Now that trams are running seven days a week, and with schools back after the summer holidays, the opportunity to see them in operation in relaxing and quiet surroundings at Beamish is back. Still with one tram a day working from by the tram depot at Foulbridge to the east end of the Town via the Entrance and Pockerley this has once again added an extra attraction to Beamish and at least means visitors don’t have to worry about walking for too far round the museum. In this article Trevor Hall returns to Beamish on a sunny Thursday 16th September 2021.
“Training car” Oporto 196 is seen on the museum circuit at the Entrance. Still with its notices in the saloon and drivers windows to let people know its not in service the tram continues to be used to train additional drivers on the trams – or re-train them considering the gap in operation – and isn’t carrying passengers at the present time.
A sunny day so what else than Blackpool 31 would you expect to be in service? Here it unloads at the Town before it is prepared for a return trip to Foulbridge.
A shot of the lower deck of 31, not where many want to be on a sunny day!
Having been stored in the Regional Museum Store for several years Newcastle trolleybus 501 is back stored in the tram depot. This should eventually run in the new 1950s town now under construction.
And talking of the 1950s town this view shows the construction work underway on the major Remaking Beamish project. (All Photographs by Trevor Hall)