Fincra5
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Yeah they are, its the only way to connect the brake pipes and electic systems to the other train. The are only connected on 1 side though, which can make it look like they aren't used.
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Inner South London Line Class 456s
- Thread starter TheJRB
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Yeah they are, its the only way to connect the brake pipes and electic systems to the other train. The are only connected on 1 side though, which can make it look like they aren't used.
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thefab444
Established Member
Yes, I believe they were the regular stock before it closed.
Galvanize
Member
When 456s (and of course, 455s) split or attach at stations (prime example being Purley station trains to/from Caterham/Tattenham), platform staff plug/unplug the cables. The sudden hiss of air you hear is the "scissor cocks" being opened/closed when connecting/disconnecting the main reservoir pipes.
It can cause a real headache when units due to be split, arrive on a different platform, with the cables on the wrong side. This is known as an "Offside split", which is what the "step boards" you may of seen at London Bridge station, are used for.
455/456 units regularly split/attach at London Bridge, Victoria, Purley, and I think some split/attach at Caterham as well. When I did the training, there was a guy from Horsham, so there might also be one or two 455s booked to split/attach in the early hours there!
The Colonel
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Not on 8 455's they don't. IIRC rule is guard in front cab of rear unit. Chances of seeing a Guard checking tickets on Guildford Via Cobhams is remote in the extreme - your more likely to see Lord Lucan on the train than the guard checking tickets.
The Colonel
swt_passenger
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I wasn't really suggesting they check tickets, but I have seen them moving through the train. But SDO on 10 car routes is by far the main problem with 456s, I'd have thought.
junglejames
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Exactly! Having travelled from Ashford to Hastings off peak quite recently, I can say that even off peak these services are well used. Although indeed, perhaps 1 tph is enough for now, that can be blamed mostly on the single line from Appledore. We could do with another station to serve the south of Ashford with the new housing, but that's a whole other discussion...
Will Marshlink electrification ever happen? I seriously doubt it at the moment. I'd love to be proven wrong though.
Yeah, i used it for the first time in ages the other month (first time i realised they had now been extended all to Brighton!!!), and was surprised just how busy it did get. Admittedly the busiest section was Hastings to Brighton, but even Ashford to Hastings had a good load.
The line really should be electrified and doubled wherever feasible, to hopefully allow a more frequent service at times. A new station for South Ashford is a very good idea.
Aren't there two grades of SWT guard- commercial and non-commercial? With non-commercial not selling tickets or doing ticket checks?
Drsatan
Established Member
Yeah that's correct. Non-commercial guards sit in the rear cab of the train on SWT's surburban routes and don't check tickets - that's because there's not enough time for the guard to walk through a four or eight coach train and check everyone's tickets due to the short running times between stations.
thefab444
Established Member
That and the fact most stations have ticket barriers.
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