Tram Talk

John Woodman Almost alone among the small cadre of UK light rail operators Blackpool's tram system has stuck to its originating light rail colours from 2011. At the time this was a groundbreaking change away from the long familiar green and 'ivory' introduced by Walter Luff when he took over the town's transport fleet from Charles Furness in January 1933. Luff inherited a conservative red, white and teak livery which originated from before the Great War, although some twea

John Woodman As if the daily news bulletins on climate change weren't enough two items in the UK news cycle today reconfirm urgent reassessment of Lancashire and the northwest's need for improved connectivity for east west travel and urban centres straddling the Pennines. The 'Spires Line' is a long held aspiration to bring about direct rail services between Cambridge in the east and Oxford, as well as other centres of research and technology inbetween. Initial steps towar

John Woodman News this week that Blackpool Council have approved financing that will allow Blackpool Transport to instal 'Oyster Card' system on its buses and trams. This allows a 'tap and go' for passengers on entry to vehicles - but requiring a further use of the card on leaving the vehicle so that the correct fare can be automatically calculated and charged. The bus fleet will be fully fitted with the system onboard this year- with the tram fleet (a far smaller number - t

John Woodman My son's visit to Blackpool this past weekend brought with it an eye opening firsthand account of the explosion in sales and market for electric powered transport modes. His recent setting up of an Ebike sales business and market justification underpins the move towards electric powered vehicles of all types, shapes and sizes - away from conventional petrol and diesel brands. We are indeed entering a whole new world of energy use and sourcing which is transfor

John Woodman An alarming forecast of the consequences of continuing global warming has appeared online this week marking land forecast to come under rising sea levels by 2050 - just over 25 years from now. Melting icecaps and glaciers accompanying increased global temperature means inevitable rise in sea levels to such an extent that the impact on low lying coastal land will involve relocation of millions of people. Quite evidently the Fylde with its flat topography and c

John Woodman The rush to develop new manufacturing centres for batteries is on. Global environmental pressure on vehicle producers has turned them away from diesel and petrol power to all electric during the current decade. US based Tesla began the move to electric cars requiring the construction of huge factories to produce powerful storage batteries compact enough to sustain high mileage and high speeds. So called 'gigafactories' are being built in Europe with sites

John Woodman Blackpool has plenty of pubs - the more famous being the Number 3 at Devonshire Square and of course the now lost landmarks 'The Oxford' and 'Yates Wine Lodge'. Local licensed premises have a habit of morphing into something new - take the once notable 'Red Lion' on Devonshire Road which has become a ho-hum branch of a hotel brand. Two drinking venues still with us however, with local transport links are on Talbot Road - 'The New Road' which derives its name f

John Woodman Interest in the Trust's trams is now bearing fruit with at least one car scheduled to be transferred to yet another Fylde coast school - in this case Rossall. Confirmation and dates for the tram's change of location should be agreed over the next few weeks. A further meeting onsite at Wyre Dock in the past few days looks like at least two more trams and possibly three will be acquired for a special project on the Fylde coast - details of which are confidential

John Woodman To commemorate one hundred years of municipal transport in Blackpool latterly through the Council owned company - Blackpool Transport Services Ltd., a long weekend of special bus displays and heritage services are being organised for July 2 to 4. Full details are available on the Blackpool Transport (BTS) and Fylde Transport Trust website. For readers keenly waiting for the Rigby Road Publishing title - Centenary of Blackpool Buses long promised for this month

John Woodman I got a shock today when my wife told me she paid £1.90 for a bus ride from Mansfield Road to the Moorpark Medical Centre at Bristol Avenue ; this being the prevailing single fare before 0900. A distance of under a mile making a Blackpool bus ride one of the more expensive ways of urban travel in England. I recall when a fare into Blackpool town centre from Moorpark Avenue cost me four pence in old money. A particular gripe of my wife (and being from New