18. The layout's rationale : or, Where, Why, and When.
Entry posted by C126 in B.R. blue goods yard.
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Inspired by @Ray Von 's musings and the contributions re his blog - Third Rail N Gauge Shelf Terminus - while waiting for the weekend, my thoughts turned to Atherington's location, industries, and train services. While not a simple re-naming of a real town, being an 'ex-Central Division child' I wanted somewhere on the Sussex Weald, inland to model imagined fish and milk trains, all in a 'declining 1970's aesthetic' with both electric and diesel services. Inspired by memories of the East Grinstead and Seaford branches, I then 'stretched reality' to a more optimistic 'history', where freight could be struggling on still with a more supportive economy and government.
My solution was thus:
Atherington’s 'successful' west station is on an electrified main line direct to the Sussex coast, with another branch South-westerly like the Three Bridges - Horsham - Littlehampton line. Atherington Victoria station, 30 miles and 41 mins. from London Bridge, was opened later by a rival company, celebrating Her Majesty the late Queen of course. Its line South-east is to a mythical industrial port, the 'poorer cousin' to the 'Brighton Line'-ish route of its neighbouring station. This 'cousin' was electrified southwards just before W.W. II., but the northwards scheme cancelled. With this in mind, it would appear to suit the sites of Ashurst or Eridge, but with the Hastings main line going there, not to Royal Tunbridge Wells, which remained only on a 'loop' from Eridge to Tonbridge. I wished a link with the latter as an excuse for a second freight service.
Despite the slower service on its less direct route to London, commuter traffic from Atherington Victoria remains buoyant, fares being cheaper than its whizzy electric rival and with a wealthy First class passenger-population living in the villages on the Weald, and using also the stations northwards. Similarly, commuters, school-children, and sixth-formers travel to Atherington for work and teaching from the north, east, and south-east. Consequently, there are two '33'-hauled peak-time trains to London Bridge morning and evening to supplement a basic hourly service by DEMU, that joins and divides further up the line serving another branch. This is a blatant attempt at catharsis, my being born too late to have been 'something in the City' and commute daily behind a '33' in Mk. I compartments, a standard of comfort now vanished from to-day's trains, and not appreciated by me until seeing their replacements.
Both Atherington and the port's manufacturing economy is stable, if not growing significantly, with the 'legacy industries', agriculture, and reliable coal merchant excuse to run an 'optimistic' 1970's vacuum-braked (and predominantly drab bauxite) wagon-load goods service. A morning train from Norwood Jn to the port and back stops both north- and south-bound to exchange wagons. Lacey's Aggregates receives a cut of wagons of various minerals from a larger train from Acton to other terminals, and also contributes local chalk, sand, and gravel. This service might have a wagon or two added direct from the Western Region for speed and convenience. Additionally, there is a daily after-noon service from/to Tonbridge Yard, that can also include a wagon or two to/from the port. Depending on traffic, there is a TThO Norwood Jn/port goods train to 'mop up' any excess wagons, running 'Q' as required.
With the introduction of the SLK 'Speedlink' air-braked service and recession of the early 1980's, goods trains are reduced to a twice-daily stop on a service from/to Willesden Yard to the port. The aggregate train from Acton is now a 'COY' company block-train, but booming in the era of expanding road building...
I have yet to satisfy myself as to the delivery of coal in hoppers, not wanting to dig holes in baseboards to model a huge Concentration Yard. Apart from the coal merchant, I considered an extra private delivery for a coal-fired greenhouse plant nursery, but wonder if this would thrive on the chilly slopes of the Weald, even if heated. There is probably a good reason why the fruit and vegetable growers are along the Brighton-Portsmouth line on the warm coast. I hope to build some sort of cheap 'under hopper over rail' elevator to use the HKVs, HBAs, and HEAs.
Loco-hauled and Non-Passenger services are run with similar 'modellers' licence', if based upon examples from an early 1980's Working Time Table: an early morning Parcels service from/to Bricklayers Arms, the Newspapers from London Bridge arriving at 04.27, fish dropped off in a 'Parcels' train from the port, and a milk train to take some of the Weald's dairy production to London for bottling. There is a short van train late morning to convey the greenhouses' produce to Bricklayers Arms for market, and the portion of an inter-regional service to Newcastle via Kensington Olympia once a day, with more lovely Mk. I. coaches. Sketching all these on a draft, clock-face time table, it had never occurred to me how complicated platform dwell-times, running-round, etc., could be.
With their charming, arcane, artisan compositing I like so much, I should mock up a W.T.T. in 'Word', but lack the creative flair to compose three-dozen fictional names for the lines' subsequent stations. No doubt there are many errors as to the suppositions above, if only owing to the physical geography of which I know little. However, I hope this is of interest, and any ideas for improvements will be received gratefully.
Edited by C126
Missing possessive apostrophe and "s".
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