Showing posts with label British. Show all posts
Showing posts with label British. Show all posts
Friday, June 19, 2026
Tuesday, June 09, 2026
The preservation of steam locomotives in Britain was largely due to a scrap yards decision to prioritize scrapping the railcars first... 213 locomotives were saved from scrapping at just one yard, Barry in South Wales (thank you Paul!)
At the end of steam in the 1960s, Dai Woodham bought hundreds of withdrawn steam engines from British railways for his scrap business at Barry Island. He intended to scrap them but delayed doing so while he focused on scrapping redundant railway wagons.
As a result, railway preservation societies flocked to Barry to select locomotives to restore to operate their lines. Out of almost 300 engines sent to Barry, almost three quarters were rescued from the graveyard, and over half lived to steam again.
The single act of not scrapping these engines helped create the Heritage Railway movement that exists in the UK today.
Saturday, May 23, 2026
A pony was rescued after becoming trapped inside a big tractor tire... no one saw it get itself stuck, it might have laid down inside for the shade, but it needed help from rescue workers to get out
Rescue workers carefully lifted the tire and freed him gradually, easing out his legs, shoulder and neck in stages to avoid injury.
It ain't pretty, so I'm not posting the photo.
Wednesday, April 22, 2026
Steve Green, along with his decrepit-looking VW campervan, Cecil, are on a mission to rid the beautiful creeks of Cornwall rivers of 166 abandoned fiberglass yachts
the legacy of the mass-produced fibreglass pleasure boat boom is unfolding.
Yachts bought in the 1960s and 1970s are now reaching the end of their useful lives and end up in landfills, but because disposal is charged by the ton, many of them are abandoned by their owners, who don’t want to foot the cost (between 1 and 4k) or take responsibility for disposing of them. (in San Diego they were anchored out in the bay, and then sunk)
Steve relies on small charitable grants, crowdfunding and enthusiastic volunteers willing to paddle kayaks out to wrecks and help. Green ran up £8,000 on credit cards last year when the grants didn’t cover all the decaying boats he took to the dump.
Green is keen for Britain to follow the French model, in which boat manufacturers have to pay an eco-contribution for every boat sold. This is combined with an annual tax on boat owners – who are easy to track down because boats have to be licensed – and used to fund 35 free-to-use boat scrapping centers across France.
Green is keen for Britain to follow the French model, in which boat manufacturers have to pay an eco-contribution for every boat sold. This is combined with an annual tax on boat owners – who are easy to track down because boats have to be licensed – and used to fund 35 free-to-use boat scrapping centers across France.
The Association pour la Plaisance Eco-Responsable, which runs these centers, has removed more than 16,000 boats since it was launched in 2019
Thursday, February 05, 2026
A 13-year-old boy who drove his family’s Volkswagen (underage and without a license) in the middle of the night for a joyride, was given six penalty points on his driving license which he will not be eligible to receive for another two years
The teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was spotted by other motorists driving the 2.5-litre silver van on the A35, a busy dual carriageway in Poole.
When asked by the district judge, the boy admitted it was not the first time he had taken the vehicle.
imagine what car insurance will cost him? I bet he continues to drive illegally, without insurance.
a UK ban on asylum seekers using taxis to attend medical appointments has come into force.
The government changed the policy after a BBC investigation which showed people travelling long distances at high cost.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said: "I have ended the wasteful use of taxis for medical appointments to protect the taxpayer's purse.
"I will stop at nothing to remove the incentives that draw illegal migrants to Britain, to restore order and control to our borders."
It was revealed in November that an average of £15.8m had been spent a year on taxis for asylum seekers.
In one case, an asylum seeker said he went on a 250-mile cab journey to a GP, costing the Home Office £600.
The ban will not stop the use of taxis completely and there will be some exemptions for people with physical disabilities, chronic illnesses and pregnancy-related needs.
"I will stop at nothing to remove the incentives that draw illegal migrants to Britain, to restore order and control to our borders."
