Heritage Trams this week

Posted on Saturday 30 August 2014 by Gareth Prior

September dawns and that means we enter another busy period for the UK’s heritage trams and this is a quick glance at what to expect over the next few weeks. Of course the Blackpool Illuminations are now shining nightly until Sunday 9th November and with that the heritage trams are in action every night whilst the East Anglia Transport Museum enjoy their End of Season Gale over the weekend of 6th and 7th September. And we aren’t too far off Electric 50 at Crich either…

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In Pictures: Supertram rail replacement work update

Posted on Saturday 30 August 2014 by Gareth Prior

Work is continuing on the rail replacement at the University of Sheffield on Stagecoach Supertram. Work is now not only taking place within the subway but also in the actual University of Sheffield stop itself. Photos by Stuart Cooke.

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Blackpool prepares for the illuminations

Posted on Friday 29 August 2014 by Andrew Waddington

Friday 29th August will see the Blackpool illuminations switched on for another season by comedian Peter Kay. As has become the norm in recent years, the actual switch-on night itself will not be a good one for the tramway with the awful split service in operation due to the event being held on the promenade headland opposite the Tower. Thankfully though, despite the decision to hold a full weekend of events a normal service will be allowed to resume the following day for the first illuminations weekend of 2014.

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167 bids goodbye to Blackpool

Posted on Friday 29 August 2014 by Andrew Waddington

The hugely successful visit of Blackpool ‘Pantograph’ car 167 to the Blackpool tramway for summer 2014 finally came to an end on Friday 29th August, when the tram was loaded up onto a lorry on Blundell Street for the long journey by road back to Crich Tramway Village. This brings to an end 167′s longest spell away from home since 1990, as the tram spent the early part of the year at Beamish Museum before heading back to Blackpool in April.

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Posted in Blackpool Tramway, National Tramway Museum | 1 Comment

Midland Metro engineering works confirmed to start in September

Posted on Thursday 28 August 2014 by Gareth Prior

It has now been confirmed the major essential engineering works on Midland Metro will commence from Saturday 6th September (although the press release states this is the 8th so it could just as easily be Monday 8th!) and will now only last for up to 12 weeks. During the works no trams will be able to serve either The Royal or Wolverhampton St George’s with services from Birmingham Snow Hill only able to run as far as Priestfield. Of note is that the Urbos3 trams are due to enter passenger service from Friday 5th September so there will be one day of operation where these trams will be serving the current layout at St George’s before its platforms are lengthened.

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In Pictures: Edinburgh Trams – out of the city centre

Posted on Thursday 28 August 2014 by Gareth Prior

Last week we bought you a full Photo Gallery featuring Edinburgh Trams (if you haven’t seen them yet and want to you can find them at http://www.britishtramsonline.co.uk/gallery478.html). The locations included were limited to in and around the city centre but we can now bring you a photographic feature with more shots of the trams but this time moving out of the city centre and onto the remainder of the line. With thanks to John Hampton for providing these photos.

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In Pictures: Blackpool & Fleetwood 40 meets Blackpool 40 – take two!

Posted on Thursday 28 August 2014 by Gareth Prior

We have previously featured images of the two Blackpool 40s in action at Crich on these pages but we are firm believers that if something is worth seeing once, it is worth seeing several times! On Wednesday 20th August the two trams were both in service again at the Crich Tramway Village and our regular Crich contributor, Hazel Quarmby, was on site again to capture 40 x 2 in the Museum street again.

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In Pictures: Stagecoach Supertram rail replacement works

Posted on Thursday 28 August 2014 by Gareth Prior

The ongoing rail replacement works on Stagecoach Supertram have now moved on to the University and subway area. The outbound track is currently being lifted ahead of new rail being laid whilst additional overnight work is also taking place in Kelvin area of Infirmary Road. This phase of works – which will be the last of 2014 – are due to be completed by mid September with no trams currently able to run beyond Sheffield City Centre with a replacement bus service in operation serving Malin Bridge and Middlewood. Photos provided by Stuart Cooke.

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In Pictures: Crich Classic Transport Gathering

Posted on Wednesday 27 August 2014 by Gareth Prior

The latest special event took place at the Crich Tramway Village over the Bank Holiday Weekend. The Classic Transport Gathering took place between Saturday 23rd and Monday 25th August and saw a number of visiting vehicles on display, the Howards Vintage Fun Fair was in attendance again and of course there was the usual tram service in operation. The weather was fine over the first two days of the event but come the final day typical Bank Holiday weather arrived putting a dampener on proceedings. Photos by Hazel Quarmby and John Huddlestone.

