Times are am, unless pm noted. SE/SO = Saturdays Excepted/Saturdays only Cm = Chesham, C&L = Chalfont and Latimer, Rk = Rickmansworth, H = Harrow WmP = Wembley Park, N= Neasden, BkS = Baker St, LS = Liverpool St. Ay = Aylesbury, FR = Finchley Road Ald = Aldgate, Mb = Marylebone.
n/s = non-stop. SS = Steam Stock.
It is also worth repeating the
Route for Trains Between Finchley Road and Harrow
Finchley Road and Wembley Park.
All trains in both directions booked to pass Finchley Road must run over the Fast Lines except those specially marked to work via the Local line (Northbound fast trains booked via Local line from Finchley Road will use the crossover on the north end of the station).
All trains etc. that must cross from the southbound Fast to southbound Local line at Dollis Hill are marked ‘F to L at DH’.
Wembley Park and Harrow
Unless marked by the note (LL) all trains and engines, in both directions, booked “non-stop” between Wembley Park and Harrow must run over the Fast Lines. Trains marked (LL) and trains calling at Preston Road and/or Northwick Park to run via the Local Lines.
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Winter 1938Saturdays Excepted.
Steam Stock 107 booked to start Cm 6.36; finish Cm 1.2; 2 carriages.
Saturdays Only.
Identical to SE.
Sundays.
SS 107 start Cm 7.30, finish WmP 8.15; start WmP 12.41pm, finish Cm 11.50pm. 2 carriages.
Goods workings are not, unfortunately, separately enumerated in this WTT.
Sunday is clearly the stock changeover day; so I’ll start there:
First booked NB into Cm is SS 95 (8.0 from BkS); the ‘old’ shuttle stock is booked SB off Cm at 7.30 works passenger to WmP – loco change at Rk, staff stop at Northwood, calls WmP 8.15 and thence to yard. This train has the Pullman carriage attached
Ety at the back [1]. SS 95 (6 cars, 1 First, 5 Thirds) works the Cm shuttle: 9.7 off Cm, C&L 9.16 – 9.50 arr Cm 9.59. SS 95 then works the 10.5 SB to BkS, changing engines at Rk, LL H – WmP, n/s N and FR. The next arrival into Cm is an LNE visitor, 9.30 ex-Marylebone, all stations from Harrow, except Northwood Hills arriving into Cm at 1025, returning south at 10.59 all stations but including Northwood Hills this time! After the LNE incursion, the next visitor is SS 97 (6 carriages) 10.21 off BkS, n/s FR and N, changes engines at Rk and arrives into Cm at 11.25, forming the 11.50 southbound, and doing the same as SS 95 earlier in the morning, making a return trip to C&L (11.59 – 12.4pm), returning to Cm at 12.13pm. SS 97 then departed south at 12.37, loco swap at Rk, all stations SB, LL H – WmP n/s N and FR. After the morning service being performed by full-strength trains, the fresh shuttle stock left WmP northbound at 12.41pm, LL to H and then all-stations to Cm, changing engines at Rk, the shuttle then did 2 return trips to C&L, arriving back in Cm at 3.32pm; here it laid over until 4.13pm. The reason for the long layover was waiting for the 4.10pm arrival which was the 3.15pm LNE train off Marylebone., the shuttle then did three more trips up the branch, laying over at C&L this time until the LNE train left Cm at 6.3, arriving into Marylebone at 6.56pm. The evening service was a bit more complicated, with the shuttle returning from C&L at 6.34pm, waiting in the bay until 7.10pm after another LNE train (6.10pm ex-Marylebone) arrived at 7.8pm. The shuttle then did another return trip on the branch, laying over at C&L for the 7.24pm LNE train to clear the branch and continue southwards to Marylebone. The shuttle did another return trip to Cm and then left C&L at 8.21pm, arriving in Cm at 8.30 and remaining there until 9.0pm, as another LNE train from Marylebone paid a visit to the branch – at Cm 8.42pm – 8.51pm, after that the service thinned out a little with departure from Cm at 9.50pm, 10.18pm - in both cases connecting with trains to BkS – the first 9.52pm Gt. Missenden – BkS and the second 9.56pm Ay – BkS : return journeys from C&L were timed to connect with NB trains (except the 10.3pm off C&L which only had a couple of LNE excursions rushing through SB after 9.11pm, there were no stopping trains apart from the shuttle for almost an hour. The remaining pair of NB services on the branch both connected with NB services from BkS to Ay.
