Good news
From December 16, the four missing trains at Carlton Station on Monday to Saturday are being reinstated after being withdrawn during Covid. These are the 09.57am and 15.02pm to Newark and 11.04am and 16.05pm to Crewe. It means we have an hourly service all day, apart from the 21.31pm from Nottingham which calls at all stations except Carlton and Thurgarton. Having mentioned this to passengers there has been a very favourable response.
Vintage train visit
On Saturday, October 12 crowds gathered at Carlton Station to see the ‘Cathedral Express’, which was steam hauled from Birmingham to Lincoln. It came through at 11.20am and returned at 18.45pm, when again there were crowds on both platforms, with one person telling me he had counted 160 people on platform 2. However, just as the train came through, a freight train ran past on the way to Immingham, so those of us on Platform 2 only had a quick glance. Fortunately, the freight train was going slow as it was cautioned owing to the 18.40pm passenger train not having cleared the section.
After it had gone the barriers stayed down and nothing happened until two passenger trains at 19.06 and 19.07 passed and then the barriers came up, with a cheer from the waiting crowds.
Barrier problems
On Monday, October 21, I went to Netherfield station to see the 16.53 to Skegness, then walked back to Carlton for the 17.02pm and 17.05pm trains. It was 17.00 and a freight train passed in the Nottingham direction and five minutes later the Newark train. The barriers stayed down and the 17.05 to Leicester was reported 13 minutes late. Eventually the train came at 17.21 and the barriers came up. Two people, including an East Midlands Railway Manager had to run to catch the train.
The EMR manager said that this sort of thing encouraged trespassing, and it does seem to happen quite often. Obviously, bus times were thrown into chaos as were surrounding roads. Some people off the train from Nottingham also had to wait 15 minutes. People kept coming on the platform and I told them the barrier would probably come up after the next train, which they did.
Last October at the Station Adopters Conference at Derby, I asked Network Rail staff if we could have a notice the same as they have at Newark, which says if the barriers are down for more than five minutes, ring the number shown on the notice. Those I asked said they could see no reason why we couldn’t have notices, but that was a year ago!
On a personal note, I was Supposed to be visiting someone in Colwick at 17.30, but could not get back to the Dawn Book shop where I had left my cycle, so I was 10 minutes late, which was a minor problem compared with some of those affected.
Carlton Station news
I mentioned last time that I hadn’t seen many from British Car Auctions catching trains in recent months, but the very next day (soon be time for Christmas songs to come out of hibernation!) after the newsletter was issued, one from BCA, was waiting for the 10.04 en-route to Sutton Parkway. Trade plates poking out of their bags are the ‘give away’.
Saturday 14th September and I was at the station to see 5 trains between 10.00 and 12.10, and had a number of queries. A passenger had booked on the 10.20 to Derby and arrived before the 10.07 to Derby and Crewe came in. ‘Can I get on this train?’ she asked and I told her she could. She had booked in advance, but why it had told her to catch the 10.20 (Leicester) and change’ at Nottingham I don’t know. 10.15 and a person at the entrance to platform 2 said she wanted platform 1 as she was travelling to Lincoln via Nottingham. She was able to get across before the barriers came down.
11.00 and 2 people at the entrance to platform 2, said they wanted to go to Loughborough’. I said there was no train until the 12.03. So they must have made other arrangements. The 12.03 to Crewe was terminating at Nottingham as there was no guard to take it forward. A person for Crewe, where she was being met, was very worried, so I told her to go to the customer services office on platform 3 at Nottingham to sort something out.
One of the travelling ticket issuers on the 08.58 to Newark and 10.04 return told me that quite often people ask if the 08.58 is the Skegness train. They have the ‘wrong station, He said there ought to be a prominent notice: I do have one in the Station Adopters poster case on platform 2 which says Grantham and Skegness trains go from Netherfield station, with a diagram to show where it is. One morning at 10.00 a lady was booking a ticket on the machine. She said she was going to Skegness later in the day, so I mentioned that the train Went from Netherfield. She did not know this, so I showed her where Netherfield station was located. She said, “It was a good jab you were here” People ask, ‘Do you work for EMR?’ and I say ‘No, I’m only a volunteer’, but I can perhaps help with your query.
Netherfield Station news
The handrails and edges of the steps have recently been repainted.
In response to a question I was asked, passenger figures at Netherfield appear to be the same as pre-Covid.
Last time I included 2 photographs of Netherfield station in 1962. I had hoped it would have said how many passengers used the station, but it just mentioned the number of paroles and wagon loads they dealt with. I noticed to the right of the booking clerk a calendar which was from Stafford & Co. They were printers in Netherfield and produced many of the handbills for railway excursions for 40 years or more. Leaning up against the window were some Staff Magazines. Price 3d old money, and the staff member who sold them earned id commission per copy.
Ratcliffe Power Station
I took some photos on colour film during the power station’s construction on 27/12/1965.
One is shown above, not too sharp, but good enough to show part constructed cooling towers. They were taken from the road bridge into Ratcliffe village. Around this time I had a spell in the Divisional Manager’s Office at Nottingham and saw a memo which said: ‘Power lines from the power station must be above a certain height owing to proposed electrification of the Midland Main Line’. 59 years later and they’re still not electric!
Engineering Work
Midland Main Line (MML) on Sunday, November 10 there will be a revised service with bus replacement between Leicester and Bedford.
On Saturday, December 21st to Sunday December 29th there will be no trains between Bedford and London St. Pancras.
Locally fewer trains will call at Swinderby owing to leaf fall and track conditions.
Brief encounters
Owing to fare evasion, the centre bridge at Nottingham station will not be accessible from and to the platforms until November 17 and all passengers will have to pass through the barriers at the main entrance. A review will then see how effective it has been.
2026 apparently is when the East Midlands Mayor will have devolved powers for public transport in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire.
It has been revealed that the East Midlands has been getting the least public transport funding per head of population
Christmas and New Year. No trains on 25th and 26th December. but trains run on 1st Jan. Some cancellations early and late.
