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Post by domh245 on Aug 18, 2014 20:40:18 GMT
This was being discussed h ere
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Post by domh245 on Aug 18, 2014 10:13:37 GMT
Its worth pointing out that whilst 9 times out of 10 you should be able to have a little break at New Street, you may end up on a service that has ended up running late, or has little padding in it anyway, with a resulting short stop at New Street Unfortunately, XC have been left with a situation that is best described as far from ideal! Way back when (before I was born) XC trains used to be a number of Mk2 Carriages marshalled behinds a 47 or other diesel locomotive. Virgin took the franchise over at privatisation, and decided to change things up a bit. They decided the way forward was shorter trains but more frequently, so they ordered the voyagers and super voyagers to run their services, but the shorter trains would be compensated for by the fact that there were more trains per hour. Unfortunately, they got this gamble wrong, and now XC passengers are stuck with short trains which are almost always overcrowded. XC have recently(ish) bought in some other stock in the form of the HSTs, which operate on certain services, and are longer than the voyagers. Voyager: HST: I've also had a look through the seating plans here and the trains do seem to have an even split between the direction of the seating, but I was only checking very quickly! I'll also leave you with a link to this useful little website. It should be fairly self explanatory, and it will allow you to see what path your train is supposed to take, and how long it is supposed to be at each station for.
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Post by domh245 on Aug 17, 2014 22:35:50 GMT
Cross Country also serve us in Plymouth.
Noticed they tend to provide about 65-70% seats facing in the direction of travel, as opposed to FGW's 50/50 split, at least in the pleb's carriages I have to use. Suggests somebody did some market research at one company. Surely that would be perspective. If 65-70% of seats are facing forward when you go to Birmingham, then only 30-35% are forward facing when going towards Penzance? As for the stops at Birmingham, I think it is because Birmingham is the hub of the XC network, and the reason for the generous dwell times there are mainly to do with pathing. If you have a train running from Penzance to Birmingham, and then off to Glasgow, if you timetable it with next to no allowance, then by the time you get to Glasgow, unless it is one of those days where nothing has happened anywhere on the network, you'll be massively late at Glasgow, and with a hefty bill. Hence the XC timetables are all padded, to allow for various incidents anywhere on the network. A bit like the excuses sometimes jokingly rolled out immediately after Eurostar started: "freight wagon derailed in Istanbul yard a week ago, 13:24 to Woking delayed by 23 minutes" such are the perils of long distance interconnected services
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Post by domh245 on Aug 14, 2014 7:41:40 GMT
I suspect that it is a diesel hydraulic type loco for shunting purposes. IS it this one by any chance: linky? They certainly have had a Ruston in the past which is now resident at the EOR, read about it here if you are interested. As for running other stock, provided it was specified to interface with the infrastructure and other units, it shouldn't be a problem, the only problem being a lack of space to store them!
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Post by domh245 on Aug 13, 2014 12:43:06 GMT
Similar to 5701, it has become an educational piece for engineering students to look at and play with. I only know that it has become an educational piece, but not where - I think it was somewhere in East London. Someone will probably be able to enlighten you as to where it went.
Welcome to the forum BTW!
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Post by domh245 on Aug 13, 2014 8:59:10 GMT
Unfortunately though, no stop plungers gave been fitted to the northern or jubilee lines, and AFAIK, no 'road monitoring' sensors have been fitted to any driverless trains anywhere so far. I suspect that even a very sophisticated sensor would have trouble detecting small items such as handbags.
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Post by domh245 on Aug 11, 2014 18:47:56 GMT
In a situation like that, from pressing help button to help arriving on the scene, it could well have been several minutes, especially at goodge street. Whilst the driver would have stopped short of the obstruction, in a situation like this, I think that the parent would have jumped on the track anyway. Hindsight and armchair commentary are all well and good, but parents (and I'm sure parents on here would agree) would revert to their instincts and jumped down on the track to try and save their child. Help buttons are all well and good, but there is little point if all it does is summon a staff member in a minute or so. If anything getting on the track is more likely to get the train stopped, especially if you are far enough away from the entrance.
Having re-read my post, it does seem to be a bit in favour of going onto the track if you drop something. Obviously, that is trespass, and is condemnable, but there are times when jumping onto the track is the best course of action. Person on the track with no help immediately available is ok, dropping your show, not as much.
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Post by domh245 on Aug 10, 2014 19:40:11 GMT
Just to add some further info, just seen an advert for "The Tube" on london live, and they had a snippet from the episode where the guy was doing maintenance of the signals on the met. He said "These signals were built about 70 years ago" which would place the signal as being built about 1940. And to clarify, the signal he was working on was a double aspect with attached repeater, I'm not sure which particular one.
