ardingly branch would attract a new group of volunteers who currently aren't interested in what the Bluebell has to offer. I accept, though, that they are never going to be the 'core' activity, and it might be that at least one unit needs to be restored commercially to get the idea started. You could probably still do that for less than the cost of fixing something like 80100 though.

No, but I am...
I agree it would be a non-trivial exercise but it is perfectly possible.

 

Speaking of Bluebell EMUs, look who I found today enjoying the sunshine at Clapham shortly after Clan Line passed through

 

To me the issue isn't so much with the availability of electric stock and much more the infrastructure and personnel. The preservation world currently doesn't have a single team of people with any experience of running a 3rd rail line as volunteers. I'm sure there are people out there in preservation who will have experience from the wider rail industry, but it's a different kettle of fish to run a 3rd rail setup without the weight of BR or Network Rail behind you. So that means whoever runs the line would need to develop a complete new skillset.

The PW teams would either need masses of training and certification or you need a whole new team who are ready to work near the sparks. Going to Ardingly in the first place will stretch PW anyway, and that's without the problems of 3rd rail.

Then you'd need storage for all the new stock, with full facilities (as I'd imagine C&W are busy enough and Sheffield Park aren't going to go there.)

I'm not all that interested in electric preservation myself, but I think the Brighton Belle guys are going about it the right way-developing something excellent for the mainline. I don't think we'll ever see a preserved 3rd rail setup, it's just too much of a stretch for what will always be more of a niche market than steam.

Plus, who's going to pay the power bill?


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Dan - that's very much my feeling.

I'm sure that the technical challenges of restoring stock, putting in the necessary 3rd rail and signalling infrastructure etc is all technically feasible. But railway preservation doesn't have unlimited money, and the Bluebell certainly doesn't. We also have a shortage of space to put up the necessary extra maintenance and storage sheds, even if suitably qualified volunteers could be found. So I just can't see a 3rd rail plan really going anywhere: I can't believe it would be a popular subject for fundraising all the time there was historic steam-hauled stock still outside and unrestored.

Just a personal opinion, as always.

Tom

 

If tapping into the national grid is not an option a diesel generator set would be required.
Is there that much difference between pouring fuel into this to run an EMU or pouring it directly into a DEMU?

 

Or just use coal to generate the electricity? If only there was an easier way to get coal to provide power for a railway... Hang on, I've got an idea!


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Beat me to it!

 

It's been in that siding for a few months now.

 

Most of the posters who advocate a centre of excelence for EMU apear to be unaware of the work going on at the East Kent Railway


http://www.epbpg.co.uk/

 

As well as http://www.southernelectric.org.uk/

 

That there is interest in preserving EMUs is not being questioned the problem is their current homes, without powered running tracks, are not suitable for anything other than MLVs

 

Thanks for the link - I hadn't appreciated what was going on there.

Now I know that this is going off topic, so just a simple question - in one of the photos on the website there is a third rail installed. Is this just a demonstration piece, or is it for real (ie. live)? If so, is it going to be extended?

Steve B

 

Which photo are you referring to as some are showing preserved stock on National Rail lines?

 

On this page - http://www.epbpg.co.uk/latestnews.htm - about halfway down under the heading "EKR electrification begins".

Thanks
Steve B

 

It's been there since it came back from Swanage, when was that, July?
It's criminal that the Bluebell are just leaving it in the yard at Clapham, to deteriorate.
Whilst it does brighten my day, seeing it as I pass through daily, surely the Bluebell should look to re-home it somewhere that has dual braked locos that could return it to life. Being used, behind a 33 has got to be better than sitting doing nothing.

(Better still, get SWT using it on the line out to Windsor again )

 

According to "A Grumpy Old Man" https://www.national-preservation.com/threads/question-re-swts-3417.13616/page-3#post-210229 that photograph has been on the EKR's website for over five years. I suspect that electrification has not proceeded since that time though it would be gratifying if someone with local knowledge could prove me wrong or better still provide an update on whether that stretch is ever energised.

 

Thanks

Steve B

 

It returned there after Swanage's Diesel gala last May

 

http://www.bluebell-railway.com/event/happy-birthday-east-grinstead/

First-birthday celebrations of the East Grinstead opening 22-23 March.

847/1638 on the SR set; L150/5643 on the Bulleids/Mark 1s; 592/263 on the wooden set (says Saturday only, so I assume a Sunday lunchtime GA); Baxter on brake can rides at HK.

Also various "behind the scenes" openings, including Kingscote North signal box and walking tours of the surving railway infrastructure at East Grinstead.

Tom