Friday 29 April 2011

Platform progress

I was just taking a look at the latest news on our platform extension at Kirkby Stephen East on the web site. You can find it here. It is only a month since the concrete foundations were being poured and here we are already with the blocks laid and the core back filled with material excavated from the 'Tebay Platform' well. This last few days the concrete beams have been laid across, and all that remains to be done is to tarmac the top surface and lay the edging stones.

Looks good doesn't it? The sweep of that curve is really beautiful. The sort of job that you can stand back and enjoy taking a good look at. I wonder what it looks like from the ramparts of  Croglam Castle up on the hill, a spot where many earlier photographs of the station yard have been taken from. Maybe next week I'll head up there and take a picture.

Now the 'Darlington Platform' is restored pretty well to its original length, but of course fifty years ago it projected eastwards to the A685 road bridge, not westwards towards the sunset. So this platform is something very new in the history of the station site. Just four months now and the station lights will be up and working and passengers will be boarding the train here. Amazing!

1 comment:

  1. Yes you are right, the curve looks superb but it looks better in the flesh, the concrete beams are very heavy i think my arms are an inch longer now!
    Car'nt wait untill we see the first train departing!
    It is very good to see all the volunteers working together, considering we are only a small group so much has been achieved already.

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