The only other thing of note on a Sunday night is that there is a column note for the 10.15pm LNE train from H to Rk (arrive 10.48pm and stop)
‘Coaches to be worked to Cm on a Monday morning’On that note, we’ll look at Saturdays Excepted. Not a stock changeover day, but quite interesting in some ways: there’s even an early morning milk train, no sign of Emmet, though. Once I've worked out why a set of carriages suddenly materialises at Chesham - and it's not the ones from Ricky.
The first moves on to the branch started off with two engines leaving Neasden LNE at 4.30, these engines uncoupled at Harrow, then shunting a van from the Newspaper, Milk and Mails (ex – Marylebone 4.0, C&L 4.39 – 4.45 and into Quainton Road 6.0) that had been sitting at C&L for 20 minutes, the engine and van arrived in Cm at 5.25, with 20 minutes to shunt off the van before leaving south at 5.45 to Marylebone (ordinarily, these carriages were left at Cm overnight with the stock off the 11.40pm from Marylebone; but of course that didn’t run on a Sunday). I’m not utterly sure where the stock for the 5.45 came from without looking at an LNE WTT or Carriage Working Notice, but that’s one of the mysteries of timetabling! After that there were another two LNE engines off N at 5.30, uncoupled at Rk – on Monday mornings only the carriages from Rk would be picked up by the remaining engine an taken to Cm – just to prove that nearly everything you could imagine in a WTT happening somewhere, this ECS (MO) or LE are booked to run through C&L non-stop onto the branch. The shuttle takes up its first booked working, leaving Cm at 6.36, and into C&L at 6.45; returning 7.8 (after the 6.57am LNE train Cm – Marylebone cleared the branch), but as an
Ety Mixed, there is a column note saying that it is limited to 12 carriages and wagons. After that SS 95 arrives in Cm at 7.27 , fast from BkS – H and changing engines at Rk. There is a column note saying
‘Engine to attach two carriages of No 107 train and work 7.36’ – making the 7.36 departure south 8 carriages long in total. I’d make an educated guess (but would need to plot it all on a graph to be utterly sure) that the shuttle engine stayed at Cm, as the column note for the 7.36 (worked by set 107) reads:
‘On arrival C&L engine to run round, attach carriages to 7.56am SB into CL then haul train to Cm at 7.59’. Herein lies a bit of a puzzle, as the 7.36 off Cm is booked to arrive at C&L at 7.45, there is another train with the set number of 107 booked off Cm at 7.48 – so there are
two sets running south consecutively as 107. The column note for the 7.56 arrival (7.48 ex-Cm) reads
‘To remain in platform and the engine and two carriages arriving at 7.45 will be attached to the Cm end depart 7.59 to Cm, upon arrival leading engine to be uncoupled and work 8.13’ – this is more-or-less repeated in the column for the 7.59. I’m pretty sure this means that sets 107 and 95 run combined for a bit, as the 8.13 SB off Cm is indeed SS 95 again. Later WTTs are much clearer in what actually went on, naming the type/company of engine and which end it attached to the combined train. More when I get to the next WTT – if I get chance I will web up a graphical plot of exactly what this TT implies. On a related note (and illustrative of how information can be scattered throughout a timetable), the MW stock a couple of trains further on that is the morning Northwood reverser has a column note reading ‘
If necessary to start this train from Pinner, the 8.13 ex Cm must call at P to connect’ the 8.13 was booked super-fast southbound after Northwood, only stopping at BkS. The 8.8 arrival into Cm (7.59 off C&L) sits at Cm for a while as an LNE train (7.46 ex-Marylebone) arrives at 8.43, shuttle departs to C&L at 8.47 and returns before the LNE train departs at 9.12, after that the shuttle makes 5 return trips to C&L before an LNE train arrives on the branch again, working the 1235pm ex-Marylebone and then the 1.40pm ex- Cm (the shuttle was safely tucked away at Cm) after that the shuttle runs at approximately half-hourly intervals with only a 10 minute layover at C&L – this continues until the 5.28pm ex-Cm with the column note ‘
To be formed of 4 carriages on arrival at C&L to divide 2 carriages to form 5.44pm and 2 carriages to form the 7.33pm. The 5.44pm ex C&L has the column note ‘On arrival at Cm, shuttle engine to be attached to 6.40 SB’. The two shuttle carriages would be stowed out of the way at Chalfont, as the next arrivals into Cm are full-length sets: the 6.40pm southbound is formed of SS 97 (5.13pm ex-Aldgate, first stop Northwood Hills after BkS and into Cm 6.31pm. The 6.40pm SB has a huge column note:
‘LNE van and shuttle engine attached at rear from Cm to C&L detached at C&L van attached to SB 7.8pm SB train and engine works 7.33pm train C&L to Cm’; the 6.40pm is all stations to WmP and then fast to BkS. The 7.8SB is an LNE train 6.32pm off Ay. The 6.40 is followed by the 7.1pm arrival (5.45 ex-Ald non-stop BkS – Northwood Hills), worked by SS 102 and closely followed by the 6.32pm off Marylebone arriving in Cm at 7.26pm, the third arrival at 7.42pm is the shuttle (7.33 off C&L), and the fourth arrival was the 6.55pm off Marylebone at 7.52pm: so for a brief period Cm was
*full*: Steam Stock set 102 (due south at 7.56pm), an LNE train (due south at 8.29pm and double headed south as far as Rk) and the shuttle (due south at 7.56pm). Well, as you’ve probably already guessed the 7.56pm SB was composed of both the shuttle train and the steam stock train with both engines attached as the column note reads:
‘ Nos 102 and 107 trains coupled Cm to C&L, No 102 to form 8.8 SB, No 107 to form 8.10 NB’. The 7.52pm arrival has no onward working booked, so the carriages would be shunted to the yard and form a train the next day – this may be part of the explanation why on Monday mornings a complete train of stock can suddenly appear out of nowhere at Chesham – I wouldn’t like to guess as I’ve not seen the carriage working notice, but that’s where my money goes. After the 8.10pm ex C&L, the shuttle’s next workings were 8.41pm Cm, 9.6pm C&L, 9.38pm Cm, 9.52pm C&L, 10.5pm Cm, 10.19pm C&L, 10.36pm Cm, 10.50pm C&L, 11.23pm Cm, 11.50pm C&L, 12.15 Cm. There was then another terminating LNE train 11.40pm off Marylebone, booked into Cm at 12.37. The shuttle did a final single trip down the branch at 12.53, terminating at 1.2. In all cases the working of the shuttle during the evening was to maximise connections.
1938 Saturdays, next I suppose!
One thing to bear in mind with WTTs of this era is that the weekdays service was often common, then splits into both SE and SO – in this WTT the split between excepted and only takes place at about 8.30 SB from Aylesbury and NB from Baker Street. There were not many differences to the working of the shuttle until the late morning – the 11.32 ex Cm was retimed to run 3 minutes later as the SB connection at C&L was also 3 minutes later and then the timetable took a significant change. Remember at this time Saturday was still a day of work but only a half-day, so there was the a distinct ‘Saturday Lunchtime’ peak service. In this timetable there alterations began with the 11.14 ex-LS (SS 101) fast from BkS and only stopping at WmP/H before becoming all stations in Metro-land, arriving in Cm at 12.29pm. SS 101 returned south at 12.40pm, changing engines at Rk, LL and fast after Harrow. The shuttle made another couple of trips and then laid over at C&L for the 12.35pm ex-Marylebone to arrive at 1.33pm, the shuttle departed C&L before the LNE train left southwards at 1.49pm, allowing Chesham passengers a connection from the 12.31 super-fast from Aldgate (non-stop after BkS until Rk). The shuttle did another trip there and back (the 1.59 ex-Cm has the note
’Goods traffic must not be conveyed by this train’, before laying over at Cm and waiting for SS 98 (1.34pm ex-Aldgate) to arrive with the Pullman carriage attached; unsurprisingly for the later-lunching Pullmaneers this was non-stop from BkS to H. 98 was booked to layover at Cm for an hour , then an LNE train (2.15pm off Marylebone, arriving at 3.13pm and booked off at 4.14pm) followed by another through train arriving at 3.39pm (2.26½ ex-LS, SS 97 and booked to return south at 5.0pm). With this concentration of through trains coming onto the branch, it is hardly surprising that after the 2.55pm departure from Cm, the shuttle was booked to stay at C&L until 4.25pm. SS 98 went south at 3.51pm, semi-fast after WmP, calling at Willesden Green; the LNE train went south at 4.14pm, followed by the shuttle connecting with an ex-Ay semi-fast. SS 97 went south at 5.0pm LL after Harrow and non-stop after WmP. After another couple of trips there and back, the shuttle refuged at C&L for SS 98 (5.7pm off BkS) to arrive in Cm at 6.9, that departed south again before the shuttle returned to Cm after making a connection with the 5.37pm BkS – Ay. There were another two shuttles after SS 98 departed south at 6.18pm to BkS before the shuttle returned to C&L for the penultimate LNE arrival in Cm at 7.52pm, which was the 6.55pm off Marylebone. The LNE train departed at 8.34pm after the shuttle returned from Chalfont (making a connection with the 7.30 Marylebone – Ay – Woodford). As with weekdays, the shuttle ran to meet the all stopping NB trains at C&L until 12.24, when it refuged at C&L to allow the final LNE arrival onto the branch at 12.29 (11.40 ex-Marylebone); the shuttle stayed at C&L until 12.53 allowing a connection from the last NB out of BkS at midnight.
