D854_Tiger

The CAA's contribution to the European Aviation Safety is huge though, we are world leaders in aviation safety, and according to my neighbour, who works in the industry (pilot), enough to even maybe lay claim that possession is nine tenths of the law. The EU Safety Agency also includes non-EU members like Iceland, Norway and Switzerland. One other strength of the UK's CAA is that it is not publicly funded, unlike the EU Agency, so it's contribution would be missed in funding terms by the EU, leaving another fiscal hole. I would be highly surprised if the UK pulling the plug on the EU would ever lead to any change in the aviation sector, most especially when some of the biggest losers would be EU owned airlines, such as Ryanair, Easyjet and Jet 2.

The real fuss will be when they get round to cars and we have to drive on the right.

....... and there's nothing that says all the numbers must be the same size, when painted on a loco, so the traditional number could be in a larger type-face. Wonder how they will fit it on Clan Line though. Then it all makes work for the Hornby worker to do. I think it's called DNA.

My guess is they will carry both types of number the new one being added as an afterthought. Locomotive crews will always need something easily identifiable. I can remember even TOPs numbers being shortened on units in the past. I used to pride myself at being able to spot the number of an eleccy at 100 mph, mind you, it was TOPs that caused me to give up on trainspotting (all that translation from the old to new in the combine volume was tedious squared) and at least this scheme should be straightforward to follow for modern anoraks.

I've no doubt the EU will be claiming this proposal as its own but like so many things European the EU just co-opts them neglecting to mention that there are plenty or European nations involved in deciding these things that are not actually in the EU. The EU often doesn't just reinvent the wheel it more likely lays claim to have invented the wheel in the first place. That's why a lot of younger people believe that before the EU came along (and why we need it) you couldn't have a stag weekend in Eastern Europe yet I remember (shows age here) my first pre-Common Market visit to France was done on a passport you could buy from the post office. A form you filled in and could wave at a French customs officer (with a Gitanes on his lip) and they just waved you through, never looking, apart from the inevitable look of total disinterest. Every telecom standard there is nowadays, is a European one, but how long have we been able to make phone calls right across Europe (not to mention the rest of the world). I wouldn't mind betting even standard gauge is in a European standard nowadays and we all know who invented that (well actually we don't but you get my drift). The Remain side were quick to claim all our airlines would be grounded if we left the EU, without a deal, but the body that allocates European slots of necessity includes eight European nations that are not in the EU and also allocates slots for heaven knows how many airlines (from half way round the world) that overfly Europe and are never likely to be part of the EU. The idea we were ever going to be excluded from that was just silly and also ignored the fact that most of the biggest low-cost airlines operating here are EU owned and always likely to be. Anyway, in the spirit of entente cordiale it was us Brits that came up with '4 mm to the foot' and decided we would use 70 degrees (F) for hot and zero degrees © for brass monkey and you can't be better European than that surely.

Apparently, the original tilting requirement for 125 mph was as much about protecting Virgin from competition (they had a clause in their original franchise) as it was about the real line speed. The proof of that is the Wolverhampton - Stafford section, a conventional 125 mph railway (for non-tilting XC operation) that was supposedly never equipped with balaises for the tilting trains so it was the Pendolinos that were limited to 110 mph whereas conventional trains were not (if capable of anything faster). I'm not sure if that has since changed but last time I went that way my non-tilting Voyager certainly seemed to be hitting the full line speed of 125 mph. A far more serious implication of those go anywhere TGV/ICE/Shinkansen high speed trains though is that following completion of HS2 phase one, places like Stockport, Wilmslow, Macclesfield and Stoke should be enjoying 220 mph trains (south of Lichfield) but following completion of phase 2 of HS2, all the way through to Manchester, err .... might not. How well those places will react to losing surely most of their high speed services so the trains can be 220 mph high speed all the way remains to be seen. I believe only one intermediate station is planned between Birmingham International and Manchester Piccadilly is that correct.

My preferred method for dealing with snow is to be well prepared in advance. Middle of June - buy all the right clothes, buy the right shoes and purchase the best top of the range snow shovel you can find. In short, think ahead of the curve and before everyone else, knowing you at least will be ready when all around are not, thus ensuring it hardly snows for the next five years. A similar strategy works well for the summer, stock up in February with lots of summer clothes, designer tea shirts, the tailored shorts and most important of all the expensive designer sunglass all setting you up to be the coolest looking dude in the heat wave that is to come. Next three summers, p*****g it down, guaranteed.

