Llandudno in April

Following the success of a recent day trip by rail to New Brighton (report here), I decided to make a trip to another favourite destination, Llandudno. I booked any Anytime Return online and decided on First Class. This was a questionable decision, since all Transport for Wales (TfW) trains are standard class only, apart from the Premium First service between Cardiff and Holyhead I mentioned in my post here). In addition, Avanti have a 'Voyager' service, currently between Holyhead and Crewe which has a First Class section. Although we are in the phase of 'Living with Covid', railway timetables are still not back to normal and services are liable to disruption at short notice.

Getting there: Friday, 22nd April 2022

I took the customary 07:30 bus to Wolverhampton, discovering that the £2.60 single fare has risen to £2.80. The pedestrian approach to the station still entails an ever-changing obstacle course as work continues on the modest yet late-running extension of the West Midlands Metro tram service from the current terminus at St. Georges to the railway station.


Wolverhampton Station, showing continuing work on the Metro extension, with the railway in the background (Llandudno trip)


Entrance to Wolverhampton Station with yellow arch and name displayed (Llandudno trip)

I had a few minutes to wait before my train, giving me a chance to study the fire alarm map showing the odd-shaped, vaguely triangular site which the new, unloved building occupies. My train 9S44, a 'Pendolino' service from London Euston to Edinburgh via Birmingham arrived on time. Although this train is only allowed 29 minutes to Crewe, the friendly staff in the First Class section found time to provide a glass of orange juice with two rounds of toast and preserves so that I arrived at Crewe in good spirits. Checking Railcam UK on my 'phone (see post here), I discovered that the Diesel Multiple Unit (DMU) in the north end bay platform 9 would form train 1D82 to Chester at 09:51, but the passenger information displays showed an earlier departure from platform 11 at 09:17. A quick check on Railcam UK showed train 1K33 already approaching platform 11 from Chester. A fair number of passengers got off and a reasonable number boarded but the refubished Class 153, operating as a 2-car train provided plenty of space. I noticed extensive tree-cutting as we made the usual speedy run to Chester, arriving in bay platform 1.

Then I was a little unsure of the best train forward. There seemed to be three departures in the next 30 minutes which would all take me to Llandudno Junction but that day arrangements seemed a little disarranged. When in doubt, I normally take the first available service, particularly remembering I needed a connecting service from Llandudno Junction to take me to Llandudno itself. I took the first departing DMU, from platform 3 which I think was 1D33 from Manchester to Holyhead, quite well turned out in TfW livery, well-patronised but not crowded. Chester Power Box controls the line up to the vicinity of the short (99 yards) Rockliffe Hall Tunnel beyond which there is a section of modernised signalling controlled from a Railway Operating Centre (ROC).

The Wales ROC, situated just west of Cardiff Central station opened in 2010 and in 2018 added the North Wales Desk with a single workstation for the Rhyl area, controlling the section from the Chester Power Box boundary in the east to the Llandudno Junction boundary in the west. The control code for signal numbers in the Rhyl workstation area is 'FH', which I assume stands for Fflint-Holyhead.

We made the usual progress, bursts of high speed running alternating with frequent station stops where a flurry of passengers boarded and alighted. During our stop at Fflint (a station I'd travelled from a few months earlier, described in the post Rail Travel in January 2022), I took a couple of pictures showing the well-proportioned station building on the Down side, presumably a relic of the Chester and Holyhead railway company.


Fflint Down Side Station Building (Llandudno trip)

Near Fflint, we passed an Avanti 'Voyager' on the Up line - the 08:55 Holyhead to Crewe, reporting number 1A23. We were under the control of Llandudno Junction's colour-light signals by the time we stopped at Bae Colwyn, which was still known as Colwyn Bay when I was growing up. At that time, like Rhyl, it was an important destination for holiday-makers using the railways, as testified by the broad steps of the footbridge


Colwyn Bay station footbridge, Down side (Llandudno trip)

At Llandudno Junction, we used platform 3 which is one face of the through platform island and, as I hoped, I found the connecting shuttle service to Llandudno waiting in plaform 2, the remaining terminal bay let-into the west end of through-platform island 1 and 3. In steam days, there were two adjacent bays let-into this island, with a similar island platform on the Down side now simplified to a flanking platform 4. As I waited for our departure, a Down train quietly rolled into platform 4, paused briefly and then noisily set off towards Conway. The train was Mark 4 Driving Van Trailer leading a train of Mark 4 coaches and being propelled by a Class 66 diesel electric. It was clearly one of the TfW Preium First services from Cardiff to Holyhead but it was a while before I realised it must have been the 06:45 from Cardiff, running late.

My train was a Class 175 with just a handful of passengers, quite attractive inside, carrying Covid warning signs with pictograms advising mask-wearing, distance-keeping and regular hand washing. We left on time at 10:59 for the short journey through Deganwy, with views of Conwy castle and the estuary of the Conwy river, to Llandudno.


TfW 3-car Class 175 in platform 2 (bay) at Llandudno Junction


Conwy castle and the estuary of the Conwy river

On arrival at Llandudno station, I walked across the booking hall of the modernised station building, through the automatic glass doors and headed along Vaughan Steet to the sea front. The appearance of the sea front betrays its Victorian origins. A broad, pedestrian promenade around the curving bay is flanked by a road with attractive hotels on the landward side with the bulk of the Great Orme to the west and the Little Orme to the east. The weather was dry and reasonably warm but overcast, rendering the offshore wind farm virtually invisible.


Llandudno beach, showing the Pier and the Great Orme (Llandudno trip)

I took the promenade west past the bandstand and, once past the shingle, continued along the sandy beach for a time, returning to the promenade before choosing my next target, either the pier or the Great Orme Tramway. I decided to look at the tram so I crossed to Church Walks, the fairly steep approach to the lower terminus of the tramway, passing hotels and boarding houses on both sides along the way. I discovered that the tram was operating so I purchased a ticket to travel to the summit and back.

The Great Orme Tramway

The Great Orme Tramway ascends on a route about one mile long from Victoria Station to Summit Station at the top of the Great Orme headland in two, completely separate stages requiring passengers to change between lower and upper trams at the Halfway Station which includes the Engine House controlling the cables for both sections. Both sections follow the geography of the land, with changes in gradient and variable curvature. It is a type of cable railway called a Funicular where descending and ascending cars are linked by cable, reducing haulage power requirements.

