Severe Delays on WCML South

[Old Timer]

There have been severe and ongoing delays on the WCML south since about 1500 odd today due to "Electrical Supply Problems" (whatever that means) between Milton Keynes and Rugby/Northampton.

Pretty much everything for Virgin out of Euston was cancelled tonight out of Euston apart from a couple of Manchesters and Glasgows.

Seems like they gave up on the West Mids, last train to New St/Wolves was 1503, next 1843.

Delays still ongoing.

 

[The Planner]

"major signalling problems" between Wolverton and Milton Keynes was the spiel I heard.

 

[Old Timer]

Most regular passengers on the WCML now accept that Network Rail couldn't run a **** up in a brewery, so why can't they just be HONEST and tell the simple truth ?

A brand new Railway which cost an absolute fortune and is dramatically less reliable than it ever was under BR.

And when it does go wrong, some of the regulating I have seen begs an awful lot of questions.

For example "failed train at Watford" results in running Slow line Euston to Ledburn Jct, with a stationary Class 1 stood on the Down Fast at Willesden and then nothing seen, and no adverse signals seen on the Down Fast all the way :roll::roll::roll::roll:

 

[Proud Salopian]

Travelled on the 16:30 Marylebone - Shrewsbury and the first class carriage was filled with Virgin first class ticket holders going London-Wolverhampton/Crewe/Chester.

 

[Ibex]

Info we had was a National Grid power failure affecting all signalling between Milton Keynes and Wolverton.

And it was bloody horrible.

 

[Old Timer]

Errrrrrr, standby generators ???

Provided for this purpose and reason.

2 say 4 miles of Railway tops. Easily run at least 4 trains each way per line.

 

[Daniel]

Well, train companies don't like to spend money on stuff unless its necessary every day, or they're legally forced too, really.

Anyone remember the closure of London Underground's back-up power station, (the only thing they had separate to the National Grid) - followed the next week by 3 network power failures?

 

[Old Timer]

Its the Infrastructure Controller, Chap, and NR is a nationalised Company.

 

[DaveNewcastle]

Errrrrrr, standby generators ???

Provided for this purpose and reason.

2 say 4 miles of Railway tops. Easily run at least 4 trains each way per line.

Some generators are there, aren't they? With automatic start.
Limited capacity, of course, but are they not installed, fuelled and ready for service?

 

[Old Timer]

Some generators are there, aren't they? With automatic start.
Limited capacity, of course, but are they not installed, fuelled and ready for service?

Should be.

In BR days we had three systems, direct off national grid, off the OHL which was fed separately, and standby generators.

Every few weeks we had crash test on a Sat night to check the standby generators. I dont actually ever recall losing all signalling, other than when a Tech blew the main relay room fuse. But that was restored within minutes.

 

[Ticket Man]

info i got was national grid failure, there are backup generators but like all good nitwit rail equipment. they decided to fail. let me tell you now boys and girls, being on the wrong side of this fiasco has pushed my hairline back another few inches.

 

[Old Timer]

The annoying thing is that these are not "new" failures.

They are continually recurring failures, which NR Maintenance Managers seem unable to manage.

Maintenance has been a complete disaster and a fiasco since Network Rail took it "in-house", led now by those who know nothing supported by labour from the cheapest of the cheap labour agencies who don't even give their people proper PPE or training.

And Network Rail's approach as maintenance gets cut back is to...reduce the workforce :roll:

Just remind me the public reasons given as to why it was being taken in-house ?

 

[DaveNewcastle]

Just remind me the public reasons given as to why it was being taken in-house ?

Because it will be 2 pence cheaper by 5pm, and I start my sums afresh tomorrow.

Its maddening tho' to realise that the plant hire industry is so desperate for business (by coincidence, I got a visit from a generator hire firm today bearing gifts!) since the construction sector went semi-insolvent, that they'll provide almost ANY level of support to get business for their stock of power units. But the in-house provider will cut those corners to reduce day-by-day costs and risk the massive outage which only impacts on one day's service.

Its a different kind of arithmetic.
They don't do adding AND subtraction to get an answer.
They only see TAKE AWAYS as a threat, so won't do anything that has a cost.

 

[Geezertronic]

Is it me or does the WCML South experience many many more issues than the rest of the WCML as a whole? I don't ever hear of these sorts of issues on other sections of the WCML and its branches?

 

[dk1]

There will always be failures but my frequent WCML trips in the last year have been on the whole very reliable indeed.

 

[Geezertronic]

Mine have also been reliable in the main, last journey was 15 late into BHI on the return due to a failed train at Watford I believe. It just seems that the WCML South has more than it's fair share of issues?!?!

 

[CosherB]

I don't use it that often these days, but a few years ago I was a regular between Wilmslow and Euston. My impressions are it was very unreliable before the WCML upgrades, partly due infrasructure and partly the aging 87s. Worst time was post Hatfield, when everything crawled at about 20mph!

Post upgrade, and with Pendelinos, it was a great deal more reliable (and a lot quicker!). But of course nothing beats 1st class in a Mk3 for comfort!

Has the reliability started to slip back in recent years?

 

[captainbigun]

My impressions are it was very unreliable before the WCML upgrades, partly due infrasructure and partly the aging 87s.

Nowt wrong with the 87s themselves. They were well and truly run into the ground, it's not a surprise that reliability went downhill. Still, they were more reliable than the remaining 90s.

 

[CosherB]

My favorite trains were 87-hauled Mk3s. I agree the 90s were a lot less reliable than the 87s, and I am saddened to hear that the latter were run down towards the end. Most of the failures I experienced on 87-hauled trains seemd to be related to brakes going on and staying on.

1st class in a Mk3 has to be the most comfortable rail environment in UK. Just compare these:

 

[Old Timer]

It was most probably the DVT and the TDM circuits rather than the 87s where the faults lay.

 

[A60K]

Mine have also been reliable in the main, last journey was 15 late into BHI on the return due to a failed train at Watford I believe. It just seems that the WCML South has more than it's fair share of issues?!?!

There were what seemed to be an unusally high number of failures of lineside equipment between MK and Rugby a year or two ago when I was travelling regularly on it, not sure if that's still the case.

 

[captainbigun]

It was most probably the DVT and the TDM circuits rather than the 87s where the faults lay.

TDM on the WC sets was a cause of many delay minutes. Not the DVTs themselves that are the issue, but the method of communication between the two ends of the train. The Mk4s received nice UIC connectors and dedicated screened cables. With the Mk3s the RCH cables are used a whilst they are OK, they are prone to failure because of the additional components which used the cicuit (PA and lighting control being the two main culprits).