Sandite on the Met

Someone recently told me that this is known as the RAT (Rail Adhesion Train). Is the Sandite car a converted A stock or something else?

The train has begun running, and is booked to run everyday until the end of December (later this year to coincide with timetable changes). Whether or not it runs on every single trip is more down to the weather and leaf-fall.

Cannot say for certain as I haven't seen it this year, but I would imagine the full 5-car set is running by now.

It runs as the first train from Neasden depot - at around 0345hrs! From then it takes in the branches up north and then returns to depot to layover for the morning peak.

It then has a few more paths late morning before returning to depot around lunchtime. In the afternoon it leaves depot around 1440hrs and spends the rest of the afternoon "up north" in various locations, before returning to depot during the evening (after the peak).

Weekends it does it a bit differently.

It was a four car last year as well If I remember correctly, although I think that was the first time.

Correct. Its in the same formation this year.

Arrive at Neasden a couple of weeks ago, Saturday so so glad to be at work, prep the RAT, wait for the Train Tech and the stick to clear, wait a bit longer, a bit longer still, phone the depot manager (oxymoron) to be told it's cancelled isn't it, so after a bit of a conflab it was decided to cancel the RAT and have an early day, nice.

I was running it last year in the rain coming down from Amersham, towards the red signal, applied some brake, nothing, applied a bit more still no sign of us actually slowing down, bit more still nowt, emergency that did it, it is very very slippery on the Amersham road when it's raining in leaf fall, but the reason the train wouldn't stop is that the thing is just too light.

Unlike the driver that was driving it at the time!

*runs and hides, an plans a reverse off the platform at Amersham to heal the wounds*

Oh dear - have you got that JCB handy again? ;D De-icing is incorrectly named as it is actually anti-icing, in that it won't get rid of ice that has formed, but should prevent ice from forming, provided the fluid is laid correctly. Not all service trains have sleet brushes. Although all D stock trains have sleet brushes, C stock only have sleet brushes fitted to 'de-icing' units Not sure about other stocks, but I would guess that sleet brushes are only fitted to 'de-icing' units on older stock than the D stock as well

The JCB is broken at the moment due to over use ;D ;D ;D
Thanks for the corrections though


Well, we've been warned that a 'bad winter' is on the way - be interesting to see if it's 'good service' on all lines ;D

Err no. We've been "warned" of a cold winter. Such a strange weather event I thought I would never live to see the day of a cold winter ;D

It's only the media that have turned what will be a cold snap into the next ice age.

I doubt it will be any more extreme than in any other year. The snow will no doubt arrive either in late November or mid-January as it does most winters. I doubt we will see a winter anywhere close to those years ago, with snow laying around for weeks on end.

But I do know where you're coming from. The failures and the like could be lengthened or worsened. Mind you, this summer was neither particularly wet, dry or warm, and yet the usual summer problems were encountered.

We have numerous minor problems that become evident when the temperature exceeds 22C. Most of us know that regardless of the weather, these matters won't be fixed by anything less than a change of attitude by those holding the money. Deciding at 0300hrs on a cold night to run trains filled with water (as mentioned above) and then wondering why the problems became worse, is just one of the ways the current infracos are looking after the railway.

This morning it left depot over an hour late. The driver apparently just didn't want to take it A replacement (driver) was found later, and the train ran more or less as booked - albeit an hour late.