Brief outline of the department

The department is one of the many that make up the Lincolnshire Wolds Railway

Lincolnshire Wolds Railway

The Lincolnshire Wolds Railway is a heritage railway based at Ludborough station, near Grimsby in Lincolnshire, England and the only standard gauge steam railway in Lincolnshire open to the public. The line is part of the original Great Northern Railway , a rail system that opened in 1848 and once...

. It installs, maintains and repairs all the signalling and telecommunications on the LWR. Based primarily at Ludborough railway station

Ludborough railway station

Ludborough is a heritage railway station in Ludborough, Lincolnshire, which is the base of the Lincolnshire Wolds Railway. The station, which was previously part of the East Lincolnshire Railway, closed in 1961 to passengers and 1965 to freight, but was taken over by the preservation society in 1984...

, the department looks after the railways two functioning signal boxes:- Ludborough and North Thoresby.

Ludborough signal box

Ludborough signalbox is built on the foundations of the original box that once stood there. Sadly the original box was demolished by British Rail in early 1970s after the line had closed to passengers. The new box was constructed between 1994 and 1996 and is a close representation of the original. The 18 lever frame inside the box is the original frame from Hainton street in Grimsby. This box was standing until 1991 when it was destroyed by fire. Also inside Ludborough box is the original gate wheel from Hainton Street which opened the level crossing gates there. Sadly however it is unlikely that this will ever be used in its current location.

Out of the 18 levers, at the present time, only 4 are in use. However a future scheme is currently being worked on that will bring 8 levers in to use. All the signals with the exception of the Down Starter (LU3) have SPT's (Signal Post Telephones) fitted to them. These allow both the driver and signalman to contact each other. Ludborough currently operates two GNR somersault signals (LU3 down starter and LU14 Up Inner Home). These type of signals were used all over the East Lincolnshire Railway and is appropriate for the railway's needs. Ludborough box was passed by HMRI in October 2004 for use and was officially opened in April 2005.

Future plans will see the box operate 3 additional signals and a ground frame release operated from the box.

North Thoresby signal box

North Thoresby signal box is a 7 lever Eastern region ground frame that has been installed to operate the track and signalling layout at North Thoresby. It operates two main line signals, two shunting signal for access to and from the siding, a facing point lock and a facing point for access in and out of the siding. With No.1 lever being released by the annetts key making up the final lever in the frame.

The signalling type used here is a mixture of both ex-BR signalling and Ex LNER. All signals are of the upper quadrant variety. This means that when the signals are cleared the move upwards to a 45 degree angle to show all clear. If the wire snaps the signal automatically fails safe and returns to danger.

A track circuit runs over the main line and siding to give an indication to the signalman as to the whereabouts of the train and also to prevent the points from being moved under a train.

North Thoresby signal box was commisioned on 7 August 2009.

Future

The future for the department is a good one. With 8 miles of railway to re-build and 4 level crossings to re-instate there is a lot work to carry out. The railway is trying to get towards Utterby halt (the next level crossing in the direction of Louth) and is currently rebuilding the layout at the Louth end of the yard. This will include extending and altering the engine shed, laying new point work and extending the main line towars Utterby and updating the signalling accordingly. This will include 2 new signals and the ground frame. One of the new signals will be a 3 aspect colour light and the other will be a GNR somersault.

When this work is complete the railway will then progress towards Utterby Halt and ultimately Louth.

External links

• lincolnshirewoldsrailway.co.uk