GWSR Broadway Developments

The Monday gang, having transferred back from Cheltenham, is beginning to show its muscle! No fewer than 4 block layers were at work today, and thanks to their efforts and only intermittent light rain, about two thirds of the first row of footings are in now. They are made of concrete blocks two high, with a half brick on top. When completed, there will be a double row of them (another row goes round the outside).

All the platform side is now done, plus the two ends, and three bays on the front. This leaves 7 bays to do on the front, but which we will not do just yet, as it will block access to building up the floor to finished floor level. It will be made of fine stone chippings, insulation and a topping of concrete. Chippings have been ordered so will go in within the next few days. Once the floor is in, we can start laying bricks. These have been on site for over a year and are waiting to be laid.

The ducting in one of the pictures is for electrics and this is gathered in what will be the store room in the middle. The long area is the refreshment room, with the toilets at the other end.

More on Wednesday!

 

I did notice that the GWR had its best ever passenger numbers this year at plus 88k I am sure when open to broadway they will be well over 100k .

 

The bigger Wednesday gang got stuck in today - 20T of stone chippings arrived, and it was all men to the barrows! The whole site was scoured for barrows, and at the end of the day about three quarters of the chippings had been distributed inside the new footings, up to the level of the toilets, where a bit more foundation work was required before the last of the footings goes in here.

Spreading the chippings inside the blockwork suddenly made the works feel like a building, and also made it look bigger inside. You felt yourself stepping through 'doorways' to get in.

The moody picture of the signal box also shows the shuttering for the concrete pad required at the bottom of the steps. This will be filled with lean mix and concrete on top asap.

The towers for the footbridge will be a good replica of the rusted-away originals, even with replica rivet heads! This is good. They are expected to be delivered in a month or so.

 

Monday saw a lot more blocks going down. The car park side was the last to receive the first 'skin' of blocks, and now a second and third row, but turned on their sides, is being laid on the track side.
Blocks are very heavy - the human factor is up to the job, but not always the machinery....

Meanwhile, a milestone was passed at the signal box - the levers were delivered today!

 

A second ballast dropping train today was first to run onto the most recent part of the Broadway extension. This is a first, no trains here since 1979!

I recorded the event here on this clip:

 

It was just warm enough today to permit block laying, so a chunky gang of 4 block layers got to work and made great progress with the footings.
The footings now have a first layer of blocks all the way round, thus allowing further infill to be achieved in order to get to finished floor level.

Down in the 'car park' field, 5 lorry loads of 20T each of spent ballast were delivered during the day, ex Winchcombe relay. This will be used to close/complete platform 1 in due course, as well as provide extra fill on platform 2 near the SB.

Having completed the first, internal; row of blocks on the station drive side, the team laid a large number of blocks along the track side of the building. The first row went more slowly as allowances had to be made for ducting from various rooms for waste and electricity conduits. From the second row onwards, laying is straightforward, and we ought to be able to finish this side next time (frost conditions permitting).

The room with the pipes is a store room, which will centralise various electrical switches this way and that.

Wednesday will see the arrival of another truck load of chippings, which will be barrowed into the various rooms to get them up to the damp proof course level.

It felt really good to walk 'in' and 'out' of the various rooms using the doorways, you really get the feeling of a building now.

 

Excellent work as always. When the platforms are finished to final level will they be finished off with GWR spear fencing?

 

Well, that is the plan but it depends on money available. You can buy replica spearhead fencing, and it is sketched in on the plan, but there is a big cost associated with it.

It all depends on the success of the share issue, which will be launched at the end of March. If not enough is raised, there is a risk it will be cheaper post and rail.... stands to reason, after all.

 

Sounds reasonable to me. Then at a later date once the money's rolling in it's something that can be looked at.

 

Alas our track record in this area is poor.
Winchcombe, after 30 years, has only wooden fencing.
CRC only has spear head where it was already there.

We really need to get it in on day one, because once 'the money's rolling in', it will be used for something else. That's what has happened so far. After Broadway, there will the the Elf centre, Pittville park, the carriage shed, and so on.

 

Elf centre should be happening this year AFAIK.

As for Winchcombe fencing; has anyone actually asked? I'm sure if someone was vocal enough about it it would get done, and the same goes for Broadway.

 

Hi Jo,
Your picture of the car park area shows that there is some work going on on the embankment in the background. Can you give a brief update please ?

 

It's a drilling rig and JCB doing a geotechnical investigation along the Malvern side of the embankment. I have a picture but am waiting for some more info.

The guys doing the job are from Wolverhampton. Luckily I had my phrasebook with me

 

Sounds like this, the spear fencing, is something that will have to be pushed for if it is to happen, rather like the authentic roof.

It is as essential to the correct ambience as the signs and lamposts. Could you estimate an approximate costing to see if the share issue will cover it if fully subscribed.

Taking the longer view, if the station is as fully dressed as possible it will surely be in demand as a film set and start paying for itself in that way too.

 

Just wondering, do GWSR stations have station funds? If so it could be funded gradually from that if money from the company wasn't forthcoming.

 

The success of the share issue is critical. Depending on its success, more and more money will trickle down to the things that are non-essential, but would be nice to have. Clearly the civils, rails, ballast, the station building are top of the list.
If you cover those, you can look at fencing (well into 5 figures), reinstatement of the horse dock, a water tower, platform 2 waiting room etc.

Until we have seen the amount of money raised by the share issue, there is no point in speculating. I hope you all subscribe ! I certainly will. The EIS construction makes it attractive, as you can get a lot of your money back from HMRC. The launch date is 25th March, if my memory serves me right.

Yes, there are station groups, and area groups. These can raise small amounts for particular projects.

 

25th March eh? My 61st Anniversary is on that day. I'd better buy myself a birthday present in the form of more shares!

 

And, I suspect, if there was the will, larger projects, given time. If it turns out we cant get nice shiny GWR fencing immediately and have to make do with other type I can't see the Broadway group letting that pass for 30 years somehow. Once we get to Broadway I don't think we'll be looking at going south again for a few years at least. Sorting out Winchcombe and other bits and pieces will come first.

 

"Sorting out Winchcombe and other bits and pieces will come first"

Such as replacing the Trumpton signalboxes at Gotherington and CRC?

 

Now now, that was part of last years battle over the roof and we should all cut the GWSR some slack now that has been resolved and get behind the Broadway build and share issue.