Moorlands and City Railway

Bit of a diverse day for the gang, 2 of them were bricklaying at Cheddleton one of whom was a brickie in a former life. A group went to Leekbrook where the south end of the loop has been changed over to the downside to give better sighting of the crossing. The northen end point has had the drive rod removed as it wants extending. The third group tidied up the crossing at Boltons removing surplus materials, replacing cattle traps etc..Then proceeded to change all bound bolts between Cherry Eye bridge and Consall.
Nice weather to boot what more can we ask for.

 

OS map posts moved here...


http://railways.national-preservation.com/new-general-chat/33671-os-maps.html

 

Anyone know if George is running this weekend?

I see 5199 is still here but it will seem strange if George was not utilised, as the loco has been sitting idle for over a month now.

Preferably 'faceless' too.

 

My understanding was that 44767 was booked to operate most if not all trains in December, to make the most of its stay with us during the quieter months. I'm sure the steam department folks will know more though.

 

5199 will run on 17th& 18th Dec. all the other runs will be pulled by 44767 George Stephenson.

 

In the local paper today it is quoted David Cameron has given the thumbs up to an invitation to be the first passenger to board a train on the restored line between Stoke-on Trent and the Moorlands. Mr. Cameron said that when the expansion was complete he would be thrilled to ride the first train from Leek to Stoke-on Trent but asked to be given plenty of notice.

 

He'll be a member of the opposition by then.

 

The article;- PM on track to be restored rail route's first passenger | This is Staffordshire

 

Notes from someone who attended a meeting for locals in Leek this week concerning MCR's plans have appeared elsewhere on the internet;

Some interesting points raised and many questions answered. Wonder where Abbey Hulton stn will be though as there never was one there originally.

 

Looks like we're going to be kept pretty busy then!!

 

44767 will be hauling all of the santa trains with 5199 being used for carriage warming and stand by loco should 44767 fail.

Full details of the February Steam Gala including running to Cauldon Lowe will be announced shorty.

Regards

Chris

 

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Aren't people amazing? There is a perfectly good canal towpath to walk and jog on giving very good views of the valley which is parallel to the railway, why on earth do they want to walk on a railway with attendant safety risks. I presume this access to someones elses land is to be provided at the owners expense?

 

Is there any more detail out there, if only rumour, about this hourly passenger service between Leek and Stoke/Alton Towers? Its hard to see how anything but an operation using paid staff, Heritage DMU's, and at heritage line speeds is affordable - but i cant see how that would even cover operating costs let alone all the extra infrastructure being talked about like a new station at Leek and a platform within walking distance of Stoke station.

Chris

 

Completley agree, has always made me chuckle when you here the argument about people walking the line when there is a tow path that is kept in good condition not that far from the line!

 

Chris, we really must remember that this project is a commercial undertaking, which exists in a large industrial connurbation that has been starved of rail transportation for years. Recent experiences, in Scotland and elsewhere, indicate that rail usage on re-opened lines far exceeds expectations, and I fully expect this to be the case here in North Staffordshire. I don't think that the operations will be carried out on a "heritage" basis, Mr. Kemp has spoken at some length about the economic benefits to the area of the project, it will be a case of new (or nearly new) dmu's, and the project will be staffed by paid employees, who I expect will be very enthusiastic and diligent in the execution of their duties.
The mix of "through" and "stopping" services is ideal for our area, and there is sure to be more debate about station locations, for example I would have thought a re-opened station at Bucknall would be very well used, although I am delighted about the proposal for a completely new station at Abbey Hulton.
The question of access to Stoke station still remains a problem. This has never had the capacity to perform as a terminus in the East bound direction, and station usage is now very close to an all-time high of 2mn passengers a year (previously acheived in 1910 I believe). There was a proposal for a third through platform face made some years ago, and if this proposal were to be revived, there is scope for the bi-directional Platform 1 line to be used exclusively for local services, with the ability to run forward to Etruria, initially, and hopefully further on to Festival Park and Hanley.
We are indeed very fortunate here in North Staffordshire to have businessmen of the capacity and calibre of Mr. Kemp and Mr. Wilson, and I'm absolutely sure that they will continue to find creative solutions to any difficulties that present themselves.

 

We (by which I mean those of us interested/involved with canals) are already thinking about how we can encourage these people to use the towpaths, for everyone's benefit

 

The talk of possibly doubling Stoke to Leekbrook would seem to be an important consideration , particularly with the slow-moving freights running alongside hourly services to Leek and Alton.

 

Suggest you scatter some old rail and sleepers around and let the vegetation grow head high. Works fer us tha noowers

 

Regarding the Tarmac freight traffic where will the inbound originate from and outbound go to? I know there are plenty of lorries up there but where do they run to/from?

 

It sounds great, but how much work has gone into feasibility studies for these plans? Very little, if they are suggesting new, or nearly new DMU's - after all, the only DMU's to be withdrawn from the mainline in the next 10 to 15 years will be Pacers due to disability regulations (as well as general rubbishness) - which would also make them unsuitable for a 'commecial undertaking' such as this.

Buying new doesnt seem credible either - are these two individuals really wealthy enough to even consider it, at over a £1m per vehicle just to purchase? If they were, funding the current work surely wouldnt need any involvement from the RGF or the CVR's share issue...?

For the record, i think the freight side of the project has great potential but (as you can probably tell!) im not entirely convinced by the proposed passenger services - have MCR released much information about what they think various aspects of the project might cost?

Chris