RTT reports 1W13 0652 Paddington to Great Malvern did not get further than Wolvercote Jcn, having arrived at Oxford on time and departed westwards 20 mins late, because of a problem with the traction equipment

The return working, 1P24 0956 Great Malvern to Oxford was started back to Paddington from Oxford, on-time at 1132

Unit 800 006

 

Wheel flats on the loco. 

 

Because the DfT have never requested it, nor permitted the increase in staffing costs or numbers.

 

Indeed - but have other(s) had/ve camping coaches too

 
Blue Anchor, Dawlish Warren, Hayle and St Germans have (had?) camping coaches.

 

Taunton to Castle Cary line is closed all week for drainage works.

 
Monday 8/12/2025

Problem with the 2-car unit for the Up Parliamentary this morning, according to RTT

The Down train 2E77 0555 from Oxford arrived just a minute late at Shrub Hill, at 0616

But the return Up service, 2E80 did not run for passengers.  It seems to have gone to Oxford as empty cars, stopping only at Charlbury to wait for the single line.  Left Worcester at 0700 and got to Oxford at 0840.

 
At the HS1 end of the route, the infrastructure is already in place for the connection. The route between the HS1 connection and HS2 into Euston is already a rail corridor - although on a somewhat speed limited alignment - in situ. There is currently unused (but in situ) rail corridor infrastructure that could be reused to separate current and HS services with minimal demolition required to completely effect complete separation.

I think the connection is very doable at not too enormous effort or expense.

 

And the 07:00 Worcester Shrub Hill to Didcot Parkway halts service "cancelled between Worcester Shrub Hill and Oxford due to unknown cause (ZW)."

 

Yes ... but so is Corkicle ... good connection but not the group I have, nor a connection I made.

 
Severn Beach, Blue Anchor, Carbis Bay, Dawlish Warren  - All directly on the coast near a beach

 
07:10 Penzance to London Paddington due 12:57
Facilities on the 07:10 Penzance to London Paddington due 12:57.
Will be formed of 5 coaches instead of 10 to Bristol Temple Meads. There are no reservations on this service.
No additional coaches waiting at Plymouth.
Cozy.
In addition the service shows Bristol Temple Meads [BRI]
Service stops to drop passengers off only  (yeh, right!).

I see Penzance has lost the 0503 Paddington service, and all services (today?) run via Bristol.
Why?

 
Loco issues, or carriage issues?

 
The HS2 to HS1 link was descoped from the HS2 Programme in 2015, and I am not making this up, it was replaced by an enhanced walking route between Euston and St. Pancras. See https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5a7f79bae5274a2e8ab4c681/HS2-HS1_report.pdf

Of course now that HS2 won't get to Euston until 20??, even the enhanced walking route would be of no use, although it will probably still be built

A map of the proposed HS2-HS1 link can be found here https://assets.dft.gov.uk/publications/hs2-maps-20120110/hs2arp00drrw05140issue2.pdf

 
The loss of two containers of avocados should surely be the subject of celebration? 

 

Yes - that is exactly the first connection I had ...

 
Battersby, Bere Alston, Bodmin General, Coombe Junction

All locations where through trains stop and reverse, before continuing along a different line of route to that which they arrived on.

 

Not in the centaury, judging by the ability of UK plc to take and fund infrastructure projects.  It reality in my view given all the previous challenges of building the link in London,  the only viable HS1 HS2 link would skirt around North London from the existing HS1 Thames Tunnels and linking up with HS2 in the Wendover / Aylesbury area, providing the Northern Powerhouse with a link but missing a vital link to London

 
The hidden Violet, (in terms of  Modesty and Humility) is at 8^th is Farringdon from a fairly obscure station now such a key National rail interchange with Thameslink.  Thameslink providing services to St Pancras, Bedford, Cambridge, Peterborough,  Gatwick, Brighton, London Bridge, Sevenoaks and many more.

 


Actually no - in fact I had to scroll back to the questions, and to look up Fiesch, to help me put your answer in context.  Having done so, I can see why you might think ...

The quiz (now from yesterday) was a particularly tricky one - I'll leave it open for another day or two, but then come in with the answers to those not yet solved.   By the way - if I "like" an answer, it's correct ... I will also be coming back and filling all of those correct answers in on the original a bit later.

 
How many members watch "Only Connect" on TV (BBC2)? One of the games the teams are asked to answer if to find four groups of four somehow-related words or things from a 4 by 4 wall of 16 - for example four words that express happiness, or four names that contain a foodstuff.  It's made more complex by the categories being somewhat obscure, and by there being more than four items that fit a category - those extre combinations ruled out because some of the items fit multiple categories and those that multi-fit have to be in the "right" place because of the need for four in some other group which might otherwiser be incomplete.

Only Connect uses ancient Egyptian hyroglyphs to name questions ... and is played by two teams.   Here is my first wall for today (a second is prepared and may follow) - the "Lion" wall.  Expect me to reject some apparent good conbinations with "no, that's not it" as you find four perfectly good linked items, but one or more have to be held back for another category.

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The British Railways lion on wheel emblem, designed by Abram Games. Photo by Nottsexminer [CC BY-SA 2.0] via flickr and via the beauty of Transport

 
Not exactly "Whisky Galore", unfortunately.

 
23:45 London Paddington to Penzance due 07:55

23:45 London Paddington to Penzance due 07:55 will be terminated at Plymouth.

It will no longer call at Liskeard, Bodmin Parkway, Lostwithiel, Par, St Austell, Truro, Redruth, Camborne, Hayle, St Erth and Penzance.
This is due to a fault on this train.

 
14. Fiesch, neuer Bahnhof. More than that, it's an ÖV-Hub, and won a prize for best new bit of transport stuff in its year.

 

Something to be eaten with your Nan, perhaps?

 

Yes - the train service from Leer to Groningen is suspended. On 3 December 2015, the bridge over the Ems was destroyed by a ship colliding with it. Due back after 5 years, then in 2024, most recent estimate was this year.  It's the only international rail link between Germany and the Netherlands to the north of the main line east from Amsterdam via Osnabroek

 
12 - Leer, Germany near Dutch border (?)

 
0. Is that rail replacement bus stop sign in Melksham by any chance?

 

Today, 4 out of 14 trains via the Stroud Valley and Swindon were cancelled and three (that ran) carried on to London. Next Sunday, there are again 14 scheduled but one the one carries on to London.   So will that and other reductions such as Bristol to London help it become more reliable?  Will it help the railway save money?  Has no-one been too bothered today because it's changing anyway next weekend?   

In the back of my mind, I recall the promise that the railway has to save money - is it being done by running fewer trains when staff are on the best rate, and fares are super-off-peak?

I also recall a promise to make services more reliable - is it being done by some thinning out of services in the timetable?

 
The “Baltic Kipper”?   All sounds a bit fishy to me.