Thanks Don. The 1830 Liverpool to Manchester line forever changed history. Impressive how Stephenson not only crossed Chat Moss, but challenged landowners who didn't want this new thing on their property.
You really do have the best job in the world Don. Thanks so much for sharing. I loved the fact that Stephenson crossed Chat Moss with the railway all those years ago, whereas the builders of the M62 went around it! Wonderful.
....and I’m absolutely aware of it Mike. I could retire now if I wanted but the hardest part is getting my backside out of bed at 2 am is the hardest part. I love every minute of the job I do. Yes, its amazing how much determination and tenacity those people showed in the days of simple manpower - wonderful.
I like the way you let us know the stations as we pass them [or stop] ,gives a good feel of where we are . I know some are just happy to belt through them all , but then a Don Coffey vid' is not just a casual watch , bucket loads of info ' along the way ,top shelf stuff .
Watched the video. Amazing! It certainly backs up our views on how much we owe the navvies. So many of them died and are unknown. The skill displayed by the engineers with primitive equipment is astonishing. The fact that they were so near in their calculations to be inches out when linking up the workings. Thank you for introducing me to this documentary.
Thanks David. We forget that cutting a finger off might well have ended in death in those days. No NHS, no nearby hospital or air ambulance. It was a hazardous game.
Absolutely stunning. A privilege to have that view through the window at such historic railway locations that, formerly, only were associated with school history lessons or horrific new stories. Thank you.
And another great video and history lesson. Thanks Don. In my younger days I used to travel fairly regularly to Liverpool and places along the way. Always preferred the Chat Moss route because of the ingenuity required to overcome the bog and other obstacles. I especially marvelled at the Olive Mount and other cuttings and tunnels on the approach to Lime Street. The Airport line was another that up until about 1980 I used approximately weekly when visiting a cousin who lived in the shadow of Gatley Station before moving to Heald Green. So this brought back many happy memories.
Glad about that Colin. We take it for granted but when you consider the enormity of the task in the days of candles and pick axe’s it doesn’t bear thinking about.
Excellent Don - again. The approach and exit routes from Liverpool Lime Street never cease to amaze and you used the correct term for George Stephenson's route across Chat Moss - "float." Stephenson had been to London a couple of years before promoting this inter city route to a committee of MPs. They couldn't understand his Geordie accent. They thought he was German!
Another fantastic video and very interesting information. Huge appreciation for the time taken to edit these videos. Thanks also to TPE and Northern for allowing us to view these fantastic journeys.
I watch a lot of train videos and can truthfully say they are not all equal. When I give you a “best,” you’re in pretty good company. I’d rather not mention others on your channel as I think that’s tacky. Here’s a fan, Don. 👏🏻👏🏻
Another excellent video Don and I love the captions explaining the history and technical aspects. I am from Oldham and probably wouldn’t know Manchester now with all the buildings going up. Was last there in 2005, and that was the first time since I left in 1976! Mike, Johannesburg
Evening Don Just discovered your channel and i have to say i love it.The captions of information and Railway infrastructure are a pleasure to watch. Many thank Regards Rich
Many thanks, Don, the run down to the TMD with the ECS movement was very interesting and something most people never get to see. Very informative video as always. Thank you for taking the time to do this for us. Look forward to the next one.
@@doncoffey5820 Hi Don ..... Thanks once again for an excellent trip through lines passengers rarely see. I'm sure many of your followers on here would say a large "YES PLEASE" for a chance to have a virtual "guided tour" of the depot in your company. Many thanks, A.Butler.
Thank you so much Don, I really appreciate seeing the new railway and it's procedures from my front row seat in Phoenix Arizona. I have got a great deal of information and pleasure from watching your videos in lockdown. I ration myself to 1 a day. I haven't been full time in England since 1994, up to when I had an office in Waterloo Station as a consultant for Railtrack on Project Management. I still have the cups! Definitely the major pluses of your videos are the quality of the camera, naming of stations and your route knowledge, plus the speed dials. Other people don't know how frustrating it is trying to identify the route without station names to guide you, especially if you have an atlas dated October 1978. I notice even your atlas hasn't been updated with Manchester Airport! Much appreciation, keep up the good work!
Hello from Melbourne, Australia. I really enjoy your videos, especially your historic notes. Thanks for putting in all the work that is necessary to bring us these videos.
This railway must be the ultimate construction for the men who built it through the rock of lime street and over chat moss as it must have deemed an impossible thing to construct with simple tools and dynamite a monument to their grit and determination to succeed this video does much to show it well done superb .
Thanks for that trip around the City because it explained a bit of bewildering geography I experienced last year. December '18 I went up to Liverpool, from Norwich, to see some long ago mates (The Wizards of Twiddly) play jazz rock again - the journey took me through Manchester and for a horrible moment I thought I was on the wrong train. Cor, that City ain't 'alf changed since I used freelance up there (for the BBC) in the 1970s. I remember Manchester as a City of red stone and now it'd gorn off to be a boring slate grey, high rise building site. Oh well, times change. Excellent vid' again - well done. When I were a lad in those far off 'London freelance' days we were still on sprocket holes with cameras that weighed a bit although much better for carting about on a train.
@@doncoffey5820 In glorious younger days in the industry nobody bothered much how old we were (although the Beeb could get willfully agest), the coming of the great video in the sky did force some folk to retire before their time. I came from a family of film technicians and refused to be forced out by lippy film school graduates who didn't know much. I went a few years back but that was just, after over 50-years in the bizo, I fancied a life without back ache - oh the pain! Although I did retune to DV before I went, all the fun has gone out of film making for me. You seem to have cracked it. Well done.
Informative as ever Don well done. The section of track near the motorway at Eccles, as you know, was the scene of a horrible crash in 1984 where a passenger train hit a stray oil tanker carriage and subsequently burst into flames, and, it was "fortunate" that it had uncoupled from the rest of the carriages otherwise it might have blown up most of Eccles. I remember that day very well.
It was Rob. I’d actually assembled another set of still showing the accident but it looked like it was going to be more captions than I could fit. That Class 45 was virtually wiped out wasn’t it.
Thanks for your reply. Yes the class 45 was finished which is a shame as at the time I thought it was an iconic engine, and, still is today. I heard they were notoriously difficult to stop, is that correct ?
Again DON, an excellent job adding the "nuggets" of the trip and especially the STOP action to show off different points or items of interest. Maybe more later am only @19:08 but great so far
Never thought a seemingly common intercity line is actually the first railway line of the world... I'm a railfan from China (or more specifically, Hong Kong), and these rail history is interesting.
Wonderful video. I'm going to recommend it to my US friends to illustrate the historical context of contemporary rail operations. (I'm an expat Brit living in California.)
