Accrington on Rails - The Tramways: A Complete History - Robert Kenyon

With that he wound up the meeting Footnote Taylor’s - contract on May 5 th 1894 was for a price of 5 shillings and 10 pence per lineal yard. He had stated, “Jeffs told me I had to do it to the satisfaction of the Corporation and as they required it. I put in extra concrete by instructions of W m Foden, whilst Mr W. Cronshaw had charge of the job from me. He was told by Mr Jeffs not to obey Foden. Foden tools the levelling - and has often mentioned to Mr Jeffs this extra concreting. He stated I should be paid for this extra work. I requested a letter from him to prove it. The bolts as first supplied were too long. I had to put some in, and then take them out again. They then had to be cut by about half an inch by Mr Withers. I knew just well before connecting them I had made enquiries about them at the Surveyor’s office before contracting. I also had a meeting with the Directors before contracting at the Royal Hotel on July 3 rd to discuss my correspondence of June 30 th . So I began work on June 18 th .” June At a Watch Committee meeting it was reported that on the night of May 29 th , an employee of the Tramway Company had been observed lighting up some of the lamps on the Market grounds without the authority of the Lighting Superintendent, who had also reported the matter. The Town Clerk was authorised to write to the Tramway Company requesting there should be no repeat of this irregularity! A letter from the Town Clerk of Blackburn was received setting out the terms on which the Corporation of Blackburn would agree to the Tramway Company having use of the passing loop in Church. It was resolved the Town Clerk would prepare an agreement between the two Corporations and the Tramway Company for ‘joint’ use of the passing loop. The Committee discussed at ‘great length’ the relaying of the Church Section of the Tramway which was currently in progress. It was of some concern that the specifications approved by the Committee were not being adhered to. Later the Chairman, Secretary and the contractor of the Tramway Company, later joined the meeting and applied for a different specification to be adopted for the relaying of the lines. The Committee resolved it would be ‘undesirable’ to deviate from the original specifications, and communicated this to the Tramway Company’s representatives. September A letter was received from the Secretary of the Tramway Company, asking for extra compensation for the loss of revenue being incurred due to the relaying of the Church Section. It was resolved that the Town Clerk replied, stating that this Committee saw no reason to change its previous agreement to pay the sum of £200 as full compensation, and would therefore not entertain any further applications. October The Secretary of the Tramway Company wrote to the Transport Committee to point out that some sections of the Church relaying had not been done to the satisfaction of his Company. In this letter he requested the Committee go over these lines with his Directors and the contractor. No decision was taken on this request. The Town Clerk reported that an agreement for use of the passing loop outside the Commercial Hotel in Church had now been signed by all the parties involved, also that a cheque for £52 and 10 shillings, being the sum named in the agreement, had now been paid to the Blackburn Tramway Company. November A meeting of the Town Council received a letter from the Board of Trade, enclosing a copy of Major-General Hutchinson’s report on his recent inspection of the Tramway. It also contained his consent to the use of steam power as traction on the Tramway for a further term up until April 13 th 1900. 1895 (Disputes persisted between the Corporation and the Tramway Company over the condition of the permanent way and the depot.) The Report of the Borough Surveyor, Mr William J. Newton, CE, for the year ending March 31 st , was presented to the Council. It read as follows - Considerable improvements have been made in the condition of the Tramway, the Tramway Company having during the past year relaid all of the Church Section and most of the Baxenden Section with Girder Rail to replace the Barker Rail. The work on the Baxenden Section which involved replacing only the rails as they were already laid on a

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