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Blackpool 762 launch date announced

Posted on Wednesday 27 August 2014 by Andrew Waddington

Following extensive attention in the workshop at Crich Tramway Village, Blackpool Jubilee car 762 is finally set to enter public service at the museum next month. The tram will be launched into the operating fleet at Crich as part of the much-anticipated ‘Electric 50’ event, taking place on 13th & 14th September.

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A bumper Bank Holiday for Blackpool’s heritage trams

Posted on Tuesday 26 August 2014 by Andrew Waddington

Blackpool’s heritage tram fleet enjoyed their final spell of daytime operation during 2014 over the August Bank Holiday weekend, with a very credible total of eleven different historic trams appearing in traffic over the three action-packed days. This included the year debuts for both Boat 227 and Balloon 701 following workshop attention, with the latter showing off its fresh coat of red and white paint – but for many, the highlight of the weekend was the welcome return to service of Coronation car 304 on the Monday afternoon.

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In Pictures: Return of the Routemaster Balloon car

Posted on Monday 25 August 2014 by Andrew Waddington

The August Bank Holiday weekend saw the welcome return to service in Blackpool of Balloon 701, fresh from the Paint Shop following a complete repaint. Gone was the faded and unflattering plain yellow coat of paint it carried when it last ran in May 2013, and in its place, it has regained the stunning red and white livery last seen on this tram between 1991 and 1993 following a major overhaul.

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In Pictures: Blackpool 290’s role in history recognised

Posted on Monday 25 August 2014 by Andrew Waddington

Work on the repainting of preserved Blackpool Brush car 290 for continued static display near the Pleasure Beach on Blackpool promenade appears to be complete, with the tram now sporting a very smart looking green and cream livery. In addition, its appearance has been further enhanced with various images of trams showing the history of the line to Fleetwood applied over the windows to hide the unsightly graffiti ‘art’ painted over its glazing last year.

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First tram runs on Nottingham Express Transit Phase Two

Posted on Friday 22 August 2014 by Gareth Prior

During the early hours of Friday 22nd August a major milestone was reached in the construction of Nottingham Express Transit Phase Two extensions with the first movement of a tram over the Karlsruhe Friendship Bridge and on towards Wilford.

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This week on British Trams Online

Posted on Thursday 21 August 2014 by Gareth Prior

A mini update for you this week with just the one Photo Gallery added for your viewing pleasure:

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Bargain hunting at Crich

Posted on Thursday 21 August 2014 by Andrew Waddington

Crich Tramway Village played host to the popular BBC1 daytime television programme ‘Bargain Hunt’ on Wednesday 20th August, when the show’s charismatic presenter Tim Wonnacott visited the museum to film a segment to feature in a future episode. The programme is expected to be shown at the end of October or early in November.

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A Coronation to Fleetwood

Posted on Thursday 21 August 2014 by Andrew Waddington

Just one day after making a historic test run along Blackpool promenade, Blackpool Coronation car 304 hit the headlines again on Thursday 21st August, when it completed its first run to Fleetwood since 2009! Following the success of the testing on the previous day, 304 was taken out again, this time to allow a number of tram drivers to be familiarised with its unique VAMBAC equipment.

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Another Citadis is delivered to Nottingham

Posted on Thursday 21 August 2014 by Gareth Prior

The 17th Alstom Citadis tram for Nottingham Express Transit was delivered to Wilkinson Street Depot in the early hours of Wednesday 20th August – the first delivery for over two months. 232 arrived by the same route as the previous 16 deliveries and was soon unloaded at the depot where it will now undergo commissioning ahead of an entry into service. Just five more of the trams are now due to arrive in Nottingham and as reported earlier this week the class will enter regular passenger service from Tuesday 26th August with the introduction of a new more regular tram service.

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Heritage Trams this week

Posted on Thursday 21 August 2014 by Gareth Prior

Want to know when and where you ride on heritage trams over the next few weeks? Well if you do you have come to the right place as this is your one stop guide to heritage trams in the UK and Isle of Man! With it being Bank Holiday weekend this week it is set to be a busy time for our heritage tramways with another three days of heritage operation on the Blackpool Tramway and the Classic Transport Gathering at Crich. After that we are nearly in September, a month which is traditionally a busy one for our heritage tramways.

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In Pictures: Brush car 290 meets an old friend

Posted on Wednesday 20 August 2014 by Andrew Waddington

Our latest look at the transformation of the Fleetwood Heritage Leisure Trust’s Blackpool Brush car 290 shows the tram in the latter stages of its repaint into a traditional green and cream livery. The gloss coat has now been applied and the tram is looking much better for this attention. These views from 20th August, when the car was reunited with one of its former stablemates, show the recent progress.

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Posted in Blackpool Tramway, Fleetwood Heritage Leisure Trust | 2 Comments