The appearance of Blackpool Standard car 143 in the Body Shop at Rigby Road last September for the tramway’s 130th anniversary weekend created much interest, particularly as it was suggested that this may be the first step towards a return to service for this tram. Having spent the winter period in the Body & Fitting Shop, a thorough assessment of 143 has been undertaken to determine what work needs to be carried out so that it can run.
Costings are still being worked out, but it is expected that around £20,000 in material costs would be sufficient to get Standard 143 operational. No firm timescales for the project have yet been decided, however Head of Heritage Bryan Lindop has stated that he hopes that 143 could be completed next year, although this will presumably depend on the availability of funding. This would provide the heritage tour operation with a real ‘show-stopper’ to take the place of ‘Princess Alice’ 706 which has been temporarily replaced in the fleet by visiting Marton Box 31 from Beamish. Hopefully 143 will be able to enter service by the time 31 returns home, or soon after – although it would certainly be lovely to have both of them in service together!
It will be remembered that 143 was extensively restored by the Lancastrian Transport Trust with Blackpool Transport overhauling its bogies; the intention was originally to launch the tram for the 125th anniversary celebrations in 2010, but sadly this target proved impossible to meet and with various uncertainties surrounding the future of the LTT’s tram collection and the operation of vintage tramcars in Blackpool, the project stalled. However, now that 143 is part of the permanent heritage fleet in Blackpool, thoughts can turn to the outstanding work required to finish the job and create what will surely be one of the most striking trams in Blackpool! Although six other Standard cars survive, none have ever been restored to exact original condition with open balconies and vestibules and longitudinal seating upholstered in leather inside the lower deck, and so 143 will represent a very important stage in the history of the class, whilst also providing Blackpool Heritage Tram Tours with a very attractive open-balcony car to provide more diversity for its customers.
In the meantime, work continues to progress with the major overhaul of illuminated Trawler 737 with staff from the Illuminations Department currently installing the new external lighting features as their contribution to the project. Work is presently on schedule and should be completed in good time for the new and improved Trawler to wow the crowds during this year’s autumn illuminations.
The question is what would you rather have run alongside 143 on its launch day? The other Standard – 147 or the other Red and White Decker – 31??
It would be fantastic if the swapping back of 147 & 31 could be arranged to allow all three to run together for one weekend!
Now that is a question… I would probably go for 31 purely because 143 & 147 should become a common pairing in the future whereas there are likely to be less opportunities to see 143 alongside 31. I’d definitely agree that all three together would be fantastic though, indeed I suspect that’s what many people will be hoping for!
How about 143, 31, 147 and a freshly-painted Balcony 40? A man can dream..