Accrington Railways - Robert Kenyon

and collected parcels at the Halliwell depot in Bolton. This would also release a valuable site in Blackburn for disposal, whilst substantial economies would be made by adopting this scheme. Consultation about the staff will follow the normal agreed procedures, and I cannot at this stage comment about the estimated number of redundancies. As you are aware National Carriers is a subsidiary of the National Freight Corporation, so I am not able to say how these proposals will affect their organisations, except to say that their drivers will be offered employment at either of the Oldham or Bolton depots.” London would be well visited during the month starting with a ‘Mini-Holiday’ on Saturday the 2 nd and Sunday the 3 rd . Grand Met would again provide the accommodation and the return train would be back at 20:12. Adult tickets were £6:95p and children’s £4:50p. There was a ‘Christmas Shopping’ special on Saturday the 16 th , leaving town at 07:40 arriving at 11:40 for £3:25p and £2 for a child. The return departed Euston was at 18:17 back in Accrington for 22:21. For those who wished to spend Christmas in the Capital, there was a ‘Stardust’ mini-holiday departing on Saturday the 23 rd , at 07:39 and returning on Boxing Day. Included were three nights’ bed & breakfast in the Kennedy Hotel close to Euston, Christmas lunch and dinner, at the 2nd Class return fare at £21 for an adult and £13:50p for a child. For a £2 supplement a passenger could upgrade to the 1st Class. 1973 ( Closures would continue as part of a rationalisation of facilities none of which would go uncontested, but still the overall pattern was one of decline .) January Between the 3 rd and February the 3 rd , every Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday there was a ‘Saver’ ticket to London at £3:50p per adult and £2 for a child. A normal service train would connect in Preston onto the 07:37 or the 07:53, with a return on the same day on the 16:05, 18:55 or 19:05 from Euston. BR was holding its Travelsure Exhibition at the Guild Hall in Preston from the 18 th , to the 27 th , where the holder of the lucky 5p programme would receive 10,000 miles of free rail travel. There was another ‘Mini-Weekend’ in London over the weekend of the 27 th and 28 th , on much the same lines as previously. It was announced that the closing of the Parcels Department at the Accrington Station had been postponed at the eleventh hour. Some of the 30 employees there and at the Freight Depot in Blackburn had already received redundancy notices, and the move to Bolton was to have taken place on February 5 th . MP Arthur Davidson had met with the BR Chairman, Sir Richard Marsh, for an ‘informal’ discussion accompanied by representatives from the NUR late in the month, and a steering group was to negotiate with the Union. It had been made clear however, that the future of Accrington’s depot was “very uncertain”. February Over the weekend the 3 rd and 4 th , there was a weekend in Torquay for those willing to catch a special to connect with the 00:15 from Preston, to travel overnight to the resort. The fares were for adults £6:95p with children sharing a room £4:50p, under three’s £2:70p. The itinerary was similar to a previous excursion, but this time the coach tour would visit Paignton, Kingswear, Dartmouth and Totnes. March There was a ‘Look & Book’ excursion to Hastings on the 10 th , departing Nelson and stations on the East Lancs Line at midnight on Friday the 9 th . Fares were adults £2:25p and children £1:50p, whilst on the same weekend, there was a ‘Mini-Weekend’ in Edinburgh at £6:75p and £4:50p including one nights bed & breakfast in a British Transport Hotel. The strike by members of ASLEF on Sunday the 11 th , would affect any passengers travelling between Accrington and London, but had little effect on local trains. The dispute was set to continue however. BR was putting its best train forward on Thursday the 15 th , with an all-1st Class excursion to the Cheltenham Gold Cup at the premium fare of £10:25p. This would include a reserved seat, morning coffee and luncheon on the outward run, admission to Tattersall’s Enclosure, and dinner on the return

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