GWR Banking / Pilot engines operation (Brent)

[Edwardian]

 

The next installment will hopefully be tomorrow as we're out to eat this evening.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

Really enjoying this thread and learning a great deal from you informed gents.

Look forward to seeing more.

 

Thank you

Grahame

 

Well, informed Gent,in the form of Mike the Stationmaster!

[The Stationmaster]

And so - after last night's excellent veal escalope, we get to the 1936 Instructions for passenger trains andwe will, in due course, also encounter some added excitement from the Instructions regarding the working of engines coupled together - some of which did change between 1936 and 1947 although a quick read through suggests that will mainly apply to the 'Kings' (an 'orribly complex tale alas).  

 

But a brief aside - in GW150 year I very purposely instructed - such was my 'power' (haha) that on our first trip westwards the 'Manor' was to be coupled inside the 'King'.  Some clown subsequently writing or commenting somewhere duly proclaimed that this was a marvellous example of the old GWR practice of the train engine going on the front of the 'pilot'  - double pill*ck score for that fellah as the placing of the engines was nothing at all to do with the 'train engine' going on the front but actually reflected the Instructions for working a 'King' coupled to a 'Manor' and secondly of course the 'Manor' was not a 'pilot' engine anyway.  In fact the train was quite simply double-headed so one couldn't even call either the 'King' or the 'Manor' the assistant engine - back to the old message, just because someone has written it doesn't mean it's right; but I am doing my level best to ensure that what follows below will be right.

 

Passenger trains

So first what trains were considered as a 'passenger train' for the purposes of these Instructions? Passenger (including troop), Mail, "Mixed", Empty Coaching Stock, Horse, Parcels, Stores, Show Traffic, Pigeon, Hound, Cattle and Perishable (including Fish, Meats, Fruit, and Flowers) formed throughout with vacuum fitted stock.  (N.B. I have exactly copied the original punctuation.)

 

From, probably 1944 but possibly earlier, the Instruction was also applied to AFV trains in which the vacuum brake was operative on all vehicles however there was an additional condition in respect of these trains if they required assistance up heavy gradients which specified that any third loco added for that purpose had to be formed at the rear of the train.

 

General Requirement (also applied to freight trains)  - Tender engines when assisting must run chimney first unless special authority had been given for working tender first.  

Also from September 1943 it was made clear that when engines of a superior colour group were authorised to run over a particular route (e.g Red engine over a Blue route) it was not intended that such authority applied to such engines coupled together or being assisted by any other engine and that special authority was required for each individual case.

This was further amended in September 1959 to emphasise that when engines were working coupled together they were not to exceed normal speeds for the trains concerned when running down inclines.

 

Assisting from the bottom to the top of an Incline -

As a general rule any engine with driving wheels of not less than 4ft 6" could be used to assist a passenger train.  Assistance in the rear was only permitted where specially authorised in the relevant Sectional Appendix otherwise the assistant engine was to be placed in front of the train engine and be detached at the signalbox at the summit.  N.B. engines assisting rear would normally be coupled to the train.

 

Assisting or double heading on the level or on falling gradients

 

Provided the engines used complied with the Instructions in respect of working engines coupled together then the following applied including if the assistant engine would be required to run 'some distance' prior to or following the section of rising gradient.

4-6-0 and 4-4-0 engines may be coupled in front of the train engine (BUT there were different Instructions where the train engine was a 'King')  and engines of this wheel arrangement should normally be used provided they were available.

 

If the assistant engine was not a 4-6-0 or 4-4-0 or was not of the same type as the train engine it must be attached between the train engine and  the train  (this was amended in October 1948 to instruct that engines with a pony truck, e.g.2-8-0, 2-6-0, 2-4-0,

2-8-2T, 2-8-0T, 2-6-2T should be the leading engine otherwise the most powerful engine should lead).

 

(Back to 1936)  Engines of the 2-6-0 and 2-6-2T types with wheels 5ft 8" in diameter may be placed in front of the train engine (unless it is a 60XX 'King') between the following places -

Bristol and Badminton, Severn Tunnel Jcn and Badminton, Stroud and Sapperton Siding, Newton Abbot and Brent, Totnes and Newton Abbot, Stourbridge Jcn and Birmingham, Startford-on-Avon and Earlswood Lakes.

Pilning to Severn Tunnel Jcn was originally listed but this was extended to read 'Pilning and Pontypool Road' in September 1959

Taunton and Burlescombe was added to the list in February 1942

Stroud and Kemble was added to the list in November 1955 - subject to a speed limit of 60mph

 

In addition the following were also authorised -

 

Millbay and North Road or Hemerdon, 2-6-0 with 5ft 8" wheels only

Kemble to Brimscombe. 2-6-2T with 5ft 8" wheels only.

