Trivia: Parallel moves (signalling)

[dk1]

Not many times when we can get parallel moves in/out of Great Yarmouth these days. Closest lately has been the dated 11:13 MFO via Reedham which if late departing can run out side by side with the 37s via Acle on the 11:17. We even got platforms altered this Summer on one occasion as will be the very last year we can create this signalling photograph...

 

[Thebaz]

East Croydon has a whole gamut of possibilities in peak hours especially considering roads 2,3,4 & 5 are all reversible. Having said that I've never seen a train enter platform 3 from a southerly direction, but I think it is possible. Commonly 1 & 4 or 2 & 4 northbound, 3, 5 and 6 southbound (all the way to South Croydon) can and does happen. In theory 1,2 & 4 or 5 northbound would be possible, though it would unusual to see island platforms 1 & 2 occupied simultaneously in the up direction. Not possible would be parallel departures on 2 & 3 southbound unless the 2 south is for some reason going to head down the up fast!; 4 & 5 are signalled in a strange way which means that if a train is already in 5 northbound one cannot arrive in 4 from the south. Parallel departures northbound from 4 & 5 are not possible unless the 5 north then goes to London up the down slow! Confused? That makes two of us!

 

[Mag_seven]

When departing from Gloucester you can sometimes see two services heading towards Standish junction running parallel to one another as far as Tuffely Jn where one on the two will be given priority towards Standish Jn with the other service following.

 

[hassaanhc]

Approaching Waterloo, two trains from the Windsor lines can arrive at the same time, possibly even into adjacent platforms. Wonder if it can be done on departure?

 

[snowball]

Approaching Waterloo, two trains from the Windsor lines can arrive at the same time, possibly even into adjacent platforms. Wonder if it can be done on departure?

Diagrams of the layout were in the last issue of Modern Railways.

 

[GW43125]

Waterloo has three parallel departures twice an hour:

• xx20/xx50 Woking stopper
• xx20/xx50 WoE
• xx20/xx50 Reading

These three run parallel until the Woking brakes for Vauxhall, and the WoE is able to accelerate at Nine Elms. The Reading often reaches Clapham Jn as the WoE is departing (if it calls).

Theoretically, you could have eight parallel moves in/out of Waterloo.

• P1-4 to DMS
• UMS to P2-6
• P4-9 to DMF
• UMF to P7-12
• P11-15 to UMR (reversible to and becomes DWS at Int'l Jn)
• P14-17 to DWF
• UW to P16-19 or P20-22 via WR1
• WR to P18-19 or P22-24 via WR2

U=Up D=Down M=Main W=Windsor R=Reversible or Relief
WR1 and WR2 are the two bidirectional lines into the former international station.

 

[edwin_m]

There's a weird one at Sheffield where trains can leave both 5 and 6/7/8 southbound, but one of them has to stop very soon as the tracks converge just after the short tunnel.

 

[341o2]

Brockenhurst because the Lymington branch is self contained and runs alongside the main line as far as the site of Lymington Junction box.

Until the Isle of Man steam railway was reduced to the service to Port Erin, the Peel and Ramsey services would depart from Douglas at the same time and unofficially became a race.

The Isle of Wight did not use Smallbrook in the winter, when the Cowes line open, the system became two parallel tracks from Ryde St Johns. Subsequentially, the Pier Head to Esplanade shuttles worked one line, while through trains to Shanklin used the other

Crediton to Yeoford also two single parallel lines to Okehampton or Barnstaple

Totton signalled for either direction on both lines

 

[83G/84D]

Truro - trains can run into the bay platform from the Falmouth direction over the down line whilst trains from Penzance arrive in the up main platform. The down line is bi-directional from Penwithers Junction.

Penzance- Trains to St Erth can depart from Platforms 3 or 4 whilst an ECS to the depot can depart from Platforms 1 or 2.

The same can happen in reverse for arriving trains.

Lostwithiel - Freight trains from Fowey can run into Lostwithiel down goods loop over the down line (in the up direction) whilst a train from Par to Bodmin runs on the up line.

Can't think of any others for now.

 

[SpacePhoenix]

Don't know if Bournemouth is a possibility. If one train is heading down on the upline and a train is heading from the down platform into the carriage sidings

 

[Bovverboy]

It is often quoted that only one train can depart Bradford Interchange at any given time; there being no provision for Parallel moves.

That has had me thinking about the locations where they can be accommodated. Clearly almost all the London terminals will have this, but are there any more surprising examples?

One that is always a surprise to me when witness to it is Hull Paragon, 1 towards Beverley and 1 towards Brough. At quite some speed too!