As built, haulage was by winches operated by steam engines located in one Engine House at Halfway Station. On the lower section, each car was connected by cable to a winch at the Engine House with two cable drums so that as one car is hauled uphill, the other descends. The Upper section is similar but, because the powered winch is at the lower end of the section, a third cable links the upper end of the two cars via an Idler pulley at the Summit station. Electric winches finally replaced the steam engines in 1957. For more information, see Book Reference [1].

Around 2000, funding from the Lottery, the European Union and the Local Authority allowed comprehensive modernisation. There's more information on the Great Orme Tramway website here together with Book Reference [1] and Book Reference [2].

The lower terminus is called Victoria Station because it is built on the site of the former Victoria Hotel. It was some time before the incongruity of this single-track station sharing its name with the rather larger terminus in London (briefly described here) struck me.


Llandudno: Victoria Tram Station in 2014

There are normally three tram departures an hour (although additional services can be added in very busy periods). The tram station was bustling with people and I failed to board the first tram but the overcast was giving way to blue sky and bright sun so I was content to wait for the next service which took me to Halfway Station.


Tram No. 5 ready to leave Victoria Station with a full load.

The lower section shares the route with a public right-of-way for most of its length and uses 'inset' track to provide a level road surface. The haulage cable is below road level with a slot between the rails allowing each car to be connected to the cable. A passing loop is provided at the midpoint of the lower section with the line below the loop arranged as '2-rail' and that above the loop as '3-rail', as explained in the Wikipedia article here). Although the line from the lower section loop to Halfway Station is classed as '3-rail', there are actually 4 rails, with the middle two close together.


Great Orme Tramway: View of passing loop on the lower section from an ascending tram, showing the descending tram approaching the loop.


Great Orme Tramway: View of lower section tramshed at Halfway Station. Note two tracks, side-by-side ('3-rail') as far as the lower passing loop.

At Halfway Station, a brisk walk through the Engine House with the other passengers took us to the waiting upper section tram which departed once we had all boarded.

The upper section passes through unfenced moorland using sleepered track with stone ballast. The haulage cable is above ground, supported on a variety of pulley wheels. A passing loop is provided at the midpoint of the upper section and the line both above and below the loop is arranged as '2-rail'.


Great Orme Tramway: View of the upper section from an ascending tram, with the passing loop visible on the left. Note the level crossing. On the upper section, exit from the loop to either 'uphill' or 'downhill' sections is via a 'trailable' set of points allowing a car leaving the loop to force the points to the correct position. A special Tumbler mechanism then holds the points in that position, so that the returning car is directed to the correct side of the loop. For more information about the 'trailable' points and the Tumbler mechanism, refer to the report on an accident which occured in 2009 here.


Great Orme Tramway: View of upper section passing loop from ascending tram nearing exit points. Note extra 'crossings' to accommodate the cable joining the trams via the Idler pulley at Summit Station


Llandudno: Great Orme Tramway: This small building at Summit Station houses the large Idler pulley on the third cable which connects both upper section trams. Winding for both the Upper and Lower sections is from Halfway Station.


Great Orme Tramway: View of Summit Station and Museum. Note the telecommunications tower

The Summit area was quite busy when we arrived and the car park was well-patronised. There's a large restaurant, various amusements and small museum next to the tram station which outlines the history of the Great Orme. The haze had largely cleared and it was pleasantly warm. I walked for a while taking in the sea views and re-visited the museum but, with limited time, I boarded the next descending tram.


Great Orme Tramway: View of 'top hat' cable pulleys from descending tram on upper section. Note cables clipped to sleeper ends

At Halfway Station, windows give a view of the winch gear as you walk through the engine house to board the tram for the remaining section.


Great Orme Tramway: View of upper tramway cable haulage motor (blue) and gearbox (white) with twin winch drums visible in the background at Halfway Station


Great Orme Tramway: View of lower tramway cable haulage motor (blue) and gearbox (white) with twin winch drums just visible in the background at Halfway Station

On the lower section, there's a road/tram crossing with conventional traffic lights for road vehicles and the usual row of white lights applying to the tram (horizontal row: stop, vertical row: proceed). I believe that a magnet under the tram should ensure that trams always receive a 'proceed' signal: if not, the tram attendant issues an 'emergency stop' and winching (of both cars) halts until the system is reset which I'm told involves a 'magnet on a stick'.


Great Orme Tramway: Road signal (red) and tram signal (proceed) viewed from descending tram on lower section

Llandudno Town

Rather than retrace my steps back to the promenade, I turned into Mostyn Street, the town's major traditional shopping area. Encouraged by the good weather, the street was quite busy. I called in a one shop selling discounted new books, but refrained from making a purchase. I remember trams running along Mostyn street because trams operated along an eight mile route to Colwyn Bay until 1956. There's a Wikipedia article here.

Already fairly tired by my adventures, I determined to have lunch before making the return journey home so I turned into Vaughan Street to reach the promenade and the Imperial Hotel where I enjoyed a leisurely lunch in the enclosed terrace restaurant with panoramic views of the sea.


Imperial Hotel, Llandudno, viewed from the promenade in 2011.

Suitably fortified, I spent a few more minutes on the promenade enjoying the sea air and the sun before walking back to the railway station to start my return journey.

The Return Journey

That's the point at which things started to go wrong. I'd intended to catch a shuttle to Llandudno Junction, connecting with an Avanti 'Voyager' to Crewe. Then, an Avanti London service would take me to Stafford where West Midlands Trains would complete the journey to Wolverhampton. At Llandudno, I walked confidently up to the automatic glass doors and was surprised that they failed to open. Undaunted, I moved to the adjacent manual glass doors and found them locked. Then I noticed a small paper notice secured to the glass giving station closing times. It appeared the station had closed ten minutes previously. Through the glass, I could see the train I intended to catch in the platform and I was temporarily bemused. A kindly pedestrian passing by had seen this little pantomime played out and called "When it's locked, you have to go round the side and through the little gate". Thanking him profusely, I hurried to the car park at the side of the building and found the gate giving access to the platforms, in time to see my train depart.

