The last Unrefurbed D Stock.....

Your not serious !! oh ...you did say sane ! lol lol ;D

I'm very much looking forward to may part in this operation and hope as many of you as possible will join us over this evening. My experience of these events is they tend to be very social

PNR - public toilets (platform side of the barrier) can be found on platform 1 at Upminster, at the top of the staircase from platform 2 at Barking, Richmond Platform 3(at end of the staff accomodation block - gents), Ealing Broadway (between Central and District platforms) these are all usually open all evening. The toilets at LUL run stations are usually closed about 1500hours.

The toilets I refer to at Richmond are one cubicle and one urinal so if theres a lot of you, be aware of our booked departure times ! larger toilets exist public side of the barrier, but now incur a charge !

Barking also has a KFC and a Wimpy (yes a Wimpy !!) immediately outside the station to the right, plus a load of kebab and chicken shops.

Can't say i have encountered any problems at Upminster admittedly I'm usually in uniform when taking pictures, but it's pretty good for photographs. If I am aware of any problems I'm sure one of us can put them right or get the local duty manager to phone over a reprimand ! I day say numbers on the day will disuade them from making a nuisence of themselves, plus a number of senior managers are likely to be availing themselves of a ride or picture on the day !

I would love to see a private security guard start getting grumpy with a bloke in a suit, only to be told that they were being rude to the Senior Manager in charge of xxxx ;D.

Dave - I'm on annual leave on the day in question.............if you specifically need assistance for an EBY - ECOM run, I could make myself available. Dunno how I'd stand with being on leave though, but uniform is no issue! Having said that, is this part still likely to be unknown until the last moment (ie, @ EBY)?

In my admittedly limited experience, c2c run stations are the least friendly towards photographers. I was all-but marched off Fenchurch Street with the claim that I needed a Network Rail photographic permit and explicit written permission from the station manager.

Which end to travel on "last" trains? Has tended to be first or last car. Last car for the 1959TS on the Northern - had to watch the last Guard in operation! - was also last car on final CO/CP Stock in 1981 (because *I* was working doors, who knows!?), first car on last R Stock in 1983 (there was an Earls Court Station Guard rostered on the back with no interest in the occasion) The Motorman was Dave Brown of Parsons Green, later a Station Inspector and then DSM). If I recall correctly the last 1938TS to Watford Junction, indeed the last Bakerloo Line train to that location (so far...) it was front car, with RSM Tom Scott (now safely retired) generously passing paper cups of white wine around to commemorate the event! As there are no guards on D Stocks now perhaps the "front car" rule can be invoked? (This is beginning to sound like a game of Radio 4's "Mornington Crsecent!") More seriously I hope the weather doesn't stay as pleasant as it has been last few days as it is utterly hopless for photos. As a warning in the afternoon both Barking WB and West Ham WB are hopless for photos if the sun is out as the canopies and NR overhead throws black shadows across the sides and fronts of trains. I managed something of sorts at Barking today with W43 from Down Tilbury plat 7 and without incident from c2c bouncers, but then again it was a case of "snap and go" and I didn't hang around.

I am banned !

I can quite categorically state that the weather has no bearing whatsoever on the photographic possibilities of Tower Hill Eastbound ;D ;D ;D

However, with only four days left, this will have to do. I was very fortunate to see it as I wasn't actually pursuing D Stock that day and was engaged on a 'normal' activity, and also that the bay road was empty at the time. Please excuse horrible photo taken on my phone.


12-02-2008 at 17:49 7534 EB at Tower Hill

Was anyone on this forum driving?

Might there be any chance of it getting a little TLC before Friday in terms of cleaning the grime off the cab front and fixing the broken tail light?

I can't believe that next week this will all be history......

The tail light will have been fixed - it's one of the daily checks by the deoy - and in any event the driver should have at least have noted it on the fault card.

Also as it's coming out of Upmin it will *probably* go through the wash before it's first w/b trip of the afternoon.

No changes of the plans - recently been on the phone to one of the Powers That Be.....

Fingers crossed it will all work out - in theory it could still be reformed during the evening but I'm told that all involved are aware of what's planned.

Like Dave says ..

all is still ok as per plan for tomorrow. The train is being "watched" so it should stable at Ealing Common tonight, so they can give it a check over before service tomorow. It is planned to stable at Upminster after the morning peak, where it will be checked again... It is planned to run out of Upminster in the afternoon as set 106 as per the times shown earlier in this thread.

All, whilst it is planned to remain on T 106, be aware that problems on the service may see it be curtailed, diverted or reformed during the evening ! (For example a service shutdown may see it turned and sent back on a completely different path !) But we can only work with the known and do our best !

Hope all goes well ... wave at us as we come in ! ;D ;D ;D

The upgrades team responsible for the refurb program are going out in the morning to 'inspect' the train (ahem!). I can assure everyone that once safely stabled at Ealing Common tomorrow night it will remain there until it is loaded on to a lorry and taken off for its make over!

If you can find someone who can predict such information more than 30 seconds before the train arrives in the platform, good luck to ya!

Basically, the programe machines should route trains as per the timetable.........however....................the signallers can (and often do) 'vary the routeing in the best interests of the service' - then there's other potential unforeseen situations which may require a train to be 'worked around' or such like.

In essence, you'll just have to keep yer eye's peeled.....

Might be wise to ask Tim O'Toole first, since it is HIS railway! ;D

Yes !!!

However all being normal, it will be routed via 53 road (furthest to the right as you look from the footbridge) through the wash and thus can only gain platform 3 or 4. It is booked into 3, but if 3 is occupied and 4 isn't ...well you know where it's going !! If both are occupied, look at where the points are pre-set for !!!

At Earl's Court on the first run down it is booked in Platform 3, however, as stated by Colin, it could still run via 4 if best running of the service dictates it ... if it does so, you will see it move across the points before Earl's Court in good time to reposition yourself for any pictures. To board the platforms are adjacent, so it should be easilly spotable !

Good luck. We can't make it now (next Monday would have been perfect with half-term).