Class 195 sanders

[172007]

I was in Manchester yesterday morning and I heard that the sanders on class 195's don't operate below a certain speed. Is this true? And surely this affects slowing down in platforms especially on lines operated exclusively by just this traction type?

 

[pharrc20]

A driver friend was only talking to me recently and I'm sure he said the 195 sanders don't operate under 10 mph. I can check though.
Cheers Paul

 

[HLE]

It'll probably be the same as the 196s. No sand below 10mph & yes it's become noticeable at this time of the year!

 

[172007]

I wonder what other modern traction does not sand below 10mph and also what the reason for the CAF units to not sand below this speed is.

The amount of sand seen in platforms suggests that trains slide quite a lot so it is needed.

 

[bahnause]

Light vehicles can disappear from the track circuit if you park them on sand.

 

[172007]

Light vehicles can disappear from the track circuit if you park them on sand.

Whilst correct it does not happen that often though.

 

[driver9000]

That sounds about normal. Trains won't sand until they stop to reduce the risk of "beaching" where the train stands on the sand causing it to disappear from the track circuits. They will probably sand down to 3mph with the brake in emergency though.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 26 Nov 2023 ==

I wonder what other modern traction does not sand below 10mph and also what the reason for the CAF units to not sand below this speed is.

The amount of sand seen in platforms suggests that trains slide quite a lot so it is needed.

You might be looking at the remains of traction sand. In service braking a 185 won't sand below 18mph but will sand to 3mph in Emergency braking.

 

[172007]

I am positive that Turbostars sand to a much lower speed than 18mph but maybe I am wrong.

 

[TheEastAnglian]

I was in Manchester yesterday morning and I heard that the sanders on class 195's don't operate below a certain speed. Is this true? And surely this affects slowing down in platforms especially on lines operated exclusively by just this traction type?

Yes, thats right. 10mph is the limit of sanding when under brake even in emergency. WSP is still active below 10mph. 331s are exactly the same. All came to light last year at Hazel Grove.

 

[172007]

So this is why platforms are quite often more slippery than the approach and can catch you out with a slide. The rail head condition is totally different with the leaf mulch having no ground in sand. Its a shake variable rate sanders can't sand to a lower speed using less sand.