Tyne & Wear Metro Disruption

[blue sabre]

Train services to the Sunderland Extension have resumed, but due to an ongoing track circuit fault, we are operating a reduced service. There will only be a train every 24 minutes between Pelaw and Sunderland. Metro is operating normally in other areas with some delays caused by freezing conditions.

So will this basically be that it is showing the whole stretch for Pelaw to Sunderland as being occupied when there is a train in the section? How will this affect the level crossings? It takes the metros about 24 minutes to clear Pelaw - Park Lane.

 

[142094]

It may be a case of certain track circuits not showing trains as being where they actually are, and not that the whole line is showing as being occupied. However I'm not a driver so only going on what I have heard previously.

System seems to be coping as well as could be expected, especially seeing as there have been problems with the OHLE on the heavy rail side of things.

An interesting comparison could be between the Metro and Eurostar - entering the tunnels which have warm air, melting the snow and ice like what happened last winter. Doesn't seem to have as great an efect on the Metro as it did on the Eurostar.

 

[flymo]

An interesting comparison could be between the Metro and Eurostar -

Sorry for just snipping this bit of the post but I could not help but laugh. I appreciate what you say with the tunnels etc, but this bit of the quote is priceless.

 

[142094]

Well of course it will probably be the only comparison! Imagine a Eurostar going through Sunderland...

I've got diagrams somewhere of the designs of the Metro, but I guess that they are probably a bit different to the Eurostar. However I bet they have some of the same problems with tunnels etc, especially the units that have to wait at St James before turning round, then as soon as they leave the tunnel at Manors.

 

[blue sabre]

It may be a case of certain track circuits not showing trains as being where they actually are, and not that the whole line is showing as being occupied. However I'm not a driver so only going on what I have heard previously.

System seems to be coping as well as could be expected, especially seeing as there have been problems with the OHLE on the heavy rail side of things.

An interesting comparison could be between the Metro and Eurostar - entering the tunnels which have warm air, melting the snow and ice like what happened last winter. Doesn't seem to have as great an efect on the Metro as it did on the Eurostar.

I'm really impressed with the reliability. Mainline services are dropping like flies and the good old metro is still chugging away.

 

[142094]

I'm really impressed with the reliability. Mainline services are dropping like flies and the good old metro is still chugging away.

The big worry is that with some of the units down at Doncaster, and the ones that will be on routine maintenance, that if a few of the ones in service suddenly become unusable, this will affect the whole running/timetables.

Still, good to see them running as well as could be expected. However, looking at what has happened with the trams in Sheffield, I hope that the replacement stock is not tram-based. That would be sheer madness.

 

[blue sabre]

The big worry is that with some of the units down at Doncaster, and the ones that will be on routine maintenance, that if a few of the ones in service suddenly become unusable, this will affect the whole running/timetables.

Still, good to see them running as well as could be expected. However, looking at what has happened with the trams in Sheffield, I hope that the replacement stock is not tram-based. That would be sheer madness.

Wasn't it the case that at one point last winter the had around 30 or so train failures in one day due to the severe weather?

 

[142094]

Wasn't it the case that at one point last winter the had around 30 or so train failures in one day due to the severe weather?

Don't think it was as bad as that, that would mean over 1/3 of the fleet out of use! No way that I know of checking though.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Big problems this morning between Benton and North Shields, wires knackered apparently.

 

[DannyBoy]

The big worry is that with some of the units down at Doncaster, and the ones that will be on routine maintenance, that if a few of the ones in service suddenly become unusable, this will affect the whole running/timetables.

Your worry has been proved unfortunately, its appeared on the Nexus website that some of the peak time extras won't be running tomorrow 'because of a lack of available trains'

Despite the wires coming down, and the 2 train failures on the South Shields branch at the same time on Thursday/Friday (?), theyve coped with the weather astonishingly well!

 

[142094]

Your worry has been proved unfortunately, its appeared on the Nexus website that some of the peak time extras won't be running tomorrow 'because of a lack of available trains'

Despite the wires coming down, and the 2 train failures on the South Shields branch at the same time on Thursday/Friday (?), theyve coped with the weather astonishingly well!

Not good news, hopefully they should have them fixed in the next couple of days.

I've never seen or heard it happening, but I wounder if they would get the battery locos out to haul a dead train around if they really needed to?