GWSR Broadway Developments

My feeling was you could have those spikes in the road you sometimes have in car parks that prevent your leaving without paying. Link them to a nearby speed camera, so that they fall for approaching vehicles only in a time calculated to mean you must have been going at less than the speed limit ...

Being serious - I wonder if narrowing the road to single file and putting traffic lights either side would help? A sort of road equivalent of rule 39 (approach control).

https://goo.gl/maps/amxCko5QKoA2

https://goo.gl/maps/o5SmDJtCo3C2

But I guess the issue would be who would pay, as presumably that would be down to the highway authority, not the railway, so there is a mismatch between who has desire, and who has capability, to resolve the problem.

Tom

 

Normally over height illuminated signs are deployed by the highways agency or the council. On various network rail bridges a low bridge banner has been erected in addition to the normal road signs. The sacrificial beams are paid for by network rail. Other works done are signage on the routes surrounding the bridge and clearance of foliage to make the signs visible and bridge as visible as possible. Narrowing the road to make vehicles slow or prevent wider vehicles (which can also be taller) down can be undertaken but requires permission of either the council or highways agency. I have never seen a over height camera deployed but it must be possible. Perhaps even a simple Web cam could be a cheaper and in house idea to review road user behaviour

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A49 at Beeston...www.google.co.uk/maps/@53.1397004,-2.6655106,3a,51.4y,183.6h,76.25t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sL7wxx94AJfzulfPTQdxk1A!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
Height detectors 1/4 mile before the sign, and still 1/2 mile from bridge on Chester-Crewe line, another TWO warning signs, and the bridge shows a lot of evidence of driver ignorance.

 

A few years ago when I drove that road every week the warning signs on the southern approach were permanently on, so hardly surprising they if they get ignored.

 

I do not believe it is as simple as an extra premium. There is no god given right that an insurance company has to offer insurance for a specific risk. Yes premiums will go up and then after too many claims the insurance will not be offered for renewal, if an endorsement has not already been written on the policy limiting numbers of claims. Plus of course you are obliged to declare to a new company claims you have made on previous policies.

As an example we live in Swanage across the park from the railway just outside the station. Only NFU will cover the building against flood as the Environment Agency shows flood risk map the flood zone ending half way up our back garden. They have loaded the premium, all the others will not even offer the cover in the first place. Remember insurance is a risk management business and from an insurance company perspective they really only want to ensure things with a low risk, and hence low likely rate of claim.

 

The first train to through Broadway happened today. We were on a ballasting run and slowly propelled through the station, and all the way up the down line to the headshunt, where we released the 6 Dogfish and then ran south again. Such fun, who needs a volunteer's invitation for the opening day. Been there, done that....



The Broadway gang was busy slab laying on the platforms, which is great, as it makes them look quite real now.
Then the PWay train slowly trundled past. We have now been cleared to pass over the bridge again, as repairs are completed and the scaffolding came down today. Work finished ahead of schedule, which is a relief.

We dropped one load by the goods shed, and the second from the headshunt buffer stop southwards.



Here is the ballast train about to depart from the buffer stops.

There is a video of this drop being uploaded as I write. Due to rural broadband it will take several hours to post, so best have a look tomorrow morning, when the link should figure in today's extension blog update.

 

Yes, slabbing on the platform at the south end of the station was started, with the guidance of a professional paving contractor, who has helped us set up the lines and levels, etc. and provided guidance for 5 of us, altogether we laid 31 pavers. These slabs are very heavy, but due to the help of a local tool hire company, we were able to hire a two man vacuum slab lifter at a very competitive rate - I doubt we could do it without one.

I expect photos will appear on the blog tomorrow.

 

It must be a huge relief to be able to get cracking on ballasting again, and every day saved is one in the bank- already I'm starting to see Easter being marketed in some shops....
Just out of curiosity, what are the two long grey cylindrical objects sitting on the platform edge in the first picture?

 

Ah, you spotted that one.

Those are the two fantasy canopy end columns that featured in the original non-heritage design. They were not evidence based, and date back to the time the building only had to 'look right from a distance'. When they were produced we were assured that they would 'look nice'. We have come a long way since then.

