St. Blazey Turntable

True, but if one from the continent was purchased for installation at say Par, why would the listing status of the SB turntable be an issue ?

 

how far is St Blazey from Plymouth? how regular is tourist steam in Cornwall and is there a market and possible pathes for any regular tourist service, i can think of several options, one involving 2 birmingham based Panniers top and tailing a cornish branch or 2, or regular summer plymouth to penzance charters, that way DBS and First group might be interested in part funding the restoration of the turntable as they would gain from extra revenue, not to mension extra revenue for the area.

 

Of course they do - in Germany, Poland, CZ, SK etc........

Not sure holes are that easily moved, mind!

Steven

 

They should be easy to move, holes don't weigh anything.

 

Seriously, I know Par is a suitable rail-head for the Eden Project (although St Austall is also pretty close), but would you actually put turning facilities there is they weren't already on site?

It would seem pointless to go to the huge expense of installing another turntable on that site, but may be more justifiable if installed at a location identified as more suitable commercially - not that I am saying there is one!

Steven

 

You could only really buy the bridge, wheels and mechanism. Moving the hole from say Poland to Cornwall would be a difficult engineering operation. By the time you have built a new pit (at least that part of the project would not fall prey to Chinese imports) to fit your Polish bridge and put in a length of track to it you would be into seven figures, not six.

 

Long Rock might be better value?

 

Surely, even with a "6 figure" guestimate for overhauling it, it must be cheaper and more practicable to repair the existing St Blazey TT than to install a "new" one somewhere else? What's needed is an agreement between the owner/custodian, potential users and the local authorities, covering up-front costs and future access rights/charges. For all we know, that may be happening right now.

 

What we need then is an informed NP member from Cornwall to tell us the story.

 

If it's listed at Grade II*, that puts it in the top 8% of listed buildings nationally. But it also means it could go on English Heritage's Buildings at risk register - only Grade I and II* buildings and Scheduled Ancient monuments are eligible. Why does that matter? Well EH can only grant aid buildings on the at-risk register, and I happen to know EH Southwest has a grant underspend at the moment. Who's going to contact them?

 

Im sure the repairs could be written off against taxes anyway, oh sorry I forgot its another foreign owned former uk company who pay minimal uk taxes, just like my employers

 

Why be so cynical? Equipment maintenance is clearly a legitimate business cost. As for the snide reference to "foreign owned former uk company", and leaving aside the unspoken undercurrent of xenophobia that seems to direct many people's thinking, there is a way to prevent this happening. That is to pass a law preventing British residents selling their shares to whoever they like. Would anyone like that? Whether it would be liked or not it would be totally anti-competitive and in breach of EU law.

 

April 2012 was the last team a steam loco came to Penzance, I think it was Oliver Cromwell with Tangmere. The previous year (April 2011) was Oliver Cromwell doubled with 43505 Black 5. Since then, although we have had 'antique carriages' come and go, they have always been pulled by diesel, albeit elderly!

 

In April 2012 Oliver Cromwell came to Penzance coupled with Tangmere. Although there have been several tours advertised since, they have always been passed onto diesel before heading west. The line runs along my road and I get a splendid view of the old carriages, but it's not the same without locos. There are plenty of photos on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/348300795363338/?fref=ts

 

If you mean tours operated by DBS you MAY be right: I don't know. But there was a Steam Dreams tour to Penzance as recently as last September: 34046+5029 down on 5th and back on 8th.

 

But the boxes you have to pack them in weigh a ton.

 

Why do I now have an earworm, courtesy of Bernard Cribbins? "There was I, digging a hole, a hole in the ground..."

 

Perfect shape and flat at the bottom

 

I don't recall any steam locomotive last December, and checking http://www.uksteam.info/tours/trs14.htm nothing is mentioned.