Class 121 units ... and other heritage trains on main line?

[whole diary]

[Jim]

Perhaps a bit of a long dream there 

Was thinking more a Frome - Swindon shuttle

With a heritage unit-would cost loads!

[vacman]

I think FGW^▸ (First Great Western) needs to emply the heritage side of things on a failing railway.

Melksham perhaps

Good idea.... FGW " Weymouth Belle " London Paddington - Weymouth calling at Swindon, Melksham, Westbury, Yeovil and Weymouth only. Loco hauled Mk1 open coaches, hauled by D1015 " Western Champion". Due to the popularity of this service only passengers holding reservations will be allowed to travel on this service.

WAKE ME UP, I'M DREAMING AGAIN.

Very good, but with one minor adjustment, 50 050  and mkII's!

[martyjon]

I think FGW^▸ (First Great Western) needs to emply the heritage side of things on a failing railway.

Melksham perhaps

Good idea.... FGW " Weymouth Belle " London Paddington - Weymouth calling at Swindon, Melksham, Westbury, Yeovil and Weymouth only. Loco hauled Mk1 open coaches, hauled by D1015 " Western Champion". Due to the popularity of this service only passengers holding reservations will be allowed to travel on this service.

WAKE ME UP, I'M DREAMING AGAIN.

Very good, but with one minor adjustment, 50 050  and mkII's!

Nah, keep that lot for the "Wilts, Somerset and Dorset Pullman", same route, same stops, same restrictions,

[Subject changed - I have split this off into its own thread - Graham]

[grahame]

On the "Weymouth Belle" and other specials trains - I very much like the idea.  But with "advanced reservations only" it doesn't provide a "turn up and travel" service in the West Wilts / TransWilts area which is very much what we're shouting for.   Hey - I really appreciate the Melksham stop, and a surprising amount of traffic here is long distance and even Londoncentric (the 2001 census showed more London commuters living in Melksham than Westbury!), but I'm concerned at the lack of Trowbridge and Chippenham stops.

Let's see ... base it at Weymouth.  Into London at the tail of the morning peak.  Round trip back to Weymouth and back during the day, evening train back to Weymouth. Aw - you've got me dreamin' now!



 

[martyjon]

Aw - you've got me dreamin' now!

Carry on dreaming and roll that dream forward to a nice sunny weekend in June or July 2008.

Saturday sees the first Melksham Station open day and the launch of the Friends of Melksham Station with a high profile comparison of the TT pre December 2006 with that post December 2007.

Bang on time the SWT^▸ (South West Trains) Class 121 route learner, specially authorised to carry fare paying passengers for the day arrives from Salisbury carrying many supporters of the Trans-Wilts line from intermediate stations.

Passengers detrain and the Mayor of Melksham welcomes everyone and officialy declares open the First Melksham Station Open Day.

The mayor and other invired guest then embark on the Class 121 for its first of a number of shuttles to Chippenham and Swindon and return. On its return to Melksham, the Mayor of Melksham is invited to stay on the train and enjoy the delights of rail travel through the Wiltshire countryside on the first of a series of Melksham to Trowbridge and Westbury shuttles. These shuttles continue to operate throughout the day until the Class 121 unit returns to Salisbury to conclude a very successful First Melksham Station Open Day.

The Sunday morning dawns bright and sunny and by 0900 hours those Melksham residents who were lucky in the draw (the trip was heavily oversubscribed) and thus successful in getting tickets on the specially arranged 6 car SWT 159 special to Weymouth are assembling on the platform eagerly awaiting their special train.

At 0912, 3 minutes early, the ECS^▸ (Empty Coaching Stock) from SWT's Salisbury depot draws to a halt at Melksham and the passengers eagerly await the SWT crew to perform their turnround duties before borading their very own "Seaside Special". Bang on time at 0925, the SWT Conductor / Guard gives the right away to the SWT driver and the lucky people were on their way.

For reasons of route knowledge by the SWT crew, the special was routed via Salisbury, Chandlers Ford, Eastleigh and Southampton, with stops at Bounemouth and Poole for any travellers who preferred to spend their day at these locations instead.

Due to a late running FGW^▸ (First Great Western) service which also had a stop at Upwey, the special train was 6 minutes late arriving into platform 3 at Weymouth but all passengers were happy that they were able to travel in comfort and without the hassle of traffic jams for a day at the Jewel of Dorset, Weymouth.

