Recent content by ChrisCooper

Considering the concern recently about fatalities on level crossings, I can't help wonder if the rules on horn use are not playing a part. I remember until the changes, travelling on trains along many routes the horn would constantly be going. These days you hardly hear the horn at all unless...

For starting a unit from cold, details might be different but on the whole it's going to be the same. The only thing I'm not certain if it a modern DMU would be started initially from the local controls, but I've got a feeling they might. This is a very interesting bit of film. I've got it on...

Wonder what they are still building then, as the Omnidecker also went out of production around that time, with NCT taking the last ones (introduced early December onto the 89).

That probably says more about the poor value of Kinch fares than good value of the Plusbus though. For a town of it's size Loughborugh has a very poor and overpriced bus service.

The press has for a long time had a way or ranking the importance of people lives. Pretty young girls (up until about mid 20s), strong, heroic sporty young men (intelligance seems to be a boost when combined with other things, but rarther a negative on it's own), parents, grandparents all seem...

It's just in Loughborough. Arriva and Centrebus are both valid in Leicester, and Arriva are in Derby. The validity with companies can be odd though. In some places for example minor operators will be included, yet some fairly major operators won't. Big groups seem far more likely to be included...

No they aren't. I've had a 4 car on a Sheffield semi fast twice before, and last time I was at Corby station a 5 car was on the service (picking up and dropping off a load that could easily have fitted a 153).

Loughborough Plusbus is £2.80 and only covers 2 operators, one of which only operates 1 hourly service into the town. The other operator is the main one but only operates about half the remaining buses in the town. If it included at least Arriva and Centrebus and included the surrounding...

At the end of the day it's about safety. Trains can stop, boats can't (not easily and safely), especially large commercial vessels of the sort that usually require bridges opening, or sailcraft, as smaller motor boats can pass under the majority of bridges without them being opened. It's also...

Having seperate tickets also makes the bus drivers job much easier as it's far easier to see what it is and where and when it is valid. The old combined ones were much harder to see the details, and oviously if drivers are taking longer to look at tickets then it will delay the service than if...

"Is this a Tram or a Trolleybus?"

I suppose the problem is that if you could buy plusbus from anywhere, as opposed to just the origin or destination of a ticket, then people could buy them instead of buying tickets from the bus operators. I mean for example where I live a railcard plusbus is £1.85, yet the cheapest single fare...

Real time information can never be 100% accurate as it's always based on how long an average run will take. Even trains which are easier are often not great for it. Number of times I've seen a train showing "on time" only for it to come in late (still showing on time) or for it to be showing...

Which is a good thing if they are going to be reconfigured for suburban working as they will not be suitable for mainline services in terms of passenger comfort and facilities. Should the 455s be 100mph just so SWT could use them to Weymouth if they want?

Well with the GWR anything is possible. Does seem overly complicated though, and would have increased maintenance costs due to moving parts which would need lubrication and would wear out. I can't think of any benefit from it to outweight the disadvantages, and fitting something worse just to be...