A Week in Stations

I have not had the opportunity to reflect, research or, well, do much at all this week on TCP (if that's how I should abbreviate it -- perhaps TTP or TP would be better, I don't know). I had planned to do at least one article per week on each of the stations in the GMPTE area, something that I hope to accomplish next week. I have simply been too busy since Monday; in a classic case of "famous last words", I mentioned last week to Jason (the same chap to whom I mentioned TCP when it was an embryonic idea) that I would not have to travel anywhere for work the following week.

Well, Jason, if you're reading this, I ended up going to Leicester on Tuesday and Harrow yesterday! And I don't think I've ever stopped at so many stations over the course of two return journeys. These journeys also afforded me the opportunity to see some of the stations that I shall be covering for the project.

Tuesday's trip to Leicester started, as always, with the usual twelve-and-a-quarter-mile trundle from Dinting to Manchester Piccadilly. From Piccadilly, I changed at Nuneaton and then arrived at Leicester Station -- an easy enough journey. My meeting finished earlier than expected and I was looking forward to getting the train to Nuneaton an hour earlier than I had planned, with the result that this "saved hour" would carry on through to Manchester.

This didn't happen. I got to Nuneaton but then had to get a train that change at Stafford station, which at least gave me the opportunity to laugh almost uncontrollably when I heard the PA system crackle "Smelly Butts" out as the name of a stop on the journey to Birmingham New Street (a mishearing, unfortunately -- the announcer must have been saying Smethwick Galton Bridge or Smethwick Rolfe Street).

From Stafford, I changed at Crewe (I shouldn't have had to, looking at the National Rail website for weekday trains between Leicester and Manchester -- I could have got one straight to Piccadilly but I'm a complete and utter idiot) and then took the Northern Rail service to Piccadilly that goes via Manchester Airport. This frustrating crawl at least gave me the chance to see Heald Green, Gatley, East Didsbury, Burnage and Mauldeth Road stations, which I'll visit in due course to take photos and write about!

Changing a few times was quite enjoyable, really. I got to try out a few different trains and stop at some stations en route that I might not otherwise experience -- Atherstone, for example, which must have the most rusty footbridge I've ever seen. I'm glad I don't have to walk over that thing every morning and evening.

Yesterday was a tough day in terms of work done and the amount of time spent awake (if not always fully functioning) but the outward journey was free of hassle. I would highly recommend the Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston service operated by Virgin, which departs Piccadilly at 06:10. There is hardly anyone on the train at that time and you can get a coffee and breakfast if you want. I had the added joy of sharing the journey with a work colleague -- we talked at some length and even managed to crack a few jokes (not an easy task when semi-conscious at crack o' sparrows, even for a couple of inveterate punsters) -- and, given the sparsely-popluated state of the carriage, I managed to get the laptop and some papers out and be quite productive for about an hour.

Whilst my colleague went off to Barnet, I caught the London Overground service to Harrow and Wealdstone and spent this uncharacteristically warm Autumn day at work in Harrow. Later on, I caught the fast London Midland service back to Euston -- although standing, it was quite pleasant. It was when I got to Euston that the trouble started.

Being in possession of an off-peak ticket, I had to wait to catch the 1900 back to Piccadilly. At 6:45, I went to board the train, only to be ushered to the other side of the railings on the slope because I didn't have a seat reservation. Fair enough.

Looking around, I saw the size of the queues both for those with and without reservations! Oh dear.

It's not the fact that we had to stand and wait that's the problem. What I found unbelievable was the attitude of the staff. There were loads of people who were effectively trapped in a pen -- this is after the train, filled with passengers who had reservations and a lucky few without who were let through, had departed, by the way -- and there was no attempt by the staff to tell people when the next train was due to arrive, why they were waiting and what alternative trains they might like to take. Instead, people (myself included) had to say quite loudly, "Excuse me, what's going on?!" We were told we would be let on "the next train" but we didn't know when "the next train" was! A pregnant woman behind me was feeling claustrophobic and had to get out of this terrible situation; fortunately, people behind her moved back and left a pathway open for her to escape. The staff member she asked for assistance was about as much use as "The X Factor" is to people who appreciate music, so it was up to people's goodwill and decency (and a young woman who blared: "Excuse me, this woman's pregnant! Let her out! She wants to get through!") to "smooth her passage", so to speak. Perhaps a spin doctor would seize upon this occurrence as an example of the "Big Society" -- that awful, ill-thought-out, downright patronising, Tory slogan -- at work.

