Spring Vale Electrical Controls (Part 2)

Part 1 of this series introduced the drawings detailing the electrical controls at Spring Vale Sidings Box. There's a brief description of this signal box here. It's helpful to keep in mind the layout, shown below. Clicking on any diagram gives an enlarged image which can be downloaded or printed.

In this instalment we'll look at Block Control on the Up and Down Lines (shown on sheet 2 of the drawing set).

Introduction to Block Control:

Early block instruments were purely communication devices. The safe working of trains depended upon the signalman only giving 'Line Clear' for a train to approach when it was safe to do so. Various improvements were introduced, like 'Sykes Lock and Block' and 'Interlocking Block' but these were partially mechanical systems, not completely foolproof and were not universally adopted. Over the years, successive accidents revealed weaknesses which could be guarded against by adding electrical controls.

Signal Proving:

One source of accidents was trains running away because signals were not displaying a 'Stop' aspect when required, either through a Signalman's direct error or because the position of the signal arm did not correspond with the position of the controlling lever in the signal box. At night (or in conditions of low visibility) a signal lamp 'out' could similarly result in running away.

Normally, 'Line Clear' was given to the box in rear before permission had been obtained for the train to proceed into the section ahead. This was perfectly safe provided that the Home signal was at danger so as to stop the approaching train. In addition, the Distant signal should be at Caution, as advance warning to the driver of the need to stop at the Home signal.

Let's summarise the electrical interlocks required:-

(1) Prove signal arms 'on': The mechanical interlocking on the lever frame responds to the position of the lever - there is no information about the actual position of the signal arm controlled from the lever.

(2) Prove Home signal lever 'Normal' and electric lever lock not energised: This ensures that the Home signal levers are correctly Normal at the time 'Line Clear' is given to the box in rear.

At Spring Vale, Block Control was provided on both the Catchems Corner and Deepfields block instruments to ensure that the relevant Home and Distant signals were 'On' before 'Line Clear' could be given to the box in the rear. The detailed circuit is described below.

Catchems Corner direction:

On the Up Main, the criteria for accepting a train offered from the Catchems Corner direction were:-

- Up Distant Signal Arms (19a/19b) proved 'On'.

- Up Home Signal Arms (levers 20 & 23) proved 'On'.

- Up Home Signal Levers (20 & 23) proved 'Normal' and electrically locked.

On the right of the diagram above is the block instrument to Catchems Corner with two polarised galvanometers and the commutator switch. The right hand side of each galvanometer connects to line and thence to the block instrument in the Catchems Corner direction via contacts on the Block Switch ('BNC'). The Block Switch contacts are closed when Spring Vale Sidings box is 'Open'. On the Up Main, separate batteries are provided for giving 'Line Clear' and 'Train on Line'. Negative 'Line Clear' battery is fed via contacts: '20LCC' (Lock Proving Contact on 20 lever lock, proving lever normal and lock not energised), '23LCC' (Lock Proving Contact on 23 lever lock, proving lever normal and lock not energised), '20RGCR' (contact on Red Signal Proving Relay for signal 20), '23RGCR' (contact on Red Signal Proving Relay for signal 23),'19YCR' (contact on Yellow Signal Proving Relay for signals 19) to the 'LC' pole of the commutator. If the control conditions are met when the signalman places the Block Instrument Commutator to 'Line Clear', current flows from the battery, through the proving contacts, through the commutator at 'Line Clear', through the closed front contact of relay 'T1TPS' (track Circuit 1 Track Repeating Stick Relay), through the coil of polarised relay 'UP MAIN BS' (Block Stick Relay) and via a current limiting resistor to the positive of the 'Line Clear' battery 'RET'. A stick relay is one which, once operated, self-maintains. The 'UP MAIN BS' contact shorts out the chain of proving contacts, allowing the signalman to obtain 'Line Clear' from the box in advance and clear his signals, without losing the 'Line Clear' to the box in rear.

Can we come back to a proper discussion of 'T1TPS' in a later installment? For now, assume that track circuit T1 (the Up Main 'Berth' track circuit) is clear and that 'T1TPS' is energised.

