All Manx Electric Railway services to Ramsey are once again serving the Ramsey Plaza terminus after the completion of trackwork across Parsonage Road. This is the first time trams have been able to regularly run to the main station terminus since 2016 (although the terminus has been used at times during TT week) and is certainly reason to be cheerful!
The work the relay the track across the road crossing only got underway in the second week of May but rapid progress was made and it was possible for services to once again go across Parsonage Road from Tuesday 22nd May. The terminus was then officially reopened on Wednesday 24th May with all services now serving the area in front of the station building once more.
Manx Electric Railway Online report that on Sunday 21st May the last service to use the temporary station was Winter Saloon 22 which ran the 1710 Ramsey-Douglas Castle whilst half an hour earlier 1+42 were the final cars to do the shunt manoeuvre at the station.
Monday 22nd May may have been a non-operating day for the MER but that doesn’t mean that it was a no tram day as tests were undertaken at the reopened terminus – and they were tests which had a double purpose. Ratchet Car 14 and trailer 51 were used for staff familiarisation on the shunts needed at the reopened terminus and it was also the first time since its restoration that 14 has operated with a trailer. This was in preparation for the July events which will help to celebrate the 130th anniversary of the MER when the two will be operating in tandem.
- More on these exciting few days on the Manx Electric Railway can be seen on the Manx Electric Railway Online Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/manxelectricrailway
Excellent news! Now get on with the horse tramway!