Norfolk Railway Society: News archive October 2002

	Mon-Fri Before 9 a.m.	Mon-Fri Saver (After 9 a.m.)	Mon-Thurs Supersaver was
Norwich-Liverpool:	£94.70	£76.90	£68.80
Norwich-Ely:	£14.20	£11.50	£12.10
King's Lynn-Norwich:	£17.00	£13.80	£14.50

Mixed results for local operators’ punctuality
The SRA’s Rail Performance figures for April-June show Anglia Railways’ main-line punctuality to have fallen back slightly from the previous quarter. Anglia was knocked off its usual top place by a stunning improvement from Midland Main Line.
In the London & SE sector, WAGN ’s ‘peak’ and ‘all-day’ punctuality both improved markedly, but on both measures the company remains well below the sector level.
Central Trains and Anglia’s local services are both classed as Regional Operators. Central improved slightly but, with 77% punctuality, remains at the bottom of the sector table. Anglia locals, despite a marginal deterioration, are still ahead of the sector level.

Anglia parent snubs Freightliner/GNER approach
GB Railways plc , owner of Anglia Railways , has turned down an offer to become part of a much larger rail company. After a period of on-off talks, a consortium formed by GNER and MCB Ltd, Freightliner’s parent company, tabled a 100p-a-share bid for GB in September. Its plan was to break up GB, merging its GB Railfreight arm with Freightliner and combining Anglia and Hull Trains with GNER. However GB dismissed the offer as inadequate, preferring to concentrate on its bid for the Greater Anglia franchise, and the consortium decided that further talks would be pointless.

After Bowker, it’s Winsor
Just weeks after SRA chief Richard Bowker, Rail Regulator Tom Winsor toured Anglia Railways on September 23. He inspected the Norwich telesales centre and Crown Point depot, and then travelled by AR train to Ipswich for a meeting at the company’s headquarters. “Anglia is one of the most imaginative and most successful of the privatised train operators,” he commented.

Another road-rail smash halts main-line trains
In a depressingly familiar scenario, Anglia Railways trains were halted yet again after a train collided with a van on a level crossing. The accident occurred on the morning of August 29 at Baylham, 2miles south of Needham Market. A class 150 dmu carriage, travelling empty from Norwich to Ipswich, hit a van which appeared to have been abandoned on the half-barrier crossing. Train services resumed after two hours. Three men were later arrested.

West Norfolk journeys hit by engineering works
WAGN’s King’s Lynn - Cambridge - London line was seriously disrupted by engineering possessions in September. On Sundays 1 - 22 September inclusive, non-stop buses ran from the ECML as far as Whittlesford, where they connected with onward trains. Replacement buses ran at hourly intervals between Letchworth and Cambridge, one calling at Baldock and Royston only and the other at all stations.

Rail distribution depot planned for Hethersett
Construction firm May Gurney and local landowners have unveiled plans for a rail-connected aggregates depot close to the A11 trunk road at Hethersett. The 15-acre site, to be known as the Hethersett Station Aggregate Distribution Facility, would receive up to 150,000 tonnes of rail-borne aggregate a year for use in Norfolk. It would also handle sand and gravel extracted close to the depot, some of which would be sent out by rail.

More Saturday stops at Diss and Stowmarket in Anglia's winter timetable
Although the undoubted highlight of Anglia Railways' winter timetable is the new Norwich - Cambridge service (see above), some other changes were brought in from 29th September:

* four London - Norwich Saturday services (09:00, 10:00, 11:00 and 12:00) cater for Norwich-bound shoppers by calling additionally at Stowmarket and Diss. The 13:30, 14:30, 15:30 and 16:30 Saturday departures from Norwich also call at Diss and Stowmarket.
* there is a new Mon - Fri 07:34 Lowestoft - Norwich train.
* extra Saturday services run between Ipswich and Cambridge/Peterborough; and (mid-evening) between Great Yarmouth, Lowestoft and Norwich.

As previously reported, the Crosslink service was withdrawn from September 29.

Local train services go from strength to strength
Passengers used Anglia's local branches in record numbers this summer. Well over 100,000 journeys were made on the Wherry (Norwich to Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft) Lines during August, and passenger numbers are 7.4% ahead of last year on the Bittern (Norwich - Sheringham) Line. Much of the credit for the increases, says Anglia, must go to the supportive work of the Community Rail Partnerships.

East Anglian trains "delayed by WCML"
In its annual report the Eastern England Rail Passengers' Committee claims that too many resources are being diverted to complete the West Coast Main Line’s upgrade. One result, it says, is that ballast replacement and other maintenance work on the London - Norwich route is being cut back, leading to speed restrictions.

Virgin improvements prompt Central Trains changes
Virgin Cross Country's network was radically overhauled from September 29, causing timetables changes for other operators including Central Trains . CT's Liverpool-Nottingham-Norwich trains were retimed between Sheffield and Norwich. Most trains which previously went via Loughborough now run via Grantham to create a more consistent pattern. Timings between Peterborough and Norwich are altered by up to 15 min.

Storm halts Bittern line
A lightning strike brought the Bittern Line to a standstill at around 1700 on Sunday, August 18. Signalling between Hoveton & Wroxham and Sheringham was damaged, and replacement buses had to be laid on. Trains continued to run on the double-track portion between Norwich and Hoveton & Wroxham, where signalling was unaffected. The line was reopened on August 20.