Note, in passing, that the 'DN MAIN BCR' (Block Proving Relay) is a polarised relay which will energise only when 'Line Clear' polarity is being received from Catchems Corner direction. Energisation of this relay is used to release the down signals at Spring Vale Sidings.

Deepfields direction:

On the Down Main, the criteria for accepting a train from Deepfields direction were:-

- Down Distant Signal Arms (37, 36a/36b) proved 'On'.

- Down Home Signal Lever (35) proved 'Normal' and electrically locked.

Similarly, on the right of the diagram above is the block instrument to Deepfields. On the Down Main, separate batteries are provided for giving 'Line Clear' and 'Train on Line'. Negative 'Line Clear' battery is fed via contacts: '35LCC' (Lock Proving Contact on 35 lever lock, proving lever normal and lock not energised), '36a/b YCR' (contact on Yellow Signal Proving Relay for signals 36a/36b), '37YCR' (contact on Yellow Signal Proving Relay for signal 37) to the 'LC' pole of the commutator. If the control conditions are met when the signalman places the Block Instrument Commutator to 'Line Clear', current flows from the battery, through the proving contacts, through the coil of a polarised relay 'DOWN MAIN BS' (Block Stick Relay) and via a current limiting resistor to the positive of the 'Line Clear' battery 'RET'. The 'DOWN MAIN BS' contact shorts out the chain of proving contacts, allowing the signalman to obtain 'Line Clear' from the box in advance and clear his signals, without losing the 'Line Clear' to the box in rear.

Note, in passing, that the 'DN MAIN BCR' (Block Proving Relay) is a polarised relay which will energise only when 'Line Clear' polarity is being received from Deepfields direction. Energisation of this relay is used to release the Up signals at Spring Vale Sidings.

In the next instalment, we'll talk about Lever Locks.

Princes End Electrical Controls (Part 2)

Part 1 of this series introduced the drawings detailing the electrical controls at Princes End after it became a Fringe Box to Wolverhampton Power Signal Box. There's a brief description of this signal box here. It's helpful to keep in mind the track layout, shown below.

This simplified and approximate diagram shows Princes End with the single line to Wednesbury on the left and the double track to Tipton Curve Junction (controlled by Wolverhampton PSB) on the right. Clicking on any diagram displays a higher-resolution version which can be downloaded or printed

Layout of Relay Room

Layout of relay room at Princes End

All the relay rooms on the West Midlands Resignalling were more-or-less the same size - they certainly all followed the same basic design. Whereas some of the main-line relay rooms were packed with equipment, there was plenty of spare space at Princes End, with cable terminations on one long wall, battery chargers on the other long wall and equipment in the middle of the room.

Cable Terminations

One long wall was dedicated to cable terminations for signalling, telecommunications and power cables. All cables entered the relay room underground from the concrete trough cable route outside. The signalling cables were terminated on substantial test disconnection links to facilitate tracking down faults. The other side of the disconnection links was wired via overhead cable trays to the equipment. Cables PE1 and PE6 both ran to Location Case PE2/1. Cable PE2 ran to Location Case PE2/2. Cables L1 and L2 ran to the signal box. Finally, track circuits 464 and 467 had their adjustment resistors (464TO and 467TO), fusing and links mounted on the termination panel.

Layout of Cable Termination Panels at Princes End

Relay Racks at main line relay rooms

The West Midland Resignalling introduced 'Geographical Interlocking' using pre-wired relay units each dealing with a standard signalling function such as a 'Main Signal' or a 'Single Ended Point'. These standard units were then interconnected by multicore cables plugged into plug couplers, allowing rapid replacement during fault-finding. Relay racks mounting the 'Geographical' units were normally in one or more rows away from the walls giving technicians access to both the front and rear of the racks.

Relay Rack at Princes End

Princes End was a much simpler proposition, with only a few relays to be accommodated, so the relay rack was 'free-wired' (as all relay interlockings had been prior to the adoption of 'Geographical' units). Next to the relay rack, the Standard Telephones and Cables Train Describer was housed in an equipment cubicle with hinged access doors.

