Train Delays - Domino Effect?

[dmacw]

Bit of a strange question.

I believe TRUST can hold information on why a train has been delayed. Can it be so far fetching that a delay on a St Erth to St Ives service somehow manages to delay something like the Glasgow Central to Ayr service? This being caused by a knock on effect.

What's the biggest domino effect that has happened?

 

[ushawk]

Dont know if there is anyway of finding out apart from looking at a lot of trains suring disruption. But say if there was a problem down in Plymouth to a local FGW train, it could then delay a XC service which then could delay a Scotrail train if it goes to Scotland, i dont see why it couldnt happen, although it may catch up time.

 

[GB]

I'm not sure what the biggest domino effect has happened, but it is certainly true that a train one side of the country can end up delaying a train the other side of the country. Though sometimes it is "creative dobbing" by TDA clerks.

 

[N Levers]

Bit of a strange question.

I believe TRUST can hold information on why a train has been delayed. Can it be so far fetching that a delay on a St Erth to St Ives service somehow manages to delay something like the Glasgow Central to Ayr service? This being caused by a knock on effect.

What's the biggest domino effect that has happened?

Yes it can happen. I beleive a Basingstoke - Reading service delayed some services in scotland a few weeks back...

 

[bluenoxid]

Small incident on the ECML in October 2001. Still feeling the effects three years on.

 

[Turbocharger]

It's called the butterfly affect. I know, I watched Jurassic Park. Or was that for the chaos theory?

 

[142094]

Job for the Delay Attribution people. I'm sure it happens all the time - train is delayed at the other end of the country and ends up delaying a completely different train somewhere else.

 

[amcluesent]

The biggest effect is most likely due to crews not being available causing problems. I've seen ECML trains lined up a KGX but nothing moving as no crews can get south.

 

[trainophile]

Is this scenario due to technical reasons (e.g. missing their slot at junctions) or because it is policy to hold a connecting train if an inbound one is running late?

I didn't think they tended to do the latter, although about a month ago we left Chester (for Cardiff) 10 minutes late as another service was late in, so the Cardiff one waited for it.

When I was on a delayed Merseyrail train into Chester, I was (un)lucky enough to see my connection to Cardiff disappearing although another 30 seconds would have allowed passengers on the Merseyrail to catch it. I suppose it depends how many passengers they assume would be affected - some routes presumably feed more travellers from one service to another, or perhaps there would not have been any other suitable Cardiff service they could catch if the 14:19 hadn't waited for them.

 

[ralphchadkirk]

Yes, I know for certain that an SET train managed to delay a train in Glasgow a while back.

 

[The Planner]

It used to be the case, and still is sometimes, that if you started causing delay on the Cotswold line things started to spiral out of control as it hit Oxford. It then spirals out to Didcot, Reading, Paddington and towards Birmingham. As mentioned before though, things tend to get bunged in to big delays as no one is likely to trawl through and dispute it.

 

[tbtc]

Easily done. An XC service five minutes late leaving Sheffield will be at least half an hour late at Leeds (because it'll miss its "path" ahead of an all stops Pacer service north of Rotherham) which can easily make it an hour late by Edinburgh.

Whilst some people hate long dwell times at big stations, they do come in handy to ensure sufficient recovery for something like this.

Maybe someone with access to these things can find the smallest delay with the widest repercussions - the best local example here is the single track chord at Dore (with services running as far as Norwich)

 

[dmacw]

Yes, I know for certain that an SET train managed to delay a train in Glasgow a while back.

The mind boggles at which route the delay took, XC, WCML, ECML or MML.

 

[Lincoln]

Hi, there is a screen within trust that can bring up associated train delays factoring down to the route cause. It is usually kept pretty much up to date by the attribution guys in Network Rail.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Post #5 on here http://www.railforums.co.uk/showthread.php?t=34855 shows how quickly and easily a single train being held can mushroom into a total farce...

 

[barrykas]

My "personal best" is fire alarms sounding at Lancaster delaying a High Wycombe stopper thanks to knock on delays.

Cheers,

Barry

 

[The Planner]

The fatality at Blisworth on Monday had a knock on delay added to the incident for the 2212 Milngavie to Motherwell and some empties at Glasgow Central.

 

[millemille]

About 12 years ago a slam door South Eastern service had a triple valve fail and ended up dragging the brakes on an intermediate vehicle for several miles, north of Ashford, resulting in brake block spalling building up on the tread so the vehicle needed skating. The skate gang were on another call out and the adjacent line was closed to allow safe access for the line of route fitter and the FRE to start hacking the spalling off with the emergency equipment fire axe.

By the time the train got moving, on skates, 5 hours later there were well over 100,000 impact minutes assigned to the incident with delays in Belgium and France being attributed due to Eurostar service being delayed or CAPED.