[1] SO No 1 Pullman service, 8.26 off Ay, 9.53 to LS;
Ety to N at 9.59 arr. N 10.24;
Ety N – Ald 1.2pm; works in 1.34pm Ald – Cm arr Cm 2.51pm and stop. So in 1938 Chesham had a one-way Pullman service from the City on Saturdays Only!
Summer 1941Cm set is now numbered 125.
Saturdays Excepted.
Steam Stock 125 booked to start Cm 6.30; finish Cm 1.6; the number of carriages isn’t given, but I suspect that it was just two.
Saturdays Only.
Identical to SE.
Sundays.
SS 125 start Cm 7.25, finish WmP 12.26; start N 12.3pm, finish Cm 11.58pm. 2 carriages. There is a footnote in the working that SS 125 was to be two carriages, but four for trips to and from Neasden Depot. There is no mention in the WTT of attaching carriages; the most logical place for this to occur would be at Cm, just before the train headed south to N.
Again, Sunday is the stock changeover day, with the branch set starting Cm at 7.25, making a return trip to Rk (arr. 7.42) after making a connection with an MW stock starter off WmP Dt, it returns to Cm, leaving at 7.55 and arriving at 8.16; the shuttle then made three return trips on the branch, leaving Cm at 8.24, 9.48, 10.46, C&L at 9.15, 10.13, 11.6. With the 11.39 ex-Cm the shuttle stock was heading south to WmP, changing engines at Rk and stabling in WmP at 12.26. It ran south as an all-stations. The next few trips on the branch were performed by SS 118, leaving BkS at 10.30, calling at FR and WmP then LL and all stations beyond H. 118 changed engines at Rk, but before the outgoing engine had arrived – I must confess that I don’t know which engine worked the following trips on the branch, SS 118 made two return shuttles – generous provision, as this was a full strength set of 6 carriages. SS 118 left Cm at 1.14pm; changing engines at Rk and running south in the same stopping pattern as it ran north. Sundays were fairly uneventful for the shuttle, as it ran 12 trips, from C&L at 2.26pm, 3.47pm, 4. 34pm, 5.26pm, 6. 26pm 7.27pm, 7. 57pm 8.42pm, 9.13pm, 9.59pm, 10.45pm, 11.33pm and the last trip was at 11.49pm, the train being booked to finish at 11.58pm. Again, I’m not sure where the other two carriages from N were detached, I suspect when the fresh shuttle arrived at Cm for the first time – there were 29 minutes booked as terminal time.
The outstanding difference between 1938 and this TT is that there are no through LNE trains booked in either direction, the shuttle makes a trundle to Ricky first thing in the morning - this has the advantage that a steam engine need not be diverted from shunting/goods duties until later (not a bad thing with the privations of war) as the connections bothways at Ricky are with MW stock. Steam stock working seems to have generally been simplified, perhaps due to other exigiencies, but unlike 1938 there is only one 'full' steam set covering for the changeover. Doubtless the changeover time was altered as there was now no need to get either 'Mayflower' or 'Galatea' to N early on the Sunday morning. Saturdays Excepted.
These began much the same as 1938, with a van of newspapers being detached at C&L from a NB LNE train (4.0 Marylebone – Woodford), but the van was not taken to Chesham, I suspect that the newspapers were transferred by platform staff. The first departure from Cm was an LNE train at 5.40, booked into Mb at 6.35; this was followed by the shuttle starting at 6.30, running to C&L. The return trip (6.48 ex-CL) has the column note
’Not to be held at CL in event of 5.46 ex-BkS running late’ (the 5.46 was the first NB from BkS to Ay), as it happens there was another shuttle booked in fairly short order after this, so any through passengers would not have had long to wait. The shuttle left Cm at 7.5 arriving into C&L at 7.26, there were then 11 minutes stand time for an LNE engine to be attached at the northern end of the shuttle set – the column note for the 7.17 ex-C&L has the note
’Hauled from CL to Cm by LNE engine arr, CL 6.50’ this top-and-tailed assembly arrived in Cm 7.26. I suspect that the LNE engine was detached (or, more likely left behind) when the shuttle departed Cm again at 7.35. The 7.35 has a column note:
’On arrival at CL engine to run round and couple to Cm end of 7.55am into CL’ The 7.55 arrival at CL was SS 116, starting from Cm at 7.44 there is the rather detailed column note
