Balloon 704 saved for Preservation

Balloon 704 seen in open storage at Marton in December 2013 where it has been sat by itself now for several months

The Cinderella tram of the former Lancastrian Transport Trust fleet has been rescued for posterity. Balloon 704, which has been languishing in open storage at a former industrial site in Marton since September 2012, has been purchased by a new mystery owner. Blackpool Transport Services have kindly allowed the tram to be stored alongside their heritage fleet in Rigby Road depot, and 704 is due to be transported there soon. The long term plan is for 704 to eventually be rebuilt back into its original open-top condition as a Luxury Dreadnought tram, thus filling a missing gap in the Balloon collection. This aim will require a lot of money and a lot of man hours in order to achieve it, but the announcement is fantastic news for the long term future of tramway preservation in Blackpool.

Allelys Haulage transporting Balloon 704 along Burton Road to the open storage in Marton on 6th September 2012

Balloon 704 arriving at the open storage yard in Marton on 6th September 2012

The condition of the interior of Balloon 704 in September 2012 before it departed for open storage at Marton

1934 Luxury Dreadnought 239 as delivered. The plan is to eventually restore 241 (704) back into this condition

Centenaries return to Rigby Road

Centenary Cars 648 & 642 heading back down to Manchester Square after reversing over the crossover at Foxhall

After Centenary 642 and 648 had their day in the limelight running Heritage Tours last weekend, it was time for them to return back to Rigby Road depot today to clear out some much needed space in Starr Gate depot. Shortly after 11.00 am on Friday 9th May, Centenary Cars 642 and 648 left the engineering side of Starr Gate depot where they had been stabled for the last couple of weeks, and began the short journey home to Rigby Road depot, arriving in Hopton Road at 11:30.

Centerary 648 followed 642 out of the engineering side of Starr Gate depot where they had been stabled for 2 weeks

642 was the first of the two Centenary Cars to leave Starr Gate depot on 9th May

Centenary 648 leaving Starr Gate depot behind as it heads north on its short journey back to Rigby Road depot

Centenaries 648 & 642 crossing over the junction at Manchester Square, passing the ongoing roadworks

Centenary 642 heading south down Lytham Road as 648 makes the left hand turn into Hopton Road ahead of it

Centenary 648 heading into Rigby Road depot as 642 sits waiting its turn in Hopton Road

FTS Heritage Weekend Day Two

Boat 230 passing St Peter's Church at the end of Lord St in Fleetwood, as Flexity 013 heads south towards Starr Gate

Monday 5th May saw the second of the two days of Fylde Tramway Society sponsored Heritage Tour operation in Blackpool, being funded as part of their 2014 Convention Weekend. Monday saw the morning heritage run to Fleetwood handled by Boats 230 and 600. Open-top Balloon 706 and Standard 147 entered Heritage Tour service later, these two trams then operated the late afternoon run through to Fleetwood Ferry and return.

Boat 600 rounding the sweeping curve at the end of Lord Street, passing St Peter's Church and on into North Albert St

Boats 230 and 600 waiting at the Fleetwood Ferry stop in Bold Street before returning south to the Pleasure Beach

Open-top Balloon 706 Princess Alice about to enter service at the Pleasure Beach after arriving from Starr Gate depot

Standard 147 rounding the curve from Lord Street into North Albert Street on the late afternoon run to Fleetwood

FTS Heritage Weekend Day One

Twin Set 272+T2 in Heritage Tour service at the Fleetwood Ferry terminus in Bold Street on the morning of 4th May

Sunday 4th May saw the first of two days of Heritage Tour operation in Blackpool, made possible due to funding from the Fylde Tramway Society, as part of their 2014 Convention Weekend activities. Sunday morning saw the by now traditional run through to Fleetwood operated by Twin Set 272+T2. Centenary Car 648 and open-top Balloon 706 followed shortly later into Heritage Tour service. During the afternoon 648 was swapped for Centenary 642, and this tram together with 706 performed the late afternoon run to Fleetwood Ferry and back.

