Alan Castle

It is with great sadness that I have to report that Alan Castle passed away last night.

Alan was a dedicated and skilled photographer and journalist, with countless magazine articles and books to his name. He was a regular contributor to this website (particularly his article on the West Lancs Railway) and I have had the pleasure of working with him for several years on the Lostock Hall MPD website and Lensmen forum.

An ever-present figure at the lineside across the North West of England and beyond, he will be greatly missed.

Our thoughts are with the family he leaves behind.

WCRC Suspension lifted

The suspension of West Coast Railway Co's Track Access Agreement, by Network Rail, has been lifted as of midnight last night. It seems that WCRC have managed to satisfy NR's demands and will begin a "phased" reintroduction of services.
Immediately following the reinstatement, the Carnforth company made arrangements to get Stock and locos to Scotland for the Jacobite services, which were due to start this coming Monday.
It seems that WCRC have gone further than the NR stipulations, appointing of additional directors to oversee the safety aspects of the firm, presumably designed to demonstrate a commitment to correcting the shortcomings which led to the suspension.
None of this means that WCRC are yet "out of the woods", since the ORR are still considering the revocation of their licence, but we may get some news on that on 15th May, when the consultation with other TOCs will have ended.

Preston in the 90s DVD

Video Scene have just released a new title which should be of interest to many Preston rail enthusiasts, particularly those who look back with fondness at the second half of the 1990s. Covering the period between 1994 and 1999, the DVD takes us back to a time not so long ago when loco-hauled passenger services were still common and class 56, 47, 37 and 31 machines still saw regular use alongside Valenta-powered HSTs. Classes 90,87 and 86 still ruled the WCML and Pendolinos were not so much as a twinkle in Mr Branson's eye...
Crucially, the picture quality and sound is excellent, as is the narration, making this an enjoyable watch.
A fuller review will appear on this site shortly.
Rails around Preston 1994 - 1999

West Coast Railway Company Woes

Unfortunately, following an incident with Tangmere last week, the subsequent RAIB investigation has resulted in the suspension of WCRC's licence.

This is sad news not only for WCRC, but for the charter market as a whole, since the Carnforth-based company are by far the biggest player.

This means that for now, ALL WCRC-operated charters and associated moves are cancelled.

There is more on the UK Steam website

Fairburn Reflections - Photo Charter

A unique opportunity to photograph the only operational LMS Fairburn 2-6-4T, in the stunning surroundings of the Lakeside & Haverthwaite Railway.

This one-off, two-day photo charter (26th/27th March) includes access to private land to obtain views which are not normally available to the public, so is not to be missed.

Click for more information.

Preston Tram Power Update

The Planning meeting on 12th January was another frustrating affair, where once again, the final decision was deferred. This time, some new concerns were raised about noise assessment and safety at Deepdale Mill St level crossing. These are both areas which Tram Power believed to have been comprehensively covered in previous reports, but the result was yet another deferment of the decision, giving the company until 30th March to provide information to satisfy the relevant Council departments.

Tram Power are confident that they can satisfy the requirements, and in anticipation of having the scheme finally approved, they are pressing ahead with funding and land ownership details.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Welcome to 2015... I hope '14 was kind to everyone.

This year, I plan to Update the News section here much more frequently, so if you know of anything relevant which should be mentioned on this page, please get in contact via the Contact Us page.

Meanwhile Dave Stuart continues to do a stupendous job of keeping the Gen / Timetable page up-to-date. Again, if you know of anything for that page, please get in touch...


Cheers...