 

Note all of the above apply only in the direction shown (assuming you didn't work that out for yourself)

 

Additional Instructions applied to assisting or double heading with 'King' class engines but also had to conform with the above Instructions, these will be covered when I get to the Instructions and various restrictions applying to engines working coupled together.  In the meanwhile the above takes you all the way through from 1935/36 to the end of September 1960.  While it goes beyond the original requests I will also endeavour to take things as far as I can subsequent to that date.  

 

Amended to correct typos - no change to any factual information

[The Stationmaster]

Working of Engines Coupled Together

 

A separate set of Instruction dealt with the working of engines coupled together.  These applied is several ways, viz  - to engines coupled when running light, to engines coupled for the purpose of assisting a train, and to engines coupled together for the purpose of double heading a train.  It is perhaps worth distinguishing the latter from assisting  because there was subtle difference.  As you should have gathered from the previous post assisting basically meant providing an extra engine to get a train up a gradient although as we have seen the Instructions also allowed for stretches of level track or falling gradients in the section of route in which the rising gradient(s) occurred.  Double heading was different in that it basically meant providing sufficient power to move a heavier than normal train over a route in the normal running times and thus it was not entirely related to steep rising gradients and two engines would work the train throughout its journey or over a considerable part of it.  

 

You also need to appreciate that these Instructions had to be read and applied in conjunction with the Instructions for Assisting/Double Heading and that between them the two sets of Instructions could set out the order in which engines were to be coupled (e.g the more powerful one in front in some circumstances) and actually whether you do have two engines coupled in the first place.  We'll look a bit further at that with some examples for Brent in a later post.  

 

The 1936 Instructions laid down that not more than two engines coupled could run over the following main lines -

 

London to Penzance

via Lavington, Somerton and Millbay

Via Melksham and Somerton

Via Box and Badminton (including Weston Loop) and Bridgwater

Kingswear branch

 

London to Birkenhead

Via Didcot, Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton 

 

Vi Bicester

 

London to Fishguard

Via Swindon Gloucester and Landore

Via Box or Badminton, Severn Tunnel and Felin Fran

 

Newport, Hereford and Shrewsbury

 

With the following additional restrictions

Restriction of speed to 20 mph either side of Bath station

 

Restriction of speed to 15 mph over the Royal Albert Bridge in all cases. Two Red group engines not permitted to run coupled over the bridge, Red group engines may only be assisted by engines of the 4-4-0 33XX and 34XX classes or engines of the yellow or Uncoloured groups. Only one engine was permitted to be pulling while passing over the bridge.  The Royal Albert Bridge Instructions were altered in 1947, 1954, and yet again in 1956 to specify particular combinations of engines whuich were allowed to run couple 

 

Restriction of speed to 25 mph over the River Wye bridge at Chepstow for a single engine or 15 mph for two engines coupled and only one engine permitted to be pulling while on the bridge.  The restrictions were considerably tightened in Novemdber 1947 banning the coupling together of two Red group tank engines, restricting speed to a maximum of 15 mph, and requiring that any Red group tank engine be coupled behind the tender of any Red group tender engine.n

 

The 'Kings' were subject to completely separate Instruction and were permitted to run coupled to any tender engine except those in the Red group but 2-6-0s in the 83XX and 93XX groups were specially authorised.  Tender engines must not be coupled chimney to chimney when coupled to a 'King' and only tank engines in the Yellow group were permitted to be coupled to a 'King'.  This authority was revised in March 1937 to allow 68XX 'Grange' class engines to be coupled to a 'King'

However permission was given for any engine in the Red group (except a 'King') to assist a 'King' between Newton Abbot and Goodrington and between Newton Abbot and Devonport (subsequently altered to Keyham) but was not permitted over either leg of the triangle into Millbay

 

From December 1944 authority was given for any engine, except another 'King' to assist a King' class engine in the Down direction between Tiverton (junction) and Burlescombe.

 

These Instructions were relaxed considerably in October 1948 when authority was given for 'Kings' to be assisted by any WR engine subject to tender engines not being coupled to them chimney to chimney, and if tank engines in the Red or Blue groups were used they had to be coupled to the tender of the 'King'.

 

The list of routes was considerably increased December 1958 basically filling in gaps from the earlier list but also increasing to five the number of engines permitted to run coupled together over quite a lot of the main line network although some route sections and subsidiary routes were still restricted to a maximum of two coupled.

[bgman]

Bit off topic Mike, but I left you some "Gentlemans refreshments" earlier, enjoy your visit to Steam