7th February – An Evening Linear hop in Oxfordshire

7^th February – An Evening Linear hop in Oxfordshire

With an early start on the Saturday, I didn’t want a late evening, so it was a good time to revisit some of the stations I needed between Reading & Oxford, a couple I revisited last year for platforms, but otherwise I needed everything, including Didcot Parkway!  This line, especially Didcot – Oxford, takes some planning due to the stopping pattern and a large gap in services at Culham.

The day began with a walk to Grateley, where the TVM wasn’t working again (not sure if it got fixed after last week, I suspect the guards like the extra commission if they get it).  The 14:59 service was unusually early, with 158882/159104/159019 taken to Basingstoke where I exited the station to pick up the other ticket I required, plus also supplies for dinner later, mainly for a time wasting move.  Back to the station with a pair of voyagers on the Manchester service (winter Friday only) with 220029 leading 221135 for the speedy run to Reading, arriving as hoped a couple minutes early to allow me to cross over to board an Oxford stopper which starts at Reading, a busy 165136 for a single stop to Tilehurst.

The last time I was here, HSTs were still around

I was glad I got this service as it put me ahead of my rough plan, and gave me a fifteen minute fester before 387161 & 387147 arrived to take me a couple stops to Goring & Streatley,  giving me another short fester (spent watching the various IETs rushing past at speed, also noting there is a Tesco Express nearby.  387163 & 387171 were on the next Didcot service to take me one more stop to Pangbourne for a short wait for a Banbury bound 165133 to roll to take me to Culham, the 10 minute dwell at Didcot Parkway allowed me to get a photograph.

Culham is quite busy due to a nearby science park, but has an annoying gap in service after 18:08, the next service being 2 hours later, which surprised me considering how busy the station felt, unusual with the southbound platform being split with an old part fenced off behind the old station building.  My time here wasn’t long before 165136 arrived to take me up the line to Radley, where I made a tight connection to 165123 on the next Reading stopping service, and also another tight connection at Didcot Parkway to 800315 to get me back to Reading earlier.

Platforms at Culham

This earlier than expected arrival, meant I could catch 165111 to Basingstoke, followed with 159010 & 159009 back home, arriving an hour earlier than my plan, which is always a nice bonus.  As was the bonus of the Poole bound 442 working, something I might try and do during the summer months as the connections back to Southampton are not the best.

31st – 2nd February, Staying Local (ish)

31^st – 2^nd February, Staying Local (ish)

The idea for this weekend was to stay local(ish) and focus on revisiting stations in this general area, no overnight trips nor any long distance services.

31^st January – Thames Valley Branches

I was down to only needing the intermediate stations on both Henley & Marlow branches, after knocking off the other stations over the last few months, originally I had the idea of doing these as part of a Thames Valley Day Ranger trip, but as my requirements for units is only one 802 plus several 345s I decided it probably wouldn’t be the best use, playing with the BR Fares website highlighted it would also be cheaper to do the branches on a day return, taking advantage of the peak time additional Maidenhead – Bourne End services (Henley is half hourly most of the day).

So to the trains, and a walk to Grateley, finding the TVM was broken (screen completely blank, like it lost power), so it was a case of buying my first ticket from the guard when they came round, with 158880, 159016 & 159003 for the run to Basingstoke.  Due to the issue with the freight train at Eastleigh, the XC service I would normally catch wasn’t running (Bournemouth – Manchester was cut back to running from Reading, likewise the Southampton – Newcastle services were running from Reading, with a rough hourly Bournemouth – Reading shuttle via Laverstock).  This meant a slightly longer fester at Basingstoke, which I made the most off by visiting the nearby Post Office to post a parcel.

It's the Bond Class 70, 007.  Licensed to haul.

Back at Basingstoke station and it was onto a busy 165110, the guard doing a ticket check before departure and throwing someone who didn’t have a ticket off (although no doubt that character probably boarded again, complaining about being fined already once that day).   At Reading it was a fast walk over to board 345022 for the run to Maidenhead which gave a tight connection to the Marlow train (165126) which I took one stop to Furze Platt.  It had been raining, and other than a little tip-down seat near the part-time ticket office, the seats were outside, with a little waiting shelter featuring a smoker (or something druggie smelling).  With 30 minutes to kill I had a little walk around, but mainly housing with a couple retail units, so spent the remainder of the time within the covered walkway, noticing a “no loitering” style sign.

