RMweb Gold beast66606 Posted May 14, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 14, 2016 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-36293045 A stolen tractor smashed through a railway bridge, scattering debris on the tracks below and damaging a train that passed minutes later. Services between Birmingham New Street and Cheltenham were cancelled following the crash at Abbotswood, Worcestershire. A man was spotted running from the tractor after it struck the bridge shortly after 21:10 BST on Friday. Network Rail said services have been now restored. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Trevellan Posted May 14, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 14, 2016 Just when you think you've heard it all... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonny777 Posted May 14, 2016 Share Posted May 14, 2016 I remember being on a railtour many years ago which was due to travel some required freight only route in the Wolverhampton area, but we only ventured about half a mile because the track had been blocked by a stolen JCB which had veered across the adjacent road and toppled over the cutting bank down onto the railway. Presumably the thief had got out unharmed and legged it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold colin penfold Posted May 14, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 14, 2016 Police have now released a photo fit of the suspect Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
br2975 Posted May 14, 2016 Share Posted May 14, 2016 Police have now released a photo fit of the suspect photo-thumb-7138.jpg It's Denzil Penberthy's mate, Jethro ! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Phil Bullock Posted May 14, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 14, 2016 Not guilty guv! Looking at the picture it wouldn't have taken much more for the tractor to be over the edge I have an alibi - just haven't thought of it yet. And I guess it makes a change from a bus on the bridge... Phil Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium BR60103 Posted May 15, 2016 RMweb Premium Share Posted May 15, 2016 I have an alibi - just haven't thought of it yet. And I guess it makes a change from a bus on the bridge... Phil and an excuse for why there is nothing running past the bridge at the end of the layout. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Robert Shrives Posted May 15, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 15, 2016 Lucky not the word for it , 1M85 went over debris within a minute of the incident. About 4 ton of parapet wall over both lines 1M83 stopped short and returned to Gloucester. 1V69,70 and 71 all never made Bristol and 1M80 never got through this imbecile`s action resulted in several hundred folk being taxied home as no larger road transport was able or willing to be hired. Due to the risk of toppling it and more wall on to the line overnight attempts to remove tractor were curtailed until daylight and it was cleared 0615, lines reopened by 0951. By which time even more folk disrupted as still no road transport provider willing or able to attend due other commitments. Passengers diverted via Reading resulting in full and standings on all services from start of day north and south bound on XC services via Oxford adding around 90 to 120 minutes to every journey. Due trapped sets one 170,638 came through to ensure the service could be maintained in the afternoon between Birmingham and Nottingham. The 1M80 voyager stuck on Barton hill at Bristol as Bristol crews used vice Birmingham crews so the "standby" voyager was not available in Birmingham until an extra set available from Central Rivers mid morning! We even had a Train manager swap at Tiverton Parkway and thanks to a Plymouth TM volunteering to do restday work all services were covered west of Gloucester - but a close run thing!! Services turned at Gloucester for rest of day as an engineering blockade in place. Needless to say as the South west controller the morning flew by !! but it shows how powerless the police are as they were in pursuit of tractor but were unable or unwilling to risk staff in an attempt to stop it. At least the railway bridge was made of sterner stuff ! It is a case of thanks to all railway staff for a quick response and flexibility in dealing with incident and recovering operations plus the way in which the traveling public got on with it. The only trouble was a traffic warden in Birmingham who wanted to ticket replacement service coaches when we procured 3 vehicles around 0830 to run to Gloucester. It took several station staff and management from XC to point out a fixed notice stating the buses were correctly standing in the bus replacement bays adjacent to the Station, yellow hat band god suitably deflated scurried away in his car... every cloud has a silver lining!!! Robert Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
28XX Posted May 15, 2016 Share Posted May 15, 2016 Shame the Stratford Cheltenham was closed. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Phil Bullock Posted May 15, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 15, 2016 Thanks for that Robert Sounds like a trying day to say the least - well done to all the staff for finding ways to keep at least something moving. Would be nice if those efforts got wider publicity wouldn't it? Now if Brum - Stratford - Cheltenham or Brum - Redditch - Ashchurch were still open there would have been other options - was sending the Cardiffs via Hereford not an option? No route knowledge I guess? What a stupid idiot - look forwards to hearing he has been bamged up Cheers Phil Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
St. Simon Posted May 15, 2016 Share Posted May 15, 2016 It's Denzil Penberthy's mate, Jethro ! Slightly off topic, but I'll have to tell Denz about this when I get back into the office tomorrow! Simon Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Stationmaster Posted May 15, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 15, 2016 Slightly off topic, but I'll have to tell Denz about this when I get back into the office tomorrow! Simon Is he still there Simon? Give him my regards please. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fat Controller Posted May 15, 2016 Share Posted May 15, 2016 Lucky not the word for it , 1M85 went over debris within a minute of the incident. About 4 ton of parapet wall over both lines 1M83 stopped short and returned to Gloucester. 