Wires and cables all over the show

Thanks for that, they seem so unsightly above ground

Else where I have laid a duct to put cable in, the pipe was marked WATER, it was explained that it is big enough to get the required cable in, but too small for the little nibblers to get in.

I think having all cables attached to brackets next to walls/fencing is far better than what you see on third-rail NR with a pile of 750v cables just randomly thrown on the ground next to the conductor rail. And South West Trains have had several problems with power cables catching fire in the last 2 months.

I agree that a neat cable run is a joy to behold just as lacing, stitching and forming of cables into neat 'boxes' and tapered skinners is also a mark of a quality installation.

Unfortunately cable dressing into trackside and tunnel runs was allowed to deviate from standard in the 1980s at a time when there was a massive expansion of communications across the combine but little expansion of the cable runs even though it must have been obvious to the drawing office that the single comms shelf provided in the majority of bracket runs was inadequate to take the 104 and 74 pair main cables installed for the telephone network uplift let alone all the other comms services that followed.

Of course within relay rooms and IMRs the old methods of installing and dressing wiring were not cost effective and wiremen were not allowed the amount of time that would once have been taken to wire up racks and bays.

These days LUL uses ladder runs, admiralty tray and cable ties for quickness but they allow sloppy practice although a decent skilled wireman will always be able to do a decent job with any method of installation.

The days of dressing individual cables into set positions within a bracket run or form as was the discipline when I began my LT service is long gone as a result of cost and IMO a relaxation of installation standard.

I recall being told by my chargehand in my first year on the job that in former years new wiremen were not allowed in equipment rooms until they had spent at least three months wiring up trackside locations under close supervision and that bad workmanship would not be tolerated, thus some wiremen were permanently banished to work at trackside and forbidden to enter such rooms.

All my cable and wiring skills were learnt before I began my LT career, cable dressing, forming, lacing and box stitching being my favourite tasks in my previous career as a Telephone Engineer.