The Marlow Donkey departs Furze Platt

The time passed and a busy 165116 arrived with the Bourne End service to take me one more stop along the line to Cookham for another short fester, although the light rain had returned so I didn’t go exploring (bit hard to see much in the dark anyway).  165116 returned from Bourne End to take me back to Maidenhead where I made a negative connection onto a Didcot Parkway bound service as it was running a couple minutes late, with 387145, 387146 & 387154 taken for the single stop to Twyford, where it was a gentle walk to the bay platform for the Henley train (which gets held for up to 4 minutes for the official connections in the evening peak).  165113 was on the branch today and it was taken a couple stops to Shiplake, returning 10 minutes later to take me back to Wargrave.  Both stations are basic, although I assume there used to be a barrow crossing at Wargrave due to having “Stop, look & Listen” boards.  Good to see some old-school signs at Shiplake, but sadly Wargrave is another station which lacks seats within the shelter (it also lacks TVMs so I dread to think how much lost revenue there is on this line with local flows).

Got to love old style signs

Half an hour later, 165113 returned to take me back to Twyford, with 345063 taken for the trip to Reading, transferring onto a busy 165117 working the next Basingstoke stopper (the declassified first class section seems to be a hidden secret), before 159019, 158887 & 159015 took me back to Grateley for a gentle walk home.  4 more stations revisited for photographs, which clears Reading – Paddington with branches, a lazy Friday evening trip.

165113 rests at Twyford

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1^st February – Portsmouth Direct Line & Oddities

The plan for today was to revisit some stations on the Portsmouth Direct Line, both for photographs and for platforms (as this line comes out of a day ranger area, I did it linearly over a couple visits the first time round in 2015).  Also it would give me a reason to revisit a couple stations which are on their own, to tidy up the map so to speak.  The day began with the 6:59 service to Basingstoke (159003) where I made a tight connection onto 165112 working towards Reading, changing over to 387159 for the run to Midgham.  This station is semi-awkward in that it has a level crossing with trains passing within a couple minutes of each other so there is no guarantee the barriers will raise between services.  Needless to say the barriers didn’t raise between services so I had roughly an hour here, and there isn’t a lot around (although I did have a relaxing 10 minutes sitting by the canal/riverside), but the sun was out and there is a lot of bench seats at the station.

Midgham, the least Used station in Berkshire?

Eventually 387152 returned from Reading to take me to Newbury, where I connected onto 800030 for the run back to Reading, where I exited the station to do a couple little jobs and get supplies for lunch, before I returned to the station to board 458536 & 458535 for the run to Ascot (sitting in the area behind the cab for the full sized table).  At Ascot it was a short walk over to platform 3 to board 450022 working the next Aldershot service to take me to a noisy Frimley (The A331 runs close by) and a thirty minute fester before 450090 arrived to take me to Aldershot, followed with 450126 to Guildford, where it was time to transfer to the direct line, being greeted with 2x 73s on a Network Rail test train.

A 73/9 at Guildford

I was in for a nice surprise with the next Portsmouth bound service, my interest was picked when I noticed the headcode was a class 9 rather than the usual class 1, which meant the chance of some 442s, and it was correct with 442414 & 442403 arriving for the run towards Petersfield, some good motor noise, although it did loss time.  At Petersfield I had a short wait before 450117 & 450013 rolled in on the stopper to take me one stop to Rowlands Castle, changing over platforms to board 450085/450053/450104 on the next stopper back towards London, only for a couple stops to Liss.  I crossed over the footbridge to join 450075 & 450025 on the next Porstmouth & Southsea stopper to take me to Bedhampton, where I saw 313201 for the first time (since it turned blue) and joined 450013 & 450117 back one stop to Havant where I stepped back a service (allowed me to grab a couple photographs of 377s).

Diverted freight due to Eastleigh?

This was a bit of a gamble for the next fast service back towards London, thankfully it landed on a pair of 444s (rather than a triple 450), with 444015 & 444043 taking me back into Surrey in comfort, where I alighted at Haslemere transferring to 450118 & 450054 working the next stopping service, only to Milford, transferring to the opposite platform to await the next Haslemere service, the light was starting to die out and imagine my shock when a pair of 455s rolled in, when on earth did these start escaping to Haslemere!  455919 & 455871 were the pair on a day trip to take me back one stop to Witley where I had a 40 minute fester for the same pair of 455s back, a nice place to fester in the quiet.

