NEWS
2008 has been a phenomenal
year for the railway, with news coming in buckets, aided and abetted by our
keen member-photographers. In order to
limit the size of this page we have divided 2008’s news into two smaller (but
still large) pages – up till 31 June 2008, and the latest news. The latest news continues on this page, but
for earlier news we ask you to click HERE
PBR
GETS IN ON THE ‘COALHOUSE’ ACT
Local readers will be aware of last year’s
successful ‘Coalhouse’ programme, produced by BBC Wales, which followed the
life and times of families from today ‘transported’ to 1927 Blaenavon. .A new series is already being shown, with
different families, but this time transported to 1944. Amongst other things, PBR was involved in
providing a short train to run up and down to the Whistle Inn. There have also been some shenanigans
involving a pillbox in the yard but we’ll not spoil things by saying an more.
|
A typical
war-time train? We couldn’t possibly
comment, but the film crew appeared delighted. There’s no question though that No.19
coupled to the ‘Newport’ engineer’s saloon is a picture, despite a typically autumnal
day with overcast skies. |
Viewed from
the other platform, Inspector Morton, he of the long coat and lagubrious
countenance, can be seen dimly through the carrriage windows onthe opposite
platform, undertaking a close scrutiny of the train’s running gear |
DEVELOPMENT
– EXTENSION WORKS GETS UNDER WAY WITH A VENGEANCE (added 14 October
2008)
Quite apart from planning work, preparation work
spanning several years has been quietly preparing the line of the extension for
action. Work has been subdued during the
Summer due to the heavy demands made by a succession of special events, but
finally, with the running season complete, and after a week in which final
preparations were made, the weekend 11/12 October saw PBR volunteers finally
starting on the extension in large numbers.
|
The Weltrol
wagon is loaded with concrete sleepers at Furnace Sidings ready to go down
the line. There are many wooden
sleepers along the route, many are life expired and a large fraction are
completely rotten. These will be
replaced by concrete sleepers. |
Evening
shadows lengthen as concrete sleepers are placed alongside the track ready
for wooden sleepers to be pulled out, however, in many areas, clearance work
must be undertaken beforehand, in order to improve local drainage. |
|
On the
evening of Saturday 11 October, our new, but decidedly second-hand
minidigger, sits atop the well of the Weltrol, and unloads pallets of blocks
in readiness for the platform team the following morning. The minidigger has many different tasks to
perform over the next 18 months or so, and will be a key player in the
extension work – both on and off the Weltrol. |
Late on
Sunday 12 October the platform team is in full swing, with the supporting
cast struggling to keep up with blocks and mortar as our two ace block layers
did their stuff. Knocking off time
seemed only to spur them on, and at the finish five courses totalling 224
blocks had been laid. In the
background are a pair of ex-BR ex-British Steel plate wagons, each of which,
with only slight modification, provides a rolling chassis for a 20ft
container, one of which contains materials, whilst the other provides a store
for tools and shelter from the weather (and the all-important tea-making
facilities) for the workforce. Since
these are, by any standards, ‘departmental’ wagons, they follow the BR
tradition of being named after ‘fishkind’ and have been christened as ‘Flounders’. |
A
LOCO FOR ALL SEASONS (added 30 September 2008, updated 14 October 2008)
It now looks as if the railway is going to be able
to field a steam loco not only for its forthcoming Santa Specials, but also for
many of the 2009 services. This has been
made possible by means of a deal agreed with the Bodmin and Wenford Railway for
a long-term hire of one of their locomotives.
The loco in question is Bagnall-built 0-4-0ST, ex HM Devonport Dockyard
loco named simply ‘No.9’ (works number 2962).
