Cracked points at Wokingham 1/3/2018

[whole diary]

[stuving]

BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) TV local news announced this morning that the Reading-Gatwick service would be suspended between Reading and Blackwater for ten days, due to cracking discovered in a points at Wokingham. And this is from GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) JourneyCheck:

Due to urgent repairs to the track between Reading and Gatwick Airport fewer trains are able to run on the line.
Train services running to and from these stations have been suspended between Reading and Blackwater. Disruption is expected until 02:00 10/03.
Customer Advice
South Western Railway are conveying passengers via any reasonable route until further notice. Arrangements have been made for Great Western Railway rail tickets to be accepted for these journeys. South Western Railway is running a normal train service between Reading and Wokingham to/from Stains and London Waterloo.
Reasonable routes are between Reading and Farnborough or Guildford for connections with Great Western Railway services between Blackwater and Gatwick Airport also between London Waterloo and Dorking for connections with Great Western Railway services from Dorking Deepdene.
Southern Railway will convey passengers between London Victoria and Gatwick Airport in both directions between 06:15 01/03/18 and 02:00 03/03/18. Arrangements have been made for Great Western Railway rail tickets to be accepted for these journeys.
London Underground are conveying passengers between London Paddington and London Victoria via London Waterloo in both directions until further notice. Arrangements have been made for Great Western Railway rail tickets to be accepted for these journeys.
Additional Information
From Thursday 01st March until Friday 09th March the line is blocked between Wokingham and Blackwater due to emergency engineering work to replace cracked crossing points.
Great Western Railway is running a revised train service between Blackwater and Redhill but there will be no Great Western Railway train service between Reading and Blackwater and a limited Great Western Railway train service between Redhill and Gatwick Airport.

Now, why is the usual backup route from Wokingham - via Clapham Junction - not on that list of reasonably routes?

National rail has the same, plus this helpful note (which may have been on GWR's version earlier):

Replacement road transport:
Buses are running between Reading, Wokingham, Blackwater and Guildford in both directions but today, road conditions may not be safe for road transport to be used as an alternative.

[bobm]

The alternative route via Ascot was unavailable for the early departures this morning due to over-running engineering work.

[grahame]

Journeycheck:

Additional Information
From Thursday 01st March until Friday 09th March the line is blocked between Wokingham and Blackwater due to emergency engineering work to replace cracked crossing points.

Great Western Railway is running a revised train service between Blackwater and Redhill but there will be no Great Western Railway train service between Reading and Blackwater and a limited Great Western Railway train service between Redhill and Gatwick Airport.

Over a week?

[grahame]

Interesting one to find an alternative route for.  Perhaps run a Virginia Water to Gatwick Airport service rather than Reading to Gatwick Airport?

[Timmer]

Over a week?

Can only think it’s a specific part to that set of points that needs replacing that would cause such a lengthy delay?

[grahame]

Over a week?

Can only think it’s a specific part to that set of points that needs replacing that would cause such a lengthy delay?

Things do take a time on the railways these days and aren't always done the quickest way ... 90 minutes to get the right taxi at a county town where a connection has failed when taxis are standing outside.   And I suspect that the local model shop only has the part in 1:72 and 1:148 scales.

[paul7575]

Over a week?

Can only think it’s a specific part to that set of points that needs replacing that would cause such a lengthy delay?

If non-standard geometry something might have to be specially cast as a spare is not held.  Happens now and again at junctions that have been built to special dimensions. 

[stuving]

Over a week?

Can only think it’s a specific part to that set of points that needs replacing that would cause such a lengthy delay?

If non-standard geometry something might have to be specially cast as a spare is not held.  Happens now and again at junctions that have been built to special dimensions. 

They've been tinkering with that junction off and on for months - well, years really. Some of that looked like piecemeal renewal, though recontrol may have involved too (but the points do still seem to be rod-operated). There's been a crossing (viz. a big casting) lying by the signal box most of that time (I think it's still here), though whether it's old or new it's hard to tell.

For a few weeks there has been a 5 mph TSR^▸ (Temporary Speed Restriction) there, though only for the curve to Waterlloo so that must be something different. What isn't clear - I've seen a few trains even come to a stop briefly across the junction, even when lo lookout was visible.

[stuving]

Confusinger and confusinger. JourneyCheck now says the service is cancelled today due to bad weather:

Cancellations to services between Reading and Gatwick Airport
Due to severe weather between Reading and Gatwick Airport all lines are blocked.
Train services running to and from these stations have been cancelled. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.

No mention of cracked points, or a longer closure, and the advice doesn't seem to have changed - it still refers to connecting to trains from Blackwater to Gatwick! National Rail, however, are sticking with the track repair excuse.

