Search results

On the one hand delay attribution is a farce, however, if it were not there, would it have the potential to allow operators and network rail to take their eye off the ball in preventing delays? Might they also, due to less reporting, have less evidence of delay reasons to work on improving the...

Somebody mentioned pushchairs earlier. Ask a parent to take their child out and fold the pushchair for storage and if puts you some where between Jimmy Savile and Rolf Harris on the child abuse scale. The tip up seats in 175 vestibules have only encouraged the idea of keeping them set up.

On full and standing trains I request children under five who do not pay sit on a parents knee.

I would accept the risk on a 150 of having bikes in the doorways on the track side in order to get from A to B and back again. You can have 8 or more easily at peak times with commuters or off peak with the leisure lot. If an evacuation is required the cess side would be used. If the track side...

I didn't and wouldn't make any alegations. I did pass comment/opinion. To be clear, any company which operates trains on an and hoc basis including routes not normally covered will have to be sure that the records for driver competancy are up to scratch. For DB where steam is now an...

I get the intimidation comment too. These people are subject to poor pay, terrible conditions when compared to directly employed staff and very limited training. Yet they tend to be more 'keen' than regular railway staff presumably as they have to justify their job. Then there is the buck...

Charter trains have to fit in with other traffic. The operator will also have to path them around engineering works etc. Virgin may be your best bet and they have a page about train hire on their website. Other options are DRS and DB using older stock and locos. West coast railway (WCR)...

To be honest I just ignored that post as it misses the point of the immediate effect. Whatever the outcome, hopefully charter train operation can bounce back in a better regulated and organised guise. I've been of the opinion for some years that it was only a matter of time before WCR...

Cancelling a multiday tour and getting stung for hotel bills bankrupted a company called Days Out Ltd in the 90s. It may be less costly to run with DRS and DB than it would be to refund a couple of hundred passengers and still have to cover other costs. Also WCR may be accepting some...

If WCR were to lose their licence they could still promote Railtours with their own air braked locos and stock and DB/DRS taking over the operation. In the short to medium term vacuum braked equipment could also earn (admittedly lower) revenue on heritage railways. In other news There...

Exactly that

Well if a method cannot be developed for drivers with sufficient route knowledge who are qualified to mainline standards and have adequate route knowledge to continue to mainline steam it will come to an end. Let's hope Scotrail can take the business risk to take on full time steam drivers...

Who did what, why and how is known only to the guys on the footplate on the day. It will all come out in what will be a very interesting RAIB report. Only DB work with Tornado. The A1 group have got the VSOE contract lined up for 35028s overhaul period. The irony is WCR were not happy with...

I am saying that operators should restrict themselves (and work with promoters to create programmes) to only operate over routes with sufficient traffic to ensure their drives, firemen, and guards can maintain a high standard of route knowledge.

My suggestion in a previous and misquoted post was... ...that, mainline steam drivers have to come from mainline drivers, (qualified in rules and regs and experienced in day to day mainline operations) who have an interest in steam and ideally have worked with steam in their spare time on...

You've mixed quotes, could you sort that out please.

They all suggest actions of somebody on the footplate. Im sure the legal side will follow NR investigations into WCR and reports...

Well they can't suddenly increase their resources to cope with demand. I suspect that the future of charters will be promoters working more closely with operators to use resources more efficiently.

In terms of where you find mainline drivers I feel the only sensible aproach is to take drivers who do the job as a profession and a day job, but who also drive on heritage railways. There are a fair few. Perhaps the way forward may for A charter operator to sub contract them from other TOCs...

I get The Railway Magazine. I think it has gone down hill since the change in publisher. Part of the reason I get it is my dad and his, and his uncle have always had it and so I have a complete collection - I must say I find the old editions interesting!