Another New Railcam

So Rod why do you think these preservation railway companies take on too much rolling stock that they never seem to run [based on what you said about the stuff under wraps at Pickering being there for years] are they future Projects for restoration that they believe they can save and use sometime in the future . Given even at the height of summer the frequency of trains running is not concentrated surely they only need a finite number of coaches .
 
You put the mockers on Grosmont Captain !:eek2: The camera there is now pointed at the roof of one of the buildings and seems to be swaying in the wind !:eek:
 
So I see Dick I have sent them a mail from their website online form hopefully they will resolve . I think one of the staff had a bad day and decided to cheer himself up and has had a night on the tiles :tw: . Lets hope he comes clean and admits it so they can wipe the slate clean :fp::tw:
 
Very rapid reply Dick , see below

Good Afternoon

Thank you for your enquiry

The Grosmont Webcam will be offline from Thursday for a week or so whilst S&T take apart the signal gantry.

The Union of South Africa engine visits from 30th March so hopefully it will be back so you can catch a glimpse Dick
 
So Rod why do you think these preservation railway companies take on too much rolling stock that they never seem to run [based on what you said about the stuff under wraps at Pickering being there for years] are they future Projects for restoration that they believe they can save and use sometime in the future . Given even at the height of summer the frequency of trains running is not concentrated surely they only need a finite number of coaches .


There is probably more rolling sock than there is sings overall as some are:

a) pet projects but there is no cash at present to take forward, buying the carcass or heap of parts is relatively cheap compared to the cash, time and expertise to "restore" it to use which will be historically accurate and safe in modern terms for use. Some I believe pay for the storage so it is a form of income which is vital for any heritage set up.

b) donated items from industrial sites which it would seem churlish to refuse but are of only marginal utility: I am thinking here some non passenger stock which has a use for demonstration freight or engineering trains but is not a great revenue earner yet often need substantial input before they can be used safely. I suspect some will hardly move at all. Often you will see a lengthy line of freight stock, quite rusty and battered met of which will have been donated. But occasionally you will see a restored wagon and they do look very effective. Brake vans are also useful for certain types of trips especially the Queen Mary style (25T SR examples) as they hold a lot of people.

c) some are very elderly stock which is genuinely historical but may need extensive work to make them compliant with modern standards for public use and sourcing of parts may be difficult as well as expensive. The time scale for such renovations is in years if not decades.

d) spare parts. Many carriages now in use are from the 1950s and the bogies will need extensive work and sometimes the stock is wanted for exactly just that - the bogies or a more modern under frame for a much older body but the restoration plans may stretch years ahead. They need storing somewhere where they can be eventual;l;y towed out to be used so take up siding space. Also old stock may have better seat squabs, doors and panelling which will be needed in the future.


You say a finite number of coaches - this is true but they wear out. The interior panelling requires extensive work.Many heritage lines, especially if they run east - west. find one side of the stock fades badly in the sun so needs frequent repainting , maroon being a particularly fugitive hue. As an aide to this on the Southern they revarnished rather than repainted and early BR finish in crimson before they allowed them to continue in green eventually became pink by 1960! The running gear will end replacing.

Also some lines do have a very long term plan to extend: the Bluebell has done so, the Wensleydale wants to but these are very long term, I once was talking to somebody on the Wensleydale railway and she said that it would not be in hers or my life times when they reached backed to Garsdale which is the ultimate aim. Once longer they will need more stock and possibly have more space to store some in a siding or two.

Also there is need to encompass disability access provision which standard coaches are not good at and some alterations are required to accommodate this without just placing wheelchair users in the former luggage compartment. It means widening entrances to the coach and the saloon although I would say there are plenty of TSO carriages so changing some would not be a loss in heritage.


One of the other problems is there area lot of small diesel shunters available and preserved but they are usually not able to be used because of power requirements or braking arrangements or lack of steam heating. Need to be stored somewhere.

There probably is no more spare stock available. But is not just heritage lines - West Coast Railways at the former Steam Town in Carnforth have several sidings full of rough mk II coaches, spares or repair. Also they have a lot of old parcels vans wanted purely for the commonwealth bogies as these are rated at 100 mph.


An ideal heritage railway would have a hidden yard where all this clutter could be stored out of sight but generally there is no such space available in the track bed area or if there is it is difficult to screen. In the 1950s most yards always had few wagons on show, some probably having been in position near the buffers for years, but with plenty of empty siding space. These lines never had carriage sheds or locomotive building works as these were always at central location such as Brighton, Eastleigh or Ashford (you might notice I am really SR although have lived in Yorkshire for over half my life) but now have to as many are not even connected to the main line. A lot of the former goods yards get structures built to hold stock but usually that is a place to work on them out of the cold and wet.
 
