Over the past three and a half years the workshops at Crich have been dominated by the restoration of London County Council 1, or Bluebird if you prefer, with the work continuing to bring the tram into the operating fleet at the home of the National Tramway Museum. One of the most ambitious and complex restorations undertaken it has now been announced that it is planned to get Bluebird fully restored and operational by October 2019 – surely making it an early contender for 2019’s Tram of the Year contest!
As reported as we have followed the restoration so far the funding for the extensive work is coming from the London County Council Tramways Trust (LCCTT) with Ian Ross, Chairman of the LCCTT, commenting: “Many of our supporters did not ever expect to see this famous London tramcar being brought back to a condition where they can ride on ‘Bluebird’ again. They have been following the progress of the restoration with great interest and greatly appreciate the work being done by the Museum team.” If you wish to donate towards the project you can do so by visiting the LCCTT’s website at http://www.lcctt.org.uk.
Neil White, Engineering Manager at Crich, said: “The target date for LCC 1 to enter service at Crich, fully restored, is October 2019. This remains an ambitious deadline and, to realise this ambition, our Conservation Workshop is currently interviewing for an additional two technicians to join our skilled workforce.”
The restoration is continuing to provide some interesting challenges to the workshop team, but any challenge seems to be gladly accepted in the Crich workshop!
This is what the final product will look like. Bluebird in the 1930s in London.
Work underway in the Workshop. (All Photographs courtesy of Crich Tramway Village)