After a lovely day with a gentle cooling sea breeze, the day trippers arrived back at Weymouth Station to find their special train had already been platformed.

Boarding the train, the day trippers eagerly awaited their departure which came and went. With departure two minutes overdue the Conductor / Guard came on the trains PA^▸ (Public Address) and announced that he had received a pager message from his control advising hime that their departure would be delayed by about 8 minutes due to a late running FGW inbound service from Bristol but as soon as the FGW service arrived we would be away. 9 minutes behind time the service left, the deficit being eliminated by the time Eastleigh was passed due to pathing constaints in the Southampton and Eastleigh areas which built in recovery time to the schedule to compensate.

A signal check was made approaching Romsey as a result of to the preceding FGW Portsmouth Harbour - Cardiff Central being late departing Romsey due to the Conductor / Guard not having been informed that a diasbled passenger in an electric wheelcair and holding a reservation for the service would be boarding so he wasn't prepared to use the wheelchair ramp.

The returning Melksham special overtook the FGW service using the newly reopened platform 4 line at Salisbury. Passing SWT's Salisbury Depot there was much exchanging of horns from the driver of the special with the depot staff who gave cheery waves to the passengers.

During the run from Salisbury a collection went round the passengers for the two crews that had made the day trip possible, these crews having voluntarily given up their own time to learn the route from Trowbridge to Melksham so the trip could operate.

Approaching Westbury we came to a stand, the driver contacted the Westbury signal box from the signal post telephone and was told that there was congestion at Westbury station due to a FGW Plymouth to London Paddington HST^▸ (High Speed Train) service failing and all the passengers had to be taken off the train. The following Penzance to London Paddington had been been diverted though Westbury to pick up the passengers off the failed service. A further delay then occured due to the FGW Weymouth - Bristol Temple Meads being on time and that service having priority over the special.

When the special eventually set off again an uneventful concluding leg of the journey saw an arrival at Melksham 35 minutes behind schedule but that didn't deter the participants in thanking the organisers and questioning when's the next one.

If only.

NOW YOU CAN WAKE UP, and strange things can happen, like dreams come true.

[martyjon]

On the "Weymouth Belle" and other specials trains - I very much like the idea.  But with "advanced reservations only" it doesn't provide a "turn up and travel" service in the West Wilts / TransWilts area which is very much what we're shouting for.   Hey - I really appreciate the Melksham stop, and a surprising amount of traffic here is long distance and even Londoncentric (the 2001 census showed more London commuters living in Melksham than Westbury!), but I'm concerned at the lack of Trowbridge and Chippenham stops.

Let's see ... base it at Weymouth.  Into London at the tail of the morning peak.  Round trip back to Weymouth and back during the day, evening train back to Weymouth. Aw - you've got me dreamin' now!

Nah, with the Trans-Wilts line doubled and a half hourly regular interval service between Salisbury and Swindon no business case could be justified for the additional stops, and anyway the franchised operator would object. That would provide the TUAG service, anyway with TUAG and no reservations no passenger would be able to board at any of the calling points because the anoraks would fill the train from the starting points. For the "going on holiday" TUAG passengers, hire in for the peak summer Saturdays, the Cotswold Rail Blue Pullman double headed by JOHN PEEL and CAPTAIN SENSIBLE. This peak Saturdays Only operation would call at Chippenham and Trowbridge and the franchised operators objection would be overruled because of the franchised operators inabilty to provide the capacity over the line due to their chronic shortage of rolling stock on the peak Summer Saturdays.

I am receptive of the suggestion to base the stock at Weymouth but only one set so that a single return service could be provided Mondays to Fridays from London and Weymouth. Don't want to overtax the Heritage Stock too much and lead to the premature scrapping of the stock.

[grahame]

Yes ... with the half hourly TransWilts service (and with the six Strategically Significant Cities and Towns along the way, with the area getting far more than its proportionate share of the extra 9 million population in the next 15 years, that's not necessarily too much) it wouldn't be logical to stop the daily heritage train at all stations TransWilts.

Are we being so way out as to be off left field on this thread? No, I don't think so. A couple of years ago I would not have thought that Aylesbury / Cardiff Bay were possible.   And I was told to my face that we would not get any commercial services at Melksham - yet we do have first providing a train, off their own bat, above and beyond the SLC^▸ (Service Level Commitment) from December.  OK - it's just one a week and the train would have run through empty as a balancing movement otherwise.  But it can happen that pipe dreams turn to dreams turn to proposals and perhaps reallity!

