spudfan

There has been a thunder and lightning show of biblical proportions going on here for over an hour with no sign of it abating. Constant lightning and constant banging, no gaps whatsoever. Might make the news tomorrow! Never had anything like it last as long.

Went from Antrim to Belfast on the train today. At one of the next stops four women got on towing their luggage. They settled down and started talking among themselves. Suddenly one of the women remarked that they were on the wrong train and were heading in the wrong direction! Anyway they decamped at the next station to catch the next train in the RIGHT direction! Some derelict wagons outside Antrim. They are that covered by nature I thought it they were an old platform covered by undergrowth. If you are passing that way keep an eye out as you are leaving the station. They are on the right hand side heading for Belfast. An Enterprise liveried 201 and two rather forelorn matching coaches stabled at the works outside York Street station.

Tailbacks in Derry after a lorry became stuck on the Craigavon bridge show the need for a new bridge over the Foyle, an MLA has suggested. There were long delays in the city after a heavy goods vehicle became wedged on the lower deck of the bridge on Wednesday morning. While there do not appear to be official statistics recording exactly how often this has happened, local politicians say it has now become something of a regular occurrence - with the drivers of large vehicles following GPS directions thought to be responsible for many of the instances. More here New bridge over the Foyle needed says MLA as another lorry gets stuck I do not have a GPS or a SatNav, I have a "SatNag. "It does not come with an off switch....sometimes I feel it would be nice to have that option.

Dublin automated metro procurement launched Dublin automated metro procurement launched - Railway Gazette International

Have sent the scans. Enjoy...

The headline had me confused especially the piece about a decline in freight traffic. Then I saw that it was May 4 in 1926! Sharp fall in rail passenger numbers and freight hits Northern Ireland economy - On this day in 1926

Here is a few extracts from book which has a chapter on the creation of the Mont Cenis tunnel in the alps. The extracts here deal with the track and motive power. The book was written at the time of construction of the tunnel by someone who was doing some climbing in the area. Anyway I found it really interesting. If any one out there wants the whole relevant chapter I can email it to them.

I was talking to someone today who does business with various companies in China. The cost of getting a container load of goods from China to here has fallen from a high of around €20,000 to €3,500. That is a big saving to any company. He did think that the costs will start climbing again and was wondering when delivery/courier companies here will start asking for a fuel surcharge on delivery of packages to counter the cost of fuel. I am thinking the the "free" delivery of model train items could be thing of the past as delivery companies will need to cover the cost of fuel increases.

BBC Audio | Rare Earth | Trains on Trial This is a programme from the BBC Radio 4 series Rare Earth. Do not know if the link will work but if not you will find it on the BBC site. The BBC Player does not work here but BBC Sounds does. It's 200 years since the first passenger rail journey saw George Stephenson’s Locomotion No.1 travel 26 miles between Shildon, Darlington and Stockton. Environmentalists love trains - making a journey by rail can be up to 80% greener than doing it by car - and there are exciting new inventions hoping to make train travel even greener. But can we pin part of the blame for global warming on the invention of the railways in the first place?.

An article on the above, Next operator appointed to run Dublin’s Luas trams | News | Railway Gazette International This caught my eye "‘We will bring innovation and best practice from across our existing tram and light rail operations with Amey, as well as experience from our many networks around the world’, said Alistair Gordon, CEO of Keolis UK and Ireland. Wonder if that swung it?

When the power goes off I can still use the range and the sitting room fire. Every so often I have to run the hot water off as it does not circulate without the pump going. A tank of oil will last us 4 to five years as it is not our main source of heating.

Yes I remember when Tallaght was being built up. The houses were built with no chimneys because oil was cheap. The oil crisis came and a LOT of houses had to have chimneys retrofitted. Politicians seem to take a blinkered view on issues and push it along never allowing for future options.

My wife and our daughter, who has special needs, were out this morning. Our daughter saw a newly built house that had no chimney and she mentioned to my wife that the house had no chimney. Then she asked "How does Santa get in?" My wife told her that they have to leave the window open! They never thought of that when they drafted those building regulations!

For many years Paddy ploughed a lone furrow . Those early days must have been daunting at times but he succeeded probably against the odds. If Iarannrod Eireann would rename one of the 071 class "Paddy Murphy" we could have one of the upcoming 071 models similarily named. A fitting tribute. He did not stand on the shoulders of giants, he was the giant. Anyway on the 17th March I know which Saint Patrick I will be thinking off.