January - February

UWC replacement

Friday 27th and Saturday 28th January, Wilkinsons crossing near Leyburn

The ballast is delivered to site by road

The track bed was dug out and backfilled with fresh ballast 

The new sleepers are placed back, along with the rails

Track renewal works

Friday 27th and Saturday 28th January, Blind Lane

Just over half way at the end of day 7

Track renewal works

Saturday 21st January, Blind Lane

The concrete sleepers are delivered to site

A small panel is moved into position, ready for jacking and packing

The sleepers are packed and the level is set

A well earned break

Track renewal preparation

Saturday 14th, Thursday 19th and Friday 20th January, Blind Lane

Work on digging out the trackbed begins on the Saturday

At the end of the first day of digging, the bulk has been removed but further work was required

Another day with the digger ensured the cross level was correct and the profile was much smoother

100 Ton of ballast was delivered to site, this was then spread over the trackbed

With the bulk of the ballast in place, the roller could be brought on site

As the light fades, the rolling is finished off

Drainage works and UWC replacement Preparation

Saturday 14th January, Wilkinsons Crossing, Leyburn

Just west of the crossing the concrete drainage system had become badly blocked, this was cleared out by the end of the day

The pipe that once allowed water to flow under the road access was over 3/4 full of silt and mud. This had led to the trackbed being very wet in this area

With the pipe dug out, the mud and silt could be cleared

With the pipe back in place, the water could flow once more. The crossing deck was cleaned out ready for lifting on the next working day

Track Renewal Preparation

Saturday 7th January, Blind Lane Aiskew

Looking west from Blind lane UWC, the mud built up in the cribs around the crossing is removed. The track to be renewed starts just past the volunteer furthest away from the camera

All the components removed are set aside, away from the area to be dug out. these will be collected by train once the railway is complete again.

Towards the end of the day looking East, back towards the UWC. The 240 ft section is now ready to be dug out by machine and levelled