Developments on the Corris Railway

Moving pictures to report. On the Corris Facebook page, which can be viewed without having an account -- at least by me--- there is drone footage of the delivery of the new point for the run round loop at Corris station.

 

Splendid. Diolch yn fawr iawn ichi. I was trying to visualise it's final position, one loco, four bogies (and a bit) .... and the other way around (!!), south of the buffer stops. Looks as if it'll be a few metres further towards Maespoeth than it's predecessor.

I'm guessing positioning the traverser will involve a sunken, slate edged 'pit'. Any idea of the intended schedule?

 

I don't know about the aesthetics of the traverser's final look but the Corris' public operating days usually begin on Good Friday and the target date is to have everything in place and working by Easter. Pluse people familiar with the new way of working and the layout. As the pics on the Corris website have shown there's been a lot of preparation work done.

 

There is more progress shown on the Corris Facebook page this morning, following the volunteers laying track yesterday. Work will continue today -- Jan 30th.

 

More progress today (Sunday 30th Jan 2022). Now 6 track panels laid from the crossing towards Corris Station. The track now is back within Corris Station limits. The final position for the turnout has been surveyed and measured so that it can be installed correctly before being connected up.
2 more panels of track needed to connect the new turnout, and then the run-round-loop and platform road need laying. Before those lines are fully put in, the traverser will be installed in order to give us something to aim for.
Meanwhile, at Maespoeth, more sleepers have been drilled and had the Pandrol base plates fitted to them - plastic sleepers up until the turnout, and then wooden sleepers in the station itself.
Many thanks to all involved.

 

Pictures of the track laying have appeared on the Corris website this evening.

 

Fantastic progress. Looking at the trackwork prompts a question. With barely more than a few straight stretches of any length (well, at least until Pont Dyfi Newydd happens), are there any tampers, other than the two-legged variety, which can cope with the curvature on the line?

 

The WHR / Ffestiniog have one.
Assuming the gauge is the same.

 

I believe that the Talyllyn have one, which is the right gauge - although it has been known to get re-gauged for other lines to use!

Steve B

 

It isn't ...... and in any event, neither the FfR/WHR nor Talyllyn can hold a candle to the Corris, when it comes to constant severe curvature. In fact, about the only line with stiffer curves I know of is PECO's Beer Heights Light Railway (and that's quite possibly not too much of an exaggeration!).

 

They have just bought a new, bespoke, one from China.
Pat

 

Some good news on the loco front. Whilst funds recover, and many thanks to those who have contributed, volunteer work on components has continued. There are some pictures on the Corris website.

 

Oh that's good to hear - but so is the common sense approach of Corris of not overcommittitng themselve s and endeing up in debt

 

Four new pictures showing more station project work are on the Corris website this evening -- Feb 8th

 

A new set of images has appeared on the Corris site. Something of a mixed bag of progress on various fronts.

 

The trestle waggon is coming on well. Any scope for a spot of high vis sponsorship on a suitably prepped slab load? That ex-Trecwn kit will look a lot better for the current attention.

If that failed lorry wasn't for the deviation (the caption doesn't specify), I'm sure there might be some suggestions of how to avoid future repeats! Still, the line earning a local rep for pitching in when need arises is no bad thing.

 

I don't expect anything to have happened down on the Extension in the winter months, although given a dryer than usual Jan I could be proved wrong. A broken down lorry on that part of the A487 would be a major hazard as traffic moves pretty quickly so getting it into the Maespoeth car park was eminently sensible and the Railway does have a good relationship with the locals which it looks to maintain. Hence the balancing act with the station site which is shared with the village car park and access to Corris school.

 

Cheers @Llwyngwern. The 'off-season' makes sense. A couple of days back, I was checking progress on the A487 Pont ar Dyfi (scheduled to be opened in summer 2023) and rather forgot the ever so slight difference in the comparative size of the funding pot, compared with the Corris's Pont y Goedwig deviation!

Looking at images of the existing quaint (and antiquated) stone arch bridge, with the river in full spate, served as a sharp reminder of just how quickly conditions can change in mountainous areas. Another photo showed why the existing bridge isn't up to snuff ... which I seriously doubt Machynlleth's residents and regular road users need reminding of!

 

Some more station work pictures have appeared on the Corris site tonight with preparations for the traverser and a shot of the relaid section of track. Taken last weekend.

 

Thanks for keeping us filled in.