I was anxious to be on my way but the next train to Llandudno Junction was not for an hour. Before the pandemic, taxis could frequently be found waiting outside but, with a reduced timetable in use post-Covid, the station was very quiet. Then I noticed a taxi office at the far end of the station building. The street door of the taxi office led to a waiting area and an internal door led to a counter behind which a base station radio operator was visible. I ordered a taxi to take me to Llandudno Junction which, to comply with the company's 'Covid Safe' rules, was done by shouting details from the waiting area. I waited in the street for about ten minutes for the taxi to arrive and the cheerful driver quickly drove me to Llandudno Junction station.

I hastened over the footbridge to platform 1 which was crowded with passengers supervised by two well-built security men as an already well-loaded DMU arrived. It took a little while to fit all the waiting passengers together with the security men onto the train and I settled for a cramped standing position next to a door. It appeared that there had been some prior dislocation to the services but I never discovered the details. Using Railcam UK on my mobile phone, I found out that I'd caught the 14:34 from Holyhead to Cardiff, reporting number 1V97, and that we were being closely followed by the 14:50 Holyhead to Crewe Avanti 'Voyager' service, reporting number1A53, so I came up with a plan to disembark at Rhyl and transfer to the 'Voyager'. The surge of passengers and bicycles getting off and on at Rhyl meant that I was trapped at the wrong side of the vestibule and, as the doors closed, I resigned myself to continuing to stand until Chester.

But I was disappointed when we were brought to a stand at Saltney Junction where the former Great Western Line from Wrexham trails in from the right. Railcam UK showed the line ahead clear to Chester but there was a Cardiff to Holyhead service, reporting number 1W94, approaching from Wrexham. "Surely", I thought to myself, "they won't cross this in front of us?". But they did, so we sat there, sardines in a tin, whilst I watched on screen as 1W94 made what seemed its agonisingly slow progress in front of us to Chester and 1A53 waited a block behind us. I can remember when there was quadruple track, paired by use, from Saltney Junction over the Roodee Viaduct and through the tunnels into Chester which allowed two trains to simultaneously approach the station. The arrangements were simplified by British Rail to a simple double-track junction with only two lines over the Roodee Viaduct and additional slow lines (this time paired by direction) commencing nearer Chester which was the arrangement inherited by Chester Power Signal Box in 1984.


Chester: West end of Roodee Viaduct in 2014. Note Guard Rails between Running Rails over the bridge.

My screen showed train 1W94 being crossed to bay platform 2 so, once he was clear, I was not surprised that we were routed into the adjacent through platform 3, leaving through platform 4 available to handle train 1A53 behind us. Once off the crowded train, I made my way over the footbridge to catch 1A53, the Avanti 'Voyager' to Crewe, which was 8 minutes 'down' on departure. There was plenty of space in First Class and I managed a welcome cup of tea on the journey before we arrived in bay platform 9 at Crewe, having lost a further minute on the short journey.

The late running destroyed my chance of connecting with Avanti 'Pendolino' service 9M84 from Blackpool to London via Birmingham which would have returned me to Wolverhampton in style. Instead, I disconsolately watched this train depart from platform 5 whilst I was still heading to the footbridge from platform 9.

Whilst I was trying to work out the next departure towards home, another 'Pendolino' arrived in platform 5 from the Manchester line and the public address announced that it was not in service so, intrigued, I sought more information from Railcam UK which revealed an Empty Stock working, reporting number 5T25 from Longsight Carriage Maintenance Depot to Widnes Transport Technology at Ditton Junction. Longsight is Alstom's centre for bogie maintenance and Widnes Transport Technology is the 13,000 square metre train modernisation and repainting facility opened by Alstom in 2017.

I decided to catch the West Midlands Trains 17:33 stopping train to Euston, reporting number 1U40, alighting at the first stop, Stafford. I made myself comfortable in the rear First Class section of the 8-car Siemens 'Desiro' Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) in bay platform 7, awaiting departure. We were 4 minutes late leaving, awaiting the arrival of a late-running Shrewsbury-Crewe DMU in adjacent bay platform 8 because bays 7 and 8 share a common 'throat' track.

As we passed the remodelled junctions at Norton Bridge (outlined in the post here), we passed a Class 66 hustling a container train north on the Down Slow. Railcam UK revealed this as the 09:32 from Felixstowe via the Northampton Loop due at the O'Connor Freightliner Terminal, Ditton at 19:41.

By now rather tired, I just managed to get off at Stafford platform 1 before the doors closed and the train left. There was a Wolverhampton service expected on platform 4, so I hurried across the passenger bridge, grateful for working lifts.

I was puzzled to see the signal at the end of platform 4 displaying a single, flashing yellow, since I'd never seen a flashing yellow displayed at that location before. Railcam UK clarified that the approaching train was not a passenger but a fast freight: the 15:49 from Garston Car Terminal to Dagenham Dock Reception Ground Frame, due there 23:10. This train, reporting number 6L48, is routed via the Crewe Independent Lines, thr Trent Valley, Northampton Loop, Camden. Stratford and Ripple Lane. This train is allowed to travel at 60 miles an hour and was certainly shifting as it swept through the platform with a Class 66 heading a long train of empty 'Carflats'.

The public address then announced a platform change for the expected passenger train to platform 1 so all the passengers trooped across to platform 1, either using the stairs or the lifts. By the time I was back on platform 1, I realised I no longer had my Canon camera with me.

At first thinking I'd left it on a seat on platform 4, I decided to miss the approaching Wolverhampton train and return to platform 4 to search but I found no camera. Then I became certain that, in my haste to leave the Euston train at Stafford, I'd in fact left the camera on the train seat which was speeding towards London.

I then took the next service to Wolverhampton (a Cross Country 'Voyager from Manchester, reporting number 1O68) and made a report to the West Midlands Train staff at Wolverhampton. The supervisor at Wolverhampton explained that West Midland Trains use a third party website called MissingX to deal with lost property enquiries, although he didn't display much confidence in the arrangements. So I finally caught a taxi home after a mixed day of good and not-so-good experiences.

Book References

[1] 'Great Orme Tramway: The First 80 Years' by R.C. Anderson (Light Rail Transit Association)
[2] 'The Great Orme Tramway: Over a century of service by Keith Turner (Gwasg Carreg Gwalch 2003) ISBN 0-86381-817-X
[3] ‘British Railways Layout Plans of the 1950’s - Volume 10: LNW Lines in North Wales, Chester and Wirral areas’ (Signalling Record Society) ISBN: 1-873228-12-0
[4] ‘A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain: Volume 11 North and Mid Wales’ by Peter E Baughan, published by David & Charles (ISBN 0-7153-7850-3) [2].