Fortunately, the next train to Manchester was the 1920, so we were released and allowed to board that one, the mad rush tempered by the need for everyone to show their tickets to yet more officious staff (who probably have an ironic title such as "customer service champion", or something equally meaningless, engraved on a badge and pinned on their comically hideous uniforms).

The best thing about this trying journey home was that First Class was de-restricted. I shoved my two file-laden bags and laptop case on the overhead racks, reclined in my comfortable seat that had ample legroom and decent back support, had a drink and read my free copy of the London Evening Standard. For any future non-work-related trips that I am planning in advance, I'll definitely fork out for First Class -- it's worth every penny and probably costs less than a Standard Class ticket bought on the day.

As I sit here in my study, listening to Stochelo Rosenberg and drinking a bottle of Newcastle Brown, almost fully functioning again after a decent night's sleep, I can laugh about it (even though my shoulders are thoroughly knotted). But there's still a bit of frustration that comes through when I think of the amount of money Virgin Trains will have taken in return for providing a rather sub-standard service.

News Roundup 3rd October 2010

Commuters west of Manchester could be travelling by guided bus at some point! This article from the Manchester Evening News, dated 30th September, announces that the Leigh-Salford Busway project is "back on track" (ha ha!). I must confess, I hadn't a clue about the Leigh-Salford Busway; in fact, I have trawled the recesses of my mind and cannot recall ever having heard of any new guided busway systems...I know about trolley buses but that's about it. (I'm certainly learning a lot about different types of public transport as The Traincard Project takes off, which is very useful; to any rail/bus experts who may be reading, please bear with me...and I hope my naivete gives you a few chuckles!) Take a look at this presentation delivered by GMPTE at the BRT UK Symposium last December for more information about it. I'll have a read of it myself soon.

Perhaps this Busway scheme will be a good alternative for those who find the platforms at Salford Central Station a little too low. This article in the MEN reports that passengers "must stretch nearly two feet" to board the trains at this station. Let's hope a remedy is effected soon. I wonder whether the platform will be raised before the Busway is implemented?

On to light rail now: have a look at this entry by Martin Bryant, posted on Manchester Transport, a blog that I have just happened upon. It shows an Art Deco poster that Sam Luk designed for the Metrolink. As a fan of Art Deco, I can't help but agree with Martin's view that it is "rather amazing" - it certainly wouldn't look out of place in an episode of Poirot. 

We've had buses, trains and the Metrolink; now let's go out of GMPTE territory altogether and look at bicycles in Leeds. TransportXtra reports that there is a rather snazzy new bike shed at Leeds station, "Cycle Point", which enables commuters to continue their journey by bike. Take a look at this Northern Rail brochure. It was also reported by the BBC on Monday 27th September, the day it opened -- and a day on which I was in Leeds on business. I walked straight past Cycle Point on my way from the station to the taxi rank, not paying any attention to it at all. In my defence, it was early on a Monday morning and only superheroes are fully functioning at that time.

Wishing you all a lovely Sunday evening and a good week ahead!

1: Dinting (DTG)

Right! After a week of slacking – if you can call five days of hard work, starting running again after a long break (three runs -- about 11 miles in total) and other general life tasks “slacking” – I thought I’d better start this project in earnest. And what better way to start than with my home station: Dinting.

We moved to Simmondley just under a year ago and I started using Glossop station for the commute to my new job, because I knew where it was and it took about twenty minutes or so to walk there. After a few trips, I thought I would have a crack at using the next stop, Dinting – it must be closer, I reasoned. A quick look on Google Maps confirmed it was! So I decided to try it out one evening on the way home from work.