Heritage, Narrow-Gauge and Miniature

Lottery rescues NNR’s quad-art set - but then it’ll need a home
The Heritage Lottery Fund has awarded the North Norfolk Railway a grant of £341,000 to assist in restoring its unique LNER "quad-art" carriages. The 4-coach set, which once ran to and from Kings Cross on suburban services, was rescued from the cutter's torch at Wymondham in 1965 and is the only Gresley-designed articulated set to survive. For ten years it worked on the Sheringham line until deterioration forced its withdrawal.
The NNR - which once said it was prepared to give up ownership of the historic set if it meant that it could be saved - will have to find a further £109,000. An appeal is being run by Steam Railway magazine and a benefactor has offered to match any money raised. Restoration will take place away from the railway, over a period of about two years. When the set returns a new carriage shed will be required, as the HLF has stipulated that it must be stored under cover.
The NNR has also been awarded £120,000 from Norfolk County Council and £137,400 from the East of England Development Agency to improve facilities at Weybourne and Holt. The grants depend, however, on the railway receiving £213,900 from the European Regional Development Fund.

End for Somerleyton line
In a move reminiscent of the post-Beeching years, another railway is to be ripped up to become a pathway - but this time it’s a 71/4 ” gauge line. Brian Breeze helped build the the quarter-mile-long miniature railway in the grounds of Somerleyton Hall, Suffolk, in 1970. Every summer since then he has operated it with his wife, giving rides to thousands of visitors, but he has now decided to retire. The railway will be dismantled and the site is likely to become a woodland trail with children’s play facilities. As part of Lacy Scott and Knight’s ‘Collector’s Models and Steam’ Auction on November 2nd the railway’s locomotives, rolling-stock and track will be offered in several lots. The locomotives consist of 2-4-2T Basil Breeze , a Cromar-White petrol-engined ‘Hymek’ and a petrol-engined ‘class 20’ Bo-Bo.

J15 set to return to Brockford
Elated by the success of its celebrations which starred ex-GER J15 0-6-0 no. 65462, the Brockford-based Mid-Suffolk Light Rly Museum is already planning more ‘live steam’ days. July’s series of anniversary events attracted just over 2,000 visitors. Each operating day required 21 volunteers on duty, stretching the resources of a small organisation to the limit, but the pleasure so many people got from the events made it all worthwhile, said a delighted Paul Davey, the Society’s event co-ordinator. The reunion of former staff on the 26th July and the visit by Richard Hardy and Bill Last were particularly memorable, he told the NRS Newsletter. Paying tribute to the M&GN Society for lending the J15, he revealed that plans are in hand for it to return to Brockford next year.

MNR’s northward push shuts Dereham road
As part of the Mid-Norfolk Railway’s plan to restore passenger services north of Dereham, the town’s Norwich Road was closed over the weekend of September 27-29. MNR volunteers and council road contractors, helped by an 80-tonne crane from Yarmouth firm Southtown Crane Hire, replaced track over the level crossing before reinstating the tarmac road surface. At the same time signal ducting was installed ready to carry signal wires and colour-light signal cables. 50 019 Ramillies was used to test the new track, passing over at walking pace first to bed everything down before making several faster runs.

Big lift for Royal Scot
An important stage in the restoration to working order of Bressingham-based ex-LMS Royal Scot began in early September, when a 100-ton crane was brought in to assist with dismantling. Visitors were able to watch as it lifted major components. Ex-LBSC “Terrier” 0-6-0 tank loco Martello is also undergoing restorationat Bressingham, both projects being supported by the Lottery Heritage Fund

Mid-Norfolk to speed up for visiting dmus
Class 153, 150, or 170 units may visit the Mid Norfolk Railway this autumn. The railway’s Blastpipe magazine reports that Anglia Railways plans to give drivers ‘low adhesion’ training on the MNR, over which temporary permission to run at up to 40mph has been granted. Agreement has also been reached with Balfour Beatty who want to use the MNR occasionally for training tamper drivers. This should result in the entire line being tamped and lined to 40mph standards. The first tamper visited Dereham in early August.

New coaches at Aylsham
Four new wheelchair-accessible coaches have entered service at the Bure Valley Railway . The bodies were built by Norwich-based stainless steel fabricators Fabcon Projects Ltd - the first time the firm has manufactured railway vehicles - and interior fitting and painting was carried out by the railway’s volunteers and staff. The BVR, whose passenger figures are currently 10% over last year’s, now has 26 coaches.

Away from the tracks

East Anglian gems in new Ian Allan album
Looking for instant colour nostalgia? A new 80-page landscape-format album compiled by well-known photographer Dick Riley contains some wonderful BR-era pictures. As well as loco portraits Steam in East Anglia: A Colour Portfolio shows a number of attractive, much-changed, locations such as Haughley, Capel and Lowestoft sleeper depot, and - a personal favourite - Kimberley Park with B12 4-6-0 61572 on a Lowestoft - Whitemoor train. The book is published by Ian Allan at £14.99.

Norfolk images in Christie's poster sale
Several posters representing East Anglian scenes were among the 300 lots on offer in a recent Christie’s, South Kensington "railway art" sale. Tittensor’s atmospheric Norwich Cathedral for the LNER made £1,057. Other featured locations included Blakeney and the Broads.

Ex-M&GNJR building offers the goods life
Abbotts Country Houses (01328 738111) are asking £325,000 for the “imaginatively converted” former goods shed at East Rudham. The station, originally called just “Rudham”, opened in 1880. When most of the M&GN closed in 1959, East Rudham remained a goods terminal for another nine years to enable East Anglian Grain to despatch wagons to South Lynn and beyond.

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