Peak Rail at Matlock.

I should have added that there is no other trackwork at the NR station, if you look back at photographs of Matlock before closure of the Derby manchester main line in the 1960's you will see a goods yard North of the station. That has all gone under the large car park built at the same time as the Matlock by-pass. One railway building has been incorporated into the "transport Interchange" and houses toilets and a waiting area.
The station buildings survive on the "town" side of the station, largely in use by Peak Rail and Bill Hudson for his bookshop.
However the ambience of the area in front of the station has been completely destroyed by a huge metal footbridge built as part of the Sainsbury development. A footbridge that takes no account of the Victorian buildings in what I think is a conservation area.
Might be something on Portillo's programme on BBC2 at 6-30pm.

 

if you follow the link below, it will take you to the archived news pages of Peak Rail, about half way down there are some pictures of matlock which may be better than a diagram..

http://www.peakrail.co.uk/archive.htm

 

Plenty of publicity for Peak Rail on the Portillo programme tonight. I thought the comments made by the "man on the moors" and repeated by Portillo about Victorian railways being part of the industrial pollution scene was un-necessary, and probably factually inaccurate. Particularly when as the words were spoken they showed that well known image of a Deeley compound running through Cromford in 1911.
Your Austerity tankie inevitably morphed into something big and great western in one of their "random" continuity pieces, but we've come to expect that now on these programmes!

 

Thanks 46118 and kestreleyes for the orientation. The footbridge may be an eyesore, but the important thing is that it won't impact on re-opening the disused platform at Matlock NR, will it? How will this accessed from the north platform/station car park?

 

As the footbridge comes out above the other platform onto the sainsbury`s access ramp,if you turn right of the bridge about 50 yards on will be the access ramp to the platform, if youre able bodied or disabled thatl be the best and quickest way in, it takes about 1 minute to get from the car park to the end of what will be our platform,i tried it..

Im not sure what the local council have in store for the footbridge,there may be something sleepermonster or woodster can find out from the local council minutes/plans etc, any ideas chaps!!!!

I know we and others originally wanted to try to have the footbridge in the style of a midland type bridge

 

I guess there may be two options for access to the other platform, firstly off the "metal monster", and secondly at the north end of the platform it may be possible to create an entrance off the Sainsbury pathway. I think the height difference wasn't too great at that point. I'm sure Peak Rail will have that one thought out now. Probably the least of their work, the platform itself looks as though it needs a lot of work to bring it into use.

Michael Portillo tried quite hard to "talk up" Matlock Bath, but I dont really think his heart was in it!

 

Quite apart from being able to welcome visiting specials, I think Peak Rail will be pleasantly surprised at how many people the East Midland Trains service will deliver to their doorstep when the current 600+ yard walk to the Riverside (checked it on Google Earth) becomes max 150 yards along the arrival platform, across the bridge and down again. Objectively, they already have a good connection, but not to the first-time beholder, not yet.
Get the marketing right in Derby, Nottingham, and South Yorkshire, and PR could become a Grand Day Out for many thousands of families. Just think, the most viewed 8F in the country would be a red 'un!

 

The marketing has to be a no-brainer. Arrive at Matlock NR, coach pick-up for Chatsworth, Bakewell, Haddon, etc, return coach drops at Rowsley for Peak Rail back to Matlock. I am sure it is just waiting to be done. Running into Matlock NR station will be a much better option than the current PR Riverside station which doesn't appear to have particularly good access. At least not compared with what can be acheived at Matlock NR.

 

And you can pop into Sainsbury's (10 items only) while you're waiting for your train home.

 

Or have a look round Matlock, which IMHO is rather better than Matlock Bath!

 

even the car park at Rowsley isnt without its merits, weve had that to capacity and beyond during the last few 40`s galas, better than when Scotsman visited,coach drivers seem to like it
for the local attractions parking up there as its not far once the drivers dropped the load off at haddon or chatsworth to go and park up,like you say round trip marketting something like the cvr`s boat and train idea works well..

you could even have a discounted trip on the railway if a joint rail/attraction ticket was done, this would have worked well with the shopping village at rowsley, but i believe the toys of yesteryear display is no more now!!

when Matlocks developments in the town are finished it may be better than Matlock Bath, i find the bath a bit more touristy at the moment but extrememly busy, only place i know where at 2am in the morning people are still pushing pushchairs from the car park a mile away to see the illuminations as all the car parks are full!!! very strange!!!

there was talk a while ago of the council damming the flow up a little on the river through matlock so that boating/illuminations could also be held there,not heard owt since!

 

I believe that you can get a discount on your PR ticket if you produce a EMT ticket (or vice versa) it was on their (EMT) website. I wouldn't go there on altering the flow of the river through Matlock - in the early 1980's the river was "dredged" to prevent flooding even so i have seen the river part way up the parapets at Bridge 35 after heavy rain and all the fields up to the top of the embankment between 35 to 38 flooded - so a dam / weir in Matlock might not be such a good idea!

Attached is a picture early one morning the green strip in the middle is the line between bridges 37 and 38

 

I don't know whether these will help :

http://ronfisher2.fotopic.net/p48492564.html

http://ronfisher2.fotopic.net/p48492536.html

They show the loop lines under construction in October, 2007.

 

Quite by chance, I visited Matlock Bath when the illuminations were on. I thought that it was quite a nice little place. There are a few pictures on my Fotopic site if anyone is interested to have a look. This is the first one http://ronfisher2.fotopic.net/p48493347.html and there are another five showing the illuminations and the illuminated boat competition.

 

Nice shots Ron! Think we'll have to go and see those boats come autumn.

 

We stumbled across them quite by chance. We had no idea that such a competition existed but saw a poster advertising the event and decided to go along and have a look.

Ron.

 

If you do make it I recommend the Temple Hotel on the hillside above which has a good range of real ale. The food is good too.

Tim

 

PR soon to have a network connection. EVR too. As the full potential of these begin to be exploited, Derbyshire could become a mecca for preserved rail fans.
With so much competition so close, don't try to beat 'em, join 'em. How about a "two in one day" discount ticketing agreement with other destinations for weekdays outside the school hols. PR + Butterley / Barrow Hill / EVR, or non-rail partners like Chatsworth / Haddon / Heights of Abraham cablecar, etc?

Or am I already behind the times?

 

and in agreement with tim, the fish for dinner is excellent too, dont forget to try the house ales!!!!

 

Jovial landlord as well