68. Trip to Cardiff -02.10.19

THE ARCHIVE FILES > Archive-2019 > 68. Trip to Cardiff -02.10.19

In connection with the collection of a car in Cardiff, I had to travel to the Welsh capital by train from Northampton. It was an early start but meant that I arrived early in Cardiff and was able to take a few pictures on the platform. Following the collection of a reasonable Mini Clubman, I drove back to Northampton stopping off at three spots in South Wales to assess the impact of the arrival of the electrification; it was not pleasant!

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Images 1-27 of 27 displayed.

319220, LN 06.51 Northampton-London Euston (2N10, 3L), Northampton station
In the half-light at Northampton station, 319220 leads two other classmates forming the 06.51 to London Euston. London Northwestern have fifteen class 319 from three subsets that are used on morning and evening commuter services. However, they are due for replacement soon so could end up moving north to join the others already in service with Northern or be converted for bi-mode use marketed as 319 Flex units. Notice that this particular unit is totally unbranded perhaps indicating that it could be an early candidate to go off-lease.
Keywords: 319220 06.51 Northampton-London Euston 2N10 Northampton station

350121, 07.15 Northampton-Birmingham New Street (2Y57, 8L), Northampton station
The first part of my journey to Cardiff was taken on 350121 with another unit at the front. The 07.15 to Birmingham New Street is seen standing at Northampton's platform four in the grey dawn of this October morning.
Keywords: 350121 07.15 Northampton-Birmingham New Street 2Y57 Northampton station

350102 & 350117, LN 06.22 Coventry-London Euston (1Y84, 5L) & 350105, LN 05.34 London Euston-Liverpool Lime Street (9F35, 13L), Northampton station
Despite Govia London Midland losing the franchise nearly two years ago, many of the class 350 Desiros still carry their livery albeit with vinyl branding on their flanks. Three class 350s are seen at a busy Northampton station. To the left, 350102 arrived from Kingsheath sidings sometime earlier but remained locked out of use frustrating the many commuters standing on the platform waiting to board it. To the right, 350117 is slowly approaching ready to join the other unit working the 06.22 from Coventry. The combined units will then work forward to London Euston. In the background, 350105 is leaving with the 05.34 Euston to Liverpool Lime Street.
Keywords: 350102 350117 06.22 Coventry-London Euston 1Y84 350105 05.34 London Euston-Liverpool Lime Street 9F35 Northampton station

43384, XC 06.11 Leeds-Plymouth (1V34, 23L), Birmingham New Street station
The driver of 43384 looks eagerly back along his train as it waits at Birmingham New Street. He will be keen to get the 1V34 06.11 Leeds to Plymouth underway as soon as possible as it was already some fifteen minutes late. Unfortunately, things did not go to plan as the train arrived into Plymouth twenty-three minutes down. However, as a passenger, I would probably have forgiven this lateness as I was on an HST rather than a dreadful Voyager!
Keywords: 43384 06.11 Leeds-Plymouth 1V34 Birmingham New Street station

170115, XC 07.04 Nottingham-Cardiff Central (1V04, 4L), Cardiff Central station
From Birmingham New Street to Cardiff I travelled on 170115 working the 07.04 from Nottingham. On boarding the train at New Street it was absolutely packed to the gunwales and I was not looking forward to the journey. However, quite bizarrely, at the next stop, University, it virtually emptied out leaving just a handful of passengers, a situation that prevailed all the way to Cardiff. The seats on class 170s are comfortable and the ride is acceptable, the only issue is the noise from the engines under the passenger cabin, however, by moving to another seat further down the carriage this problem was largely ameliorated.
Keywords: 170115 07.04 Nottingham-Cardiff Central 1V04 Cardiff Central station

60011, 09.22 Margam-Llanwern Exchange Sidings (6H25), Cardiff Central station
60011 passes through Cardiff's up centre road with the 09.22 Margam to Llanwern steel train. This 6H25 working only travels a modest forty-four miles but carries a lot of very heavy steel that would otherwise be on a fleet of HGVs choking up the M4. The last time that I saw 60011 was in a very different location on the other side of the country and in very different weather but it was, again, hauling a very heavy train, exactly what these powerful locomotives were designed for, see..... https://www.ontheupfast.com/v/photos/21936chg/27343878004/x60011-11-38-redcar-b-s-c-scunthorpe
Keywords: 60011 09.22 Margam-Llanwern Exchange Sidings 6H25 Cardiff Central station