’to remain in platform at CL and the shuttle arriving at 7.44am will be attached to the Cm end, depart 7.57am to Cm. upon arrival at Cm. shuttle to be uncoupled and form 8.42 am'. I think this means that the 7.57 to Cm was formed (Chesham) P/P engine, P/P set 125, SS 116 set, SS 116 engine (Chalfont); I’m not quite sure in which platform the attaching was performed, as I’ve only got an un-numbered and un-dimensioned pencil sketch of the signalling at Chalfont during this period. I wonder if anyone out there can help? Certainly from the sketch there were junction signals in the NB platform, on the NB branch (allowing departures from the bay to Amersham over the crossovers at the northern end of the layout) as well as a junction inner home allowing trains to either enter the bay or access the SB main. However, looking at the sketch there seems to be plenty of possibilities for the shuttle to run round – either using the yard or the main line there is a clear window of about six minutes where the SB main is clear of approaching trains. There may (of course) have been another engine pootling around C&L and able to perform a shunt-release of the stock in the bay. However it was performed, there must have been some pretty slick working! The combined train, however it was assembled arrived at Cm at 8.6, the steam stock departed at 8.11: too soon for the engine to be run-round, which lends credence to the theory that the engine went down the branch at the Chalfont end. Another mark of the preferential treatment given to Chesham-originating commuters on the through train is that after changing engines at Rk on the SB, the train only stopped at Moor Park and Finchley Road before the central area and was booked to arrive in LS at 9.19. The 7.35 ex-Mb (LNE) arrived at 8.35, allowing the shuttle to do a return on the branch (8.42 Cm, 8.58 C&L), arriving back three minutes before the LNE train was booked to depart back to Marylebone at 9.12. There was another shuttle return, and after that arrived in Cm at 10.9, there was an LNE light engine booked down the branch, arriving in Cm at 10.19 – this engine was obviously a trip shunter, as it had previously travelled from Rk departing 9.26 to C&L arriving 9.38. The shuttle then did three return trips – ex Cm at 10.24, 10.52, returning from C&L at 10.39, and 11.7 ; the 11.34 ex-Cm had an LNE engine attached on the rear to C&L. I’m not sure if this is the same light engine that arrived an hour-an-a-half earlier, as I can’t find any onward path immediately from Chalfont – I really must look out for an LNE timetable of this era. On that note, as the next working of the shuttle was 12.0pm off C&L, I’ll pause there and resume the story of the afternoon weekdays later on!
All in all, the remainder of the day was very straightforward: a total of 18 return trips from Cm, roughly every half-hour (and that is quite a loose interpretation), and with only a few things of note. The 7.16pm from Cm had the column note
’LNE engine attached at front of train Cm. to CL, detached at CL and depart 7.27, the LNE engine was then booked to arrive in Rk at 7.37. There are a couple of odd gaps in the service – the shuttle remains at Cm from 1.9pm until 1.56pm and the same happens between 9.18pm – 9.54pm. I wonder if these were deliberate gaps to allow for extra, untimetabled freights; we know that Watford was used to store flotation gas for barrage balloons and I’ve not (yet!) seen any paths for these to be delivered to Watford. The branch was only visited by three full-length sets: SS 119 which formed the 5.17½pm off LS and arrived in Cm at 6.33pm (this must have formed the 7.47 southwards departure as SS 116 the next morning; SS 109 which was the 5.58½pm super-fast off LS, first stop Moor Park after Finchley Road - this set arrived in Cm 7.11pm, and departed at 7.29pm to BkS, all-stations to H, then stopping at WmP and FR before arriving in BkS at 8.31pm; the final visitor was a terminating LNE train 7.10pm ex-Mb and arriving in Cm at 8.13pm – this would form the stock for the 5.40 to Mb early the next morning.
The Saturdays Only service had very little but detail differences, the gap at lunchtime was filled by another return trip to C&L; however the afternoon was slightly different in that there was a timetabled LNE light engine leaving Cm 2.52pm (this picked up another LNE engine at C&L and the pair ran south together to N, booked into N at 3,56pm. The SE 3.31pm trip from Cm was replaced by another of the combined workings at 3.34pm ex-Cm. SS 112 was booked off LS at 1.35 (again, for the ‘lunchtime’ peak on Saturdays), non-stop between FR and H, arriving in Cm at 2.51pm. This set and the Chesham set departed, coupled together from Cm at 3.34pm, the shuttle set was detached at Cm and the column note reads
’No 125 train attached in rear Cm to CL and form 3.53 NB’ three minutes was allowed for the uncoupling at C&L and after the loco change at Rk SS 112 ran south all station to H, calling at WmP and FR before arriving in BkS at 4.37pm. The shuttle set departed C&L at 3.53pm, then returned from Cm at 4.19pm, arriving in C&L at 4.28pm. Here there was another attaching move: SS 117 had left BkS at 3.42pm, only stopping at FR and H (all-stations after H) and arrived in C&L at 4.35 where
(SS 125 coupled in rear CL to Cm. then forms 4.57 SB) the combined sets arrived in Cm at 4.16pm. SS 117 was noted to STOP. After that there was noting exceptional, only minor retimings to match the revised Saturday workings, there was an LNE light engine booked off Cm at 5.24pm to Rk arr. 5.43pm. After the 7.52pm departure from Cm all subsequent departures were in virtually the same times as SE.
