Bus and Rail Gala, Ecclesbourne Valley Railway: Saturday 24th July- Sunday 25th July.
 

24 buses dating from 1947 to 1984 running along side the Railway's DMU Fleet.

We also hope to have Ferrybridge No.3 in steam on the incline with the Inspection Salloon.

The provisional list of vintage buses which will be present on one or other of the days is:

- 1983 ex-Chesterfield Transport Dennis Falcon*
*- 1947 ex-Derby Corporation Daimler CVD6*
*- 1952 ex-Derby Corporation Crossley Double-Decker
*- *1950 ex-K.M Coaches Bedford OB
*- *1952 ex-London Transport RF type AEC Regal IV
*- *1965 ex-Trent Motor Traction Leyland Tiger Cub
*- *1949 ex-London Transport Leyland Titan 6RT*
*- 1969 ex-Abbey Coachways Bedford VAL*
*- 1966 ex-HRH Queen Mother's Royal Household Bedford J2
*- *1961 ex-Bristol MW5G
*- *1973 ex-Barton Buses Leyland Leopard
*- *1969 ex-Burton Corporation Daimler Fleetline*
*- 1953 ex-West Riding Leyland PS2
*- *1970 ex-Midland General Omnibus Bristol RELL
*- *1955 ex-Highlands Albion Nimbus MR9
- 1962 ex-Trent Motor Traction Leyland Tiger Cub (Courtesy of Trent Barton)
- 1950 ex-Crosville Motor Services Bristol L5G
- 1974 ex-Mansfield Bristol RE
- 1984 ex-National Bus Company Leyland Olympian
- 1967 ex-Western National Bristol MW
- (unknown date) Leyland Tiger

Prices: £10.00 Adults; £9.00 Concessions; £5.00 Children; £25.00 family
(2+3) (All day tickets); platform tickets will be £1 during the weekend
which will be redeemable in the buffet car (so that those wishing to use
the buffet only get in at no charge)

I will be there both days, hopefully with No.3.

The following two weekends are the steam gala with Ferrybridge No.3 and Bellerophon.

Best wishes,

John H-T

Are you intending to give rides on the buses ?

Some of those listed are notorious for turning up and just remsining as static exhibits !

It is planned to have a bus service running between Wirksworth and Idridgehay to compliment the rail timetable.

Best wishes,

John H-T.

Would have thought they may have run the Bus up to Duffield also what6 will F B 3 be top and tailed with Class 31 or 20 ?

John, hello mate, I have passed all that info to a couple of Bus sites on the Web and Bus forums.
Hope you have a good weekend.

48111

If only it could look like this and have route number 37 on the front

Sorry I don't quite get the Joke...

Those are the buses that used to run from Duffield to Wirksworth (starting from Derby). The ones I used to catch when I was young. They were the Midlands equivalent of the Routemaster in the late thirties and survived in service until the fifties. Unfortunately none were preserved.

Afterthought: Partly responsible for the demise of the line. Only the quaries kept it open.

Many thanks Peter.

No. 3 will be working the incline this weekend propelling one of the DMU trailer cars. We were going to use the inspection salloon but it only takes 18! We don't have a brake coach in traffic at present and the guard has to be able to have a good view of the line and a vac brake handle to stop the train if necessary.

I will be on the footplate on Saturday (early get up!) and around on Sunday so hope some of you can make it.

Best wioshes,

John H-T.

John, been informed there is a chap coming from Coventry with his preseved bus mate. Hope it goes well.

48111

Thanks Peter.

Here are a couple of photos from the last steam powered trains on the incline in 2005: Castle Donnington No.1 (September for the opening) and Whiston in October.

Best wishes,

John H-T.

I won't be in attendece as Im going for the Dean Forrest Railway (Something Different for a Change)

I have taken the Officers saloon from Knottigley all over West Yorkshire ending up being relieved at Engine Shed Junction, Leeds.(outside Holbeck Shed).
The guards duty was to watch out for anything that would effect the safe running of the train.
There was a whistle(Horn) and a jigger(Vac Brake) where the guard sat.
What has the guard on your train provided with to warn wandering souls in the 4 foot?
Do you use back to back radios to be in touch with the driver or do you just have the vac brake?

When I first started on the railway, I was on a Huddersfield to Penistone DMU. When the driver changed ends at Penistone he could not get the power.
The driver went in the back cab and drove from there.
My job was to control the movement on the internal buzzer, from the leading cab.
When we came out of Denby Dale tunnel, CWJ22 was showing a red aspect.
I gave the driver the buzzer for him to slow down, then when we were 25 yards from this signal one long buzz and he stopped. When the signal came off, I gave him 2 on the buzzer and away we went.
We then came off the branch at Springwood Jct, Huddersfield and onto platform 4, with no problems.
This was just a case of team working and both of us having route knowledge and the will to do it.
This was in the rule book and a permitted move with a DMU.
I have found out that when propelling, you need a very clear understanding with the driver what you are going to do, I do not brief the inspector on the footplate or the fire man and his dog.
I speak to the person who makes the train move and above all the person who is in charge of the traction unit who makes the train stop.
There is an old saying ; ' Too many cooks spoil the broth.'

The horns are still working on the Inspection Salloon so they are "Our means only audible approach!"

The Guard has control of the vacuum brake but we do not have back to back radio.

At present we only have a very small team of Steam Crew so we all know each other well. As several of us have been involved with the permanent way team we have very good route knowledge we have walked all the route at some time or another!

We propel on the incline which is half a mile long ( I have been firing on it all day today) and down to Idridgehay with is three and a half miles. I regularly guard on this route with the works train which is propelled, so again have good route knowledge.

When we start running to Duffield next spring we will not need to propel passenger trains as there are run rounds at both ends. No doubt we will still propel works trains as they do not always run down the whole line.

Best wishes,

John H-T.