welcome back

The long closure for engineering works gives us space to get projects done that need an absence of passengers.

The Tuesday and Saturday Wailing Wall sessions have been busy and productive, welcoming new recruits and enjoying the home-baked rock cakes.

First job, taking down xmas decorations

and carriage numbers

and their gantries

Miles of fairy lights carefully unfastened, wound up, boxed and stacked in the events store. 8 carriage number signs and the gantries holding them, dismantled. Extension leads and fittings packed up. Hundreds of cable ties binned. All done very carefully and ‘working at height’ compliant.

With the completion of the seasonal service, the Bar marquee was taken off hire, so the heaters and lights had to be removed for safe storage. The benches were moved out of the way and are now in a programme of refurbishment.

Lamp posts

Our locally-commissioned lamp posts to an historically-authentic pattern. We prime and undercoat, and topcoat in county cream and purple brown, before installation

The lamp post project has been ongoing for many years. Grants from the SVRCT and SVRG to support our own funds enabled a further batch to be ordered, and the main driveway was illuminated just in time for the seasonal evening trains – a godsend for the wellbeing and safety of our passengers.

Digging holes in the east facing soil embankment was quick and easy for the five posts involved. Not so for these two destined for the boiler shop crossing area.

hole for lamp post

and concrete base

another hole

still digging

hard stuff, Chalkie’s concrete

They got there eventually!

a week later – look what we did! 🙂

new post in place

new post bedded in

A great job by all involved!