The distance from Falmouth Docks to Falmouth Town is only half a mile, so I would be interested to know how fast a unit can realistically go before it has to slow down again.

With regular 8 coach HST^▸ (High Speed Train) services, arguably certain mainline stations within Cornwall (and elsewhere) are candidates for platform extensions (space permitting). Having a platform long enough to accommodate an 8 coach HST rules out the need to tell departing passengers to move forward at this station or move back at another station and makes operating generally easier. The retrospectively fitted Selective Door Opening system sometimes keeps doors locked at the end of the train which are nonetheless platformed, resulting in passengers stood near the end of platforms sometimes trying to open doors that won^t open. 

I know that the cost of extending platforms can be raised as an issue but once the platform is extended the cost of maintenance in theory should be fairly low. The full length of the lengthy down platform at Dawlish was reinstated after last year^s storms (and it sits above the sea at high tide) and it is only on Summer weekends that it is fully utilised. This action presumably demonstrates the importance of having sufficiently long platforms for the related service.

With this in mind, the down platform at St Austell, for example, has room to be extended at the west end, and sees 9 HSTs and a sleeper train on an average day. So arguably, where the service level, and space to extend, permits, some Cornish mainline stations are good candidates for platform extensions (unless of course the platform is already the full length of the train!).
 

I wonder how easy it would have been to hire in a 66 from Westbury to PZ to assist the 57? At least sleeper passengers would have been able to stay put and the resulting HST^▸ (High Speed Train) cancellations wouldn't have been necessary.

As far as I can see there are 6 options for the future of the sleeper (In no particular order or desirability):

1. Sort out the 57's
2. Use 67's
3  Use 68's
4. Rewire the sleeper and use HST power cars
5. Introduce later/earlier services to/from London and the Southwest and scrap the sleeper altogether. If you alienate enough sleeper passengers with HST substitutes and delays etc then this option becomes easier to implement.
6. Something else e.g other Diesels

Sunday night's failure could have a silver lining as a lot of people use the up sleeper on sunday night to get back to work in London (including MP^▸ (Member of Parliament)'s). Once 'important people' start getting affected then questions might start getting asked.
(I know, I know everyones' important!)
 
Ironically, quite recently the PM was at Longrock depot talking about the planned refurbishment of the sleeper stock and a proposed 'new depot'. Unfortunately however refurbished stock is not much good if it's sat in a siding while pax are on an HST.

I remember sleeper failures occasionally happening years ago but there were more locos around to rescue it (some good runs behind a 50 or a pair of them) and HST substitutions were unheard of.  

I'm a bit surprised that it was decided to wait around two hours and then rapidly turn around the HST off the 16.57 Pad - PZ (which presumably needed cleaning etc). On Sunday evenings there's already 3 HSTs out at Longrock before the sleeper is even due to leave, the first of which arrives at Longrock around 6pm. (The 11.57,12.57 & 14.57 Pad-PZ) 

It's five, the 05.05, 05.41, 06.45, 07.41 and 08.44 are all booked off Longrock. There's also a 10.00 but that comes off the 07.02 Plymouth.

I had hoped the loop and docks connection had been given a reprieve but disconnection was not unexpected no, but rather sad, happening, poignantly, soon after the Falmouth branch's 150th anniversary.
The third deepest natural harbour in the World and one of the biggest industrial sites in Cornwall now without a railfreight link.
After the Newquay 'rationalisation', Falmouth was, until now, the only branch terminal in Cornwall not to be of single line status (apart from Heritage branches).
I know disconnecting the sidings etc doesn't effect FGW^▸ (First Great Western) much, (unless they plan on reinstating 1979's loco hauled Falmouth-Paddington, although the chances of that, I suspect, are slim!), but the disconnection is news-worthy.
As well as refitting large ships etc and building yachts the Docks has a big fuel depot for ships to refuel, apparently you can only use low emission fuel when going up the Channel.
The Docks also used Steam shunters until around 1986 when they got a Diesel (yes 1986!)
I hope this post sticks around, the one I posted on Saturday evening bizarrely disappeared!

It helpfully works both ways, as a 66 has been summoned to rescue the sleeper in the past. 

Trains will be terminating and starting from Falmouth Town over the weekend due to track relaying. Legs and feet will replace trains between Falmouth Town and Falmouth Docks stations. Hopefully the run around loop and connection to the docks themselves will remain intact.

Did another down 8 coach HST^▸ (High Speed Train) at Camborne the other day and All doors were unlocked (safely) without passengers being told to move back.


The summer saturdays Falmouth - Paddington used to stop there in the late 70's but that was a different era and a different railway...


Edit note: Quote marks fixed, for clarity. CfN. 

Did the 7.41 Penzance to Paddington from PZ today, 20 late by Swindon due to problems at Whiteball and a problem with the track just East of BTM^▸ (Bristol Temple Meads (strictly, it should be BRI)). The train then terminated at Swindon due to a fatality between Swindon and Didcot. A preceding Swansea to Pad HST^▸ (High Speed Train) came back into Swindon and did that to Pad (via Melksham and Newbury). Arrived at Paddington at 15.30.

Re the 27th Dec:

The 13:00 Penzance to Plymouth was a coach at least as far as Truro. Also some services on the St Ives branch were provided by a rail replacement bus due to train crew shortages. Felt a bit sorry for rail passengers at St Ives who were going to Carbis Bay who were told that the replacement bus was going non-stop to St Erth despite the fact it had spare seats and had to pass through Carbis Bay anyway. As First operate local bus services in the area passengers for intermediate St Ives branch stations were advised, by a poster, that their rail tickets were valid on local bus services.

Incidentally noticed signs at St Erth saying that, due to the frequency of branch services and the short turnaround time at St Ives and St Erth, branch line services will not wait for (late) mainline services.

 

Interestingly, I did the 16.06 Pad - PZ 8 coach HST^▸ (High Speed Train) throughout at the end of last week and although the TM^‡(resolve) announced that coaches A and B would be kept locked at Camborne he actually (safely) unlocked All doors at Camborne.   

Firstly thanks for the responses.


- Very True, at Camborne there is a small gap between the level crossing and the start of the down platform but keeping the crossing clear is important.
Spot on about coaches A and B, thankyou - only the TGS/Guards door is not platformed - it usually stops around the platform ramp leaving all public doors platformed. The down platform is on a down gradient and an HST^▸ (High Speed Train) would have to overrun the stop board by at least two thirds of a coach length in order for the rear door of coach A to be off the platform.
I appreciate the complexities of SDO^▸ (Selective Door Opening) operation, when it comes to selective door opening, but I still say that if an eight coach HST, in correct formation that stops where it should at Camborne, shouldn't need any doors to be kept locked as the only door not platformed is the front of the TGS which is usually not for public use anyway.  

Km

For a few years now coaches A and B on down 8 coach HST^▸ (High Speed Train)'s are not unlocked at Camborne due to 'short platforms' and departing passengers are advised to move back to coach C, however coaches A and B appear to be always completely platformed. The best answer for this situation that I can get, from the station staff, is that 'A and B may not be platformed' from which I can only assume that there is a concern that HST's might overshoot the station? - Unless anyone knows otherwise? I'm also wondering if there's any other stations where a similar situation arises?