It was revealed in November that an average of £15.8m had been spent a year on taxis for asylum seekers.
This is the follow up to https://justacarguy.blogspot.com/2025/11/im-going-to-sum-up-couple-of-stories.html
Tuesday, January 20, 2026
Saturday, January 10, 2026
Trainspotting, 1942 til about 1990. Young UK boys hung around railroads and train stations, notebooks in hand
Trainspotting began in 1942 when Mr Allan was a 19-year-old trainee in the public-relations office of the Southern Railway at Waterloo. Tired of replying to letters from railway enthusiasts demanding details of locomotives, he suggested that the office produce a simple booklet listing their vital statistics.
His boss was not interested, so Mr Allan decided to do it himself.
The ABC of Southern Locomotives was a simple pocket- sized index of engine numbers and types. At a shilling each, 2,000 copies sold out immediately. ABC guides to other railway companies soon followed.
Partly in order to teach safety to young spotters, Mr Allan started the Loco- spotters Club.
By the late Forties it had a quarter of a million members. In the Fifties and Sixties a million ABC guides, listing 20,000 locomotives, were being sold every year.
The ABC of Southern Locomotives was a simple pocket- sized index of engine numbers and types. At a shilling each, 2,000 copies sold out immediately. ABC guides to other railway companies soon followed.
Partly in order to teach safety to young spotters, Mr Allan started the Loco- spotters Club.
By the late Forties it had a quarter of a million members. In the Fifties and Sixties a million ABC guides, listing 20,000 locomotives, were being sold every year.
Sunday, January 04, 2026
Tuesday, December 30, 2025
a meteorite the size of a Christmas turkey broke up over a small village 60 years ago, the largest meteorite to hit the UK, was on Christmas Eve 1965. A kid found a 3 pound piece of it, and sold it to buy a 10-speed Raleigh racing bike
When a meteorite the size of a Christmas turkey broke up over a small British village 60 years ago, David Radford was a teenager who had a second-hand bike.
This changed after he found a fragment of the meteorite when he was playing with friends at a park. His foot fell down a hole, and he found the 4.5 billion-year-old piece of space rock.
A week later, there was a knock at David's front door. The late British astronomer Sir Patrick Moore, and an official from one of the museums in London
After the two visitors confirmed it was a meteorite, the museum official asked if they could buy it from him.
He said he was given 530 dollars when adjusted for inflation, as the going rate was a dollar per ounce of meteorite.
"I was wanting a new bicycle, and I'd got the family hand-me-down, so I wanted to replace that," David said.
He bought a 10-speed Raleigh racing bike, but said his mother made him set up a bank account with the remaining money.
After the two visitors confirmed it was a meteorite, the museum official asked if they could buy it from him.
He said he was given 530 dollars when adjusted for inflation, as the going rate was a dollar per ounce of meteorite.
"I was wanting a new bicycle, and I'd got the family hand-me-down, so I wanted to replace that," David said.
He bought a 10-speed Raleigh racing bike, but said his mother made him set up a bank account with the remaining money.
Saturday, December 13, 2025
1921 Tamplin, a distinctive, tandem two-seater British automobile, notable for its narrow wheels, distinctive cycle-car design
The car was powered by a 980 cc JAP V-twin, air-cooled engine mounted on the side of the body and coupled by chain drive to a Sturmey-Archer three-speed-and-reverse gearbox and then by an exposed belt to the rear wheels.
To avoid the need for a differential drive was to the left side rear wheel.
The engine was started by a kick starter from the driver’s seat.
The clutch pedal, when fully depressed operated the brakes.
https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=25183178851291757&set=pcb.25183185961291046
Friday, December 12, 2025
the British Education Authority has written to drivers asking them to reduce their rates for driving school kids to school (I have never heard of such a thing) by 10% to bring down the budget allotted to the social service
The EA said its projected funding shortfall was in the region of £300m and that "renegotiating payments to taxi operators" was one of the savings measures it announced last month in an attempt to address the shortfall.
