In Pictures: Blackpool Brush 290 bids farewell to Blackpool

Blackpool Brush Car 290 – latterly 627 – has left Blackpool as it heads to its new home at the East Anglia Transport Museum. One of the trams which was acquired for the Fleetwood Heritage Leisure Trust in the great Blackpool tram sell-off it has now been purchased by the East Anglia Transport Museum and will be restored to operational condition in due course. It was loaded and departed from Rigby Road Depot on Thursday 28^th July 2022.

Built in 1937 by Brush in Loughborough, 290 (which was renumbered 627 in 1968) would remain part of the main operational fleet on the Blackpool Tramway until it was withdrawn in November 2004. It remained stored at Rigby Road until it was resurrected for one night only in 2009 for the last night of traditional trams along the streets of Fleetwood in the November of that year. This was the second major “claim to fame” for the tram as it had also been the final tram to run in service on the North Station route.

Led by local enthusiast Colin Macleod, the history of the tram was recognised when it was acquired by the Fleetwood Heritage Leisure Trust and after a spell inside at Kirkham Prison it was repainted into a special Queen’s Golden Jubilee livery and was the first tram to be displayed on a short section of track alongside Pleasure Beach loop. It received a repaint into a graffiti livery and then a green and cream paint job followed as it remained on display in all weathers until 2015. It was the transferred to undercover storage at Rigby Road Depot, which is where it has remained – until Thursday 28^th July 2022 that is!

With the Fleetwood Heritage Trust announcing their intention to dispose of their entire fleet of trams as their plans for a museum in Fleetwood had not been possible, 290 was always bound to be highly sought after. Following inspection by members of the East Anglia Transport Museum it was announced earlier this year that they were to acquire the tram (along with Ex-Towing Railcoach 678) and that it would be moved over the summer.

Reid’s Freight were contracted for the move which took place on 28^th July with loading taking place on Blundell Street as normal – with a large crowd of enthusiasts and other interested parties present to see it off.

290 is only the second tram to leave the Fleetwood Heritage Leisure Trust collection since they announced their plans to dispose of the trams (Trailer 687 the other) but all trams will need to over later this year as the storage yard they are kept in is required for redevelopment. It’s the second tram to have left Rigby Road this year – Halle 902 being the other one – although a number of others are expected to move in the future with redevelopment work on the whole depot complex reducing storage space there.

290 is hauled out of the depot having being shunted earlier in the week to make it easier to extract. As a result of this shunt a number of trams are now located in different places around the depot shed.

The Brush Car on Hopton Road.

On Blundell Street as preparations for its loading are made.

Having been instrumental in its acquisition, Colin Macleod poses alongside 290 as he says farewell to the tram. (All Photographs by Tony Armitage, 28th July 2022)