You, Don have woken me back up to the world of British Rail/LNER/LMS/GWR etc., when I used to go on summer holidays from Aberdeen to Milford Haven to spend the break with my grandparents every year. Most times we went down by train, they'd drop me off and Mum and Dad would go back up to go back to work. Same again at the end of the eight weeks. Every so often we'd drive down and back. It's quite a memory-jog to see all the station names that we'd go through or switch trains-at. I imagine most of the Welsh sectors have had their stations closed but I remember Llandrindod Wells, Llanyrtwyd Wells, Llangollen and all the little coal-mining spots etc. where the service was comprised of a two-unit "battery-car". There were others like Chirk and Ruabon. Occasionally our route went a bit further East via Shrewsbury but that was rare.
I feel it’s a success if it has rekindled your interest in railways. I think most of us have some fond memories and I’m pleased to dig them out for you.
Thanks again Don for another excellent video. Again, so much has changed in the area since my days on the railway in Manchester (early to mid 1980s). Couldn't believe that Miles Platting station had gone and the junction so simplified.
They have just started a project to take that curve out Peter. They will ease it in order to raise the line speed but that will completely lose the location of the old Miles Platting Station.
Don Coffey : It sure is. I'm a civil engineer and at university we examined in detail how Chat Moss was crossed. To find this video and see the bridges is special for me. Many thanks.
Another great video, the speed of today’s trains is awe inspiring,in the steam days we didn’t go so fast and we had the length of the steam engine in front of us.Kind Regards
these videos get better I wished you drove around the Birmingham area.I have seen videos of the stour line but not in the class you keep producing we keep up keep up the good work and thanks again
Very informative Don. We used to work a Diesel Parcels Unit from Man Vic to St Helen's Shaw Street. (Now Central). You can still see where the line branched off to the right at St Helen's junction. (Heading for Liverpool) The DPU was carrying newspapers.
Thanks Aiden, yes, I’ve clocked the location of most of these junctions and I sometimes have a little look on Google Earth where you can make out the track bed. Its amazing that some of them only went in the 70s, 80,s and 90,s as they are either completely overgrown or have a Tesco slapped on them!
Thanks Don for another very enjoyable video. You are the master and the comments you share are the making of it. Here in Tasmania in Lock-Down they are a great distraction, Look forward to more of these videos. Cheers.
Always remember the memorial - best seen from the bridge. We lived on the edge of Chat Moss within earshot of the trains passing over the line a mile or two away. The softness of the ground (peat) meant that you could feel the trains pass. We used to cycle over the moss and cross the line to cycle through Astley. I also used to trainspot from the flats in Salford with my cousin and was fortunate to see the last days of steam from the balcony overlooking this line.
If i ever go back to the UK, im going to ride that line out of liverpool so i can see that magnificent cut and those incredible tunnels myself. Thanks, loved the two in one video!
Another Great video Don, i am amazed to see so many routes and railways around the Manchester area and i thought Manchester was only known for its two Football teams. Those few photos of the navvies building the cutting is great too Don, i love railway history, the town i live in here in south africa got a mainline and a branch line coming through here, the only town that would get close to Manchester railways would be Johannesburg, with lots of railway routes, but nothing like the UK! Thanks again Don, lol i am watching this again!
Excellent video, but a couple of fact corrections. Broad Green is one of the oldest stations on the line, but the likes of Roby, Huyton, Earlstown, Newton and Eccles, are the same age. All opening on the 17th September 1830. Also the stone from Olive Mount went to make the Roby embankment between Broad Green and Roby. I am going to share the link for this, as it is brilliant quality and nice and fast ;-)
Much appreciated. I had another look at the footage and I thought I’d read that Broad Green was on the original site although it dated from 1972. I’ve got new footage from Seaforth to Crewe which I’ll edit soon.
Enjoying from Vancouver. Was in UK 1990 when it was still BritRail. Got a 2 week 1st class BritRail Pass & traveled all over including the Cornish Riviera.
Great stuff Don. Almost makes me wish I was back on the front. That was a long time ago in the days of the old black Rule Book, Rule 55 and in the new book, (red), Section K. I look forward to all your videos. Thank you.
Hello Canada! I will be visiting your country by rail soon. Its a long time since I was last there so rather keen to come back. Thanks for the positive feedback.
@@doncoffey5820 How nice. There is so much to do and see in Canada. Enjoy your trip. I will be getting a UK rail pass in the future and also visit some heritage railways.
Liverpool to Manchester, such an evocative line and a great trip. Chat Moss, amazing. I found myself imagining a loco like Planet or Rocket proudly chuffing along with some pretty coaches. Not much fun for the crew in all the weather though :-) Cheers.
Whenever I see an image of those old steam engines I wonder how on earth they did it. Trying to see in driving snow or keep a distance from the boiler in the height of summer. They were enforced hero’s but probably didn’t realise it. I adjust my suspension arm chair and turn on the heated screen or the air conditioning and it makes me feel a tad guilty.
Don, this showed up in my recommendations! 🤣 I watched it for old times sake. Good video mate. Hope you are well and hope to see you soon. All the best. Paul.
Life is great now Don thankfully! Hope you are still enjoying your work. Get in touch with the details mate and I’ll ask our managers what they can do for footage for you. Speak soon.
Thanks Don a superb video most interesting, I see on leaving Edge Hill I noticed a large rake of Biomass wagons is that there home base or just a lay over point. Thanks again for two very informative videos.
Hi Phillip! Its a little out base that GBRF have created as they haul the biomass from Bootle docks. They have a train crew depot there and stable the rakes of hoppers ready for their next tour of duty.
that cutting has to be one of the 7 wonders of the railway world its quite beautiful in a very practical way and when you think how it was constructed it really fills you with admiration for those men that did it. "Navvies" got a lot of bad press through allegedly antisocial alcohol related behaviour but it makes you wonder if they could have had the energy after a full days work on this!
Another great Video Don! Sadly I remember the very bad Train crash just after Eccles station as the train aproaches weaste back in 1984 on this line right next to the motorway I was 14 at the time and saw it on Granada reports ! 28:49 in the video is the site it happened! ....Also coming into Victoria i remember as i kid that the platform was a hell of a lot longer ( think it was at one point the longest platform in the world) due to the old exchange station just being outside Victoria! sadly very little trace of it is left now ...a small portion of the original station building still stands( you can JUST see it at 32:59 on the right ) below the church tower but they are now building on the rest of it as evident in the portacabs and partialy built concrete as for the second vid i loved that as i often wondered if that line was used at all (used to see it when getting a bus that came along past the stadium) was it a loop line originaly? only asking because when you look on google maps there is a spur branching off near the end just after the footbridge in the vid that is now no longer used (bridges ect demolished) that would have taken you back to Piccadilly ! sorry for long post lol im a bit of an anorack when it comes to local rail and infastructure that we have lost! Just fasinates me seeing what we once had before the Beeching cuts and subsequent failures through the BR days to invest ect and now rail travel is up ect they are having to re invest in things like the new loop in town! they should bring back that lost bit of track too i just mentioned as im sure it would help congestion ect and trains could take that route from victoria or piccadily to reach other lines that you currently have to go to get a tram and swap stations and that way they would have a FULL loop around the town centre !
