‘Portbury’ has departed Bristol and is now on her way North to Beamish!
She’s Off!
2
Level Crossing Work 5
Cold January mornings give everything a glistening sheen of frost.
A couple of pics showing level crossing construction progress.
Stone setts kept with new parking bays to the right
Concrete complete – Almost unrecognisable from the scene a year ago!
The two steam locos were outside the shed this morning, Portbury was having her fire lit.
Photos from Xmas Steam-Up!
The Xmas steam up event was a success, with all tickets selling out. Rich Skuse and Zoe Robinson were among the lucky people to try their hand at driving ‘Portbury’ and the Steam Crane.
Rich has kindly allowed these photos to be reproduced here!
Helston Railway returns, and Christmas is around the corner…
It’s the first day of the Xmas Steam Up weekends tomorrow, so Portbury and the Fairbairn Steam Crane should be in action on the dockside.
This week, the lovely people from the Helston Railway in Cornwall have been back for more rail and sleepers. Here they are loading up (Photo from the Helston Railway Facebook page, click the link for more).
The Fox, Walker sees daylight
In May 2014, a shunting move to get rolling stock out of the Smeaton Road shed and into the rebuilt ‘Barn’ saw Fox, Walker and Sons No.242 (NCB No.3) out in the open air. This loco had new bearings fitted before the rebuild of M Shed in 2006, so is a rolling chassis and can be moved around.
The photos also give an indication as to the condition of the loco, and the scale of any restoration that might take place.
These pictures were taken by Michelle Scoplin of the Create Centre and appear here with her kind permission.
The Coles crane is moved out first as part of the shunt
With the crane out of the way, the Ruston couples up
‘For Sale’ – very funny!
Pinholes in the tank give an idea as to the thickness of the metal
The view from the Ruston’s footplate as it drags the Victorian locomotive out
Gently eased out on to the running line
Out on the New Cut – the furthest the loco has been in a long time
Metrobus and Ashton Avenue Bridge
Metrobus, the guided busway project in Bristol, has now been given financial backing and construction is due to start in 2015.
The busway scheme is set to use sections of the former BHR, joining at Ashton Junction (Going ‘up and over’ the Portishead Railway line on a bridge), then across the old sidings at Ashton Meadows, under the Cumberland bypass, then crossing the New Cut at Ashton Avenue Bridge. From here, it is intended that the buses take the route of the current BHR, joining onto Cumberland Road itself adjacent to the ‘West Yard’ throat.
The Metrobus Website has published the aims for the refurbishment of Ashton Avenue bridge, the deteriorating condition of which was one of the factors in the BHR ceasing operations South of the river in the 1990s.
The full webpage is here, but here are some excerpts:
Ashton Avenue Bridge is on Bristol City Council’s Listed Building At Risk Register.
The register describes the bridge as being in a very bad condition with clear signs of structural instability and says the bridge in its current state is at “immediate risk of further rapid deterioration”.
The MetroBus project will restore the Victorian bridge and return it to its original role as a public transport corridor
English Heritage have been consulted on our plans for the bridge and support the works to conserve it.
Restoring the bridge
Pedestrians and cyclists will still to be able to use the bridge after it has been restored. The restoration works include a lane for the MetroBus and a 3.5 metre pedestrian and cycle path that is wider, smoother and a safer environment than the current path.
Lighting will also be provided on the bridge, making it a much safer environment for pedestrians and cyclists using the bridge at night.
The proposed restoration works also include:
– Repair of corrosion damage which would otherwise compromise the long term durability of the bridge.
– Removal of graffiti.
– Removal of vegetation from piers and the bridge deck.
– Removal of temporary repair measures including metal mesh fencing.
– Removal of guardrail separating pedestrian walkway from rail line.
– Replacement of badly corroded deck plates.
– Repairs to trusses to allow drainage modification works which will reduce future corrosion.
Ashton Avenue Bridge, with the morning mist rising off the New Cut, November 2014
TBT – Henbury Makes History – Coal Trains in 1981
As previously mentioned on this blog, in 1981, the Western Fuel Co.’s diesel shunter Western Pride was in need of an overhaul. This locomotive was used to shunt wagons on the dockside and into the WFC compound, as well as trip workings along the New Cut to Ashton Meadows sidings, from where a BR loco would take the wagons onto the main line.
So it was that Henbury was hired as the first preserved steam loco to pull scheduled goods trains for British Railways (BR having stopped using steam traction in 1968). She crept onto the Western Fuel Co.’s site at 7am on Monday 28th September 1981 and worked for the next three weeks hauling coal trains of up to 450 tons.
This cinefilm was captured by Bob Edwardes and appears here with permission.
Points of particular interest include running on the main line to Bristol Bath Road engine shed to use the turntable (creating quite a contrast to the BR Blue mainline diesels at Bristol Temple Meads!) and double heading with the PBA Rolls-Royce Sentinel No. 41 (10220) that took over duties from Henbury.
Taking loaded wagons up to the Wharf (John Stanford)
October 1981, in between shunting moves (John Stanford)
About to go under Vauxhall Bridge (John Stanford)
Bringing the trucks into the yard (John Stanford)
Level Crossing Work 4
The concrete has now been poured for the level crossing.
As mentioned previously, this area was relaid with concrete sleepers as wooden ones do degrade and can rot over time. Next we should be seeing work done on the approaches, and the laying of the roadway around the back of the shed.
Portbury is going to Beamish!
As announced on the Beamish Transport Online blog, in early 2015, Portbury is going further North than she has ever gone before. For the first part of the 2015 season, IW&D 34 will be the steam loco in use at Rowley station, part of the Beamish open air museum.
As the loco was built for the war effort in 1917, it is an apt choice of motive power as the museum will be themed around the First World War during February half term.
Very exciting news!
Steam in action at Beamish’s Rowley Station
Level Crossing Work 3
The two running lines were reinstated before the final operating weekend, and now the season is over, work has recommenced.
Wooden shuttering in place shows the location of the crossing
Showing the vegetation clearance next to the retaining wall
Bristol Harbour Railway Blog 