Tram Talk

A business meeting in Manchester this past week used a BTS bus journey to and from Preston Station on rail replacement duties, then Northern train to Oxford Road with the short walk to St Peters Square with its four track tram station and constant coming and going of the Metrolink fleet. The BTS contract service direct to Preston took a rather disjointed route from Blackpool North to Chapel Street via Central Drive and then on to the Kirkham road. A more direct journey woul

Blackpool without train service is a rare experience as overruns on completion of electrification on the Preston to Blackpool line mean a delay to the original timetable. Instead April 16th is now given as the drop dead date for trains to again run in to Blackpool North (and Poulton and Layton). A frenetic scene greets bus passengers en route into the centre along Talbot Road with all manner of equipment and activity on the station approach. All of the overhead masts have

The news this week of a further order for new trams is pending to improve capacity on Manchester Metrolink's services with more than twenty further units, presumably of the same type as the current fleet, places Manchester well ahead as the UK's largest tram operator. No doubt this eminently successful system will grow and grow in coming decades replicating to a great degree the network of interrunning first generation tramways which clustered in and around Manchester. Be

Carrying out research on further titles for potential features raised the interesting subject of tramways built specifically as adjuncts to the development of mining communities. A somewhat specialised theme but interesting nonetheless. The most northerly electric tramway in the world was at Kiruna in Norway - within the Arctic Circle and built specifically for the transport of workers to mines (not coal) of economic importance. No longer operating but with an extant pre

A wintry trip to Toronto quite some time back brought close acquaintance with that city's amazing tram/streetcar system - then exclusively PCC operated which goes to show just how long ago this encounter refers to. The Toronto Transit Commission or TTC as it was more familiarly known was then considered to be one of the finest if not the best managed urban transit system in North America. It was certainly the largest operator of PCC cars by far having taken advantage of the

One up on the Royal Mail - where else can one post a letter with valid postage that features one of Blackpool's famous 'boat cars'. Perhaps a Standard car might follow ?

Talking of books - the new Rigby Road Publishing title 'Tilling Stevens to Alexander Dennis - Blackpool's Buses in Transition 1921 - 2018' is somewhat delayed in publication date due to the new edition of 'Tribute to Marton Trams 1901 - 1962' which will be available late April. A photographic survey of the varied types of municipal vehicles serving Blackpool will cover principal marques and designs which have been familiar on the Fylde coast over the years - leading up to

Arrival this weekend of 'German Trams In Colour 1955 - 1975' after an extended wait brought back memories from my time in that country in the 1960s. Straight from Blackpool via Catterick Camp to the middle of North-Rhine Westphalia brought me in immediate proximity to German tram systems then undergoing metamorphisis from postwar reconstruction to economic 'wirtschaftwunder' of the new Federal Republic. Systems large and small were gearing up to replace their pre-war wooden

Unsurprisingly the now drawn out cold weather impacting on the UK has had a knock-on effect with the railway electrification contracts in the northwest. The Blackpool to Preston upgrade has understandably been delayed by at least three weeks according to reports published this week. Therefore trains will not be running into Blackpool North during the Easter holiday weekend which is much earlier in the calendar this year. Anyone needing to work outside during these sustain

A most unusual press call took place on Blackpool promenade early this morning with a special event organised by Merlin Group's design and technology teams. This involved one of Marvel's comic characters now being installed in the Tussaud's display in Blackpool - the Incredible Hulk. The Incredible Hulk stops a runaway tram is the headline for a unique feature no doubt hitting the nation's media (and elsewhere). In this particular case Fleetwood Box Car 40 was provided fr