It’s not every day that a type of tram which has operated successfully for more than
seventy years makes its preservation debut – but that’s exactly what happened on Sunday 22nd January 2012, when Blackpool 623 became the first Brush Railcoach to operate in passenger service away from the Fylde coast. This car has of course become the latest addition to the operating tram fleet at Heaton Park in Manchester, having been sold to the Manchester Transport Museum Society in early 2010 and moved to the park last November following a period of storage at Trafford Park.
A good crowd turned out to witness this historic occasion and not only 623, but also the other two trams that are currently available for service at Heaton Park, Stockport 5 and Manchester 765, carried good loads of visitors for much of the day. Indeed it seemed highly appropriate that all three trams have operated at Blackpool in the past – but never at the same time, making this day another first for the tramway.
Unfortunately the day’s events nearly ended before they had begun when 623 dewired in
spectacular fashion on exiting the depot, bending its trolley arm and blocking in the other two trams in the process! Thankfully no serious damage was done and following a hasty repair, 623 was taken out for a test drive and passed fit for service. The car was then positioned on the siding near the tram depot until 12:30pm, when it was officially launched into traffic by Bryan Lindop of Blackpool Transport Services Ltd. After a number of speeches, a stampede of enthusiasts rushed forward to board 623 for its first passenger journey as a preserved tram, driven by Bryan Lindop. As an extra treat, both 5 and 765 followed 623 to Lakeside, where the trio were posed together for photo opportunities.
Later in the day, 623 suffered a minor controller defect and was pulled from service to receive fitter’s attention, whilst its many admirers took the chance to sample the refreshments on offer inside the tram depot. Happily, 623 was quickly repaired for the second time that day and soon re-entered service, operating the last journey of the day as darkness fell. The opportunity was also taken to pose the tram at Middleton Road with the park gates open at about 4:00pm, which was a fantastic way to end this historic day.
There were a number of small touches which added greatly to the occasion, such as the
display of route card ’1′ in 623‘s cab windscreen and use of appropriate destinations for Route 1 which ran from Fleetwood Ferry to North Station. On a personal note, my own contribution to the event was a souvenir leaflet giving a brief history of 623 accompanied by images of the tram in various guises – my thanks go to Andrew Blood for helping with this project by supplying the photos, and to all the visitors who gave a generous donation in return for this small souvenir.
Thanks must go to everyone at the tramway who worked so hard to put on such an
enjoyable event, and of course also to the tramway generally for giving Brush 623 such a good home where it will doubtless give pleasure to many visitors for years to come. The Brush car is now expected to become the main winter service car at Heaton Park and should be in regular use from next week: a fitting way to celebrate its 75th anniversary year. Welcome back Brush car 623 – the phoenix has risen once again!