Recent content by Senex

It's just one of those meaningless expressions from PR departments that we now hear so often. It's rather like the "Lessons will be learnt" that we get from the NHS / Social Work every time there's been some sort of major failure, when we all know that when the same sort of thing happens again a...

Just about the main feature of the Abellio tender was the commitment to a completely new fleet of bi-mode trains. They won the bidding on 10 April 2019. They were able to place the order for the new stock almost immediately after taking up the franchise on 18 August 2019. Of course they didn't...

The Midland provision in the rebuilt St Pancras is pretty wretched, but as has been said, the platform-lengths are very much what was seen as a standard at the time. Isn't the problem rather a twofold one? In the first—and prime—place is the Abellio decision to go for a mix of train-lengths...

The Midland company obtained powers in 1901 for widening between Sheffield and Attercliffe. But there was then a time when money was tight for all the railway companies and then there was a war. The work never got done.

Isn’t perhaps the most astonishing aspect of all this that a decision to disregard the outcome of a vetting for perhaps the most senior and sensitive post in the foreign service could have been taken at officer level in the Foreign Office and not apparently even formally notified to even the...

I wanted to ask about this too. The northbound line through the platform has the 90, the southbound non-platform line only 85, which is the reverse of what one might expect if a cant limit through a platform we’re the reason. And the points to and from the platform loop seem comfortably clear of...

It was built but never brought into use. 1772343772 First plans were four aspect (and faster crossovers etc) — and the Great Bowden realignment was included. But it all fell victim to de-scoping to cut costs. I seem to remember hearing at the time that the spacing of the 3-aspect signals is...

Demolition — apart from Westminster Hall. The building has been allowed by those responsible for it (i.e. the MPs) to deteriorate to a state where the cost of repair is just absurd. Build a new building that combines proper office facilities with a properly-sized chamber not based on the design...

I think it was even tighter, wasn't it? The figure that I remember was just three times the one salary, and that only when you already had a deposit of a certain percentage (I forget what) — certainly no 100% loans. Then you had to have some record of saving with the building society you were...

If there were ever that much money to spend, why not spend it on clearing a way through the industrial estate at Wath Road and restoring the North Midland line with its excellent alignment for high speed and do something at Masborough. You then get a real fast line between Sheffield and Leeds...

Highly-detailed plans from the Ordnance Survey of 1889 (published in 1891) on the NLS web-site at https://maps.nls.uk/view/231287184, https://maps.nls.uk/view/231287199, and https://maps.nls.uk/view/231287247, from the 1:500 plan (Sheets Yorkshire CLXXIV.6.18, CLXXIV.6.23, and CLXXIV.10.3).

Listed buildings can be demolished or significantly altered. It's just that a really strong case has to be made out to get permission. (As opposed to non-listed, where you can just go ahead and demolish.) How strong a case does the need to spend 40–60 billion to keep 650 backwood-looking MPs in...

Think what else could be done with 40B or 60B or whatever the final figure (after years of delay, of course) might be. But be sure that the politicians with their arguments about the importance of tradition, the Mother of Parliaments, etc, the significance of the undersized, adversarial...

If “Prince” is a title you get by being the child of the right parents, then how can you be deprived of it? (Except by legislation affecting all aristocratic titles, as happened in some countries after WW1.) There were quite enough black sheep children of noble houses in past times, but people...

Starmer and his allies are all spending today saying they were lied to by Peter Mandelson. But he was presumably responsible for having Mendelson positively vetted before sending him off to the Washington job. So what are we to think of the security services and the quality of their vetting? Or...