I definitely saw some new 'remember to Pay & Display' signs at Radley as I flashed through the other week.  Not sure how much the new charges are though?

Over 100000 views of this thread and 1424 posts - still a way to go before it overtakes the Cotswold Line Redoubling thread which has managed 156060 views and 1623 posts, but I reckon it'll get there sooner rather than later...!

Off to a good start with the Waterloo services, but the Banbury diversions have got off to a poor start with 'an earlier broken down train between Oxford and Banbury' leading to some severe delays and cancellations at the moment!

Entirely possible on a HST^▸ (High Speed Train) which doesn't have any traction interlock system!


All of the systems operated by air still work (horns, wipers), and certain electrical systems such as lights and buzzers, but many others don't - though could be fairly easily modified to do so in many cases I suspect.

There's an interesting question about how much the station concourse will be used after the new transfer deck opens.  I predict it will be a much quieter place, and the existing cafes and shops might find it difficult to survive.  The usual rush hour crowds will, in the majority of cases, filter out of the station through the new south gateline at the base of the transfer deck, with only passengers arriving on platforms 4, 5, 6, and the London end of platform 7 likely to filter through the concourse as everyone has had to previously do.  I also wonder how many passengers will choose to wait for their train in an area which will become quite far removed from where they have to go to get a connecting train?  I have a feeling the existing concourse will become a bit of a ghost town comparative to how it is now.

Not sure what time it eventually moved, though apparently the 'Train Control' circuit breaker tripped and wouldn't reset.  A very unusual fault to have on a Turbo, but one which immobilises the unit completely and causes all sorts of bells and claxons to sound 

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Worcester Parkway doesn't look like it's about to make the final approved list of stations from the government's new stations fund.  Surprisingly, perhaps, nor does Kenilworth, with the three probably candidates being Ilkeston (Derbyshire), Pye Corner (Newport West) and Lea Bridge in Walthamstow.  Hopefully this scheme will be extended in future years to allow the likes of Worcester Parkway and Kenilworth to open sooner rather than later.

If the trains are 4-car then that'll still work well with this 'rear clear' system, i.e. a 4-car EMU could quite happily share the same platform with a 5-car Voyager.  Anything as long as an 8-car (even with 20m vehicles) and you would always struggle to fit another train in the same platform given the platform lengths we have - I'm guessing that they are the maximum length that space constraints would practically allow?  Hopefully, come the end of the decade there will be a dedicated platform (or two) used solely for a 10-car Crossrail train operating at a 4tph frequency - that should be possible (and in my opinion sensible) given the extra capacity afforded by the extra platforms.  Use of the 'rear clear' system would then be more limited.

Look like roasted carrots to me   

Yup, that's where any train of 5-cars or less, that is returning back in the direction from whence it came, will stop, as of the opening of the new platforms.

With respect your figures are nothing more than guesstimates.  As 'Electric Train' says, I personally doubt that the Oxford-Paddington services will be operated by IEP's, and are much more likely to be 4-car (or 8 in the peaks) EMUs^▸ (Electric Multiple Unit) in whatever form we get them - especially if cleared for 110mph.  Also, I doubt Westbury to Paddington on an hourly basis will come to fruition in the final timetable - I can see occasional services from Westbury filling in the gaps for the HST^▸ (High Speed Train) services on longer distance routes as per now, and if (as may well happen) the wires extend to Westbury then a 4-car 110mph EMU operated service would again take my money if I was a betting man.

I can't see there being three trains an hour from Bristol to London throughout the whole day either - yes, until late morning and from mid-afternoon onwards, but all day?   I doubt it.  Also, diagrams don't work how you describe - sets end up going all over the place throughout the day in order to gain maximum efficiency from them, so perhaps less units will be required than your calculations suggest?  Also, do those calculations take into account the planned reduction in journey times?


All of which means the above quote, is, in my opinion, a little rash.  There will be some services where a 5-car Bi-mode will be adequate, even with a further increase in passenger numbers (off peak Cheltenham's and Worcester's, and late evening services from Cardiff and Bristol to London for example), but I'll stick with my previous comment, that I think the majority of Bi-Mode trains will be 10-car - at least for the busier part of the journey.

I had to come to the rescue of a middle aged American couple at Slough last year when they started panicking about trying to open the door of a HST^▸ (High Speed Train) from the inside.  I told them to open the window and use the outside handle to which they were hugely over-grateful in that American kind of way - and they then asked how much money was saved in building a modern train like that without automatic doors. 

Good to see Radley's car park expansion finished this week and open for business.  Difficult to be precise as the enlarged area is gravel without actual marked out spaces, but I would guess that there's now room for an extra 30 or so cars on top of the 50 or so that could already fit in the car park on weekdays - I'll be interested to see if these extra spaces gets taken up quickly as Radley becomes ever busier as a local community station and railhead for Abingdon.

One of those sets was 108 which spent the night at Oxford having been failed due to a faulty windscreen wiper whilst working the 14:26 GMV-PAD^» (Paddington (London) - next trains).

Replacement fuel filters needed apparently.