castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Dec 31, 2020 11:54:17 GMT
As per the video, is Grange Hill via Woodford a rare display now?
Around 1970, Grange Hill via Woodford was a daily Mon-Fri service through central London at around 9 a.m. I don't know where it started, but West Ruislip I think
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Nov 29, 2020 15:11:24 GMT
Pensions are a very complex issue
Rules change
Projected benefits can change
Annuity rates constantly change (they are at historic low levels now)
Benefits for new scheme entrants can change whilst benefits for existing members are protected
Many years ago, many people in public service joined what were known as "final salary schemes". lt meant that on day one of joining the scheme, you knew that your benefits on retirement would be a tax-free lump sum and a percentage of you final salary, entirely depending on your completed years of service. 40 years of service meant you could (DEPENDING ON the rules of the scheme you joined) get a maximum pension of two thirds of final salary, (but many scheme rules paid less, such as half salary).
Things changed. 1) Life expectancy went up, so scheme trustees found that the funds they were managing were being diminished by retired members living longer 2) Investment returns failed 3) Inflation fell meaning that annuity rates (look it up - life's too short) fell too 4) Originally projected benefits were found to be based on 2) above, so people got less than they were expecting to get. Some funds had insufficient money to pay everybody (Daily Mirror, Top Shop etc)
SO, many schemes fell away from "final salary related benefits" and changed to "money purchase" type arrangements. This meant that benefits were based on investment performance and annuity rates, and nobody knew what they were going to get at retirement until it got to the point when they actually retired. In some companies, you could sometime buy "added years of service", but l think that has stopped now A V Cs are Additional Voluntary Contributions, which provide some tax benefits in trying to increase the size of your final pension pot. But here again, it depends on 2) above - how good the fund managers are.
You then buy an annuity (see wikipedia)
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Nov 19, 2020 15:54:30 GMT
@ 'DWS'
It's odd because, being that this is a railway site, and Fishbourne is only a few miles from Portsmouth on the Portsmpouth - Brighton local RAIL service, it is natural to assume this is a final 'hand over run' before being taken to the island As you mentioned neither "ship" nor the lsle of Wight, it is easy to fail to understand what you meant.
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Nov 19, 2020 14:15:34 GMT
Why Fishbourne? That seems very odd
Fishbourne is never an ultimate destination yet less than a mile short of Chichester from the Portsmouth direction
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Nov 14, 2020 15:03:28 GMT
Nobody ever talks about who pays, but it should never be forgotten that as soon as you cross the GLA wall, there are suddenly more players but not necessarily more payers
l remember the end of the "Fares fair" scheme because the London Borough of Bromley wouldn't pay for other Londoners' tube travel
Unlike "Watford schemes". where some locals honestly expect Londoners (via TfL) to pay for their new railway, (Bromley would rather declare 'Independence' than contribute towards that), schemes wholly within the GLA area MIGHT have legs (or wheels), but get onto Essex C C turf, and any scheme will have zero chance
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Nov 10, 2020 13:30:14 GMT
Over many years (50+) l've heard of many such schemes.
Some from crayonistas, but many were not. Some were very sensible and were seriously considered.
But they rarely come to anything
For historic information, (1) The Greenford - Ealing Broadway shuttle appeared in a local Conservative politician's GLC (as it was then) manifesto in around 1970. If elected, he was going to improve the service by extending it to Acton Main Line, Olympia & Clapham Junction, all over existing tracks.
Result = it now only runs Greenford - West Ealing (so to get from Greenford to Gunnersbury today, changes are needed at West Ealing, Ealing Broadway, and Turnham Green
(2) A few years on and just a few miles further west, a cry went out from the Uxbridge area to divert some Central Line services at Ruislip, to Uxbridge (let's not get into reasons 'why/why not' here) Councillors and the local Uxbridge MP all championed this as a logical 'must have' scheme. lt was 'mothballed'
Result = Unbelievably, Boris became the local and current MP. Instead of making it happen, it looks less likely now.
AT THE SAME TIME, (around 1970), there was a cry for better rail connections north - south across West London. Crayons came out of boxes and maps of a sort were produced Of course, a line already existed that would have done the job perfectly, but believe it or not, the reason given for not re-opening it was "It was open for passenger traffic but closed through lack of use. Therefore there can be no business case for re-opening it". Hang on! It closed 60(?) years ago when west London ended at about Earls Court. ls that the reason you are still using for keeping it closed?
