Great Western Coffee Shop

http://www.bucksherald.co.uk/news/more-news/trains-return-to-chinnor-after-57-year-delay-1-5565321

165 Turbo last Saturday - the 121 bubble car the next two.

0935 from Aylesbury....details on the Chinnor Railway website

I will be  at Chinnor this saturday. Just look out for some lads in a red Vauxhall corsa

Wonder whether there's ever likely to be a regular (peak?) TOC service from Chinor to Marylebone.

Also thought the same about Bewdley to Birmingham service using the SVR and the grand daddy of them all the West Somerset from Bishops Lydyard to Tauton.

You have to have two signalling systems to lock the line from the Network Rail centre so you don't have to get volunteers to open the line if it's regular service.

There is precedent the NYMR runs to Battersby and Whitby on Network Rail.

Chiltern certainly looked at that in conjunction with the Oxford service - that is the way they originally wanted to go. But turned it down on costs. Suspect the same, with little or no extra farebox simply from Chinnor.

Enjoyed my trip yesterday to Chinnor, well except for the drive along part of the  Oxford ringroad.

The railway was certainly pulling in the crowds yesterday however the platform at Chinnor didnt seem to manage too well with teh high numbers of people. Credit to all the volunteers who pulled out all the stops to make sure everyone had at least 1 ride on 121020 between Chinnor and Princess Risborough.  This railway is certainly one which could benefit from a direct mainline connection.

Anyway here is a photo of 121020 at Chinnor.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/13416874@N03/10245350284/

After speaking to someone who was at the railway last weekend who was telling me about the fun 165001 had with the platform at Chinnor it does show that tthese units can manage with some tight platform edges.  It shows that these units shouldn't have too much trouble with the curve at Melksham station.

This photo posted on Flickr shows how tight the platform at Chinnor is and you can see the steps of 165001 overhanging the platform:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lereddog/10115265584/in/faves-13416874@N03/

There always seems to be a chasm between the platform and train at Melksham, so I don't think that a 165 or 166 would have a problem ;) ... however, down the line at Trowbridge I know there are concerns.  I believe that 165 / 166s have on one occasion - in extremis - been taken through there northbound, probably at very low speed indeed. There's said to be an issue with limited clearance at Avoncliff and Dundas too, so they may well have got up to the main Bristol line via the TransWilts.

Well get up early on the day after Boxing Day.  Three sets joined together will be passing through Melksham and Trowbridge in the early hours to run the shuttle service between Bedwyn and Theale.

http://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/train/V52671/2013/12/27/advanced (http://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/train/V52671/2013/12/27/advanced)

Well I suppose something could be done with the steps on the class 165/166 fleet. Parts of the GW will be getting clearance work done for  the Hitachi class 800/801 set's which should help things

Network Rail's plans for Control Period 5 (http://www.networkrail.co.uk/browse%20documents/strategicbusinessplan/cp5/supporting%20documents/our%20activity%20and%20expenditure%20plans/overarching%20cp5%20enhancements%20plan.pdf) include clearance of the class 165/166 fleet for these routes:

 Core routes:
o Cardiff - Bristol - Exeter ^ Penzance (including Weston-super-Mare)
o Bristol to Portsmouth
o Westbury to Weymouth
o Bristol to Worcester (including Gloucester)
o Bristol to Severn Beach
o Swindon to Gloucester
o Swindon to Westbury
 
 Diversionary routes
o Bristol to Parkway via Avonmouth
o Castle Cary to Exeter
o Castle Cary to Exeter via Yeovil
o Romsey to Fareham via Eastleigh

Interesting report from Sussex about turbos being used to provide extra seats down the Uckfield line
http://www.thisissussex.co.uk/Network-Rail-confirms-plans-lengthen-trains/story-19918598-detail/story.html#!#ixzz2hmSDeRYs (http://www.thisissussex.co.uk/Network-Rail-confirms-plans-lengthen-trains/story-19918598-detail/story.html#!#ixzz2hmSDeRYs)



Dave Higgins ought to know that NR don't specify stock allocations....

No, but they obviously do get the inside story from DfT.  As an example, it was NR's CP4 enhancement plans that first mentioned that SWT would be running 10 car trains formed of 455+455+456 about 12 months before the cascade of the 456s from SN to SWT was ever 'made public'.   (This is on the main suburban routes via Wimbledon.)

I think the issue of 165/166 'gauging alterations' is much exaggerated.  As I pointed out a couple of years back, they were gauge cleared between Guildford and Basingstoke via Woking, and between Redhill and Selhurst depot, as part of the run up towards the Christmas 2010 Reading closure.  There is no evidence that this was anything more than a paperwork exercise, they certainly weren't physically altering platforms everywhere.  Both routes cleared are built to pretty typical Southern region standards, so the Uckfield line is probably similar.

Paul

You want to bet it will be Turbos specifically? After all, Sprinters will also be displaced from the Great Western electrification scheme (due to cascading of Turbos to the West)! Although I have to say I don't think running Sprinters on the Uckfield line is a good idea, perhaps it might be OK on the Marshlink route.

Southern currently use six 4-car class 171 units and ten 2-car class 171 units for their diesel operations. Unless there is a fleet swap somewhere else I'm not sure if it is a wise move to have not one, but two, small train fleets in operation.

Agreed.

I can't see the burghers of Uckfield liking the Sprinters either!

How about some refurbished class 143 pacers  ;D

That would really cause them to kick off in fact I can just imagine them having nightmares after reading this post

In the Thames Trains days Turbos went to Eastleigh for maintenance. TT had to remove the steps from each coach so that the train did not foul platforms en route to Eastleigh. Perhaps some modifications to the present steps mi9ght make the trains more usable on other lines.

All these recent posts of if a turbo will fit here or there on the National network pales into insignificance compared to the hard work the volunteers at  Chinnor & Princes Risborough Railway have put in to get there railway connected to the mainline and to get Chiltern Train to run "valuable asset" on CPRR metals.

Well done CPRR shame I am unable to visit on any of the 3 weekends

I have always said they should take steps to improve the service

 ;D