Author Archives: Andrew Waddington

Blackpool Standard 143 under assessment

Posted on Thursday 19 May 2016 by Andrew Waddington

The appearance of Blackpool Standard car 143 in the Body Shop at Rigby Road last September for the tramway’s 130th anniversary weekend created much interest, particularly as it was suggested that this may be the first step towards a return … Continue reading →

Posted in Blackpool Tramway | 3 Comments

Night Train to Starr Gate

Posted on Monday 16 May 2016 by Andrew Waddington

Following on from the success of the recent launch tour of Blackpool Balloon 723 as a warm-up to the most recent ‘gold’ operating weekend, Blackpool Heritage Tram Tours have announced another exciting evening event to start the next Bank Holiday … Continue reading →

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‘Bluebird’ flies away

Posted on Thursday 12 May 2016 by Andrew Waddington

The heavily stripped body shell of London County Council 1, alias ‘Bluebird’, left Crich on Thursday 12th May for a short road journey to Ilkeston. There, specialist engineers are to undertake expert repairs on the framework to remove the accumulated … Continue reading →

Posted in Crich Tramway Village | 5 Comments

Trams versus cars in Blackpool

Posted on Wednesday 11 May 2016 by Andrew Waddington

Manchester Metrolink has become the UK tram system with the highest number of tram versus car incidents in recent years, but the Blackpool tramway seems to be catching up with an alarming increase in the regularity of such incidents so … Continue reading →

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May Day Bank Holiday Balloons in Blackpool

Posted on Monday 2 May 2016 by Andrew Waddington

The May Day Bank Holiday weekend in Blackpool saw three more days of intensive heritage tram operation, with six trams scheduled to operate on each day of the long weekend. With a pretty grim weather forecast, the tram output was … Continue reading →

Posted in Blackpool Tramway | 3 Comments

Balloon 723 re-launched **updated with photos**

Posted on Saturday 30 April 2016 by Andrew Waddington

The latest addition to the Blackpool Heritage Tram Tours operational fleet was unveiled at a special event on Friday 29th April. Although Balloon 723 had returned to use last year, it was only used occasionally due to its shabby external … Continue reading →

Posted in Blackpool Tramway | 7 Comments

Preserved Brush car 623 returns to service

Posted on Wednesday 27 April 2016 by Andrew Waddington

Preparations for a special event at the Heaton Park Tramway over the May Day Bank Holiday weekend have included commissioning Blackpool Brush car 623 for service. This tram hasn’t operated so far this year and it was feared that it … Continue reading →

Posted in Heaton Park Tramway | 2 Comments

Trackwork at Starr Gate

Posted on Wednesday 27 April 2016 by Andrew Waddington

Some maintenance work has been carried out on a set of points at the southern end of the Blackpool tramway on the week commencing Monday 25th April. The points at Starr Gate, used by terminating service trams to cross over … Continue reading →

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Balloon 723 launch event confirmed

Posted on Saturday 23 April 2016 by Andrew Waddington

Previously known as Blackpool’s ‘Scruffy Surprise’, the appearance of Balloon car 723 has been transformed over the past two months with a full repaint in the 1980s green and cream livery, finally returning this tram to an immaculate appearance. To … Continue reading →

Posted in Blackpool Tramway | 5 Comments

London horse tram to enter preservation

Posted on Friday 22 April 2016 by Andrew Waddington

The London County Council Tramways Trust have announced that the unrestored body of a North Metropolitan Tramways horse car is set to join the national collection. The remains of the tram were actually discovered in 2014 when they were inspected … Continue reading →

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Horses at war – but no 264

Posted on Wednesday 20 April 2016 by Andrew Waddington

The second installment of Beamish Museum’s annual transport spectacular, this year with a First World War theme, was ‘Horses at War’ which was held over two days, Saturday 16th & Sunday 17th April. As the name suggests the main attraction … Continue reading →

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Trailer T7 to be reborn

Posted on Sunday 10 April 2016 by Andrew Waddington

Following a great deal of upheaval, it has been confirmed that the ownership of Blackpool Trailer 687 has changed once again, with the tram now becoming an official member of the Fleetwood Heritage Leisure Trust’s collection. Plans have also been … Continue reading →

Posted in Fleetwood Heritage Leisure Trust | 3 Comments

Burton & Ashby 14 to run in 2017?

Posted on Sunday 10 April 2016 by Andrew Waddington

Amazing news from the Statfold Barn Railway concerns Burton & Ashby 14, which was famously repatriated from the USA last year and securely housed in one of the centre’s buildings. Since its arrival not much has been heard about the … Continue reading →

Posted in Burton & Ashby 14 | 10 Comments

Sheffield 264 returns to service

Posted on Sunday 10 April 2016 by Andrew Waddington

Saturday 9th April 2016 was a historic day at Beamish Museum, not just because of the Great War Steam Fair event – but mainly because it was on this day that Sheffield 264 finally made its long-awaited return to passenger … Continue reading →

Posted in Beamish Tramway | 8 Comments

Flexity 009 versus motor car

Posted on Friday 8 April 2016 by Andrew Waddington

On Thursday 7th April, there was considerable disruption for passengers on the Blackpool tramway due to an incident at Rossall Square. Flexity 009 was involved in a collision with a car, which had apparently jumped a red traffic light and … Continue reading →

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No Access Tram

Posted on Thursday 7 April 2016 by Andrew Waddington

Crich Tramway Village have announced that their ‘Access Tram’, Berlin 223 006-4, is currently unavailable for service and is expected to remain so until approximately 14th April. As the only tram at the museum able to carry visitors in wheelchairs, … Continue reading →

Posted in Crich Tramway Village | 13 Comments

Good news for Snaefell Mountain Railway

Posted on Monday 4 April 2016 by Andrew Waddington

After the shock news of the terrible accident involving Snaefell 3 last week, we are pleased to report that the Snaefell Mountain Railway was able to re-open for business on Saturday 2nd April. This followed a closure lasting a few … Continue reading →

Posted in Snaefell Mountain Railway | 6 Comments

Marton 31 debuts on Blackpool Heritage Tram Tours **updated with photos**

Posted on Tuesday 29 March 2016 by Andrew Waddington

Three of the established and popular ‘Gold’ running days on the Blackpool tramway were operated by the heritage tram fleet over the Easter Bank Holiday weekend. Twelve different trams were used on this service with seven cars rostered to operate … Continue reading →

Posted in Blackpool Tramway | 4 Comments

A very good Friday for Blackpool!

Posted on Sunday 27 March 2016 by Andrew Waddington

The Easter weekend got off to a fantastic start in Blackpool on Good Friday, 25th March with a ‘bonus’ heritage tram service operating. Although unfortunately it was decided not to run a gold timetable on this Bank Holiday, a few … Continue reading →

Posted in Blackpool Tramway | 1 Comment

Norbreck North opens for business!

Posted on Friday 25 March 2016 by Andrew Waddington

Blackpool’s newest tram stop opened to passengers on Tuesday 22nd March – Norbreck North. This was one of the many stops from the old system which were not retained when the tramway was upgraded to light rail standards, however a … Continue reading →

Posted in Blackpool Tramway | 6 Comments