"Yes".
Fortunately, for once, reason and logic prevailed
So, "Mothballed" can have two possible meanings (1) Filed for possible future use, however unlikely. Or, (2) "Binned"
I wonder which this for Crossrail 2 will turn out to be
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Nov 5, 2020 20:24:51 GMT
About 5 years ago, we were told to stop using "+ 1"
"+0.99" still seems to be acceptable though
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Oct 11, 2020 12:17:15 GMT
Travel patterns five years from now will be unrecognisable to those of five years ago.
Planners have to be in the prediction business to a degree, but they've made some spectacular howlers since 1945
Now, there is a national epidemic that will mean changes to many lives and employment prospects. l think this is one time we need to wait and see because nobody should pretend to be able to predict this outcome accurately. My own guess is that a south or south easterly extension to the Bakerloo should be a number 1 priority
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Oct 10, 2020 15:09:53 GMT
This has just been posted in the quarterly "Ealing Matters" by the Borough of Ealing council. It is dated October 2020 . It states the museum site could be worth £320 million, and thus money is obviously needed. I make no comment as to the rights and wrongs, nor regarding the loss of the museum, but as they say "Money talks", and we now know £320 million is talking
London Transport Museum’s Acton Depot The London Transport Museum’s collection store next to the District line train depot in Acton and opposite Acton Town station houses 90% of the museum’s collection, some 320,000 items. As part of its development along Bollo Lane, TfL has earmarked the depot site for development. Pre-application discussions with Ealing Council have determined that around 800 new homes plus a replacement storage facility for the museum would be viable. TfL has now published a Prior Information Notice, which it says will help gauge market demand and identify a joint venture property developer. According to the notice the 2.6-hectare site could be worth more than £320 million. The Museum Depot will be open to visitors this month.
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Oct 2, 2020 13:23:26 GMT
I cannot comprehend why anybody would suggest or even consider for one nanosecond that I would prefer The Thatcher Line, The Blair Line or The Strictly Come Dancing Line Frankly that is disingenuous and a bit insulting, as my post clearly says I prefer the name "Crossrail". I have attempted (and obviously failed) to keep this as a serious topic
Please let us not be ridiculous, and read what l have said about my preference. Please don't make stuff up.
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Oct 2, 2020 12:08:45 GMT
I prefer "Crossrail" which is most logical and easiest for visitors to understand
I cannot understand why people have to fawn favour with various royal individuals and want to name things after them. We are no longer a feudal society, believe it or not. Some people obviously can't
Naming a new line is not as important as getting on and building the thing
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Sept 29, 2020 14:41:02 GMT
l'd prefer it to be called "Crossrail"
l wonder how much money has been spent (= wasted) on re-branding? Why name it after somebody who (1) won't use it, and (2) hasn't had to help pay for it? Why name it after somebody whose son can spend £16,000 on a helicopter trip to see one golf match?
Does it help to get some sort of medal if you suggest that you want to name something after the person who gives out the medals?
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Aug 19, 2020 15:23:53 GMT
Gower?
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Aug 18, 2020 19:01:13 GMT
Cardigan Bay, south of Aberystwyth, probably near Fishguard
Pembrokeshire Coastal Path in foreground
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Aug 3, 2020 14:09:25 GMT
There were coal trains into South Harrow gas works which had to reverse at Rayners,
and the steam workings through Turnham Green and Hammersmith to Lillie Bridge are well documented somewhere on these boards
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Jul 28, 2020 19:14:57 GMT
NO, Trumpers Crossing Halt (or Halte), was on the line from Brentford to Southall, (not Slough), and it is the only occasion where l have seen a photo of a station sign spelled 'Halte'
It is on the site of an old drove road (between Ealing Common and Heston) which fell into disuse when (a) Osterley Park was enclosed and the road diverted, and (2) the canal was built. Now, lock gates are approximately where the original crossing once was, but cattle are notoriously bad at crossing canals via lock gates. The old road could still be traced on large scale maps until recent years
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Jul 24, 2020 8:03:55 GMT
Rail access is an obvious requirement if there are ever to be any more special rail runs........
............but, my rants against "planners" are legendary, so any crass idea could be acceptable to them.
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Jul 23, 2020 15:37:00 GMT
Can anyone smell fresh, new, warm brown envelopes ready for stuffing?