Related articles on other websites

Great Orme Tramway
Collision on the Great Orme Tramway 15 September 2009
British Rail Class 153
British Rail Class 175
Funicular (Wikipedia)
Llandudno and Colwyn Bay Electric Railway



Related posts on this website

Llandudno by Train
Rail Travel in January 2022
A Trip to the Seaside (Part 2)
Trip to Holyhead (Part 1: Crewe to Llandudno)
Llandudno (2014)
Return to Llandudno
A Trip to the Seaside (Part 1)
Llandudno Railway Station
The Holyhead to Crewe Railway Line
Watching The Trains Go By
Return to Manchester (Norton Bridge remodelling)

My pictures

Llandudno trip (This trip)
North Wales Line (Crewe - Llandudno) All pictures
Crewe Area rail All pictures
Great Orme Tramway All pictures
Llandudno Earlier pictures

Depending on the display device, the right hand edge of pictures may not display. To see an uncropped image, click on the picture. Alternately, you can find the image by following the 'My pictures' links and display or download the image in various resolutions.

Return to Croydon

On the 8th, 9th and 10th April 2022, I visited my friend Rita in Croydon, travelling by train. Prior to this trip, I'd been to Croydon in September 2021 (described here).

The journey to Croydon

On Friday, 8th April, I caught the first bus to Wolverhampton at 07:30 giving me plenty of time to walk to the railway station, clutching my pre-booked tickets. On this occasion, I'd booked via Stafford so the first 'leg' was to head back by train, on almost the reciprocal of the heading I'd just arrived by bus! When I was young, there was a station within a couple of miles (around 3 km) measured in a straight line 'as the crow flies' from where I now live. Of course, country roads (unless the legacy of the Romans) tend not to be straight so I'm sure the distance by road was probably around twice the figure I've quoted. This minor station was called Four Ashes but was closed in 1959, with the signal box surviving a few years longer.

I'd intended to catch the 08:21 West Midland Trains service from Wolverhampton to Liverpool as far as Stafford but my slightly earlier arrival at the station allowed me to catch the prior Cross Country Trains 'Voyager' service to Manchester which also called at Stafford. On arrival at Stafford, I went to platform 1 for a connection providing another reversal of direction. My general heading would be south-east and the straight-line distance from Stafford to Euston is about 122 miles (just under 200 km). I was quite surpised that the train I intended catching (a Liverpool to Euston express) was preceded by a Crewe to Euston stopping service and I wondered whether this would delay my train.


Stafford Station looking north from platform 1 with Crewe-Euston stopping train arriving.

The stopping train departed and my train followed - an Avanti 'Pendolino'. I snuggled into a quiet corner in Standard class for the non-stop journey to London. We didn't appear to be baulked by the preceding local which I think we passed either at Lichfield or Tamworth when the local was on a platform loop. We arrived at Euston within one minute of 'right time'. Normally, I'd head to Victoria by Tube and there catch an East Croydon service. But, presumably because of 'engineering works', passengers were being advised to travel from London Bridge, rather than Victoria. To add to the misery, there was no Tube service from Euston via London Bridge to Moorgate. Since my friend Rita would not be available until the afternoon, before continuing to East Croydon I'd decided to try out the new Northern Line Extension which now branches from the Northern Line south of Kennington to serve a new intermediate station at Nine Elms and a new terminus at Battersea Power Station. My company had supplied control equipment for this extension which had opened to the public in September 2021 but I'd not yet travelled on it.

At Euston Underground Station I descended to the Charing Cross Branch Southbound platform. All the escalators appeared to be working but the various areas were thronged with the usual mass of bewildered passengers unsure as to which way to go. The first arrival was for Morden, so I waited for the next train, shown as bound for Battersea Power Station. I took this train to the end of the line at Battersea Power Station, about two miles beyond Kennington. I noticed the new Step Plate Junction where the southbound tunnel has been modernised and broadened to accommodate the turnout leading to the extension but otherwise the new tunnel was relatively featureless. As we paused at Nine Elms and its single island platform, I was able to see that the architectural style at platform level was similar to other recent station modernisations with clear signage, uncluttered layout and lots of stainless steel panelling.

Battersea Power Station also has an island platform and trains can arrive at and depart from either platform. The far end of the platform lines terminate in stop blocks but planning has allowed for the line to be extended to Clapham Junction in the future.


Battersea Power Station underground station: Platform 2 with High Barnet train of '95' stock

The control equipment cubicles my company had supplied are locked-away inside the various Traction Sub Stations serving the the line but I did find the Traction Current Discharge Plungers associated with our system, neatly accommodated behind stainless steel hinged doors integrated into the stainless steel wall cladding. These plungers allow staff to isolate the traction current in an emergency and, to discourage unwanted use, the hinged doors are fitted with a plastic seal.


Battersea Power Station underground station: Modular stainless steel wall cladding allowing various items of equipment to be integrated.

I spent a few minutes on the platform studying the trackwork entering the platform before taking the escalator to the intermediate concourse level.


Battersea Power Station underground station: View from platform 1 towards Nine Elms showing pit alongside platform, conductor rail ramps, turnout with point machine and backdrive.


Battersea Power Station underground station: Concourse level, with the Station Supervisor's Office on right.


Battersea Power Station underground station: View across concourse level from near Station Supervisor's Office, showing Ticket Gate Line.

Having passed through the Ticket Gate Line to the 'unpaid area' of the Concourse, signs pointed to a group of three escalators leading to the surface offering destinations 'The Power Station', 'New Covent Garden Market', 'Buses' and 'Battersea Pier', whilst a row of five ticket machines (with glowing display screens) stood ready to serve arriving passengers. I found myself quite impressed with the Northern Line Extension.


Battersea Power Station underground station: Concourse 'unpaid area' showing three escalators to the surface.

Once above ground, without a clear plan, I headed in the general direction of the original power station building. There's a Wikipedia article here with history of this iconic (Grade II* Listed) building, plus an outline of the indignities it suffered after closure as a generating station.

Back in 2009, I managed a reasonable aerial view of the then part-dismantled power station as I landed at Heathrow after a memorable trip to the Middle East (described here and the picture's title, written at the time, reads:-

Returning from Amman on 24-Mar-2009, we initially stooged around over London and then made an East to West pass over the city to land on runway 28L at Heathrow.

