Great Western Coffee Shop

Noted today 142s on 08.30 Bristol/Penzance from Exeter and 15.58 Exeter St Davids/Penzance.Any information as to whether they worked through to Penzance.

A 142 did operate to Penzance today, there was a report on one of the gen groups with 142063 on the 20.00 Penzance to Plymouth

From what I heard the 150 that was used from Bristol Temple Meads failed by the time it got to Exeter, so everyone was kicked off and a new 150 was to bought from the yard to finish the trip to Penzance.  Unfortunately the second 150 had problems too building up pressure and problems with the doors too, so the alternative was a 142 or a cancellation and wait an hour for the HST.

It made up 15 minutes of delay between Exeter and Penzance!

The 08:30 ex Bristol TM arrived at Penzance formed of a 142. This formed the 15:09 back off Penzance. This was the first working of a 142 to Penzance since FGW have had them.

If this wasnt enough 150246 failed at Exeter on the 15:58 Exeter to Penzance and was replaced with 142063, this also worked through to Penzance and returned with the 20:00 to Plymouth.

http://southwestrailphots.fotopic.net/p51080557.html (http://southwestrailphots.fotopic.net/p51080557.html)

Either there is an awful lot of padding in the timetable or the poor passengers must have had a very lively ride.

!42s are the only train I've ever felt the slightest bit sea sick on and that was only a run on the Falmouth branch.

I think I would have waited fro the hST.

Judging from the late running 1006 Padd/Penzance today shown as leaving Exeter 26 minutes late yet expected to arrive in Penzance 5 minutes early there must be a considerable amount of padding in the timetable given the nature of the rail route west of Exeter, no doubt needed to improve performance figures.But that seems the price we have to pay for a so called reliable railway today.

No, NRE is simply highly overoptamistic and will have every station down for a 1 minute set down and hellishly good driving. It's actually likely to make up about 10 minutes with the slack from St Erth-Penzance

NRE is highly optimistic, but actually pays attention to slack timing actually pathed. For instance, if the path states "3 mins slack at X", NRE will pay attention to this and respect it in its updated schedule. If it doesn't, then NRE will just go for a 30 min path that should take an hour.  ;D

I think you'll find the 142 did not stop at the initial stations as passengers for Dawlish/Teignmouth/Newton Abbot were put on the 1010 service to Paignton.

Evening

I did suggest at a meeting once to a associate of
mine who works for FGW, that wouldn't it be nice
to repaint one c142 in 'Chocolate and Cream' as
a Skipper and seen as there is only one c118 DMU
trailer left in this world (and was never yellow),
to repaint another one in 'Telecom' livery.  I
didn't get a response to my leg pull!!

I do however remember them on the Falmouth branch,
also had a cab ride in one once from Truro to
Penmere c1986/7, those were the days.

Original Skippers were 142015 - 142027.

Regards

Karl.