A session at Kilby Bridge Junction, a location on the Midland Mainline just South of Leicester, on quite a pleasant Spring Day which also seen a good selection of workings during the few hours I was there, most notably the last couple of Intercity 125 passenger turns before they are phased out on 14th May 2021.
■ 12:46 66713 6H10 Bletchley - Peak Forest.
■ 13:05 43054 + 91122 t/n/t/ 82115, 91128 + 43066 5Q55 Kettering - Rectory Junction.
■ 13:17 37254 + 43060 + 43045 0Z52 Reading Triangle Sidings - Leicester L.I.P.
■ 13:48 66750 + 66783 0G10 Wellingborough - Bescot Down Side.
■ 14:23 66717 6F93 St. Pancras Churchyard - Ketton.
■ 14:50 66542 6V54 Radlett - East Usk.
■ 15:37 43272 t/n/t 43309 1D43 St. Pancras International - Nottingham.
■ 15:46 66610 6M91 Theale - Hope.
■ 15:34 43102 t/n/t/ 43274 1D48 St. Pancras International - Nottingham.
■ 16:50 66744 6M79 Angerstein Wharf - Bardon Hill.
Cheers,
James
First time I've ever done a blog for plane spotting/photography, but hopefully in time I hope this will prove a snap shot of what has been seen on a certain day. Registrations, will be in alphabetical order.
All aircraft were landing on Runway 09R, and photo's were taken from a legal vantage point on the Western Perimeter Road, approximately a 20 minute walk from Terminal 5, for those arriving by public transport.
For information on what the aircraft type and/or flight was, type in the registration number in the "search" bar.
My first line side photography trip out in a couple of months took me up to Atherstone, a short drive up the A5 from home, main reason being was LMS Jubilee Class 45596 Bahamas was working from the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway to the Mid-Hants Railway via the West Coast Mainline, a nice surprise also was 68034 working 6Z76 Crewe Basford Hall - Stud Farm empty ballast boxes. As the weather was dickying about, mostly raining, I only stayed for an hour or so as there was also some other freights in the area which required my attention.
Cheers
James
After a period of uncertainty, it has been confirmed by London NorthWestern Railway that enthusiasts are now welcome back on Nuneaton so that they can continue to pursue their hobby.
However LNWR have given some rules which should be adhered to during these challenging times, and they are:
Despite the new rules, it is still possible to enjoy your day out at Nuneaton, refreshments can also be purchased at the Asda just across the way as the coffee shop on Platform is currently closed, although personally, I stopped using the refreshment facilities since Derek's pleasant little shop on Platform 1 closed a few years ago, which to me was a great shame.
I do ask that ALL enthusiasts do obey these rules at the current time, the staff at Nuneaton have always been very tolerant of enthusiasts at the station, and it's only fair that we reciprocate. It is also extremely decent of London NorthWestern Railway to allow enthusiasts back on the platforms. Last thing that is needed is someone mucking things up for the majority of law abiding enthusiasts.
Today though, we had a nice variety of traffic, in what was pretty reasonable weather.
Workings seen, and in order, were:
Needing some refreshments, I walked over to Asda, and then came back. I then decided - a spur of the moment decision - to take a trip to Leamington Spa, well 172001 was in, and I required it for haulage so why not??:
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17:16 Travel on 172001 Nuneaton - Leamington Spa (2G86 17:16 NUN - LMS).
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Coventry Arena (17:27)
172008 (2G89 17:01 LMS - NUN).
Coventry CE Sidings (17:37).
DR77002, DR79262/79272.
Leamington Spa (17:59).
165024 (2L71 17:21 BMO - LMS).
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18:00 Travel on 172001 Leamington Spa - Nuneaton (2G91 18:00 LMS - NUN).
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Cheers
James
Codes:
With the regulations regarding "essential travel only" which was being used by various rail and bus companies since lockdown was introduced by the UK government to try and control the Coronavirus pandemic which was sweeping the globe, I opted to have a go and see what the "new normal" - a term mostly coined by the media - was like. Now, since mid-June, it has been compulsory to wear a face covering (not necessarily a mask, but any thing that literally covers your mouth and nose), so in keeping with this, I took my London Underground themed mask, which I had recently purchased through Splash Maps, I would seriously recommend them as they are of good quality and well worth the money, plus they are washable too, and can be put with your regular laundry.
My journey today would start at Nuneaton Station, and my trip would be just under 20 miles in length on the hourly West Midlands Railway service to Leamington Spa, which today was one of the regular 2-coach Class 172 DMU's, WMR had procured 8 of these units from London Overground a couple of years ago, and indeed they have been a very welcome addition to the regional route between Nuneaton, Coventry and Leamington Spa, which prior to the Class 172's, was operated by a single coach Class 153 DMU, which was, in my opinion wholly inadequate.
Aiming for the 17:16 departure, I arrived in good time, and the social distancing measures have clearly been implemented, with marks on the floor, barriers in the ticket office, and the coffee shop on Platform 1 being shut, although since Derek's pleasant shop was closed a while back, I haven't bothered with the new establishment. Purchasing my ticket from the self service machine, as there was already a customer at the ticket office window.
Heading on Platform 1, my train was already there, which today was 172004, the timetable between Nuneaton and Leamington Spa allows for a more or less 35 minute turnaround at Nuneaton, whilst, owing to pathing constraints, about 10 minutes at Leamington Spa. Boarding the train at 17:05, I was the only customer on board, although as departure time crept up, several more passengers boarded, in fact there was the grand total of 7 passengers in my carriage as we departed, and 4 of those alighted at Bedworth.
The journey was easy going, as we called at Bermuda Park, Bedworth, Coventry Arena, Coventry, Kenilworth and finally Leamington Spa, although we met with delays around Kenilworth as a freightliner service was routed out in front of us from Kenilworth passing loop - the line between Coventry (Gibbet Hill Junction) and Leamington Spa (Milverton Junction) being single track apart from the aforementioned loop. Although Gibbet Hill - Kenilworth was always single track, between Kenilworth and Leamington, it was double track but rationalisation in 1977 seen it singled - maybe this trend could be reversed at some point in the future??.
Arriving into Leamington Spa just before 18:00, it was an ultra quick turnaround, the driver literally swapped ends and back to Nuneaton we went. Despite the lateness arriving, we were just one minute late leaving Leamington Spa, it was also pleasing to see a fair few people board at Leamington, and a quick observation seen a vast majority wearing face coverings, some very quirky ones too. This actually got me thinking that maybe we could embrace the current situation, and maybe the Train Operating Companies and even major retailers could run a competition for the best face covering, say maybe once a month, with a prize of say £50 Love2Shop gift card (which all major retailers accept) or maybe a weeks free travel on a particular TOC, in this case, West Midlands Trains.
After all, it would probably encourage people to wear them, and maybe even encourage people to create their own whacky designs.
Arriving back in Coventry, on time, most passengers alighted the train, and another good few boarded, again, as seen at Leamington Spa, most were wearing a face covering. Arriving into Nuneaton a good 2 minutes early, it gave me time to reflect on how things have changed, will it be temporary, or longer term?, who knows, I for one would like to see a return to normality in the future, although it seems to be heading that way, it's just a matter of time and patience. One thing which was clearly noticeable at Nuneaton was the lack of rail enthusiasts on the platforms. Now I'm not sure whether London NorthWestern Railway have put a temporary stop on them whilst the pandemic is ongoing or not, maybe we'll see them again in the future.