Layout of relay rack at Princes End

The relays were mainly Westinghouse style 'P'. This series of miniature plug-in railway signalling relays was the immediate predecessor to the 'BR930' plug in relays still used today.

The top row of relays were for signal and miscellaneous relays. The Down colour-light starter (lever 6) needed 3 relays, plus 1 relay associated with the next signal (WN186, controlled by Wolverhampton). The Up Home 1 (lever 19) needed 6 relays. There were 4 style 'J' relays for miscellaneous functions. The second row of relays mounted 11 relays associated with track circuits. The remaining rows were unused, apart from two style 'R4' Track Feed Sets for track circuits 464 and 467.

Power

A secure Signalling Supply of 650 volts a.c. was fed throughout the area to power Location Cases and Relay Rooms. The relay room at Princes End had a 1 kVa step-down transformer to 110 volts a.c. which was distributed to various power supplies, low voltage transformers and battery chargers. The diagram below shows two 50 volt d.c. supplies, two 12 volt d.c. supplies (one with battery back-up), 12 volts a.c. (for the lamps on the illuminated diagram at Princes End) and 110 volt a.c. supplies.

Note the way in which supplies were designated. 'B' identified the positive and 'N' the negative. The nominal voltage was appended, for example 'B12' meant 12 volts positive Where there were multiple supplies with the same nominal voltage, suffixes were added such as 'N50(S)'. Alternating supplies had an 'X' added such as 'BX110'.

Power Supply Layout

The Fuse Panel for all the supplies was located on the end of the relay rack. Layout and Allocation of Fuses

In the next instalment (here), we'll tackle some of the relay circuits.

Spring Vale Electrical Controls (Part 1)

In the 1950s, mechanical signalboxes were still very common, where semaphore signals were operated by wire and points by rodding from a mechanically-interlocked lever frame in the box. Block Signalling Instruments were used to authorise the passage of trains between signal boxes. Over the years, various other electrical controls were applied, on a piecemeal basis, according to perceived risk.

Introduction:

As an example, we can look at the situation which applied at Spring Vale Sidings box in 1961 (after remodelling). There's a brief description of this signal box here. It's helpful to keep in mind the layout, shown below. Clicking on the layout gives an enlarged image which can be downloaded or printed.

The Drawings:

A group of six drawings detailed the electrical controls and a set of dyeline prints was kept in the equipment cupboard at the box for use by the Signal & Telegraph Lineman during his visits. The drawings were controlled by the London Midland Region Divisional Signal Engineer's Office at Crewe. I managed to obtain a partial set of drawings which have been scanned. The index to these drawings is here. The image can be viewed in various sizes, downloaded or printed. The assistance of British Railways back in the '60s in furnishing these obsolete drawings is acknowledged.

Drawing Symbols and Labelling Conventions:

The symbols for the various circuit elements are drawn in the style used back then and, in general, the symbols are peculiar to railway signalling so they may be unfamiliar. Nowadays, much simplified symbols are used (although these are probably harder for the novice to follow). The student also has to get used to the letter codes used to label components. A group of letters and figures is used to identify each component. For instance, the designation '20RGCR' means [20][Red][Signal][Proving][Relay]. Once you've mastered the principal codes, understanding diagrams becomes much easier.

The Drawing Set:

This set of drawings was numbered CW.137/59/x, where 'x' was the sheet number. These drawings were prefaced by a Contents and Ordering page. The 'Contents' gave details of the drawing pages and 'Ordering' was a brief stores description of the various electrical items. The list of sheets was as follows:-

1 : Controls (I'm afraid this sheet has not survived)
2 : Block Control
3 : Lever Locks
4 : TPR's, TPS & TXR
5 : Repeating
6 : Bonding (later version)

There is also an earlier bonding diagram, before remodelling here and a later diagram outlining alterations to be made here.

Each of these sheets can be viewed in various sizes, downloaded or printed.

In the next instalment (here), we'll look at these sheets in a little more detail.