Reminiscent of ‘Brookfield’, a loco also built by Bagnall that worked on
the PBR in its earliest days, images appear below.
|
Upon
arrival on Friday 4 October, No.19 was whisked into the bottom shed few a few
days of serious spit and polish. Here
she is, gleaming, whilst posing at Furnace Sidings, platform 1. The odd structure in the background is not
a water tower, but the first tower of the rebuilt LNWR ‘Hinckley’ footbridge,
completion of which is planned for September 2009. photo: Alistair Grieve |
Viewed over
the new, but unfurnished, platform 2, loco No.19 is seen on a ‘test
train’. Whether or not we think it was
more about playing trains, the fact is, is that reports have been received
that the diminutive but relatively modern steam locomotive romped up the bank
with seemingly no effort at all. photo: Alistair Grieve |
SILVER
ANNIVERSARY GALA 13-14 SEPTEMBER (added 18 September 2008)
For a change Furnace Sidings was blessed with glorious
early autumn weather, and, if that wasn’t enough, BBC and S4C featured the
arrival of 5619 during the previous evening.
The result was passengers in numbers not seen for several years, with
well over 1300 passengers travelling on the two days. For a change, trains were headed (not banked)
by visitor 5619, which worked three coaches up the steep bank during the
weekend. To satisfy safety requirements
electro-diesel 73 126 Silver Jubillee /
Jiwbili Arian banked – and of course, led - on the return journey. It’s a moot question whether 5519 was pulling
73 126 on the up journey or vice versa, but the dramatic towers of exhaust
steam on the up journey suggested that it was 5619 that was doing the lion’s
share. The new platform 2 paid host to
Brush Type 2, D5627 Steve Organ GM
and a short train of newly painted and lettered vans. At the front of the train a Lowmac wagon,
carrying a vintage tractor invited considerable interest.
|
First train
of the day, and the classic Welsh valley scene. As 5619 throws its exhaust skywards, it
condenses easily in the coolness of a September morning. |
Later in
the day it looks as if things have warmed up a bit, but its only 5619 making
a typically explosive start from platform 1, whilst Brush Type 2 D5627
displays its train of freshly painted wagons on the new platform 2 photo: Alistair Grieve |
Saturday was enlivened by volunteer ‘Swansea John’
receiving a sponsored haircut from which he earned over £300 for the new
platform building on platform 2 (well done, John!), whilst the evening was
marked by a ‘members only’ dining train, pulled by 5619 up and down the line
whilst members ‘dined’ (ie ate little, drunk much!) Sunday dawned bright and clear when once
again passenger numbers went up and up.
Later, in a short and slightly sombre ceremony a fine wooden station
seat was unveiled to commemorate the life of much-loved member Gwynfa Tudor who
passed away early last year. But that
wasn’t the end of the matter, the Silver Jubilee proceedings continued into
Monday and Tuesday with a second grand photocharter. Trains were duly run by, stopped, posed, run
by again, and a large number of photographers went away, apparently happy. By the end of the day, sadly, 5619 was back
on the lorry to be expatriated, sadly, once again from its native home. We’ve not seen many of the results yet, but
if they are a patch on January’s results, they’re going to be good!
A
JUMBO ARRIVAL (added 9th September 2008)
Undoubtedly to be the star of the forthcoming 25th
Anniversary Gala, GWR Class 56xx No.5619 arrived yesterday. At last the PBR has a loco that really belong
in valleys. Indeed they were introduced
in 1924 by the GWR’s CME CB Collett specifically to replace a whole raft of
basically similar designs. from the pre-grouping Welsh railways, and that had
been around since Victorian times. These
were powerful engines and to see them on the PBR’s notorious bank with
three-car passenger trains will be a fitting climax to twenty-five years
operation to the PBR. A visit this
weekend is highly recommended, as we are unlikely to see its like again in
2009, as it’s going to be heads down as we extend the line southwards ready for
trains to Blaenavon in 2010. It is
planned that Brush D5627 will be put in an appearance, and you may even see our
freshly array of newly painted vans parked alongside the new Platform 2.
|
Faithful
old English Electric shunter Llanwern
eases 5619 off John Antell’s trailer, using a GWR China Clay wagon as a
barrier wagon. |
The
characteristic pugnacious front end of the valley’s 56xx is well demonstrated
in this shot. |
A
NEW BRUSH (added 9th September 2008)
We waited and waited – and then we waited some
more. Finally at 10.10pm in darkness and
pouring rain of Friday 5 September, Brush A1A-A1A Type 2, No. D5627,
immaculately finished in BR loco green hove into view, after an extended
journey from the Chasewater Railway. It
is planned that the loco will make its home here at Blaenavon for several
years, and has arrived just in time to serve as an important player in next
week’s 25th Anniversary celebrations.
