This is the emotional moment long-serving train driver Joe Crean was greeted by family and friends as he pulled into Picadilly station for the final time.
Joe, 69, has retired after a staggering 52 years on the railway. As the well-wishers who had gathered on Platform One burst into applause, Joe took off his glasses and shed a tear.
His final journey was also marked by a PA announcement thanking him for his service- and a special message displayed on the information boards. READ MORE: Join the FREE Manchester Evening News WhatsApp community Joe, of Glossop, said: "I have over half a century of cherished memories on the railway, and it means a lot to have shared my final journey with both my family and my railway family." Joe spent his whole career on the railway, first joining in 1971 as a steward in the dining car for British Rail.
In June 1980 he became a driver after five years of training. Then, in 2011, he took a job at TransPennine Express, where he spent several years as a driver instructor, helping to train the next generation of drivers.
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