More than 4,600 Special Educational Needs children use a taxi to get to and from school and many schools are far away from their homes, contributes to the cost of transport.
There are not enough special schools, so some children have to travel far and this does come at a cost.
A taxi driver, Mr Scott, said he felt "let down" by the letter from the EA. "That bond that taxi drivers had with the EA where we signed a contract and we thought we were going to service that contract for the foreseeable future, that is now broken," he said.
"Given these kids have SEN, to get them used to another taxi driver, a new car, takes a long number of weeks. This is not done overnight."
The EA letter gave taxi operators until 17 December to "voluntarily agree" to reduce their invoiced rates by 10% or the EA "will be minded to consider alternative arrangements for pupils' transport which may include using a break clause to terminate the contract(s) and re-tendering the run(s)".
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp84je1n5kgo.amp
Wednesday, December 10, 2025
A man in South London received four parking tickets, when a contractor painted a disabled bay around his legally parked car while he was away on holiday.
The disabled bay was put in place in response to a request from a resident.
While the owner agrees the disabled bay itself is important, he criticized the council's lack of notification before its creation, saying: "It's the same as doing an extension or any other road work - you let people know."
The video shows the contractor photographing the car after the painting is complete to alert the council not to issue a fine.
However, a parking attendant later placed tickets on the vehicle on separate days, as she was not made aware of the situation.
The car owner added that he had never had direct confirmation from the council that the PCNs in relation to the new bay were cancelled.
Croydon Council "apologized for the confusion" and confirmed that "the tickets were cancelled a week before the video was uploaded to social media".
https://www-bbc-com.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1dzqpyqegeo.amp
https://www-bbc-com.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1dzqpyqegeo.amp
Sunday, November 30, 2025
how does a bus, on a track, at a governed constant speed, unable to turn or speed up, kill 3 people between 2015 and 2021?
That's nearly a train.... so how did 3 people get hit by it? And die?
The govt says it was a lack of fences.
I can use logic, and figure out that if a fence would prevent people from stepping in front of a bus, then the bus and the fence were not at fault, people jumping in front of a bus were unable to prevent themselves from stepping in front of it.
I'm going to sum up a couple of stories out of Britain, which were the fallout of the new budget getting debated, and what it has to do with transportation
In this run up to the budget, the Chancellor is trying to suss out the nation's finances, and some intriguing revelations
The once-weekly 15 service between Haslingfield, Cambridgeshire, and Royston, Hertfordshire, cost £48,297 to run in 2024-25, working out at a cost per passenger of £180.
Meanwhile, the 8A service offering one journey a day in each direction between March, Cambridgeshire, and Milton Park and Ride, Cambridge, cost £188,753 to run, with each passenger journey working out at just over £100.
a BBC investigation found some people had travelled long distances by taxis or minicabs, with one asylum seeker saying they went on a 250-mile cab journey to a GP, costing the Home Office £600.
Motability is the scheme that leases 300,000 cars a year to people with mobility problems
But at the budget hearings, Reeves for the first time publicly identified the program as a problem, saying it “was set up to protect the most vulnerable, not to subsidize the lease on a Mercedes-Benz”.
the scheme was the target of the only significant welfare cuts in the budget as £300m a year of tax breaks were ended and premium brands removed by the scheme operator.
The Motability scheme has provided support for disabled drivers for decades, it buys cars from manufacturers and leases them to disabled drivers. Some are adapted to be accessible to wheelchairs.
Officially, premium brands only made up 40,000, or about 5%, of the 800,000 Motability cars. No reason given.
Disabled people are exempt from VAT and insurance premium tax. The govt pays it.
the Telegraph and Mail newspapers such as picked up the story, and pointed out that claimants were allowed to make higher payments to get premium brands such as Mercedes or BMW, which critics said fueled demand for the scheme among people with conditions that did not visibly impair mobility, such as ADHD or anxiety.