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Post by domh245 on Aug 9, 2014 10:12:01 GMT
Correct, they just measure the geometry, which is why they have the high power lamps in the space above the M door. It is worth noting that whilst two inspection trains exist, only one is in use (the one in the linked video) for the time being (so I'll focus on that one!). It can run on all the lines (obviously not at the same time!) as it is small enough to be cleared for all of them. It can't run on the Victoria, Central, Northern or Jubilee lines unless under a possession because it doesn't have the correct signalling systems fitted (but I'm happy to be corrected). As for accessing the lines, there are various crossovers between the lines, some more convenient than others, such as the the various interfaces between the district and picadilly lines, but there are the more complicated ones like the link between the northern and piccadilly.
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Post by domh245 on Aug 8, 2014 22:01:31 GMT
Is D mudchute? Probably not, but worth a punt.
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Post by domh245 on Aug 2, 2014 18:53:24 GMT
It measures all the LU lines, deep level and SSL. It will help pinpoint areas which may be problematic (like track slips - as happened at east putney a while back) but doesn't actually do any maintenance itself. Only one train is in service (the 60/73TS hybird one) the new AIT is still yet to start proper service.
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Post by domh245 on Aug 2, 2014 12:32:31 GMT
The two DM cars are indeed 1960TS which is why they have the different windscreens, the light clusters having been retrofitted later. The trailer is 73TS, the fact that it appeared on the Piccadilly is a happy coincidence! Together this forms the TRT "Track Recording Train" - which goes around the network measuring various aspects of the railway (like track geometry) to make sure everything is as it should be, a bit like the NMT (flying banana) of network rail. Obviously, as it is full of equipment, it isn't passenger carrying, hence the painted over windows and doors. The whole thing is due to be replaced by a new version composed of 67TS and 72TS cars, the name of which evades me at the moment, but it is blue fronted with a yellow stripe (the one in juliang's avatar)
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Post by domh245 on Aug 2, 2014 12:09:30 GMT
I think the lack of sound is a problem on your end sawb, everything is fine on my devices
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Post by domh245 on Jul 31, 2014 20:21:27 GMT
The fact that 24 people can't sit down isn't a massive problem. Having an open train which encourages people to walk down between the seats, and where you can fit more than 1 abreast in the aisles is a massive benefit. All those other little things like Air Conditioning and the provision for ATO are just convenient. I doubt that any of the 24 people per train who won't get a seat would be going that far anyway, I think that most passengers on the district are fairly short hop - those who do need to go for long distances on the train will probably end up in the seats anyway, seeing as I've noticed that it is mainly the longer-haul people who tend to move down into the larger aisles.
[last 14 posts moved into more appropriate thread.]
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Post by domh245 on Jul 30, 2014 7:47:59 GMT
Is C Custom House. It looks like the ExCeL in the background
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Post by domh245 on Jul 29, 2014 7:40:43 GMT
The raib said it was a flashover, but there was also a dragging brake in one of the cars, the smell of which contributed to the panic
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Post by domh245 on Jul 28, 2014 21:29:46 GMT
Having had a brief read of the report, they compare it to a fire at South Kensington (ISTR a C stock embarrassing itself) where the passengers behave rationally and calmly. Might it be a series of unfortunate events involved, notting hill carnival (drinks, party atmosphere, and increased loadings), the incident, and an apparent lack of information during the incident.
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Post by domh245 on Jul 28, 2014 20:53:23 GMT
I was under the impression that 16-18 zips were available for all those in the age range, but only those in full time education (with proof from institution) would get the half price travel on most modes, and free travel on trams and buses
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Post by domh245 on Jul 28, 2014 20:50:18 GMT
I vaguely remember that at that time this happened, the discussion about passenger use of butterfly cocks (or emergency egress devices), and we noted that whilst it would be good for situations like this, it could be rather disadvantageous for everyday operations, because as soon as you give people a big thing saying "pull to open the door, emergency use only) it would then start to get abused by people who have just had doors closed in their face, and various miscreants out for a 'laugh'. That said though, the EEDs on s stock are fairly obvious, but don't seem to have been operated maliciously enough to see it become 'abuse'
To be honest, in a real emergency, there are always alternative means of accesing/leaving the train, often the window if it is a 92, D, or S stock, it may be more problematic on the smaller windows of other stock (but not impossible)
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Post by domh245 on Jul 28, 2014 20:22:46 GMT
I think what could be very useful is if Journey Planner could do some forewarning, seeing as it would mainly be people who are not used to the system that would be caught out. It could be something as simple as:
Goldhawk Road - Baker Street /!\ Do not travel in the first or last carriage, as the doors in theses cars will not open at your destination
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Post by domh245 on Jul 27, 2014 20:59:57 GMT
Sticking with the Wimbledon Branch, I also quite like Wimbledon Park, nice and quaint, and you can get some pretty speedy entrances on the Wimbledon Bound platform as well. Of course, until recently, it was the only place on the branch where (provided you were on a certain type of train) you could be guaranteed to get the lovely smell of working brake block, which was a big plus point for me.
Fulham Broadway is ok as well, you have the old end of the station, with the overbridge with blocked up entrances, the arches, the big triangular roof, and the tunnel. The other end isn't too bad either - whilst it is a bit minimalistic, it is functional (especially on match days!) and somehow, stylish.