Battersea Power Station (or what's left of it). Top left, Chelsea Bridge, top middle Grosvenor Bridge taking the railway lines to Victoria. Coal-fired Battersea Power Station 'A' was built in 1930 and caused some consternation. The architect Halliday provided many Art Deco features but the external 'brick cathedral' appearance was due to Giles Gilbert Scott. The 'B' station was added in the 1950s, giving the present appearance. The building was listed Grade II in 1980 when closure was threatened and generation ceased in 1983. Although it remains a much-loved icon, a sustainable future has not yet emerged.

Battersea Power Station from the air
Click for larger views

Later in 2009, I took the picture below showing the part-dismantled structure from a train leaving Victoria station (using the camera on a 'Blackberry' mobile phone).


The skeleton of Battersea Power Station, viewed from a train leaving Victoria.

At that time, the building dominated the skyline but, since then as I've travelled to and from Victoria station, I've watched the huge structure disappear from view as modern apartment blocks have been constructed on all sides except the river elevation. The aerial picture below illustrates this.


Battersea Power Station, aerial view (Photo:Battersea Power Station 2022)

As I continued my walk from the new Northern Line station, the Power Station building came into view, although sightlines were cramped and the modern apartment block on my left overhung my route in a rather disturbing manner.


Battersea Power Station

Further on, the buildings at least had walls that were vertical (matching the massive power station building to my right) but I was not tempted to call in at the estates office to enquire about the attractions of apartments available on the site but the website here lists all the advantages. And so, I arrived at the River Thames and Battersea Pier, a modern, rectangular floating pontoon allowed to move up and down two massive steel restraining posts sunk into the river bed, according to the river level. A link span provides pedestrian access from the bank at all states of the river level.

The Pier is a little downstream of Grosvenor Railway Bridge which carries the eight tracks approaching Victoria Station. I was surprised to see a train of Pullman coaches crossing the bridge, heading for Victoria and failed to identify the locomotive at the head, but it might have been a Class 73 'Electo-Diesel'. At the rear of the train, there was a Rebuilt Bullied Pacific being unceremoniously dragged tender-first. So then I realised, this was the British Pullman empty stock from Stewarts Lane to Victoria prior to working a Belmond train. Back in 2013, I visited the carriage workshops at Stewarts Lane and there's a short post here.

I was too slow to take a picture of the British Pullman on Grosvenor Railway Bridge, but took one of the bridge a few minutes later which also shows, in the background, the imposing chimney and main building of the Western Pumping Station built by Bazalgette as part of his improvements to the London Sewer System.


Grosvenor Railway Bridge, with Bazalgette's Western Pumping Station in the background, viewed from Battersea Power Station.

From my position adjacent to the Pier, it was finally possible to get a reasonable view of the huge Power Station structure.


Battersea Power Station viewed from Battersea Pier

I walked onto the Pier as a gentleman was struggling to complete a ticket purchase from the automatic machine. When I followed, I understood his problem. For the convenieince of wheelchair passengers, the solitary machine has been installed at low level, necessitating adopting a crouch position during the transaction. Further, the display device was a liquid-crystal device, apparently without backlighting which, in daylight, can be difficult to interpret. After a while, the machine, satisfied with my fumbling, issued me with a paper ticket. I had a few minutes to wait before the River Bus arrived. For some years modern catamarans have provided the service which preferred to style itself 'Thames Clippers' - sorry, MBNA Thames Clippers. MBNA started in 1982 in the USA as the Maryland Bank National Association. Since 1993 MBNA, which provides credit cards and loans, has been based in Chester (yes, Chester, England) and in 2017 became part of Lloyds Banking Group. But now, the River Bus service additionally calls itself 'Uber Boats'.

When my Uber Boat arrived, it was appeared to be one of their newer vessels and certainly more appealing than the rather care-worn Thames Clipper I travelled on some time ago. I found a large a large enclosed passenger cabin (with shop and toilets) towards the front but, on impulse, I selected a seat on the semi-open deck at the rear. Although I had no view ahead, I had unobstructed views astern for photography and this proved a good move because, when I finally checked out the front cabin, I discovered that although the windows gave good views, spray thrown against the glass when moving at speed gave a rather mottled appearance when attempting photography.

We set off down-river, commencing a series of pick-ups at the frequent piers on both sides of the river.


Vauxhall Bridge on the River Thames with Vauxhall (St. George Wharf) Pier visible through left arch.


Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) Building at Vauxhall on the River Thames.


St. Thomas' Hospital, River Thames


The London Eye and Waterloo Pier: River Thames (Battersea Power Station to North Greenwich)


The Houses of Parliament and Westminster Pier: River Thames

By the time we'd called at Westminster Pier, the boat was quite full and I was pleased with my choice of seating location. More stops followed, as we passed the familiar landmarks - Tate Modern, the pedestrian Millenium Bridge, Blackfriars Railway Bridge, H.M.S. Belfast, The Tower of London, Tower Bridge.


Tate Modern Gallery (converted from redundant Bankside Power Station): River Thames


Tower Bridge with The Shard in the background on the left: River Thames>

As sea transport has moved to containerisation and larger ships, London's once-famous docks have been largely given over to office and residential use. There's an article on 'The Container Revolution' here.

Deptford once had an important power station, designed by Sebastian Z. de Ferranti and opened in 1889. Ferranti was convinced that generation of alternating (rather than direct) current was the way forward at a time when direct current had many proponents. To allow generation to be further from the point of consumption, he also proposed high-voltage transmission at 10,000 volts which many considered unsafe. The project encountered many problems but Ferranti is now regarded as far-sighted and the site is regarded as the first centralised, high-voltage power station in the world. There's a brief history on Wikipedia here. The plant was coal-powered and the large jetty for receiving coal by ship survives but, after final closure in 1983, the site has been redeveloped, apart from the remaining high voltage switchyard.


Deptford from the river. L-R: modern housing, former coaling jetty, high voltage switchyard (River Thames)


Deptford Creek (River Thames)

Our penultimate stop was at Greenwich, adjacent to Greenwich Foot Tunnel (opened 1902 with a Wikipedia article here and the famous 'Cutty Sark' clipper ship built in 1869. There's a Wikipedia article here. The ship is now managed by Royal Museums Greenwich, along with the National Maritime Museum, Queen's House and the Royal Observatory.


