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Welcoming
Thanks to those of you who have welcomed me, I am not a railwayman, but am of an age when one thinks that I probably missed out on something of the steam era, I am sure most of it is a romantic nostalgia that has been written about over the years, yet in reality the steam age was probably alot more dangerous dirty and dammed hard work than people care to remember.
I was but 10 years old when the end of steam came on the big railway. Although I do have a few genuine memories of the Dudley dasher passing through Swan village. I also remember various locos at Snow Hill/Tyseley. We hardly ever used the train as I was growing up. But I developed a general interest in all forms of transport Bus/Coach Train Planes Boats etc. Its only since hitting middle age that my interest in trains really accelerated, which I suppose co- insides with the preservation movement and my ability to visit as many sites as possible. I have been very sceptical of the current way the big railway has been set up but recently went on a jolly around the West Midlands trying my hardest to avoid coming back to New Street too many times to change trains but travel on as many lines as possible, Coleshill-New St-Stafford-Rugeley TV-Walsall-Aston-University-Droitwich-Moor St.-Stratford-Leamington-Coventry-Nuneaton-Tamworth-New St.-Lichfield TV-Nuneaton-Coleshill Thats 17 trains in 11hrs 20mins and all for less than 17 quid. I was quite suprised how many of the trains we spot on with their time keeping, it wasn't perfect as 1 train was cancelled from Rugeley but I made up the deficit by the time I was at University waiting for the Droitwich train.
How do the rest of you feel about he current situation?
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