"Bunging" is not extinct when it comes to "development", especially for housing "Mystery fires" still happen, and before one envelopes all the LT Museum stock, it might be prudent to accede to considering a move from Acton under these circumstances
Unfortunately, this isn't RIPAS or fantasy. The exhibits MUST be protected, and an alternative home for them must be provided
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on May 12, 2020 20:24:51 GMT
Is there a historical archive record of all LT Underground and LUL posters?
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Feb 24, 2020 14:06:21 GMT
Here's a few ideas
If there's excess heat,
1: Have windows that can be opened
2: Don't heat the trains so much
3: Don't make modern trains use much more energy than trains did 60 years ago when people weren't so wise about saving energy
4: Question whether some of the people who make decisions are fit for purpose.
5: Question why when "TfL is chronically strapped for cash", TfL seems to spend money on things such as PEDs which would once have been laughed at and disbelieved as being unnecessary.
6: Question why TfL seems to look for ways of spending money as if it is now fiscally incontinent.
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Feb 23, 2020 13:06:26 GMT
Somebody should tell Greta Thunberg what these decision makers have done.
Then leave them to deal with her
The amount of heat lost via this madness must be adding to global warming
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Feb 23, 2020 12:16:33 GMT
............and the resulting heat loss requires using far more energy to re-heat
Environmental MADNESS, and this destroys any pretence to be "green" and environmentally friendly.
Occasionally, l think "the Peter Principle" applies to decision makers, and they get over promoted
Think of the tons of carbon emissions that will now be released from every single LUL train
Next time Environmental Activists hit LU, they might think they have a reason. Why hand them one??
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Feb 8, 2020 22:49:44 GMT
There were more:
South Acton
Blake Hall, Ongar
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Feb 8, 2020 16:14:04 GMT
Countryman, I never saw one either, but I heard them regularly in the very early hours of the morning, climbing up from South Greenford
The Wood Lane milk facility was there for a long time afterwards, By that time, I think they came via the WLL as you are correct, the line from North Acton down to Wood Lane was seldom used after that. But I have seen photos of it being used by a couple of excursions to/from the Southern about thattime
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Feb 8, 2020 13:41:22 GMT
That photo is almost certainly a milk train (empties) from United Dairies Wood Lane depot, which was just north of White City station.
These trains travelled via the Greenford East chord then via Castlebar Park. I think this once regular service ended around 1960
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Feb 8, 2020 13:33:15 GMT
aslefshrugged noticed that Someone on Twitter reckons they're considering resuming Central Line services Epping to Ongar, but l'd LOVE to know who "they" are and "who" pays.
There have been so many rumours over the years, they would fill several volumes. If it's on Twitter it might just be somebody's fantasy idea, or an estate agent's attempt to give the local housing market a boost. The problem is, sometimes the local press get hold of such stories, and give them unwarranted airtime. IF I were Joe Coral or Betfred, l'd give very generous odds of Epping - Ongar ever happening. BUT, Epping - North Weald (see previous threads) just might happen one day l suppose
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Dec 19, 2019 11:50:57 GMT
@ Chris L
I remember services from Marylebone were measured from Sheffield (still might be), even though all the track through Loughborough etc, is long gone
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Dec 18, 2019 16:29:57 GMT
Here's an idea: > > >
Is there a prize for this if adopted?
8 car units have numbers commencing with 8
7 car units have numbers commencing with 7
Or does this overcomplicate things?
This way, if somebody takes over a train at Baker Street, there will be a big clue before he drives away!
IF l ran a firm of "consultants". l think TfL would pay a £Million quid for this, but unfortunately l'm sure that they'll say they've considered it and the present system works better
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Dec 17, 2019 10:15:08 GMT
@ billbedford
Yes, exactly
The Fulwell chord is shown there. Clearly there is room for it on the other map too
|
|
castlebar
Planners use hindsight, not foresight
Posts: 1,316
|
Post by castlebar on Dec 17, 2019 10:00:37 GMT
@ norbitonflyer
Yes, I understand that.
But the use it does get is at peak times, so that knocks a hole in the "line is already saturated" argument.
But I doubt that ANY imagination has been used in trying to think of alternative routings so something could be worked out.
We are no longer in the days where Southern Region wouldn't allow Western trains into Staines, forcing closure of the Staines West branch. This type of thinking was something that Gerard Fiennes had his problems with 50 years ago, and railway management was once riddled with it.
..................and that still doesn't answer the initial question as to why those peak-hour services using the chord, are not shown on the map
|
|