[For a long time, many of the above links stopped working, as explained here. I've finally restored most of them. Hope it helps: 28-Dec-2015]

Princes End Electrical Controls (Part 1)

Introduction:

In the 1960s, British Railways modernised the signalling in the West Midlands as part of the 25kV Electrification Project. Westinghouse was the signalling contractor for new Power Signal Boxes at Wolverhampton, Birmingham, Walsall and the Down Tower at Bescot. Control of the North Stour was transferred to Wolverhampton Power Box and a number of the mechanical boxes I'd been familiar with were either abolished or downgraded to Shunt Frames. However, Princes End box was retained as a Fringe Box to Wolverhampton. This involved significant changes. After these changes at Princes End, I had the opportunity to work the box (unofficially) a number of times, as described in an earlier article. Although the main line signalling installations are still in use, after the Princes End Branch was closed the track was lifted and very little remains today of this once-important freight route.

This fairly recent view Wolverhampton Power Box shows that it is little altered externally and (unlike some Power Boxes like Trent, Saltley and Derby) retains its flat roof. Larger overhanging fascias have been fitted, presumably because of difficulties viewing the signalling console in strong sunlight

Principal Changes at Princes End

This simplified and approximate diagram shows Princes End as a Fringe Box, showing the single line to Wednesbury on the left and the double track to Tipton Curve Junction (controlled by Wolverhampton PSB) on the right. Clicking on the image displays a higher-resolution version which can be downloaded or printed

Continuous track circuiting was introduced on the Up and Down lines on the Wolverhampton side of Princes End Box so that the former Absolute Block working could be replaced by Track Circuit Block (TCB) working. Although a single-stroke bell and 'tapper' was provided to communicate with Wolverhampton Power Signal Box, in general trains were sent and received using a Train Describer. The Up Home 1 signal was replaced by a 3-aspect colour-light and the Down starting signal was replaced by a 4-aspect colour-light. To accommodate the necessary equipment, a relay room was built on the Up side, a few yards on the Wolverhampton side of Princes End box. The relay room was a substantial flat-roofed affair in blue brick, similar in design to all the relay rooms provided in connection with the Wolverhampton re-signalling. In addition, steel Location Cases ("Locs") were provided periodically along the route to house relays and other equipment associated with track circuits and signals. The Location Cases, Relay Room and Princes End Signal Box were interconnected, as necessary, by rugged signalling control cables laid in sectional concrete troughing at the side of the running lines. Each troughing section comprised a 'U' shaped duct closed by a flat lid. The Signalling Power Cable and Telecommunications cables also used the concrete troughing.

The Drawings:

I was interested in the methods of electrical control employed and took every opportunity to study the changes which had been made. Eventually, I managed to obtain prints of some of the drawings which had been used during the installation and commissioning phase. I've made 'quick and dirty' photographed copies of these drawings - the index to these photographed copies is here. Alternately, the links in the section 'The Contractor's Drawings' below take you directly to an image of each individual sheet. The image can be downloaded or printed. The assistance of British Railways back in the late '60s in furnishing these drawings is acknowledged.

'Red Lined' Drawings:

Some of these drawings had required change during installation and commissioning and had been 'Red Lined'. The required changes were made by hand (in red) on dyeline copies of the affected drawings. On completion of the work, the changes would have been permanently incorporated on the drawing 'Master' held in the design offices. In the mid '60s these Masters were usually drawn in ink on translucent linen or plastic drawing film, so as to be durable and suitable for using to take dyeline copies. Once the Masters were updated and reviewed, fresh, corrected dyeline copies could be issued for record and maintenance purposes. There are some inconsistencies between the sheets presented here but hopefully these will not prevent some understanding of the principles involved.

Drawing Symbols and Labelling Conventions:

The symbols for the various circuit elements are drawn in the simplified style now used. They're probably a little harder to follow than the earlier symbols (mentioned in the post Spring Vale Electrical Controls). The student also has to get used to the letter codes used to label components. A group of letters and figures is used to identify each component. For instance, the designation '19GCR' means [19][Signal][Proving][Relay]. Once you've mastered the principal codes, understanding diagrams becomes much easier.