Unfortunately, my first attempt was when the clocks had gone back, so it was pitch black -- plus it was pretty cold and raining. Lovely. Never mind, I thought; my geography’s not too bad -- if I turn left out of here, I’m bound to find a footpath on my left that will take me to Dinting Vale. As it turned out, I did find a way on to Dinting Vale: Shaw Lane. It took me about forty-five minutes to get home, then another forty-five minutes in the bath to regain the feeling in my extremities.

The second time I attempted to alight at Dinting, I turned right on Dinting Road instead. The pavement ran out after a while, as did the street lighting. When a car did pass, it was a Corsa or similar, with dropped suspension and an exhaust the diameter of an elephant’s trunk, being “driven” by a lad who probably hadn’t started shaving yet. I was worried I would die before I was thirty, at the hands of someone whose driving test certificate still had wet ink. I turned right on to a poorly lit path and happened upon a lady who offered me directions and, bless her, a lift back to Simmondley. (Thank you again.)

I decided to make a third attempt during the day, when I had an afternoon off work. Having turned left out of the station and on to Dinting Road, I managed to locate the pathway that eventually leads to this small footbridge over Glossop Brook, next to the viaduct. Success!

I carried on using Glossop station for a while longer but when the weather improved (after a prolonged period of snow), I started to use Dinting. Later still, I found another route to the station, across a lime green painted footbridge.

Once you have found it by foot, Dinting station is quite impressive, considering its small size. It boasts two platforms, although most of the trains stop at Platform 2 both ways. There are some trains during peak times that terminate at Glossop rather than Hadfield, and these use Platform 1. The station is also staffed from Monday to Friday between 6:15 a.m. and 1:15 p.m., which is handy.

Dinting Station is far less impressive than it used to be, though. You can travel to Manchester Piccadilly via Dinting today – but that’s your lot. Back in the day, this small station was part of the Woodhead Line, which closed in 1981. Yes, at one time, you could travel between Manchester and Sheffield. If only it were open today! My partner and I have family in Chesterfield; our carbon footprint would be reduced considerably if this line were still in use. Think of the beautiful scenery on that route to Sheffield…and the advantage to hikers and cyclists! There is a campaign to reopen it  -- I think I might join it. I certainly can’t argue with the reasons put forward by the campaigners for the Woodhead Line to be in use again:

• To reduce the environmental impact of transporting people and freight across the Southern Pennines.

• To create a means of access to the northern half of the Peak District National Park for non-car users, cyclists and the disabled.

• To create improved access to employment between the
conurbations of Longdendale and Greater Manchester and the Upper Don Valley and South Yorkshire.

• To restore the competitiveness of trans-pennine rail passenger journey times.

• To make rail-freight a more attractive option by providing a more direct route between the ports on the eastern and western sides of the country.

• To provide more ready access to high speed rail passenger rail services between Scotland, London and continental Europe.

• To improve the capacity and reliability of trans-Pennine rail services by creating an additional route to the Hope Valley Line.

(Source: Re-Open the Woodhead Line)

Ten years after the closure of the Woodhead Line, another blow was dealt to Dinting when the Dinting Railway Museum closed. The museum was started by the Bahamas Locomotive Society and is now located at Ingrow West Railway Station, in Keighley, Yorkshire.

Their website states:

“The Society was formed in 1967 with the aim of purchasing and maintaining in working order the former LMS Railway 'Jubilee' class steam locomotive No.45596 Bahamas.

We subsequently established the Dinting Railway Centre in Derbyshire - as a working museum to house Bahamas and our ever-growing collection of locomotives and rolling stock - before we relocated our operations to Ingrow."

Here are a couple of links I found on Flickr that show what was going on at Dinting Station in its heyday:


This photo shows the shed in 1969.
This photo shows the Flying Scotsman stopping off at Dinting in 1974.
 
Unusually for me, I have managed to time something right. A few hours ago, after getting home from work, I looked in the Glossop Advertiser, only to find a story about Dinting Station: the former Museum was auctioned on 20^th September for several times its guide price! The article I read tonight is not yet available on the Advertiser’s website but I managed to find this scan from the Tameside Reporter on the “Re-open the Woodhead Tunnel” blog.  


I intend to take regular pictures of whatever development the former museum undergoes and post updates about the progress on here. The building can be seen clearly from Platform 2, on which I stand every morning, so I have no excuse.