142076, AW 10.15 Coryton-Radyr (2V15, 3L), Cardiff Central station
142076 rattles away from Cardiff Central station with the 10.15 Coryton to Radyr 'City Line' service. These much-maligned units are supposed to out of squadron service by the 31st December this year (in three months' time) but they were very much in use during my half-hour on Central station. The unit is just about to pass a huge new student accommodation block that extends towards Cardiff West Junction. If I was a student at the university in Cardiff, I would have fancied bagging one of the rooms at the back of this block even it would not get much sun as it faces north! It would also be a great location for a railcam like the one at York, see.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zHb90p2HKQ
Keywords: 142076 10.15 Coryton-Radyr 2V15 Cardiff Central station

143605 & 143609, AW 09.38 Merthyr Tydfil-Bridgend (2E20, 3L), Cardiff Central station
Double trouble in the form of a pair of Pacer class 143s leave Cardiff Central with the 2E20 09.38 Merthyr Tydfil to Bridgend service. The trailing unit is 143605 with the leading one being 143609, formally named after the famous local resident 'Sir Tom Jones'. If I was him, I think that I would have been a bit miffed if a lowly Pacer was named after me!
Keywords: 143605 143609 09.38 Merthyr Tydfil-Bridgend 2E20 Cardiff Central station

175116, AW 07.50 Fishguard Harbour-Manchester Piccadilly (1W56, 1L), Cardiff Central station
Still wearing its Arriva Trains Wales livery but devoid of any branding, 175116 arrives at a sunny Cardiff Central forming the 07.50 Fishguard Harbour to Manchester Piccadilly. Notice that the electrification masts and gantries are in place to the western end of Cardiff station with the wiring yet to be strung.
Keywords: 175116 07.50 Fishguard Harbour-Manchester Piccadilly 1W56 Cardiff Central station

800303, GW 08.45 London Paddington-Swansea (1B15, 2E), Cardiff Central station
A driver change is taking place at Cardiff Central with the relief walking down the platform to take the 08.45 Paddington to Swansea onward to its destination. The 1B15 is formed by IET 800303, one of the twenty-one nine-car sets that seem to make so much more sense than the five-car sets that more often than not have to be paired up.
Keywords: 800303 08.45 London Paddington-Swansea 1B15 Cardiff Central station

Message, side of class 14X, Cardiff Central station
Transport for Wales has covered the sides of all of their Pacers with this graphic passing on the clear message to its customers that they will soon have to put up with them no more. However, given that there are, at the time of writing, only eighty-seven days before they are all to be withdrawn and replaced I suspect that many passengers will be disappointed given that the delivery and acceptance of the new stock appears stalled. As the old units will not meet the PRM (Persons with Reduced Mobility) legislation that is required from 31st December special dispensation will be required in order to keep them in service.
Keywords: Message class 142 Cardiff Central station Pacer

143608, AW 10.34 Radyr-Coryton (2C17, 3L), Cardiff Central station
With the newest members of the class 143 Pacer thirty-three years old they have outlived the first generation DMUs that they replaced. They were designed by BR to be a temporary stopgap solution to improving local services but here they are in 2019 still at large! 143608 drifts into Cardiff Central, no doubt with its wheel flanges squealing, working the 10.34 Radyr to Coryton 2C17 service. In theory, just less than three months' in service for these much-maligned trains.
Keywords: 143608 10.34 Radyr-Coryton 2C17 Cardiff Central station

43161, GW 10.24 Cardiff Central-Cardiff Central ECS (5C73), Cardiff Central station
43161 leads the 5C73 empty coaching stock into Cardiff Central station. This could have been a picture taken at any time in the last few years but the train is one of Great Western's 'classic' HST sets now finding work on local services in South Wales and the West Country. This particular four-car set, with 43196 on the rear, would soon work the 11.00 to Taunton. I hope that the passengers using these trains enjoy their travelling experience more than on the class 15X units that they have replaced. Let's hope that the sets are soon painted into a uniform livery and refurbished so that they look the part than simply appearing to be hand-me-down former mainline express hybrid sets!
Keywords: 43161 10.24 Cardiff Central-Cardiff Central ECS 5C73 Cardiff Central station

37025, 09.51 Rhymney-Cardiff Canton sidings ECS (5F10), Cardiff Central station
Unfortunately, this was a working that caught me out so the lighting is pretty awful taken looking into the sun with my side of the train in deep shadow. The locals on Central station got very excited on hearing the arrival of 37025 at this time in the morning, by now it should have been safely ensconced on Canton depot. Apparently, a unit had failed earlier in the morning so 37025 and 37418 (out of sight on the rear) were called upon to work an additional service to Rhymney. It then ran back as the 09.51 empty coaching stock 5F10 to Canton with a brief pause at Central station.
Keywords: 37025 09.51 Rhymney-Cardiff Canton sidings ECS 5F10 Cardiff Central station