Right then, that’s set the scene – the next instalment (due to appear in a day or so) will deal with what changed when the push-pull set was introduced with the winter 1941 WTT Winter 1941As a completely unrelated aside, my copy of this WTT is headed ‘Down Collectors’ and all the trains stopping at Pinner (both ways) until mid-day are marked with a pencil tick. Always better to have a WTT that has actually been used!!Finally we get into the era of the three-car push pull set: the front of the WTT has the caption
‘Uxbridge trains working to and from the City, instead of Barking in peak hours. Introduction of “push and pull” train in Chesham Branch Shuttle Working Additional through train from Chesham at 7.32am to Baker Street’. Doesn’t seem a lot of changes, really does it? Well, the truth is a little more revealing: the major difference in the working of the shuttle is that southbound workings from Cm were booked to take 8½ minutes and northbound would be 7½ minutes, as opposed to a flat 9 minutes both ways; turn round times were also significantly reduced, with now no need to run the engine round the shuttle at C&L the P/P set could be in and out of Chalfont in just two minutes (the fastest previously was 7 minutes, but normally the shuttle was booked to be at Chalfont for 11 or 12 minutes) – however, the full length sets were still booked the full 9 minutes on the branch in both directions (although on Sunday they were booked to be run-round in 6 and 8 minutes at Chalfont: more slick working!)
Stock working:
Saturdays Only/Excepted:
SS 125 start Cm 6.33, finish Cm 1.5
SS 116 (SE) SS 119 (SO) booked to start from Cm at 8.11; with SS 119 (SE) SS 117 (SO) booked to finish in Cm at 6.32pm
Sundays:
SS 125 start Cm 7.28, finish WmP 12.26pm; start N 12.3pm finish Cm 11.58pm.
Sundays:
As before, the shuttle started at Cm and went for a jaunt down to Rk for the first trip of the day 7.28 ex-Cm and 7.52 ex-Rk and making a connection with the first NB MW stock from WmP into Rk. After that the shuttle settled down into a steady pattern: 8.4, 9.15½, 10.13½, 10.34½, 11.6½ from C&L; 8.24, 9.48, 10.24, 10.46 from Cm. The outgoing shuttle left Cm at 11.38, changing engines at Rk and running southbound all-stations to WmP –
so there is an excuse for running a 3-car set with a Met. Electric!. The ‘gap’ between the two shuttle sets was covered by SS 118, leaving BkS at 10.30, arriving in Cm at 11.32. SS 118 made two returns from Cm: 12.5pm and 12.39, the run round times in Cm were slightly more generous than C&L, giving 10 minutes. SS 118 left Cm for BkS at 1.14pm, all stations to H then calling at WmP and FR. Whilst all this was going on, the changeover push-pull set left Neasden at 12.3pm, heading south with the column note
’make up 3 Chesham shuttle carriages and 1 additional carriage attached at the northern end of the train’, this 4 car set ran south
Ety into BkS at 12.15pm, out again at 12.30pm with the column note
’4 carriages Bk to Rk, additional carriage detached with loco at Rk for attaching to 8.4pm SB’. I suspect that the shuttle engine that arrived in Ricky at 11.55 on the outgoing stock took over again as the new shuttle went through north at 1.8pm – things might become clearer when we get into the era when all engine diagrams are noted in the column headings (I think the first one I’ve got is about 1944). The fresh shuttle stock arrived in Cm at 1.33pm, with the ease of reversing, the shuttle now did 15 return trips, three more than the previous WTT: ex-Cm at 2.5pm, 3.11pm, 3.38pm, 4.10pm, 5.1pm, 5.23pm, 6.1pm, 6.25pm, 7.8pm, 7.37pm, 8.23pm, 8.58pm, 9.31pm, 10.30pm and 11.33pm – the last single trip from C&L was at 11.50½pm, with the shuttle finishing at 11.58pm.
Although not really within topic, what stands out in this WTT is the lack of LNE traffic on Sundays, I'm not yet sure if that was the case Weekdays yet - as I've still got to wade through that bit!Saturdays Excepted with the push/pull were slightly different, the most noticeable change were the quick reversal times at the termini, allowing a greater density of service.