For much of the day (Mondays to Saturdays) trains are scheduled to depart Manchester Piccadilly at xx.46 for Glossop/Hadfield (usually platform 1), Stoke-on-Trent (usually platform 5), and Crewe via Manchester Airport (usually platform 9). There's no guaranteeing that all will get the right away simultaneously, but it's often possible to have all three in your sight at the same time. The Glossop/Hadfield is on common ground with the other two as far as Ardwick Junction, and the latter two are on common ground with each other as far as Slade Lane Junction. All 323-operated, of course.

 

[Starmill]

From the Enhancements Delivery Plan:

I think there is a similar project to provide this going south from Derby.

 

[341o2]

Wareham also bi directional

 

[edwin_m]

I think there is a similar project to provide this going south from Derby.

The new layout at Derby will allow three arrivals and three departures at the south end of its six platforms simultaneously. However two of the three pairs of tracks will converge before Peartree so triple arrivals/departures are unlikely in practice.

 

[lejog]

It is often quoted that only one train can depart Bradford Interchange at any given time; there being no provision for Parallel moves.

Mill Lane Jn at Bradford effectively sees the platform lines merge into a single two track railway briefly before branching off in different directions. This wasn't the case as built, and I think came about with the rationalization in 1973.

The layout at Mill Lane was updated in 2008 to allow parallel moves into the station as the local rag reported.

Warrick Dent, area general manager for Network Rail, said the work was being undertaken to help alleviate Bradford’s historic “bottle neck”. He said: “It will speed up journey times between Leeds and Bradford by up to a minute and a half and will also mean that we can bring trains from Halifax in to platform one at the same time as a service from Leeds comes into platform two or four.”

AIUI a third track was added leading straight from the line from Halifax into Platform 1. You can see it in Google Maps.

From the Enhancements Delivery Plan:

In addition the programme will deliver the following:• Bradford Mill Lane Capacity – infrastructure improvements to provide parallel moves at Bradford Interchange to/from Leeds and Halifax.

I wonder what they will do next? The fundamental problem that Halifax-Leeds and Leeds-Halifax services have to cross somewhere will remain (without grade separation)

 

[Ianno87]

For much of the day (Mondays to Saturdays) trains are scheduled to depart Manchester Piccadilly at xx.46 for Glossop/Hadfield (usually platform 1), Stoke-on-Trent (usually platform 5), and Crewe via Manchester Airport (usually platform 9). There's no guaranteeing that all will get the right away simultaneously, but it's often possible to have all three in your sight at the same time. The Glossop/Hadfield is on common ground with the other two as far as Ardwick Junction, and the latter two are on common ground with each other as far as Slade Lane Junction. All 323-operated, of course.

xx20/xx50 at Waterloo sees parallel departures to Woking (Slow Lines), Exeter/Salisbury (Fast Lines) and Reading (Windsor Lines)

xx00/30 at Liverpool St sees parallel departures to Enfield Town (Suburban Lines), Norwich (Main Lines) and Shenfield (Electric Lines)

 

[fairysdad]

xx20/xx50 at Waterloo sees parallel departures to Woking (Slow Lines), Exeter/Salisbury (Fast Lines) and Reading (Windsor Lines)

I do find it quite amusing sometimes when sat in a train on Platform 1 to see from the corner of my eye a Suburban unit depart, while hearing the diesel engine of a 159 as it departs.

 

[plymothian]

Newton Abbot to Aller Junction.

Probably never used in practise, but given that at least one of the two lines between Exeter St Davids and Exeter Central is bi-directional...? Maybe

It can, and has been done.

Only 29 chains as far as Bristol East Junction, and usually from opposite sides of the station so not that parallel in the mathematical sense, but there are simultaneous departures from Bristol Temple Meads towards Bath and Bristol Parkway on every hour and half hour for most of the day.

Also Temple Meads to Bedminster.

 

[SpacePhoenix]

Don't know if Dawlish counts, this vid shows one HST overtaking another, both going westbound:

 

[MichaelAMW]

The new layout at Derby will allow three arrivals and three departures at the south end of its six platforms simultaneously. However two of the three pairs of tracks will converge before Peartree so triple arrivals/departures are unlikely in practice.

Indeed, although the real benefit is to improve on the present arrangement, i.e a 6-platform station serving two 2-track routes via a 2-track bottle neck at London Rd Jct.

 

[Sunset route]

My favourite or though not in the current timetable and not for sometime either, used to be at East Croydon,

London Victoria to Gatwick Airport (platform 2) fast reversible line to down fast line
London Victoria to Horsham (Platform 3) down fast line to reversible slow line
London Bridge* to East Grinstead (Platform 5) reversible slow line to down slow line
London Victoria* to Caterham*. (Platform 6) arriving down slow line.

*correct as far as I can remember

 

[takno]

The layout at Mill Lane was updated in 2008 to allow parallel moves into the station as the local rag reported.

AIUI a third track was added leading straight from the line from Halifax into Platform 1. You can see it in Google Maps.


