An important and very welcome change is to be made to a public transport timetable which will benefit passengers using Brigg railway station for days out to some popular destinations.
From December 21 the first Northern company train on Saturdays will arrive a little earlier.
It will get to Brigg at 9.16am, allowing passengers more leeway to catch the 9.39am connection at Barnetby for Market Rasen, Lincoln and Newark.
Brigg Blog can give a first-hand example showing the importance of this earlier train from Brigg station.
On Saturday (November 16) we were travelling by train to Newark but missed the Barnetby connection because the first service of the morning along the Brigg line had been delayed by two flood-related speed restrictions and another which slowed the diesel unit to walking pace as it crossed our level crossing on Bigby High Road (A1084).
These three hold-ups (beyond the control of the train operating company) meant the Grimsby to Newark (East Midlands Trains) service had left the village station several minutes before our unit arrived.
That resulted in a wait of one hour 45 minutes for the next service to Newark. And what is there to do in Barnetby on a Saturday morning in mid-November, other than visit one of the local shops to stock up on refreshments?
The answer is: Observe a few Drax power station biomass freight trains rumbling through, and take a look at the relatively new £2.50p-a-day car park adjoining the station.
We eventually made it through to Newark but our misfortunes continued later in the day.
While passing through Market Rasen on the return journey (running to time) we checked our mobile phone and saw a helpful message from a fellow railway enthusiast suggesting that the final Northern train of the day, due to get us back to Brigg from Barnetby, had been cancelled due to staff shortages (no guard-conductor being available).
This was later confirmed at Barnetby station on the illuminated platform displays.
We rang the helpline number, as instructed, and were told that a coach had been arranged to get us back to Brigg, which would be leaving nearby Kings Road at 8.07pm.
We had a pint in the nearby Whistle & Flute pub but were at the pick-up point 15 minutes early. Sadly, there was no sign of the coach. Following a further call to Northern, helpful staff then arranged a taxi, but it was 9.20pm before it dropped us off on Station Road, Brigg; the train (if running) would have got us back to town before 8pm.
Various factors meant that our modest-mileage away day took very nearly 12 hours to complete. A pint or three in Brigg was clearly in order after such a marathon!
We've made many train trips from Brigg and Barnetby in recent years without gremlins like this arising. And what happened on Saturday won't deter us from undertaking more in the future, especially from December 21 when the early morning connection should be easier to make because of the amended time.
Last Saturday we rather wished we'd booked the Call Connect dial-a-ride mini-bus to take us over to Barnetby. However, it does not operate after 7pm on Saturdays, so CallConnect could not have helped get us back to town after the Northern service's cancellation.
Sheffield-Brigg-Cleethorpes trains - provided by Northern - only operate on Saturdays, and our day return ticket from Brigg to Newark was very cheap. So we won't be seeking to claim a refund but trust that normal service will be resumed next time we undertake a Saturday journey.
Our thanks go to Paul Johnson, a staunch campaigner to improve use of Brigg line trains, for his warning message about the non-running final train on Saturday, and also for the informative screensnap (below) giving the amended timetable coming into operation next month.
We used one of the call points provided on Barnetby's station platforms on Saturday night but it connected us to staff at TransPennine.
They gave us Northern's 0800 number, which we rang. But what if you are a passenger on the platform without a mobile phone to hand?
PICTURED ABOVE: Passengers waiting to board the delayed first morning train on Saturday at Brigg station. BELOW: The Full Monty - Passenger trains operated by all three local service providers - Northern, East Midlands and TransPennine calling at Barnetby station on Saturday, plus some views of the pay and display car park and one showing the modern train ticket sales machine at the entrance to the station. We had to fill in time somehow!
