Sat 2nd Oct 2021 - Easterling Cancellation

[HST43257]

Last year, I was due to travel on the Easterling, from London to Lowestoft and back (one way via Norwich, the other via the freight curve avoiding Ipswich). That got cancelled due to routing problems IIRC.

The tickets rolled over to this year's tour, but that has just been cancelled with gauging problems.

Why is this tour unable to happen, and why do these issues only arise a few weeks before the tours?

 

[306024]

There are no paths available over the East Suffolk line now that the GA service is hourly. That doesn't seem to deter organisers requesting the impossible and NR seem slow to advise them once they have applied.

GA would have to agree significant changes to their timetable to facilitate any additional trains on the East Suffolk line.

 

[Townsend Hook]

And yet the reason for cancellation is being quoted as gauging rather than pathing. Maybe I'm missing something but I can't imagine NR even bothering to look into gauging the line for the locomotive in question if there's no chance of there being a path.

 

[306024]

And yet the reason for cancellation is being quoted as gauging rather than pathing. Maybe I'm missing something but I can't imagine NR even bothering to look into gauging the line for the locomotive in question if there's no chance of there being a path.

A wild guess but perhaps the logic is that if you time a train first but then fail to gauge clear it then that could be a potential safety issue if no one else spots it. If you guage a train first but then can’t path it no safety issue arises.

Knowledge of the infrastructure and timetable for the East Suffolk line would nip all this in the bud but that’s where experience helps.

 

[HST43257]

And why wasn't the gauging problem found out about last year?

 

[DarloRich]

And why wasn't the gauging problem found out about last year?

Becuase gague isnt a fixed thing. It changes all the time.

 

[TheEdge]

GA would have to agree significant changes to their timetable to facilitate any additional trains on the East Suffolk line.

After some head scratching I can only see two ways of running a railtour on the East Suffolk. Either it runs on a Sunday, starting either at about 0600 from Norwich or 0700 from Lowestoft and run in the path of an imaginary 0705 departure then go home via the GEML. The other (fair less plausible) way is using the Sizewell paths but that would have to find a way of killing 5 and a half hours, maybe with a nice trip to Aldeburgh or Southwold.

Other than that I imagine a massive payment to get GA to snip one service out for one day only.

 

[306024]

After some head scratching I can only see two ways of running a railtour on the East Suffolk. Either it runs on a Sunday, starting either at about 0600 from Norwich or 0700 from Lowestoft and run in the path of an imaginary 0705 departure then go home via the GEML. The other (fair less plausible) way is using the Sizewell paths but that would have to find a way of killing 5 and a half hours, maybe with a nice trip to Aldeburgh or Southwold.

Other than that I imagine a massive payment to get GA to snip one service out for one day only.

Not sure 06.00 from Norwich on a Sunday morning would generate sufficient interest to be commercially viable though.

The sectional appendix states any charter train over the East Suffolk line must not delay booked services, a slightly strange clause as surely that applies to all charter trains everywhere. Operating to Sizewell has special instructions too, for example stopping at Saxmundham in the up direction is prohibited.

 

[TheEdge]

Not sure 06.00 from Norwich on a Sunday morning would generate sufficient interest to be commercially viable though.

The sectional appendix states any charter train over the East Suffolk line must not delay booked services, a slightly strange clause as surely that applies to all charter trains everywhere. Operating to Sizewell has special instructions too, for example stopping at Saxmundham in the up direction is prohibited.

Oh I never suggested it would be profitable, just that those are the only gaps on the East Suffolk where a railtour could fit. Thats a slightly strange instruction, any idea why?

Although this just reminds me the East Suffolk is a mess of a line and could really benefit from some nice investment. But thats for another thread/rant.

 

[306024]

Oh I never suggested it would be profitable, just that those are the only gaps on the East Suffolk where a railtour could fit. Thats a slightly strange instruction, any idea why?

Although this just reminds me the East Suffolk is a mess of a line and could really benefit from some nice investment. But thats for another thread/rant.

Don't worry, I never thought you were suggesting it would No idea about the special instruction, but NR caught a cold when they tried to run a route learning light engine recently. Classified as freight, it had to slow for all the crossings and caused carnage to the passenger service.

Having seen a journey log of a Britannia doing 82mph on the East Suffolk line I know what you mean regarding investment though.

 

[TheEdge]

Don't worry, I never thought you were suggesting it would No idea about the special instruction, but NR caught a cold when they tried to run a route learning light engine recently. Classified as freight, it had to slow for all the crossings and caused carnage to the passenger service.

Ah yes, GBRf and their 66 running around getting in our way. I think I was on the 0907 sat at Beccles with a comedy GSMR call from the signaller who was clearly quite done with this route learner buggering up his line for the last week or so.

Having seen a journey log of a Britannia doing 82mph on the East Suffolk line I know what you mean regarding investment though.

Its things like the blanket 55 for the open crossings even though the open crossings are functionally AHBs now. The absolute lack of proper signalling meaning there is absolutely no capacity. Those [expletive] crossings. Find a way to reclassify them so I don't spend my day braking and accelerating for them. If that line had a decent linespeed and got rid of the long sections of super low speed limits (25 for a mile through Beccles, almost 3/4 of a mile of 30 at Darsham for sighting (and timing) for an (not) open crossing you can see clearly from Darsham platform, almost 2 miles of similar restrictions from Woodbridge to Melton) it could beat the road journey times in that area to a pulp, but instead we trundle along like a preserved railway.

 

[eastdyke]

Having seen a journey log of a Britannia doing 82mph on the East Suffolk line I know what you mean regarding investment though.

'The Easterling' 1950s style was timed from Liverpool Street to Beccles (non-stop) at 2hrs 13mins (M-F summer 1955 TT), almost invariably a Britannia so there would be plenty of such logs.
Allowing for Ipswich to be reached in 1hr 16mins ('The Norfolkman' timing) that would be around 57 mins for Ipswich-Beccles (just over 40 miles).
The Liverpool Street-Yarmouth South Town/Lowestoft stoppers (all shacks East Suffolk) took around 1 hour 20 mins for the same leg.
[The timings today for the journey are around 1 hr 8 mins so your 82mph didn't actually shave that much off!!]

Still a sight though

 

[306024]

Nice bit of history there. My recollections only go back as far as the early 80s with the 07.22 Lowestoft to Liverpool St and 16.50 return, class 37 on load 9.

Meanwhile here’s the thread regarding the 2020 cancellation.

https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/the-easterling-3rd-october-2020.209747/

 

[ge-gn]

Ah yes, GBRf and their 66 running around getting in our way. I think I was on the 0907 sat at Beccles with a comedy GSMR call from the signaller who was clearly quite done with this route learner buggering up his line for the last week or so.



Its things like the blanket 55 for the open crossings even though the open crossings are functionally AHBs now. The absolute lack of proper signalling meaning there is absolutely no capacity. Those [expletive] crossings. Find a way to reclassify them so I don't spend my day braking and accelerating for them. If that line had a decent linespeed and got rid of the long sections of super low speed limits (25 for a mile through Beccles, almost 3/4 of a mile of 30 at Darsham for sighting (and timing) for an (not) open crossing you can see clearly from Darsham platform, almost 2 miles of similar restrictions from Woodbridge to Melton) it could beat the road journey times in that area to a pulp, but instead we trundle along like a preserved railway.

It’s 55mph because the crossings are locally monitored (ie by the driver) whether open or barrier. While they appear functionally the same as an AHB, ABCL are not monitored by the local signal box and are designed in such a way to remain in the raised position should there be a power failure.

Wonder why it’s a 55mph limit though? Seems such an arbitrary figure.