New tram track on Talbot Road

Looking down Talbot Road from the junction with Dickson Road as workers prepare the foundation for double track extending from Talbot Square in the far distance up to Cookson Street. Below : the newly laid rail looking from Abingdon Street junction up towards North Station.

Talbot Road is completely closed to permit new tram track being laid. This most certainly will be the scene when a second generation of tramway is constructed on this important town centre roadway in 2018/2019. In the distance a tar boiler is in view and the distinctive clock on the railway station facade - to provide homeward bound travellers with adequate notice of how much time they have left before their train departs. Possibly a fixture worth installing in the remodelled station precinct. Both Photos : John Woodman Archive

It is interesting to note that hackney cab drivers and their local association protested vociferously against road closures when tram track was installed on Talbot Road - arguing against bringing trams (and passengers) in proximity to the station and thus impairing revenue to cab owners. Nothing new then.....