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Saddest Sights on the Railways (Trivia)

BeijingDave

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26 Jul 2019
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804
Strange I find GWR one of the best Liveries - I really like dark green as for the GBR Livery its awful! But I guess it is all down to personal preference.
I agree. I would have chosen it as the GBR Livery. Similar liveries have a long history on British railways and its also reminiscent of British Racing Green (if not the exact same shade) so should keep the patriots happy too.
 
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xotGD

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4 Feb 2017
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Visiting Bradford Interchange, and knowing what it replaced.
 

Johnnie2Sheds

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10 Jan 2011
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193
Location
West Midlands
Very sad and upsetting morning at work forty years (!) ago. When I was shunting, I was walking through the yard I worked in towards the shunters cabin at about 07:00 ready for the days fun. There was a car parked outside and I was chuntering to myself about "what do management want now?" As I got nearer, I realised there was no one about, it was summer, so already daylight. I unlocked the cabin and put the kettle on then went back out to the car. Across the back seat was a dozen or so credit cards and an envelope. I went on to the signalman, who hadn't seen anything out of course and I asked him to call the police and told him what my suspicions were. I went on a little walk up the line, there was a road bridge over the railway at one end of the yard and as I walked through it I found him. I could go into a description, but if you know, you know. I called the signalman on a nearby SPT to tell him and he blocked the railway. Good job he did too as seconds later the (civil) police turned up mob handed with not a hi viz between them! I had better mornings.
 

Sparks807Evo

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Joined
22 Aug 2010
Messages
461
Birmingham Snow Hill platform 4 for me which was the site of the Midland Metro terminus until October 2015. Good to see initial works to reintroduce it as a mainline platform but something quite eerie and sad to see an unused escalator, lift and weeds taking hold over the site.
 

WesternLancer

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12 Apr 2019
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The view from the Barrow line of West Coast’s yard at Carnforth complete with the collapsed Midland signalbox is pretty grim.

On a professional level I find the level of unrestricted tree growth, especially silver birch, inside the railway boundary a very sad sight as it highlights the folly (or foliage?) of maintenance cuts.
Agree with this. Theres a local farmer trying to get listed building consent to remove that signal box off site and restore it. Not sure if the council have granted permission yet or not.
Lancaster city is the council.
 

NSEWonderer

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5 Dec 2020
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The less resilient the railways are becoming with super signalling centers/ ROCs vs the old bell and whistle boxes. An issue in the Thames Valley center could take out several miles of line whilst an issue in the old shoe box at Wokingham would affect a small stretch of route.
 

Zomboid

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Oxford
an issue in the old shoe box at Wokingham would affect a small stretch of route.
It'll affect all trains that run through the area, not just it's own patch.
Take out one of the Stockport boxes and you've wrecked the WCML to/from Manchester, even if it only affects the signals over half a mile.
 

NSEWonderer

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It'll affect all trains that run through the area, not just it's own patch.
Take out one of the Stockport boxes and you've wrecked the WCML to/from Manchester, even if it only affects the signals over half a mile.
Yes but Wokingham's control area is much more smaller than the whole range of Thames Valley center or Feltham box for example vs The Basingstoke signal panel(BEF) control
 

Forty29

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10 Dec 2021
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Bicester
The redundant Wokingham signalbox was demolished a few weekends ago, sad to see it go as known it as a kid 60 years ago if it was the same one.
 

Harpo

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An issue in the Thames Valley center could take out several miles of line whilst an issue in the old shoe box at Wokingham would affect a small stretch of route.
That’s nothing new and something the industry builds in resilience for.

One of Thames Valley’s constituent parts was Reading Panel. If that had ever been put out of service it would have meant in practical terms nothing east of Didcot or Westbury, Paddington reduced to a few local trains plus maybe a token Birmingham via Wycombe, and nothing towards Basingstoke. Did it ever actually happen? I can’t recall hearing of it?
 

Falcon1200

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Neilston, East Renfrewshire
The less resilient the railways are becoming with super signalling centers/ ROCs vs the old bell and whistle boxes.

