Looking for Photos of Kings Cross Suburban

[Andy W]

I'm afraid I haven't any pictures of the entrance to the Milk Dock but the entrance was on the right hand side of Cheney Road as you headed up towards Battlebridge Road, just past the entrance to Wellers Court - almost directly opposite to the German Gym. Entering the yard, you went approx. 90 degrees down to the left and then the Milk Dock opened up in front of you.

Looking across from the right, Platform 17 with it's wooden platform wasn't used for passengers. It had all manner of odd rubbish stored along it when I was there. When I started at KX in the 1970's there was a booked working, on I think a Cleethorpes, to take a buffet car off and then leave it there till the evening. It also was used to store any dud coaches that we had to knock off a train. I have a picture of a BFK sitting in there in 1978 - the first coach I ever detached!

Working across, the next road to the left was on the right hand side of a triangular open dock. That road was used in shunting the motorail vans, locos and general departmental use. Across the other side of the dock were the two motorail roads. Only one could be used for end loading the TCV vans (because of their loading height) but both could be used for GUVs. On the left of that road was a covered dock platform and on the other side of that was the single road that was also used for loco movements and often had an engineers vehicle sitting in it at the London end as the civils occupied the ground floor of Culross buildings. Their toilets there were gas lit, even in the 1980's!

Access to platform 17 was either by the north end of 16 or by steps across the Milk Dock at the London end. I think there was some building over the blocks at the London end but my now memory fails me concerning what was there but I am pretty sure the passageway down to 16 didn't have any London end access to 17 - I would have used it! Access to 16 was from 14/15 - there was a passenger route from the London end of 13 (now 11) right across. There weren't any entrances off Cheney Road after the main entrance to 11 to 13 (now 9 to 11).

Hope this helps and if my memory is wrong, I'm sure someone out there will correct me!

[StevieG]

.... would only say, Andy, that, as I mentioned earlier, I think that part way along 16 from the bottom of the passenger access slope, while heading towards the north end, there was a gap between 16's buildings, where there were a few steps up to 17.

[Mickey]

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[manna]

G'Day Gents

Hi, Micky, you probably thought it was a bit 'spooky' around platforms 16/17, because it was !! after about 1830hrs there was nothing moving, except the shunt locos and locos needing servicing,sometimes after the last train out of Moorgate had called at KX the lights would be turned out on plat 16, and there weren't to many on plat. 17.

Watched the movie 'Shirley Valentine' tonight, and in one of the scenes, when Shirley is coming home with the shopping, in the dark, she is walking down Cheney St/Battlesbridge Rd? with the Milk Dock wall on her left and the Big old gas tanks in the background ( this is supposed to be Liverpool) wet cobblestones everywhere

manna

[Mickey]

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[manna]

G'Day Gents

Yep! you bet Micky The strange thing was, you had the odd light coming from Culcross Buildings, lights from the Motorail dock,and lights from the passenger loco, but you were standing in total darkness ??

Worse night I had around that area was on a 'work to rule' and being on 'Engine Movements' (besides not being allowed to drive the locos) you weren't allowed to cross any Track, always had to go around!! on the 'Official walking route' which as it's name implies, was never used, and everybody used as a dumping ground, so to get back to the SOP. you had to walk around the Milk Dock, up the side of 'Culcross Buildings' which was always pitch black and littered with C***, by the time I got back to the SOP I had cut hands, from a fall and barked shins from another piece of 'Railway Equipment' on the plus side I was also covered in something evil smelling ????? Oh the joys of night shift

manna

[Mickey]

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[Mick Berg]

Thanks Gentlemen, your recollections make fascinating reading.
Mick Berg.

[Andy W]

Thanks Steve, I remember those set of steps, now you mention them. My memory, dear me!

I do remember those lethal yellow metal motorail chocks that used to litter the dock. I badly bruised my toes on one once and that was in broad daylight too!

[manna]

G'Day Gents

Another little snippet about 1&2 shunt you used to have the headcode boxes lit at Both ends! normally you get told to turn the back cab one off.

manna

[StevieG]

manna,
And could you get the 1S and 2S locos to display pilot loco lights, as per the 08's ('350's) that worked 'up the Goods Yard' (KX), and I think was standard for station and yard pilots : - One red and one white, also at both ends?

[Mickey]

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[manna]

G'Day Gents

With '1 shunt' as Micky says, nearly always a Brush 2, with the tail light lit 'London' end, crew always in the 'country' end, when we were unlucky to get a '350' on '2 shunt' just normal shunter head codes, to tell the truth never touched the lights, they were always set when we got on the loco, another crew always brought the loco down from 'Kings Cross goods yard'

Your heart always sank when you saw that you had a 350, you knew that you were in for a uncomfortable night, and cold if it was the middle of winter.

1 shunt was usually put into the milk dock/platform 17, when there was a break in traffic, but 2 shunt was nearly always left at the end of platform 5 or 6, under some big bright lights, which didn't make night shift go any quicker ! we were also left there so as to be on hand to shunt part of the 'first up mail' which arrived I think about 3.30am and also about the same time that the empty coaches arrived for 4am to Leeds (1L00 or 1L01)

manna

[Mickey]

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[manna]

G'Day Gents & Micky

Naw ! leaving the 4 xxxx alone at the moment, as it's 0620 and about 2c outside (middle of winter) so it's a hot coffee instead, keep on shunting though

manna