Martyjon - many thanks for these posts.  They may be more significant than you think.

P.S.  Did I tell you that someone who has a rather official capacity was flying a kite about redoubling Chippenham to Trowbridge the other week ...

[martyjon]

P.S.  Did I tell you that someone who has a rather official capacity was flying a kite about redoubling Chippenham to Trowbridge the other week ...

Was that in a dream or for real ?

Yes, its related to Network Rails aspiration to route more freight along the line to relieve pressure on the Didcot - Reading - Basingstoke - Eastleigh - Southampton route. The Basingstoke blockade earlier this year highlighted the restrictions of trying to re-route traffic over a single line as if the Ufton Nervett smash didnt do that anyway.

[martyjon]

Martyjon - many thanks for these posts.  They may be more significant than you think.

Well start the ROLL BALLING Grahame.

[Lee]

Yes, its related to Network Rails aspiration to route more freight along the line to relieve pressure on the Didcot - Reading - Basingstoke - Eastleigh - Southampton route.

Would that be the same aspiration that Network Rail denied a couple of years ago (I recall that I was branded a "conspiracy theorist") , after I gathered a vast amount of circumstancial evidence?

[Tim]

Redoubling Chippenham Trowbridge, adding back the missing side of the triangle junction between Melksham and Freshford and reopening the South platform at Chippenham would be a sensible thing to do.  You could then run an hourly Chippenham - Melksham - Trowbridge - Dilton Marsh - Dorchester service which would improve service frequencies to Melksham, Dilton Marsh and Dorchester (without having to add more trains to the congested Cardiff-Bath-Trowbridge route).

The  London - Bath mainline would gain a diversionary route avoiding the Box tunnel and  the Melksham services would be kept off the mainline. passengers from Wiltshire to London could change at Chippenham not Bath which would shorten their journeys and keep them away from bath which is congested.

Even if the rideship at Melksham doesn't justify this the benefits to the profitable mainline would.

Tim

[martyjon]

adding back the missing side of the triangle junction between Melksham and Freshford

Thats the Bradford North chord line.

an hourly Chippenham - Melksham - Trowbridge - Dilton Marsh - Dorchester service

Your geographical knowledge seems a klittle awry here.

The  London - Bath mainline would gain a diversionary route avoiding the Box tunnel

Agreed

[Tim]

Sorry Dilton Marsh was a mistake.  I meant Chippenham-trowbridge-Frome-Castle cary-Dorchester (west/)- Weymouth

[paulsouthwales]

Even though (prepares for paulsouthwales' correction ) it spends more of it's time in Canton not getting fixed!

THE 121 has always been on the bay service when i have taken it over the last 18 months.  whilst the bay is a modern tourist atrraction (e.g. Doctor Who, Torchwood etc) i have never experienced a 121 on a mainline service before and so I find heritage DMUs^▸ (Diesel Multiple Unit) very nostalgic!  i alwsya remember taking the 0940 merthyr - bristol tm in the 80s which ran via the cardiff cityline, and it was fantastic travelling in the front of these DMUs between cardiff and through the severn tunnel to bristol,  looking out through the front windows. although it was probably a 117 NOT a 121!  even so quite nostalgic even for a lad in his early 30s

[vacman]

Even though (prepares for paulsouthwales' correction ) it spends more of it's time in Canton not getting fixed!

THE 121 has always been on the bay service when i have taken it over the last 18 months.  whilst the bay is a modern tourist atrraction (e.g. Doctor Who, Torchwood etc) i have never experienced a 121 on a mainline service before and so I find heritage DMUs^▸ (Diesel Multiple Unit) very nostalgic!  i alwsya remember taking the 0940 merthyr - bristol tm in the 80s which ran via the cardiff cityline, and it was fantastic travelling in the front of these DMUs between cardiff and through the severn tunnel to bristol,  looking out through the front windows. although it was probably a 117 NOT a 121!  even so quite nostalgic even for a lad in his early 30s

The "bay bubble" only has a safety case to run passenger trains on the Cardiff bay branch and, I THINK to Radyr via Cardiff Central, however, they use it for route learning all over the network.