Author Topic: AMTP in Pithiviers, France  (Read 134954 times)

ALAIN DELASSUS

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Re: AMTP in Pithiviers, France
« Reply #180 on: April 03, 2021, 09:58:13 AM »
 SAD NEWS FROM PITHIVIERS
After the lift of the second general stay-at-home order in January works had actively resumed at AMTP. Steam engine #9 had been taken down again on its wheelset- see reply above - and its breaking run in  earlyMarch was troublefree. The combine car had been overhauled and repainted and important trackworks had been carried out in the site of Béllébat the end station where 120 ties had been changed in March. The two steam locomotives still in runnnig order had passed  their understeam mandatory test and everything was ready for the Easter Eggs Hunting Specials scheduled  tomorrow and Monday that is a legal holiday in France, which woud have been the kick- off of the 2021 operating season.
Sad to say but France is under a general lockdown  again- the third one-  as of this evening for at least 4 weeks .The AMTP's President has consequently cancelled the trains until further notice and of course the museum will stay closed as well. Every volunteer and member is very much disappointed  not to say dispirited  and  wonder if the association will be able to  weather a second shortened operating season. When will we begin to see daylight outhere ?

Dave Buczkowski

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Re: AMTP in Pithiviers, France
« Reply #181 on: April 03, 2021, 05:19:01 PM »
Alain,
I’m on pins and needles that the same thing will happen here. So far so good. Vaccinations are up at least. Our thoughts are with our good friends at the AMPT.
Dave

Bill Baskerville

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Re: AMTP in Pithiviers, France
« Reply #182 on: April 03, 2021, 10:26:47 PM »
Well said Dave.

Alain, We are all concerned about our sister museums and, of course our friends in France 🇫🇷.

From one who was married in Norte Dame de Paris 28 years ago.

Bill
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ALAIN DELASSUS

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Re: AMTP in Pithiviers, France
« Reply #183 on: April 04, 2021, 02:09:00 AM »
Thank you so much Dave and Bill for your kind words and sympathy.

ALAIN DELASSUS

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Re: AMTP in Pithiviers, France
« Reply #184 on: April 29, 2021, 01:46:57 AM »
THE DWINDLING AMTP STEAM LOCOMOTIVE STOCK
In reply #179 I told you only two out of five steam locomotives were still up and running and explained the reasons why the the others were not anymore and would not be before long. That rather new situation is a real concern for the AMTP leadership and myself as regards the setting up of Steam Festivals and other big occasions. With only two steam locomotives  you can't set up a worthy of the name Steam Festival even if the small 151 year old #2 is going around the loop in Bellébat endstation. Of course, the solution to that lack of home steam locomotives is to invite other tourist railway steam engines. That is what AMTP did over the past few years  in particular when it celebrated its 50th Anniversary five years ago. But there is always a down side to everything. If having one or two guest steam locomotives around is certainly a plus to the visitors and volunteers one must admit that it has an heavy cost. The host association must pay for the haulage, the insurances and mostly accomodations for the engine crew let alone a lot of paperwork. If unfortunately, mostly on account of poor weather conditions , the big event does not live up to expectations as regards the ridership, the upshot is a more or less substancial waste of money like it was the case  for the AMTP 50th Anniversary Festival. So considering the current C19 crisis and its financial aftermath does not help matters as regards funding heavy repairs I'm a bit afraid that I'll no more attend to the big -steamy- events I was so happy to take part in over those past forty years and I'm also sad for the young AMTP's volunteers that wont maybe experience such exciting and inspiring big occasions.

John McNamara

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Re: AMTP in Pithiviers, France
« Reply #185 on: April 29, 2021, 09:31:35 AM »
THE DWINDLING AMTP STEAM LOCOMOTIVE STOCK
......That rather new situation is a real concern for the AMTP leadership and myself as regards the setting up of Steam Festivals and other big occasions. With only two steam locomotives  you can't set up a worthy of the name Steam Festival...
I wonder what the optimal number of locomotives for a festival is. I propose the number is three or four. The expense and operational difficulty (event setup) becomes too burdensome for added visitor enjoyment and optimum ticket price beyond that. If AMTP had three operating locomotives, that might be the ideal number.

ALAIN DELASSUS

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Re: AMTP in Pithiviers, France
« Reply #186 on: April 30, 2021, 08:08:07 AM »
 John thank you so much for replying. I agree with you  three steam locomotives are the basic number to set up a Steam Festival. As long as you run only home steam locomotives there is almost  no limit provided that there are not more than four trains at the same time running on the main. With a well planned schedule and traincrews that stick to it everything technically runs like clockwork.  Over those past 55 years a lot of big events have amply gone to show that volunteers, rollingstock and facilities of AMTP were able to set up and achieve them successfully.  For now the issue is  both  technical and financial. Technical because the AMTP steam locomotives boilers are very old and a few of them are in poor conditions. In short term as rules and regulations are more and more stringent as regards the boilers  the only solution will be to fit up our locomotives with new boilers. Financial issue because for the time being AMTP- all the more reason with the C19 crisis-  can't afford to repair a boiler  let alone to have a new boiler make even if the expense may be partly funded by subsidies from the French Culture Department that can only reach 40 % of the amount of the bill at the most. As for funding the new boilers by donations from individuals or companies it does not work out a lot in France. So in short AMTP is currently in a sort of a deadlock as regards its steam powers. Have a good weekend

