Sixteen Volunteers turned out today and the master plan was to complete the infill behind platform 2. To be honest when I saw the size of the task I could see it was a tall order! It really is (was) a massive void to fill. In summary for anyone who's missed previous episodes it requires alternate layers of Mythe rubble and ballast/ash spoil from the track bed to be transported from south of the Evesham Road Bridge and hand laid/ shovelled behind the wall.
The job started at 9am and continued through until 4pm. Frankly it was heck of a slog for those involved. A very wintery wind started to blow, with some very wet squally rain.
But did it get finished? Yes it did! Platform 2 looks like a section of the M1 It just requires rolling to make the job complete. However time and energy were exhausted by the end of the day. It was a great feat by the chaps who did all the work this week, and will go down in my diary as one of the great achievements so far at Broadway.
On the bricklaying front Tony and Roger H kept up the laying of the backing bricks on Platform 2A. It really is coming along nicely.
On the brick cleaning front Robin and Roger H kept the flow of bricks going. What I hadn't realised was the last tidy up put the stock of uncleaned bricks 2or 3 days camel ride to the north. We'll have to sort that next week! Last and by no means least Vic continued with the clearing and re design of the front boarder by the Shed. It is looking very cared for now and I hope will confirm to the residents on the driveway, and the planners that we are serious about making every effort to make the Station and its approaches as attractive and well cared for as possible.
Our Broadway chum Ron Brizlin took time out to come and talk to us about the drainage issues around the Evesham Road Bridge. Ron is working for GWSR Building Services now, managing a team of volunteers who are responsible for maintenance of the structures on the railway.
I notice there have been some understandable questions about the rescue of the Henley in Arden Station Footbridge. This was purely a rescue from the gas axe mission after the Wensleydale Railway were unable to take it. It was only a last minute negotiation by Andrew Goodman with the Network Rail Project Manager that allowed the structure to be reclaimed rather than be demolished. It will rest at Andrew Goodman's yard until the GWSR Board discuss what opportunities there might be for its deployment on the Railway. No decisions have been made! Lets wait and see.......
PS
Apologies for the hotchpotch of photos - Jo was away. (how dare he...) and I notice videos don't appear on Blogger if you are using an Ipad/Iphone. Blogger seems to get more difficult to format photos and text - its quite frustrating if you're trying, as I do, to get a blog report out quickly. grrr...
16 comments:
Great progress on the platforms, well impressive everytime I look at the blog!
There is a possibly large supply of bricks from a number of red brick 19th century buildings that are being demolished in Redditch near to the towns railway. Work has started but the link below has the story in the local paper - could these be chased up for Broadway at all? The buildings could potentially provide a massive amount of bricks for your cause!
http://www.redditchstandard.co.uk/2013/11/02/news-Work-starts-to-remove-eyesore-88555.html
Hope this may be of some use!
Matt
Excellent news about Heenly-in-Arden station footbridge.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-coventry-warwickshire-24775765
Is it going to Broadway or Race course?
Matty
But I thought the bridge was going to Wensleydale railway?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-coventry-warwickshire-24674105
the bridge being built....
http://warwickshirerailways.com/gwr/gwrha1383.htm
Well, that's real plum duff reporting, isn't it?
I wonder which it is to be?
Nice to have the bridge issue cleared up. Whatever the destination, at least it hasn't been destroyed. Thanks to all concerned who saved it, and to Bill for putting the news straight.
Also it's good to have the signal box cam straight again. I guess the pole blew down in the storm.
BJ
The Henley-In-Arden footbridge would be a natural fit at Broadway - after all, it comes from a station built to exactly the same design.
It wouldn't be so appropriate for CRC, where I assume the thinking is to bridge the track across the top of the cutting - from a point near the ticket office straight over to the opposite side. No steps would be needed as the existing ramps give access to and from the platforms.
Installing a footbridge at platform level would create inconveniently lengthy walking routes with lots of steps...