The first move on the branch was an LNE light engine 3.50 of N and into Cm at 5.12; this would take the 5.40 SB of Cm to Mb. A minute after that SS 123 started off BkS (LL from WmP and then stopped at just H and Northwood) and arrived in Cm at 6.28. After the steam stock train had arrived, then the shuttle started, two round trips from Cm at 6.33 and 6.58 - the 6.45½ ex-C&L had the same column note as before for the first northbound shuttle of the day:
’Not to be held at CL in event of 5.46 ex-BkS running late’. The 7.10½ departure from C&L was another ‘top-and-tail’ with the second LNE engine of the day (6.40 off Rk with the column note
’to couple to Cm end of No.125 train 7.8½am into CL – detached on arrival to work 8.11am SB.’ – the 8.11 will be SS 116 heading off to BkS), after the shuttle and LNE engine arrived in Cm at 7.18, the shuttle departed off at 7.21 to the bay at C&L and the
extra train mentioned above departed Cm at 7.32, super-fast to BkS, calling at Moor Park and FR, arriving in BkS 8.28. The shuttle made another couple of solo trips – off C&L at 7.43½, Cm 7.55 and then arriving back in C&L at 8.3½ the shuttle met the 7.35 off Mb which was given 4 minutes at C&L so that:
’SS 125 8.3½ into CL attached in rear from CL to Cm then forms 8.43 SB’ – there you are modellers: a (at least) 7 car – 4 LNE and 3 P/P – with an engine at each end.
Once this combination arrived at Cm, the shuttle dropped off the back end and headed south again at 8.43, returning to Cm with the 8.55½ before the LNE train left at 9.12. The shuttle was then undisturbed for a while, leaving Cm at 9.25, 9.46, 10.26, 10.51, 11.12, 11.36; staying at C&L for an LNE light engine to leave Cm at 11.46; then 12.34pm, 1.9pm, 1.52pm, 2.13pm, 2.34pm and 3.7pm. When the shuttle arrived in C&L at 3.15½, an LNE engine (2.5 ex Neasden LNE) was attached at the Cm end; this combination ran to Cm, where the shuttle engine was attached:
’On arrival at Cm shuttle engine detached and 3.32 SB worked by LNE engine’ the next few trips were worked by this LNE engine – 3.32pm, 4.12pm from Cm and 3.48½pm, 4.27½pm from C&L. The times are slightly curious; I initially thought that being worked in non push-pull mode the timings would revert back to the original 9 minutes. No. The trips worked by an LNE engine were still in the 7½/8½ mode rather than 9 minutes each way: this gave rise to some exceptionally quick working. The LNE worked shuttles were 3.32pm, 4.12pm, 4.39pm off Cm and 3.48½, 4.27½ and 4.39 off Cm – this particular move needed to be emptied, run-round and shunted back into a platform all within FOUR minutes
. Why do I think that the LNE engine ran round each time, well this final trip south that needed to depart C&L quite so sharpish has the column note:
’Shuttle engine attached to London end of train with additional LNE engine in rear [2]
Cm to CL. On arrival at CL additional engine detached and depart 4.55 to Rickmansworth’ If the LNE engine was push/pull fitted then it would be at the wrong end for the shuttle engie to be attached as the WTT directs. I wonder what the shuttle engine did in the time it was away from the set? Shunt the yard? Blow-down? Crew changeover? After this there was a period of undisturbed shuttling: 5.4½pm, 5.25pm, 5.48½pm, 6.9½pm off C&L – this last move stowed out of the way at Cm to allow the 5.14½pm (SS 119) off BkS to visit the branch: into Cm at 6.32pm and stable for the 8.11 SB the following morning. There was another round trip, 6.35pm Cm and then 6.45½ off C&L: the 6.56 return from Cm has the column note:
’LNE engine attached Cm to CL, detached at CL and depart 7.32’ This move is another of the unending mysteries – which end was the engine attached: I like to think that it was attached at the front – because the ‘rear’ isn’t specifically mentioned. However, this in itself leads to the interesting possibility of a double-headed southbound shuttle, but what on earth do you do with the engine once you get to Chalfont? The 6.56pm was due into Cm at 7.4pm, but SS 120, 5.58½pm off LS was *also* due into CL 7.3 – 7.6pm. I think the most likely suggestion, given that the shuttle was booked to be in Chalfont for quarter-of-an-hour is that the LNE engine went on the London end of the shuttle stock, and was just left in the bay when the shuttle departed north again at 7.19½pm. The light engine, in any case, was not booked to leave C&L for Rk until after the 6.39pm LNE train from Ay had passed through C&L at 7.27pm. The shuttle made another couple of trips on the branch, after arriving in Cm at 7.48pm, waited for SS 120 (7.52pm ex-Cm) to head southwards, followed by the 8.12pm LNE train (7.10pm off Mb) arriving. There was another trip each way (8.16pm ex-Cm and 8.26½pm ex-C&L) before the LNE engine that had come in from the Marylebone train departed south at 8.40pm, eventually tipping up in Neasden at 9.49pm. After that it was just 5 return trips on the branch, with the last train being the 12.57½pm off C&L, as before connecting with the midnight train off BkS. Apart from an LNE goods train (2.16 off C&L, and 2.30 booked into Cm) there was nothing until start of traffic the next day.
