Swanage Railway - return of passenger services and reopening to Wareham

[whole diary]

[Chris from Nailsea]

... or it may be less wrong than the Daily Mail. 

[John R]

and....booked on the 1515 on the 13th. Plenty of tickets left.

Not quite full either, just one or two seats left. This morning's however, were well stuffed, according to the crew on board.

The fare is only £2.50 more than the max fare from Swanage to Norden, the usual end of the line, I don't think could charge any less?
However, its £9 just for the Wareham-Norden section....

Pricing the service is tricky.  You don't want to undercut the heritage service, but if you don't it becomes difficult to attract regular passengers who aren't just using it to  go for the ride.

[grahame]

From the Bourenmouth Echo

STEAM locomotives have been replaced by diesel trains on the Swanage Railway, after two locomotives collided.

Since Monday, diesel services have run on the heritage line, as staff work to resume a steam-hauled passenger service as soon as possible.

No-one was injured in the incident, which took place in an area not open to the public between the signal box and the engine shed at Swanage station during shunting operations shortly after 9am on Monday July 24.

The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB^▸ (Rail Accident Investigation Branch)) and the Office of Rail and Road (ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about)) regulator have been informed of the incident.

[bradshaw]

Not good news further south

http://www.swanagerailway.co.uk/news/detail/diesel-trains-replace-steam-after-two-locomotives-collide

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the Bourenmouth Echo

The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB^▸ (Rail Accident Investigation Branch)) and the Office of Rail and Road (ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about)) regulator have been informed of the incident.

Quite rightly.  The RAIB and / or the ORR can now decide what, if any, action is appropriate.

[Trowres]

Travelled on the penultimate day of this year's trial service, using the 11:15 from Wareham.

Very close to all seats taken on the 4-TC^‡(resolve) unit. The main line railway seemed to have done very well out of this service, with people having travelled long distances. The heritage service was half-steam, half diesel for much of the day, with a second steam loco taking over later in the afternoon.

Starting as they did from rock-bottom, I have to commend the perseverance of the Swanage team and their progress so far. I hope this year's trial has been sufficiently successful to point the way to a more established arrangement.

[bradshaw]

Managed to travel on it a couple of weeks ago, using the service at around 1pm. Not so well used but busy. It was the Cl 37 and SR^‡(resolve)'s cl 33. We returned to Corfe for lunch and were able to look round the old signal box in the station. Now disconnected it can still be operated and, when open, has a very knowledgeable guide. It also contains the sb diagrams from Dorchester Jnc and Weymouth.
We were told that the collision, a head on one, resulted in the suspension of a driver and signaller. One result was the withdrawal of Manston for it 10 year overhaul, I understand it has bent frames. When we were there, two weeks ago, the Std tank had is pony truck out, with the use of an hired-in crane. Also the T9 was brought it as cover but needs a retube. With the M7 nearing its 10 year overhaul it was only used at weekends, leaving the U as the steam loco. 34072 is nearing completion and next year they will have 34053.
They have done remarkably well over the past years, with the cooperation of the County Council and other bodies. Next year the Wareham service is due to run for 90 days, after which a long term plan will be developed. However it will be interesting to get an idea of its success this year.

[grahame]

https://www.wessexfm.com/news/dorset-news/2489680/train-service-delayed-for-a-year/

Train enthusiasts hoping to get on board Swanage Railway's new train service to Wareham will have to wait a little bit longer.

The project to restore two former 1960's diesel trains so they're able to run on the main line is taking longer than expected.

Some special diesel and steam trains may run on the line between Swanage and Wareham later this year.
The full service is now estimated to be up and running by Easter 2019.

[continues]

[bradshaw]

A number posting on Twitter last night suggested that it would be a good place to trial Vivarail’s D train. That or SWR^» (South Western Railway - about) lend a unit, if spare!

[grahame]

A number posting on Twitter last night suggested that it would be a good place to trial Vivarail’s D train. That or SWR^» (South Western Railway - about) lend a unit, if spare!

I don't think that SWR are likely to have a spare unit - they're rare as hen's teeth.  But at first glance, there could be some sense with a D train.  Of course, second glance might reveal poor economic case, dilution of effort to their own project for 2019, or that a D train would foul the third rail - truly ironic for something converted from electric in the first place, but it could have unused dangley bits left in the wrong place!

[Fourbee]

What happened to the old Chiltern bubblecar? Presumably that had TPWS^▸ (Train Protection and Warning System), door locking etc...

I saw a piece on the local TV about this - I remember seeing a unit without any bogies underneath it in the works. There were some mutterings about the delay being unfortunate considering £5.5m being invested from other stakeholders, but I forgot the rest of the details.

[paul7575]

Using ancient Mk1 DMUs^▸ (Diesel Multiple Unit) is a sure sign to me that they aren’t really sure if they operating a heritage attraction or a proper commercial railway suitable for regular commuter travel. 

In hindsight these overhauls could be money wasted, given the number of modern DMUs shortly to be made available, eg from the Anglia full fleet replacement.

If it is intended eventually to be a permanent part of the local public transport offering, supported by the county council, shouldn’t it be operated by fully DDA^» (Disability Discrimination Act - about) compatible rolling stock?

Paul

[Rhydgaled]

Using ancient Mk1 DMUs^▸ (Diesel Multiple Unit) is a sure sign to me that they aren’t really sure if they operating a heritage attraction or a proper commercial railway suitable for regular commuter travel. 

In hindsight these overhauls could be money wasted, given the number of modern DMUs shortly to be made available, eg from the Anglia full fleet replacement.

If it is intended eventually to be a permanent part of the local public transport offering, supported by the county council, shouldn’t it be operated by fully DDA^» (Disability Discrimination Act - about) compatible rolling stock?

Paul

If the next East Midlands and Wales & Borders franchise operators are to be compliant with the DDA/TSI-PRM^▸ (Persons with Reduced Mobility)/RVAR rules they will probably be needing the relatively modern DMUs Greater Anglia are supposed to be releasing to replace their class 153s (my hope is that Wales will get the 156s (plus the five ScotRail are expected to release) and East Midlands will get the 170s). I suppose after 2020 there are suggestions that the West Midlands franchise might release some 170s that could be available for something like this, but that's a way off yet. Class 153s released from Northern (and others) or mark 3 coaches (themselves not fully accessible due to the slam doors) are likely the only alternative to 'heritage' stock available before 2020.

[grahame]

From The BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page)

Re-opening of Purbeck rail line services pushed back

Plans to resume regular passenger rail services on a line which was closed for 45 years have been further delayed.

Swanage Railway received £5.5m, mostly of public funds, to link its heritage line in Dorset to the national network and restart regular services.

But the diesel train it planned to use remains in a workshop where it has been undergoing repairs for five years.

The railway said the "protracted overhaul" had been hampered by supply problems but was nearing completion.

[jamestheredengine]

One wonders whether it's really worth their while repairing whatever clapped-out "heritage" diesel unit they're proposing using. For that much money, they could have bought six class 139s, which would actually have been reliable (so they could donate four to other branch-line reopenings...).