Many thanks Don for another great video. Your appreciation for the architecture, the infrastructure and the navies who built most of it shines through in your commentary, Any chance of showing an external shot of the appropriate train in your videos so that those of us who only class as "body warmers" can say to ourselves "Ah, that's what a 185 (or whatever) looks like"?
Class 47 locomotives used to haul passenger trains on the Phillips Park line. They ran from Harwich via Sheffield to Glasgow and Edinburgh through Ashburys to Manchester Victoria
Gosh!! I wish was the Minister of Transport sometimes. I would issue you with a 007 license to drive any train anywhere in the UK and film it. Don't worry about picking up and dropping off any passengers and turning a profit - who cares!!
I had to run it again Gerry but sure enough!!! Its funny, when I am stopping I’m locked on the stopping point and everyone standing clear so don’t always notice.
Beautifully shot, fascinating and informative as ever! Good points well made about the navvies. If anyone's interested in learning more about their way of life and work. I strongly recommend tracking down a copy of Terry Coleman's "The Railway Navies". A very interesting read.
Hi Don. Good to see you this afternoon at Ferriby. What a debt we owe to the navvies. I wonder if Crossrail workers realise how fortunate they are?! So much interesting information you provide. Thank you.
It made my day! I was grinning all the way to Hull. Yes, these days a person sitting at a computer sends a big GPS guided mole to dig a tunnel. Watch this when you get chance David and thanks for turning out today - it was really appreciated. th-cam.com/video/_c8jvixQGpQ/w-d-xo.html
As it happens my software doesn’t allow it but while the company does allow me to share the videos, I have to be careful what I show under the terms of them letting me do it. The gradient data would be interesting because the camera gives absolutely no indication and I would like you to see it. All I can do is add the odd caption when it is relevant.
Thank you Mr Coffey. As Much as I am impressed with the Chinese high speed rail, I am far more impressed by our own railway heritage and the difficulties that pioneering engineers overcame. I just wish the people in charge would see this and not just think of £££ signs.
Although I must have been through that cutting a number of times, this is the first time I've seen what it actually is. It is magnificent; what a shame passengers don't see that view!
That was good time-keeping in the 1st part, but when nothing goes wrong that's what you expect. Re 'the eyebrow' - is that just a characteristic of led signals or for driver nearness as in the older type tungsten lights with that quadrant directed at the driver's cab? 'Long road for a short cut' and 'Long Way Round' are two expressions that come to mind when viewing the 2nd part. Oh yes, you probably can't answer this one, but a native Liverpudlian might. The Tunnel Street refered to at the beginning I presume was named because of the tunnels, but what was it named before the tunnels were dug? Perhaps the street post-dated them.
Good questions. The LED signals are very good at a distance but they are made up from an arrangement of LEDs set back in much larger reflectors. This way a tiny LED gives off a disproportionate amount of light. However, as you get close the LEDs become obscured by the sides of the reflectors and they fade out. The eyebrow is a collection of lights at the surface and are no good at a distance but visible at close quarters. Now for this road name conundrum! The bast I can come up with is that the road was built to access the tunnel construction. Probably nonsense but it works!!!
What is banner at 6:00 steps by track too..? Chat moss bog...is that why spare track is there ?...welds cracking ? due to sinkage. Transport for Wales 175 unit still in Arriva livery :( 44:1246:00 love this shot with sun on rails... if it was quieter would they cut you through the junctions,saving you to have to do the long loop around and come back to the US line ?
The banner is a big promotional board that Network Rail put up after restoring the line through the tunnel. The sun can cause us problems when its very low in the sky Russ especially when its behind as it bleaches out the signals. Sometimes we have to stop and ask the signally what its showing!!! All the movements are booked to certain routes in a publication called the Working TimeTable (WTT) so we usually run to booked routes but occasionally they send us on a little excursion!
Many thanks for another informative cab ride, Don. A question - what do the white circular signs with an upward pointing black triangle visible on the exit from Lime Street mean? On a lighter note, one wonders what you would be driving these days if that horse-powered contraption would have won the Rainhill Trials!!! Have a good and safe week's driving, Don.👍🏼
Yes Neville. So far everything has been either TPE or Northern out of Piccadilly but I can get out on Victoria trains so should be able to get something that you’ll like. However, time is my biggest enemy so you’ll have to bear with me!
Amazing isn’t it Richard. Apparently, the cotton bails and timber baulks won’t rot while they are submerged in the bog. Also interesting is that if you stand near the track when a train passes, you can fill a ripple effect!
What with all the history of the lines Im surprised you dont mention about all the sidings that are still there, the lines that used to be there, such as the lines that crossed over the Chat moss line as it passes Wavertree station, the green/white footbridge that crosses the line for instance marks the point where the goods line used to cross over the line.
Another fine video to end friday night relaxing with feet up.....is the signal because leds give the effect at angles or is it a new junction change signal ?.......are cabs now all fitted with the APC system for auto switching of circuit breakers when in a Neutral Section...or is it still manual ? cheers amazing pphotos...workers in suits and waistcoats and oblgatory hats...that box crane looks quite rickety ...btw headlights need re adjustmentl...blind yer colleagues on adjacent tracks lol...sorry for all posts,but dont ask u dont learn,my mum said
No problem Russ. TH-cam does some strange things though and it seems to scatter the replies all over the place so if I don’t answerI’m not ignoring you. The LEDs are good at a distance but not close up. They are buried in a semi circular reflector which concentrate the light but only viewed straight on. Thats why they go out then you can clearly see the eyebrow. The newer trains are auto APC but the older stock - 319 and 323 have to be shut off to avoid a rough transition. The old photos are astonishing.
Another great video as always. Am I right in saying that there are still remnants of platforms from the old Exchange Station on the approach to Victoria?
Don, am watching this for at least the 2nd or maybe 3rd time, however, this evening late, 2335 here , about 0435 there, rain storm moving thru and it got me thinking about something. Spring 2019 in the US Midwest had plenty of flooding, snow melt AND lots of rain all over, so many trains were "rerouted" and some were allowed to plow thru flooded tracks at slow speed. Which was ok as long as water depth wasn't severe. Yes this leads to my question, have you or any of your mates had to drive a diesel thru flood waters on any of your routes??? I somehow don't see your electrics being used in an area that was flooded??? BNSF, Burlington Northern & Sante Fe was videoed in Iowa I think it was slowing moving thru a flooded track area, its on YT here. Just one of those dumb questions I guess but thought it might be of interest to some. Your US Fan in Ga.( and still love your videos)
I always look forward to your comments. Our Rule Book prevents movements where the railhead is covered but I’m sure they’ve talked trains out of deep water where they are carrying stranded passengers. It doesn’t effect the train but the Permanent Way Engineers are concerned about the track being undermined.
