Recent content by ChrisHogan

Avoids using the Dolphin crossovers, only recently renewed, to cross from Reliefs to Mains. It means pushing more people onto the Elizabeth Line trains.

The Western Region 'Jumbo trains' of the 1980s were timed D455 and were notorious for running early. I had the 0932 Penzance due 1537 into Paddn 42 mins early once.

Reading, platforms 10 and 11, with non-stops to Paddington, often despatches a few minutes early if there is a second train in the other platform.

Coventry Corridor. The LNR services provide the local stations' service between New Street and Coventry. In Central Trains' days, it provided a local service Wolves-Coventry while Silverlink provided the Euston service via Northampton.

1H14 again I think. Arrived 145 late.

Receipts from ticket sales go to the Treasury anyway, not to the individual retailer.

And disruption on Tuesday due to an object on the overheads in the Acton area. GWR seems to be much better than MTR at restoring a credible service after these infrastructure problems.

This has been berthed in one of the Frays Sidings at West Drayton for the best part of a fortnight. A cripple, failure or just forgotten about by Freightliner?

Closed due to reported problems with the tunnel. Heathrow Express suspended. Most XR services terminating at Hayes & Harlington but a few extended to West Drayton meaning the largely unused platform 5 is finally seeing some services other than freights. Closure initially was to mid-day but...

1U31 arrived early at Swindon and was waiting time. 1B31 was right behind it and was eventually routed to platform 3 where it stopped as 1U31 was then signalled forward to Bristol Parkway. Not a question of moving trains overtaking one another. Thanks for the confirmation that the UM can be...

The introduction of the 1612/1618 and 1912/1918 pairs out of Paddn has predictably proved more challenging for the hopeless regulation at TVSC. Tonight the 1B31 1918 was mis-regulated behind the 1U31 1912 from Reading and followed 1U31 from Reading dropping 19 minutes after a RT start. At...

One of the problems with limited numbers of loco-hauled trains left on the system. Fewer freight locos at weekends available to rescue and probably limited traction knowledge of 68s by Chiltern drivers.

Reminds me that when the 3-car 165s were first delivered, the centre cars had no speed limiters and so very high speeds were achieved.

Yes, par for the course with Network Rail. 3 mins late at Kintbury. Signaller at Didcot decided to put 1K09 in its booked platform (2) at Newbury (the previous days they started it from platform 1 and screwed up the 1J73 instead). Usual loss of time to Reading where there was no platform so...

Why not retime it to start 0457 and run 6 mins earlier to Newbury, give it 6 mins extra for slowing through the up platform at Newbury and some recovery time from Cogload to Hungerford where 1A73 regularly loses 3-4 minutes for no obvious reason that exacerbates the clash with 1K09, and give it...