Lever and Signal Controls:

There is one drawing prepared by British Railways (LMR). This drawing (NW630385/8) shows requirements for new Lever and Signal Controls as a table. The remaining drawings detail how those requirements are implemented.

The Contractor's Drawings:

The remaining drawings detail the electrical controls at Princes End and these were prepared by Westinghouse for British Railways. The Westinghouse drawings were numbered L2689/x where 'x' was the sheet letter or number. The list of sheets was as follows:-

/A :Index
/B :Layout of Relay Room
/C :Layout of Relay Rack (currently unavailable, sorry)
/D :Power Supply Layout (currently unavailable, sorry)
/E :Layout and Allocation of Fuses
/F1 :Cable Terminations (Relay Room)
/F2 :I'm afraid sheet /F2 has not survived.
/G :Contact Analysis
/1 :5(N) Lock & 6 Signal Selection, Control, Lighting & Indication Circuits
/2 :19 Signal Selection, Control, Lighting & Indication Circuits & 462 TJR circuit
/3 :Incoming & Outgoing TPR Circuits
/4 :Filament Failure & (PO) Indication Circuits
/5 :Track & Signal Indication Circuits
/6 :18(N) Lock & Single Line Working Circuits
/7 :Typical Unit Wiring.

I've also included a drawing fragment showing the Key Token Instrument wiring here.

In the next instalment (here) we'll look at some of these sheets in a little more detail.

[For a long time, many of the above links stopped working, as explained here. I've finally restored most of them. Hope it helps: 28-Dec-2015]

Review of the Year - 2009

The year just finished seems to have scrambled past with undue haste. I've been lucky, once again, to have accumulated a stock of new experiences.

What stands out?

Modern Railways

Rail journeys in the U.K. usually bring out the worst in me and, in January, I was grizzling in 'Brave New Railway'. The picture shows a Virgin 'Pendolino' at Euston. I'd return to this theme later in the year in 'Brave New Railway (again)'. Just to be scrupulously fair, I must point out that, on one occasion during the year, we left on time and arrived in Euston on time. I was quite excited until my return later in the day - twenty minutes late into Wolverhampton.

Germany

At the end of January, a business trip took me to Frankfurt and Mannheim. We flew from Birmingham to Frankfurt and then took the train to Mannheim. The picture shows a statue of Goethe in Frankfurt. I like Germany and was impressed by the trains we travelled on - see High Speed Trains. Having taken a number of pictures of the station at Mannheim and 'snatched' pictures of a number of signals on the journey back to Frankfurt, I was inspired to write a piece about German Railway Signalling. Whilst Britain developed 'Route Signalling' which tells the driver the line he is to travel on, Continental practice uses 'Speed Signalling' where the driver is given a maximum safe speed but the actual line is not identified.

Egypt

March saw me on another river cruise - this time on the Nile aboard the luxurious 'Zahra'. Impressed with the antiquities I had seen on an earlier visit to Egypt as part of my 'Round the World Two' trip (see entry for 9-Feb-2005 in my report here), I'd determined to return to look at some of the temples on the Nile. They did not disappoint. I didn't make any rail journeys but the visit was not completely devoid of railways and a short visit to Aswan station at breakfast time one day was particularly enjoyable.

Jordan

After Egypt, I spent a week travelling through Jordan by car from Amman down to Aquaba. I achieved a childhood ambition by swimming in the Dead Sea which is extremely buoyant because of the high salt levels. High point of Jordan was my visits to the Red Rose City of Petra. This ancient city of the Nabateans features a number of amazing buildings carved into the living rock. I was so impressed by my first full-day visit that I returned early the next day for a morning visit. You can find all my posts on this holiday to Egypt and Jordan (with links to my photographs) here.

Restored '8F'

The long-awaited debut of the '8F' locomotive restored at Peak Rail took place on Saturday 23rd May and I was fortunate to be on the footplate for part of the day. The day was not without drama. I prepared the locomotive at Darley Dale and travelled light to Rowsley (coupled to 'Royal Pioneer') but the Traction and Train Crew Officer decided to drive the first trip carrying members of the '8F' Society. When the train returned to Rowsley, it had developed a hot big end, so I took over a 'sick' engine which was repaired in record time by the '8F' Society restoration team. Belatedly, the '8F' triumphantly entered revenue service. There's a report here linked to pictures.

