Accrington Railways - Robert Kenyon

must allow the machinery of joint consultation to function. Nevertheless, I am grateful to you for giving me the opportunity to look into this matter. Yours, Sir Brian Robertson. Despite the fact that across the north-west 150 trains were to be lost, there were to be no redundancies. This was the firm assurance given by S. O. Screen, the Deputy Divisional Superintendent, at a meeting attended by 300 representatives of local transport committees including from Accrington, Councillor Sproul, who was also the Chairman of the local branch of the NUR. He put forward a suggestion that there should be an ‘inter-availability’ of rail and road tickets. It was a suggestion which he was told “would receive due consideration”. Before the meeting started a resolution had been tabled to oppose all of these cuts, but Sproul said this was totally out of order, as the Union’s Executive had already agreed to measures designed to make the railway more profitable. Budgets had been calculated on 100 passengers paying 1 penny per mile travelled, taking into consideration workmen’s fares and excursion tickets. This calculation had come to 8 shillings and 4 pence per mile, whereas a steam train cost 10 shillings per mile, not including station costs. These reductions would amount to a saving of £3 million per year. Mr Screen stated, “That when diesel traction replaces steam on both passenger and goods trains, the railways would again come into their own”. Reporting back to Council, Cllr. Sproul said, “The facts and figures put before us could not be disputed, so reluctantly we were obliged to accept the proposed reductions to services. However, we were assured that there would be no redundancies as a result of this, and any railwaymen displaced will be found employment in other jobs”. Trips to Southport were to operate every Saturday up until April 13 th , at 4/3d return from Huncoat, Accrington and Church. On Saturday, the 24 th , there were football excursions to Rochdale for Stanley’s away game at 3/-, ( Stanley won 2 – 0 ), and Bolton Wanderers versus Burnley at 2/9d. On Sunday, the 25 th , there was a diesel railcar excursion to Blackpool, departing at 10:34, and returning from Central at 19:15, South Station at 19:20, St Annes at 19:25 for 4/3d return. Accommodation was limited and advanced booking was essential. December On Sunday, the 2 nd , there were repeat trips to Barrow (with a change in Lancaster in both directions), and to Doncaster. On Sunday, the 9 th , Hull was revisited. Due to the Suez crisis diesel and petrol was in short supply and BR to full advantage by placing an advertisement, which extolled the virtues of sending goods by rail on its ‘Fast Freight Service’, details of which could be obtained from the local Stationmaster or Goods Agent. Besides the continuing day trips and evening runs to Blackpool on Sunday, the 30 th , the specials were to Chesterfield and Workington. It was during this month that the push-pull ‘railmotor’ service between Accrington and Colne was withdrawn. The first arrival had been in Accrington at 07:03 before returning to Colne at 07:10, with a final departure to Colne at 20:25. This was a service using a driver trailer car on one end that would control the engine, which was always coupled on the Colne end. This service dated back to the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway era. Some of these carriages dated back to 1912 and had been part of the original Hughes railmotor stock, which still contained gas lighting. The service was rather disparagingly dubbed the “Puffing Billy”. When the railmotor services between Colne and Blackburn via the Great Harwood loop line and Padiham were withdrawn, on October 15 th , 1957, the ‘Radial’ 2-4-2 tanks that had operated these services for many years were put into store at their home shed, Rose Grove. These were numbers 50651/2/3/5, although latterly the Standard 2-6-2 tanks 84012 and 84015 also allocated to Rose Grove, had deputised on occasions for them The Highways Committee heard a report from the Town Clerk that the County Council had proposed to enter into an agreement with the British Transport Commission, for the transfer to them of the responsibility of maintaining road surfaces over railway bridges on highways to which they had direct control. They wished to ascertain whether Accrington Corporation, as a claiming authority, had any objections to the County Council entering into this agreement alone in order to facilitate negotiations with the Commission, on bridge lengths on classified roads in the Borough? It was resolved that no objections would be raised to the County entering into this agreement with the Commission on their own. In 1956 the following locomotive was reallocated - Origin Built New Type Class Numbe In Out Withdrawn

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