I totally accept that point but, as yet, no one here has explained, in terms I could ever hope to understand, why, once the wires are up, this is going to somehow prevent a massive improvement in the level (and yes speed) of the overall service. Had the electrification run to plan, I have no doubt the new trains would not only have been matching HST times but arriving early at the terminus, with some to spare, as well. Then, one day, not that far in the future, I'm still sure they will do so. The class 800 is under powered on diesel by design, the class 802 will (presumably) not be, because the DfT and Hitachi are designing horses for courses and, thus far, all that has been proven is that Frankie Dettori isn't much good at taking Epsom Derby winners over the jumps.

The pre-engine start check list, the pre-taxi check list and the pre-take off check list, I don't know, but I do know it's been done quicker. Then some reversals at Gloucester need twelve minutes in the timetable. I'm sure there are all very good reasons why it must be so (I can even think of more than a few myself) but it all just goes to highlight how available diesel power is but one factor that determines journey times. There are other factors, like those automatic doors, which I'm sure are going to prove far more useful over both the Cotswold routes than which version of diesel engine they have fitted. I occasionally use the Worcester line and watching a five foot three female train manager cope with all those slam doors on a busy HST, at every shack, and you are watching someone earn every penny of their crust and bearing a safety critical responsibility to go with it. I reckon her working life just a got a little bit easier at least.

Well, in my line of work (IT), I tend to view problems as the things that keep me in work. Plenty don't of course, despairing with their heads in their hands, but they always seem to be the kind of people that would prefer a job, where they don't have to do that much, and exist in some kind of delusion that someone will always be there to provide it. As I said before, on the Highland Line, it's just one train a day, full of people that if they were in any kind of a rush would have already been at the airport. Then the idea a whole new train fleet design should have revolved around that one service strikes me as ...... As with any service improvement, targeted at the majority of passengers, there are always going to be some losers (ideally small in number) but when has it ever been any different. Put it this way, thus far, if the worst criticism of the class 800 that can be found to throw at it is the Highland line it can't be doing that bad.

Whichever way you choose to look at it, it was always going to be the case that the entire GW timetable was going to be recast eventually, such that the HST timetable and its timings are destined to be tomorrow's chip paper. The doubling of frequency on the core route, the reintroduction of fast (limited stop) trains to both Cardiff and Bristol (and via Parkway), I suspect that decision has already been made, otherwise what is the point of new trains and all that electrification. There is a problem in the short term with class 800s having to run significant distances on diesel power, when they should rather be running under wires, but clearly someone at the DfT has decided GW are just going to have to live with it, then why not, similarly on the EC where the delays have even led to a complete franchise renegotiation. It all comes down to the delays in the electrification, in the end, not the shortcomings (or otherwise) of the new trains. Presumably the class 800 is working out of the box, as specified (I've read nothing to the contrary), and that does mean reduced power on diesel. However, apart from the short term issue, I'm still struggling to understand how this is any kind of a problem or how, in the end, it is going to be a significant showstopper in providing what will surely be a massively improved service. Unless that is you are a regular commuter between Stroud and Kemble (and there must be loads of those) that must endure an extra three or four minutes (presumably, I know not) because their HST has been replaced by an IET but then at least half of those regular commuters will be getting an IET, vice a class 150, and whichever way you want to write that up, it can't be as bad.

That problem was always going to exist, even with the HST operated London train. The current Virgin EC Inverness train is a 2+9 set, the new Scotrail trains will only be 2+4, lightning quick by comparison. Whichever way you could choose to look at it, the entire timetable is going to have to be recast north of Edinburgh, that's if the super power aspect of the new shorter HSTs is to be exploited.