What you see on RTT^» (Real Time Trains - website) or OTT^▸ (Open Train Times website) is as bad. Earlier, the day's service was showing in OTT as cancelled due to cause PG, which is "Planned cancellation by Train Operator including Bank Holiday schedules". Those show in RTT as running, if in the future or recent past, but once it's clear they didn't run they just vanish. However, the few trains between Reading and Shalford were showing in both as "cancelled throughout due to a rail defect (IR)."

Now RTT is showing some of the curtailed services to or from Blackwater as cancelled (IR), and so is OTT, though there's a lot of missing reports so it's hard to say whether 2V63 really did get stuck near Ash at 15:22. The rest of today's services a mixture of cancellations and "running" when you know they either didn't or won't.

SWR^» (South Western Railway - about) are running moderately well, at least so far.

[stuving]

GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) have just updated their disruptions notice:

Between Reading and Gatwick Airport: Suspended

On Thursday 1 March GWR is unable to run a train service between Reading and Blackwater due to cracked crossing points.

We have suspended the train service between Blackwater and Gatwick Airport, this is due to snow conditions affecting crew being transported to run the services and it no longer being safe to use replacement road transport between Reading and Guildford.

On Friday 2 March we will not be able to run a train service between Reading and Gatwick.

That makes a bit more sense, anyway.

Oh, and I note that the Met Office has just expanded that amber warning zone so it does now cover Reading and Wokingham, until 8:00 tomorrow. Up to now they always carefully left us outside by a few miles.

[Fourbee]

I suppose trains wont be able to leave Reading depot to get beyond Wokingham and the rest of the line tomorrow.

I know OTT^▸ (Open Train Times website) is Open Train Times; what does ITT^▸ (Invitation to Tender) stand for?

[stuving]

I suppose trains wont be able to leave Reading depot to get beyond Wokingham and the rest of the line tomorrow.

I know OTT^▸ (Open Train Times website) is Open Train Times; what does ITT^▸ (Invitation to Tender) stand for?

Inadvertently typed trash.

[Steve Bray]

There did not seem to be any services on the North Downs Line yesterday. Looking at the Guildford to Redhill part of the line, nothing seems to be running today and  although it snowed yesterday afternoon in the area, there wouldn't appear to be any reason why trains cannot operate due to weather. Presumably there are a couple of units based at Redhill which should shuttle to/from Guildford? 

[grahame]

There did not seem to be any services on the North Downs Line yesterday. Looking at the Guildford to Redhill part of the line, nothing seems to be running today and  although it snowed yesterday afternoon in the area, there wouldn't appear to be any reason why trains cannot operate due to weather. Presumably there are a couple of units based at Redhill which should shuttle to/from Guildford? 

What's the fuel situation like for the units that can't make Reading, though?   It might not be weather on the line ....

[stuving]

There did not seem to be any services on the North Downs Line yesterday. Looking at the Guildford to Redhill part of the line, nothing seems to be running today and  although it snowed yesterday afternoon in the area, there wouldn't appear to be any reason why trains cannot operate due to weather. Presumably there are a couple of units based at Redhill which should shuttle to/from Guildford? 

The units doing the shuttle between Redhill and Blackwater on Thursday ended up (according to RTT^» (Real Time Trains - website)) at Redhill, and nothing is shown since. I suspect someone took pity on them and let them go home to mummy by whatever route they could find. Any replacement trains would have to get there, and I can believe that noone has bothered to arrange that yet.

But what GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) are "promising" now is absurd. Form JourneyCheck:

Due to severe weather between Reading and Gatwick Airport all lines are blocked.

Train services running to and from these stations have been suspended. All stations between Wokingham and Redhill will not be served. Disruption is expected until 02:00 10/03.

Customer Advice

South Western Railway are conveying passengers via any reasonable route until further notice. Arrangements have been made for Great Western Railway rail tickets to be accepted for these journeys. South Western Railway is running a normal train service between Reading and Wokingham to/from Staines and London Waterloo.
Reasonable routes are between Reading and Farnborough or Guildford via Basingstoke, also between London Waterloo and Dorking.
Southern Railway are conveying passengers between London Victoria and Gatwick Airport in both directions until further notice. Arrangements have been made for Great Western Railway rail tickets to be accepted for these journeys.
London Underground are conveying passengers between London Paddington and London Victoria via London Waterloo in both directions until further notice. Arrangements have been made for Great Western Railway rail tickets to be accepted for these journeys.

Additional Information

The line between Reading and Gatwick Airport is currently closed due to severe weather conditions. We are unable to run a train service because of the weather, we will also be unable to use taxis or buses. Road conditions will not be safe for road transport to be used as an alternative and we advise you not to travel on these routes.

That's not the weather I was expecting ... especially given that the thaw is well underway here.

Note that while the references to Blackwater have gone, they are still talking about routes to get you to Guildford or Dorking!