Drayton Park to Moorgate

[Aictos]

I'm looking at my sectional appendix and it states in black and white that "All locomotives, except dedicated battery locomotives of Class 97/7, are prohibited between Drayton Park and Moorgate.

Yet, it also clearly shows that Classes 57 and 73 are cleared to operate between Drayton Park and Moorgate.

Surely some error then?

 

[455driver]

Ajax do you believe the sectional appendix , its more like the bloody beano :roll:

 

[Aictos]

Ajax do you believe the sectional appendix , its more like the bloody beano :roll:

Trust me, I only read it as I was bored at the time.
Normally I don't even read such things.

 

[barrykas]

I'm looking at my sectional appendix and it states in black and white that "All locomotives, except dedicated battery locomotives of Class 97/7, are prohibited between Drayton Park and Moorgate.

Yet, it also clearly shows that Classes 57 and 73 are cleared to operate between Drayton Park and Moorgate.

Surely some error then?

AFAIK, the only locos permitted "down the tube" are 73s (but only on electric, not diesel) and LU battery locos (hence the 97/7 reference) as there's no way of extracting the exhaust fumes down there.

Cheers,

Barry

 

[A60K]

Unless something's changed recently then I think the Class 97/7 referred to is a pair of former Class 501 cars radically converted to become a battery loco in the 1980s, rather than a reference to the LU bespoke battery locos.

AFAIK the LU battery locos aren't generally used on Network Rail lines, other perhaps than where they are immediately adjacent to LU lines. Recharging the LU battery locos would be a problem, as they need either the four-rail supply or (I think) the shed plugs found at LU depots. Would give Network Rail control kittens if they had to rescue a pair of dead LU battery locos from somewhere on the Great Northern

Pre-1976 when the GN&C was (an isolated) part of LU the route back to home territory was from Drayton Park transfer sidings, down to KX, through the York Road Curve, Widened Lines to Farringdon and then use the crossover from the west end of the Up WL platform to the Inner Rail Circle/Met and on to Neasden.

I'm struggling to think of a quick route now - both the York Road and Hotel Curves are gone, as well as the link between the Widened Lines and LU at Farringdon. I guess the quickest route would be via the NLL from KX Freight and Willesden to the Bakerloo - and from there to one of the depots that looks after battery locos.

 

[Oracle]

I am sure that I read in RAIL a while back that on the CWL (City Widened Lines) only Classes 31 and 33 were supposedly permitted but I assume 73s are as well?

 

[barrykas]

I am sure that I read in RAIL a while back that on the CWL (City Widened Lines) only Classes 31 and 33 were supposedly permitted but I assume 73s are as well?

Last time I saw an Engineering Train at Farringdon (Thameslink side) it was topped and tailed with a pair of 73s on each end, presumably due to the gradients between City Thameslink and Blackfriars, and between Farringdon and Kings Cross.

Cheers,

Barry

 

[33056]

Back in the mid 1990s, some of the LU battery locos were registered to run on BR and indeed did. I think the reason for registration was to work on the Drayton Park to Moorgate line, the former 501 units having been withdrawn by this time. They worked to and from West Ruislip, I have a picture of one such train on the GWML.

 

[150219]

I'm looking at my sectional appendix and it states in black and white that "All locomotives, except dedicated battery locomotives of Class 97/7, are prohibited between Drayton Park and Moorgate.

Yet, it also clearly shows that Classes 57 and 73 are cleared to operate between Drayton Park and Moorgate.

Surely some error then?

The 7/10 edition of the S.A. only shows Class 73 locos passed between Moorgate and Drayton Park and they carry a restriction to operate in electric mode only.

Class 57 locos are shown as prohibited.

The clause for "All locomotives, except dedicated battery locomotives etc." only applies to the table applicable to electric locomotives.

 

[charlesn132]

I thought that class 73s would not be able to use the tunnel because they have no front doors...

 

[driver9000]

I thought that class 73s would not be able to use the tunnel because they have no front doors...

Which locos do? It would be very difficult to carry out engineering work with such a restriction on locos in force. The front door in MUs that work underground is for emergency passenger exit and only applies to passenger stock.

 

[Snapper]

Last time I saw an Engineering Train at Farringdon (Thameslink side) it was topped and tailed with a pair of 73s on each end, presumably due to the gradients between City Thameslink and Blackfriars, and between Farringdon and Kings Cross.

Cheers,

Barry

It's a long time since I saw a 31 there!

http://www.paulbigland.fotopic.net/p3475984.html

 

[charlesn132]

Which locos do? It would be very difficult to carry out engineering work with such a restriction on locos in force. The front door in MUs that work underground is for emergency passenger exit and only applies to passenger stock.

Thanks for that, I thought it would apply to all trains.

 

[jopsuk]

(off topic a bit) I find the restriction, especially for the Thameslink route, a bit odd. I can understand it for tight bore tunnels (such as the tube lines and the Northern City) but Thameslink has none of these I thought? The two lines run in a single tunnel (for the most part) with stations close togther don't they? Until the reopening of the Snow Hill tunnel, trains to Moorgate along the widened lines were loco hauled...

Meanwhile HSTs happily run through the four uninterruppted miles of the Severn tunnel Plenty of places where stock without end doors run through single track bores up and down the country.

 

[jon0844]

I thought the restriction was only for the part that went off to Moorgate, which no longer exists?

 

[Bedpan]

I thought (but I may be wrong) that the restriction also applied to a short section of single bore tunnel between Farringdon and City Thameslink.