Can anyone tell me when electrically driven man riding trains were first introduced into British Collieries to transport men from the pit bottom to the work faces. Also does anyone know if there were token systems introduced into any pits to control the order in which miners caught the in and out by trains at the start and ends of their shifts. Prior to 1947 similar cage riding token systems appear to have been used in certain of the UK's larger pits to control the order in which the miners descended and ascended. These tokens were referred to in certain parts of Yorkshire (at least) as "Rope Checks" and would bear the rope (i.e. cage ride) number which each miner was entitled to catch. The "Rope Check" system appears to have operated in parallel with the normal safety lamp checking system. Presumably rope checks were given out by the banksman to the miners while they waited to descend into the pit. Later, at the end of the shift, the checks would also be shown to the onsetter to govern the order in which the miners were raised to bank.The system appears to have worked on the basis that a miner first in the queue to go down the mine on a particular shift should then have been entitled to catch one of the first cages (or rope rides, as they were also known in parts of Yorks.) up the shaft at the end of the shift. This would have ensured that each miner spent a similar time underground each shift thus ensuring that their overall work hours were fairly regulated. The order in which men were lowered and raised from the mine was obviously an issue at many larger pits (especially those with reduced capacity man riding cages) where several hundred miners had to be lowered and raised each shift via a series of successive cage rides.
Any information about the use of rope checks would be appreciated. Similarly any similar information relating to how the system may have been further extended at certain pits to control the order in which men caught the mine riding trains to and from the work faces would also be welcomed.
Regards
Mark Smith
Visit the UK's National Mining Memorabilia Association's Web site at;
http://freespace.virgin.net/mark.smith30/index.htm or http://clix.to/NMMA
|