37418, 09.51 Rhymney-Cardiff Canton sidings ECS (5F10), Cardiff Central station
37418 brings up the rear of the 09.51 Rhymney to Cardiff Canton empty coaching stock move as it leads Cardiff Central station. This was an additional service run following the failure of a Pacer earlier in the morning. Out of sight on the front of the train is split headcode 37025. Whilst the stock is mainly Mk. II air-conditioned stock in classic BR blue and grey the second in the consist is in ATW's turquoise and white.
Keywords: 37418 09.51 Rhymney-Cardiff Canton sidings ECS 5F10 Cardiff Central station

43196, GW 11.00 Cardiff Central-Taunton (2C73, 1E), Cardiff Central station
The environment around Cardiff Central station is changing at an astonishing rate with new blocks and flats going up at an incredible speed. This is a reflection of the general growth of Cardiff as a whole. With Central station a little dwarfed by two new hotel blocks to the east, 43196 sits at the rear of the 11.00 to Taunton. It's a little surprising that the power car is still wearing the First Great Western branding as a new operator usually changes the vinyls pretty rapidly when they take over the franchise
Keywords: 43196 11.00 Cardiff Central-Taunton 2C73 Cardiff Central station

Bishton signal box (GW, 1941)
I last visited Bishton signal box in 1985 during the GWR 150 celebrations. It has changed very little in the intervening thirty-four years apart from replacement UPVC windows and the fitting of a reproduction GWR style cast nameplate, in 1985 it had no identification at all! It is good to see that the windows have been replaced with modern ones that replicate the original three panes over two arrangement as per most Great Western boxes. The box is a rare example of one that still has a wheel to operate the gates. In the case of Bishton, it remains a GWR style ship's wheel. The box is only manned from 06.00 to 22.00 so tall vehicles over one point seven metres high have to make a diversion to avoid the very low bridge that goes under the line. Notice the milepost showing one hundred and fifty-three miles next to the box. This is the distance from Paddington but rather than the direct route through the Severn Tunnel it is via Swindon, Stonehouse, Gloucester and Chepstow.
Keywords: Bishton signal box 1941

166209, GW 12.30 Cardiff Central-Portsmouth Harbour (1F17, 3L), Bishton crossing
Still wearing its First Great Western livery and branding from its time in the Thames valley, 166209 passes along the up fast at Bishton about to cross the infrequently used level crossing in front of the signal box. It is working the 12.30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour. A service that back in my time living in the West Country, would have been composed of a set of Mk. I stock with a diesel upfront such as a Hymek, class 31 or a class 33. The electrification masts and wiring are fully installed here between Severn Tunnel Junction and Newport. The line of houses in the background are part of the linear village of Bishton.
Keywords: 166209 12.30 Cardiff Central-Portsmouth Harbour 1F17 Bishton crossing

43191 & 43005, GW 11.04 Taunton-Cardiff Central (2U14, 3L), Bishton crossing
A four-car 'classic' HST set, as Great Westen calls it, passes Bishton level crossing between Severn Tunnel Junction and Newport powering the 11.04 Taunton to Cardiff Central service. The train is led by 43191 that was a late power car dating from May 1982 as part of 253055 with one of the earliest power cars, dating from September 1976 Western Region set 253002, at the rear. Not a fantastic picture as the sun had gone behind a cloud and the camera chose to expose for the sky rather than the foreground. I must admit to some heavy Photoshop action to get the image acceptable.
Keywords: 43191 43005 11.04 Taunton-Cardiff Central 2U14 Bishton crossing

66068, 11.15 Westerleigh-Robseton (6B41), Bishton-crossing
Having realised that the camera on shutter priority auto. setting did not cope well with the previous picture of an HST from this angle, I opted for manual control on this image. I went for the foreground being slightly overexposed (about half a stop) and the sky underexposed (about a stop). It was then a relatively easy job in Photoshop to pull things back in order to present the final image as seen here. 66068 passes Bishton on the down fast with the 6B41 11.15 Westerleigh to Robseton oil empties. The two tracks to the right are the 'slow' lines with the left-hand one crossing the fast line in about a mile's time on 1961 built Bishton flyover. Thus, on the run into Severn Tunnel Junction the fast lines are in the centre with the up and down slows to the left and right.
Keywords: 66068 11.15 Westerleigh-Robseton 6B41 Bishton-crossing.jpg

