Younger readers will find it difficult to imagine how different things were in 1985. Here on the Hope Valley line we only had an hourly fast train between Sheffield and Manchester. The stopping service only went as far as New Mills with a change for Manchester and it wasn't even a regular two hourly interval.
Class 101s operated. I'd first travelled on them about 1957 when they were newly introduced on the Newcastle - Carlisle line and back then they seemed brilliant. By 1985 they'd seen a lot of service and my memory is of smelly leaking exhaust fumes.
With such sparse services and growing car ownership passenger numbers were dwindling. Cut costs!
Exit right the 101s, gradually being replaced by new rolling stock, enter left Class 142 Pacers. It's only recently got through that if public transport is to compete with cars more frequent services are needed, and now those workhorse Pacers are being replaced by hourly 150s or 156s.
Returning to 1985 it was noted that faster trains were needed. Dore Station Junction was considered to be a bottleneck due to slow speeds over the junction. So they simplified the tracks to permit faster line speeds - and removed 3 of the 4 station platforms. Good plan with only about 3 or 4 trains per hour over the single line section through the station.
Looking at this with fresh eyes today, be it from an overloaded Pacer running hourly or a similarly crammed fast service half hourly, you may wonder how the tide was turned. It was, and those stalwart Pacers have played their part. We don't hate them, we'd have appreciated more of them. "Please move up the train" announces a Saturday morning guard as she struggles to create space to get back aboard. Good humour all around (mostly young passengers, the future of rail). The bulldog spirit, all very chummy, as long as you don't pass out!
Roll on overfilled 150s and 156s. That's happening now.
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