There is positive news on the restoration of the passenger train service through Brigg which was suspended in March due to the Coronavirus emergency.
It's expected that diesel units will be travelling along the Brigg line next week for staff training purposes, ahead of normal service being resumed. Clearly, they won't be stopping to pick up passengers, but this is a very welcome sign.
The Saturdays-only timetable is expected to return from Saturday, September 19 - calling at Brigg, Barnetby and Kirton Lindsey stations.
This will allow local townsfolk to travel east to Grimsby and Cleethorpes and (in the other direction) reach Gainsborough, Retford and Sheffield.
By taking a train from Brigg to Barnetby, connections are available to Market Rasen, Lincoln, Newark and other 'day out' destinations.
It will be interesting to see what type of diesel stock appears on the Brigg line from mid-September, as changes were anticipated around the time our service was suspended in March. Many local train-users will be happy to see ANY class employed as long as pick-ups are made in Brigg, Barnetby and Kirton!
During lockdown, the Brigg line again demonstrated its importance as a back-up route when the alternative Cleethorpes-Barnetby-Doncaster-Sheffield line was out of action for many days due to track problems in Scunthorpe.
This resulted in many revenue-earning heavy freight trains being diverted along the Brigg line, including 'green' biomass from Immingham to Drax power station in Yorkshire, and 'empties' returning to the port.
Our picture shows one of the old, familiar Pacer diesel units calling at Brigg station in 2019 on its way to Sheffield. The remaining Pacers based in our region were facing withdrawal earlier this year.