455s on a day trip to Haslemere. How much I wanted to stay on after Woking for the fast to Clapham Junction run

455871 & 455919 returned from Haslemere to take me to Woking, where I transferred onto a full & standing 159012 & 159106 working the next Yeovil Junction “Via Bruton” service (a bit of a strange station to put in for a via point, I would imagine Via Westbury or even Via Frome would be a tad more helpful).  The 159s emptied out at Basingstoke (due to the issues at Eastleigh, Basingstoke was reduced to 2x sprinters an hour to London plus the 2x stoppers), and I got a seat for the remaining section to Grateley, walking home to relax for the remainder of the evening.

A productive day, I still have one station left on the Portsmouth Direct Line but that is easier to do on a Sunday, plus I finished the “Camberley” line and the Reading – Bedwyn line.

Oink Oink.  442410 & 442420 at Petersfield heading towards London

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2^nd February – North Downs Line

I needed a small handful of stations on the North Downs Line, including 2 of the 2-hourly Surrey ones; this line is slightly easier to do on a Sunday due to the passing points of the hourly Redhill stoppers, so ideal to do on a winters Sunday when daylight is limited.

The day began with 159015 & 159022 for the short trip to Basingstoke, where I confused the ticket office seller with a request for a North Downs Ranger, before boarding 158882 & 159010 for the run to Reading (where 5 coaches just about fits in platform 1).  It was time for a walk to Tesco for supplies for lunch and something cold to drink, before returning to Reading slightly ahead of schedule, allowing me to do a time wasting move to Blackwater on 165111 returning to Sandhurst on 165112 to have a look at the platform extensions coming along to allow the “tri-mode” 769s to operate, whenever they will eventually come.

Two generations of platform extensions at Sandhurst

The next Redhill service was in the hands of 165108 which I took for the trip to Gomshall,  a station which has changed since I was last here, gone was the barrow crossing & hut, replaced with a new footbridge with ramps, but being on the footbridge gives excellent views of the Surrey Hills.  The next Reading service arrived with 165101 to take me to Farnborough North, which like Frimley is next to the A331 but looks to have a nice river/canal-side walk between the two stations [I did look into doing that on the Saturday but the timings didn’t work out].  This is one station easier to visit on a Sunday as on a Saturday the trains pass here, and it is a controlled foot crossing.

View from the footbridge at Gomshall

Thirty minutes at Farnborough North, listening to the sound of traffic and 165107 arrived to take me back towards Surrey and to Chilworth (another level crossing station), not a lot around the station (although I did notice all the platform signs had “GWR” logos on, and the totem signs had been replaced at some-point).  It was a short wait before the next Reading stopper (where I noticed the level crossing alarm sounded like bells).  165112 arrived to take me one stop to Shalford to clear the line for photographs.

A Gatwick bound 165 speeds through Chilworth

After a quick walk around the station (local pub looked busy), it was onto 165101 for the run to Dorking Deepdene, crossing over to the opposite platform for 165107 to take me back to Guildford, where it was time to finish the Portsmouth Direct Line, and board a busy 450105 on the stopper to take me to Liphook, where it was a short fester before 444001 rolled in for some luxury on the Woking bound stopper.  I couldn’t help noticing the footbridge at Liphook could do with some TLC as it was a bit rusty and supported with scaffolding.

Some TLC needed at Liphook

Back at Guildford, it was over to platform 8 to board a busy 165108 for the run back to Reading, making a tight connection onto the next Salisbury service (158881 & 158890) for the run home to Grateley, getting home to relax for the rest of the evening.  Overall today was good, no real delays and the North Downs complete, along with the Portsmouth Direct Line (well Bedhampton to Guildford as I need to revisit Hilsea, but Hilsea can be done later in the year).

24th – 26th January, Another trip to Merseyside & SWR bits

24^th – 26^th January, Another trip to Merseyside

This trip came about when the Branch Line Society announced their latest tour in conjunction with Merseyrail, an early farewell to the 507/8s covering the 7 terminals of the Merseyrail network in 7 hours.  It picked my interest as it covered the stock interchange line (between James Street & Central), plus did the rarer used platforms at West Kirby & New Brighton, the tour was reasonably priced, with reasonable prices charged for hotels in the area (selecting on a place near Bootle on grounds that it was close to the station) and the tickets from London were standard price.

