Flying Scotsman today

[BanburyBlue]

I see in the Bicester Advertiser that the Flying Scotsman is due to travel through Oxfordshire today. I can't find it on Realtimetrains though?

Any ideas?

Thanks.

 

[BanburyBlue]

Scratch that.

Just seen that it's coming up the Chiltern mainlane to Bicester, then through to Oxford, back to Paddington via the Thames Valley.

 

[Deepgreen]

'Flying Scotsman' (no "the") is generally subject to its timings being withheld to reduce the risk of trespass, but if you check RTT and look for an 'STP' working (Short Term Planning) with the train described as "diesel hauled" (all UK steam workings are shown thus on RTT), you may be in luck.

 

[hawkeye]

It's not doing that route anymore as they couldn't get the paths. I have a booking on it and got a letter saying the route changed.

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[physics34]

was booked to run via Crystal Palace but was diverted via selhurst this evening, to the disappointment of spotters at norwood!

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

I was on the Lunchtime Flying Scotsman service yesterday (Tues 06 June). It did run from Paddington, then Via the Direct line to High Wycombe, which does not get many passenger trains, (Although I noticed there was one leaving Paddington at 1136.) We then traveled via Princes Risborough, over the new curve to Biecester Village, stopped to take water at Oxford Parkway, then back via Oxford, Didcot, Reading, Action, Willesden, towards Dudding Hill for a reversal, then via Kensington Olympia to London Victoria, so it could be ready for an evening Surrey Hills service.

It was a very good day out and we got some good running on both lines, especially the GWR.

There were a number of people out and about along the route but not massive crowds, so maybe keeping the route and timings quiet is helping to keep the trespassing problem in check.

I did notice when approaching Oxford on the new line, although there were two tracks, one seemed a bit rusty, so do the new services operate in and out of Oxford as single track working for the time being?

 

[hawkeye]

was booked to run via Crystal Palace but was diverted via selhurst this evening, to the disappointment of spotters at norwood!

That was quite amusing from on-board. We'd just passed East Croydon then stopped very suddenly. Turned out the driver realised we wouldn't fit on the original route so we were towed backed to East Croydon by the 37 on the back then continued on about 30 mins late.

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[physics34]

That was quite amusing from on-board. We'd just passed East Croydon then stopped very suddenly. Turned out the driver realised we wouldn't fit on the original route so we were towed backed to East Croydon by the 37 on the back then continued on about 30 mins late.

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so it ran back to east croydon and then up via crystal palace....?

I think it was originally booked via crystal palace? Maybe he took a wrong route!

 

[Deepgreen]

That was quite amusing from on-board. We'd just passed East Croydon then stopped very suddenly. Turned out the driver realised we wouldn't fit on the original route so we were towed backed to East Croydon by the 37 on the back then continued on about 30 mins late.

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That sounds extraordinary! For the driver to realise that his train was not passed by NR to run on the route offered would have taken exceptional knowledge from him, combined with a lack of knowledge about gauging from the signaller (neither of which are impossible of course). I wonder if the real sequence of events included the driver inadvertently accepting the wrong route and then being stopped by control? Pure speculation on my part (and no criticism of anyone involved intended, either).

 

[37038]

It wouldn't run if it wasn't gauged... Wrong routing sounds by far and away the most obvious cause