Permanent Way News
Ardingly Siding Extension
This photo-feature shows the work undertaken over the August bank holiday weekend to extend the Ardingly siding towards the end of the spur from Horsted Keynes station. Although the panels to be laid so far have all used recycled wooden sleepers and bullhead rail, the work will carry on over the coming weekends, when concrete sleepers and flat-bottom rail will be used.
Much preparatory work had already been undertaken before the weekend, but the task of drilling, chairing up, and laying out the sleepers to be used is never ending! This was the scene on the Saturday (photo left, from Nick Beck) and on the Sunday (right).
Three views of John Millham unloading ballast from the grampus wagons on the Sunday.
'Normandy' was provided as a shunt engine on the Sunday, and as well as shunting the ballast wagons as seen in the previous set of photos, some general shunting of the down-ya rd to release the rail-wagon was also undertaken.
On the Sunday afternoon, the task of drilling, laying out and aligning the sleepers was still in full swing...
...so that the rails could finally be installed. Then it was simply a matter of slewing the panels into a nice smooth curve!
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