Greenwich, with (foreground) domed stairway leading to Greenwich Foot Tunnel and (background) preserved 'Cutty Sark' (River Thames)

After a lot of passengers had left the ship at Greenwich, we carried on to the final stop at North Greenwich situated on the 'Greenwich Peninsula' formed by the sharply-bending river. This is the site of the curious Milennium Dome which originally formed the centrepiece of the 'Milennium Experience' exhibition intended to celebrate the new Milennium in 2000. This proved rather underwhelming but, now owned by Anschutz Entertainment Group (ARG) and called, curiously, 'The O2' (since the mobile phone company O2 purchased 'naming rights') the area is has been developed as a "large entertainment district".


'The O2' (showing February 2022 storm damage to the roof fabric) viewed through the windows of a Uber Boat arriving at North Greenwich Pier, with apologies for the 'mottled' appearance.

On disembarking, I headed towards where I imagined North Greenwich Underground station would be, passing more modern apartment blocks in a rather curious range of designs. In 1999 my company was involved in site commissioning control equipment we'd supplied for the Jubilee Line Extension project and I'd spent many hours (usually at night) working at North Greenwich when the area around the station was completely undeveloped. I arrived at the large Tube station without incident. After checking out the new line to Battersea Power Station and spending around 90 minutes on the Uber Boat, my appetite for exploring London was satisfied, so I decided to catch a Jubilee Line train to London Bridge and catch a further train to East Croydon.

I'd not been on the Jubilee Line since before the Covid Pandemic but it seemed little changed. This line is fitted with full-height Platform Edge Doors, generally referred to as 'Peds' by technicians, so it's important that trains stop accurately with the train doors correctly aligned with the platform edge doors. This is controlled automatically and, once achieved, both sets of doors open to allow passengers on and off.

At London Bridge, there was a fair walk to get from the Underground station to the concourse of the rebuilt main line station but I discovered that a Thameslink service to Brighton, first stop East Croydon, was due in a few minutes, so I happily caught this train to my destination.

High spot of the weekend was an excellent lunch on Saturday at the Horseshoe, Warlingham, accompanied by Rita's friend Douglas.


Douglas and Rita at The Horseshoe

The journey home

On Sunday afternoon, I caught a well-patronised bus to East Croydon where I waited for the next Thameslink service heading north, which are all now operated by Siemens Class 700 trains. The train was quite crowded. Bearing in mind the closure of part of the City Branch of the Northern line, I decided to stay on the Thameslink train until St. Pancras Thameslink. Emerging above ground on the west side of St. Pancras station, I then walked along Euston Road to Euston station. As soon as the platform for my Avanti 'Pendolino' was announced, I headed for the train, along with a large crowd of passengers. I walked the length of the train to reach the Quiet Coach at the front and found a corner seat where I was able to relax on the journey back to Wolverhampton.

Related posts on other websites

Northern line extension to Battersea (Wikipedia)
Clive's UndergrounD Line Guides: Northern Line
Battersea Power Station - THEN & NOW (Wikipedia)
Battersea Power Station - NOW
Deptford Power Station (Wikipedia)
Greenwich Foot Tunnel (Wikipedia)
Cutty Sark (Wikipedia)
Clive's UndergrounD Line Guides: Jubilee Line

Related posts on this website

By Train to Croydon

My pictures

Northern Line
River Thames


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New Brighton, again

In early 2022, the United Kingdom was attempting to 'Live with Covid'. Pandemic restrictions imposed by law had been largely removed, although differing attitudes to social mixing existed amongst the population, according to their experiences over the previous two years. I decided to have a day out by rail. Since I was a child, Liverpool and New Brighton has been a favoured destination. My most recent visit had been in August 2021 (described here).

Events of Friday, 1st April 2022

March straddles the end of winter and the beginning of spring in the U.K. and the old adage has it that the month 'Comes in like a Lion, goes out like a Lamb'. But that didn't seem to work in 2022 when we experienced unusually balmy weather in the middle of the month which turned bitterly cold with snow in places at the end of the month. The last day of March struggled to raise the temperature much above freezing where I live, despite weak sunshine, and we experienced a number of snow showers. None-the-less, I determined to make a day trip to New Brighton the following day, despite the possible weather conditions. I booked a First Class railway ticket on-line, partly because the early booking offered useful discount compared with booking at the station, partly to discourage me from changing my mind and cancelling the trip.

It was a cold, frosty but dry morning on 1st April. With some reluctance, I arose early and caught the first bus from Brewood to Wolverhampton at 07:30. This gave me plenty of time to walk to the railway station where the huge, new building on platform 1 appalled me yet again before I made my way over the older of the two footbridges to platform 2 to wait for the 08:21 to Liverpool Lime Street.

I believe passenger figures nationwide are still only around 60 or 70 per cent of pre-pandemic levels so I was fairly surprised at the numbers waiting to board the train, formed of two 4-car Class 350 'Desiro' Electric Multiple Units (EMU). I made myself comfortable in the First Class section and we made an on-time journey to Liverpool.

To my delight, on arrival, sunlight was flooding in through the impressive train shed roof at Liverpool Lime Street so, as usual, I purchased a 1-day All Zones 'Saveaway' ticket from the booking office on the main concourse. Although Railcards are not valid for this ticket, at £5.65 for virtually unlimited travel by bus, train and Mersey Ferry within Merseyside, this is an attractive choice.


Liverpool Area Rail: Lime Street station Main Concourse in 2017

Armed with this ticket, I went down the escalator to the pedestrian passage leading under busy Lime Street to access the deep-level single Merseyrail platform situated on the Liverpool Loop via another escalator. I'd decided not to visit Liverpool Museum first, but to head straight to New Brighton. Services are still provided by elderly Class 507 and 508, built by British Rail Engineering Limited (BREL) at York, since refurbished but overdue to be replaced by Statler Class 777. For more information on all these electric trains, see 'Related posts on other websites' below. On previous journeys through Crewe and on my way to Liverpool that morning, I'd seen Class 777 at Crewe Traincare Depot but I've not yet seen these units in the Liverpool area, where test running with 'ghost trains' is supposed to be happening prior to introduction on public services later in 2022.


