Following the transfer of preserved Blackpool Brush Railcoach 623 from storage at Trafford Park to the Heaton Park Tramway recently, it was widely expected that Blackpool Balloon 702 would also be leaving its temporary home at Trafford soon afterwards, as both trams had been served with an eviction notice in light of upcoming development plans for the building they occupied. Sure enough, the day of 702‘s move
arrived on Friday 9th December, when the tram made a short journey by road to another temporary storage site – this time at the East Lancashire Railway at Bury. There it has been reunited with an old friend, Blackpool works car 752, which has been stored there since August.
Unfortunately, 702 has had to be accommodated outside at its new home, although the site in question is a fairly secure one and the tram is to be covered with protective sheeting shortly which should offer some protection from the winter weather. The tram cannot currently be accommodated in the depot at Heaton Park which is not only full to capacity, but also offers insufficient height for an enclosed double-deck car to get inside!
702 had of course left Blackpool on 6th May 2010 for display in the new ‘Museum of Museums’ attractions alongside Brush car 623, but sadly the museum closed by the end of the same year and now both trams have been made homeless again. With the exciting news regarding the new depot at Heaton Park, hopefully 702 will see a turnaround in its fortunes and be able to take its place in the operating fleet there before too long, and 752
should also be able to return to the park to resume its useful role as the multi-purpose works vehicle again.
Report by Andrew Waddington