@@doncoffey5820 Am trying to remember but I believe there was an AMTRAK that derailed in Arizona a while back because a small bridge washed out from a flash flood, In a very remote area, so it was not known till the derailment. And tracks that follow our Mississippi River I have often wondered about the safety of them after all that water?? Thanks for the answer and look forward to seeing your new videos.
Hi Don and thanks for another great video. I have travelled into Lime street a few times and always admired the cutting so fascinating to see it from the drivers perspective. Also the engineering brilliance of Stephenson to cross Chat Moss,in particular when you consider how long ago this was completed. By the way towards the end of the journey to the depot it looked like the locals were using the railway as a rubbish tip. Does this present a hazard? Looking forward to the next trip.
The captions give a lot of information and make so much difference Don. I assume the strobes flash alongside tracks where movements are taking place and therefore strobes were flashing all over the depot because a number of movements were taking place all over the depot. What triggers the strobes, the signalers, a track based system or shunting staff on the ground?
It is possible that other trains were moving but they all flash when any train is moving. Trains are not allowed to move if the strobe lights do not flash - its a belt and braces safety precaution and Siemens have a very good safety record.
I enjoy your videos sir - the captioned tidbits are a very nice touch. For my own selfish reasons, I wish you have an alter-ego operating out of London Euston. Incidentally (anyone) - why is the check rail at P14 Piccadilly on the "wrong" (outside) rail of the curve...? I'm used to seeing checking on the "inside" (low) rail of curves.
Thanks for the positive feedback Dave. Good question about the check rail. The platforms are bi-directional and the risk comes from falling over the edge so the rail away from the edge gets the check rail. If you look at the lead in on this video and the same on the Victoria to Airport video, you’ll see that a derailed train would be pulled back away from the edge. In this case its a “safety rail”.
What great videos Don, thank-you very much. Can I ask a question, please? I know there is a need to do some ECS, like bus services 'Not in Service' as well. But is it not losing revenue from the Airport to say Piccadilly or Victoria running all that way ecs?
Good question Anthony. The empties tend to run back to the depot later in the day when passenger numbers are dying off and there are quite a few services over the same route so they can catch those.
The cantilever posts and arms here are quite discreet compared to the latest electrification of the GWR, which are really brutal in design... Why is that? In Sweden the cantilever posts are painted green to blend in with the surroundings..
Quite a few have asked that Petter. It’s the new Network Rail “Series 1” specification that allows multiple pantographs to operate at 140 mph (225 km/h). It’s just future proofing the line.
Thanks Don. The 1830 Liverpool to Manchester line forever changed history. Impressive how Stephenson not only crossed Chat Moss, but challenged landowners who didn't want this new thing on their property.
Yes exactly. On top of the engineering challenge, he had a lot of politics to contend with.
Excellent, Thank you for another very enjoyable video. The annotations, are 1st class. Every time I watch one of your videos I learn something new.
Much appreciated.
You really do have the best job in the world Don. Thanks so much for sharing. I loved the fact that Stephenson crossed Chat Moss with the railway all those years ago, whereas the builders of the M62 went around it! Wonderful.
....and I’m absolutely aware of it Mike. I could retire now if I wanted but the hardest part is getting my backside out of bed at 2 am is the hardest part. I love every minute of the job I do.
Yes, its amazing how much determination and tenacity those people showed in the days of simple manpower - wonderful.
I like the way you let us know the stations as we pass them [or stop] ,gives a good feel of where we are . I know some are just happy to belt through them all , but then a Don Coffey vid' is not just a casual watch , bucket loads of info ' along the way ,top shelf stuff .
Thanks Burt. The newer ones have evolved and add more info as we go. Its all due to feedback. Thanks.
Watched the video. Amazing! It certainly backs up our views on how much we owe the navvies. So many of them died and are unknown. The skill displayed by the engineers with primitive equipment is astonishing. The fact that they were so near in their calculations to be inches out when linking up the workings. Thank you for introducing me to this documentary.
Thanks David. We forget that cutting a finger off might well have ended in death in those days. No NHS, no nearby hospital or air ambulance. It was a hazardous game.
Really really thank you, you enable me to watch this and relax at night, many thanks.
My pleasure, glad you enjoyed it.
Absolutely stunning. A privilege to have that view through the window at such historic railway locations that, formerly, only were associated with school history lessons or horrific new stories. Thank you.
Glad you enjoyed it Peter.
A big Respekt to you for all the research and history that you add during the journey as well,,,
Thanks Daniel.
Nice one , lots of fascinating bits of information. Great video 👍🇬🇧
Glad you liked it Stephen 👍
And another great video and history lesson. Thanks Don. In my younger days I used to travel fairly regularly to Liverpool and places along the way. Always preferred the Chat Moss route because of the ingenuity required to overcome the bog and other obstacles. I especially marvelled at the Olive Mount and other cuttings and tunnels on the approach to Lime Street. The Airport line was another that up until about 1980 I used approximately weekly when visiting a cousin who lived in the shadow of Gatley Station before moving to Heald Green. So this brought back many happy memories.
Glad about that Colin. We take it for granted but when you consider the enormity of the task in the days of candles and pick axe’s it doesn’t bear thinking about.
Hooray! My Friday night is looking up! Another of Don’s superb films has landed. Thank you so much for making these!
I’m working on the next one Steve!
Excellent Don - again. The approach and exit routes from Liverpool Lime Street never cease to amaze and you used the correct term for George Stephenson's route across Chat Moss - "float."
Stephenson had been to London a couple of years before promoting this inter city route to a committee of MPs. They couldn't understand his Geordie accent. They thought he was German!
Trust you are well G. I wonder if he went in and greeted them with "Wy Aye Man”!
Another fantastic video and very interesting information. Huge appreciation for the time taken to edit these videos. Thanks also to TPE and Northern for allowing us to view these fantastic journeys.
Thanks Walt. Yes - gratitude to TPE and Northern.
I have watched a ton of train videos and this is absolutely one of the best.
What do you mean “one of” ;-) Just kidding, thanks Thomas.
I watch a lot of train videos and can truthfully say they are not all equal. When I give you a “best,” you’re in pretty good company. I’d rather not mention others on your channel as I think that’s tacky. Here’s a fan, Don. 👏🏻👏🏻
The one going to Holyhead is my favorite.
Thank you once again for your efforts. I always enjoy visiting the bits that we the travelling public don't usually get to see.
Thanks.
Very interesting and educational, thoroughly enjoyed both videos, thanks.
Thanks Peter.
Another excellent video Don and I love the captions explaining the history and technical aspects. I am from Oldham and probably wouldn’t know Manchester now with all the buildings going up. Was last there in 2005, and that was the first time since I left in 1976! Mike, Johannesburg
Its surprising how many ex-pats enjoy the videos. All the best Michael.