OTOH having to staff multiple small boxes to enable trains to run is expensive and can restrict the opening hours, and days (ie Sundays) of routes. And if someone omits to pass on a message that the early shift for such a box has called off chaos can result when the service starts, or rather, doesn't start.....
 

johnr57

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Joined
29 Mar 2013
Messages
270
Doncaster south end platform 4 , late at night just waiting for a service to York . Noticed a young lady wandering to and from the platform edge repeatedly. Contrived to accidentally bump into her to give cause for a conversation. She had no answer for some basic obvious questions and no luggage of any sort .

Spoke with BTP ( who were very appreciative) and they came to speak to me under the guise of checking me.

Cutting a long story short as I left I saw her with a BTP person sat on the platform obviously very distressed .

I’d hoped a resolution had been found but found out later the resolution hadn’t materialised.

I cry as I write this as feel I’d failed her. Not just the saddest thing in the railway but the saddest thing in my whole life
 

ChrisEL

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4 Nov 2017
Messages
18
It's been mentioned above, but stations that are a shadow of their former selves - Ambergate is the one that springs most readily to mind for me.

Also when I see a loco being moved by road - I appreciate there are reasons why they sometimes can't be moved by rail, but it still feels like a shame.
 

NSEWonderer

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Worked without much "major issues" back in the day? The most worry I remember was the train itself having a fault, no train crew or some ad hoc incident causing issues
OTOH having to staff multiple small boxes to enable trains to run is expensive and can restrict the opening hours, and days (ie Sundays) of routes. And if someone omits to pass on a message that the early shift for such a box has called off chaos can result when the service starts, or rather, doesn't start.....

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: ==

Sure but when split it was resilient especially when compared to new borne threats like cyber attack, terrorism etc. But alas these indeed are extremes
That’s nothing new and something the industry builds in resilience for.

One of Thames Valley’s constituent parts was Reading Panel. If that had ever been put out of service it would have meant in practical terms nothing east of Didcot or Westbury, Paddington reduced to a few local trains plus maybe a token Birmingham via Wycombe, and nothing towards Basingstoke. Did it ever actually happen? I can’t recall hearing of it?
 
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pitdiver

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22 Jan 2012
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Warsop Vale
I mentioned earlier I had a view of a person hit by a train, well the aftermath. But when I was working as a Station Supervisor on the Metropolitan line I managed to prevent two incidents of people taking their own lives. One was during the day and the other late at night. At the time I never thought of my own safety with regards to the traction current but it was very rewarding when I realised what I had done.
Please don't ask for details of the events.
 
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Skiddaw

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Joined
2 Jan 2020
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466
Location
Penrith
Doncaster south end platform 4 , late at night just waiting for a service to York . Noticed a young lady wandering to and from the platform edge repeatedly. Contrived to accidentally bump into her to give cause for a conversation. She had no answer for some basic obvious questions and no luggage of any sort .

Spoke with BTP ( who were very appreciative) and they came to speak to me under the guise of checking me.

Cutting a long story short as I left I saw her with a BTP person sat on the platform obviously very distressed .

I’d hoped a resolution had been found but found out later the resolution hadn’t materialised.

I cry as I write this as feel I’d failed her. Not just the saddest thing in the railway but the saddest thing in my whole life
I agree with the others. You didn't fail her. Regardless of how things panned out, you (and the BTP person) may actually have given her some comfort. She at least knew someone cared.
 

Kilopylae

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9 Jan 2018
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Uxbridge (ex Devon)
I'm sure we all know the history, but it's just a bit of historically based branding. They're actually quite descriptive when you know the history.

I'd say "Southern" only referring to the old LBSCR routes is worse, but it's still far from a farce.
The one that irks me irrationally is SWR not running the Barnstaple line!
 

John Luxton

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23 Nov 2014
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Liverpool
Not to mention Tavistock, Plymouth, Bude etc.
I was just thinking of operational lines I don't think Plymouth to Gunnislake could be run by SWR and as for Tavistock to Bude well accoring to predictions in 2012 Tavistock to Bere Alston was supposed to reopen in 2016! Still waiting 10 years on and yet they still talk.
 

yorksrob

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6 Aug 2009
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Yorks
I was just thinking of operational lines I don't think Plymouth to Gunnislake could be run by SWR and as for Tavistock to Bude well accoring to predictions in 2012 Tavistock to Bere Alston was supposed to reopen in 2016! Still waiting 10 years on and yet they still talk.

Yes, in the words of Elvis "a little less conversation, a little more action" please !
 

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