1V69,70 and 71 all never made Bristol and 1M80 never got through this imbecile`s action resulted in several hundred folk being taxied home as no larger road transport was able or willing to be hired. Due to the risk of toppling it and more wall on to the line overnight attempts to remove tractor were curtailed until daylight and it was cleared 0615, lines reopened by 0951. By which time even more folk disrupted as still no road transport provider willing or able to attend due other commitments. Passengers diverted via Reading resulting in full and standings on all services from start of day north and south bound on XC services via Oxford adding around 90 to 120 minutes to every journey. Due trapped sets one 170,638 came through to ensure the service could be maintained in the afternoon between Birmingham and Nottingham. The 1M80 voyager stuck on Barton hill at Bristol as Bristol crews used vice Birmingham crews so the "standby" voyager was not available in Birmingham until an extra set available from Central Rivers mid morning! We even had a Train manager swap at Tiverton Parkway and thanks to a Plymouth TM volunteering to do restday work all services were covered west of Gloucester - but a close run thing!! Services turned at Gloucester for rest of day as an engineering blockade in place. Needless to say as the South west controller the morning flew by !! but it shows how powerless the police are as they were in pursuit of tractor but were unable or unwilling to risk staff in an attempt to stop it. At least the railway bridge was made of sterner stuff ! It is a case of thanks to all railway staff for a quick response and flexibility in dealing with incident and recovering operations plus the way in which the traveling public got on with it. The only trouble was a traffic warden in Birmingham who wanted to ticket replacement service coaches when we procured 3 vehicles around 0830 to run to Gloucester. It took several station staff and management from XC to point out a fixed notice stating the buses were correctly standing in the bus replacement bays adjacent to the Station, yellow hat band god suitably deflated scurried away in his car... every cloud has a silver lining!!! Robert Sounds as though you had an entertaining shift; I bet time whizzed by. Have the E-mails asking 'Why didn't you do that?' and 'There was a set spare at xx and a crew at 'yy'- couldn't you have run the 'zz'?' started to arrive yet? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Phil Bullock Posted May 15, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 15, 2016 Apparently the police now have further evidence in this case.... Posted on this thread http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/11410-abbotswood-junction-tractor-on-bridge/page-24 to preserve the true facts in this thread! Phil Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Stationmaster Posted May 15, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 15, 2016 Shame the Stratford Cheltenham was closed. I'm not so sure about that as in its later years it seemed to be closed more often than it was open following various fairly extensive freight train derailments. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Phil Bullock Posted May 15, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 15, 2016 A bit of track maintenance might not have gone amiss... but I guess its fate was sealed when the last through passenger trains ran - 1966 wasn't it? Phil Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fat Controller Posted May 15, 2016 Share Posted May 15, 2016 A bit of track maintenance might not have gone amiss... but I guess its fate was sealed when the last through passenger trains ran - 1966 wasn't it? Phil There were occasional diversions after that, IIRC; I have a vague recollection of travelling over the line on a diverted NE-SW service in late 1973. Was it any more prone to freight derailments in the late 1960s than other lines? If so, I wonder why? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Phil Bullock Posted May 15, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 15, 2016 Agreed - I think the last might have been August 1975 ... http://www.sixbellsjunction.co.uk/70s/750831b4.html hil Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Stationmaster Posted May 15, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 15, 2016 There were occasional diversions after that, IIRC; I have a vague recollection of travelling over the line on a diverted NE-SW service in late 1973. Was it any more prone to freight derailments in the late 1960s than other lines? If so, I wonder why? I think it became something of a derailment hotspot because there were a reasonable number of 'fast' freights running over it to avoid the Lickey. It and the Uffington area were definitely the leading contenders for plain line freight train derailments on the WR in the early/mid 1960s. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
'CHARD Posted May 15, 2016 Share Posted May 15, 2016 It was, by the seventies at least, a very peculiar lengthy freight-only double track ex-secondary main line, for sure. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold TheSignalEngineer Posted May 15, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 15, 2016 The last service passenger trains diversions over the line were to have been on 30 November 1969. That was the weekend that the North Warwickshire line was due to close. I travelled out from New St behind a Class 45 and back behind a 47. Down trains stopping at Cheltenham pulled up past Lansdown junction box and set back to the station. Up trains set back from the platform behind the junction signal to get to the Honeybourne line. After that time it was usual to plan diversions via Stourbridge and Abbotswood, although the odd one did slip through i think, as well as at least the special mentioned by Phil. A couple of freight per day continued to use the line, more to check it was still there and for route knowledge than for traffic needs. If the block was south of Abbotswood the diversion was via Oxford, Didcot and Swindon. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
trisonic Posted May 15, 2016 Share Posted May 15, 2016 Over here the miscreant would probably have been shot dead by the police before he had crashed into the bridge as a threat to public life. Best, Pete. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
28XX Posted May 16, 2016 Share Posted May 16, 2016 With the benefit of hindsight, would it have a significant contribution to make to today's network? Or would it still be surplus to requirements (except when loonies drive tractors in to bridges) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold TheSignalEngineer Posted May 16, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 16, 2016 With the benefit of hindsight, would it have a significant contribution to make to today's network? Or would it still be surplus to requirements (except when loonies drive tractors in to bridges) Given that all passenger trains seem to stop at Cheltenham, most days there are only about a dozen freights that could conveniently be re-routed via Stratford. Probably six of those run during the night so are not a problem for capacity. The problem with freights via Stratford is that after getting up the bank to Earlswood they would get tangled up with the PTE service to Whitlocks End where there are lay-overs between services and then have to cross the Dorridge/Leamington/Chiltern services between Tyseley and Bordesley South besides being slotted in with Leamington line freight and New St - Tyseley stock moves. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fat Controller Posted May 16, 2016 Share Posted May 16, 2016 Given that all passenger trains seem to stop at Cheltenham, most days there are only about a dozen freights that could conveniently be re-routed via Stratford. Probably six of those run during the night so are not a problem for capacity. The problem with freights via Stratford is that after getting up the bank to Earlswood they would get tangled up with the PTE service to Whitlocks End where there are lay-overs between services and then have to cross the Dorridge/Leamington/Chiltern services between Tyseley and Bordesley South besides being slotted in with Leamington line freight and New St - Tyseley stock moves. I should imagine that much of the freight traffic it carried in its busiest years disappeared with the end of domestic iron ore traffic from Oxfordshire and Northamptonshire to South Wales. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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