Andy Knock was the very brave, and very wet, volunteer who managed to
take some photos - despite the weather.
In main line service it sported the number 31 203
under the TOPS Scheme, but has now reverted to its pre-TOPS number D5627 and
now carries nameplates ‘Steve Organ, GM’ to
commemorate the services of the General Manager at Chasewater.
|
About 10.00
on a wet and windy night at Furnace Sidings is not recommended. (photo: Andy Knock) |
We’re happy
to feature the Company which employs the gallant souls pictured alongside (photo: Andy Knock) |
The
following day was damp and overcast, but at least it wasn’t raining, even
this image was tweaked to brighten it up a bit. The photo does nothing to illustrate the
exceptional mirror-like finish on this loco. |
FURNACE
SIDINGS PLATFORM 2 COMPLETE (added 9 September 2008)
It’s been a while since PBR
identified a need for a second platform to deal with our growing traffic needs
at Furnace Sidings. We always knew it
would be a mammoth task – bigger than anything we had tackled hitherto. Nevertheless, following a successful appeal
for funds to both our members and to the public, work began. The work was completed on the evening of
Tuesday 26 August and completion was reported to the Railway Inspectorate the
following day. Physical work started on
the evening of 24 July 2007 when the first sod was turned. Now 398 days or thirteen months later, with
virtually every weekend spent in unremitting toil and unremitting cups of tea,
the task has been completed.
Meanwhile, in our yard the
‘Hinckley’ footbridge is in the process
of being rebuilt from the wreck it once was.
We have not reported on this since late 2006 – see our News Archive for
that year. To re-iterate, briefly, this
genuine London North Western Railway (LNWR) footbridge (PBR is an ex-LNWR line)
was recovered from Hinckley in Leicestershire in about 1991 by a preservation
society who were unable to restore it, and where it decayed alarmingly. We rescued it late in 2006. The first tower is now completed and it was
placed in position on platform 1 on Wednesday 27 August and finally inched (or
,rather, millimetred!) to its final position, and bolted down on Sunday 7
September. The second tower is expected to be placed
in position before Christmas. Lifting of
the11.69m long main deck into position is planned for the summer of 2009.
|
Platform 2 stretches away, 65m to the north. Excluding the ramps the platform is 50m
long. The length is constrained by the
crossing in the south, shown in the foreground, and a water course further
north. It may be in the future that we
will need to extend the platform over the stream, but the engineering
problems are considerable with consequent impact on costs |
Tower 1 of the new ‘Hinckley’ footbridge on
platform 1. If there is a suggestion
that a tower in Piza has certain similarities, its because the platform
slopes downwards at 1 in 40, giving the rather unexpected illusion. There is some outstanding detail work
before it is painted. |
SIXTH
GRAND TRANSPORT RALLY 2008 (added 9 September 2008)
Cars were up, commercials were up...everything was
up. Without a doubt this was the most
comprehensive transport rally we have held to date, with a splendid range of
exhibits. Despite the rally being held
only on the two days – Sunday 24th August and Bank Holiday Monday 25th
August, exhibitors started arriving at Thursday lunchtime, eager to participate
in the social life for which our rallies are getting a reputation. Despite our prayers – or perhaps because of -
the weather was only modest, with a few light showers, and passenger numbers
were only a little up on last year. Our
splendid array of buses – including several newcomers largely evaporated on
Monday to another nearby rally, but at least they put on a good display on the
Sunday. Our ‘mini-park and ride’ scheme
worked very well this year, allowing more room for our exhibitors, and a ride
on an open top vintage bus for visiting car drivers. Without doubt we shall be doing the same next
year.