Another great and comfortable ride. Thanks Don. Cheers mate.
Cheers Martin.
Thanks Don - another excellent video with lots of interesting historical detail.
Thanks Steve.
Evening Don
Just discovered your channel and i have to say i love it.The captions of information and Railway infrastructure are a pleasure to watch.
Many thank Regards Rich
Thank you for joining. More videos soon.
Many thanks, Don, the run down to the TMD with the ECS movement was very interesting and something most people never get to see. Very informative video as always. Thank you for taking the time to do this for us. Look forward to the next one.
Yes, those facilities are fantastic. You should see inside the works.
@@doncoffey5820 would make for an interesting part of a video to see it from you leaving the depot, then doing the journey.
@@doncoffey5820 Hi Don ..... Thanks once again for an excellent trip through lines passengers rarely see. I'm sure many of your followers on here would say a large "YES PLEASE" for a chance to have a virtual "guided tour" of the depot in your company. Many thanks, A.Butler.
Thank you so much Don, I really appreciate seeing the new railway and it's procedures from my front row seat in Phoenix Arizona. I have got a great deal of information and pleasure from watching your videos in lockdown. I ration myself to 1 a day. I haven't been full time in England since 1994, up to when I had an office in Waterloo Station as a consultant for Railtrack on Project Management. I still have the cups!
Definitely the major pluses of your videos are the quality of the camera, naming of stations and your route knowledge, plus the speed dials. Other people don't know how frustrating it is trying to identify the route without station names to guide you, especially if you have an atlas dated October 1978. I notice even your atlas hasn't been updated with Manchester Airport!
Much appreciation, keep up the good work!
Haha, yes, I noticed that omission too! I’ve also noticed you following the channel and I really appreciate it and the comments.
Amazing video as always! I love reading the annotations, a wonderful amount of detail going into them!
Thanks for the positive feedback.
Hello from Melbourne, Australia. I really enjoy your videos, especially your historic notes. Thanks for putting in all the work that is necessary to bring us these videos.
Glad you liked it.
Once more, thank you Don for another wonderfully presented trip around the North West.
Thanks Steve.
This railway must be the ultimate construction for the men who built it through the rock of lime street and over chat moss as it must have deemed an impossible thing to construct with simple tools and dynamite a monument to their grit and determination to succeed this video does much to show it well done superb .
Absolutely Brian. I’m glad I was able to convey that appreciation.
Another very interresting video Don! Keep up the good work!!
Thanks Per.
Thanks Don, great video and an excellent shout out to the victims of the 2017 atrocity.
I went in to help out the following day and donated the whole days pay to the fund. Some of those kids will never recover.
Thanks for that trip around the City because it explained a bit of bewildering geography I experienced last year. December '18 I went up to Liverpool, from Norwich, to see some long ago mates (The Wizards of Twiddly) play jazz rock again - the journey took me through Manchester and for a horrible moment I thought I was on the wrong train. Cor, that City ain't 'alf changed since I used freelance up there (for the BBC) in the 1970s. I remember Manchester as a City of red stone and now it'd gorn off to be a boring slate grey, high rise building site. Oh well, times change.
Excellent vid' again - well done. When I were a lad in those far off 'London freelance' days we were still on sprocket holes with cameras that weighed a bit although much better for carting about on a train.
Yes, we wish you in different directions sometimes Al. I’m a veteran him maker but in so much as being veteran in age!!!
@@doncoffey5820 In glorious younger days in the industry nobody bothered much how old we were (although the Beeb could get willfully agest), the coming of the great video in the sky did force some folk to retire before their time. I came from a family of film technicians and refused to be forced out by lippy film school graduates who didn't know much. I went a few years back but that was just, after over 50-years in the bizo, I fancied a life without back ache - oh the pain! Although I did retune to DV before I went, all the fun has gone out of film making for me. You seem to have cracked it. Well done.
Another great video informative as ever good to see the photos at the start well done Don
Glad you like it Mel. Fascinating aren’t they?
Don Coffey yes they are Don
Informative as ever Don well done. The section of track near the motorway at Eccles, as you know, was the scene of a horrible crash in 1984 where a passenger train hit a stray oil tanker carriage and subsequently burst into flames, and, it was "fortunate" that it had uncoupled from the rest of the carriages otherwise it might have blown up most of Eccles. I remember that day very well.
It was Rob. I’d actually assembled another set of still showing the accident but it looked like it was going to be more captions than I could fit. That Class 45 was virtually wiped out wasn’t it.
Thanks for your reply. Yes the class 45 was finished which is a shame as at the time I thought it was an iconic engine, and, still is today. I heard they were notoriously difficult to stop, is that correct ?
It didn’t end well for the driver Rob.
Again DON, an excellent job adding the "nuggets" of the trip and especially the STOP action to show off different points or items of interest. Maybe more later am only @19:08 but great so far
Glad you enjoyed it.
@@doncoffey5820 Don there is not much to enjoy and or luv about your videos. England has a rich history and every passage you make shows it off THANKS
Great Video Don as an ex railwayman its great to seee how much has changed on the system since my days !
It brings back memories for so many. I bet it all looks different?
Another great video, Don. Nice seeing the centre of my world getting some attention (St Helens!) Keep up the good work.
Right through your patch Derrick. We tend to hurtle through at 90. I might film the route through Centrel one day.
Never thought a seemingly common intercity line is actually the first railway line of the world... I'm a railfan from China (or more specifically, Hong Kong), and these rail history is interesting.
Glad you enjoyed it.
Thanks Don, a fantastic video, each one gets better! Thanks for solving the mystery of what the Japanese drivers are pointing at in Japanese videos.
Some of them point at every item in the cab as they check it but their safety of the line record is very high.
Wonderful video. I'm going to recommend it to my US friends to illustrate the historical context of contemporary rail operations. (I'm an expat Brit living in California.)
Much appreciated Geoff. Glad you enjoyed it.
You, Don have woken me back up to the world of British Rail/LNER/LMS/GWR etc., when I used to go on summer holidays from Aberdeen to Milford Haven to spend the break with my grandparents every year. Most times we went down by train, they'd drop me off and Mum and Dad would go back up to go back to work. Same again at the end of the eight weeks. Every so often we'd drive down and back. It's quite a memory-jog to see all the station names that we'd go through or switch trains-at.
I imagine most of the Welsh sectors have had their stations closed but I remember Llandrindod Wells, Llanyrtwyd Wells, Llangollen and all the little coal-mining spots etc. where the service was comprised of a two-unit "battery-car". There were others like Chirk and Ruabon. Occasionally our route went a bit further East via Shrewsbury but that was rare.
I feel it’s a success if it has rekindled your interest in railways. I think most of us have some fond memories and I’m pleased to dig them out for you.