Whilst I do like Wimbledon for it's choice of interchanges and shopping opportunities (Portion of chips from Dinos anyone?) - I do have a couple of bugbears with it - The walkways (all of them!) are too narrow, and not to mention that apparently in rush hour, everyone loses their ability to walk at an acceptable pace (shuffling isn't acceptable) in a straight line, without stopping spontaneously. It needs some new walkways or remodelling ASAP, but that alone wouldn't make it my least favourite station.
I've never really liked the tiling at Tottenham court road!
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Post by domh245 on Jul 27, 2014 19:59:28 GMT
I quite like West Brompton, with it's old station building, the staircases, and the large retaining wall, with it's gardens and decorations, also a useful interchange for LO, and NR. The main drawbacks however are the lack of DM indicators on the Wimbledon Bound Platform, and the fact that when the tube is scuppered, I often end up either going from or arriving here, packed into a carriage full of moaning lower years (and others)!
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Post by domh245 on Jul 27, 2014 9:20:02 GMT
Correct, you have to use an image hosting site like flickr, or imgur, of if you are lucky, from your own personal server like Chris M - it's not too hard to do
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Post by domh245 on Jul 26, 2014 20:16:53 GMT
I don't want to ignite any arguments, but it sounds to me like the RMT are trying to build up some examples of where the driver has saved the day, regardless of how strenuously it is linked. Seeing as there is the imminent prospect of UTO on the next generation of deep tube stock, and the RMT would be trying to keep their members in a job, they will always try to paint a picture of "driver saves train from catastrophe" even if it is a bit of a lie. But I would agree with tut that some further details would be useful, seeing as the two sources would appear to be contradictory.
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Post by domh245 on Jul 26, 2014 15:22:26 GMT
Is B South Acton? C looks like it might be somewhere on the Hainult loop, so I'll take a punt at Newbury Park
I hope r1ncewind hasn't been trampled underfoot by those giants that were roaming around liverpool yesterday!
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Post by domh245 on Jul 26, 2014 8:17:01 GMT
I thought that the problem now was with the filters and converters, to ensure that the exhaust is cleaner (but still not clean enough to make a difference) - so for pretty much any new Diesel Locos, a new design would have to be found. The class 68 for example would need something like an extra 3ft of body, and a much heavier axle weight, if it were to be delivered in 2015 because of the new standards. Whilst you could easily fit a powerful engine into a small space, with all the new emission controlling devices you almost certainly couldn't. Hence the consensus in a number of places that we have seen the end of underfloor engines.
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Post by domh245 on Jul 25, 2014 21:47:50 GMT
OTMR: on train monitoring & recording - more or less a train 'black box' which records all sorts of things, such as position of controls, the actual power and braking levels, door releases &c.
DSD: drivers safety device (also known as DVD, drivers vigilance device) which is a NR pedal equivalent of the dedmans handle, except that if no controls are moved after some period of time, an alarm sounds and the driver must release the pedal and redepress it within about 3 seconds, else a brake application begins.
Snap. Beaten by r1ncewind, but I'll leave my post here, to cover all the bases
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Post by domh245 on Jul 25, 2014 19:53:24 GMT
AFAIK, whenever there are overuns, and the driver has to resort to emergency open mode, they will always cut out the first and last 4 doors, regardless. What would be better is if the train had sensors mounted underneath the length of the entire first car so that the train can determine by how far it has overshot, and release doors as applicable, so that there aren't any cases of 2 cars being lost because of a small overrun.
I'm thinking of something where the first doo-dah (technical term) arms the door and the last doo-dah dearms it. It would be as simple as just placing the doo-dahs at the platform limits, and fitting a sensor under each door, and a clever bit of coding, although unfortunately, the boat has long since sailed on suggestions to improve the trains, and so we won't see any real changes until either the train has it's mid-life refurbishment/rebuild or the next generation of SSL stock is introduced.
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Post by domh245 on Jul 25, 2014 19:30:46 GMT
I'm fairly sure that the S stock don't use the traditional CSDE equipment, instead using those little track mounted grey boxes That's what I've heard too, but I reckon it comes to more or less the same thing as far as the answers to wimblephil's questions are concerned. I just wondered whether the intricacies of CSDE (or equivalent (I think I've heard the acronym 'PAC' mentioned somewhere - is that what the boxes are?)) override and the various procedures would be different. I've wondered that as well. I would guess that it would be similar to some extent, ensuring that the train is properly berthed, and ensuring you open the door on the correct side &c. It would appear after some further research that CSDE is still used on the S stock, but I'm not sure if it is the same system as used on the traditional stock, or a new implementation of the system. It may be that there is conventional CSDE as a failsafe, but I don't know.
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Post by domh245 on Jul 25, 2014 18:45:42 GMT
I'm fairly sure that the S stock don't use the traditional CSDE equipment, instead using those little track mounted grey boxes, which might have been faulty, meaning that the T/Op had to ensure the the train was correctly berthed before using the emergency open, but if he had to resort to that, I would hope that they also talked about the front and rear doors not opening. Perhaps the T/Op forgot that the S stock use a different system, but I severely doubt that would be the case
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