|
With more
space, the cars really stretched out – two rows as far as the platelayers hut
even. cars whose names we thought were long forgotten, cars from France,
Germany, USA... – and MGs by the zillion. (photo:Alistair Grieve) |
The buses
did us proud again this year, with a number of new exhibitors – we hope they
enjoyed themselves sufficiently to come next year (photo:Alistair Grieve) |
And the
oddities, very interesting – and very economical on space. In the background the open-top shuttle bus
made reular journeys up to the relief car park on the main road. Even this bus, modern to us railway folk,
is a classic according to the bus enthusiasts (photo:Alistair Grieve) |
It was bad enough exhibitors turning up on Thursday
afternoon, but we couldn’t get rid of them even after the event was over! Here a group of car exhibitors relax in the
post-show rosy glow during Monday evening when, finally, a bit of warm evening
sun deigned to shine
(photo:Alistair
Grieve)
IVOR THE ENGINE’S VISIT, 9-10 AUGUST (added 20 August
2008)
In contrast to the Diesel
Gala a few weeks earlier, Ivor’s annual pilgrimage back home to Wales was met
with a spell of real Welsh weather – incessant rain. Not that such weather has been confined to
Wales this month, and neither did it dent the passenger figures too badly. Idris the Dragon was absent this year (his
rear end was the subject of a major flare-up last year, when he sat too close
to the fire-box, so this year he decided to give it a miss). Alice the Elephant was there again, holed up
in the box-van and trumpeting regularly from the box van (she has been let out
recently, but we can’t have her crashing about during special events). Bluebell the Donkey put in an appearance,
together with her sisters, at the Whistle Inn, courtesy of Greenmeadow Farm,
and was accompanied by a small collection of various rabbits, delivered for the
purpose of being cuddled by small (and not so small) passengers.
|
Rain or no rain, passengers gather round Ivor in
excited groups to say ‘hello’ to their favourite engine, to have few words with Jones the Steam, and to pull
Ivor’s whistle. (photo: Alistair Grieve). |
Inside the first carriage, arrangements have been
made for passengers, large and small, to peer directly into the little
engine’s cab, whilst Mrs. Porty, in flower-bedecked hat, reads stories of
Ivor’s adventures to the children (photo: Alistair Grieve) |
Ivor is, of course, intended
for younger enthusiasts, but the following nine-minute embedded Youtube clip,
produced by one of our younger members ‘Rhysicus’, will, perhaps unexpectedly,
touch at the ‘hiraeth’ of older enthusiasts, despite being filmed in awful
weather. Try it, we think you’ll be
impressed, especially the last two or three minutes.
,,
..
This technique is a bit of a
leap in the dark for us, and we’re not sure how this will behave on various
browsers. It has been tested on three
browsers and with a fast connection.
However those with ‘heritage’ dial-up internet connections may find the
experience less satisfying. Please let
us know what you think.
DIESEL GALA, 26-27 JULY (added 31 July 2008)
On the final day of a spell
of blisteringly hot and dry weather, PBR got all its toys out – big and small –
for public display. It was rewarded with
an excellent visitor turnout – especially on Saturday. Without doubt this was PBR’s most sensory
event to-date – visitors not only saw them, and heard them, but most felt them
(or at least the vibration), and nobody could miss the smell! In a year peppered with firsts for the PBR,
the weekend made its contribution as being the first time PBR was able to field
two main-line locomotives together –
when for twenty years or so, we were unable to demonstrate even one! A slightly less obvious, but arguably more
important first, was the sight of trains being pulled up the bank to Whistle Inn rather than pushed. This has profound
implications for the future since it will permit the use of loco-worked trains
to operate from Blaenavon (High Level) when it is opened in 2010, and without
the need for run-round loops. It will be
several years before it will be possible to fit loops at both ends of the line. We show below some images of the event, taken
by our resident ace photographer, Alistair Grieve.