The correct support columns should be square, with chamfered corners. Once we have funds for the canopy extension and footbridge steps they will be made up to that design. The rivetted truss over the top of them is already made up at Toddington.

 

Gawd. I thought they were maybe something to do with mains drainage!
During the doubtless awkward job of moving them off site, do be careful you don't accidentally flatten one or two of the location cabinets, won't you?

 

They are sections for a long range gun used to take out overheight vehicles on the Evesham/Station Road.

 

Great post on the extension blog jo! The compromise with the bridge to have a big 'low bridge' sign is the right one for now, whether it bears fruit is one to watch, in my experience these types of people are never deterred and if they want to drive under the bridge regardless of if they fit or not, they will, sign or no sign.

Anyway, I was directed from the blog post to Flickr to see the wonderful early 80s pictures you've put up, I'm intrigued by the story of the toddington fireplace slate surrounds and the slate toilet dividers that you described as having been moved to broadway for eventual reuse but subsequently smashed, and only last year it seems. With all the discussion on here last year about internal conflict between those that wanted the station to look the part and the small camp that wanted it done fast and cheap I'm surprised that this story wasn't mentioned on here.
Would you mind elaborating on this story further if you feel comfortable doing so? I've never seen a gwr slate fireplace or toilet dividers before so it saddens me even more that they survived only to be destroyed last year under odd circumstances as they could really have added to the authenticity of broadway.

 

And even if they weren't going to be used, why were they not offered for sale???

 

I can't find my picture of the two slate toilet dividers, but I do have pictures of the fireplace surround as in store. I laid it out to see what there was:



I would say it was 90 % complete. The big lintel, sides and decorative ends were present. It was kept on a pallet with a sheet over it.

This is how it ended up:



It was smashed up, and the debris moved to a pile of infill for the platform.

This is what it used to look like:



We had the steel hearth surround for it too, but it was taken and used in the signal box instead. There it was laid in front of a new, early period, overly decorated Victorian style fireplace.
The grate was beyond saving, but replacements can be bought easily enough.

The slate urinal dividers ended up like this:


This was a deliberate act, it takes a lot of determination to smash two large slabs of slate into so many small pieces.

The fireplace and hearth were destined for the cafe fireplace, with a copy for the P2 waiting room. How do we get a similar, all slate late Victorian fireplace now?

 

This surprises me, as an outsider. Even if not wanted for re-use, the fireplace would have had some value as architectural salvage and I would not think you were that rolling in money

PH

 

Jesus wept. That is just beyond belief.
Would you say it was vandals, or something closer to home? I just cannot believe that someone on the project, with whatever intent could resort to this.

 

Similar fireplaces still exist but I expect they are not common. The Dartmouth line has two at Churston they have been over painted black but the paint could be removed if essential to do so. However they are there and I guess the paint has protected them from knife sharpeners and other detrimental occurrences.

 

Very sad to see such artefacts destroyed

Replacement slate fireplaces are available, albeit a slightly different (but pretty close) design, but they come with a hefty price tag - https://www.thearchitecturalforum.com/products/slate-firesurround


Keith

 

Oof! At tge very least, the message to the mutt who wielded the hammer at Broadway is "look what you could have had".
Ok; now if a fund is started to replace the lost fireplace by this method, then here and now I will pledge £100 towards it. I'm sorry it can't be more, but we'll only need 13 more to do it.
What do you reckon?

 

I remember both the fireplace and the slate urinal screens in place at Toddington when the GWSR took over the site in 1980. I knew they had been moved to Broadway but it never crossed my mind that they'd be at risk of being broken up as infill. There would certainly be some salvage value and even if offered at a "take it away" price to another heritage railway, it would have meant that some heritage items would be safe. Proper slate is not cheap.
I know there is far worse destruction taking place daily in this world (Syria for example) and it is horrific. Nevertheless, it is sad that a more sensible approach wasn't taken with these slate artefacts. Hopefully, this type of behaviour is now in the past, let's try and make it so.