Centenary 648 stops at Bispham during a Heritage Tour run from the Pleasure Beach to Little Bispham and return

642 had to reverse at Fisherman's Walk due to a bollard in Pharos Street which fouls the corner of Centenary Cars

642 at Fisherman's Walk heading back south, as 706 Princess Alice waits at the platform before proceeding north

Open-top Balloon 706 performed the final run through to Fleetwood Ferry on its own, seen here on the return journey

FTS 2014 Depot Visit

On entering the engineering side of the depot it was obvious how much of it had been taken over by the heritage fleet

The first event of the Fylde Tramway Society's 2014 Convention weekend was a guided tour of Starr Gate depot on the morning of 3rd May. The visit presented a unique opportunity to view several trams from the heritage fleet which are currently based there, due to the ongoing traffic light works at Manchester Square which is causing access restrictions to Rigby Road Depot. Heritage trams in residence at Starr Gate during the visit were Centenarys 642 & 648, open-top Balloon 706 Princess Alice, Balloons 700 & 717, Boats 227, 230 & 600, Twin Set 272+T2, plus Engineering Car 754 sat outside, all of these trams being on the engineering side of the depot. In the running shed half of the depot were Flexities 009, 011, 012 & 014, Bolton 66, Standard 147 and Brush Car 631. There was also a spare pair of Flexity bogies and a new fibreglass cab end stored at the rear of the engineering side of the depot. See Blackpool Trams on Flickr for more photos taken during the depot visit.

Boats 230, 600 & 227, Balloons 717 & 700 and Twin Set 272+T2 filling the rear of the engineering side of the depot

Balloons 717 and 700 and Twin Set 272+T2 parked at the rear of the engineering half of Starr Gate depot

Boat cars 230, 600 & 227 stored at the rear of the engineering side of Starr Gate depot

Balloons 700 and 717 and Twin Set 272+T2 parked at the rear of the engineering half of Starr Gate depot

Centenary 642, open-top Balloon 706 and Centenary 648 parked at the front of the engineering side of the depot

A spare pair of Flexity 2 bogies stored at the rear of the engineering side of Starr Gate depot

A spare fibreglass Flexity 2 cab end stored at the rear of the engineering side of the depot

A stark contrast in tram designs, with modern Flexity trams and heritage cars parked side by side in Starr Gate depot

110 years of tramcar development on display with 1901 built Bolton 66 and state of the art Flexity 2 trams 009 & 014

Brush Car 631, Standard 147 and Bolton 66 stored in the running side of Starr Gate depot

Flexity 004 receives Vets4Pets advert

Flexity 004 at Starr Gate on 3rd May carrying a new single-sided advertisement for Vets4Pets of Cleveleys

Flexity 004 has become the third tram to receive a new advert this year, receiving a single sided advertisement for Vets4Pets of Cleveleys. This ad is the third one that 004 has carried, the tram previously receiving a Hot Ice Show advert in July 2012, followed by advertising for Wallace & Gromit's Thrill-O-Matic ride at the Pleasure Beach in December 2012.

A close up view of the new Vets4Pets advert on the centre section of Flexity 004 on 3rd May

Flexity 004's previous advert was for Wallace & Gromit's Thrill-O-Matic ride at the Pleasure Beach, applied in Dec 2012

The first advert that Flexity 004 received was for the Hot Ice Show at the Pleasure Beach in July 2012

Starr Gate Heritage Shunt

Twin Set 272+T2, Brush Car 631 and Engineering Car 754 lined up during the depot shunt at Starr Gate on 2nd May

On the morning of Friday 2nd May 706 Princess Alice and Twin Set 272+T2 were moved from Rigby Road depot down to Starr Gate in preparation for the upcoming FTS heritage weekend. During the move Centenary Car 648 and Brush Car 631 were also moved around and repositioned within the depot. Here are a few photos of some of the heritage trams being shunted within the depot perimeter at Starr Gate.

A temporary warning notice outside the entrance to Starr Gate depot due to problems with the automatic electric gate

Open-top Balloon 706 Princess Alice arriving at Starr Gate depot on a repositioning move from Rigby Road

Balloon 706 being shunted into the engineering side of Starr Gate depot while Centenary 648 waits to come out

Centenary 648 being brought back into the depot after being shunted out onto the Promenade spur track

Brush Car 631 being brought out of Starr Gate depot during a repositioning move onto another track

Brush Car 631 being shunted back into the depot at Starr Gate

Twin Set 272+T2 being moved out of Starr Gate depot before being shunted onto a different road

Twin Set T2+272 being shunted around the depot tracks at Starr Gate