Author Archives: Andrew Waddington

Major refurbishment for Birkenhead museum

Posted on Friday 8 December 2017 by Andrew Waddington

The main tram depot, workshop and museum at Birkenhead – the Taylor Street site – is set to be closed to visitors for several months to allow for a major refurbishment to take place. This has been some time in … Continue reading →

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More progress for Warrington 28

Posted on Friday 8 December 2017 by Andrew Waddington

The Merseyside Tramway Society remain busy working on the sole surviving Warrington tramcar, which is being reconstructed as Warrington 28. It may be recalled that over the summer a suitable truck for the tram was supplied by the Tramway Museum … Continue reading →

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In Pictures: Flexity 017 makes its journey to Blackpool!

Posted on Saturday 2 December 2017 by Andrew Waddington

On the evening of Friday 1st December, Blackpool welcomed its newest tram – Flexity 017. This is of course one of the two new trams which have been ordered from Bombardier to supplement the existing fleet in anticipation of the … Continue reading →

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More tram shunting and a new roof at Crich

Posted on Wednesday 29 November 2017 by Andrew Waddington

Progress on the main depot refurbishment project at Crich Tramway Village has been brisk, with replacement of the roof of more than one third of the main running sheds already completed. Depot 2 (covering roads 4, 5 & 6) has … Continue reading →

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In Pictures: A Brush car bonanza!

Posted on Monday 27 November 2017 by Andrew Waddington

The last major event of the year celebrating the 80th anniversary of Blackpool’s Brush cars took place on the final ‘Gold’ operating day of 2017 for the heritage trams, with all operational members of the class participating in a short … Continue reading →

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Disruptions to trams and buses in Blackpool

Posted on Thursday 23 November 2017 by Andrew Waddington

With the off-peak winter season now in full swing on the Blackpool tramway, some signs of disruption have started to appear. This has also extended to road traffic, as preparations for the much-anticipated extension of the tramway up Talbot Road … Continue reading →

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Hole in the wall at Crich

Posted on Thursday 23 November 2017 by Andrew Waddington

As part of the current depot refurbishment work taking place at Crich Tramway Village, a large hole has recently appeared in the back wall of Depot 2. Whilst this part of the main running sheds is completely devoid of trams, … Continue reading →

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More preparations for Blackpool Brush 298 restoration

Posted on Tuesday 21 November 2017 by Andrew Waddington

Whilst the events being held in Blackpool this year to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the town’s Brush Railcoach class have been greatly enjoyed, one thing that has definitely been missed is a Brush car in original ‘Art Deco’ condition. … Continue reading →

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Blackpool’s Brush cars on parade!

Posted on Monday 20 November 2017 by Andrew Waddington

Blackpool Heritage Tram Tours have announced an unexpected but very welcome late addition to this year’s events celebrating 80 years of the Brush Railcoach class – a parade featuring all of the serviceable members of the type! This will start … Continue reading →

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TLC for trams at Beamish

Posted on Friday 10 November 2017 by Andrew Waddington

2017 has been a difficult years for some of the UK’s heritage tramways – and the line at Beamish Museum has been no different, with an operating pool of just four trams available for service since the return of Blackpool … Continue reading →

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Winter in the workshop at Crich

Posted on Thursday 9 November 2017 by Andrew Waddington

Although the big project for the closed season at Crich Tramway Village is of course the refurbishment of the depots, that doesn’t mean that the tramcar collection will not be getting any attention – far from it! As well as … Continue reading →

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In Pictures: Enhanced heritage service on 22nd October

Posted on Wednesday 25 October 2017 by Andrew Waddington

Blackpool’s heritage trams have been kept even busier than usual, with an increased vehicle output to coincide with the school half-term holidays. A daily heritage promenade service has been operating in afternoons, with extra trams being used at weekends – … Continue reading →

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More Blackpool trams receive ‘heritage’ destination blinds

Posted on Wednesday 25 October 2017 by Andrew Waddington

Peter Watts has been busy again, providing a set of brand new, traditional-styled destination blinds for two further trams in Blackpool’s operational heritage fleet. The latest beneficiaries of his blinds are Fleetwood Box 40 and Balloon 717.

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In Pictures: Birkenhead horse car comes home

Posted on Friday 20 October 2017 by Andrew Waddington

On 18th October, the oldest surviving Birkenhead tramcar made a journey by road to the Pacific Road premises of the Birkenhead heritage tramway and museum. Birkenhead 7 had been stored at Hooton Park for a number of years after being removed from … Continue reading →

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In Pictures: Stockport 5 sees daylight

Posted on Friday 20 October 2017 by Andrew Waddington

Stockport 5 has been undergoing major workshop attention at the Heaton Park Tramway for the past couple of years, having not operated since 2013 due to issues with its roof. Whilst the overhaul has been progressing the tram has been … Continue reading →

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Sisk awarded Blackpool tramway extension contract

Posted on Thursday 12 October 2017 by Andrew Waddington

John Sisk has been awarded the lucrative contract to construct the greatly anticipated extension of the Blackpool tramway up Talbot Road to serve North Station. This is the latest positive news to suggest that this development is very much a … Continue reading →

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North Station extension works to commence this year?

Posted on Wednesday 11 October 2017 by Andrew Waddington

Very little has been heard about the planned extension of the Blackpool tramway off the promenade to North Station up Talbot Road of late – but it appears that this may be about to change. An announcement made by Blackpool … Continue reading →

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B Fleet appear in service – but not much!

Posted on Wednesday 11 October 2017 by Andrew Waddington

Compared to last year, Blackpool’s ‘B Fleet’ Balloon cars have not seen a great deal of use so far during the 2017 illuminations. Whereas 2016 saw the trams kept busy with a mix of stage carriage work and illumination tour … Continue reading →

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In Pictures: Rare trams get washed at Crich!

Posted on Monday 9 October 2017 by Andrew Waddington

Over the past few months, quite a number of trams at Crich have been treated to a thorough external clean, including some members of the static fleet which had not been washed for quite some time and were well due … Continue reading →

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Crich announce ‘Big Shunt 2’ – the sequel!

Posted on Saturday 7 October 2017 by Andrew Waddington

Back in 2014, Crich Tramway Village allowed enthusiasts to view a series of shunting moves with various trams being moved in and out of the Exhibition Hall in connection with some changes to the displays within. The day, dubbed ‘The … Continue reading →

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