This is a companion page to Far North Express 92, May 2024.

Links mentioned in the magazine:

FNL 150 - P4

• Programme - Forsinard 150th event, 21 June 2024

FoFNL AGM & Conference - P5

Here are the potted biographies of our three main speakers:

Dr. Robert Gardner is a Chartered Engineer in telecommunications with more than 20 years of experience. During 16 years working with Network Rail, he was instrumental in engineering the transition from circuit-switched to packet-switched technologies for critical railway applications.

In 2016 he was seconded to the United States to help define the telecommunications requirements for California High Speed Rail. Since returning to the UK, he has brought new-age satellite connectivity into the railway corridor to support critical infrastructure monitoring, remote voice communications, and Future Railway Mobile Communications System (FRMCS) services including passenger Wi-Fi, in-cab signalling and train control.

Robert Gardner is now an Associate Director with the Government-owned Scottish Futures Trust in Edinburgh and works to enhance digital connectivity for all citizens of Scotland. He holds a Bachelor of Engineering and a PhD from the University of Strathclyde.

Anthony Smith was the chief executive of Transport Focus, the independent watchdog for transport users, advocating in their interest and holding transport operators to account.

He stepped down from this role at the end of 2023 after nearly 25 years. He is now the Chair of Independent Rail Retailers, the membership and lobbying group representing Britain's independent ticket retailers, together responsible for over £4 billion in ticket sales each year.

Roger French retired from the bus industry in 2013 and since then has been enjoying travelling all over the UK mainly by bus and train, but also the occasional tram, ferry and aeroplane, savouring the delightful scenery and places of interest our country offers as well as experiencing the best and worst and sometimes mediocre of public transport as a passenger.

He records his experiences in his Bus and Train User blog, hoping to inspire others to get out and about on public transport to enjoy travelling around the country as well as giving praise to those transport companies doing a fantastic job and also those who need to learn a thing or two and do things better. He wishes some of them would make it their business to try using their own services from time to time.

He likes to try out any new developments to see if they live up to the hype surrounding their introduction and from time to time comments on matters impacting the industry as well as reviewing any new books when published that take his fancy.

He does this with a lifetime experience working in the bus industry from an early job as a student working for London Transport at their famous 55 Broadway offices in 1970, to completing his career as Managing Director of Brighton & Hove Buses, from which he retired in 2013.

His work has been recognised with an OBE for services to public transport, an Honorary MA from the University of Brighton and the award of 'Freedom of the City of Brighton & Hove' in 2013.

Robert Gardner will be talking about satellite-based high-speed internet provision on trains. These links give some background.

• Brightline in Florida
• North York Moors Railway Satellite Broadband Demonstration

Roger French's blog, Bus & Train User, is well worth reading.

• Bus & Train User

Here is a larger map showing the pedestrian route from Inverness Station to the Crown Church.

The Crown Church contains a memorial tablet which it should be possible to view, in the main Sanctuary after the Conference:

Duncan MacPherson
and the Carr Bridge Railway Disaster of 1914

110 years ago on 18 June 1914 the Highland Railway Company and five passengers became victims of a most unfortunate disaster 0.8 of a mile north of Carrbridge caused by freak weather conditions.

A violent thunderstorm broke over part of the Monadhliath Mountains to the east of Tomatin. Floodwaters raced down hill and carried away the road bridge over the Baddengorm Burn. The debris from this together with stones and trees temporarily blocked the valley and held back the flood.

When this "dam" burst, the water raced further down the valley and hit the railway bridge just as the 11.50 Perth to Inverness train was crossing. The railway bridge collapsed in its turn and the middle passenger coach of the train fell in to the water and was submerged. Five passengers died, and nine were injured.

Duncan MacPherson (69) was one of those who lost his life. His body was found later that Thursday evening four miles downstream on the River Dulnain. He had been south on church business.

Mr MacPherson was a prominent citizen in Inverness, a steamship agent with his business at 15 Union Street. The tag line on his advertisement says "Passengers booked by the best lines to all parts of the world" and twelve well known steamship lines are listed. He was also an "agent for Liverpool, Manchester, Leith, Aberdeen and Moray Firth steamers".

His photograph herewith has come from the archives of the Crown Church in Inverness which have recently been deposited with the Highland Archives, also in Inverness. Mr MacPherson was one of four founding elders of the church, its treasurer for the first seven years and its first Session Clerk from 1899 until his death.

"Called home 18th June 1914" are the words on his memorial tablet, the only one in the church. His grave is at the top of the hill in Tomnahurich cemetery and his funeral procession on Monday 22 June stretched for almost a quarter of a mile with the Inverness Courier reporting that hundreds of people lined the route.

Inverness Info - P8

Scotland's Railway Delivery Plan - P14

• Scotland's Railway Delivery Plan
• Rail For All - Report for the Scottish Green Party, mentioned in the article.

Altnabreac - P20

Fair Fares Eventually? - P23 et seq

• Roger French's Blog on LNER's Fares Experiment

LMS poster, in Glasgow Central Station's tour museum, showing their simple cheap return fares

A9 vs HML - Plus ça Change - P28

Modern Railways magazine cover, February 1985

ScotRail £5 HML leaflet - front

ScotRail £5 HML leaflet - back

Wick in Wartime - P33

A chance to look more closely at this amazing WWII view of Wick from the air

Wick from the air

More about the bombing and the memorial garden mentioned in the article:

• Scotland's People - Scotland's History: The Bombing of Wick, July 1940
• War Memorials Online - Wick Memorial Garden