Accrington Railways - Robert Kenyon

On Saturday the 24 th , there was a ‘Seaview Special’ to Brighton, departing town at 06:52, arriving in the Sussex resort at 12:52, returning at 16:58 and back at 00:03, with fares at £3:50p and £1:50 per child. February The Town Clerk reported to a meeting of the Development Services Committee, held on the 12 th , that notification had been received from the Divisional Manager of BR in Preston, that a further postponement of the proposed introduction of a reduction of services on the Preston to Colne line had been made. He further reported, that discussions had taken place between BR and the North East Lancashire Development Association, and it was now considering, in conjunction with the County Council, sending a deputation to meet with the Minister with responsibility for transport. ‘Seaview’ specials would dominate the month, with on the 7 th Weston-super-Mare the destination. Timings were departing Accrington at 07:52, Rishton 07:59, arriving at 13:30, returning 18:05 and back at 23:22 and 23:29 respectively. Tickets were £3 and £1:75p respectively. The next ‘Seaview’ ran on Saturday the 21 st , this time visiting Southend-on-Sea for the same fares. Between February 9 th and March 6 th , 2nd Class London ‘Savers’ were available at £5:50p/£2:75p on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, with a 1st Class saver available on Saturdays only at £6:50p/£3:25p. Travel was by the 10:04 from Preston or any later train, returning the same day. Bulldozers moved in to demolish the remains of the buildings of the original 1888 Railway Station on Eagle Street during the month. These included the stone booking office and the brick-built permanent way office. The booking hall, which at one time had four windows where tickets were purchased and contained a refreshment room, had been in use up until 1969, when the facilities had been transferred to the Paxton Street side. It had been used as a parcels office up until these facilities had been transferred to Oldham. ( The original low level East Lancs Platform had been used almost exclusively for the handling of parcels because of its awkward height. Even after the line to Bury had been lifted it retained a short spur for vans to be shunted. Amongst the wide range of goods and materials handled on this platform over the years were substantial numbers of mobility scooters and wheelchairs dispatched from the stores for the Social Services Department located in Accrington. ) Once again there was a ‘Mini-Weekend’ in Torquay, going overnight with connections to Preston. It followed roughly the same format as before, only the prices had changed. They were £14 for adults, £8:20p for children and £3:95p for juniors. Speaking to the local Historical Society, Mr Douglas Townsend, Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects, stated - “Accrington’s Railway Viaduct is the town’s most prominent and best feature, but the clutter op fo sbtu- wi l dairn cgos nasruol ut antdi otnh, eAal lrecnh e&s Ms haot tuol cdkbs eh ca lde abreeedn aowf at hy et oo pmi na ikoen i tt hs aats tpheecrt ems oh roeu ladc cbees sniob lset.r Iunc ttuhreei sr wc l oi tshei nt h1e0n0t hf eeevt i oa fd ut hc et sme i ag rhcthbeesc, oamn de tt hh ee yt awr ge er et ocfovr raencdt a. lTs h, aesr eh awde trhe ef es amr as l tl ehra ts tirf utchteu rrea ial wt Sa hy owe aMs itlol , wV ihc it cohr i ahna de n ug il nt i eme ar it ne lgy wl oe du l dt ob ei tas pdaei nmsot al ikt ii onng . a Hn do wv ee rvye rc, otsot l yt aeknet e dr po rwi sne , tahsi si t mc oauglndi fni coet nbt e pdioe nc ee boyf uwshi ni cgh hwi gehr ee txhpel oi sniivt ei asl”s, soaf i dR i cTho awr nd s He na dc k. i“nTgh ew hl eot twe rass Rt h. eH M. Ma n. a1g8e4r7o. fwt eh ree Esaestt iLna no cnse Roaf i ltwh ea ys taot nt ehse, time of its construction in 1847. March From the 9 th , up until April 3 rd , there was a ‘London Saver’ to visit the ‘Ideal Homes Exhibition’ on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. The trains on which this ticket was valid were the 08:27 or the 09:00 out, returning on the 18:05, and the fares were £6:50p and £4 for a child. This included the underground travel to the Kensington Olympia. Subsidence of the embankment, caused by an old mineshaft opening, resulted in one line between Church and Rishton to be closed on Friday the 12 th , near to the former Aspen Colliery. A spokesman for BR said that one line remained operational and as trains could cross over at points in Whitebirk, there would only be a delay of ten minutes to services. The person sent by the National Coal Board to oversee the filling-in of the working, said he was not aware of any other shafts close to the line from the pit which had ceased production during 1947.

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