66617, 12.20 Westbury-Tunstead sidings (6M36), Undy
A grab-shot of 66617 passing Undy with the 6M36 12.20 Westbury to Tunstead cement wagons. This train takes a very contorted journey from West Wiltshire to the Derbyshire Peak District via Bristol, South Wales and Crewe. This image is all that I could manage here at Undy, once a very popular spot for photographers and spotters alike now rendered impossible by the installation of a gargantuan and totally over-engineered footbridge. I had no view of this train but merely help my camera over the parapet and pointed in the direction that I thought about right, quite remarkably, I did get it right so have included it but not on that basis rather than on any other photographic merit!
Keywords: 66617 12.20 Westbury-Tunstead sidings 6M36 Undy

66555, 13.29 Wentlog-Southampton MCT (4O57), Undy
66555 leads the 13.29 Wentlog to Southampton Freightliner past Undy just west of Severn Tunnel Junction. Unfortunately, the installation of the electrification paraphernalia has completely ruined the view from this once popular location on one of the village's footbridges. Also, the newly constructed footbridge itself has the usual anti-suicide parapets, all very laudable but ruinous from a photographic point of view. This picture was taken using the camera with the fold-out screen out and the camera held up over the parapet in the hope of capturing a decent image. More than by chance, if I'm absolutely honest, this technique worked on this occasion.
Keywords: 66555 13.29 Wentlog-Southampton MCT 4O57 Undy

Pub sign, former Roggiett Hotel, Rogiet
The Roggiett Hotel was constructed at about the same time as the railway arrived at what is now known as Severn Tunnel Junction in around 1880. It is a large hotel and pub for the size of the village of Rogiet. Notice the different variation of the spelling of the village, the pub bears the traditional version while the contemporary version is Rogiet. The hotel and pub closed in 2007 only to be re-opened again by a well-intentioned band of locals who, unfortunately, could not make a go it with it closing again in 2010. Nine years later, it is still empty, boarded up and looking very sorry for itself. It is located two minute's walk from Severn Tunnel Junction station on Station Road but still bears its pub sign. The rather faded image purports to be of a GWR 2-4-0 engine dating from circa 1850 but, I am happy to be advised further on this.
Keywords: Pub sign former Roggiett Hotel Rogiet

170110, XC 13.45 Cardiff Central-Nottingham (1M68, 1L), Severn Tunnel Junction station
170110, that is, in reality, a three-car DMU passes through Severn Tunnel Junction forming the 1M68 13.45 Cardiff to Nottingham service. I have said it before, but this is not a great way to travel, on certain sections of its journey, these services become extremely crowded with the Class 170s being totally unsuitable. If TransPennine Express can re-introduce 'proper' coaches with a locomotive hauling the train then services such as these and others, Norwich to Liverpool springs to mind, then CrossCountry (or their much-needed replacement) ought to be doing the same!
Keywords: 170110 13.45 Cardiff Central-Nottingham 1M68 Severn Tunnel Junction station

166210 & 165122, GW 11.23 Portsmouth Harbour-Cardiff Central (1F16, RT), Severn Tunnel Junction station
166210 and 166122 speed through Severn Tunnel Junction station having just emerged from the depths of the tunnel of the same name, working the 11.23 Portsmouth Harbour to Cardiff Central train. This view is from the new and absolutely monstrous footbridge at the station that, despite its size, offers very few views of the lines around the station due to its high parapets and the electrification masts. Behind the tall tree above the train was the location of the Severn Tunnel Junction steam shed (86E) and the huge water tower that stood for many years after the shed closed in 1965.
Keywords: 166210 and 165122, GW 11.23 Portsmouth Harbour-Cardiff Central 1F16 Severn Tunnel Junction station

800007 & 800015, GW 12.45 London Paddington-Swansea (1B35, 3E), Severn Tunnel Junction station
Taken the wrong side of the light but taken with a particular thought in mind, 800007 and 800015 passes through Severn Tunnel Junction with the 1B35 12.45 Paddington to Swansea service. This very 'fussy' view contrasts with a photograph that I took of an HST in a very similar spot back in 1977, see.... https://www.ontheupfast.com/v/photos/21936chg/23615758404/my-friend-spotting-companion-richard. However, I think that the older picture was taken on the island platform to the right of me in this image, the new platform three.
Keywords: 800007 800015 12.45 London Paddington-Swansea 1B35 Severn Tunnel Junction station

Tickets, Northampton-Cardiff Central
Using split ticketing I managed to reduce the costs of the fare from Northampton to Cardiff down to a very reasonable £25, this equates to 16pence/mile. They were advanced tickets (booked three days prior to travel) on booked services, I suspect a walk-on anytime single would be considerably more.
Keywords: Tickets Northampton-Cardiff Central

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