Photo Class 350105 London Midlands Desiro EMU Train Enters Wolverton Station 2013

Class 350105 London Midland Trains EMU Heading For London

Photo:  Charles Moorhen

UK passenger train Class 350105 electric multiple unit (DMU), in London Midland Trains livery, photographed entering Wolverton station, Buckinghamshire, with a regular commuter service to London Euston.

London Midland Trains would, on the 10th December 2017, be taken over by West Midlands Trains whose franchise will run until March 2026.


Wolverton railway station historical note:
It was at Wolverton railway station in Buckinghamshire, on the 9th September 1845, that bare-knuckle fighter, Bendigo, stepped from a carriage of a London & Birmingham Railway train surrounded by a horde of his supporters.

His destination was the nearby town of Newport Pagnell where it was arranged that he would take part in an illegal fight with Ben Caunt.

At the last possible moment, for various reasons, the venue was switched to the village of Lillington Lovell, 4 miles north of Buckingham.


The match went ahead with Bendigo being heralded the winner after 96 gruelling rounds.

 

 

 

Two Class 350 EMUs Pass at Bletchley Station

 

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Night Photo London Midland Trains Desiro Class 350233 EMU Train Bletchley 2018

London Midland Trains Class 350233 Electric Multiple Unit, Bletchley

Photo:  Charles Moorhen

The railway station of Bletchley looks deserted in this night image of 2018 as desiro 12-car London Midland Trains, Class 350 233 electric multiple unit (EMU) passenger train, waits before continuing on towards Wolverton and Northampton.

 

This was the last night photo, out of a total of around fifteen which, happily for me included Southern Trains Class 377701 Turbostar, I took on this particular summer night.

The West Coast Main Line station of Bletchley, once came to the public's attention for all the wrong reasons!

 

 

 

Video Clip - Two Class 350 EMUs Pass at Bletchley

 

Bletchley Train Crash - 1939

Today, as Class 66s, Class 86s and Freightliner Class 70 diesel locomotives haul long and heavy freight trains along this section of the West Coast Main Line, and Class 350 electric multiple units transport thousands of commuters into and out of London each day, and Class 390 tilting trains pass one by in the blink of an eye, it is hard to imagine that the Buckinghamshire station of Bletchley, was once the location of an horrific train crash during the early months of World War 2.

In the morning gloom of Friday the 13th October 1939, the 07:37 Euston - Inverness express train was stopped in the station (approximately where Class 350233 is standing in the photo above), whilst a shunting locomotive - a London & North Western Railway 0-8-0 Class G1 number 9168 - was attaching an extra coach to the rear.

Whilst this operation was in progress, the 07:50 Euston - Stranraer express, double-headed by two immensely powerful steam locomotives - one a 4-6-0 Royal Scot class, the other an LMS Stanier 'Black Five' No. 5025 (subsequently re-numbered 45025) - was bearing down on Bletchley station; running at high speed and three minutes behind schedule.

'Black Five' 5025 in Preservation

An inevitable disaster was merely seconds away.

The impact of the resulting collision was so powerful when it happened, that it lifted a number of coaches and one of the locomotives up onto the adjacent platform, a height of around 4 feet, totally demolishing the waiting and refreshment rooms.

Amid the carnage - station staff, passengers, volunteer members of the ARP unit (Air Raid Precautions) and a number of doctors offered what assistance they could to the injured, while ambulances summoned from the surrounding towns rushed to the scene.

A postman, a railway porter, an RAF serviceman and the engine driver of the G1 shunter locomotive were killed instantly.  40 other people were injured.

The more seriously injured, among them a shunter and a refreshment room waitress, were transported by road to Northampton hospital 20 miles away.

The inquiry into the cause of the crash put the blame squarely on the shoulders of the driver and fireman of the Euston to Stranraer express train.  They inquiry panel cited; excessive speed and the passing of a number of track-side signals set at red as the main cause.

On a happier note:  Against all the odds, one of the steam locomotives involved managed to survive the events of the 13th October 1939.  'Black Five' No. 5025 was eventually repaired and put back into mainline service.  It worked for a further twenty-nine years until retirement on the 31st August 1968.

Saved from the scrapyard, it survives to this day on the preserved Strathspey Railway in Scotland.

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Night Photo Desiro UK Class 350250 EMU UK Passenger Train Wolverton 2016

London Midland Trains Class 350250 EMU

Photo: Charles Moorhen

Strangely enough, this 2016 night photo of London Midland Trains Class 350 250, UK passenger commuter train, standing in Wolverton station on its way to Euston station, London, came about following the change of a set of spark plugs in my car earlier in the day...and an infuriating lapse of memory.

In my eagerness to ensure that I had set the plug gaps to the correct size I decided to drive the 16 miles to Wolverton railway station, a station I've visited a number of times in the past, to test how the car was performing and do a spot of night photography while I was there.

Arriving at Wolverton station I opened the boot only to find that I had left behind a vital piece of equipment - my tripod!  

Now I was left with two options.  Drive back home and collect the tripod, or take my chances hand-holding the camera and hoping for the best.  

Well, the first option was totally out of the question as it would have meant a total driving mileage for the evening of around 64 miles. And it was only meant to be a quick trip!

So, it was the latter option or a complete waste of time and petrol.

After a couple of blurred, out of focus failures I managed to produce a small number of half decent hand-held photos, this one of electric multiple unit, Class 350 250, probably being the best of the bunch.   

The moral of this little tale?  Even if the odds are pretty much stacked against you have a go anyway.  You may be pleasantly surprised!

And yes!   The spark plugs worked fine.

 

 

 

Video Clip - Two Class 350 EMUs Passing at Bletchley Station

Class 350250 electric multiple unit was built between 2008 and 2009 and is allocated to Northampton King's Heath Siemens Depot.

The unit coach numbers for this EMU are as follows: 61450  65250  67550  61550.

 

Wolverton railway station historical note:
It was at Wolverton railway station in Buckinghamshire, on the 9th September 1845, that bare-knuckle fighter, Bendigo, stepped from a carriage of a London & Birmingham Railway train surrounded by a horde of his supporters.

His destination was the nearby town of Newport Pagnell where it was arranged that he would take part in an illegal fight with Ben Court.

At the last possible moment, for various reasons, the venue was switched to the village of Lillington Lovell, 4 miles north of Buckingham.


The match went ahead with Bendigo being heralded the winner after 96 gruelling rounds.

___________________________

 

 

 

A few historical facts about Wolverton railway station:

• The first station was built on the canal embankment above Wolverton Park and opened on the 17th Sept. 1838

• In 1840 a newer, more permanent station was built close by.

• The waiting room of the newer structure, which surprisingly had a full-time staff of 29, was lavishly redecorated for the visit of Queen Victoria in 1824.

• In 1881 yet another station was constructed replacing all previous buildings.

• The wooden station buildings built on the road bridge over the tracks stood for 100 years until British Rail demolished them in 1991.

• A modern brick station building, close to the car park and platforms, was opened on the 21st June 2012.

• Wolverton station has four platforms although only two are used for 'stopping' trains; the other two being reserved for fast 'through' expresses.

• Between 1865 and 1964 there was a branch line from Wolverton to Newport Pagnell Railway Station, primarily for employees at the nearby Wolverton Railway Works.  It was closed to all railway traffic in 1967.     

Don't forget to subscribe to  'Along These Tracks' railway blog to get all new posts and updates sent directly to you.

Blog update:

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"I hope this makes your search easier".