Thursday 7 December 2017

Busy, Busy, Busy

Wednesday 6th December 2017

It was a very mild dry day with light winds. This was all before the predicted storm Caroline which was due arrive in the UK that evening. There were 25 volunteers on site today on a variety of jobs.

Bridge 2


This 'footbridge', installed last Monday, proved very helpful when wheeling a barrow from one platform to the other. It is an unofficial barrow crossing and will be replaced by an official crossing  once ballast has been dropped onto the track.


Heras Fence


The Heras Fence along the proposed car park area had been pulled over thus blocking the permissive footpath most popular with dog walkers from the caravan park. Chris and Vic took the project on, to re-erect the fence and then add supports in the hope that this wouldn't happen again. Building services had left some wooden stakes for that purpose, but because the ground here is full of rubble and very hard to penetrate, that idea had to be abandoned. The decision was taken to erect fence panels in a triangular formation attached to the main fence to add weight and give support, hopefully preventing its instability.

Doors




I mentioned in last Saturday's blog that Neal was working on a door. Well here it is fitted! There was also another door in the next room - not idle this fellow!!


Canopy Footings



Here Neal and John Balderstone, our bridge engineer, are measuring and marking out the footings for the eventual fitting of a canopy extension to the roof and the footbridge steps.


Station Building



John S was up in the roof area fitting more boards.









The two plasterers were in the Entrance Hall fitting wall boards, whilst in this second picture the Ticket Office is finished.












In the Tea Room our carpenters Peter, Brian T and Dave H were fitting battons to the wall.


Painters




On the outside of the Station Building the three (Musketeers) painters were giving the windows another coat. In this picture is Mike and Graham, whilst Mike S is around the front.


Driveway

 


The base for the telephone box had been started on Monday with the laying out of the boards, so today the concrete was barrowed in with Bob and Clive levelling it out.

Mixing Teams




The mixing team started off with Rod and Terry, they were then superseded by Paul, Keith and Dave as Rod and Terry were engaged with erecting a lamp post.
Here John C with the mini digger places the lamp post in the prepared hole in the ground.




Kerbing


Gordon and Keith are preparing the line for the final kerb laying, marking out with coloured paint for guidance. In the background the concrete base has been finished and once set the Telephone Box can be moved down. A wall of blue bricks is to be built around the base.


Other members on site but not photographed were Brian M on the embankment clearance, Tony and Dave B organising the work teams. At the morning tea break Alan Miller came to communicate the latest arrangements for Broadway Station.


Vic.

12 comments:

  1. Once again, excellent progress! The internal station building is coming along at apace. Once the ceiling woodwork is on, you can think about heat. That will cheer everyone up when fitting out the counter, ticket cupboards etc. How did the mains power to the building end up, or is that later this week? Wonderful work and great pictures. Regards, Paul.

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  2. Once upon a not- so-distant time no cement could be prepared in either the eleventh nor the twelfth month of each year.
    Global warming must be making a difference!
    Or the manufacturers have taken to adding a swift drying component.
    And it's not cold tea!

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  3. Great progress but seems to me an enormous amount still to do in 15 weeks before the scheduled re-opening

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  4. at last the tea room is being worked on great...

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  5. It's going to look quite picturesque if it does start snowing there tonight, as snow will cover up the ground and help hide the fact it's still a building site. Maybe if you ask S&T nicely they might let you light a fire in that new hearth of theirs in the signalbox?

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  6. It will look even more picturesque when the driveway can be restored, ( after connection to the electricity network, etc.).

    An excellent decision on the red GPO telephone kiosk. It will be much better sited slightly away from the Edwardian period railway station.

    Very well done , Neal, on fitting the doors so far, but is it quite fair to leave all this work to one man ? ( I forget how many doors there are, and the station building needs to be secured a.s.a.p. including, in my opinion, the use of contractors, if necessary.)

    I do hope you will soon have your underground connection to the electricity network. Then, presumably, you can re-surface the driveway.

    Except. Except, I have to say, I do remember the driveway as leafier and greener than it is now. Hopefully, it will regain (especially in this very lovely part of England) its former aspect, once building works are complete.

    Yours hopefully,

    Peter Wright

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  7. What a fantastic effort by all the volunteers. Can't wait to visit next year.

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  8. I agree there is still a lot of work to be done just to get the station operational in the weeks left before trains are due to run, also could be hampered by adverse weather. Good luck thank you for all your wonderful hard work

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  9. Well done Team Broadway! was the electric connected so the drive can be finished? Really cannot believe that there are only fifteen weeks to go! It will look amazing when all this work is done, free tea and buns in the café when this is all over, then I have a small job for you all, lets put you up for building the new stations on the HS2 line, sure you would be up for it as you do a better and quicker job than even network rail!!!
    Regards
    Paul & Marion

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    Replies
    1. Platform 2 at Broadway comes before HS2, I think, (as and when time and funds permit) ! And before then, there are the lights to connect, the flagstones to be laid on platform one, the S&T rods and wires to points and signals. Plus more fencing, railings, landscaping etc. Not to mention sight screens to north and south of the station building in GWR style. And then, fittings inside the station... And what about the car park ? (The less said about a timetable for the footbridge steps, and the extended canopy, the better.) As for the work still to be done by the long suffering PW team, including construction of the southern turnout ...

      In any case, before HS2 gets off the ground (so to speak), the GWSR will probably be well on its way to Honeybourne.

      And what's all this about FREE tea and buns at Broadway ?? I thought the Committee want to see the proposed Refreshment Room making a profit !

      Peter Wright

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    2. Many thanks for the update as usual. I agree that there is still lots to do at Broadway on Platform 1 and the surrounds but a quick look at a photo of the site taken in December 2016 would show the difference and the progress made so far!
      Regarding HS2, well, I'm not going to concern myself with that. HC2 (high capacity 2) is what's needed and reopening several closed lines could be a solution. My money is on the likelihood that there will be no money for such a scheme and, even if the London-Birmingham section does get built nothing serious will start until post-Brexit UK has settled down a bit.

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    3. I hope, and believe, Toddingtonted is right.

      After the Brexit "divorce bill" is settled, I doubt there will be any public funds for a major civil engineering project like HS2.

      Peter Wright

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