SR 2-Character Headcodes

[Gwiwer]

A previous thread on this topic goes back many years and I do not intend to reawaken it.  The detail it contains has already been used for my purposes so does not need repeating. 

 

A project is under way to publish an account of SR (Southern Railway and BR Southern Region, plus their successors) headcodes aligning with the forthcoming withdrawal of the last units (SWR class 455) to regularly display this information on the trains themselves.  

 

There is a fair amount of source material available for the 1980s to date though gaps exist in material I currently have access to.  

 

What is particularly needed is detail from the earlier years of electrification 1930s - 1970s.  Yes, the 1970s are now around 50 years ago and count as "earlier" in my research.  Source material can be WTTs or Sectional Appendices or any other credibly official publication.  I recently came across a Notice of Altered Working of Freight Trains which elicited new information for example.  

 

The particular need is not for access to publications themselves but to good quality scans of the relevant pages and - most importantly - with dates of commencement and (where given) termination of the timetable / document in question.  Many were published "Until Further Notice" so UFN is fine if that is what there is.  

 

Sources already exhausted include the British Library, National Records at Kew and the standard histories from Moody and Brown.  I also have access to the Southern Electric Group's archive including many (but not all) of the headcode guides that group once produced and have made good use of the Southern eMail Group's online resource which, by its creator's own admission, is not necessarily the most accurate reference there is.  

 

I am aware that there have long been inconsistencies and published errors making this a tricky field to research but I intend to produce the best guide I can to this feature of Southern trains - passenger, freight, empty and other - for the past 100-plus years. 

 

This project does not include steam headsignals nor disc headcodes when used on diesel trains not fitted with the SR displays.  It does include a note that in certain cases a 4-character display was to use the SR  code as the final two digits for example 2O78 for a Reading General - Southampton Central (or Fawley) train for which the SR code was 78.  Railtours and other charters have also often used that method such as 1Z54 on a non-SR loco (54 was a "spare" code for many years) or vice-versa with SR traction showing 54 when the full headcode was 1Z54.  

 

This project also requires a selection of publication-quality images with identification of the copyright owner / permission given to use (or known to be out of copyright) from all time periods and specifically the earlier years of alphabetic codes, also of modern stock displaying electronic headcodes on classes such as 377, 450 and 465 which has now almost entirely ceased.  

 

Offers of assistance are invited by PM in the first instance.  All material will be acknowledged upon publication unless specifically requested otherwise.  

 

Many thanks

Rick

[Downendian]

Hopefully you’ve seen this recent thread Rick, I found it very useful 

Neil 

    
 
 

[Gwiwer]

3 minutes ago, Downendian said:

Hopefully you’ve seen this recent thread Rick, I found it very useful 

Neil 

    
 
 

Not that thread but I do have that material from another source. Thank you.  

[MidlandRed]

You may already be aware of these but the Ian Allan Headcode pocket books (five editions in the 1960s) include copious amounts of southern two character passenger headcodes and also two character freight and freight disc headcode meanings - how accurate these are I don’t know but there are quite a few pages of them. I bought the 1962 and (I think) 1966 or 1967 versions, compiled by M R Bailey (used on EBay), for a completely different purpose (pre and Post WR major boundary changes in the Midlands and West Country). 

[Gwiwer]

7 hours ago, MidlandRed said:

Ian Allan Headcode pocket books

I have a 1944 ABC which also includes that information. Sourced from somewhere else and as a wartine publication that source might have been pre-WW2 official documents perhaps coupled with some observations. 

[bécasse]

One thing that you may not be aware of, and which could be difficult to spot from "permanent" documents, was that at some time in the early 1960s (June 1963 perhaps) there was a change of policy, at least in respect of the SED, concerning the head codes to be displayed when trains were altered as a result of engineering works. Prior to the change, trains displayed the head code appropriate to the journey that they were actually making (with a special temporary head code allocated for the day if necessary), whereas subsequent to the change they displayed the WTT head code for the service they were nominally undertaking, albeit with curtailments, interim bus replacements and/or diversions. This policy change brought scheduled engineering work alterations into line with alterations resulting from emergencies where the "normal" headcode was always displayed, even if a diversion were huge (Victoria-Brighton via Littelhampton/Ford, for example). (I can confirm from personal observation that Charing Cross-Hastings DEMUs diverted to operate from Victoria as a result of the Lewisham accident in December 1957 continued to display "22".)