New Platform at MOSI

On Saturday, 27th June, I was the driver on the 'Planet' replica when the new platform was inaugurated at the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester. When I wrote a report on this development, I was reminded that I've been a volunteer here for over 21 years. The 'New' platform is, more or less, back where the original platform was when I became a working member of the Friends, although the platform now serves the next line across as the original line has been 'lost' to car parking space.

Lionsmeet 2009

'Lionsmeet' at York on 1st August hit bad weather this year but our hosts made up for it with their hospitality. Once again, Jan was 'volunteered' to act as official observer, taking the results from the Dynamometer Car. The site is next to the East Coast Main Line so it was odd to see main-line electrics and diesels passing, as I commented in my report.

Peak Rail War Weekend

The day after 'Lionsmeet 2009', I was on the footplate of 'Royal Pioneer' at Peak Rail for the War Weekend. Fortunately, the weather was much better than at 'Lionsmeet'. There were lots of military exhibits and re-enactors around and the kind weather encouraged large numbers of visitors. There's a brief report here.

Transport Festival

Later in the month, the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester hosted a very successful 'Transport Festival', with an emphasis on the locomotives of Manchester-based Beyer Peacock and their distinctive 'Beyer-Garrett' articulated types. The Festival lasted over a week and I was on the footplate on a couple of days. On certain days, Bus Trips had been organised to the former Beyer Peacock works in Gorton, where the Boiler Shop survives. I was fortunate enough to be able to join one of these trips. Click here for more details.

Trip to Far East

On the 23rd August, I started another adventure in the Far East. I wrote quite a bit about this trip which took in Bangkok, Burma, East Bengal (well, Kolkata) and the magical kingdom of Bhutan - you can find all my posts here. It was good to return to Burma and join the 'Maiden Voyage' of the 'Road to Mandalay' after extensive repairs and refitting necessitated by Cyclone Nargis. I was able to meet all my friends from earlier trips (and make some new ones) and find out more about the educational and medical work sponsored by Orient Express staff. Moving on to Bhutan, I saw a little of what I think is the most improbable country I've visited - part internet generation, part medieval.

Brewood Hall Tour

Although Brewood Hall is a private house, we occasionally have visits from interested groups. There have been a couple of visits by the Civic Society and, on the 19th September, as part of their Heritage Month, Staffordshire Libraries organised a walking tour of interesting sights around Brewood Village led by Dave Evans. The tour ended with a visit to Brewood Hall where Jan Ford outlined some of the history of the Hall as the visitors were taken round the principal rooms. There's a brief report here.

Corporate Day

Sometimes, commercial organisations (particularly those operating in the railway industry) organise functions for selected clients at preserved railways. This year, Peak Rail hosted a corporate day for STRail on 7th October. I was on the footplate of the '8F' with Derek and we took turns driving and firing. After a formal session at the Whitworth, the delegates were able to enjoy lunch on the train before alighting at Rowsley for an opportunity to study the STRail level crossing products on display. The maroon '8F' was much admired and a couple of managers were given a footplate ride. This was an unusual and enjoyable day - report here.

Thomas and Friends

Once again, Shackerstone hosted 'Thomas and Friends' on a number of weekends in the year. The 'Thomas' franchise is very strictly controlled by Hit International and events are frequently audited by their staff.

In June, I had one day driving 'Daisy' the DMU. In October, I had two days on 'Thomas' and one day on 'Daisy'. It's always good fun to see how fascinated the children are by steam, even if the loco crew occasionally get wet in one of the 'Water Games'. My report is here.

Scouts at Brewood Hall

Brewood has an active Scout group and one of the Scout Leaders suggested that a visit would be of interest to the young people. I readily agreed so, one evening in November, it was the turn of Brewood Scouts to have a short conducted tour of the principal rooms at Brewood Hall, followed by biscuits and orange juice. There's a short report with a link to a few more pictures here. There were lots of questions and it was quite a jolly event. It would be good to repeat the tour in summertime, with the benefit of light evenings.