Thanks again Don for another excellent video. Again, so much has changed in the area since my days on the railway in Manchester (early to mid 1980s). Couldn't believe that Miles Platting station had gone and the junction so simplified.
They have just started a project to take that curve out Peter. They will ease it in order to raise the line speed but that will completely lose the location of the old Miles Platting Station.
Excellent video.
Thanks for the pause at Skew Bridge. I've often heard of it, but never seen it.
Amazing isn’t it.
Don Coffey : It sure is.
I'm a civil engineer and at university we examined in detail how Chat Moss was crossed. To find this video and see the bridges is special for me.
Many thanks.
Another great video, the speed of today’s trains is awe inspiring,in the steam days we didn’t go so fast and we had the length of the steam engine in front of us.Kind Regards
I often relate that to people who don’t seem to appreciate just how hard they are to drive. My respect to you Ramon.
these videos get better I wished you drove around the Birmingham area.I have seen videos of the stour line but not in the class you keep producing we keep up keep up the good work and thanks again
I do get invites from other TOCs but by the time I’ve travelled, the whole day has gone. I will be doing some videos “off patch” soon.
Very informative Don. We used to work a Diesel Parcels Unit from Man Vic to St Helen's Shaw Street. (Now Central). You can still see where the line branched off to the right at St Helen's junction. (Heading for Liverpool) The DPU was carrying newspapers.
Thanks Aiden, yes, I’ve clocked the location of most of these junctions and I sometimes have a little look on Google Earth where you can make out the track bed. Its amazing that some of them only went in the 70s, 80,s and 90,s as they are either completely overgrown or have a Tesco slapped on them!
Thanks Don for another very enjoyable video. You are the master and the comments you share are the making of it. Here in Tasmania in Lock-Down they are a great distraction, Look forward to more of these videos. Cheers.
Glad you like them Jim. There are more coming soon.
Always remember the memorial - best seen from the bridge. We lived on the edge of Chat Moss within earshot of the trains passing over the line a mile or two away. The softness of the ground (peat) meant that you could feel the trains pass. We used to cycle over the moss and cross the line to cycle through Astley. I also used to trainspot from the flats in Salford with my cousin and was fortunate to see the last days of steam from the balcony overlooking this line.
Your old stomping ground Greg.
@@doncoffey5820 indeed.
Superb. Excellent to see that Philips Park stuff, Don.
Glad you enjoyed it.
Great upload again Dan.
Thanks and regards Graham
Thanks Graham, all the best.
If i ever go back to the UK, im going to ride that line out of liverpool so i can see that magnificent cut and those incredible tunnels myself. Thanks, loved the two in one video!
If you have an appreciation of such things Frank, you will find them astonishing.
Another Great video Don, i am amazed to see so many routes and railways around the Manchester area and i thought Manchester was only known for its two Football teams. Those few photos of the navvies building the cutting is great too Don, i love railway history, the town i live in here in south africa got a mainline and a branch line coming through here, the only town that would get close to Manchester railways would be Johannesburg, with lots of railway routes, but nothing like the UK! Thanks again Don, lol i am watching this again!
Thanks for being a regular watcher Theo! I’m working on the next one now.
Excellent video, but a couple of fact corrections. Broad Green is one of the oldest stations on the line, but the likes of Roby, Huyton, Earlstown, Newton and Eccles, are the same age. All opening on the 17th September 1830. Also the stone from Olive Mount went to make the Roby embankment between Broad Green and Roby. I am going to share the link for this, as it is brilliant quality and nice and fast ;-)
Much appreciated. I had another look at the footage and I thought I’d read that Broad Green was on the original site although it dated from 1972. I’ve got new footage from Seaforth to Crewe which I’ll edit soon.
Amazing video. The tunnels at the beginning were breathtaking.
I can do nothing but agree Linda. I’m in awe every time I pass through them.
Enjoying from Vancouver. Was in UK 1990 when it was still BritRail. Got a 2 week 1st class BritRail Pass & traveled all over including the Cornish Riviera.
Excellent. I hope to visit Vancouver one day so can swap notes!
I have felt like I have gone in circles Don !!!
Thank you for sharing !!! :):):)
I have to keep you on your toes harry ;-)
@@doncoffey5820 LOL ;) you definitely do... :):):)
Great stuff Don. Almost makes me wish I was back on the front. That was a long time ago in the days of the old black Rule Book, Rule 55 and in the new book, (red), Section K. I look forward to all your videos. Thank you.
I was the first of the new style Rule Book in 2003. Glad it brings back memories for you Ray.
Splendid video as always. Greetings from Canada.
Hello Canada! I will be visiting your country by rail soon. Its a long time since I was last there so rather keen to come back. Thanks for the positive feedback.
@@doncoffey5820 How nice. There is so much to do and see in Canada. Enjoy your trip. I will be getting a UK rail pass in the future and also visit some heritage railways.
Let me know if you visit Manchester.
@@doncoffey5820 Thank you. I will.
thank you DON that was a nice evening bank holiday Sunday watching something better than what's on TV
Thanks Jon. All repeats on TV!!!
Another excellent production
Thanks Martin.
Liverpool to Manchester, such an evocative line and a great trip. Chat Moss, amazing. I found myself imagining a loco like Planet or Rocket proudly chuffing along with some pretty coaches. Not much fun for the crew in all the weather though :-) Cheers.
Whenever I see an image of those old steam engines I wonder how on earth they did it. Trying to see in driving snow or keep a distance from the boiler in the height of summer. They were enforced hero’s but probably didn’t realise it. I adjust my suspension arm chair and turn on the heated screen or the air conditioning and it makes me feel a tad guilty.
So you should too :-)
Don, this showed up in my recommendations! 🤣 I watched it for old times sake. Good video mate. Hope you are well and hope to see you soon. All the best. Paul.
Good recommendation!!! Trust you are well buddy. Need to get some 390 footage if you can arrange it. All proceeds to charity.
Life is great now Don thankfully! Hope you are still enjoying your work. Get in touch with the details mate and I’ll ask our managers what they can do for footage for you. Speak soon.
I love watching your videos. Very interesting too.
Thanks Laura.
Another excellent video, Don.
Thanks Gerry.
Thanks Don a superb video most interesting, I see on leaving Edge Hill I noticed a large rake of Biomass wagons is that there home base or just a lay over point. Thanks again for two very informative videos.
Hi Phillip! Its a little out base that GBRF have created as they haul the biomass from Bootle docks. They have a train crew depot there and stable the rakes of hoppers ready for their next tour of duty.
@@doncoffey5820 Thanks Don for the information.
Excellent video!
Much appreciated, thank you.
Thanks for the ride Don.
Thanks Travis.
Another great video Don, there's no view like a cab view.
I consider myself very lucky Tony. Only glad I can share it.
Thanks for another excellent video don. Horse on a conveyor belt! Wonder why that didnt catch on.