As a result, I learned that the govt pays for the rural bus rides, as a social service, and realized that some routes were costing the taxpaying working class, over £100 per rider, per trip, for every passenger
Meanwhile, the 8A service offering one journey a day in each direction between March, Cambridgeshire, and Milton Park and Ride, Cambridge, cost £188,753 to run, with each passenger journey working out at just over £100.
And the govt pays for asylum seekers to use taxis for medical appointments, leading to taxi companies taking advantage of the govt contract, by maxing out the charge through getting the taxis furthest away from the customer and hospital to pick up and drop off. Instead of the 2 mile legit ride, they make it 100. I kid you not.
Now the government has confirmed it has spent an average of around £15.8 million per year on transport for asylum seekers.
And the third program costing taxpayers, is Motability, and as it's easy to guess, corruption was found there too.... instead of simply achieving the goal of providing competent vehicles for the disabled, on the govt contract, somehow BMWs and Mercedes were bought, and supplied.
But at the budget hearings, Reeves for the first time publicly identified the program as a problem, saying it “was set up to protect the most vulnerable, not to subsidize the lease on a Mercedes-Benz”.
the scheme was the target of the only significant welfare cuts in the budget as £300m a year of tax breaks were ended and premium brands removed by the scheme operator.
Motability said it hopes that 50% of the vehicles it offers will come from British factories by 2035. The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, said the changes to the scheme would “support thousands of well-paid, skilled jobs”, before the budget on Wednesday.
The Motability scheme has provided support for disabled drivers for decades, it buys cars from manufacturers and leases them to disabled drivers. Some are adapted to be accessible to wheelchairs.
Officially, premium brands only made up 40,000, or about 5%, of the 800,000 Motability cars. No reason given.
Disabled people are exempt from VAT and insurance premium tax. The govt pays it.
"VAT would add thousands of pounds to costs for disabled people," I get it, they can't afford it, but, how is it that the working class ought to pay for it? Socialized medicine I guess How about, instead, the govt organizes the appointments, lease shuttle vans instead, and get the most riders on the fewest trips, and save taxpayers LOADS of money instead?
Motability Operations, the company that runs the scheme, declined to comment on budget measures, however, it said that premium-brand cars such as BMW and Mercedes will be “removed immediately” to “focus on vehicles that meet disabled people’s needs and represent value and purpose”.
The target of securing half of the cars from British factories could provide a significant boost to the UK car industry. The Japanese manufacturers Nissan and Toyota make cars in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, and Burnaston, Derbyshire, respectively. Mini, owned by BMW, could also benefit, giving the company a strong incentive to build “paused” electric versions at a factory in Oxford.
Motability Operations said that the decision “opens the door to new investment into UK car manufacturing”.
The scheme currently leases about 300,000 vehicles a year. Assuming it remains about the same size, that would mean 150,000 British-built vehicles being leased in 2035 – up from 22,000 last year. The prospect of more than 100,000 extra sales within the UK would be welcome for the British car industry after years of decline and factory closures.
Motability Operations, the company that runs the scheme, declined to comment on budget measures, however, it said that premium-brand cars such as BMW and Mercedes will be “removed immediately” to “focus on vehicles that meet disabled people’s needs and represent value and purpose”.
The target of securing half of the cars from British factories could provide a significant boost to the UK car industry. The Japanese manufacturers Nissan and Toyota make cars in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, and Burnaston, Derbyshire, respectively. Mini, owned by BMW, could also benefit, giving the company a strong incentive to build “paused” electric versions at a factory in Oxford.
Motability Operations said that the decision “opens the door to new investment into UK car manufacturing”.
The scheme currently leases about 300,000 vehicles a year. Assuming it remains about the same size, that would mean 150,000 British-built vehicles being leased in 2035 – up from 22,000 last year. The prospect of more than 100,000 extra sales within the UK would be welcome for the British car industry after years of decline and factory closures.