Thank you so much Rod for taking the time to prepare the explanation and absolutely fabulous insight into the world of running Heritage railway . I fully understand the need to retain spares to keep rolling stock operational and not therefore jeopardise any potential earnings because they cannot provide a service . I really don't understand why you would retain a number of shunters when they effectively cannot be usefully used taking up what is clearly premium storage space that could be better used . I am sue it is a painful decision but in a similar vein to downsizing house some awkward choices have to be made and I am sure these organisations face these decisions daily. :)
 
Forgot to add that some rolling stock whilst of limited service value may be rare, or have particular significance for the area and thus needs to be kept as well as, occasionally, who owns it. A lot of the stock belongs to individuals or consortia not always the heritage railway itself. Absolute minefield on the legalities but generally works well. Some stock has a use in the very quiet months like February while the usual locos are being overhauled or repaired.

And to be very, very pedantic using mk I rolling sock, especially corridor stuff might not truly be recreating the branch line experience of the 1950s as the stock would be 1930s and compartment wooden bodied: they have to work with what they have available and mk I stock of 1951 onwards was in plentiful supply whereas the older stuff had been largely scrapped before the preservation movement got truly underway. Small pockets of more elderly stock would be found in places, such as , the Isle of Wight. But not every preserved railway really wants green stock! Not that many through workings from the SR!
 
NYMR have announced that" Union of South Africa " loco cannot run due to mechanical difficulties. They have borrowed one from Lancashire , Cleggy would have been mad !:31: Its called "CITY OF WELLS "
 

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Dick,

Appears they have not yet fixed up the webcam at Grosmont so we are denied a view of the City of Wells .I have replied to them to see when it will be available , will let you know .
 
Dick,

They confirmed the signal gantry maintenance is overrunning so the Camera will remain off only Goathland available so you might struggle to see City of Wells loco .
 
Thanks Captain, just managed to catch a glimpse. It seemed to be done up as " The Golden Arrow " though?? Even got a large arrow logo down the side panels.
 
I nipped on took a couple of screen prints for anyone interested in seeing the locomotive. Looked it up its ex British Rail built in 1949 appears NYMR own another engine in the class 34101 Hartland which is currently being overhauled .I am not sure how much is costs them to run the engine on loan for this short period but must be heartbreaking to think they have an engine in the sheds that would have provided the same service as this one.

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I was giving some thought to this Engine and what I hope was a successful few days for NYMR . As the loan of this engine finishes today my curiosity reached a stage where I was wondering how the Engine would return to its home at the East Lancashire Railway . I imagine that some of these Heritage railways are not necessarily connected to the Network Rail mainline so I simply had to know its fete and thus I mailed NYMR enquiry line.

They kindly replied expediently. It appears City of Wells does not have a mainline certificate so even if East Lancs Railway could be reached by the mainline the Engine is unable to run on it . They have confirmed it will be transported by road.

I think that must be an absolute logistical nightmare , not sure where they would load it onto a transporter but given the location of the railway itself I don't think the road network in that area is a particularly high standard. I am sure I would not like to be driving anywhere near it when they move it though it would make a very interesting photograph .

I am hoping Rod you might chip in with some more information , thank you in advance if you do.
 
This is an observation and not a criticism but on the odd time I have logged onto the Grosmont Webcam I can't help but notice that all their trains seem to run late and not just the odd minute when compared with their scheduled timetable . Having only been a nipper when Steam was coming to an end I have no idea if it was a common occurrence that trains would be late . In modern day I understand that it is quite a regular occurrence so perhaps NYMR are just giving their customers a similar experience to what they get on mainline services. I think its over to Rod and Terry again for any observations.
 
This is an observation and not a criticism but on the odd time I have logged onto the Grosmont Webcam I can't help but notice that all their trains seem to run late and not just the odd minute when compared with their scheduled timetable . Having only been a nipper when Steam was coming to an end I have no idea if it was a common occurrence that trains would be late . In modern day I understand that it is quite a regular occurrence so perhaps NYMR are just giving their customers a similar experience to what they get on mainline services. I think its over to Rod and Terry again for any observations.

I have noticed this on many of the heritage railways, being a member of the Railcam site you can see these many times on running days
 
I know there are some Steam enthusiasts on the site the North York Moors Railway steam gala is taking place from yesterday and over the weekend . The site has published a Rota for each day and so anyone interested in seeing the guest engines which include the Union of South Africa and 6023 King Edward II can download the rotas and then use the times quoted to logon to the Grosmont Cam to perhaps even get a screen dump of these iconic engines . The page for the cams is below and the links to the rota are also on that page bottom right

 
I logged on to see what was going on as luck would have it Union of South Africa rolled into one of the platforms so here is a quick pick


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