Other links that might interest you:


Guide to the Dinting Railway Centre (Publications / 'Bahamas' Locomotive Society)

Woodhead Line: Woodhead Tunnel, Manchester-Sheffield-Wath Electric Railway, Sheffield, Ashton-Under-Lyne and Manchester Railway



101 Damn Stations

I have created a spreadsheet with all the different stations so I can keep track of them and make sure I visit every one. There are 101 of them! Crikey. This is going to be a big task.

I am also going to categorise each stop by line, which seems a good idea. That way, people can search by line (e.g. Huddersfield Line) as well as by post date.

Ninety-two of the stations are within the Greater Manchester “ticketing area”. The other nine consist of six Metrolink stops and three stations that fall outside the ticketing area.

The Metrolink stops are Shudehill, Mosley Street (southbound only), Market Street, Piccadilly Gardens, St. Peter’s Square and GMEX. Incidentally, as of a few days ago, the GMEX stop is called “Deansgate-Castlefield, presumably because the GMEX Centre has been officially known as “Manchester Central Conference Centre” for some time, although most people still seem to refer to it as “GMEX” or “The GMEX”. (Confusingly, the centre itself was once Manchester Central Station, which closed in 1969 and was subsequently used as a car park until the then Greater Manchester Council started to redevelop it and turn it into the GMEX.)

The three rail stops at which the traincard is valid are Disley, New Mills Central and New Mills Newtown. The first stop is in Cheshire and the other two are in Derbyshire.

The GMPTE Traincard

It’s taken just short of a week from idea to blog but it’s just under a year since I started using the GMPTE Traincard. Living in Glossop and working in the centre of Manchester, in October 2009, I joined a mass of fellow regular commuters who use weekly, monthly and annual traincards.

At first, I thought my card entitled me to travel between Glossop and Manchester Piccadilly twice a day. Shortly after that, someone mentioned that it could be used any number of times per day. (At this point, you might be thinking, “Why didn’t you read the leaflet?” Well, I don’t recall getting any information; I handed over a passport photo, gave the chap my name and address, and he gave me the card. And considering the money I was saving -- the monthly cost of daily return tickets would be prohibitive! -- it seemed reasonable to assume that this monthly ticket was a discounted version of my essential daily journey.)

It wasn’t until several weeks later that someone told me the card could be used anywhere within the zone. “The Central Zone” includes the Metrolink stops in the city centre as well. “Great!” I thought. “I can get down to Deansgate or Victoria now.”

Everything clicked into place soon after when I was informed (and I’m sorry I can’t remember who told me each of these gems) that the card could be used anywhere within the GMPTE Area. What did that cover? Clearly, it includes a little bit of Derbyshire. Presumably it must cover all of those bits of Lancashire, Cheshire and Yorkshire that were cobbled together to form “Greater Manchester” on April Fool’s Day, 1974.

I decided to look into it.

The Traincard Project: An Introduction

The idea to start this came after a throwaway comment I made to a friend while we were going through Longsight on the bus last Sunday. A couple of hours short of exactly a week later, I am writing the introduction to it. From "initial idea" to "getting it up and running" in one week for anything is a record for me, given my terrible procrastination habit.

Jason (my aforementioned friend) and I were talking about rail travel, a conversation that had arisen from my saying something about the GMPTE (Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive) monthly traincard, which I use. He asked me where you can travel with it.

“Quite a distance,” I said. “You can get as far as Littleborough, just past Rochdale. And if you’re going towards Liverpool, Glazebrook’s the last stop – it’s close to Warrington. Glossop, of course (which is where I live). I think you can go as far as New Mills as well. It covers a big area.”

Then the throwaway comment:


”I think I’ll do a photography project, taking shots of each station that it covers.”

And that was it. I’ve spent the last week thinking about it. I was going to start snapping away and posting the results on Flickr – I’m hooked on it at the moment, posting photos of the Captain America set on Dale Street, Manchester, every few days.

But why stop at photos? Why not write a bit about each station? And, while I think about it, why not explore the surroundings a bit, meet some people and find out a bit about the local area and the history?

So that’s what I decided I would do.