1 horsepower!!!
that cutting has to be one of the 7 wonders of the railway world its quite beautiful in a very practical way and when you think how it was constructed it really fills you with admiration for those men that did it. "Navvies" got a lot of bad press through allegedly antisocial alcohol related behaviour but it makes you wonder if they could have had the energy after a full days work on this!
I took a train down there only last week and enjoyed every minute of it.
Thanks don for another fine journey,cheer's bob.
You are very welcome
Another great Video Don! Sadly I remember the very bad Train crash just after Eccles station as the train aproaches weaste back in 1984 on this line right next to the motorway I was 14 at the time and saw it on Granada reports ! 28:49 in the video is the site it happened! ....Also coming into Victoria i remember as i kid that the platform was a hell of a lot longer ( think it was at one point the longest platform in the world) due to the old exchange station just being outside Victoria! sadly very little trace of it is left now ...a small portion of the original station building still stands( you can JUST see it at 32:59 on the right ) below the church tower but they are now building on the rest of it as evident in the portacabs and partialy built concrete as for the second vid i loved that as i often wondered if that line was used at all (used to see it when getting a bus that came along past the stadium) was it a loop line originaly? only asking because when you look on google maps there is a spur branching off near the end just after the footbridge in the vid that is now no longer used (bridges ect demolished) that would have taken you back to Piccadilly ! sorry for long post lol im a bit of an anorack when it comes to local rail and infastructure that we have lost! Just fasinates me seeing what we once had before the Beeching cuts and subsequent failures through the BR days to invest ect and now rail travel is up ect they are having to re invest in things like the new loop in town! they should bring back that lost bit of track too i just mentioned as im sure it would help congestion ect and trains could take that route from victoria or piccadily to reach other lines that you currently have to go to get a tram and swap stations and that way they would have a FULL loop around the town centre !
I nearly captioned the crash next to the motorway Sean but had to abandon it as I ran out of room. That often happens as I juggle stuff about.
Many thanks Don for another great video. Your appreciation for the architecture, the infrastructure and the navies who built most of it shines through in your commentary, Any chance of showing an external shot of the appropriate train in your videos so that those of us who only class as "body warmers" can say to ourselves "Ah, that's what a 185 (or whatever) looks like"?
Thanks! Have a little look at 18:54 because a 185 comes the other way.
Very nice ride. Thank you 😉👍
Thank you.
Class 47 locomotives used to haul passenger trains on the Phillips Park line. They ran from Harwich via Sheffield to Glasgow and Edinburgh through Ashburys to Manchester Victoria
We still have one booked passenger service on a Sunday morning Stephen. It could do with the line speed improving a little for regular use.
Gosh!! I wish was the Minister of Transport sometimes. I would issue you with a 007 license to drive any train anywhere in the UK and film it. Don't worry about picking up and dropping off any passengers and turning a profit - who cares!!
“The name’s Coffey, Don Coffey”. Hmm, it could catch on ;-) Thanks Michael.
@@doncoffey5820 Do you like your Coffey/Coffee shaken or stirred?
That would be lovely!! complete filming all around the uk
Great to see the kiltie on the platform at Newton le Willows!
I had to run it again Gerry but sure enough!!! Its funny, when I am stopping I’m locked on the stopping point and everyone standing clear so don’t always notice.
Is it just the one empty or more than one sets.. fantastic views again
It was one in this case but we often take two on.
Beautifully shot, fascinating and informative as ever! Good points well made about the navvies. If anyone's interested in learning more about their way of life and work. I strongly recommend tracking down a copy of Terry Coleman's "The Railway Navies". A very interesting read.
As a result of feedback, I now have a copy of that book - fascinating.
Hi Don. Good to see you this afternoon at Ferriby. What a debt we owe to the navvies. I wonder if Crossrail workers realise how fortunate they are?! So much interesting information you provide. Thank you.
It made my day! I was grinning all the way to Hull. Yes, these days a person sitting at a computer sends a big GPS guided mole to dig a tunnel. Watch this when you get chance David and thanks for turning out today - it was really appreciated.
th-cam.com/video/_c8jvixQGpQ/w-d-xo.html
Nearly missed you today, all the way over on the Up Slow. Thanks again for your efforts.
Well at least you were on the up fast through Ferriby!
Yet again, superb and thank you Don. Would love to see mph, inclinometer and gps on screen someday if at all possible?
As it happens my software doesn’t allow it but while the company does allow me to share the videos, I have to be careful what I show under the terms of them letting me do it. The gradient data would be interesting because the camera gives absolutely no indication and I would like you to see it. All I can do is add the odd caption when it is relevant.
@@doncoffey5820 thankyou Don, your productions are perfect anyway.
Thank you Mr Coffey. As Much as I am impressed with the Chinese high speed rail, I am far more impressed by our own railway heritage and the difficulties that pioneering engineers overcame. I just wish the people in charge would see this and not just think of £££ signs.
Thank you too. Its amazing too that most of the world’s railways have some sort of British influence.
Although I must have been through that cutting a number of times, this is the first time I've seen what it actually is. It is magnificent; what a shame passengers don't see that view!
Yes, magnificent isn’t it? Testament to the men that built it.
Great video Don ! Tha's gettin' a bit good at this filming lark !!
The footage is just about sorted now but I’m not immune to the odd spelling mistake!!!
That was good time-keeping in the 1st part, but when nothing goes wrong that's what you expect. Re 'the eyebrow' - is that just a characteristic of led signals or for driver nearness as in the older type tungsten lights with that quadrant directed at the driver's cab? 'Long road for a short cut' and 'Long Way Round' are two expressions that come to mind when viewing the 2nd part.
Oh yes, you probably can't answer this one, but a native Liverpudlian might. The Tunnel Street refered to at the beginning I presume was named because of the tunnels, but what was it named before the tunnels were dug? Perhaps the street post-dated them.
Good questions. The LED signals are very good at a distance but they are made up from an arrangement of LEDs set back in much larger reflectors. This way a tiny LED gives off a disproportionate amount of light. However, as you get close the LEDs become obscured by the sides of the reflectors and they fade out. The eyebrow is a collection of lights at the surface and are no good at a distance but visible at close quarters. Now for this road name conundrum! The bast I can come up with is that the road was built to access the tunnel construction. Probably nonsense but it works!!!
What is banner at 6:00 steps by track too..? Chat moss bog...is that why spare track is there ?...welds cracking ? due to sinkage. Transport for Wales 175 unit still in Arriva livery :( 44:12 46:00 love this shot with sun on rails... if it was quieter would they cut you through the junctions,saving you to have to do the long loop around and come back to the US line ?
The banner is a big promotional board that Network Rail put up after restoring the line through the tunnel. The sun can cause us problems when its very low in the sky Russ especially when its behind as it bleaches out the signals. Sometimes we have to stop and ask the signally what its showing!!! All the movements are booked to certain routes in a publication called the Working TimeTable (WTT) so we usually run to booked routes but occasionally they send us on a little excursion!