Originally the idea was to be home on the Friday night, heading up to London on the Saturday, but I didn’t fancy the magical mystery tour via Staines, so I ended up making use of a Travelodge sale to book a night at the Travelodge in Hounslow, close to Hounslow Central LU station.

24^th January – South Western Railway land

With the Friday evening in London, I had several ideas, in the end deciding on a good clear-out of my remaining SWR stations within London, plus a little trip towards Effingham Junction as I needed a couple stations in that area, and it is slightly easier in the peak time (as off-peak the connections at Effingham Junction are a bit poor).

The day began with the 14:59 service from Grateley (158880, 159004 & 159012), running a few minutes late, to take me to Basingstoke, followed by 220027 for the run to Reading (managed to get a seat on this busy voyager), where I made a tight connection to 800311 on the London bound to take me to Paddington.  It was down to the Bakerloo with 3247/3547 taken to Waterloo (I had time to spare so didn’t bother changing at Baker Street, besides I had a seat).  Next up was over to platform 1 for a Dorking bound service (455710/455851) to take me to Epsom, this is one of the peak-time services which skips a couple stations between Raynes Park & Epsom, and I believe the first time I’ve gone south from Ewell West, the previous times I’ve come north.

A voyager at Reading

At Epsom, I stepped back a Horsham bound service, to board a Guildford bound Southern service (377302, 377325 & 377144) to take me to Bookham where my planned linear fester of 5 minutes turned into 20 minutes due to delays caused by congestion.  Eventually the Effingham Junction bound service (456023, 455905 & 455852) arrived to take me the one stop to Effingham Junction, where due to the timetable having a lot of padding arrived only 5 minutes late (timetabled to sit outside the station to allow a fast Portsmouth train to pass).  I managed to make the connection to the next Waterloo via Cobham service (455708 & 455706) which took me to Oxshott.

Thirty minutes later, the next Waterloo bound service arrived (455719 & 455714) which I took to Surbiton, where I bailed for the sole reason for needing the toilet.  Unusually this service went into platform 2, but lost time due to being stuck behind a late running stopper from Hampton Court, so I actually beat it to Clapham Junction with the service from Basingstoke (450092, 450003 & 450072).  At Clapham Junction I walked over to the Windsor line side, awaiting the next Windsor service (707022 & 707029) to take me to Feltham, giving me a chance to look at the new platform extensions over the former level crossing.  707021 & 707017 were up next to take me back to Whitton, returning to Feltham on 455729 & 455854.

No more short platforms at Feltham, a few months ago this was a level crossing

Next up was 707007 & 707008 to take me to Syon Lane (with a long walk between platforms due to the old entrance being upgraded with a lift), 707024 on its own back one stop to Isleworth, before 450099 & 450090 to Brentford and an extended fester before 707010 & 707025 took me to Hounslow, to complete SWR within the zones.  A gentle walk towards Hounslow town centre saw me swinging via a Tesco Express for some supplies, before checking into the Travelodge.  I was tempted to head back out for a little jolly to Heathrow but decided against it as the temperature was a bit chilly.

Overall a productive Friday, for station revisiting with my camera, the weather was kind with no rain, the Travelodge is reasonable, a bit of road noise but well located for the Piccadilly Line, with a few nearby bus routes.

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25^th January – Another day in Merseyside

The idea for today was to continue my station revisiting in Merseyside, focusing on the Northern line plus the Northern services served by DMUs which I couldn’t do a couple weeks ago due to engineering works.  It was a later start compared to previous weeks (booked on the 09:07 service from Euston), so I was out of the hotel for around 07:00, a short walk to Hounslow Central station before taking a seat on Piccadilly line set 173/242 for the run to Green Park, followed by 11061/11062 on the Victoria line to Euston.  At Euston I had time to visit Sainsburys to pick up breakfast, before waiting for the Liverpool train to start boarding.

London Underground at dawn

I took a seat in coach C on 390126, for this was booked on the mobile version of the old Virgin Trains website which didn’t have a seat selector, so it ignored my request for a table and put me into an airline aisle seat, and relaxed for the speedy run towards Lime Street, the train getting busy at Crewe due to a couple London Northwestern 350s running hopelessly late (I think one ended up being turned at Stafford, the next at South Parkway and another at Crewe).  Arrival at Lime Street was pretty much bang on time, allowing me time to pick up my lunch and also a Saveaway (making sure I got it from the Northern ticket office to avoid having to pay extra to put it on a smartcard).