New Class 777 at Crewe Traincare Depot (Return to New Brighton)

I boarded the first train to arrive, a careworn but game Class 507/508 heading for West Kirby. I pondered whether to stay on this service to West Kirby but as we made our way under the River Mersey through the remarkable tunnel first opened in 1886 (described in a post here), I decided to alight at Birkenhead Park and wait for the next New Brighton Train.

Birkenhead Park now has just one island platform but was originally the interchange between the Mersey Railway and the Wirral Railway and must have once been a frantic place with trains from both directions terminating and steam locomotives running round. The LMS electrification of the Wirral Lines in the 1930s ended this activity and allowed trains to run through to Liverpool. I walked up the long, stepped ramp to the street to check out the undistinguished modern station building but decided not to walk to the famous park (which claims to be the first publicly-funded park in the world) giving the station its name but instead returned to the platform for the New Brighton Service and a speedy (if noisy) journey to my destination. I always admire the simple, airy design of the booking hall at New Brighton station, but I'd not seen the piratical character swinging from the roof before, whose significance, other than to reinforce the maritime credentials of the location, eludes me.


Piratical figure hanging from the roof at New Brighton station (Return to New Brighton)

Immediately outside the station, the promenade is visible, about 400 yards away, looking north down Atherton street.


Looking north down Atherton Street from the station (Return to New Brighton)

I normally prefer to take the longer route east down Victoria Road, passing one of New Brighton's examples of modern public art (a series of mermaids). Bewilderingly, the figure near the staion is extensively tattooed and titled 'The Inked Siren of Black Rock'. The road leads past St. James Church (1856, Gothic Revival style by George Gilbert Scott) and Wallasey Post Office.


The Inked Siren of Black Rock (Return to New Brighton)

On my previous visit in August 2021, I saw my first knitted 'postbox topper' at Wallasey Post Office: I discovered it now showed a topical Easter theme.


Easter-themed 'postbox topper' at Wallasey Post Office (Return to New Brighton)

I continued on Victoria Parade to the promenade where it was near high tide but I still couldn't resist spending a few minutes on the small patch of golden sand remaining.


New Brighton Beach: Fort Perch Rock, Lighthouse and Seatruck Ro-Ro ferry departing for Dublin (Return to New Brighton)

This part of the beach provides views across the estuary of the River Mersey to Seaforth Docks just 1 mile away and the Liverpool 2 Deepwater Port where container ship MSC MANDY was berthed. Built in 1993 and Panama-flagged, this ship is 237m long and 32m wide with a DWT of 48,852. Afterwards, I learned she'd arrived late the previous evening and after a 2-day stay left for Portugal, Spain and Montreal.


MSC MANDY berthed at Liverpool 2 (Return to New Brighton)

Fort Perch Rock is still closed but a banner promises 'The Ultimate Live Action Escape Room Experience' once the website at 'escapethefort.com' is open. I made my way onto the north-facing beach to admire the lighthouse and then take in the less-admirable appearance of the Burbo Bank Offshore Wind Farm to the west. I still haven't identified the intriguing maintenance vessel in amongst the wind turbines.


New Brighton Lighthouse, decommissioned 1973 (Return to New Brighton)


Burbo Bank Offshore Wind Farm showing maintenance vessel with jack-up legs and crane (Return to New Brighton)

The pleasant weather had encouraged lots of people to take a stroll but the between-the-wars block of cafes and amusement arcades facing the Marine Lake remained firmly shuttered.


"... the between-the-wars block of cafes and amusement arcades facing the Marine Lake remained firmly shuttered." (Return to New Brighton)

I walked back to the station, pausing for an enjoyable English breakfast at the Smuggler's Cave cafe I'd used on my last visit. The timetable was showing four departures every hour to Liverpool but the next was shown as cancelled so, whilst waiting, I studied, with approval, the building repairs which have been completed.

The 3-car electric arrived and discharged quite a few passengers. By the time we left, there was a fair passenger loading and we returned, stopping at all stations, losing and gaining passengers at each stop. I got off at Birkenead Hamilton Square and took an electric lift to the surface. Originally, the lifts were hydraulically worked and the impressive tower housed the hydraulic accumulator.


Hamilton Square station, Birkenhead, viewed from Hamilton Square (Return to New Brighton)

Checking the time of the next ferry to Liverpool, I decided I'd time to first briefly re-visit nearby Hamilton Square which lends its name to the railway station.

The 63 elegant late-Georgian houses erected between 1825 and 1844 were designed by James Gillespie Graham and all are now listed Grade I. Even the parked cars, wheelie bins, rooftop television aerials and a myriad satellite dishes fail to destroy the impact of these well-proportioned buildings. The serried ranks of chimney pots atop the roof serve as a reminder of just how labour-intensive such dwellings were in the age of heating by coal fires, necessitating armies of servants.


Hamilton Square, Birkenhead (Return to New Brighton)

Satisfied with my short visit to Hamilton Square, I walked towards Woodside Ferry Terminal, passing Shore Road Pumping Station. This impressive building was built by James Brunlees and Charles Fox around 1886 to house two large Grasshopper Beam engine pumps supplied by Andrew Barclay needed to remove water from the Mersey Railway Tunnel. Following the installation of electric pumps in 1959, one of the original pumps was restored and, known as the 'Giant Grasshopper' the building was opened to the public as a museum. I was fortunate enough to visit once years ago and, despite being the only visitor, the attendant operated the pump mechanism for me (using compressed air rather than steam). Sadly, by 2014 public opening of the museum had ceased.


Shore Road Pumping Station, Birkenhead (Return to New Brighton)

I discovered that a number of wooden sheds had appeared adjacent to the Ferry Terminal at Birkenhead Woodside forming a retail initiative called 'Woodside Food & Market' and 'Woodside Makers Bakers & Creators Market'. It was closed on my visit but I believe opened over Easter (and, sorry, I think the organisers, Woodside Ferry Village, call the sheds 'chalets').


'Woodside Food & Market' and 'Woodside Makers Bakers & Creators Market' adjacent to the Ferry Terminal at Birkenhead Woodside (Return to New Brighton)

After a few minutes, the ferry 'Snowdrop' appeared, heading upstream towards the landing stage. Seacombe terminal remained closed so the ferry had come directly from Pier Head, taking a downstream loop so that passengers had had a view of some of the riverside features during the journey.


'Snowdrop' arriving at Birkenhead Woodside Landing Stage (Return to New Brighton)

On the ebb tide, the ferry came directly alongside (starboard side to the landing stage) and passengers quickly disembarked. Once on board, I took up my usual position on the upper foredeck ready to study the departure.