There were not many changes in the Saturdays Only timetable: Saturday mornings were still identical to ordinary weekday mornings, but the ‘rush hour’ was at lunchtime – as a result the afternoon through trains to Cm did not run, but were replaced by BkS – Ay trains or retimed the 5.14½pm ex-LS became (in effect the 3.42pm ex-BkS arriving in Cm 4.46pm, and the stock stabled for the morning: in the cases where there would have been a through train the shuttle did another run to compensate. The late afternoon swap with an LNE engine took place, which still puzzles me: I think that this was more for crew changeover and maintenance than pottering around the yard making up a goods train. The evening LNE train from Mb was retimed, arrived in Cm at 1.33pm and STOP. The stock stayed in Cm for the Sunday morning train south, but there were also no LNE light engines off the branch Saturday evenings as the engine off this train was attached to the 2.28pm SB from Cm at the rear, and went further south to N with another LNE engine at 3.12pm; the 5.5pm SB shuttle has the note
’Shuttle engine attached to London end of train with additional LNE engine in rear Cm to CL on arrival at CL additional LNE Eng. detached and depart 5.24 to Neasden (LNE)’. All timetables for October 1941 would probably repay having some form of graphical analysis – maybe when I’ve got the time!
Anyway –
1942 at long last – this should be simpler to analyse, as I’ve not got a full matrix extract of the weekdays timetable before me. Apologies for the length of time this has taken to produce.
More to come…. I’ve had enough typing, for the moment. 
[2] in this case the column note refers to the next train, departing southwards, so the LNE engine *would* be at the rear.
) that the southbound set on a Saturday night ran in passenger service as far as Ricky and that its northbound replacement on Sunday morning called at Harrow, Moor Park and then all stations to Chesham.
. Why do I think that the LNE engine ran round each time, well this final trip south that needed to depart C&L quite so sharpish has the column note: ’Shuttle engine attached to London end of train with additional LNE engine in rear [2]Cm to CL. On arrival at CL additional engine detached and depart 4.55 to Rickmansworth’ If the LNE engine was push/pull fitted then it would be at the wrong end for the shuttle engie to be attached as the WTT directs. I wonder what the shuttle engine did in the time it was away from the set? Shunt the yard? Blow-down? Crew changeover? After this there was a period of undisturbed shuttling: 5.4½pm, 5.25pm, 5.48½pm, 6.9½pm off C&L – this last move stowed out of the way at Cm to allow the 5.14½pm (SS 119) off BkS to visit the branch: into Cm at 6.32pm and stable for the 8.11 SB the following morning. There was another round trip, 6.35pm Cm and then 6.45½ off C&L: the 6.56 return from Cm has the column note: ’LNE engine attached Cm to CL, detached at CL and depart 7.32’ This move is another of the unending mysteries – which end was the engine attached: I like to think that it was attached at the front – because the ‘rear’ isn’t specifically mentioned. However, this in itself leads to the interesting possibility of a double-headed southbound shuttle, but what on earth do you do with the engine once you get to Chalfont? The 6.56pm was due into Cm at 7.4pm, but SS 120, 5.58½pm off LS was *also* due into CL 7.3 – 7.6pm. I think the most likely suggestion, given that the shuttle was booked to be in Chalfont for quarter-of-an-hour is that the LNE engine went on the London end of the shuttle stock, and was just left in the bay when the shuttle departed north again at 7.19½pm. The light engine, in any case, was not booked to leave C&L for Rk until after the 6.39pm LNE train from Ay had passed through C&L at 7.27pm. The shuttle made another couple of trips on the branch, after arriving in Cm at 7.48pm, waited for SS 120 (7.52pm ex-Cm) to head southwards, followed by the 8.12pm LNE train (7.10pm off Mb) arriving. There was another trip each way (8.16pm ex-Cm and 8.26½pm ex-C&L) before the LNE engine that had come in from the Marylebone train departed south at 8.40pm, eventually tipping up in Neasden at 9.49pm. After that it was just 5 return trips on the branch, with the last train being the 12.57½pm off C&L, as before connecting with the midnight train off BkS. Apart from an LNE goods train (2.16 off C&L, and 2.30 booked into Cm) there was nothing until start of traffic the next day.