First up was a TfW Rail service to take me to South Parkway, 158831, mainly to complete a bit more coverage of the TfW Rail network by TfW services (I believe from memory the only major bit outstanding is Wolverhampton to Crewe via Stafford), also this was to avoid overcrowding of the next stopper (due to the 350 starting from South Parkway).  At South Parkway I decided to head over to the Merseyrail platforms and took 507015 one stop to Hunts Cross, mainly for a time wasting move, before 150121 rolled in to take me to Hough Green.

A pair of 150s rush through Hunts Cross

A nice gentle interchange here, and onto a couple minute late running 150137 & 150144 to take me to Mossley Hill, where I broke into a fast walk, dodging the various broken paving stones and walked to West Allerton, these two stations are on that list of being underneath wires but only served by DMUs.  150135 & 150148 were up next to take me to Halewood where my fester was extended due to the next stopper running late (for it was held at Oxford Road for 10 minutes due to the late running EMR service from Nottingham to depart first).  A choice overheard comment that the train “was crowded” from a group when 150131 rolled in (yes it was busy, but barely a quarter full, they were unhappy the better seats had gone, leaving the airline seats with little legroom).  I bailed from this 150 at Hunts Cross, making my way over to the Merseyrail platform, where for ease of writing I will do my moves in a summary.

Station building at Aigburth

Hunts Cross -> Aigburth, 508117

Aigburth -> Brunswick: 508124

Brunswick -> Seaforth & Litherland: 507019 (little mileage boost for this sub mile unit)

Seaforth & Litherland -> Sandhills: 508120

Sandhills -> Kirkby: 508131

Kirkby -> Rainford: 150134 (where my fester was extended due to the next Kirkby service running late)

Rainford Station

Rainford -> Kirkby: 150275

Kirkby -> Rice Lane: 507004 (where I headed to the road for another fast walk)

Orrell Park -> Maghull: 507025

Maghull -> Old Roan: 508126 (The little tesco express nearby isn’t the easiest to reach!)

Old Roan -> Aughton Park: 507026

Aughton Park -> Town Green: 508115

Town Green -> Aughton Park: 508115

Aughton Park -> Moorfields: 507026

Moorfields -> Bootle Oriel Road: 507027

I left the network, to get myself checked into the hotel I selected, it was quite reasonable inside (a bit of money has clearly been spent on new carpets and other interior fittings), but the area wasn’t the nicest to walk around.  I had planned for 30 minutes, but it took me slightly longer as I wasn’t in any rush as I knew the two low mileage units were due to come back north.  Unlike the other lines which drop to 2tph after around 7pm, the Southport line keeps 4tph until the close of play.

Bootle Oriel Road -> Freshfield: 508124

Freshfield -> Formby: 507027

Formby -> Hillside: 507019

Hillside -> Ainsdale: 508117

Ainsdale -> Birkdale: 507015 (last Merseyrail served station to revisit!)

Birkdale -> Southport: 507012

Southport -> Meols Cop: 150116 (last Merseyside Northern station to revisit, easier this time of night

Meols Cop -> Southport: 150273 & 150108

Southport -> Waterloo: 508123

Waterloo -> Hall Road: 508124

Hall Road -> Bootle Oriel Road: 508120

And on arrival at Bootle Oriel Road, it was a gentle walk back to the hotel, where I put my phone on charge, backed up the many photographs over WiFi, had a nice shower and relaxed for the remainder of the evening.  Reflecting on a very productive day clearing Merseyrail and also the Northern stations covered by the Saveaway.  3 more units also were cleared for ten miles which was a nice bonus.

Bootle Oriel Road, behind the lift tower is the overgrown North Mersey Line towards Aintree (and lines towards the docks)

26^th January – BLS Merseyrail Overground & Underground Explorer

The day began with the first southbound service from Bootle Oriel Road, formed of 507027 to take me to Liverpool Central, where I discovered a Sainsburys Local located pretty much outside, so that saved me a walk to Tesco Express.  I headed to the Wirral line platform, turning down the first couple services, boarding 507023 to take me to Birkenhead North, where the tour was starting from (using the rarely used platform 1).

