Sellafield Power Plant

[voyagerdude220]

Hi all,

I'm just wondering what is transported to/from Sellafield Nuclear Power Plant, how often it happens, where these trains go, and who operates them?

I can't find any info on EWS's website?

Thanks

 

[Sir_Clagalot]

probably due to most of the Flask traffic being DRS hauled.. Freight timetables?

 

[Aureol]

I hear that the Flasks are MOD movements, and so do not have published timetables

 

[Tom]

Flasks all have booked paths - and the timetables are most cetainly on Freightmaster.

 

[Aureol]

okay, I stand corrected.

I don't personally care for timetable nedding, and thus don't pay attention to these things

*ducks for cover*

I didn't mean to cause offence if I did..

 

[class 313]

Power Plant eh? Sellafield is a processing plant. Its where all the waste goes to, to be stored and what not. Thus no surprise the flasks are full of waste.

The trains are operated by DRS and have been since privatisation IIRC. As DRS was started up by the Nuclear something something...

 

[voyagerdude220]

Oh, ok, thanks for the help.

Is there possibly any diagrams or maps of the line to/from Sellafield, and the WCML anywhere?

 

[Craig]

Is there possibly any diagrams or maps of the line to/from Sellafield, and the WCML anywhere?

It's on the Cumbrian coast. Find Seascale on something like Multimap of FlashEarth and follow the line north.

 

[voyagerdude220]

Thanks, yes i'm aware of where it is, but not the rail links.

 

[Craig]

The line joins the WCML at Carnforth to the south and Carlisle to the north. I think most of the nuclear traffic runs to/from Carlisle.

 

[voyagerdude220]

That's what confused me- I'm surprised that they run all the way north to Carlisle via the Cumbrian Coast, although i've never been on it before.

 

[Craig]

DRS have their main depot at Carlilse (Kingmoor) so I guess it's easier for them operationally.

 

[Demps]

That's what confused me- I'm surprised that they run all the way north to Carlisle via the Cumbrian Coast, although i've never been on it before.

Strategic movement of trains is helped by DRS Kingmoor, amongst other Depot attributes. Although not all diagrams run north to carlisle from sellafield, most of the traffic north, is for northbound trains, basically powerstaions in scotland and east england.

 

[gordonthemoron]

Attempting to find out this info is likely to wind up with you in deep **** with the police. So I'd give it a rest if I was you.

 

[djw1981]

Yes. Just think about why they run it with 2 engines......and what that cargo stranded somewhere could be used for. It would be worse than the tesco train full of booze sopping at a red in lanarkshire.....

 

[Tom B]

Yes, because you can jump on such a train and help yourself to the nuclear waste on it like that..

Police? Is it not allowed to know where power plants are these days? Or must anything remotely like that be branded "something terrorists might use" by scaremongers?

Since preservation? I think you mean privatisation. I think they were originally a sub-company of BNF.

 

[Demps]

Yes, DRS was a subcompany specifically produced as a aid for BNFL.

As for police, you wont wind up in trouble at all, non of this is illegal, so dont talk ****e.

Unless you go waving your camera around at sellafield, you wont get any bother, but still, you can get a police response just for hanging around the area.

if you are a terrorist, im going to commit suicide.

 

[djw1981]

The issue is more that the nuclear waste flasks , despite their crashworthiness are to be transported with redundancy in the traction such that they can be moved relatively quickly between BNFL sites, and should one engine fail, the second can be used to propel or to drag the train in the reverse direction

 

[Demps]

The issue is more that the nuclear waste flasks

Does it matter?... no. Its the same principle, exept you are aloud to photograph them, thus less importance to what you said... basicaly 'this is wrong, and you could end in ****e.'

Having 2 or more loco's is not new either (Freightliner, EWS, all of them) so its pretty obvious on something as important as nuclear traffic, its expected.

 

[class 313]

Attempting to find out this info is likely to wind up with you in deep **** with the police. So I'd give it a rest if I was you.

Well, lets see. He has got what he has wanted anyway.

Two DRS locos (usually 20/20, 37/37, 37/20 or 66/66). Hauling 1 or more nuclear waste flasks from nuclear power plants to Sellafield Processing Plant in Cumbria.

I'm sure you could get all this information from Greenpeace anyway.

 

[The Snap]

Sellafield is about half way round the the Cumbrian Coast line, and sees a lot of Class 20s and 37s.

The golf course right next to the plant is very good at night, as you can see the balls very well...being luminous and what not...:razz:

 

[TheSlash]

S
The golf course right next to the plant is very good at night, as you can see the balls very well...being luminous and what not...:razz:

You lot would be surprised what gets transport in your average Freightliner consist, so i wouldn't worry about Flask trains

 

[Demps]

Nuclear fuels are the most important, no other way about it.

 

[class 313]

Nuclear fuels are the most important, no other way about it.

Nuclear fuel isn't transported though. Its the waste.

 

[mbonwick]

I heard somewhere that there were problems with the paint on the shields (the bit you can see)absorbing radioactivity when they were unloaded/loaded.


Slash: Caustic stuff, flammable, toxic, hazardous


DRS (Direct Rail Services) is a subsidary of BNFL (British Nuclear Fuels Ltd)

 

[Jord]

All this moaning about trying to find out about it, well the times are published in Freightmaster so can't be that secret and illegal?

Also 'Class313' them two DRS loco thing, is that because if one loco fails then just use the other? because i believe that the Flasks have right of way no matter what and are not supposed to stop?

 

[mbonwick]

Yes Jord you are right. DRS uses 2 locos so that if 1 fails, they have a backup.

 

[metrocammel]

because i believe that the Flasks have right of way no matter what and are not supposed to stop?

So if theres a red peg, the driver should just carry on, shouldn't he? :roll:

 

[DaveNewcastle]

There's an amusing or serious (depending on your views of nuclear power) bit of campaigning and info from 1999 at http://www.kare-uk.org/coreguide/trainguide.htm which includes a rough map of routes used for flasks with flask design sketches too.
(The flask design has since been revised and all flasks replaced).

In addition to hauling fuel and waste, these containers might be called into remove reactor material during de-commissioning of our older reactors in the coming years so will appear on other routes.
From a distance, some of these DRS movements might be confused with MPVs on leaf-jetting duty! Both travelling slowly in short formations with odd shaped loads.
Sometimes they seem to be double headed and sometimes powered at both ends - I guess it depends on the shunting requirements & facilities at each destination.

There's no great mystery about the movement of fuel to and from nuclear power stations but unlike coal stations which need an almost constant flow of fuel, nuclear rods last for days or weeks and are stored locally to cool down before going off to Sellafield for processing so there will be a sporadic element to timetabling them. DRS do run regular flask services though, and there are people posting pics of them on the 'net regularly, some knowing when to be ready for the pic.

Frankly, I feel fine about these movements and I did a little work for the nuclear generating industry. They don't move fast, are much safer on rail than road and they seem to get very clear paths (travelling at those speeds, there's not much chance of running into a red anway!)

Anyway, what possible abuse can occur? Even if someone got onto one of these waggons what could they do? And what would anyone want with the radioactive mush that comes out of a reactor after a lively time burning itself out other than the painstaking processes of separating out the components which can only be done in massive plants such as at Sellafield? Most of the mush is pretty low-level radioactive and wouldn't be much worse than the mush that's poured into supermarket food!
There's no secret about about the processing/re-processing of fuel either - plenty info on the web for those interested.

Now, if we had nuclear-powered trains as were discussed in the 60's . . . . that WOULD be different! (No catenery, no clag, constant heating, running for weeks on a re-fuel).
Hmm - maybe not