Yeah, minor mental health issues results in premium govt subsidized cars? That's a big indicator that the whole system is completely corrupted
Saturday, November 15, 2025
The UK’s Ministry of Defense has its own team of driving examiners, but 36 of those examiners are being temporarily drafted to help the UK fix its crazy driving test backlog
This fairly drastic move is aimed at cutting horrendous wait times for test in the UK. The average time between booking a test and taking it across the country’s 319 test centers was 22 weeks as of June.
But a shortage of examiners is only partly responsible for the long wait times. Another major factor is the swarm of automated bots that instantly gobble up newly released test slots, leaving genuine learners locked out.
These bots are used by third-party resellers who then list the £62 ($81) tests for as much as £500 ($660), often advertising them on social media or private booking sites.
https://www.carscoops.com/2025/11/uk-drafts-in-military-examiners-to-clear-driving-test-backlog/
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is busy trying to recruit hundreds of permanent examiners to plug the shortage, but existing employees are leaving almost as fast as new ones are signing up. To make sure those that join hang around they’ll be offered £5,000 ($6,600) “retention payments” from next year, the BBC says.
These bots are used by third-party resellers who then list the £62 ($81) tests for as much as £500 ($660), often advertising them on social media or private booking sites.
https://www.carscoops.com/2025/11/uk-drafts-in-military-examiners-to-clear-driving-test-backlog/
Saturday, November 08, 2025
why would anyone destroy a cool little vintage Mini by tossing it in a trebuchet? From the June 1992 issue of Car and Driver.
It is 60 feet high and weighs some 30 tons. Its main beam, made of laminated wood, is 57 feet long. It's weight box is filled with six tons of steel
an automated stacker system broke down at Rathbone Square, near Oxford Street, and vehicles were stuck there for 28 months, starting in December of 2022 (utterly absurd amount of time, and likely, all the fuel in all those vehicles went bad, some interiors might have gotten moldy)
The vehicle owners had to rent substitutes in the 28 months they waited for the stacker system to be repaired... many had no choice, and had to out of pocket for the rentals, as insurance was not paying roughly 1200 a month for rentals.
Despite repeated attempts by the BBC to contact AXA XL, the building's public liability insurer, the company has not responded to questions about the delays.
Deka, the German investment fund that owns the Rathbone Square development, and CBRE, the managing agents for the building, both said they were not responsible for the failure of the parking system.
Klaus Multiparking, the manufacturer of the mechanical stacker, said investigations were ongoing but its understanding was that a broken chain caused the breakdown.
Double Parking Systems, the UK company responsible for maintaining the equipment, said it had never been the owner, operator or insurer of the car park.
It said the time taken to resolve the situation was not down to them, and they had advised vehicles could have been retrieved seven months before they were finally released.
Double Parking Systems, the UK company responsible for maintaining the equipment, said it had never been the owner, operator or insurer of the car park.
It said the time taken to resolve the situation was not down to them, and they had advised vehicles could have been retrieved seven months before they were finally released.
Sunday, October 26, 2025
that's a small locomotive, on a big yellow thing called a "traverser" ... it rolls sideways in a railroad car construction facility
see what I mean? In this railyard, this rolls along the road, like shipyard or pier cranes - sideways
Thursday, October 16, 2025
the village of Lustleigh, (pop 600) which is blighted by potholes, is celebrating long-awaited repairs thanks to the new Harry Potter television series - and the town council is getting the proper criticism for not doing their job
Announcing news of the repair, the parish council said on Facebook: “Good news! The filming company have been given permission by the DCC [Devon county council] highways to proceed with repairs on Wreyland Path, using an approved contractor.
The contractor will fill all large potholes manually and will then assess if further work needs to be carried out. The path will not be shut so can be used as normal.”
Villagers welcomed the repairs but questioned why it took the arrival of a fictional wizard to begin sorting out the problem. One grumpily replied to the parish council on Facebook: “Can fix potholes for filming but not for everyday use.”
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