Retirement party for 508134!

I was in coach A, and other than coach letters it was a free for all, so I ended up in the aisle seat of a bay (giving both myself and the quiet person sat opposite legroom).  Soon to be retired* 508134 and 507001 were the two units heading out on tour today. (*this unit run out of time before needing an exam, which isn’t being authorised by Merseytravel due to the 777s, today was the last day in service).  The train departed heading towards Liverpool, the first stop being Lime Street to pick up remaining passengers, before a spirited run towards Chester, pausing at Hooton for a photo stop (also for a pathing stop as it had caught up with the previous Chester service).  Onwards to Chester, where it was a visit to the toilets and a reversal back to Hooton, before another reversal saw the train head to Ellesmere Port, the doors not being released due to limited time allowed.

507001 was leading the train back towards Hooton, and then for a nice non-stop run towards the city centre, and after the tunnel under the Mersey took the connection towards platform 2 at James Street, and continued towards Liverpool Central via the Stock interchange line, a little highlight for me.  A brief pause on platform 2 at Liverpool Central, before it was a trip to Hunts Cross, crossing over before the station to use platform 2 (on the main-line, rather than the bay), before another quick reversal before going underneath the city and out to Kirkby.

508134 at Liverpool Central Platform 2

Another quick reversal at Kirkby, and it was a trip to the Sandhills reversing siding and a run to Southport, where we caught up with the previous Southport bound service around Freshfield.  A well earnt lunch break was had at Southport before it was back onto the units for a trip back towards the Sandhills Reversing Siding and a trip to Ormskirk to complete the Northern Line.  Back towards Liverpool and as the tour train was put out in front of a Hunts Cross service at Sandhills junction which meant some confusion during the reversal at Liverpool Central to head back to James Street and onto the Wirral lines, and onward to West Kirby using platform 2.  Another reversal took the tour back to Birkenhead North, pausing beyond the station to reverse, passing the station once more to head to New Brighton (using platform 1).  One final reversal saw the tour arrive back at Birkenhead North, into platform 1, pretty much 7 hours after departing.

When I booked this trip, I decided to book on the 19:47 service to Euston, mainly because it was cheaper than the 18:47 service, and mainly because the 18:47 service didn’t really give a nice connection to a diverted 159 (IIRC it gave 16 minutes, which is doable if the train is on time, but would mean a fast walk, sadly going via Reading wasn’t an option as the connection at Basingstoke was poor).  With being on the 19:47 it gave me a chance to see what units was floating around on the Chester/Ellesmere Port services, so it was a busy 507007 to Hamilton Square, where I noticed a low mileage 507 on the Ellesmere Port bound, working out it would be clear for ten miles with Green Lane to Lime Street, so it gave me some flexibility.  Onwards to James Street (via the loop) on 507029, followed by another spin around the loop on 508128 before 507030 took me to Rock Ferry where I had a +3 to board low mileage 507009 for the run to Lime Street, taking me needs to 3x 507 & 4x508s, as I’m back in the area in April hopefully it should narrow some more of these down before they get retired.

507001 at Southport

Anyhow, back to Lime Street, it was time for some dinner, before boarding a lightly loaded 390044 for the run back to London, it only really got busy at Crewe.  At Waterloo I decided not to mess around with Thameslink tonight, and went straight to the underground with 51702/51508 taken to Waterloo, where I made use of some spare time to pick up some tickets for future travels (with the appearance of one of those TVM scammers who “needs a couple quid” to get home [where they bring up the ticket they want in the hope someone gives them money, only to cancel the transaction to pocket the money], sadly mate I don’t think a 1-6 travelcard at 23:15 is the most wise ticket to try and select.  At least be blunt and ask for money, rather than trying to scam it from other people.  Anyhow rant over, and the units for the 23:47 arrived, with 159107 & 159102 taking me home, arriving around 01:38 due to the service going via Staines, and also being that oddity which calls at Farnborough & Fleet.

Needless to say on the Monday, I was a bit of a zombie in the afternoon when at work, the tour was worth it for the novelty of going non-stop through many of the Merseyrail stations, plus the non-preferred platforms and the stock interchange line on a cheap railtour.  Also a nice way to say an early farewell to the old Merseyrail stock before they slowly disappear when the new stock comes into full service.

Not the best time to be arriving home on a work-night!