Santa Specials

The 'Santa Specials' at Peak Rail handled record numbers in 2009. Santa Claus was in attendance, as usual, assisted by lots of helpers to make sure that all the children received presents. At many preserved railways, a disproportionate amount of the annual turnover is earned in the period leading up to Christmas, so it does get a bit frantic and volunteers are usually in short supply to cover all the extra tasks.

Peak Rail ran a maximum-length 7-coach train which was top-and-tailed by two steam locomotives this year. I had one day driving 'Royal Pioneer' and one day on the '8F' - see report here.

Mince Pie Specials

Christmas itself was fairly quiet this year, but I enjoyed to opportunity to 'collapse'. But by the 31st December, despite the cold, I was happy to venture out. What better way to spend the last day of the year than a gentle 'turn' driving the DMU 'Mince Pie Specials' at Shackerstone? The sun was shining and, although it was cold outside, the heaters on the DMU were working. There's a short report here.

Work

Work took up a fair bit of my time, but I don't usually write extensively about this area of my life. Amongst other jobs, we were kept busy with a Tunnel Telephone System for the East London Line (now to be part of the 'London Overground') and Enhancements to a Tunnel Telephone system we supplied a few years ago for the Northern City Line from Finsbury Park down to Moorgate. I spend most weekdays in our converted-barn offices at Brewood but I do get out on site from time to time. Visits to King's Cross in connection with the Northern City Line project were the trigger for various posts involving King's Cross, such as this one.

Nor have I written about the friends and relatives who have passed on during the year. As you get older, you tend to go to more funerals than weddings or Christenings. Whilst all these events are important to me, I usually choose not to feature them here.

Looking back over the year, I really do think I've been very fortunate. Who knows what 2010 will bring, good or ill? Best wishes to all of you!

Battlefield Line Mince Pie Specials 2009

The DMU ready to depart from Shackerstone

On 31st December 2009, I was the driver when the Battlefield Line ran three round trips from Shackerstone to Shenton with the 2-car diesel railcar. The weather was very cold but bright. I allowed plenty of time for preparation because the weather had been very frosty but Ritchie had charged the batteries a couple of days earlier and made sure that the heaters were serviceable so there were no difficulties. One engine was a bit reluctant to start but once running gave no problems, leaving time to do a Line Inspection trip (and drop off some materials for the new restaurant being installed in the Ticket Office building at Market Bosworth) before starting the service.

These passengers have 'bagged' seats giving a panoramic view of the Leicestershire countryside

There were a surprising number of passengers for the first train and although the remaining two trips were not heavily-loaded, I think everybody enjoyed the journey and the warm mince pies. A pleasant and not too strenuous end to the year! The DMU railcars are operated by the Shackerstone DMU Group. For an earlier post (with a link to more photographs) click here.

Loco-profile 1: "Lion"

'Lion' when on display at the Museum of Science & Industry in Manchester

The first locomotive I drove was the 1838 "Lion", star of the Ealing Film 'The Titfield Thunderbolt'. I sometimes say that every other engine since has been a bit of an anticlimax, but that's an exaggeration.

The last steaming of "Lion" was at Birmingham Railway Museum, Tyseley in 1988. She was stored there for some time before moving to Dinting for a while in anticipation of bringing her back to steam. Unfortunately, Liverpool Museums decided that "Lion" will not steam again and she was moved to Dorothea Restorations at Whaley Bridge for cosmetic restoration. I was able to 'drive' "Lion" one last time on a 'rolling road' at Dorothea using air, not steam. At that time, there was no suitable space to display "Lion" in Liverpool so she spent some years on display in the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester. "Lion" is now stored in Liverpool, in anticipation of static display in the remarkable new museum being completed in Liverpool.

I've written a few posts about "Lion", her history and her supporters club (The Old Locomotive Committee or simply 'OLCO'). To see all these posts, Click here.