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So the specification drawn up by the DfT clearly had Dawlish in mind but what is "spray" and does what we've seen today (and on the other occasions this has been an issue) count as "spray" or not? Plenty of blame to go around I suspect but at least someone had the thought that best specify something to include provision for salt water exposure I guess.
Why would a politician ever call out the real issues? If they did that then it might raise uncomfortable questions about who specified these trains, who agreed the operational contracts with Agility Trains, who decided on the funding arrangements, etc etc. The answers to those questions could be very embarrassing for those same politicians. Far easier to keep shtum and let GWR take the flak.
Saltwater exposure is partly to blame for the dampener cracks affecting the IET fleet, so I doubt it was that well engineered…
I agree that “spray” probably doesn’t extend to include a huge wave at Dawlish though and I struggle to think of any stock that would appropriately cope in that sort of condition, it’s just that the DfT / Hitachi / Agility shouldn’t have made such audacious claims.
Special mode should be activated by driver at either Newton Abbot or Exeter under certain conditions (ie like todays storm). Provided driver remembered to do this, then it allows multiple attempts at restarting shut down engines. Of the top of my head I don't remember how many attempts it gives you.
Trouble is it relies on driver setting up special mode prior to hitting the affected area.
Special mode should be activated by driver at either Newton Abbot or Exeter under certain conditions (ie like todays storm). Provided driver remembered to do this, then it allows multiple attempts at restarting shut down engines. Of the top of my head I don't remember how many attempts it gives you.
Trouble is it relies on driver setting up special mode prior to hitting the affected area.
I suppose 3 drivers could have forgot!!!!!!! Including the one going in to rescue, and fully aware of why they were going into rescue!!!!!!! I very much doubt it
I suppose 3 drivers could have forgot!!!!!!! Including the one going in to rescue, and fully aware of why they were going into rescue!!!!!!! I very much doubt it
Well yes but that’s not the point I think was being made. Overall special mode is only helpful if trying to restart the engines a 2nd or 3rd time is going to make a blind bit of difference.
IF special mode has been used then I suspect we are going to see the end of the 80xs in this neck of the woods in the next few years.
Question is what will we get instead? Just hopefully nothing stadler esq.
Of course the other way round it is the diversionary route, but I can't see the money for that ever being found whilst the country has to find the money somewhere down the back of the sofa for hs2 etc....
Avanti are likely to be freeing up their Voyagers soon. These are diesel and obviously cleared on this route, as CrossCountry already run them along most of the GWML and I believe they have been to Paddington before.
The Hastings and allied demus seemed to manage for 40 years at their depot at St Leonards, and allied open air sidings, which are as much on the beachfront as Dawlish. Picture :
Avanti are likely to be freeing up their Voyagers soon. These are diesel and obviously cleared on this route, as CrossCountry already run them along most of the GWML and I believe they have been to Paddington before.
Avanti are likely to be freeing up their Voyagers soon. These are diesel and obviously cleared on this route, as CrossCountry already run them along most of the GWML and I believe they have been to Paddington before.
Does anyone know about the tree down between Lockerbie and Carstairs and how long it will take to clear? I have a relative who was travelling between Manchester and Edinburgh on Transpennine and it was terminated at Carlisle. I don't know what services will be running later.
Avanti are likely to be freeing up their Voyagers soon. These are diesel and obviously cleared on this route, as CrossCountry already run them along most of the GWML and I believe they have been to Paddington before.
Special mode should be activated by driver at either Newton Abbot or Exeter under certain conditions (ie like todays storm). Provided driver remembered to do this, then it allows multiple attempts at restarting shut down engines. Of the top of my head I don't remember how many attempts it gives you.
Trouble is it relies on driver setting up special mode prior to hitting the affected area.
Are there any official parameters such as wind direction and speed at Dawlish which when exceeded require drivers to activate the special mode. And if so, is there any notification given to the driver somehow by the signaller/control or whoever. Or is it all up to the discretion of the driver?
Can the driver activate special conditions on the move or has it to be done whilst at a stand?
And why, in normal conditions, is only one restart allowed if I read what you say correctly?
Cheers for any info.
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Does anyone know about the tree down between Lockerbie and Carstairs and how long it will take to clear? I have a relative who was travelling between Manchester and Edinburgh on Transpennine and it was terminated at Carlisle. I don't know what services will be running later.
Does anyone know about the tree down between Lockerbie and Carstairs and how long it will take to clear? I have a relative who was travelling between Manchester and Edinburgh on Transpennine and it was terminated at Carlisle. I don't know what services will be running later.
Part of the problem today was both 1A77 and 1C70 stopped at Dawlish. So rather than facing one or two waves as they passed through the would have been hit by numerous ones.
A better idea maybe to not stop at Dawlish and quickly pass through giving a better chance of not getting stuck.
The Hastings and allied demus seemed to manage for 40 years at their depot at St Leonards, and allied open air sidings, which are as much on the beachfront as Dawlish. Picture :
Yes, but by the end of their working lives in the mid-1980s the effects of salt water corrosion on their underframes and bodywork were very plain to see. I was a guard at Brighton at that time and frequently shunted in and out of the depot with both the CM&EE freight trip taking engines and other parts to and from Eastleigh Works and the DEMU ECS workings to and from Eastleigh, taking units for major overhauls.
Regarding 'special mode for restarting, I assume there is a disadvantage of having it 'on' as otherwise why not make it not special and have it on all the time?
The Hastings and allied demus seemed to manage for 40 years at their depot at St Leonards, and allied open air sidings, which are as much on the beachfront as Dawlish. Picture :
The rails in Dawlish are a lot closer to the sea wall than in that picture, and I suspect Dawlish also gets bigger seas crashing into the sea wall, due to its location, and the deeper water close inshore. Those Turbostars no doubt get hit by a lot of spray, trains at Dawlish get hit by actual waves!
Does anyone know about the tree down between Lockerbie and Carstairs and how long it will take to clear? I have a relative who was travelling between Manchester and Edinburgh on Transpennine and it was terminated at Carlisle. I don't know what services will be running later.
This is the tree causing the disruption on the West Coast Mainline north of Lockerbie. Overhead lines in both directions have been damaged. Working to fully assess the repairs needed to get trains running again. We’ll do this as quickly as we can. Thanks for your patience. #WCML
I’m surprised no attempt has been made to send a (potentially modified) 57/3 down there (57306 perhaps) as a thunderbird as per the VT Era. Doubtless Hitachi will have 101 reasons to oppose this though as they don’t like anyone else touching their rolling stock.
Are there any official parameters such as wind direction and speed at Dawlish which when exceeded require drivers to activate the special mode. And if so, is there any notification given to the driver somehow by the signaller/control or whoever. Or is it all up to the discretion of the driver?
Can the driver activate special conditions on the move or has it to be done whilst at a stand?
And why, in normal conditions, is only one restart allowed if I read what you say correctly?
Drivers engage it when instructed to in their notices when they book on - that decision is made by Control and based on how bad the wave breaches are expected to be. Today I think it was from (I think) 06:30-11:30.
Little chance of it making a difference under conditions that were seen at Dawlish today. Why on earth station stops weren't removed at Dawlish for IET services I do not know, as it was clear on the webcam that waves were landing on them every ten seconds or so while stationary, so for a train that is already fragile you really are asking for terminal problems. Both the passenger services that were declared failures made station stops at Dawlish, and that's where the up one failed. The down one made it to just past Teignmouth.
Still...nothing like major disruption like that to focus some minds where it matters!
