Despite Crich Tramway Village being closed for the winter period, work on several
members of the tram fleet there has continued, whilst behind the scenes, plans are being made for one of the collection to have a short spell away from Derbyshire later on in the year. Work is also being carried out on the tramway permanent way and a number of other projects, both large and small, to ensure that the site is ready for the first visitors of 2012 next month.
Firstly, plans for Grimsby & Immingham 14 to visit Immingham Museum as part of an exhibition to mark the centenary of Immingham docks this summer has made good progress. A formal letter has been received from the Museum requesting the loan of this tram, and the TMS have agreed in principle to the loan going ahead. If this happens it would add to the growing number of trams from Crich being loaned out, following on from the likes of Fleetwood ‘Rack’ 2, Cardiff 131 and steam tram engine ‘John Bull’ to name just three from the last few years.
In the workshop, meanwhile, the tramcar commissioning programme continues with Glasgow 812 currently under attention. This tram is having its paintwork smartened
up and has also had some attention to its lower deck upholstery. Work is also continuing on preparing the recently acquired Blackpool trams for service, with Blackpool Jubilee 762 having been treated to a heavy internal clean upstairs recently. Whilst Blackpool ‘Boat’ 236 (607) remains under attention in Blackpool Transport’s own workshops, the steel handrails have been delivered to Crich where they are being prepared for re-fitting when the car arrives. Some spare handrails have also been donated in order to replace parts which were no longer fit for re-use.
Leeds 345 has been shunted onto Track 1 in the workshop where painting of the window frames is ongoing. Recently concerns had been raised about a suspected loose tyre, but
after close investigation by a wheel set expert it is not believed that the tyre is loose after all. Investigation into the continued woes of Blackpool 167 also continues; a bearing cap misalignment recently having come to light. There has also been some worry regarding the body/bogie interface on LUT 159 which has been towed around the depot yard by the Blackpool electric locomotive, but this should not prevent the car from being tested under its own power shortly.
Work also continues of the overhaul and repaint of the Museum’s ‘Access Tram’, Berlin
3006. Work on the braking equipment and the underframe continues, and parts for the trafficators have now been sourced from Berlin in order to rectify another defect.
Finally, costings have been obtained for a more simple lean-to-building alongside the
Exhibition Hall in which to store trams, but unfortunately this idea has now been dismissed as it is not considered economical. It is not yet known whether any alternative plans exist for creating additional storage space, but with two of the ‘new’ Blackpool trams already on site and ‘Boat’ 236 likely to arrive next month, it remains to be seen how these trams will all fit into the existing buildings.