NEWS 2025

April - June

The Garden Railway Extension

June 11th - The First Train Runs on the new extension:
    
Percy was chosen - he leaves the older section, passes the new fencing, rounds the viduct, into the tunnel and finally rejoins the older layout. All done over some eight months by the work shown below and in 2024's Newspage.

   
In the left photo, our two 'Civil Engineers' (Tony and Adrian) look at their trial run for the viaduct forming the return loop at the end of the new section of line. Centre: The viaduct is permanently mounted, and awaits its parapets and other work to complete it. And right tracklaying commences to enable the trains to reach the viaduct.
                          And a fence has been added to stop track trespasing:   

 Tunnel portals remain to be fixed in place.

Indoor work at the Box:

Not everything was being done outside in the garden. Inside the box our two display cabinets were relit with LED strip lights to replace old fluorescent fittings and the contents reorganised.

Upstairs the lino was washed and rewaxed and polished.

 And the bells attached to our Tyer's Single Line token machines were replaced with recently donated spiral 'gongs' more typical of such installation - and an interesting contrast to the nearby standard 'block bells'.
  

January - March

The Garden Railway Extension
       
In January the base for the extension had reached the footpath to the north end. (First two photos.)
In February we'd started to clear the north flowerbed (third photo) and started lifting the footpath and install the metal tunnel. By late March the tunnel was installed and work started on the trackbase in the north flowerbed.

Spring Flowers - a selection:
     

Southern Railway Disc Signal
  

This was moved in 2024 to a position where it could be worked from one of the box levers.
The move was completed in February when its floodlight was wired up.

Other People at Work!
Regular weekend closures have been taking place to allow Network Rail to inprove the overhead wiring that supplies the trains with 25kVolts to power them. The two pictures below show various 'Road/Rail' vehicles during the operators' shift change:
  

New Acquisitions
We have obtained a number of items from the (now-closed) Winchcombe Railway Museum in Gloucestershire. 
     
Once conserved or restored we shall get them displayed around the box garden.

A Tribute to Les O'Leary - Trustee and Webmaster

Les, as he was know to all, was involved in setting up the Trust in 2003 and then its website, hosted on his company's site. He was active in preparing our 'Articles of Association' which enabled us to achieve charitable status, and was a good designer of publicity materials and information posters. He was one of two original trustees still serving, the other being Keith Webster, our President. He died on January 9th 2025 after a lengthy illness, and is much missed by Trust members. Some photographs of his activities follow:
1.  2. 3. 4. 
Les, here on the right of photo 1, is about to help the early investigation of our septic tank!
The information boards on photo 2 were designed by Les and describe the restoration and workings of the box. A duplicate set is on display at the box.  In photo 3 Les is helping Keith Webster move a Midland Railway lamp-post out of store to be taken to the box and in photo 4 is the path accessing the box in which Les took a lead in getting the paving slabs laid.

In 2019, the Trust was asked if we could produce a 'Timeline' of the station's history to commemorate its 150th Anniversary. Les came up with:
    
                                                                Les (second from left) is seen here with Andy Buckley of the Community Rail Partnership, Robert Voss (HM Lord Lieutenant of Hertfordshire), Janet Smith (Mayor of St Albans) and Tom Moran (MD Thameslink and Govia Great Northern) after the unveiling ceremony.