Three or four class 800 trains per day to Aberdeen and one to Inverness on routes that are about to otherwise become super HST operated. So a small number of trains may be slower north of Edinburgh (though noting the London trains all make fewer stops than the internal services, so maybe not) but overall the PAX should experience a transformed service. GW class 800 running on reduced diesel power will primarily affect the Worcester route, the Cheltenham route, the Bristol (via Bath) route and Cardiff to Swansea. As far as the Worcester route is concerned, the HSTs already have bloated timings (or fewer stops) over other types, to allow for their longer station dwell times, a particular problem over that route with busy slam door trains and next to no station staff to help out the lone train manager. Cheltenham with a class 800, yes I see that problem over Sapperton, however minimum eight minutes to reverse a HST at Gloucester suggests no one has ever been in a hurry on that part of the GW and the new trains should be quicker to compensate between Swindon and London. I cannot comment on the impact of the reduced class 800 diesel power over the Bristol via Bath route, only to accept that presumably the problem exists, however would point out that the eventual GW IET timetable will send the fastest limited stop Bristol service (one per hour) via Parkway (only five miles or so on diesel) and likely make one via Bath service per hour limited stop also. Again Swansea to Cardiff will presumably be slower (but by how much) and after leaving Cardiff it's going to be electric all the way and the Swansea service will surely be one of the services (two per hour from Cardiff) chosen to be just two stops after Newport. I don't deny the class 800 diesel power problem, just struggling to see how it's significant and is going to be any kind of a big deal, most especially for the PAX, who for the most part are only going to experience considerable improvement over their existing services. If indeed your average normal even notices the new trains, trust me, I've seen some try to get on steam charter trains and not notice the difference. OK the new trains may present the timetable planners with a few headaches, here and there, but that's their job, so presumably a nice problem to have. Ultimately the class 800 should and will be judged by their electric performance, not short bits of country end diesel running, or a few longer bits of diesel running just a few times a day. Remembering that many times in the past, it has been proposed that the North of Edinburgh trains could (should) be a lot slower, as part of the XC franchise and to improve their usefulness, considering the largest proportion of the passengers don't go all the way to London and given that it's mainly been politics that keeps those trains the way they are. For many years, the Inverness day train was the Clansman, via the WCML (even including via the West Midlands) and in no particular hurry and arguably a much more useful service.

Captain Deltic

I'm not sure of the extent to which Cardiff - Swansea ever was on the cards or might still be (eventually). Swansea could though still benefit from the accelerated electric timetable east of Cardiff and the fewer stops planned between there and Paddington. As for Inverness, a sluggish IET is just one train a day amongst what will be an otherwise super HST timetable (2 + 4) instead of the current class 170 timetable. I would call that a nice problem to have.

The Woodhead route was a magnificent engineering achievement, so good it would seem to be a shame to waste it and plenty despair that it is so. Trouble is, Woodhead was built to solve a problem that no longer exists and, despite extensive searches, no one really seems to have found another problem to which it could be the solution.

Why would you want to do that? There seems to be an assumption at large that class 800s are under powered when running on diesel. This is an incorrect assumption, the more correct assumption is that the class 800s are under powered when running on diesel but only when using diesel when they should rather be taking electricity from overhead wires. This problem is being addressed (eventually) in other ways that does not involve diesel power. In the meantime, it would appear that the DfT has already decided that GW will have to put up with this issue rather than providing the short term (expensive) fix of increasing the diesel power.

Speaking personally, I've still not got over the class 50s displacing the Westerns. Then I don't think the HST was **** just because it displaced the Deltics but, let's put it this way, I reckon class 666 would have been a more appropriate designation for a Demon Seed.

One consequence of HS2 (phase 1) is that a fleet of 220 mph High Speed Trains will be ordered to operate over HS2 and to be capable of continuing their journey over the existing WCML north of Lichfield. I have not heard tilt mentioned (nor do I anticipate it) but this will mean 220 mph trains between London and Lichfield (over HS1) continuing their journeys to the North West and Scotland over the WCML at the reduced speed (by today's standard) of only 110 mph.

The new Blackfriars station, which now extends across the bridge, is very nice.

Back in the days of loco haulage, there were two incidences of timetables (that I'm aware of) which featured regular doubled headed workings in order to achieve accelerated timings (rather than just getting up a big hill). A 2 x Warship timetable between London - West of England and 2 x class 50 timetable Crewe - Scotland. In practice what kind of difference to the schedules did a two locomotive timetable make, over a single loco, assuming the loading was not increased after the decision had been made to double head. Were there any other incidences of whole timetables being given over to this kind of thing.

The Yanks mostly eat the freshly prepared version flavoured with all sorts that can involve anything from maple syrup to wondrously fragrant herbs and spices guaranteed to blow your head off and quite possibly (likely) provide a whole day's supply of fat and calories in just one portion. Their tinned version contains twice the sugar (corn syrup) to our's but you can also get our version of tinned beans, imported from the UK, just about everywhere. A case of selling sand to the Arabs.

Beans, beans, they're good for your heart The more you eat them, the more you fart, The more you fart the better you feel So eat your beans with every meal.

Wales.

I suspect it's one of those things that has been around for so long and in so many variations it defies definition but I do have a thing about baked beans being included, an American import, they themselves use more to accompany barbecues than breakfast.