I wonder what they will do next? The fundamental problem that Halifax-Leeds and Leeds-Halifax services have to cross somewhere will remain (without grade separation)

My bad, there is indeed a line in place to allow a parallel arrival from Halifax to platform 1, I was looking at the sectional appendix for the Leeds route, where the line just appears to be a headshunt. It does appear to be unidirectional which would only give you parallel arrivals, although on the face of it Bowling Jn ought to allow a departure to cross over onto up line. I guess if there is a signalling limitation that may go in the resignalling.

 

[dk1]

Don't know if Dawlish counts, this vid shows one HST overtaking another, both going westbound:

Booked move on a Saturday. Caught me out first time on the DMU with a Tram slowly overtaking in Parsons Tunnel.

 

[Ianno87]

For much of the day (Mondays to Saturdays) trains are scheduled to depart Manchester Piccadilly at xx.46 for Glossop/Hadfield (usually platform 1), Stoke-on-Trent (usually platform 5), and Crewe via Manchester Airport (usually platform 9). There's no guaranteeing that all will get the right away simultaneously, but it's often possible to have all three in your sight at the same time. The Glossop/Hadfield is on common ground with the other two as far as Ardwick Junction, and the latter two are on common ground with each other as far as Slade Lane Junction. All 323-operated, of course.

Pre-2008, Piccadilly saw a curious parallel departure at xx24 every hour towards Stockport.

The xx24 Birmingham/Bournemouth XC service departed Up Fast to Slade Lane, thence continuing Up Slow* to and through Stockport.

Meanwhile the xx24 Chester via Altrincham ran Up Slow to Slade Lane, then continuing Up Fast to Stockport, before diverging at Edgeley No. 1.

So the odd sight of the two drag racing each other all the way to Stockport, to save a conflicting move when they got there.

*The Up Fast and Up Slow swap over each other at Slade Lane, but an Up Fast train can continue on the Up Slow parallel to a train on the Up Slow continuing on the Up Fast.

 

[cogload]

Truro - trains can run into the bay platform from the Falmouth direction over the down line whilst trains from Penzance arrive in the up main platform. The down line is bi-directional from Penwithers Junction.

Penzance- Trains to St Erth can depart from Platforms 3 or 4 whilst an ECS to the depot can depart from Platforms 1 or 2.

The same can happen in reverse for arriving trains.

Lostwithiel - Freight trains from Fowey can run into Lostwithiel down goods loop over the down line (in the up direction) whilst a train from Par to Bodmin runs on the up line.

Can't think of any others for now.

Trains can also run into the down platform at Truro under the authority of the Calling on at Penwithers J and 2 subs. Not very often though...

 

[cogload]

Eastleigh. All the time:

US from Stoneham Jcn to Shawford, there are constant parallel moves, indeed you can technically have 4 parallel moves from Eastleigh station to Allbrook via the US/UF/DF/DM as the latter two are reversibly signalled. In the morning there is the not unusual sight of a liner/ fast passenger/ ballast out of the Carriage sidings all heading in the same direction.

On the down there are parallel moves into the station from Allbrook from the yard, and in the evening/ early morning there is a possible move from Allbrook > Eastleigh East on the Up fast, with a train moving on the DF and one on the Down Slow.

 

[Cricketer8for9]

. Not possible would be parallel departures on 2 & 3 southbound unless the 2 south is for some reason going to head down the up fast!

Platform 2 at East Croydon to up fast is technically feasible, as I managed to get on an early Sunday morning train at Platform 1 at Purley which had headed south on the up fast. Confused the hell out of the PID at Purley as an On time train became delayed. Staff at Purley explained that the train disappears in such circumstances.

 

[Thebaz]

Platform 2 at East Croydon to up fast is technically feasible, as I managed to get on an early Sunday morning train at Platform 1 at Purley which had headed south on the up fast. Confused the hell out of the PID at Purley as an On time train became delayed. Staff at Purley explained that the train disappears in such circumstances.

Well I stand corrected, although I can't imagine it happens very often even during engineering works! It must be a fairly unusual set of circumstances that requires down trains to use the up fast.

 

[driver_m]

Had 4 depart Man Picc at the same time. Mine on the Fast, a TPE on the Eastern, a Northern on the Slow and an Arrival Wales going into the goods. Plus a Northern coming in on the down Eastern.

 

[Sunset route]

Platform 2 at East Croydon to up fast is technically feasible, as I managed to get on an early Sunday morning train at Platform 1 at Purley which had headed south on the up fast. Confused the hell out of the PID at Purley as an On time train became delayed. Staff at Purley explained that the train disappears in such circumstances.

Well I stand corrected, although I can't imagine it happens very often even during engineering works! It must be a fairly unusual set of circumstances that requires down trains to use the up fast.

Single Line Working from East Croydon to Cousldon North Ground Frame. Its one of the regular locations that is used for Saturday nights into Sunday mornings for SLW, although as it's wrong direction move it won't be signalled move.