ALAIN DELASSUS

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Re: AMTP in Pithiviers, France
« Reply #187 on: June 13, 2021, 05:35:35 AM »
BETTER NEWS FROM PITHIVIERS
The operating season started May 8th instead of Easter on the grounds of a new offensive of C19 and the ensuing third stay- at- home order .In May the turnout was rather poor except for the Belated Egg Hunting Specials weekend that was counted a succcess with 325 riders but can't be by no means likened to the Easter Egg Hunting Specials that ran in 2018 and 2019 that drew in over 700 riders. At Witsun a rail yardsale was held in the back of the museum and yielded around 3000$ but as quite a lot of artifacts are still left the yardsale will continue every operating day through 2021. The financial position of AMTP, like the one of WW&F, is sound. As it turns out, all sorts of savings of course but also governmental and local authorities subsidies and donations that are fortunately  both on the rise without forgetting the yardsale have almost offset the loss of operating revenue. The feelgood- factor comes back slowly but surely  among the volunteers and the leadership has found the can-do attitude again. One of the three disabled steam locomotives, very likely 080 MTP #12, will be repaired during the next off-season and will be put into operation again in 2022. A solution is in view as regards the AMTP facilities and buildings in Pithiviers that need substancial costly repairs the association can't afford in anycase. In the Fall and if everything is OK as regards the C19,  the usual European Heritage Weekend will take place in late September. In October a Steam Festival to commemorate both the 55th Anniversary of AMTP and the 150th plus one year of the Schneider built locomotive that has been called off last year would be set up and held with two Germans guest steamlocomotives, the haulage would be paid by the township of Pithiviers. I'll keep you posted.

ALAIN DELASSUS

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Re: AMTP in Pithiviers, France
« Reply #188 on: August 04, 2021, 10:31:27 AM »
Hello ! Have the AMTP just got a new steamlocomotive? For further information  give a look at my fb page.

Keith Taylor

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Re: AMTP in Pithiviers, France
« Reply #189 on: August 09, 2021, 04:34:00 PM »
Hello ! Have the AMTP just got a new steamlocomotive? For further information  give a look at my fb page.
Alain,
I do not have a Facebook account so cannot view your facebook page.
The new locomotive looks great! Does it have the Klien-Lindner radial axles?
Keith

Jeff Schumaker

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Re: AMTP in Pithiviers, France
« Reply #190 on: August 10, 2021, 08:09:10 AM »
Nice looking loco, Allain. Is it operable? Also, is it a German trench loco?

Jeff S.
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ALAIN DELASSUS

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Re: AMTP in Pithiviers, France
« Reply #191 on: August 13, 2021, 05:32:52 AM »
Hello Yes our Brigadelok is still fit out with the Klien-Lindner system and is in running order. Of course AMTP has not puchased a new locomotive but two volunteers crazy about those German WW1 locomotives have made over  MTP #4 that has been owned and used by the association for over 50 years into a Brigadelok with all its accessories.

ALAIN DELASSUS

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Re: AMTP in Pithiviers, France
« Reply #192 on: August 13, 2021, 05:51:09 AM »
A pic of MTP #4 before its metamorphosis

ALAIN DELASSUS

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Re: AMTP in Pithiviers, France
« Reply #193 on: August 20, 2021, 06:03:32 AM »
NEWS FROM PITHIVIERS
Hello. In France given the poor vaccination rate against C19, the government has decided on implementing an individual sanitary pass that proves you are fully vaccinated. You have to show your pass if you want to enter bars restaurants movie theaters, stadiums librairies museums and so on. Consequently MTP's leadership has decided on closing temporarily the museum. Checking the sanitary pass of each visitors requires an extra volunteer and not only  volunteers are pretty rare in August but nobody is actually eager to carry out that tricky and troublesome task. Fortunately as long as you wear a mask you can board the train. In July and August the trains run Thursdays Fridays Saturdays and Sundays three times a day until August 12th they were powered by a diesel locomotive  . By now the harvest is at last over and since last weekend our two steam locomotives in running order  namely our beloved #9, yes we have a beloved #9 too, and the almost brand new Brigade Lok have been back on the main. Despite the unsettled weather the turnout is good and the financial position stays sound. Last Thursday the STRMTG's inspectors  the regulatory body as regards the safety operating rules came over and I was invited to attend the inspection by Sebastien the President who knows I'm safety counscious. On the whole the inspection has worked out well, the inspectors have not noticed any major failure to the rulebook. As usual they have asked the association to improve the training of the volunteers and the recording of the maintenance of the rolling stock; The wise decision to call off the October Big Steam Festival,see above reply #187, due to the impredictable course of the sanitary conditions is the only fly in the ointment.

Mike Fox

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Re: AMTP in Pithiviers, France
« Reply #194 on: August 20, 2021, 05:41:45 PM »
Thanks for the report Alain. Volunteers are short world wide, from train service to Fire Service. Everyone is looking and few are stepping up. C19 numbers are on the rise here too... Hoping this is all over soon.
Mike
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