One of the most historically significant sections of tramway in Britain has been rendered unuseable, following the removal of the overhead wires above it. The line in question is the emergency access to Blackpool’s Rigby Road depot, which is connected to the main line via pointwork at Foxhall Square. However, the wiring at this junction has now been disconnected, with the wires over Princess Street and Blundell Street likely to follow imminently.<\/p>\n
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Early on April 15th, Blackpool Council staff were employed to disconnect the wires at the Foxhall junction, thus ending any remote possibility of trams using this line to gain access to and from the old depot. This included removal of the overhead frog. Although not used since 2005, the points here had actually been relaid some years ago when plans existed for a new depot to be constructed on Blundell Street, in which to house the new low-floor trams. Of course, these plans were eventually scrapped and the new fleet were housed at Starr Gate instead, meaning that these brand new points have never been used. It is expected that they will be lifted at some point in the future, and the overhead works undertaken would certainly support this belief.<\/p>\n
Once the wires along Princess Street and Blundell Street are removed, this will end the possibility of trams running along this stretch, which is credited as being the oldest section of British street tramway still in existence. The route\u00a0dates back to the town’s original conduit tramway which\u00a0opened in 1885.\u00a0Pleasingly however, the rails themselves are expected to remain in situ, at least for the forseeable future, even though they will be of no use to the tramway anymore. This is with the exception of a short stretch on Blundell Street, which should remain available for access to the Fitting Shop through the north end entrance. The whole section was last used in the early part of 2005 when trackwork forced the Foxhall line to be re-opened so that trams could leave and enter the depot, and this included a one-off special event day which saw trams such as Standard 147<\/strong> and Coronation 304<\/strong> carry passengers along this track. Prior to this the tracks were last used for another enthusiast event, the 1998 depot open day, although this was spoilt by a series of minor derailments.<\/p>\n It is quite ironic that this development has occured so soon after a ghost from the past was sighted in the vicinty, in the shape of some old rails which served the long-lost Blundell Street tram depot. After being covered over with tarmac when the building was demolished, the car park on the former depot site has now closed, and the area has been cleared in readiness for the expected construction of new houses. This has revealed some of the old tram tracks, showing that although Blackpool is still very much about ‘progress’, reminders of the town’s rich history keep appearing, sometimes in the most unlikely circumstances.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" One of the most historically significant sections of tramway in Britain has been rendered unuseable, following the removal of the overhead wires above it. The line in question is the emergency access to Blackpool’s Rigby Road depot, which is connected … Continue reading