Beamish Museum’s final enhanced transport weekend event held on 7th & 8th November saw a number of activities taking place around the vast museum site, with the resident fleet of trams and buses taking centre stage. The star of the show was tramcar Newcastle 114 but unfortunately the tram’s 114th birthday celebrations did not go quite according to plan – maybe it objected to being expected to work so hard on its birthday!?
On Saturday 7th November, Newcastle 114 was operated between the Town and Pockerley only, offering the chance for members of the public to have a go at driving the tram for a bargain price of just £11.40. The tram service operated over the remainder of the system, providing the unusual sight of trams reversing at both Town and Pockerley to allow 114 exclusive access to this section of the line. Sadly the turnout was poor due to miserable weather, and then to make matters worse, 114 suffered a controller defect towards the end of the afternoon. Fortunately it had completed all of its booked driving experience trips by this point and was able to limp back to Foulbridge depot under power, but plans to run it in service for a single round trip at the end of the day were scuppered. On Sunday 8th November, the car was confined to the depot fan where it joined a line-up of vehicles originating from the North East, including trolleybus 501 which also hails from Newcastle. Visitors were still able to drive a tram although obviously this was not the one that had been expected!
Besides the tram action, some of the more unusual vehicles on site were also put through their paces over the course of the weekend with the restored ‘SOS bus’ making a rare appearance in public service, whilst a recently acquired Rotherham bus was also carrying passengers at its new home for the very first time, ensuring that there was still plenty for transport enthusiasts to enjoy. Despite the poor weather and the obvious disappointment of Newcastle 114 being sidelined for the Sunday, this was still a good way to end the main season at Beamish – although with plenty of exciting attractions lined up in the run up to Christmas this museum will certainly not be quiet in the weeks ahead.
In typically dismal weather, an eager visitor is seen at the controls of Newcastle 114 at the edge of the Beamish Town area on Saturday 7th November.
The restricted tram service in operation due to 114's 'have-a-go' driver experience trips created some unusual scenes in the Town; here, Sunderland 16 is shown reversing on the little-used crossover.
Its my party and I'll break down if I want to! A defective 114 heads back to the depot amidst a sea of autumn leaves.
Despite being a tram website, this line-up of contrasting buses in the Town at dusk was too nice not to share! The row is led by the SOS bus with the new acquisition from Rotherham behind, and one of the familiar replica omnibuses bringing up the rear. (Photos x 4 by Shaun Whitehead)