birchesgreen
Established Member
OK i see, doesn't really work in my accent so thats why i was a bit confused.Phonetic pronunciation of St Albans in Herts.
Basically referring to the wiring of the Abbey line between Watford and St Albans.
OK i see, doesn't really work in my accent so thats why i was a bit confused.Phonetic pronunciation of St Albans in Herts.
Basically referring to the wiring of the Abbey line between Watford and St Albans.
Phonetic pronunciation of St Albans in Herts.
Basically referring to the wiring of the Abbey line between Watford and St Albans.
Lol neither does it in mine, but something clicked somewhere in my noggin to understand itOK i see, doesn't really work in my accent so thats why i was a bit confused.
I've only been once, but it looked alright. I think the connections it has certainly put it above other typical middle class Southern towns.Yep. Sorry, I thought most people were familiar with that, which is both referring to the place and its poshness/posh accent (and snobbery)
To be fair it is a very nice place (if one of the most expensive places in the country).
I wonder if the £1 rail single ticket would undercut the bus services currently offering £2 singles?
Goodness only knows why it wasn't wired at the same time as Snorbens. Would have been so much less hassle then. I guess maybe BR thought they'd get to close it eventually.
I would have thought electrifying that particular branch was a lot easier than Marston Vale would have been - entirely single track, no resignalling to worry about. Wasn't Marston Vale still Absolute Block and semaphores well into this century? Seems like it would have been a much bigger project to take on.
The BBC reporters commenting on the steelworks were calling it Pt-albert which I thought sounded a lot better than Port Talbot. But how does one pronounce Brickhill as in Bow Brickhill? Maybe I will find out of I buy a £1 ticket and listen to the announcements.Locals in South Wales say Ptolbt where the steel works may be closing....
I thought "Wedgwood & Barlaston"!Hooray!
At the point it stopped I genuinely didn't think we'd see the day until East West Rail opened.
It's 150's, three of them, from Northern, details somewhere above.I am considering riding it in March but this may depend on what rolling stock.
If it uses for example 150s refurbished with LNWR moquette, or 196s, I may well come and ride it.
Conversely, if it uses 150s hired from Northern or unrefurbished 170s, I doubt I would bother.
It's 150's, three of them, from Northern, details somewhere above.
Personally I'm probably going to combine a trip to Bletchley from Bedford with a walk** out from Bletchley station to Whaddon Road bridge at Newton Longville to admire the new East-West railway. Don't know if there will be any activity to see though.Thank you to both of you for your replies.
As these are nothing I cannot ride on my doorstep, I shall put the idea on hold unless I find something else to combine the line with.
You will be waiting a while for the WMT 196s. Possibly they will be working from Bletchley Westwards towards Oxford first.Thank you to both of you for your replies.
As these are nothing I cannot ride on my doorstep, I shall put the idea on hold unless I find something else to combine the line with.
You will be waiting a while for the WMT 196s. Possibly they will be working from Bletchley Westwards towards Oxford first.
I am more likely to ride a 196 from Shrewsbury to Birmingham or on the Camp Hill line, even if not for another year.You will be waiting a while for the WMT 196s. Possibly they will be working from Bletchley Westwards towards Oxford first.
I’m about to board the 8.21 out of Stewartby. Me and one other person did get on there, which is one more than I usually see.I am considering riding the Marston Vale Line early tomorrow morning.
(New reply below)
What a bargain!
The 05:18 to Bedford was lightly loaded. I counted fewer than 10 passengers in total. The 06:10 back to Bletchley had more passengers, around 20 people. Representatives from the Marston Vale Community Rail Partnership boarded this service and began giving out paper timetables. They were certainly very happy that the line is now back to its full timetable!
The 07:18 to Bedford has a healthy number of passengers on it.
it was quiet this morning. Word is starting to go round about the low fares so hopefully the passenger numbers will tick up. The big problem is the "bad will" - any trace of positivity about the line & service has gone. Passengers have been driven away and many wont be back.No rush of students today due to it being half term.
it was quiet this morning. Word is starting to go round about the low fares so hopefully the passenger numbers will tick up. The big problem is the "bad will" - any trace of positivity about the line & service has gone. Passengers have been driven away and many wont be back.
I expect those who bought a car to cope will be hard to get back. After all they might as well use their car now they have invested in it I am afraid. There will be those who changed/lost jobs because of its closure and so will no longer need it.Once word spreads that it’s back up and running, and reliable, I’m sure they will return.
I expect those who bought a car to cope will be hard to get back. After all they might as well use their car now they have invested in it I am afraid. There will be those who changed/lost jobs because of its closure and so will no longer need it.
There's a bit of an obsession about people buying cars to get around public transport issues on here. In reality pretty much everyone who can drive already runs a car somewhere like Milton Keynes - it would for instance be pretty awful to not be able to go anywhere on a Sunday.
There's a bit of an obsession about people buying cars to get around public transport issues on here. In reality pretty much everyone who can drive already runs a car somewhere like Milton Keynes - it would for instance be pretty awful to not be able to go anywhere on a Sunday.
I have also (though perhaps this is unusual) known people moving to a city large enough to actually have public transport on a Sunday etc. giving up their car because they didn't need it enough to justify it.
That is true enough. Since moving to London in 1988 I have gone for periods without a car. I must admit I am glad when I have got a car again though. I do walk or use busses more than those around me but a car is still a bit more than a luxury albeit a bit of a liability in London. As for Milton Keynes car culture is probably king there which is a shame for a large town. For the Marston Vale line the relatively rural nature of all but the ends must be a factor in car ownership.I was going to ask just that.
I have also (though perhaps this is unusual) known people moving to a city large enough to actually have public transport on a Sunday etc. giving up their car because they didn't need it enough to justify it.
That is true enough. Since moving to London in 1988 I have gone for periods without a car.
I must admit I am glad when I have got a car again though. I do walk or use busses more than those around me but a car is still a bit more than a luxury albeit a bit of a liability in London. As for Milton Keynes car culture is probably king there which is a shame for a large town.
For the Marston Vale line the relatively rural nature of all but the ends must be a factor in car ownership.
It's the City of the Car. And has largely worked quite well as that. You'd not build that now, though.
When I arrived at Bletchley on the 01:39 from Euston this morning, I had more than two hours to wait for the 05:17 to Bedford, the first Marston Vale Line departure that day. I decided to walk to the 24-hour McDonald’s next to Stadium MK. I found the walking provision rather poor. The footpaths were dimly lit, and one section was partially flooded. At junctions, priority seems to have been given to the car with pedestrians forced to use the dingy underpasses. It certainly is not a walkable area, which only serves to encourage people to stick to the car.