The route from the ticket office to platform 2 would become a long trek down the ramp, up the steps, over the bridge, and down the steps again. Much easier to walk straight across on a bridge between the cutting tops, and down one ramp!
Put that bridge up at Broadway, take away the current viewing platform. install one of those pound in the slot telescopes that they have at the seaside. And point it at Laverton. It's all about revenue!
I agree Bill trying to format the blog from the IPad is not easy.
You can tell when the final formating is left to the IPad for C&W its pictures straight down the middle!
Well done to the team for sticking at it in that weather. You can see why I stick to anice dry workshop!!!!
Well done Andrew for stepping to save it one way or another.
Excellent news about Henley's footbridge being saved for future use on the GWSR all being well. Well done indeed Mr G!
Yes I agree a very big thank you to Andrew Goodman for once again coming to the rescue. We really cannot put a value on his contributions he has made to the railway. Its great to think that this foot bridge has been saved and could one day take pride of place at Broadway. Go for it GWSR Board!
Excellent news RE the Bridge from Henley. In a way I have to admit that im in two minds about this, on one it is a shame to see another bit of GWR heritage disappear from the mainlines around the west midlands, but on the other a very big Thanks You to Mr Goodman, GWSR Board and of course Network Rail for managing to save it for future use hopefully at Broadway - It'll look absolutely brilliant when installed and will certainly complete the look of the station very nicely. As for the comment regarding Cheltenham Racecourse I have to admit that having a footbridge with the options of stairs can be a useful addition to a station - Changing platforms at Harmons Cross* on the Swanage Railway currently involves a walk up to the local road bridge and down to the second platform, whereas the ability to walk up some stairs onto the bridge and down onto the second platform can be rather handy and still be connected with the cutting sides (and in Cheltenham's case both platform ramps - you could effectively mirror Hall Green for example) as shown at various GWR stations including Hall Green and Henley In Arden.
Yes, I can see it might be useful to have a bridge at CRC which allows for a 'quick hop' between the platforms, without going up and down the ramps.
But I suppose that depends on how the station is used. If most people come in on one train, and then wish to cross to the opposite platform as quickly as possible and get another train out, then a direct platform-to-platform bridge would be useful. Although I'd hope that people would want to stay for a while and look around - especially as they'd miss seeing the ticket office, which is a GWR gem in my book.
If CRC is mainly used as an arriving/departing point for people taking a trip on the line, providing an easy route on and off the station becomes the major factor, rather than quick transfers between platforms. That argues for a bridge linking the tops of the ramps.
But in a way it's an academic point. I don't think quick platform transfers, or managing arriving/departing passenger flows, are ever going to be big issues at CRC. It's a heritage railway station, not a busy commuter interchange. Any bridge will do the job. In the end it'll probably come down to what kit is available, and how much the project will cost...
I do still think it would be most logical to use the Henley-In-Arden footbridge at Broadway, though.
I mean, it seems a bit silly to say, "We have a footbridge that's exactly right for Broadway station. So let's not use it at Broadway station!"
Definitely Micheal, and as Cheltenham is (at the moment and probably for some time to come) a terminus station then a bridge via the ramp is probably the best solution for the station. One thing has got me wondering though, what is happening to the second part of the Henley in Arden footbridge? Is that wide enough for re-use at Cheltenham or if something can't be sourced, could we (cost dependant) be looking towards something similar to Network Rail's Polymer footbridge at Dawlish, made to a suitable length (and painted in the right colours)? Anyway, that's enough food for thought for another time and another station.
So with this news and the Bridges to Broadway doing rather well, it's great to see progress heading (and the line) heading upwards in this direction of the line.
Cheltenham needs a bridge offering a path across the cutting, like the HIA. The reason is at Cheltenham Gold Cup times many thousands of people are trying to get across the barrow crossing to their coaches, and closing this to allow the race trains to leave is a real nightmare. The punters are mostly in a very "happy" state and not too aware what is going on! With a bridge across the cutting the problem is solved.
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