 

To give a couple of examples:

When Victoria-Orpington trains were replaced by buses between Herne Hill and Penge East when Penge Tunnel was closed, prior to the change the shuttles displayed "24" between Victoria and Herne Hill (= Victoria-Bickley or stations short thereof) and "70" between Penge East and Orpington, while subsequent to the change, both shuttles displayed "70".

When Charing Cross-Caterham/Tattenham Corner trains were unable to access the branches at Purley and the service was diverted to Coulsdon North (with the branches served by shuttles from Purley if possible or by buses otherwise), prior to the change the trunk service displayed "11" (specially allocated) and any shuttles displayed "2" or "3" as appropriate, while subsequent to the change the trunk service displayed "01" and any shuttles displayed "01" or "93" as appropriate.

I also remember "54" being used for Victoria-Ramsgate services diverted via New Beckenham, Lewisham and Nunhead prior to the change.

[Metr0Land]

5 hours ago, bécasse said:

 (I can confirm from personal observation that Charing Cross-Hastings DEMUs diverted to operate from Victoria as a result of the Lewisham accident in December 1957 continued to display "22".)

 

 

 

Also used 1 (or more?) Saturday morning in May93 with a 205 (the Hastings units had long gone) when 205023 (and POSS 2 other units) diverted via Godstone for planned engineering works. (Frame grabbed from video at Godstone)

Edited September 26, 2022 by Metr0Land

[Gwiwer]

4 hours ago, bécasse said:

head codes to be displayed when trains were altered as a result of engineering works

Always a minefield. 
 

Planned changes usually resulted in trains showing the headcode of their originally-booked working. As per your example when the Brighton main line was closed in the 1960s and early 1970s diverted trains running via Littlehampton (or Ford but usually the former because Ford cannot reverse 12-car trains) and Crawley displayed 4 (Brighton - Victoria non-stop) when covering Brighton - Victoria fast turns.  As those were fast trains - often not stopping intermediately - the altered Littlehampton - Victoria service also ran Brighton - Littlehampton - Crawley - Victoria but showed 16 (Littlehampton - Hove - Victoria) despite it actually traversing the same route.  Headcodes were extensively revised in the mid-1970s but the effect was the same. 
 

Emergency diversions did not result in a change of headcode so for example it was occasionally possible to see 4 or 16 creeping through Crystal Palace. No specific routing is cited for main-line trains inwards from East Croydon in most cases anyway although the assumption was always “via Selhurst” for Victoria. 

The specially-authorised use of 11 for Charing Cross - Coulsdon North workings recalls that electric trains were not normally allocated codes 11, 22, 33 etc because only one of each numeral was carried in the cab. Once roller-blinds were introduced that problem vanished.  

Your point about shuttles either side of a blockade is of interest and will be noted for future reference. 
 

Thank you. 

[MidlandRed]

13 hours ago, Gwiwer said:

I have a 1944 ABC which also includes that information. Sourced from somewhere else and as a wartine publication that source might have been pre-WW2 official documents perhaps coupled with some observations. 

I’ve now realised the later booklet I have is post May 67 as Bournemouth line electrification/ modernisation codes are included (eg 90 upwards on SW Division). There are nearly 30 pages of SR codes (compared with, for instance, 4 pages of ScR ones). Can possibly post photos of pairs of pages as copyright more than 50 yrs past. I think it’s a 1968 version. 

[Gwiwer]

1 hour ago, MidlandRed said:

Can possibly post photos of pairs of pages as copyright more than 50 yrs past. I think it’s a 1968 version. 

PM sent