Great Western Coffee Shop

Looks like nonstop from Gatwick to Reading.   Is it taking a different route?  I thought Redhill was a reversal so couldn't be left out.

-- Puzzled

Where's the bridge strike?

It could be the two Up platforms at Redhill are occupied by delayed London Bound trains. So the Gatwick may be reversing from the UP Through to Down Platform Line outside the station. My Track atlas isn't clear enough to see if there's a link from Down Through to Reigate. If there is he can reverse onto the Down through and not be platformed.

Otherwise it would have to go to Calpham Junction via Kensington and Acton Wells then mainline to Reading.

Not sure if Turbos are cleared for that route and I doubt if the FGW driver would know the road so would probably need a freight driver pilotman.

To answer Graham's point, you have the fast line that deviates from Earlswood and avoids Redhill, Merstham and Coulsdon though it's a pretty congested track to take extra trains.

Years ago - say late 80's early 90's - when weekend engineering work took place between Guildford and Redhill, there were several different diversionary routes. I certainly recall going Reading - Virginia Water (reverse) - Byfleet - Woking - Guildford. At other times there would be Gatwick to Redaing via Olympia.

Wasn't there a once or a twice a day Virgin service which went from Gatwick to Reading via west London - I know more recently there has been a service via the North Downs line but I seem to recall an early morning service and a lunchtime one which went via Olympia and possibly East Croydon.

That service finished  a while back. Crosscountry do still operate 1 train per day to Guildford however. I know southern were looking at running an evening service between Clapham High Street & Ealing Broadway which would run via Olympia which inccidently could be loosing it regular off peak  london underground service's.

Southern weren't allowed to run teh Clapham Ealing Service but I believe they run a coach instead. It's to save having to go through the formal closure procedures  for passenger traffic on the Acton, Acton Wells, West London Jn Section.

They were supposed to be trying again i think network rail were concerned about if the class 171 fails it will be difficult to rescue as it has different couplers to the class 165/166 fgw fleet

I dont think network rail wanted to risk disruption during the day time that why southern are looking at the evening service.