|
It’s a glorious summer morning and a really warm
day is promised as the new train, comprising Class 73 leading a 3-Cep freshly
painted in Rail Blue, accelerates from Furnace Sidings and past the
platelayers hut. (photo: Alistair Grieve) |
Little and... well, at least medium sized! 0-4-0 Ruston ‘Gower Princess’ decides to
add her two penn’orth – all of 48hp in fact, to the 550hp provided by 104
‘Llanwern’. ‘Llanwern and the three
loco-hauled coaches represent the standard fayre on busier days (photo: Alistair Grieve) |
On a hot, still, Saturday afternoon, Class 73
No.73126, with its rear blinds turned to red, starts on its return journey
back to Furnace Sidings. Its coaching
stock is the recently arrived Class 411 ‘3-Cep’ EMU. On this return journey the train will be
driven from the coach furthest from the loco in this view, with ‘through
control’ providing the necessary control of the locomotive (photo: Alistair Grieve) |
|
Lined up for inspection, the railway’s varied
collection on industrials, some ready for operation, some in the process of
restoration. It is left to you, to
inspect our ‘Rolling stock > Diesel locomotives at Blaenavon’ to see if
you can identify them all! Whilst it
looks like every loco has its own mini-platform, its all part of Furnace
Sidings’ new Platform 2, and due for completion before the end of August. (photo: Alistair Grieve) |
Fuel crisis – what fuel crisis? In a blatant display of political
incorrectitude, Class 73 and 37 smartly -
and effortlessly - accelerate our three-coach ‘loco-hauled coaching
stock’ (LHCS) with increasing speed, past the ruined Ty Rheinallt Farm, and
on up the bank to the Whistle ‘Inn. (photo: Alistair Grieve) |
There are rumours circulating that there a bit of a
BR(S) takeover going on at the PBR.
Fingers have been pointed, even.
It’s not true of course, but we do seem to doing rather well in the
Southern Region stakes. Above is seen,
left to right, Class 205 ‘Thumper’ or 2H, Class 421 or 3-Cig, Class 73 or ED,
and Class 411 or 3-Cep. Takeover or
not, see or Events Diary for our ‘Southern
with Altitude’ event on 27 and 28 September (photo: Alistair Grieve) |
DEVELOPMENT – DOWN EXCHANGE SIDINGS (added 29 July
2008)
Quite apart from busying
itself on the extension to Blaenavon (High Level), that is, getting longer, the
railway is also getting fatter. You
might even say it’s both extending and expanding. The reason for this expansion is the
inclusion of the Down Exchange Sidings into the PBR’s fenced compound. The Down Exchange Sidings were so called, as
these sidings provided the facility for trains brought from Big Pit over the
rail-over-rail bridge (which spanned the main line underneath) by National Coal
Board Engines, before they were handed over the locomotives from the national
network to work down the valley. The
rail-over-rail bridge is just out of sight in the lower right hander corner of
our image. For many years the area
containing an array of four sidings, well over 600ft long was occupied by a few
rather down-at-heel wagons in which we had rather lost interest. When pressure grew in the main yard due to
our ever increasing stock levels the Down Exchange Sidings we looked had how
the exchange sidings could be bought into use.
Even with considerable help from our support group the Pontypool and
Blaenavon Railway Society (who run the shop in Broad Street, and Eric’s
Emporium on site), and loans from our members, we still could not afford the
cost of getting contractors in to lay a security fence. But we were blessed with an embarrassment of
riches – two sidings would satisfy our needs.
So we took in paying tenants. –
EMUPS and ‘Save the Cigs’. Details of
these groups, and the story of the rescue of their units from the Dartmoor
Railway appear under Rolling Stock.
There have been some unexpected spin-offs from this arrangement,
especially of being able to ‘form-up’ stock quickly in the mornings from the
yard. Perhaps most ironically, is that
the sight of displaced and down-at–heel wagons to the main yard has focussed
interest remarkably, and with some complex ownership re-arrangements many of
these aging wagons are finally receiving some TLC.
Photographed in high summer when the willows and
heather are at their most verdant we see part of the main yard, with the bottom
shed in the upper centre, around which the existing fence is shown in
cerise.. Below that are the sidings,
also delineated with a cerise line, with a few wagons scattered towards the
lower right. The hook shaped area to the
lower right of the image enlarges the south east end of the yard and greatly
eases the capacity for lorries to manoeuvre when they bring in stock to the south
end of the site.
To the lower left of the image the Coity Tip trail is
seen, which connects Furnace Sidings to the nearby Big Pit. Above and to the
right, buried in the thick undergrowth are the remains of the four sidings that
make up the Up Exchange Sidings. There
are plans to re-instate these in due course.
The main line is also faintly seen, in its cutting, diving down between
the Down Exchange Sidings and the Up Exchange Sidings
