Destination Blinds - a question

[Joey Beauchamp]

Hello all,

I've got a lovely ex-Northern Pacer destination blind and box. I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure it's a real blind, as it's quite grubby and even has an RMT sticker on the back!

I was winding it to "Morecambe" the other day, as I like to display the next team Oxford United are playing when possible (sad I know), and I noticed something very strange. Next to "Marsden" was "Marsten". I had never heard of it, so I looked online and it doesn't appear to exist as a station or even a place!

Does anyone have an idea why this would have been printed? I'm aware there sometimes were printing errors, but that would usually mean the misspelled station name (presumably Marsden in this case) wouldn't appear alongside. The only other explanations I can think of is that it's the equivalent of trap streets in the London A to Z (can't see why that would be necessary) or some kind of secret signal to other railway staff!

Please let me know if you can shed some light on this.

 

[150219]

Just a misprint possibly. Same for Newton Abbeywood on the Wales & West/Wessex Trains blind, being a wrong combination of Filton Abbeywood and Newton Abbot.

There were a few out there that were wrong, e.g. Tauton instead of Taunton and Whithaven instead of Whitehaven.

 

[driver9000]

It was a mistake on a batch of blinds. Does the blind appear modified as though Marsden looks like it has been added later?

 

[Trackman]

Here's what it looks like it...
Puzzling actually, as it doesn't look modified.

 

[Ken H]

Here's what it looks like it...
Puzzling actually, as it doesn't look modified.

Nice movie. thanks

 

[eastwestdivide]

!! That deserves to go viral on Youtube, Can't stop watching it and even better at double speed.

 

[Trackman]

!! That deserves to go viral on Youtube, Can't stop watching it and even better at double speed.

Check out their you-tube channel there's loads of destination blind videos!!
Edit: There's a class 153 blind that says Marsten as well.

 

[Intercity110]

How would you gat ahold of one?

 

[Mcr Warrior]

How would you gat ahold of one?

They come up occasionally on the likes of Ebay...

Class 455 South West Trains EMU Destination Blind Dark Blue Free Post | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Class 455 South West Trains EMU Destination Blind Dark Blue Free Post at the best online prices at eBay! Free delivery for many products.

www.ebay.co.uk

Bus destination blinds seem to be more commonplace.

 

[Joey Beauchamp]

How would you gat ahold of one?

I bought mine on eBay. There were lots of blinds going up as the pacers got scrapped. The guy selling them was a bit clever as he put them up one at a time to keep the prices up.

The boxes come up far less often and are bloody expensive! Mine is also huge as apparently they chucked any old bus blind box in the pacers as they had a window cut out, so didn't matter if they were bigger. I had to cut out some black mountboard and glue it onto the front. I love it though, looks great.

 

[Ken H]

Beware. There are people making replica ones. Many of the ones on preserved buses are replicas because the originals have decayed beyond use.

 

[driver9000]

I bought mine on eBay. There were lots of blinds going up as the pacers got scrapped. The guy selling them was a bit clever as he put them up one at a time to keep the prices up.

The boxes come up far less often and are bloody expensive! Mine is also huge as apparently they chucked any old bus blind box in the pacers as they had a window cut out, so didn't matter if they were bigger. I had to cut out some black mountboard and glue it onto the front. I love it though, looks great. View attachment 131687

Some 142s had a full bus mechanism fitted including number tracks albeit without number blinds.

 

[Basil Jet]

Originally the blinds were manually wound - why did they switch to motorised? Were there drivers suing bus companies for repetitive strain injury or something, or did they just think it would be nice to motorise them?

 

[Ken H]

Originally the blinds were manually wound - why did they switch to motorised? Were there drivers suing bus companies for repetitive strain injury or something, or did they just think it would be nice to motorise them?

One man operation Drivers did not want to be away from the money.

 

[Joey Beauchamp]

Originally the blinds were manually wound - why did they switch to motorised? Were there drivers suing bus companies for repetitive strain injury or something, or did they just think it would be nice to motorise them?

I don't know, but an educated guess would be to keep to time. Buses (usually) change destination more frequently than trains and have a shorter dwell time. Crucially the train driver also isn't dealing with passengers while winding the blind.

 

[ic31420]

Top trivia.... Which service used destinations furthest apart alphabetically and this requiring most winding.

It would get right on my wick running a (fictional) Ardwick to Wigan service back and forth all day.

 

[Flange Squeal]

Top trivia.... Which service used destinations furthest apart alphabetically and this requiring most winding.

It would get right on my wick running a (fictional) Ardwick to Wigan service back and forth all day.

South Western Railway 455s still have manual winding blinds and run between Waterloo and Dorking, although in reality the blinds get left at each end rather than wound round after terminating to show the new destination on the rear.

An up Woking to Waterloo stopper will arrive at Waterloo with ‘Woking’ still set on the rear though, and will generally go back out as a New Liner so need a fair wind round from ‘Woking’ to ‘Guildford’.

 

[Shaw S Hunter]

Originally the blinds were manually wound - why did they switch to motorised? Were there drivers suing bus companies for repetitive strain injury or something, or did they just think it would be nice to motorise them?

Motorised blinds are much smoother in operation (obviously!) which puts much less strain on the blind fabric. This allows the blind to be thinner and can therefore be longer in the same equipment box. As bus operations have been rationalised over the long term depots are gradually covering ever larger areas meaning a need for a longer destination list. Of course the future will surely see all traditional blinds replaced by fully digitised displays: the process is well underway.

And by the way NS (Netherlands Railways) had motorised destination blinds (one or two on each side of a unit) way back in the 1970s!

 

[Ken H]

South Western Railway 455s still have manual winding blinds and run between Waterloo and Dorking, although in reality the blinds get left at each end rather than wound round after terminating to show the new destination on the rear.

An up Woking to Waterloo stopper will arrive at Waterloo with ‘Woking’ still set on the rear though, and will generally go back out as a New Liner so need a fair wind round from ‘Woking’ to ‘Guildford’.

Thats assuming they are in alphabetical order. Not all bus blinds were, to reduce winding. And the blinds were changed when buses changed depots so often were quite short, just the destinations served by that depot. Borrowed buses resorted to sticky labels.

 

[Flange Squeal]

Thats assuming they are in alphabetical order. Not all bus blinds were, to reduce winding. And the blinds were changed when buses changed depots so often were quite short, just the destinations served by that depot. Borrowed buses resorted to sticky labels.

They are on those - destinations, followed by a few extras at the bottom including ‘Special’, ‘Sorry’ (with other side having Not in Service) and a few others.

 

[Joey Beauchamp]

Top trivia.... Which service used destinations furthest apart alphabetically and this requiring most winding.

It would get right on my wick running a (fictional) Ardwick to Wigan service back and forth all day.

From current services, I'll have a punt at Bridlington to York.

 

[Basil Jet]

From current services, I'll have a punt at Bridlington to York.

Good one!

Did services run between Aberystwyth and Wolverhampton?