@@doncoffey5820 'Little excursion'! - rotfl!!
Many thanks for another informative cab ride, Don. A question - what do the white circular signs with an upward pointing black triangle visible on the exit from Lime Street mean? On a lighter note, one wonders what you would be driving these days if that horse-powered contraption would have won the Rainhill Trials!!! Have a good and safe week's driving, Don.👍🏼
Don, just saw the answer you gave to Gary Mitchellhill about the signs so no need to answer my query!!
Like the old photo's Don. Some hard graft that cutting out all that rock.
Aye, and no safety gear either. There must have been some terrible accidents.
I really Enjoyed this video and the commentary was excelent
Glad you enjoyed it
Excellent video don any chance around east Lancashire
Yes Neville. So far everything has been either TPE or Northern out of Piccadilly but I can get out on Victoria trains so should be able to get something that you’ll like. However, time is my biggest enemy so you’ll have to bear with me!
10/10 . Who would have thought that part of the line was on a boggy marsh?
Amazing isn’t it Richard. Apparently, the cotton bails and timber baulks won’t rot while they are submerged in the bog. Also interesting is that if you stand near the track when a train passes, you can fill a ripple effect!
@@doncoffey5820 Sure is.
What with all the history of the lines Im surprised you dont mention about all the sidings that are still there, the lines that used to be there, such as the lines that crossed over the Chat moss line as it passes Wavertree station, the green/white footbridge that crosses the line for instance marks the point where the goods line used to cross over the line.
It’s a question of making the captions fit. 👍
Another fine video to end friday night relaxing with feet up.....is the signal because leds give the effect at angles or is it a new junction change signal ?.......are cabs now all fitted with the APC system for auto switching of circuit breakers when in a Neutral Section...or is it still manual ? cheers amazing pphotos...workers in suits and waistcoats and oblgatory hats...that box crane looks quite rickety ...btw headlights need re adjustmentl...blind yer colleagues on adjacent tracks lol...sorry for all posts,but dont ask u dont learn,my mum said
No problem Russ. TH-cam does some strange things though and it seems to scatter the replies all over the place so if I don’t answerI’m not ignoring you. The LEDs are good at a distance but not close up. They are buried in a semi circular reflector which concentrate the light but only viewed straight on. Thats why they go out then you can clearly see the eyebrow. The newer trains are auto APC but the older stock - 319 and 323 have to be shut off to avoid a rough transition. The old photos are astonishing.
Another great video as always. Am I right in saying that there are still remnants of platforms from the old Exchange Station on the approach to Victoria?
Yes John at Salford Central I believe.
Don, am watching this for at least the 2nd or maybe 3rd time, however, this evening late, 2335 here , about 0435 there, rain storm moving thru and it got me thinking about something. Spring 2019 in the US Midwest had plenty of flooding, snow melt AND lots of rain all over, so many trains were "rerouted" and some were allowed to plow thru flooded tracks at slow speed. Which was ok as long as water depth wasn't severe. Yes this leads to my question, have you or any of your mates had to drive a diesel thru flood waters on any of your routes??? I somehow don't see your electrics being used in an area that was flooded??? BNSF, Burlington Northern & Sante Fe was videoed in Iowa I think it was slowing moving thru a flooded track area, its on YT here. Just one of those dumb questions I guess but thought it might be of interest to some. Your US Fan in Ga.( and still love your videos)
I always look forward to your comments. Our Rule Book prevents movements where the railhead is covered but I’m sure they’ve talked trains out of deep water where they are carrying stranded passengers. It doesn’t effect the train but the Permanent Way Engineers are concerned about the track being undermined.
@@doncoffey5820 Am trying to remember but I believe there was an AMTRAK that derailed in Arizona a while back because a small bridge washed out from a flash flood, In a very remote area, so it was not known till the derailment. And tracks that follow our Mississippi River I have often wondered about the safety of them after all that water?? Thanks for the answer and look forward to seeing your new videos.
Hi Don and thanks for another great video. I have travelled into Lime street a few times and always admired the cutting so fascinating to see it from the drivers perspective. Also the engineering brilliance of Stephenson to cross Chat Moss,in particular when you consider how long ago this was completed. By the way towards the end of the journey to the depot it looked like the locals were using the railway as a rubbish tip. Does this present a hazard?
Looking forward to the next trip.
Yes, its fantastic Roger.
The captions give a lot of information and make so much difference Don. I assume the strobes flash alongside tracks where movements are taking place and therefore strobes were flashing all over the depot because a number of movements were taking place all over the depot. What triggers the strobes, the signalers, a track based system or shunting staff on the ground?
It is possible that other trains were moving but they all flash when any train is moving. Trains are not allowed to move if the strobe lights do not flash - its a belt and braces safety precaution and Siemens have a very good safety record.
So many cranes on the buildings as the train passes thru Downtown Manchester, quite a construction boom going on these days.
Have a look at the run in from the Piccadilly end as well Anthony. Its amazing to see how the skyline is going up.
I enjoy your videos sir - the captioned tidbits are a very nice touch. For my own selfish reasons, I wish you have an alter-ego operating out of London Euston.
Incidentally (anyone) - why is the check rail at P14 Piccadilly on the "wrong" (outside) rail of the curve...? I'm used to seeing checking on the "inside" (low) rail of curves.
Thanks for the positive feedback Dave. Good question about the check rail. The platforms are bi-directional and the risk comes from falling over the edge so the rail away from the edge gets the check rail. If you look at the lead in on this video and the same on the Victoria to Airport video, you’ll see that a derailed train would be pulled back away from the edge. In this case its a “safety rail”.
What great videos Don, thank-you very much. Can I ask a question, please? I know there is a need to do some ECS, like bus services 'Not in Service' as well. But is it not losing revenue from the Airport to say Piccadilly or Victoria running all that way ecs?
Good question Anthony. The empties tend to run back to the depot later in the day when passenger numbers are dying off and there are quite a few services over the same route so they can catch those.
Nice footage as usual, but why another instance of a Diesel all the way under the wires, ? unless they were waiting for decent stock to be allocated.
Good question! Basically from manchester Victoria all the way to York there are no wires - soon to be sorted we hope!
Gradient from Lime Street is, I read, 1:93, a formidable climb for steam from a standing start.
A piece of cake for modern traction but it would have been a challenge for steam engines both up and down.
The cantilever posts and arms here are quite discreet compared to the latest electrification of the GWR, which are really brutal in design... Why is that?
In Sweden the cantilever posts are painted green to blend in with the surroundings..
Quite a few have asked that Petter. It’s the new Network Rail “Series 1” specification that allows multiple pantographs to operate at 140 mph (225 km/h). It’s just future proofing the line.