This post was originally the final update to the News section of the old MVR website.
I am very well aware that more than a year has elapsed since this website was last updated; you could have been forgiven for thinking that the MVR was dead and buried. It's true that the railway has essentially been on hiatus for the last nine months, but recent weeks have seen a burst of activity.
Over the last few days, I have been quietly working away to bring the website up to date. The Stock and Route & History pages have received minor alterations to reflect recent developments, while the Community page now carries a report of a steam-up at the WLR last week. I am also pleased to have made progress with my rolling stock projects, described in an update to the Workshop page written earlier this week. However, the most important news is that, for the first time since the railway opened, we are now in the midst of a major infrastructure project.
Those of you who read the community page this time last year may recall that at that time, the trackbed in the Rutton station area was found to be severely damaged. Unfortunately, pressures of work at the time prevented me from undertaking any repairs; this problem was compounded when I found a new job that required me to move to Wales! Nevertheless, I was determined that the railway must be repaired to allow the MVR to celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2014. A break from work in the last few weeks has finally allowed the project to get underway in earnest.
The initial preparatory work is described in the aforementioned update to the Workshop page; however, I am pleased to report that this has already been overtaken by events. With the help of our long-standing friend CP of the Woodrow Light Railway, the Rutton station site has now been completely cleared ready for a brand-new trackbed to be installed.
I am very well aware that more than a year has elapsed since this website was last updated; you could have been forgiven for thinking that the MVR was dead and buried. It's true that the railway has essentially been on hiatus for the last nine months, but recent weeks have seen a burst of activity.
Over the last few days, I have been quietly working away to bring the website up to date. The Stock and Route & History pages have received minor alterations to reflect recent developments, while the Community page now carries a report of a steam-up at the WLR last week. I am also pleased to have made progress with my rolling stock projects, described in an update to the Workshop page written earlier this week. However, the most important news is that, for the first time since the railway opened, we are now in the midst of a major infrastructure project.
Those of you who read the community page this time last year may recall that at that time, the trackbed in the Rutton station area was found to be severely damaged. Unfortunately, pressures of work at the time prevented me from undertaking any repairs; this problem was compounded when I found a new job that required me to move to Wales! Nevertheless, I was determined that the railway must be repaired to allow the MVR to celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2014. A break from work in the last few weeks has finally allowed the project to get underway in earnest.
The initial preparatory work is described in the aforementioned update to the Workshop page; however, I am pleased to report that this has already been overtaken by events. With the help of our long-standing friend CP of the Woodrow Light Railway, the Rutton station site has now been completely cleared ready for a brand-new trackbed to be installed.
In a sense, it is ironic that we have opened the MVR's 10th anniversary year by demolishing a significant chunk of it! Yet from another point of view, it is appropriate that the intensive period of construction activity which brought the MVR into being is now being mirrored, ten years on almost to the month.
As detailed on the Workshop page, the initial plan was to lay a new strip of concrete in place of the old breezeblocks; however, on further reflection CP has suggested an alternative plan. Sadly, the reality is that the MVR will probably only last a few more years; I hope that the day will not be too far off when I can get a place of my own and build a new railway! Therefore, CP has suggested that the new station area could be built on a wooden deck suspended above the old, pre-railway, patio surface that has been exposed by the removal of the old trackbed. Of course, this method of construction will not be as durable as concrete, but it will be easier to install; just as importantly, it will also be easier to remove when the railway disappears, allowing my parents to lay a new patio surface in its place! CP is confident that properly-treated wood will last at least five years, which should be enough to see the MVR's time out.
Thus, CP has now gone home to draw up plans and costings. Watch this space for further developments!
As detailed on the Workshop page, the initial plan was to lay a new strip of concrete in place of the old breezeblocks; however, on further reflection CP has suggested an alternative plan. Sadly, the reality is that the MVR will probably only last a few more years; I hope that the day will not be too far off when I can get a place of my own and build a new railway! Therefore, CP has suggested that the new station area could be built on a wooden deck suspended above the old, pre-railway, patio surface that has been exposed by the removal of the old trackbed. Of course, this method of construction will not be as durable as concrete, but it will be easier to install; just as importantly, it will also be easier to remove when the railway disappears, allowing my parents to lay a new patio surface in its place! CP is confident that properly-treated wood will last at least five years, which should be enough to see the MVR's time out.
Thus, CP has now gone home to draw up plans and costings. Watch this space for further developments!