The Bristol Railway Archive

Hi everyone,

Newest of the newbies here!

While i have a big interest in railways and especially freight, I'm quite new to taking pictures. I was wondering if anyone could give me some help in terms of where to go between Taunton and Bristol where there is decent enough freight movement for me to justify getting on a train and visiting with my camera!

How do you find out freight times so you know where to be at the right time? I'm sure one of you fellows will know and help out this naive fool ha!

There's freight between Taunton and Bristol?

Best photo shoot must be the Nuclear Flasks which can be a pair of 37s or possibly 66/4s. Need to check when it is running as the days can fluctuate.

Roger wrote:Best photo shoot must be the Nuclear Flasks which can be a pair of 37s or possibly 66/4s. Need to check when it is running as the days can fluctuate.

Yeah, I've seen them pass my workplace about midday on a monday or tuesday but that was pure luck!

I dont literally mean freight between Bristol and Taunton. I mean anything that goes through these area's

At Bristol TM itself you get the nukes, Portbury coals passing through, plus tanks, and the car train if it's still running, plus some freightliner 66s coming in and out of Kingsland Road, although they might be more active around Bristol Parkway now that FL have taken over Stoke Gifford yard.

And the Bin liners but that comes in from bath round dr days ( I think then on to Lawrence hill and propel back round to rubbish transfer depot near Barton hill.
Up till recently there was steel trains calling in to east bristol yard ( some body will correct me if I got name wrong ) near avon meads.

Thanks chaps Any idea of best times to catch these if i were to hope on a train to Bristonianland? Any recommended photographic locations? I dont know Bristol too well I'm afraid!

Try Bristol Temple meads for starters, you will catch a lot of stuff heading for Wales /opp north and london/westbury directions that you wouldn't neccessarily see if you went to say Bristol parkway.
When you feel a bit more adventurous maybe you could try Bristol Parkway which has a nice cafe upstairs that gives you good views of trains approaching. Sadly not from swindon/London direction.
Both busy stations.
Bin liner used to wait behind showcase cinema thursdays, arrive 4-4.30 ish leave 5pm ish.
As for locations, as you intend using train then you will have to do a bit of leg work

Cheers Nick. I'm up for a bit of a walk. I'm not so bad finding my way round walking but driving is a different matter!

Are sundays good days? I'd more than likely do it then

Ive seen one or two movements through Pilning sunday mid/late afternoons each way but whether regular or not couldn't say. Seem to be ballast wagons mainly presumably engineers trains. Sunday evenings I have seen coal train heading through ashton gate down Portbury branch.
Unfortunately I don't live in Bristol so I don't see all train movements.
Saw a large mixed freight yesterday emerge from Severn tunnel about 6.30pm at a crawl. Took photos from road bridge over motorway by shaft lane Severn beach. it pulled into goods relief and stopped just outside Pilning station to allow several trains through then moved out and onwards. ( a number of cargo wagons - a number of shipping containers - some empty container bases - some shipping tanks < bulk liquid tanks in a framework shipping container size > and some small boxes with what looked like coal in.).
There is at least one Signalman on this forum who may have a good idea what is moving and where and when.

All the following taken last week between 6 and 8 pm, at Ram Hill footbridge, Coalpit Heath, between Parkway and Westerleigh.