'Snowdrop' at Birkenhead Woodside Landing Stage (Return to New Brighton)

On the return journey, the ferry makes an upstream loop, whilst the pre-recorded commentary describes the riverside features. As we passed Monk's Ferry, I decided I really must plan a visit to the remains of Birkenhead Priory and St. Mary's Church. There's a detailed website here.


Monks' Ferry, Birkenhead with St. Mary's Church in background (Return to New Brighton)

There was the usual cluster of Royal Navy vessels at the Cammell Laird shipyard. In the Wet Dock, Replenishment Tanker A136 'Tidespring' was back. I'd seen it there on a 2019 visit (report here). Also in the Wet Dock was Type 45 Destroyer D33 'HMS Dauntess'. A second, unidentified Type 45 was in dry dock.


L-R: D33, A136, unidentified Type 45 at Cammell Laird, Birkenhead (Return to New Brighton)

The ferry continued past Tranmere, where EVA MAERSK was moored, with the usual attendant tug. Afterwards, I found that EVA MAERSK, a crude oil tanker, was built in 2017, registered in Denmark, 274m long, 50m beam. She'd arrived a couple of days before from Ingleside, Texas and departed later the day I saw her for Scapa Flow.


EVA MAERSK at Tranmere (Return to New Brighton)

The ferry then made a wide turn to port so as to cross to the Liverpool side of the river. A chill wind then hit the exposed deck and, within a minute or two, I was the only passenger left outside. Our turn offered a view of Seacombe Landing Stage with the new linkspan bridges fitted. Afterwards, I found pictures of the installation taking place in October 2021 in the 'Wirral Globe'. The heavy lift was carried out by Liverpool's resident floating crane, LARA 1 (mentioned in my earlier report here).


Seacombe Landing Stage, still closed but showing the new linkspan bridges installed in October 2021 (Return to New Brighton)

Tug/Fire Fighting Ship SVITZER AMAZONAS, going upriver, crossed behind us and I managed a reasonable picture. The Peel Ports website offered fairly comprehensive technical data here.


Tug SVITZER AMAZONAS, going upriver (Return to New Brighton)

Approaching the landing stage at Pier Head, I was surprised to see another naval vessel moored at the Liverpool Cruise Terminal. Although oddly anonymous and without flags, it still carried the identity A386 so, afterwards, it was a simple task to identify the vessel as the former Royal Fleet Auxiliary dry stores ship 'Fort Austin', decommissioned with sister ship 'Fort Rosalie' in 2021 and sold to the Egyptian Navy. I'd seen 'Fort Austin' in the Cammell Laird shipyard back in 2016 (see report here) and, previously in 2014, found 'Fort Rosalie' in the West Float at Birkenhead (see report here).


Former former Royal Fleet Auxiliary dry stores ship A386 'Fort Austin' at Liverpool Cruise Terminal, decommissioned and sold to Egypt (Return to New Brighton)

Because the tide was still ebbing, the ferry first went downstream of the landing stage and then turned to starboard so as to put the port side of the vessel against the landing stage. As we moored, I took (another) picture of the iconic Liver Building and noted that, once again, there seems to be a problem with the clock.


The Liver Building, Pierhead, Liverpool, with clockface facing river showing wrong time (Return to New Brighton)

Passing the statue of the 'Fab Four', I finally took my own picture showing the compulsion people seem to have to be photographed with the rather oversized figures of the Beatles.


Photograph with the Beatles, Pier Head, Liverpool (Return to New Brighton)

I made a quick visit to Liverpool Museum to check on the locomotive 'Lion' in the Great Port Gallery (discovering that not all the audio-visual presentations were working).


The Footplate of 'Lion' in the Museum of Liverpool (Return to New Brighton)

It was only a little after two o'clock and I pondered what to do next but, noting that my energy levels were falling rapidly, I decided that the sensible course would be to go to Lime Street and catch the 15:05 West Midland Trains back to Wolverhampton. It didn't take as long as I allowed to walk to James Street Merseyrail station, descend to the platforms by lift, catch the electric train to Liverpool Lime Street Low Level and take the escalators to the main station so I was back on the main concourse for about half past two with a while to wait for the planned 15:05 departure. The arrival of an Avanti 'Pendolino' prompted me to check its departure time (14:47) and stops (Runcorn, Crewe, Stafford). The second member of platform staff I asked confirmed my ticket was valid on Avanti (the first, although dealing with passenger enquiries didn't know) so I plodded down the platform towards the remote First Class section. I discovered Avanti now have a section of Standard Premium seating and, with legs aching, I decided that would do.


Avanti West Coast Standard Premium seating (Return to New Brighton)>

The journey to Stafford was comfortable and uneventful. I finally managed a reasonable picture of the now-decommissioned Fiddler's Ferry Power Station which could produce a staggering 1,989 MW of power from its four 500 MW alternators. Don't start me on the national self-harm caused by deliberately destroying proven plant like this before robust replacement solutions are in place.


Fiddler's Ferry decommissioned power station viewed from train approaching Runcorn

Apart from some expected wind chill on part of my ferry crossing, the weather had been grand but we arrived at Stafford on time in a heavy sleet storm. My intention had been to change at Stafford for a Wolverhampton train but I suddenly felt very cold so decided I'd take a taxi home. But it was not to be - there were no taxis - so I doubled-back into the station and located the platform for a Wolverhampton train in just a few minutes. At least there was no sleet on arrival at Wolverhampton and I gratefully climbed into a taxi for home having had a most enjoyable day.

Related posts on other websites

Class 507 (Wikipedia)
Class 508 (Wikipedia)
Class 777 (Wikipedia)
Birkenhead Priory
Svitzer Amazonas data.

Related posts on this website

A day trip to Liverpool (2021)
On foot around Liverpool Docks (2) (2014)
Merseyside in December (2016)
Birkenhead and New Brighton by train (Part 2)
To see all my Merseyside posts Click here or select label 'Merseyside'.

My pictures


Liverpool area rail Earlier pictures
Merseyrail Earlier pictures
Return to New BrightonPictures on this trip

Depending on the display device, the right hand edge of pictures may not display. To see an uncropped image, click on the picture. Alternately, you can find the image by following the 'My pictures' links and display or download the image in various resolutions.