ELL signal failure

Have you ever tried going fault-finding on a signalling circuit?

Yikes this was/is really bad. I got turfed out at New Cross Gate after listening to a chorus of "we are sorry, this train is being delayed by Congestion" on the train. Amazingly at NXG they were still using the automated announcements. I managed to jump over to platform 4 and catch a fast line London Bridge service which left nearly empty. There were no announcements advising those on P5 to cross over. My other half arrived at Forest Hill at 9.30am and reached London Bridge at 11am!

I, like everyone else here probably, am not privy to the in's & out's of the failure. But is it conceivable that a humble light bulb has blown? The new signals may well be all LED's; I don't know

Is it conceivable that a humble fuse has blown? There are many other things that make up the signalling system and with all due respect, any one item can fail at any given time despite the original cost of it.

I've bought things new from shops had to take them back within a month or two because of a defect - I can't be the only one it's happened to and the railways aren't immune from the phenomenon either!

Then you are expecting miracles; even the simplest thing can go wrong on a £1000 system or a £1bn system...



Errr, how is that different? You've bought something new, and you've had to take it back to get if fixed under warranty... which is potentially the same with the signals?

Ich verstehe, but everyone must understand that with something new, despite testing, testing, testing, there will always be unforseen little things just waiting for the right circumstances to crop up and bang, the whole shabang falls to its knees.

These circumstances can be anything from one train or many more in exactly the wrong place [or right, depends on which way you look at it], temperature, anything really can throw it all out of kilter.

Yes, the mdeia will rip it to shreds; look at what they did with the automotive indistry and the sticky pedals. This is the problem, people from outside the industry making up things and painting a nice rosy image to harness the gullible folk who read such nonsense.

These things will happen. simple, there nothing that can be done to alleviate the issues that can and will continue to crop up...

I remember a number of Operating Officials watching someone go through the fault finding procedure on a straightforward track circuit failure in the Signal School and they were amazed at how long the procedure took. It's a lot harder at times than people think.

I second that.

There are already videos of track replacement work taking place on the Central Line on YouTube during the night time possessions which I can now appreciate the effort.

A video of what's done with regards to fixing signalling on the different types of signals would be a good idea along with why they may fail in the first place. And how they work etc. etc.

Except it isn't entirely a new system. Almost everything south of New Cross Gate uses existing infrastructure and it has to interface with other Network Rail services.While Dalston Junction - New Cross services are self-contained on the new infrastructure, they too will suffer knock-on effects.

Although the timetable doesn't "self contain" the services - don't the trains alternate between the 3 braches i.e a train does Dalston - New Cross - Dalston - West Croydon - Dalston - Crystal Palace.

However, as you say, services could be self contained if the situation warranted it.

You also have to consider that past NXG those trains have to fit in amongst 4tph Southern services as far as Sydenham and then between Norwood Junction and West Croydon.