Reversal is necessary and I think there’s only about 1 or 2 platforms at Brighton where it can be done
Indeed. Could also, in theory, do the link via Wivelsfield, but still requiring a reversal (at Haywards Heath I would presume).
They would have to reverse at Brighton and there is only one platform. P3 is the only one with access to both the East Coastway and West Coastway routes. Also they would be limited to four coaches only. P3 can only fit four coaches for services to and from West Coastway line.
There were - and it was! About 20 years ago or so, an hourly through service was offered, but for all the stated reasons it didn't work and was quickly abandoned.
Could also be done, again in theory, with a reversal required at either Three Bridges or at Redhill. Changing at Brighton is easier.
Yes but that would take it well away from Coastway as iimplies use of the Arun Valley line and/or Redhill - Tonbridge - Hastings.
Indeed. Gets you from Ford/Littlehampton (Coastway West) over to St. Leonards Warrior Square/Hastings (Coastway East) but otherwise the through journey that the OP was contemplating can't really be done, IMHO, without a reversal at Brighton platform 3, or an awkward reversal at both Preston Park and Brighton, or by missing out Brighton, London Road, Moulsecoomb and Falmer.
Yes, but the limiting factor would be the length of the trackwork into and then out of platform 3 at Brighton, if that's where the first reversal was, meaning it couldn't really be a very long freight train.
Three reversals (Preston Park) unless it is less than about 80m long including engine
Has this ever been possible? Freight going through without actually going into the station?
This diagram would suggest not - I'm not sure how I can paste the picture from this website.
You could run a small passenger or engineering train or a nuclear flask train that way, but a regular freight train would simply not fit between the points and the buffer stops at Brighton.
So the divert to Haywards Heath via Cliftonville Curve then back again through Wivelsfield i guess?
What theoretical freight would ever need to be taken from Southampton Docks to Dollands Moor? Unless you‘re assuming imports into Southampton could be re-exported to mainland Europe?
Even if there was any, it would go via Staines and Wandsworth Road, rather than the coast, like the trains between Eastleigh and Hoo Junction.What theoretical freight would ever need to be taken from Southampton Docks to Dollands Moor? Unless you‘re assuming imports into Southampton could be re-exported to mainland Europe?
No, it'd need a third reversal at Ashford.
What theoretical freight would ever need to be taken from Southampton Docks to Dollands Moor? Unless you‘re assuming imports into Southampton could be re-exported to mainland Europe?
I wonder what the Green Party MP would think of a Nuclear Flask going through Brighton
Currently (or at least fairly recently) there are aggregate flows to Chichester and Botley. I think the Chichester workings do run from the east (from Redhill via either Arun Valley or Hove, not sure) but the Botley runs are mostly arriving from Eastleigh. The only freight on the East Coastway are a couple of flows between Newhaven and London (dredged aggregate and flyash from the incinerator IIRC).
The headshunt and crossover takes off 4 cars of that (nicely illustrated on Google maps by the unit in the platform!), and the loco attaching on the end would need to fit back behind the signal, so your effective length is 8 cars, minus loco standage so c.140m. There is not the pointwork to arrive directly into the runround road, so you can't have a longer train and run the loco back using P1.
I wonder what the Green Party MP would think of a Nuclear Flask going through Brighton
Only if you get them cleared for the routes, which they currently aren't in the Sectional Appendix. If you want electric freight on the Coastway it's a 73.
